I can feel my familiars racing through the yard, and I run my thumb over my fingers, conjuring strings of magic. I release it right as my familiars shadow around Bael. The strings of magic wrap around his neck, scorching his flesh.
“Give it up,” I say. “There are more of us than there are of you.” I flick my eyes to Lucas, seeing that he’s almost pulled himself free. Kristy is hanging upside down, thrashing against the roots wrapped around her ankle. I have to get her down now, before all the blood rushes to her head.
Bael’s eye flash yellow, and his thin lips pull up into an amused smirk.
“You didn’t think I’d come alone, did you?”
Demons emerge from the forest, eyes black as the night. We’re surrounded, outmanned, and outnumbered. We might have a chance if it was just the demons alone, but pair then with Bael and we don’t stand a fucking chance.
“By sunrise, my demons will have taken over, and every little thing, every last person you love, will be ash and bone.”
Chills run through me, and I have no idea what to fucking do. Bael has command over several legions of demons, but so does Binx. We could have an all-out war, with both legions of demonic soldiers clashing against each other.
And even still, it would be too late.
Bael is here, now, and he wants to watch the world burn.
“Hold her down,” he orders two of his demons. They stride forward, black eyes haunting in the dark. The demons are possessing human bodies, and there’s a chance the human soul is still inside, being forced to watch from the inside every single thing the demon does. Humans can’t survive demonic possession for long, and if I want to save them—and the whole fucking town—then I have to act fast.
Pandora and Freya rush forward, knocking both demons off their feet. Bael picks up the jar and unscrews the lid. He reaches inside and pulls out a knife. Thick blood runs down the blade, and his eyes fill with hunger. Two more demons take the place of those who fall, and Binx goes after them.
Bael continues forward, blood dripping from the knife down onto his hand. Lucas fights against the roots binding him to the tree. Kristy madly reaches for the roots around her ankles, and finger-like vines spread over her body, threatening to tighten around her throat and squeeze the life right out of her.
The jar of blood falls from Bael’s grasp, and for a second, I think Binx was able to attack him. But Bael keeps walking toward me, brown robe swishing around his feet. This whole time I was thinking it was a potion I was going to be forced to drink, but I was wrong. The dagger Julian took from Bael was poisoned, just like the knife he’s holding right now.
It’s then I realize he’s not just trying to bind my powers, but kill that side of me. My humanity is my weakness, the part of me that he can exploit and use to his advantage. I’m vulnerable as a human, able to be possessed and controlled.
And he couldn’t be more wrong.
I’m half human.
Half angel.
Able to walk in the light and heed the call of the night.
And the last thing Bael expects.Chapter 40I close my eyes, knowing I’m going to have to reach down deeper than I ever have before. I can fight back against everything Bael throws at me, and maybe I’ll win. But the cost is too high, and the hits will keep on coming.
Sirens echo in the distance, and I know sending demons into Thorne Hill was no threat. They’re here, in my town, hurting the people who I love. I will not allow it. They’ll destroy the town and everyone in it, and I have to act fast. There is no time to waste, and I don’t see any other way to stop Bael. He’s dangerous enough as he is right now…if he’s able to get possession of my body and sit on the throne, it won’t just be the end of Thorne Hill, but it will be the end of the world.
You’ve got hellfire in you, kid.
They say when you can’t beat them, join them. But I can do one better: I can rule. Hell has no leader, and every demon is clamoring to get their hands on the throne, yet only a few have found loopholes like Bael did.
But none of them will see this coming.
I ball my fingers into fists, feeling the ground vibrate beneath me.
Sky above me. Earth below me. Fire within me.
“Stop,” I demand, and my eyes flash blue. The demons walking toward me come to a sudden halt, and Bael’s arm falters, but only for a second. He tips his head in Lucas’s direction, and a pointed end of a root stabs him right in the center of the chest.