Wicked Road to Hel (League of Guardians 1)

Cale ignored his outburst. “Bill sent you?” At Declan’s nod he continued, “And you would defy him?”

“Bill gave the boy a protector. He doesn’t want the council to get their hands on him, either.”

“A protector?”

“A vampire.”

Cale’s eyes narrowed but he remained silent.

“It’s the right thing to do. I will not hand him over to certain death.” Declan widened his stance and drew his shoulders square.

Cale frowned. “Death will follow him. You know this.” His eyes strayed back to the teenager. “But I agree. It seems cruel to destroy something before it’s had a chance to mature. To shine.” He flashed a wicked smile. “Besides, if the mark of seven turn to the dark side we can always take them down later. There is no expiration date when someone has been marked by the Seraphim.”

Declan turned to the teen. “It’s nearly sunrise. We need to get you back before Ana freaks.”

“Ana is the vampire?”

It was Kaden who answered. “So what are you exactly?”

“That, my friend, is a question for another day.” Cale looked at Declan. “You got a plan?”

“We’ve snagged us a necromancer and she’s tied to Samael.”

“Samael?” Cale laughed softly. “Son of a bitch. He’s topside?”

“He’s not made an official appearance yet but he’s close by. We’re hoping the woman will be able to point us in the right direction. Ransome has her at the Voodoo Lounge.”

Cale snorted. “So you don’t really have a plan.” It was a statement.

“Nope,” Declan answered.

“Excellent.” Cale smiled and started forward. “I’m hungry. You guys have eggs?”

The first rays of light were just beginning to ride the horizon when they returned to the mansion. They stopped in front of the gate and Declan glanced at Kaden. “His body signatures need to be woven into the spell or he can’t cross. Have you ever done that?”

Kaden shook his head. “No.”

“You wanna try?”

Kaden hunched his shoulders forward and stuck his hands in his pockets. “Sure.”

Declan glanced at Cale. The Seraph watched the boy closely. He turned back to Kaden. “All right. You need to visualize his energy.”

“How do I do that?”

“Concentrate. Open up your mind.” The teen closed his eyes and his hands fell from the pockets of his jeans as his body relaxed. “Feel it, every single nuance that makes him different from you, from me, from Ana. Can you see it? In your mind?”

Kaden nodded and the boy’s fingers shook as his power unfurled. “This is so freaking cool,” the teenager whispered.

“Yeah, you won’t be finding this shit on the Internet.” Declan smiled and moved closer to the teenager. “Now once you have his signatures memorized you need to draw them into the charm. Layer them in amongst the magick.”

Declan watched in silence as Kaden’s hands drew intricate designs into the air. Energy flew from his fingers, lighting up his work briefly before it disappeared.

He glanced at Cale and found the man watching him. Their eyes connected and Declan’s jaw clamped down tightly. He would not let anyone harm the teen. That was both his promise and his mission.

“I think it’s done.” Kaden’s eyes flew open and the excitement that shone from within them was contagious. His cheeks were flush and his breaths were ragged.

“Are you sure?”