Unchained (Nephilim Rising 1)

She realized a second too late that he didn’t know any better. Trained to fire a gun when his life was threatened, it had to be hard for him to overcome the logic behind it. He squeezed off a round and bull’s-eye! The bullet struck the one on the steps right between the eyes.

She cringed inwardly, crouching. This wasn’t going to be pretty.

And she was right.

The minion roared to life, charging the steps two at time.

She launched herself at him, managing to block his attempt to rush past her. They crashed into each other, slipping down a step or two in a tangle of leather and pressed khaki. When the minion reared back, she twisted out of his grasp. The light from the bulb above caught the glint of silver in his hand. It wasn’t that he had a blade that jolted her into action. All of the minions had some sort of weapon. It was the intricate writing scrolled on the length of the blade that made her take notice. It was just like hers, which meant it could kill her.

Not having time to consider where they might have gotten their grubby hands on a Nephilim blade, she sank hers deep into the minion’s flesh. His weight fell against her. “Ugh,” she grunted.

Michael came down the steps two at time, plucking the minion off her. By the time he heaved the creature over the railing, the face had already begun to disintegrate.

She passed him a thankful smile. “Two down…”

Michael’s lips twitched. “One more to go.”

She snatched up the blade the minion had held and turned back to William. Three more deadheads surrounded him. And they were all brand spanking new to the world of possession. How many human lives were wasted tonight?

“Kill her,” William ordered coldly.

All three lifted their heads, stares fixed on Lily. Normally, she would have happily gone after all three and William, but there was Michael. The deadheads were surely a decoy to get to him. They would keep her busy enough so William could go for him. Michael’s aim had drastically improved, but William was strong and smart. She didn’t believe Michael was ready for that.

“It’s your lucky day,” she announced. Not giving either one enough time to figure out what she was doing. She pivoted and grabbed Michael’s hand. “Come on!” Pulling him behind her, she raced up the stairs.

“We’re running?” He sounded shocked.

“I can’t let them get you. That’s Willy boy’s plan.” She rounded the eighth level. “They’ve got a hard on for you, boy.”

“Why are they coming after me?”

She passed him a dubious look over her shoulder. “You seriously have to ask that—really?” She rounded another level with Michael on her heels. She let go of his hand, grabbing the railing. “You’re an adult Nephilim who has no knowledge of what he is. They will either use you or kill you.”

He shifted and was at her side. “It can’t be true.”

Irritated by him and the fact she was running up the stairs, which had to be her own personal Hell, she fought the urge to backhand some sense into him. They rounded the last landing, and she reached for the door.

Sickness crept over her. The tremor that ran through her was different than the tingling the minions gave off. She faltered at the door to the rooftop. “Michael?”

“Yes?” He was right beside her, eyes narrowing as he studied her face. “What is it?”

She backed away from the door. Where in the hell is Luke? She needed to get Michael out of here. Now. There was no more time. On the other side of the door was death, and below them were William and his crew.

They had been trapped, and she had run right into it.

She cursed under her breath, looking around wildly. The only way out of this was going through William and his minions.

“What is it, Lily?” Michael asked as he kept his gun cocked and ready. He took a step closer to her. “Lily?”

She turned to him with wide eyes. “If I tell you to run, Michael, you run. Don’t ask why, and…please listen to me.”

“Bullshit.” The tips of his cheekbones flushed. “I’m not leaving you.”

She grabbed his free hand once again, dragging him back down the steps, hearing the sounds of a scuffle and William cursing. Then the unmistakable fleshy smack of a body hitting the ground and then another.

“Lily, you up?” Luke called out from four floors below.

Relieved, she opened her mouth to respond but was cut off. Turning, she felt her heart drop as the door above them swung open. At once, she twisted and leaped in front of Michael, forcing him behind her. “Michael, please listen to me.”

A cold laugh echoed around them, etching its way down her spine. She shuddered once. The smell of sulfur filled the cramped stairwell. Her step faltered a bit as she clenched the railing tightly.

She paled as he came into view, her heart sinking. Rage and fear swirled inside her, making her dizzy. His name came to her lips, blistering them. “Baal…”

Chapter Nine

There was a wild, instinctive part of Michael that realized whatever was coming down the stairs was far worse than what waited below.

Lily whirled around in front of him, her face washed of color and eyes wide. “Run!”

He wasn’t used to taking orders from just anyone, but the fear in Lily’s voice propelled him forward. He’d only known her for twenty-four hours, and during that time he’d seen her do things without so much as a grimace that would have made a seasoned officer cringe in horror. Now, she was scared—visibly so. Although he knew this, curiosity was far stronger than any ounce of common sense. As Lily dragged him down the stairs, he hesitated.

And looked over his shoulder.

A man dressed all in black stood above them. It wasn’t the impeccable line of his designer suit or the trendy cut of his black hair that gave Michael pause. The man called Baal was absolutely stunning. Inherently, he knew this thing was an angel. No mere mortal could have such a perfect visage or eyes such a brilliant, unnatural blue.

His sudden lack of movement must’ve thrown Lily off-balance because he felt her stumble over the next step. Whipping around, he saw her arms flail as she tried to catch herself. “Shit!” He reached for her, but it was too late.

Her fall was thankfully short-lived, but her temple cracked off the handrail. She slid down the cement wall, seemingly stunned.

“Lily!” he roared. He felt the stare on his back like hot coals. “Shit—Lily!”

Climbing to her feet, she swayed a little. “I’m…fine.”

Baal laughed. “The great Lily taken down a step or two? I think I may have seen this before.”

Michael wrapped his arm around her waist, holding her steady. “Come on.”

She pressed the palm of her hand against her temple, wincing. “Go, Michael. What are you doing? Go now!”

“My little Lily pad,” Baal murmured, slowly advancing down the stairs. His smile never reached his eyes. “How is that leg of yours?”

She lifted her head. “Doing just great.”

“Really?” he asked. Baal slid one hand idly down the railing. The yellow paint cracked and bubbled under his touch. Tendrils of smoke wafted into the air. “I do believe I left my mark behind.”

She swallowed as she lowered her hand and turned to Michael. “Don’t let him touch you, whatever you do.”

Holy shit. He couldn’t stop staring at the paint.

Baal simpered. “Don’t go and ruin all my surprises.” His gaze slowly drifted over them.

Lily backed up, and Michael edged along with her. Her arm quivered against him, and he thought it was fear, but the firm set of her lips told him different. A heat wave of rage radiated from the tiny thing.

“You do realize if you run I will catch you,” Baal sneered. “We did have so much fun before. I so loved hearing your screams.”

Footsteps pounded up the stairwell. Luke’s head came into view. “Sorry, I got hung up on… Oh shit.”

Baal spared Luke a glance, his full lips twisting. “I bore of this already.”

Suddenly, Lily shifted and pushed Michael toward Luke. A silent message passed between the two, and Luke grabbed his arm.

“Damn it all to Hell, Lily!” yelled Luke over his shoulder as he dragged Michael down. “Fall back! Fall back!”

“What the fuck?” Michael tried to pull from Luke’s grasp. He wanted to get Lily between them. It wasn’t right she was bringing up the rear with that…that thing behind them. “Get Lily out of here! Don’t worry about me!”

She pushed on his back. “You’re an idiot!”

Michael continued to protest, but the smell of sulfur increased, and his eyes burned. Gagging, he felt her push on his back harder. He stumbled but regained his footing. Then, over the pounding of his heart, he heard her gasp.

And then, she started screaming. The kind of screams he’d heard on calls involving shootings and stabbings. Whirling around, his heart stopped.

Lily was on her knees. The fallen angel—Baal—had her by the forearm. Sadistic pleasure washed over Baal’s face. Burned flesh overcame the smell of sulfur.

Swearing vehemently, Luke pushed him out of the way. “Lily!”

“On your knees?” said Baal with a chuckle. “Once again, I find this all so terribly familiar. And a bit cliché.”

He saw Lily lean forward and place one hand on the floor just before a flash of light went up through the stairwell, blinding him. A second later, the light cleared. The impact had sent Baal several feet up the stairs, and Lily had her forehead pressed to the floor, her arm cradled to her chest.

He started forward but came up short. Someone had already reached her side. It wasn’t Luke.

It was a man with shoulder-length blond hair, tall as a mountain and built like a brick house. His features rivaled those of Baal in terms of the inhuman level of beauty, but they were obscured as he swooped down and picked up her crumpled form with surprising gentleness. He placed Lily on her feet and gave her a slight push. “Go. I will give you enough time to escape. Go.” Then the stranger turned to Baal with a sardonic grin. “Old friend, we meet again.”

Baal stumbled to his feet, his hands curling into fists. “This is getting repetitive, Julian. Have you forgotten what you are? Who you serve?”

The man laughed as he shot up the stairs, grasping Baal around the throat. “I serve no one.”

The entire building shook as the two creatures slammed each other into the wall of the stairwell. Plaster and dust rained so heavily that it looked like snow.

Luke grabbed Lily’s uninjured arm. “Let’s get the hell out of here before they bring the building down on us.”

Her head bobbed weakly, and she looked over her shoulder once more before Luke pulled her the rest of the way. Michael hated that as injured as she was, they were herding him to safety.

Once outside, they slowed as people began spilling out of the apartment building, concerned and curious. Police sirens could be heard in the distance.

A little boy latched onto his mom’s hand and kept pointing upward. “Ma, look up. Ma!”

Michael followed the boy’s chubby finger, spotting the Fallen called Julian and Baal on the rooftop before they disappeared back into the night sky. Damn, that would be hard to cover up.