A murky fog clouded my rational mind, and I obeyed. I thought back to the Diablo in the woods as it had approached me with malice on his face. I remembered how Boaz had slammed into him, killing him within seconds. I was glad he was dead. He deserved it.
I inhaled deeply, letting hate for the Diablo fill my being. The smell in the room changed to that of rotten flesh, but I didn’t waiver. I pushed my consciousness to the forest beyond and searched for the rotting creatures. Not far away, I found them moving sporadically in jagged, circular motions. There was no order to their movements, yet their graceless march slowly moved closer to the house. There must’ve been fifty or more.
I let out my breath and opened my eyes. The room was darker than I remembered, and the colors were dull, as if I’d entered a whole new world.
“There are so many of them,” I whispered, grimacing from my new surroundings.
Boaz removed his hand from my collarbone. “I knew you would see them.”
“Why is the room so dark?” I asked.
“It’s the reflection of true power. Get used to it.”
“I don’t like it.”
Boaz spun me around. “Right now I don’t care what you like. I need you to be strong to get out of here. You’re going to have to fight.” He took my hand and pulled me from the room.
Fight? I’d never fought anything before—not physically, anyway. Boaz’s pace was so fast I barely managed to keep my footing. “But aren’t you strong enough?”
“Not like you.” He continued to pull me down the long steps to the foyer. My wrist ached from his tight grip.
“Please stop, Boaz. I don’t want to do this!”
He didn’t slow down. “Look outside, Eve. The sun’s light will weaken me—not much, but enough that I can’t fight them all alone. At least help me to save your life.”
I tried to resist his grip, but he was too strong. He jerked me through the front doors and flinched when the light from the morning sun touched his skin. He lowered his head and continued to drag me toward a black car parked in the circular driveway.
Boaz opened the passenger door. “Get in.”
I hesitated a moment before I slid into the passenger seat. I wanted to leave this place more than anything, but I was terrified to fight those creatures. The only way I could do it was if I used magic.
Boaz rounded the car and jumped in the driver’s seat.
“I can’t do this, Boaz.”
“Do what?” he said, bringing the car to life.
“Use magic. I won’t do it.” I didn’t want to smell that horrible smell again or watch the world go dark, even though by now it had mostly returned to normal.
“You’d rather they kill you? Kill us?”
I glanced around frantically. “Can’t we go another way, by horse maybe? We could go around them.”
Boaz clenched his teeth. “It doesn’t matter where we go. They will find you. You must fight them now. They must see your power.”
Tears sprung to my eyes. My chest tightened, and my breathing went sharp. “I can’t do it!”
Without warning, Boaz grabbed me behind the neck and pulled me toward him. His lips crushed mine, and his tongue forced open my mouth. An uncontrollable rage swelled inside me until all I could do was force the power outward. The windows of the car shattered into a thousand pieces.
Boaz released me. “There. That’s more like it.”
Then he stepped on the accelerator, propelling the car forward.
Chapter 7
I gripped the side of the door, knuckles white, and struggled to breathe. The world had darkened again, and a bitter, rotten smell stung the inside of my nose. A dark magical power, more than I could contain, bled from me as an invisible force, turning the trees black the moment my gaze touched them. I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths, trying to go back to an emotionless state. Some of the anger left but not much.
Air blew in from the glassless window, whipping the hair around my face. I opened my eyes. Boaz was looking straight ahead with grim determination, yet he was smiling as if he knew something I didn’t.
Boaz careened the next corner, the back wheels of the car skidding out of control. He quickly turned the steering wheel the opposite direction, forcing the car back on the road.
“They’re up ahead,” I said, sensing the presence of many Diablos.
“I will try to get through them, but if they attack us, you must fight to kill.”
My stomach sunk to a place it wasn’t meant to be, and it was all I could do to keep from vomiting. “I can’t kill.”
“This is to save your life! These demons will not take pity on you. Kill or be killed.”
Fear replaced my anger, and I half-considered jumping from the speeding car to run away, all the while knowing I would only make it so far before the Diablos caught up to me.
“Hold on!” Boaz said.