Blood Summoned

by N. P. Martin

  Blood Summoned

  (Ethan Drake Book 2)

  N. P. Martin

  Dark World Press

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental

  N.P. Martin

  Blood Summoned

  Ethan Drake Series Book 2

  Copyright © 2019 by N. P. MARTIN

  info@npmarin.com

  Cover design by Original Book Cover Designs

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Contents

  FREE BOOK

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  MAKE A DIFFERENCE

  TEASER: BLOOD MAGIC (WIZARD’S CREED # 1)

  TEASER: NEPHILIM RISING SERIES

  Books By N. P. Martin

  About The Author

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  1

  The darkness in the forest was absolute. Dense, dark clouds covered the moon, allowing not a chink of light to penetrate. The wind rustling through the tall trees and the ever-present chorus of crickets and owls had been a constant for the last two days now.

  That and the sound of Haedemus’ voice, which hardly ceased, despite how many times I’d told him to put a fucking sock in it.

  Didn’t he ever go hunting in Hell? I asked him, to which he replied, of course he did, but added that it didn’t matter about staying quiet because there was usually nowhere for the victim to run, and most prey in Hell didn’t bother running anyway out of pure apathy.

  “Though I must say, Ethan,” Haedemus said as I rode him through the forest, weaving in and out of trees, his step assured on the sometimes steep and rocky slopes. “This little trip has been enjoyable so far. It’s been a nice change of scenery from that dreary city you call home. Although, this place does remind me of the Suicide Forest in Hell, only without all the self-harmers everywhere and their sad faces. Fuck, how I hated those suicidal bastards and their pathetic attempts at killing themselves, feeble attempts that were always doomed to complete failure. I mean, as soon as they died they just came right back again, always with the same look of despair on their stupid human baby-faces.”

  “Like the look on my face,” I said. “From having to listen to you this whole fucking time.”

  “Admit it,” he said. “You enjoy my company, don’t you? Why else would you take me along?”

  “As I already told you, you’re just a means of transportation. I thought it would be easier than walking.”

  Haedemus snorted. “Whatever, big guy. You can’t hide your feelings from me. I can feel us getting closer with every step.”

  “Yeah, we’re a real walking, talking buddy movie you and I.”

  “Your sarcasm is not lost on me, Ethan,” he said. “And neither is your ironic use of the term ‘buddy movie’. I know what a buddy movie is, you know.”

  “Do they have a cineplex in Hell? I never knew.”

  “No, but thanks to many, many damned souls and their continued obsession with pop culture, I was able to glean the finer plot points of many movies. They sound fun, I have to say. Maybe we could watch one when we get back from finding this person you’re after out here.”

  “Sure,” I said, keeping my focus on my surroundings. “I’ll bring the popcorn.”

  “Fuck off, Ethan,” he said, a sour tone to his voice. “You don’t have to ridicule everything I say, you know.”

  “Why not?”

  Haedemus snorted. “Your mother must be so proud of you, Ethan.”

  “My mother’s dead.”

  “Lucky for her then she doesn’t have to see what a bitter cunt her son has become.”

  Giving his mane a sharp tug, I said, “Watch it.”

  “Oh, hit a nerve have I? I enjoy hitting your nerves, Ethan. I get a special pleasure from—”

  “Quiet,” I hissed, pulling him to a stop.

  “Don’t try to silence me into submission. It won’t—”

  “I heard something, asshole. Shut it a minute.”

  Off to the left, I’d heard a cracking sound like a branch breaking underfoot. Blinking rapidly three times, I activated the infrared vision chip implanted in my cornea and began to scan the forest for signs of life. Small animals glowed bright red and orange in the distance, but nothing larger.

  “It’s those damn Faeries again,” Haedemus said, his voice quieter. “They’re just being nosey little bastards, as they are wont to do. I remember them from my mortal life. Most of them are harmless, if highly annoying. Thankfully, Hell’s gates are barred to them.”

  I had to admit, I had little experience with Fae. Out of all the MURKs, the Fae kept to themselves the most, the more powerful of them choosing to remain in Faerie most of the time, where they had their own way of life and political system in the form of the Courts.

  The Wyldefae—the little fuckers who’d been following us since entering the forest—spent most of their time here in the mortal world. As Haedemus said, most of them are harmless, but some of them grow to be large and powerful beasts who use their size and strength to feed their appetite for human prey.

  It was these fuckers I was concerned about here in the depths of the forest, but as I continued to scan the area in infrared, I saw nothing larger than a deer in the far distance.

  “Ride on,” I told Haedemus after I’d finished scanning the area.

  “Ride on, he says.” Haedemus craned his neck to look at me. “Where to exactly? This woody nightmare is fucking never-ending.”

  “You said you were enjoying it a minute ago.”

  “I was until I realized I was hungry and horny. Now I’m miserable.”

  “Can’t you munch on a squirrel for now? Maybe fuck a deer?”

  “Fuck a deer, Ethan? Is that supposed to be funny? I don’t fuck deer.”

  “I forgot you only fucked dying men.”

  “I’ll fuck you in a minute, Ethan, if your cheek continues, you with your backpack full of provisions. You didn’t even think to bring me a nice liver or kidney to snack on out here, did you?” He shook his head and whinnied. “No, you didn’t, because Ethan is a selfish bastard who only cares about himself.”

  “You want a Snickers bar?”

  “No, I don’t want a fucking Snickers bar, Ethan. Shove your Snicker’s bar up your—” He stopped talking as he raised his head, his jagged ears pricking.

  “What is it?” I asked him.

  “Magic, I think.”

  “Faerie magic?”

  “No. Magic cast by a human.”

>   I stared off into the dark woods as I considered the significance of Haedemus’ discovery. If someone was casting magic this far in the forest, it had to be someone who lived here.

  Someone like Scarlet Hood.

  “Where’s the magic centered?” I asked Haedemus.

  “It’s faint at this distance,” he said. “Maybe a mile or two away.”

  “Any idea what kind of magic? Is it defensive?”

  “Hard to tell at this distance. I’ll know better when we get closer.”

  We rode farther into the dark forest, what little light there now was from the waning moon seeming to diminish as the trees grew closer together and the undergrowth got thicker. “Take it slow,” I said to Haedemus, my voice hushed. “We don’t know what we’re walking into.”

  “Maybe you should summon your Hellbastards to scout ahead, though I’d prefer it if you didn’t.” He veered right to get past a dense thicket of trees, taking us onto a slight slope that was dotted with large boulders. “I never told you this, but the smallest one—”

  “Cracka.”

  “Yes, him, he kept asking me to show him my penis while I waited outside your building. He was vulgar. I don’t know how you put up with them.”

  “You get used to them.”

  “I always hated Hellbastards. They’re Hell’s equivalent of annoying children, only worse. They try to fuck everything, and if they can’t fuck it, they eat it instead.”

  “Sounds like someone else I know.”

  “Piss off, Ethan. You humans think you’re so superior, when you are all just as bad as—”

  “Wait.”

  “What?” He came to a stop at the brow of the slope. “Ah, I see.”

  At the bottom of the slope was a large clearing, and in the clearing was a small cottage with a thatched roof. The ground around the whitewashed cottage was flat and well-tended, covered with short grass and all kinds of wildflowers. Around the side of the dwelling, I could make out that the tilled ground and the shadowy outlines of the herbs and vegetables growing in it.

  I got down off Haedemus and crouched on top of the hill, taking the high-powered rifle from around me and sighting through the infrared scope so I could get a better look at the cottage. There were no lights on, and no smoke coming from the chimney either. “Doesn’t look like anyone’s home.”

  “The whole place is warded with magic,” Haedemus said. “I’m not sure I can go near it.”

  “I can.”

  “You’re going down there?”

  “What do you think we’re doing here? I didn’t just come to sightsee.”

  “She might be waiting for you. I’d be surprised if she didn’t know you were here.”

  “If she’s here at all.”

  I sighted through the scope again, checking out the small windows at the front of the cottage. Nothing moved behind the glass. “Can you sense anyone?”

  “No,” Haedemus said. “But that doesn’t mean Miss Hood isn’t here somewhere. She’s probably watching us now from a distance. If she’s as good as you say, she probably knew we were coming miles back.”

  “Then why aren’t we dead?”

  “I’m already dead.”

  “Why aren’t I dead then?”

  “Maybe she’s just watching, waiting for you to enter her kill zone. Honestly, Ethan, if this woman is as dangerous as you say, I don’t know why you’re even here.”

  “I didn’t know you cared,” I said, still staring down at the cottage.

  “I don’t. I’m just saying. Anyone would think you had a death wish.”

  Placing the rifle on the ground, I stood and took out the SIG Sauer P226 pistol I had with me. “She’s not here.”

  “How do you know?” Haedemus said.

  “I’d probably be dead now if she was.”

  “Like I said, a death wish.”

  “Stay here. I’m going down for a look around.”

  “What for? You said she isn’t here?”

  “Just wait here. I’ll be back.”

  “Don’t expect me to follow you to Hell if you die,” he called after me in a hushed voice. “Because I won’t.”

  Ignoring him, I made my way down the slope to the clearing, staying low and keeping to cover as much as possible, finally crouching by a juniper bush as I stared over at the cottage.

  There was a chance Scarlet Hood was inside, but I doubted it. Living in the forest as she did, I’d be surprised if she didn’t have a deal going with the Faeries. They would’ve let her know about Haedemus and me long before now. That being the case, Hood probably would’ve ambushed us by now, if not killed us outright from a distance.

  If I was right about her, though, she wouldn’t kill without talking first. I didn’t think she was the monster people made her out to be. She may have been a professional assassin, but she would want to know why I was here before she squeezed any trigger. She would want to know who sent me first. That’s why I wasn’t too worried about getting killed out here.

  Besides, despite the deal I had with Carlito, I wasn’t here to kill Scarlet Hood.

  I was here to talk.

  Making my way around the back of the cottage, I stopped to point my gun at one of half a dozen shadowy figures standing by the edge of the trees, realizing a second later that the figures were dummies carved from wood, put there for target practice I was sure.

  There was a rope swing attached to an overhanging branch, which prompted a memory to flash through my mind. A memory of Callie on the tree-swing I made for her only last year, out the back of the house in Crown Point. For a moment, her smiling face was clear as day in my mind as she squealed her delight when I pushed her high into the air, Angela standing by the back door warning me not to push too high.

  Sighing, I turned away from the rope-swing just as my Infernal Itch flared up without warning. “What the hell?” I muttered as the tattoos on my arms and back began to swirl madly under my skin, their extreme agitation signaling that danger was imminent.

  Looking around, I thought perhaps that one of the bigger Faeries had followed me here and was preparing to ambush me, but after switching to infrared vision, I saw nothing in the surrounding forest.

  It was only when I turned around again did I see the grassy earth a few feet away break up and get pushed out as if something was about to emerge from the ground.

  “What the fuck is this?” I said, stepping back, my gun pointing at the broken earth, just as a massive hand burst out of the ground, clawed fingers stretching until most of an arm appeared. An arm covered in coarse hair by the looks of it.

  “Uh, Ethan?” Haedemus called from the top of the slope. “You might want to come back up here.”

  Moving quickly around to the front of the cottage again, I got there just in time to see an enormous head burst from the earth, yellow eyes glaring at me as the monster peeled back its rotten lips to reveal a pair of huge incisors.

  All around, monsters were bursting free from the earth, climbing out of their underground tombs with the express purpose of ripping me asunder.

  The few that were free stood on thick hind legs and howled into the night, making me realize I was looking at werewolves.

  Undead fucking werewolves.

  My presence here had activated Hood’s magical wards, the zombie werewolves a part of her elaborate security system.

  Clever, but also ruthless.

  “Ethan!” Haedemus shouted. “Behind you!”

  I turned just in time to see one of the newly freed werewolves come racing toward me from around the side of the cottage, barreling forward on all fours, saliva dripping from its mouth, half its face missing like someone had shot it with a heavy gauge weapon.

  Wishing I had heavier firepower myself, I pointed my pistol at the zombie werewolf and got off four shots that didn’t slow the monster down in the slightest.

  When it jumped at me, I rolled to the side, coming up to fire once more at the creature, hitting it in the head this time with another two shot
s, which did fuck all to stop it.

  I hardly had time to lament my weapon’s lack of efficacy, for werewolves were coming from all directions now.

  Dropping my gun to the ground, I reached across myself and unsheathed the heavy-bladed weapon strapped to my belt. It was one of Cal Grimes’ blades, made from folded steel, slightly bigger than a machete, curved with a jagged outside edge.

  As one of the undead werewolves reached me and took a swipe at my head, I ducked under its arm and swung the blade as hard as I could at the creature’s torso. The blade was so razor-sharp it easily cut through the werewolf’s rotting flesh. A fine testament to Cal’s skills as a forger.

  When another beast came at me straight after, I took advantage of the monster-tendons in my legs, and used their power to spring high off the ground before bringing my blade down on the werewolf’s shoulder, slicing right through it until the creature’s arm fell to the ground with a wet thud.

  But that didn’t stop my hirsute foe, who kept on coming at me regardless of the damage done to it. I soon realized that nothing would stop these bastards, for they were all dead anyway.

  But as the snarling fuckers now surrounded me, I had no choice but to keep fighting until I could escape back up the slope again to Haedemus, assuming he was still there and hadn’t run off in a panic.

  In a situation like this one where you have multiple foes coming at you from all directions, you want to be glad you still have a Combat Offense Booster fitted. It heightens your reaction time, meaning you can move about three times faster than normal for short periods, as long as the system doesn’t short out, which it had a habit of doing sometimes.