Pretty Dark Sacrifice

by Heather L. Reid

  “Do it,” Quinn snarled, and Azrael nodded. He flourished his sword, separating the demons’ essence from her father’s as he’d already done for her mother. Slash, slash, slash, the demons dissipated in a whiff of gray mist, their immortal souls no match for the Qeres poison blade.

  “Are you okay?” Reese wrapped her trembling arms around Quinn, and Quinn hugged her close.

  “Thank you,” she whispered. “For trying to get him off me.” She could feel Reese nod against her shoulder. “Did he hurt you?”

  Reese shook her head. “I know how to fall. Is it over?”

  “The Elites have managed to scatter Lilith’s forces to buy us time, but we need to hurry.” Azrael looked to the sky where the moon inched closer to the sun. “I don’t know how long they can hold them back.”

  “Okay, just let me say goodbye first.” Quinn took her brother from Marcus and patted the baby’s back. “Hi, Jake. I’m your sister.”

  “Q-Quinn?” Her mother blinked and looked around. “Aren’t you supposed to be at school?” She blinked again, free from demon influence, brow furrowed in confusion.

  Her father dropped his hand and rubbed his neck, taking a step back. “What happened to your face?” he asked, concern knitting his forehead. He reached to touch her cheek, swollen and red with welts, and although she understood it hadn’t really been her father who shoved her face into the dirt, she flinched. He cocked his head and blinked, still not fully aware of what had happened.

  She forced a smile. “It’s nothing, I tripped.” Quinn looked at her watch and tentatively handed her brother to her dad. His chubby hands reached for her, grabbing the air, a pout growing on his face. He didn’t want to leave her, and the truth was, she didn’t want to leave him either. “Don’t worry, Jake, I’ll be back.” She gave him a big raspberry on his cheek, and he giggled at her.

  “You should go inside,” Quinn told her parents, and they both nodded but didn’t move, still only ghosts of their former selves. “Really, take Jake inside, I think he’s hungry.” Quinn gently guided them into the house.

  “Wait,” her mother said. “Where are you going?”

  “School, remember?” she said as cheerily as she could. “I’ll be back soon.”

  They nodded, still dazed and confused by the ordeal.

  “What about the cake I’m going to bake you? A late birthday treat,” her dad said.

  “Cake, after school?” she asked.

  “Okay, sweetheart.” He smiled, and she cringed at the memory of inky eyes and strong arms pushing her down. “Sorry I couldn’t make it for the real day, but happy belated birthday.”

  She swallowed. “Thanks, Dad,” she forced herself to say, and then closed the door in his face.

  “Will they be all right?” Quinn asked Azrael.

  “They won’t remember, but the empty darkness inside left by the demons will take a while to dissipate.” Azrael examined her wounds and sent a wave of healing into her body, pushing the ant venom from her pores, healing the bruises, eradicating the swelling.

  “Will Jake be safe with them?” Quinn was surprised by how much she cared. Looking into his perfect blue eyes and feeling his warm cheek against hers, she had fallen for him. Her brother, and she wanted to protect him no matter the cost to herself.

  “Safe enough.” Azrael’s expression darkened. “With those two,” he added.

  “Can you post a guard?”

  Azrael nodded and two angels landed at the front door.

  “Thank you.”

  “They will do their best to keep them safe, but the attack isn’t confined. Demons are pushing forward across every tear in the veil at once. We’ve never seen such an organized attack.”

  “What does that mean?” Reese asked.

  “Yeah, why now? I thought she had to open the box or something,” Marcus said, entwining his fingers with Reese’s.

  Quinn’s heart pinched. “Is Aaron dead? Did she open the box?”

  Azrael shook his head. “No. The veil is still intact, but thin. The box has not been opened. Lilith assumes you are the sacrifice. She might be right, Quinn. We do not know anything for sure. This plan is risky.”

  “If we don’t go and she kills Aaron, the box might open. If I go as sacrifice, the box could open. Either way, there doesn’t seem to be a way to stop it.”

  Aaron was right; this was bigger than either of them.

  Chapter Thirty

  Westland had always been a beautiful place to live, with its manicured lawns, big trees, and friendly people. Now it looked like it was hit by a zombie apocalypse. Neighbors in bloodied nightgowns and ripped business suits wandered the streets in a daze. Broken glass littered the asphalt, wrecked cars steamed and wailed, and in the distance, the sound of sirens approaching.

  Quinn stared out the Jeep window as Marcus maneuvered through block after block of devastation, dodging broken fire hydrants, busted mailboxes, and people alike. Her home was a battleground. Shadows clung to the city like smog, choking out the sun and infusing the air with the smell of sulfur. The heavenly Elite forces engaged demons on the ground, in the air, on every corner, pushing them back one by one. For now, they were winning, but what would happen if Lilith opened that box?

  Marcus pulled the Jeep into a narrow back alley, gravel popping beneath the tires. Thankfully, it looked empty, almost serene compared to the rest of the streets. He rolled to a stop in back of Jeff’s house. Marcus opened the door for Quinn, and she stepped out into the chilled air and looked up at the large two-story Spanish Colonial that was her sanctuary during her parents’ divorce. A chain-link fence separated the perfect backyard, complete with pool and covered patio, from the alley. How many times had she and Jeff swum in that pool? How many dinners had she eaten there? How many movies had she watched snuggled up with Jeff on the couch? Now he was gone, and so was Kerstin.

  In her heart, she once wished them both dead at least a million times; now she wished Kerstin stood in front of her with some snide remark. Dark shapes moved in the arched windows, and Quinn shivered.

  She startled when Caleb clapped her on the shoulder. “You okay?” he asked. Deep scratches lined his skin—nail marks from Quinn’s mother.

  She nodded, grabbing the black duffle bag from him and throwing it over the fence. If she didn’t get Aaron back and keep Lilith from crossing the veil, their deaths would be the first in a long line of people she cared about.

  “Guess we should go.” Quinn looked at Reese and grabbed her hand.

  “Yeah, let’s get this over with before I change my mind.”

  “Ladies first.” Caleb boosted Reese over the top of the chain-link fence, followed by Quinn. Marcus scrambled over, along with Caleb. Azrael waited on the back porch, screen door cracked open, concern written on his hardened face.

  “Is it just us?” Quinn asked.

  Azrael nodded. “We are on our own. This attack has every spare Elite engaged. As, I suspect, was Lilith’s plan.”

  “Can’t we do it here, near the door?” Reese asked, shying away from the gloomy doorway. “I don’t think I can go in there. What if his blood is still on the floor or something? Jeff’s blood, Quinn.”

  “Quinn’s best chance of entering the Underworld is where the veil is thinnest. Where the boy’s blood was spilled, she must spill her own. Dark magic to light, the balance will open the door,” Azrael insisted.

  “Blood, demons … this is some dark stuff,” Marcus muttered.

  “The taint in this house is beyond anything I have seen before. I’ve cleared it twice since I got here, but for every demon I kill, three more cross the veil. Darkness has taken root, and even I cannot weed it out. If you want to do this, I will go with you, but the humans should go home. They will be a liability.”

  “Who are you calling a liability?” Marcus puffed out his chest in challenge.

  “Where would we go?” Reese said. “You’ve seen what those demons are doing to Westland. Azra
el’s right. There is no safe place. We’re coming with you.”

  “And then what?” Quinn ran a hand across the back of her neck. “Will the protective runes be enough?” She turned to Azrael.

  “They will help, but there is no safe place,” Azrael answered. “Not for anyone anymore. We must not fail.”

  Reese tightened her grip on Quinn. “I’m not leaving you, not now, and neither is Marcus or Caleb. Right?”

  “It’s dangerous, Reese,” Quinn said.

  “You’re stuck with us, Blondie. Whether you like it or not,” Caleb said.

  Marcus nodded. “It’s settled. We’re all in.”

  Quinn looked at her watch, and then to the sky. “Fifteen minutes until the eclipse starts.” She handed Marcus the duffle bag, and he slung it over his shoulder. “You will all need to do exactly as I say and watch your back until we get the runes drawn, and you’re safe in the circle.” She drew the Qeres dagger from its sheath and handed it to Caleb. “You’ll have to be their eyes once I enter the portal. Once I’m on the other side, they won’t be in my bubble of protection anymore, which means Reese and Marcus will no longer be able to see the demons coming. I’ll be leaving them blind and vulnerable. It will be up to you to warn them, protect them.”

  “You can count on me.” Caleb ran a thumb along the edge of the blade. It glowed in response to his gift.

  “Don’t wander off. My barrier can only reach so far.” Quinn closed her eyes and pictured a bubble of light around her. She expanded the bubble until Caleb, Reese, and Marcus’s essences were encased in light as well.

  Azrael drew both blades, one golden as the sun, the other cold as moonlight, and handed one to Quinn. “If anything so much as threatens you, don’t hesitate.” A rare smile of encouragement lit his face.

  Kaemon’s Qeres star-blade hummed in her hand, its blue runes crackled like lightning, casting an otherworldly light on the floor. She stared at it pulsing in her fist. Azrael would be vulnerable without it—his golden sword did not hold the poison that could kill, the reason he coveted Kaemon’s blade, part of the reason he took it.

  Azrael stiffened as she wrapped her arms around him in a hug. I’m sorry I doubted you. She spoke her forgiveness through their link and felt him soften.

  I’m sorry, too. He let the tips of his wings enfold her, then smiled, and let her go.

  “Okay, let’s do this.” Quinn held out her hand, and Reese took it. Marcus took hers in turn, making a chain with Reese in the middle and Caleb at the rear. “Don’t let go of my hand unless I tell you it’s okay.” They all nodded.

  “Do not fear. I will be right behind you,” Azrael said.

  The door squeaked open on its hinges. Quinn peeked inside. The windows were boarded up, and shadows grew like dark, twisted vines across the floors and up the wall of the kitchen.

  “Holy mother of God,” Marcus said under his breath. “Is this what you were dealing with all on your own? No wonder you were afraid nobody would believe you.”

  Quinn nodded and stepped into the kitchen, and the shadows parted like a curtain, shrinking back from her barrier and the light of the blade. Whispers upon whispers overlapped one another, and Quinn sensed anger and disquiet in the air. It was like walking into a pile of fire ants. The darkness was agitated, upset at her presence. This was their feeding ground; she had no right to it.

  “Something’s not right, Quinn.” Reese’s nails dug into the back of her hand, and she could feel her friend’s rapid heartbeat through her fingertips. “I feel so sad, like there’s no point to anything. Can’t we stop here? I want to sit down, to sleep or something.”

  “It’s the demons, Reese. They’re trying to get to you, to feed off any negative feelings you’re having. Think about something happy, something good.”

  Quinn felt it, too; the dark power was strong here, an oppressive weight on her chest dragging her down. Guilt and regret sucked at her heart. Her barrier winked around them as she fought to keep it from bursting under the heavy melancholy pressing against her essence. What was the point of all of this? She should give up, let them in.

  Azrael touched her on the shoulder, and some of his strength poured into her. Her shield became stronger than before. The light inside him flickered and pulsed as her shield brightened, snapping her out of despondence.

  Quinn straightened. Squeezing Reese’s hand as tight as she could, she led the way down a deserted corridor, the blue light of her sword reflecting rows of glass frames filled with Jeff’s smiling face. A face soon buried six feet under, skin brittle and cold, eyes worm eaten, flesh decayed. She shook her head to erase the morbid thoughts.

  A short hallway ended at the bottom of an enclosed staircase so narrow that Marcus’s wide shoulders almost touched both walls at the same time. Dark walls enclosed the steep wooden steps that led to the second floor. Quinn stopped on the first step and stared up the dim narrow stairway. They would have to go one at a time, Reese behind her, Marcus behind Reese, and Caleb at the rear.

  “Hold tight,” she whispered. “Don’t break our connection.”

  She couldn’t see two feet in front of her. Even the glowing blue of the star-blade couldn’t penetrate the darkness. She swallowed and took a step. The floorboards creaked, and something stirred above her. Hundreds of bat-like demons hung from the ceiling above them, wings folded against their furry bodies, talons digging into the oak beams. She turned to Reese and Marcus and pressed her finger to her lips. Five more steps until they reached the top.

  Four steps. Three. Quinn stiffened when the next step squeaked and groaned beneath her weight. Two demons opened their red, glowing eyes, and Reese screamed. Letting go of Quinn’s hand, she pushed at Marcus to get past him, and he stumbled backward and down.

  Quinn’s barrier trembled as they stepped outside her protection. Exposed, a demon wrapped its leathery tail around Reese’s neck. Reese whimpered as Marcus swiped at it, but it blinked out in a puff of smoke and reappeared, hovering above Caleb. Quinn grabbed Reese’s hand and pulled her back up the stairs, expanding the bubble of light around them again.

  “You can’t let go,” Quinn stressed. “It’s taking all my focus to keep us safe. All of it. Holding hands makes it easier, but it still takes a lot of energy.”

  “S-Sorry,” Reese stammered and nodded.

  A deep breath calmed her hammering heart. The demon hissed and rubbed against her bubble, looking for a vulnerable spot. Quinn sagged against the wall, exhaustion creeping up from her toes into her legs, but she fought against it. There was too much at stake to quit now. The light on the Qeres star-blade burned hot, and Quinn slashed out at the demon. It roared in hate, twirling out of her reach and waking its brothers with a loud screech.

  A whirlwind of wings, and fur encircled them. Reese and Marcus pushed close to her, until there was no space between them. She could feel Reese’s trembling and Marcus’s rapid breathing. Caleb stood with his back against Marcus, dagger at the ready. Rows of sharp teeth snapped at the air around their faces, talons reaching for them, but they were unable to penetrate Quinn’s defenses.

  If Quinn could access her power, she might be able to banish one, or maybe even two, but that would mean letting go of the protective bubble. She didn’t have enough energy to do both at the same time. Sweat dripped from her forehead, salt stinging her eyes. Demons poked and prodded her shield on all sides, and she was afraid one of them would find a weak spot. She held firm, concentrating all her thoughts on keeping them out, unable to move forward and unwilling to go back.

  From the bottom of the stairs, Azrael taunted the demons, brandishing his sword, trying to draw their attention, but the demons had no interest in him. They wanted Quinn, wanted to feed on the fear growing inside their little bubble.

  Caleb turned to Quinn. “They’ll follow me, right? As soon as I leave your protection?”

  “Yes, but—”

  “That’s all I needed to know, Blondie.” Before she could stop
him, Caleb let go of Marcus’s hand, and jumped down three steps and out of her barrier. Smelling his vulnerability, the demons howled and charged him.

  “Go. We’ll hold them off as best we can.” Azrael and Caleb stood back to back. Azrael’s golden blade flashed as it cut through the first beast that came at them. It dissipated in a puff of smoke and reappeared as the sword passed through it, but Caleb caught a wing with the point of the dagger and the demon howled in pain. The dagger’s poison would slow them down, but the only thing that could kill the demons would be the Qeres blade, and Azrael had given it to Quinn for her own protection. Of all the things she thought about Azrael before, selfless was never one of them. Maybe she had been wrong; maybe Aaron had too.

  “Go while they’re distracted!” Caleb called to her.

  The handle of the Qeres star-blade burned against her palm. One slice, two, she slashed out at the demons that pushed against her from above. Inch by inch, she cut their way up the stairs, the poison from the metal blade finding its mark every time and turning them to dust before her eyes.

  Reaching the landing, she let herself take a deep breath. A long hallway ran along the second floor. Inky webs crisscrossed the entire hall, each strand as thick as a finger. From behind, Quinn listened to the beating of leathery wings, more demons gathering in the narrow stairway behind them, cutting her off from Azrael and Caleb. No way out. They were trapped now.

  Quinn used Kaemon’s sword to cut through the strands of webbing. Something skittered in the shadows, the vibration on the giant web disturbing whatever had made it. Quinn swallowed, and she heard Marcus gasp.

  “Please don’t tell me those are giant spiders,” he whispered.