From the corner of his eye, he checked his men, who were locked in similar fights with the rest of her forces while cannon blasts rocked the ship beneath their feet and deafened him. Luckily, his crew seemed to be holding their own.
Good. He didn’t want any distractions. He only wanted her head on a pike.
Gadreyal tsked at him. “Be a good boy, Duel. Surrender and we’ll make it easy on all of you. Surely you want to be on the right side of the conflict again?”
“You planning to give me Vine’s throat for it?”
“You know better. I can’t do that.”
Well, that ended that discussion then. And any thoughts he had of ever switching sides.
Not that it’d really crossed his mind. He’d given his loyalty to Thorn. And unlike the others, he never went back on his word.
He swung for her head and blasted her with his fire.
Sadly, she ducked and returned with a shot of her own.
He went skidding across the deck on his shoulder. Damn, that hurt. Rolling to his feet, he shook the pain off and ignored the sight of the smeared blood he’d left behind on the boards. By God, he wasn’t about to let any sort of agony get in the way of his fight.
Or his victory.
Gadreyal laughed as she launched herself to flight and landed before him. “You haven’t asked me about your little Seraph. Have you forgotten her so soon?”
His blood ran cold at the mention of Cameron. “What have you done?”
Throwing her head back, she laughed. “I’ve done nothing. But she lacked your fortitude. Then again, most do.”
Rage clouded his sight. “If you’ve harmed her—”
“Harmed?” She interrupted him. “I made her more powerful and reunited her with her precious brother. How is that a harm? It’s what she wanted and better than you gave her.”
Bellowing in rage, he advanced on her with a renewed vigor, even though he knew it was all kinds of stupid. It was what she wanted. Only calm rationale won a fight. But he couldn’t stop the fury inside him that wanted to feast on her entrails.
Not when he was the one who’d brought Cameron into this. She wouldn’t have been near this she-bitch but for him. He was directly responsible for her.
Gadreyal tsked in his face. “Poor Duel. You can’t even sell your soul to right this. Tell me? Was your bargain worth it?”
“Release Miss Jack!” he growled between gritted teeth.
“You don’t have the power to command me.”
“Mayhap not, but I do have the power to crush you.” He blasted her and sent her reeling.
Now that made him smile.
Until she rose up in her serpent form and gathered a group of her companions to her. In a giant cloud like swarming bees, they arched before him, then tumbled down to kill him in one massive wave.
*???*???*
Mara fell to her knees as she struggled to keep the ship upright under the fierce assault. William stood by her side, driving away the Irin who was attacking them.
We’re not going to make it. She didn’t say the words out loud, but she felt them deep inside.
And it terrified her. What were they going to do? She didn’t see any way to drive the beasts back. There were just too many of them. Every heartbeat, they appeared to multiply.
While the Deadmen couldn’t, in theory, die, they could be overrun, and that was quickly happening.
“Get Mara below! Protect her!” Du’s voice was a fierce, stabilizing growl above the sounds of war.
And his words caused a surge of tenderness to rush through her as she rolled with the ship. Even now when his thoughts should be on his own survival, they were on her welfare.
In that moment, she saw him the day they’d met. Saw the look on his face as he hesitated to harm her. His dark eyes haunted and furious.
For the first time, she fully understood what Belle had told her. What the Deadman’s Cross on their arms really meant.
Blood and bone, Devyl Bane would give it all to see them safe and their souls returned so that they could have their lives back. So long as there was breath inside his body, he would fight for them.
He would fight for her.
Her gaze went to him and his battle with the one Irin who hated him most. Long before Vine had killed Du, Gadreyal had wanted Duel’s head for the simple fact that he’d shown her up and won favor in the war against Thorn and his army. Until Duel, Gadreyal had been the premier Cimmerian general in Britain. The chosen one of the ancient dark gods, and they’d doted on her for it. Yet in no time, he’d surpassed her success rate.
No one could match Duel’s ferocity.
But as Mara watched them, she saw that he was still weak from his earlier attack. Because of the conditions of his release that forbade him from consuming human blood or the hearts of his enemies, he hadn’t been feeding properly and therefore couldn’t heal as fast as he should. His Aesir lineage held certain dietary necessities that were deemed rather gory to those unfamiliar with their race. Things she’d judged him for over the centuries.
And Gadreyal knew it too. She was taking no mercy on him as she drove him back against the railing.
If they didn’t do something, Gadreyal would defeat him and return him to the hell Thorn had spared him from.
“Help him, William!”
He hesitated. “No offense, mum, but he’ll have me head if I leave your side. And he’s a mite big blighter with an awful temper. I’d rather not test it right when he’s already upset, if you know what I mean. And I’m rather fond of me bullocks. I’d like to be keeping them a bit longer, if you don’t mind.”
Biting her lip, she debated what to do. To attack Gadreyal would be all manner of stupid. Unlike her, the Irin had been born to battle. She had even more experience than Duel did.
With no better idea, Mara lowered her chin and used her powers to smack Gadreyal with the mast.
It worked. Tucking her wings down, she stumbled away from Duel with a foul curse.
Proud of herself, Mara headed for Du, intending to check on him.
She didn’t make it.
Something grabbed her from behind and sent her sprawling.…
Devyl ran as he saw the demon tackle Mara. His heart pounding in fear for her safety, he leapt for them and, while airborne, took the bastard’s head with one stroke of his sword for daring to touch her. He landed on the deck and rolled, making sure to grab Mara and pull her with him out of harm’s way.
They came to rest at the side of the ship, with her on top of him.
“Are you all right?” he breathed.
“Aye. You?”
He nodded. “Why aren’t you below like I said?”
“You know I don’t follow your orders worth a damn.”
Her teasing tone made him smile in spite of the danger they were in and undermined the anger he wanted to feel. He dropped his gaze to her parted lips and wished fervently they weren’t in battle.
No sooner had that thought gone through his mind than Gadreyal’s troops pulled back.
Shite! This can’t be good. Dreading the sudden turn of events, he rose gently with Mara in his arms to face whatever hell-storm was coming for them. He kept one arm on her waist while he braced himself.