Death of a Demon (The Dark Angel Wars 3)

bsp; “I do.” I scrambled to my feet. My friends stayed off on the sidelines, just near enough for comfort. They had their weapons at their sides, ready in an instant.

“You?” He looked down his nose at me and grimaced. “A child?”

“I’m not a child.” It was like defending myself in front of all the little old ladies at church who would peer over their glasses and tell me I was too young to know anything. “And I called you here for a purpose.”

“Ha.” Another brother stepped forward. This one was deathly pale and bone thin in a black suit, with papery looking skin. He stunk of rot and I couldn’t help but shrink as he approached. This was Prince Aita. Purveyor of disease and filth. “No one summons us. The penalty for such arrogance is death.”

I swallowed and tried to maintain my composure. This wasn’t exactly a great start.

“Your brother, the youngest Prince of Hell, has come to these woods,” I said, spreading out my arms. “He means to conquer Earth and build his forces before returning to Hell. He means to defeat you all.”

The mood shifted suddenly. The brothers exchanged dark expressions, a silent conversation flowing between them. I exchanged expressions with Adam. He had his weapons in his hands, his face tense. We were all on edge, waiting for the Princes to come to a conclusion. They had to believe me. And they had to agree to what we wanted.

Finally, when they seemed to be done communicating, a third Prince pierced me with his bottomless black gaze. He had beautiful ebony skin and wore only a loin cloth. That had to be Prince Iku.

“And what is it you hope to accomplish here?” His voice was thick and syrupy, with an accent I couldn’t place. “No one does anything for free.”

Irritation rolled off of him in waves. Like a cobra, waiting to strike, he fingered a wicked blade at his side and watched me with a passive expression. I felt Adam shift closer. He felt it too. This peace was fragile.

“Prince Seth has threatened my people.” I lowered my chin in a little bow. “I wish to save them.”

“Is safety what you desire?” Prince Arawn demanded, his voice bellowing. “Have you come to make a deal?”

“Yes. Safety is what I desire, with the Princes all returned to Hell. And one last thing.” My stomach clenched with anticipation. This was my brilliant plan, in action. No time to screw it up now. “The soul of Gabe Cael, a recent new addition to Hell’s population. I’d like him returned to his body.”

I closed my eyes to their quizzical stares. They had to agree. Of all the million of souls in their grasp, what was one less?

I couldn’t take the wait. I needed to know their answer.

The sickly touch of bandaged fingers along my cheek made me gasp and open my eyes. The final and second youngest of the brothers, Prince Han, stood inches from me. I hadn’t heard him approach. His stomach was bare, but the rest of him had been covered with linen bandages. Festering wounds peaked out between the wrappings, the smell of which made my stomach turn in my gut. He didn’t say anything. He couldn’t. When he opened his mouth, I could see the stub of what had once been his tongue. It’d been cut from his head.

“Lizzy,” Raquel cried behind me. I felt her and my friends move into gear, ready to jump to my defense.

“Stand down.” I held perfectly still as Prince Han ran his finger down my neck and over the crest of my chest. He smiled wickedly, his teeth yellow and crooked. It took everything within me to not pull away in horror.

With a heavy and rasping sigh, he turned to his brothers and nodded his head. Before I could blink, he had disappeared and reappeared next to Prince Nergel. My body nearly collapsed in relief. I never wanted to be that close to a Prince of Hell again.

“We are agreed,” Prince Arawn said. He swung a heavy looking club over his shoulder and looked over my head into the woods. “You will have what you desire. Now, where is our brother? We must return him home.”

A smile crept on my face. We had the Princes of Hell on our side. Seth would never know what hit him.

The war had truly begun.

Chapter Twenty-Three

“What do you mean, you’ve released all the Princes of Hell?”

Luke trailed behind me as I made my way to the med hall. It hadn’t taken me long to let him in on the plan. He was as thrilled as I’d expected him to be.

“If anyone can rein him in, they can,” I replied calmly. “We’ve made a deal.”

His face was white as he opened the door for me, revealing rows of empty stark white beds. The hall was eerily quiet. Most of the Nephilim were preparing for war. According to our scouts, Seth’s troops had begun to march for the manor. It was the final showdown. Their numbers had grown to over six hundred ferals, many of them human-possessed. With just short of three hundred of our own warriors, we were sorely outnumbered.

“You made a deal with the devil?” Luke asked, taking a hold of my arm. “Lizzy, tell me you didn’t.”

“It was the only way.” I took his hand in mine and pushed away the urgency I felt in my veins. “Without them, we would lose this war.”

Fear burned in his blue eyes. “Just remember my child, these demons have a way of twisting your words. They won’t give up so easily. Don’t expect them to keep their half of the bargain.”