I couldn’t just stand here. If saving Roarke—and myself—meant stealing some powers, so be it.
And maybe I wouldn’t steal powers if I killed remotely.
I raced to the car and shoved the folder with the map underneath the windshield wiper, making sure it was held down firmly.
Though my hands itched to draw my sword, I ignored it, calling instead upon the ice magic that I had stolen from the other demon. I let the magic chill my fingertips as it built inside me. When I felt like I was at max capacity—filled with icicles from my toes to my head—I threw out my hand and imagined shooting a massive icicle at the demon nearest me.
A shining spear of ice hurtled through the air, skewering the demon through the chest. My heart lodged in my throat as I watched to see if his soul would fly out of his body and cling to me like the others had.
Instead, he fell like a sack of rocks.
Fates alive, I could slay demons remotely without taking their power!
I grinned, then turned to another demon. The big, pale beast was only five feet from me and coming fast. The sword that he gripped in his hands was about four times bigger than mine, a comically large piece of steel that I was sure he knew how to use.
I called upon the ice power, throwing it at him before it had a chance to develop fully. The icicle that hurtled toward him was far smaller than the last one I’d thrown. It pierced him through the chest, but he didn’t fall. His sword arm lowered and he stumbled, but kept coming.
Shit!
I leapt out of the way, reaching for my ice magic once more. Apparently, if I wanted a nice big icicle, I had to let it charge fully inside of me, like a battery powering up. The magic swelled in my chest as the demon raced toward me. When I felt like my skin was bursting with icy cold, I threw my hands out toward him.
The icicle that shot from my palms was massive, plowing straight through his chest and out the other side. The demon that stood about ten feet behind him was struck as well. He fell, impaled by the icy spear.
Jackpot! Two for one.
I spun to find more prey, grateful to see that Roarke had killed three of his demon attackers and was finishing the last three. Bodies littered the leaf-strewn ground around us, all slowly disappearing and returning to their Underworld.
In relatively quick succession, I killed eight more demons. I had found a clever way to buy myself the time to wind up my power. Jumping and dodging only worked for so long. Avoiding weapon blows and blasts of fire magic took a toll on a girl.
“Line them up like you’re playing pool,” Roarke shouted.
I grinned, remembering my two for one from earlier. There were two demons about twenty feet away. If I moved just a bit…
I sprinted to the left, letting my magic charge as I ran. When the demons were lined up, one after the other, I sent a massive bolt of ice at them. It was bigger this time and flew with a speed that made a bullet look slow.
It punched through the first demon and straight through the second, lodging in a tree behind them.
I was getting good at this!
It didn’t take long to finish off the rest of the demons. By the time we were done, the forest around his house looked like a war zone in hell, demons of all species scattered around.
Quick as a flash, Roarke shifted, leaving behind his half naked, dark gray demon self and masquerading as a normal guy in jeans and a black jacket.
I wasn’t sure which I liked better, to be honest.
“Hurry,” he said. “There’s no telling when more will show up. I think our proximity to the portal made it easier for them to sense you.”
The reminder made the glow of victory fade and my stomach pitch. He was right. The demons would keep coming, over and over. Even though I could now kill them, I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life fighting demons the moment I stepped out of my house. And if they showed up at the wrong moment, they could kill innocent people or those I loved in order to get to me.
I hurried to the car, taking the map off the windshield, and climbed in.
Roarke took off, driving like it was the Indy 500.
“It’s getting worse,” he said. “More demons every time.”
“Yeah.”
“Think your sisters will have any ideas?”
“I hope so.” I played with the twin lucky pendant around my neck, regretting the loss of the other. “We’ve managed everything before this.”
For good measure, I knocked on my head.
“Anything this bad?”
I thought back to the last few months, during which Cass, Nix, and I had come face to face with the Monster from our past. “Yeah.”
He glanced at me. “No wonder you’re tough.”
“Honestly earned.”
We reached the factory district in no time flat, and Roarke found a spot right in front of my green door.
“I need to change and get a bag from my place,” I said. And if I was being honest, I wanted to get another lucky pendant. Probably switch this current one for another, since things hadn’t gone so great while I’d worn it.
Roarke followed me up the stairs to my place.
“Stay here.” I pointed to the living room, then darted into the bedroom.
It didn’t take me long to dig out a small bag. I was about to duck into my trove to get a different lucky pendant when a knock sounded at my apartment door.
“Del!” Cass hollered at the top of her lungs.
I heard Roarke open the door for her and knew she’d bust into the bedroom any second. Now was not the time to let myself in to my trove. And if I was being truly, totally honest with myself, the lucky charms were a crutch. I was clinging to them because I had no control over anything else in my life.
I spun and hurried out into the living room.
Cass stood in the middle of the room, wearing her usual fitted, brown leather jacket and jeans. “Well? Any luck with Dr. Garriso?”
“No. Where’s Nix and Aidan?”
“Aidan’s got some work to take care of. Nix is at P & P, getting coffee before she starts at Ancient Magic.”
“Let’s go. I need to talk to her.” I headed to the door, then pulled up short. “Damn it, I shouldn’t go to P & P. I need to be in a place blocked from demons. And I don’t want to draw them to the cafe.”
Fates, this sucked.
“Ancient Magic fits the bill.” Cass glanced at her watch. “Nix should be back there any minute. Let’s meet her down there.”
“Great.” I met Roarke’s gaze.
He nodded, then led the way down the stairs to the street outside. When I reached the door, I hesitated, peering out.
Looked normal. No demons in the park or hiding behind cars. It was only a matter of time though.
I darted out and turned left, slipping inside Ancient Magic behind Cass. Roarke followed. The place looked so normal, cluttered with artifacts and rich with the signatures of various spells. While I felt…not normal. Not even close.
The door opened behind us and I spun.
Nix stepped in, her cheeks bright from the cold and a paper cup clutched in her hand. “How’s it going?” she asked. “Any answers?”