“The heiress to hell? What is that supposed to mean?” I growl in distaste and drop the sword.
“Every thousand years, the devil chooses one special demon of high power to become a part of an elite army. It is said that he wishes to choose a demon child to share his blood with too; a child to become like his own. That child would be forced to learn the hardships of life until it is finally ready to fulfill its destiny. The destiny begins once the child finds its way to the flaming sword.”
“Why do you have the sword?”
He finally stands as my anger subsides. “I was chosen to guard it until the demon child came.”
“Why would the devil have an interest in me?”
I’m no one, nothing; just a werewolf demon who wants to save her family.
“Uh, I don’t know. It’s maybe because you’re a soul killer demon?” He shakes his head before he continues. “Now pick up the sword, Celeste.”
“No, you pick it up. I want nothing to do with that thing!” I back away.
“I can’t. Once the sword has found its owner, it will sear the flesh of anyone or anything that tries to hold it.”
I look from the sword to him and then back to the sword.
“Fine,” I grumble and bend down to pick it up.
Once the hilt is in my hand, the sword begins to glow again, only brighter. The markings spread to my arms once again and disappear under the sleeves of my shirt. A burning feeling begins to crawl up my back. It starts off light, hardly there, until it becomes more prominent and I’m falling to my knees in pain.
A scream rips from my throat. Moments later, everyone in the house comes rushing to me. Zeke holds them back when they try to step forward to help.
“Stop!” he orders. “The sword is branding her as its owner.”
One of the guards announces that he will be calling Austin.
A few minutes later, the pain subsides, leaving me drenched in sweat and panting.
“What just happened?” My voice cracks and my throat becomes sore as I try to speak.
“Let me see your back,” Zeke says.
I do as I’m told and then I hear Cal’s gasp.
“What?” My voice comes out a little more solid than before.
No one answers. Instead, the sound of a phone’s camera going off is the only thing I hear before Jack holds it in front of me.
In the picture is what looks to be a tattoo of angel wings that cover up some of the scars on my back. Most are still visible, considering the middle part of my back has no part of the tattoo covering it.
“Is that going to be there forever?” I turn to Zeke.
“Yes, but unlike the mrkings on your arms, it won’t disappear, and everyone will see it, not just demons.”
I nod slightly, not really knowing what to say.
“Austin is on his way.” One of the guards comes back into the room. “And he’s pissed.”
“Shit.”
CHAPTER 28
|celeste|
“Celeste!” It’s the booming voice of my oh-so-lovely mate.
I growl out in annoyance before motioning for Jack to help me from the floor. Once he makes his way towards me, I drop the sword still resting in my hand.
I wince a little at the rawness and pain in my back as he lifts me.
“Take me downstairs.” My voice is a tired whisper as I struggle to keep my eyes open.
He complies.
As I’m being carried, I can here Austin’s hurried footsteps around the house. I catch sight of Austin’s tense figure when we enter the living room. Clearing my throat, I successfully gain his attention.
“What’s up?” I play it cool, grateful that my voice came out normal.
“What happened?” His voice is deep and threatening, showing that his wolf, Ezekiel, has control, which is bad because it’s rare for an alpha to lose control of his wolf.
“Put me down,” I whisper to Jack.
A second later, my feet are on the hardwood floor, and I’m walking slowly towards my mate.
“Ezekiel, can you calm down for me?” I say sweetly, but it still doesn’t calm him.
“I want to talk to Cat,” is all he says.
“Why?” I step away from him and cross my arms.
“She won’t lie to me.”
I laugh, a snort leaving my mouth. “Oh honey, she’s the one more likely to lie, and she’s actually good at it.”
He gives me a half-hearted glare and stands his ground.
I huff out in annoyance, but I do as he says, letting Cat surface.
|cat|
A smile crosses my face as I take control from Celeste. When Celeste is in her right state of mind and emotions, I’ve never been allowed out this much. It’s exciting.
“Hello love,” says Ezekiel, and that’s when I notice him in the room. He must be the reason why I’m allowed to surface.
“Ezekiel,” I breathe his name, and I go to him for a hug. We’ve only talked during the mate bond. He hugs me back, and the tension starts to dissipate from him.
“Why am I out?” I ask as I pull away.
“We need to talk. Is there somewhere private we can go?” He looks around, eyeing all the people around us.
“Zeke?” I call.
“Yes, Cat?”
“May we borrow your office?”
He gives us a curt nod, and I smile in gratitude.
“Follow me, Ezekiel.”
I grab a hold of his hand and drag him along the hallways. I make sure to take the sword from its case before we continue to the office.
“What is that?” he asks.
“I’ll explain everything when we’re alone.”
After that, he stays quiet. It doesn’t take long for me to find Zeke’s office. Once inside, I set the sword on Zeke’s desk and head towards the couch with Ezekiel.
“What did we need to speak about?” I tilt my head to the side as I study his face. It’s like stone; no emotion whatsoever.
“You need to come home.” His statement is simple and leaves no room for argument, but I am never one to back down.
“We can’t. Celeste wishes to stay here until she finds our family, and I will not go against her wishes.” My word is final with a threat underneath my tone.
“But we need you, and you need us. The nightmares will only get worse and both of our mental health will be affected.”
“I’ve dealt with nightmares my whole life. As for my mental health, well, that’s already pretty unstable.” I giggle at the end of my sentence, thinking about how crazy everyone believes me to be. “Surely you’ve heard the rumors that I was sent to a mental hospital when I was three.”
Of course, this rumor is fake, but nobody needs to know that.
“Yes, Cat, I’ve heard all of the rumors about you, and I don’t believe any of them.”
“Not even the one where I’m related to the devil himself?”
He scoffs. “Of course not. That’s impossible.”
He shrugs the question off like it’s the craziest thing in the world. I snicker and stand from the couch, making my way to Zeke’s desk where I laid the sword.
“Well, you’re wrong. It is possible because I am. That’s where this baby comes in.”
As soon as my hand wraps around the hilt and the sword is lifted from the table, it ignites that beautiful blue.
“What does that have to do with you being related to the devil?”
“Well, you see, this is his sword. It was placed in my grandfather’s care until the chosen child crosses paths with it and retrieves it. I am that chosen child, and only I can wield it because I share his blood.”
He blinks once, twice, and three times before he finally opens his mouth. “What?”
“You heard me. I’m not repeating it.” I gently place the sword back down before sitting next to him again.
“So, Satan is what, my uncle in-law?” he says, dumbfounded by the information given to him.
“I guess…yes.”
> “This is crazy,” he whispers.
“Well, I’m crazy, so it only makes sense that my life is full of crazy stuff too. You didn’t have to accept me as your mate, you know.” I say in a matter-of-fact tone.
He gives me a harsh glare and a growl. “Don’t say that.”
In response, I hold my hands up in surrender. “I was kidding.”
An uncomfortable silence fills the room, and the urge to bolt overcomes me. A chill runs down my spine as a feeling of dread settles in the pit of my stomach. Something bad is going to happen.
Just when that thought crosses my mind, the glass window behind us shatters, and I’m immediately pulled to the floor by Austin. He lays on top of me, stopping the glass from hurting me too bad as all the windows in the room begin to shatter.
Once everything settles down and it’s nothing but quiet, I roll out from under Austin and jump to my feet. I make my way to the first window that broke to see three figures in black running towards the woods.
“Check on everyone downstairs. I’m going after them.”
Before Austin can even register my words, I jump out of the third-storey window.
“Cat!” I hear him call after me, but I’m already on my feet and running.
I shift and begin my chase. I always did love a good hunt.
CHAPTER 29
|cat|
I howl in joy as I chase down the three men ahead of me. It’s been so long since the last time I had fun like this. Excitement courses through my veins as I think of all the fun things I could do to them.
They’re not innocent. I can smell it. The blackness in their souls has worsened from all the horrible things they’ve done.
A fierce growl leaves my lips as I catch one and toss him against a tree. One of the others falters in his steps while the other just keeps running. I stare at the boy. He is assessing his colleague who is passed out by the tree, no doubt deciding whether he should help or not.
He’s young―too young.
“Why are you among these men, pup?” I ask after opening a link between us.
He seems startled by it, his doe eyes becoming wide and filled with fear.
His soul doesn’t stink of malice like the others.
“You’re an innocent?”
“W-what?” he manages to stutter out.
I shift, growing frustrated by the way of communication I’m being forced to use. The boy looks away as I stand there, my messy hair falling down to cover my front.
Thank the goddess that Celeste didn’t cut it.
“Look at me, boy.” My voice is hard and commanding, power seeping through, which forces him to look up. “What’s your name?” I start off simple, trying to gain his trust.
“Allen.”
I nod approvingly and smile kindly. “Good. Now, how old are you?”
“Sixteen.”
He’s a child, just a child. Why would a child be with these men? He’s not like them, I can tell.
“Why are you with these men when you’ve caused no harm in this world?” I ask, shock clear in my voice as I stare at him with pity.
“I have to,” he whispers.
“Why?”
He gulps nervously and begins to fidget.
“They make me.” His voice is low to the point where I can barely hear it.
“Who?” I am more pressing and demanding this time. I want him to respect my authority
He is about to speak again when a silver arrow shoots through the air and pierces just above his heart.
He stands there, mouth agape and eyes wide, before his legs give out. I’m quick to catch his body. I stay on the forest floor as he lays across my lap.
“S-save him,” he gasps out the words, blood spilling from the corner of his mouth.
“Who?”
“My brother. P-please. He’s j-just a child,” he croaks. “He’s only six.” Tears flow from the corner of his eyes. “Protect him, please? Protect him like I couldn’t.” He struggles to get the sentence out without a stutter or wince of pain.
“Shush.” I stroke his hair as I feel tears form in my eyes as well. This time is different from the other times I’ve cried. This time, I let the tears fall. I don’t hold them in.
“You’ll be okay. Just save your energy.”
He chuckles lightly, only to start coughing up blood.
“I’m dying.”
It’s true. I don’t want him to think about it, but he is dying. His light has just been stolen at such a young age.
He can’t heal, not with the arrow still in his chest, but we can’t remove it either. With how close it is to his heart, he’ll bleed out before the healing process even begins.
The snap of a twig causes me to turn my head to the side, a growl ripping from my throat as I cling to the boy, protecting him from further harm.
It’s the third man.
The man in front of me holds his bow aimed at me, a silver arrow ready to be fired as his face shows no signs of remorse for killing an innocent. He’s done this many times before. That’s when I catch scent of his soul. It’s dark, so dark. It is worse than the unconscious man behind me. That man, while evil, is nothing compared to the man in front of me.
My rage takes over, and my mind thinks of nothing else but ripping this man’s throat out as I place the now limp body of the boy gently onto the cold forest ground. I stand slowly, my fangs extending as I growl at the man. He doesn’t even flinch, and that makes me even angrier.
He should be cowering as he stands before me for I am his end. I will be the one to take his last breath as he pleads for my torture to stop.
My vision turns red as I take slow menacing steps towards him.
“You’re not scared easily, are you?”
He stays silent.
“Don’t worry. I’ll have you cowering in fear and begging for mercy once I have my hands on you.” The words were mixed with a growl at the end as I spring at him, ready to sink my claws into his flesh.
Instead, I fall backwards as I scream in agony at the pain flowing through my shoulder. The bastard shot me with a silver arrow, but I don’t let it stop me.
My small and slender fingers wrap around the silver. The sizzle of my flesh can be heard as it burns against the offensive material while I rip it out. The man looks surprised as he takes a step back, reaching for a new arrow.
I stand once again, dropping the silver that’s burning my fingers to the bone. He shoots another at me as I run at him, but I dodge it.
I get close enough to pounce and so I didn’t hesitate. I tackle him to the ground, striking him across the face with my claws.
“You will pay for what you’ve done!” I yell into his face, knowing my eyes have turn to that endless pool of black with the gorgeous red ring in the center.
Then it happens. That fear that I so desperately want to see flashes in his eyes before leaving less than a second later.
“Stop it!” I wrap my hand around his throat, squeezing just hard enough for him be on the edge of passing out due to the lack of oxygen.
“Show me your fear!” I squeeze harder as he begins to thrash under me, his hands prying at my wrists and looking for a weapon.
I’m too focused on trying to find his fear that I don’t notice he’s found one. It’s the arrow he was preparing to shoot at me, the one that I knocked out of his hands when I tackled him.
He stabs it into my side. Warmth oozes from the wound as blood begins to trickle out.
“No,” I whisper as he knocks me off and runs away.
No one’s ever gotten away.
How? How could I let this happen?
I lay on the ground as I touch my wound and pull out the arrow.
If it didn’t hit anything important, then I should heal rather quickly.
Can silver even kill us? We’re part demon, a thing with no known way to kill. Maybe it can only harm us, not kill us.
I become hopeful as thoughts of Ezekiel and Austin flood my mind.
I can
’t die. He’ll go insane and his pack will crumble. His pack. He’s spent so long to make it the best. It can’t perish. I haven’t even met his parents or all of his members.
“They’ll probably fear us.” Celeste’s quiet voice echoes through my mind.
She must’ve just awoken after being forced into the back of our mind from the shift.
I chuckle at her words. We’re possibly dying and she’s worried about the pack possibly hating us.
“Everyone fears us.” The lace of sadness in her voice has my laughter halting. This is my fault.
Celeste used to love meeting new people and making friends. It made her so happy, but I made them all cower away. I made them fear for their lives whenever she walked into a room. I took away her happiness, forcing her to be alone for so many years.
“I’m sorry, Celeste. I should’ve been a better wolf to you.”
She sighs, and I can already tell she’s going to try to make me feel better. She always does.
“You did the best you could, considering what we were put through at such a young age. You were forced to protect me as best as you can, but it came with consequences, and I’m okay with that.”
“Maybe it’s best that you lock me away.”
She’s silent for a few minutes.
“I’m sorry, Cat. I shouldn’t keep you locked away inside. You’ve always just been so angry all the time and I was scared. I was scared that, one day, the last piece of you that held sympathy and kindness would just disappear and you’d do something horrible.”
I chuckle at that.
“Everything I have ever done was for our protection. I mean, I could’ve made some better decisions, but I just couldn’t stand the thought of the people who’ve harmed us, and so many others, being out there.”
“Well, some of them are still out there, Cat, like our parents.”
“I know, Celeste.” Why is she bringing this up now?
“So…why are you just laying here? You’re the strong one, the fighter. Get up and fight.”
“I can’t. It hurts to move.” I look over to the arrow I pulled from my side. The silver is doused in my blood with the tip chipped off. “A piece of the arrow is lodged in my rib cage.”
The Devil's Daughter: A Paranormal Romance Page 13