And they smel ed like rotten eggs. No, they smel ed like four-day-old powdered eggs that had been left to mold in the August sun.
Or Bubba’s shoes . . .
Their stench was so pungent, it was al he could do not to heave.
Caleb turned to fight them. They swarmed over him like the birds in the old-timey Hitchcock film. Nick couldn’t even see the outline of his body as they took him down.
Terrified, he fel back deeper into the drain, out of their sight.
Pul ing the sword out, he whispered a prayer for some serious divine intervention.
The sound of wings beat against the night like a thunderous heartbeat. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he considered his options. He couldn’t see much of anything in the darkness.
If he went out there to run, they’d see him and swarm him too.
Gah, what do I do?
“Nick?”
He froze as he heard his mother’s voice and what sounded like her sobbing. It’s a trick. There was no way she could be here. None.
“They’re hurting me, baby. Help me. Please!” It’s not her. It’s not her.
But what if it was?
What if it’s not?
He put his hand on the cel phone, tempted to cal her and see. But if it was a trick, they’d hear him.
What do I do?
He tightened his grip on the sword as he heard something crawling along the ground outside. It sounded like it was coming closer. He looked down at the bright ruby in the hilt and hesitated. This was his only weapon. If he lost it, he’d be completely at their mercy.
No, wait …
He had something else that might help. At least he hoped it would. Pul ing out the book, he crouched low with it and used his cel phone as a light so that he could see the blank pages.
Repeating what Ambrose had shown him, he pricked his finger with the dagger and let his blood fal on the page.
“What are these things after me?” he breathed.
His blood drew a picture of them that was even uglier than what he’d glimpsed. Then words appeared underneath the image to explain what they were. Taahiki demons. Third subculture with limited powers. They are fetchers sent in to retrieve objects and creatures for their masters. In this case .
. . you.
“How did they immobilize Caleb and Alex?” Beneath the picture, another image appeared. This one was a smal medal ion that was highly ornate. Once again, words appeared. Star of Ishtaryn. Demon kryptonite. Will weaken and cage any demonkyn who comes into contact with it, which includes half-breeds such as you.
And it’s not good for werebeasts either.
The book had some serious attitude.
“So what do I do?” Nick asked it.
The blood crawled to the opposite page.
When all is said and all is done,
The best thing for you to do now is to run .
“Run” appeared as a giant, jagged word. Nick slammed the book shut, put it in his pocket, and did exactly what it said. He tore out of the pipe and hesitated as he saw the remnants of Bubba’s SUV. Please don’t be dead.
He barely had time to finish that thought before the demons saw him and reversed course. With a shriek, they turned like a flock of birds and came for him, wings flapping. He shrank the sword and put it in his pocket. With his head down low, he ran with everything he had.
For several minutes he seemed to be making ground.
Then, just as he was sure he’d escape, they dropped and shoved him hard. The motion propel ed him forward, to the ground. Nick cried out as his shoulder and arm hit the street.
The pain was so severe that for a moment, he thought he’d pass out from it.
Run! The word screamed through his mind. He pushed himself up, but the demons hit him again and again across his back. This time, they stabbed him with their talons repeatedly until the pain overwhelmed him.
Don’t pass out. Don’t you dare.
But it was too late. His sight was already dimming. The last thing he saw was Bubba’s SUV bursting into flames and exploding.
Then everything went black.
Nick came awake to the worst pain imaginable pounding through his skul . He felt like someone was clawing out his right eye. How anything could hurt this bad and not kil him, he couldn’t imagine.
Then he heard the faint sound of a little kid crying. Blinking open his eyes, he realized he was lying facedown on a cold earth floor in a tiny cel . The crying came from a boy around the age of ten who sat in a corner with his legs pul ed tight to his chest. His brown eyes swam with tears as he sobbed against his knees.
“Shhh,” Nick breathed. He didn’t want the kid to be upset.
But more than that, he didn’t want the sound echoing through his head.
The boy looked up as he sniffed back his tears. “Are you going to hurt me?”
Nick started to tel him only if he kept crying, but luckily he caught himself before he traumatized the kid further. “No. Are you Madaug’s brother?”
“You know Madaug?”
“Yeah.”
“Is he okay?”
Nick grimaced as more pain laced through his skul . “I have no idea. Have you seen him?”
He nodded. “They brought him in here when they took my mama. Then they locked me in here and haven’t been back.