“Just lock the door?” Chael asked.
“No,” Deven said. “Unlocking the door wouldn’t be too hard. Let’s destroy the weapons.”
Destroy the weapons? What were they talking about?
“I like this idea,” Chael said. “Destroy the weapons so they can’t use them.”
Oh. I crouched again, ignoring the rage building in me demanding I jumped out of my hiding place and kicked their butts. However, they were three deities and I was a tiny human. They would kick my butt. I prayed for Micah to wake everyone and come back soon.
“Hey,” Eklan called. “Some swords are missing.”
“How?” Chael asked.
Then silence reigned and I held my breath afraid they would hear my heart beating out of my chest.
Metal scrapped as they picked swords from the wall and pulled them from their scabbards.
Careful not to make a sound, I dropped three of the four swords I had in my hand, gripping the remaining one tight.
As soon as my pinky closed around the hilt, Chael and Eklan jumped to my sides, flanking me.
“Gotcha,” Chael said, a naughty shine in his eyes.
I stood, willing my expression to mask my feelings.
Deven pointed his sword at me. “Let go of your weapons. All of them.”
Slowly I squatted, pretending to drop my sword on the floor. Taking a deep breath, I grabbed another one with my left hand, whirled back—just as Deven’s sword fell where I was—and swung both swords, grazing their tips against Chael’s and Eklan’s legs.
Both of them staggered back hissing.
The three Death Lords lunged at me. I sidestepped behind another piece of gym equipment, jumped over a bench, and ran to the door.
Someone threw their sword at me, and I saw it just in time, turning my body to the side. The sword grazed my arm. I flinched but didn’t stop. Panting, I reached the door and ran out and into Victor.
Sensing what was going on, he closed the door behind me and locked it. He took one of the swords from me, grabbed my hand, and we ran.
“Where are the others?” I asked, out of breath.
“Waking the rest.”
“Micah sent you after me?”
Victor nodded and pulled me to a stop before a corner. He glanced around it and cursed.
“Demons,” he mouthed. “They are searching the rooms.”
I glanced back to the end of the hallway where the locked door wouldn’t hold the three Death Lords for long.
The exit of the building, the stairwell that led outside, was on the other side of the same hallway, but everyone else was still in the back beyond the demons.
Victor looked again. “I see Micah at the other end of the hall.”
“We have to fight our way to them then.”
Victor nodded. “On three,” he said. “One, t—”
“Three,” I said, running around him and into the hallway with a bunch of demons.
Cursing, Victor rushed behind me.
For a moment, the demons seemed surprised, and past them, Micah seemed furious, with his black eyes fuming.
Before the demons could react, I grabbed a dagger from my waist and threw it to the back, in an arc above the monsters. As I expected, Micah jumped up and grabbed the dagger in the air. Then I threw another, and he caught it the same way.
A demon swiped its claws at me. I parried it, drawing gooey blood from its thick skin. When it raised the other claw, I spun to the side and pulled my sword up, leaving a long slash on its chest. I kicked the creature out of my way as another demon came at me.
One good thing about fighting in a narrow hallway was Victor and I didn’t have to worry about more than one or two demons at a time. I could do this. I could fight one at a time.
However, on the other side, Ceris and Izaera didn’t have much space to use their magic. Pink bolts flew around, then green bolts, then pink bolts, but never the two colors at the same time. Even so, the sea of demons diminished.
I used my sword to parry an incoming claw. Another big hand full of talons came at me, and I ducked under it, taking advantage of my position to pierce the creature from below.
Beside me, Victor wasn’t doing badly either. Actually, he was faster and more elegant than I was, and that inspired me to try harder.
After we battled a couple of demons each, I could see more of Micah. He was still behind six or seven monsters. He had a dagger in each hand, and his movements fast and precise, his eyes holding a predatory shine.
Besides the lethal stance, he looked badass. It was beautiful to watch. I could stare at him like this for hours. I could stare at him for hours—and days.
Until a hand clutched my throat and pulled me backward.
A scream ripped from me and, by instinct I thrashed against the hold. Someone else grabbed my arms and twisted the one with the sword until I yelped and lost my grip.
“No!” Victor yelled.
Beside me, Eklan pierced half of his sword’s blade into Victor’s back.
I screamed. With a loud groan, Victor arched his back and fell on all fours.
Oh, God.
“Levi!” Ceris shouted. A pink bolt zipped above his head, exploding on Eklan’s chest and making the Death Lord stagger back.
She fought the remaining demons with new energy.
Chael held up a sword and looked past my shoulder to Deven.
“Finish him,” Deven said.
Chael nodded. He turned to Victor and lifted his weapon above his head.
I kicked him, and he staggered over Victor, losing the grip on his sword and falling to the ground.
“Bitch,” Deven said. He tightened the grip around my throat. I jerked, but he passed a heavy arm around me, keeping me still. Limping, Eklan approached us. He took a dagger and placed the tip to my chest, just as Chael stood up, aiming his sword at Victor.
“Say goodbye to this world,” Chael said.
“You too,” Eklan spat to me.
I closed my eyes.
The tip of the dagger pierced my skin and then cut to the side as Eklan fell, a dagger in his throat.
My heart hammered in my chest, and I gaped at Eklan’s collapsed body.
I stripped my gaze from the body and glanced to the side. From above the demon he was fighting, Micah had thrown one of his daggers. He disposed of the demon and turned to Deven.
Grunting, Deven let go of me and faced Micah. Weak and gasping for air, I dropped to my knees.
I looked up, remembering Chael had been about to kill Victor. Thank the Everlast that Ceris had gotten to him in time, and now she held Chael to the wall, squeezing his throat with magic.
Meanwhile, Morgan and Izaera rushed to Victor and me. Zelen stayed behind with Keisha, helping her walk through the mess.
“How are you?” Izaera asked.
“I’m fine,” I assured her. “Victor ... help Victor.”
She turned to him. He had fallen to the floor, blood oozing from the wound on his back.
Someone knocked into me, and I glanced up.
Micah recovered from a punch, rubbing his chin, and then he charged Deven again.
“How is it? To have your own kind betray you?” Deven provoked him. “Oh, wait. You know how it is. You betrayed your own kind.”