“Get back.” Leander reached out with one long arm and yanked her behind him.
Araminta hated the fact that she was unarmed. She didn’t have a gun, nor did she know how to use one even if she had. But she did have kitchen knives. She scurried into the kitchen, keeping one eye on what was happening behind her. The knife block sat on the counter and she drew the largest one, gripping it in her hands. “You better be worth the money I paid for you.”
She was about to head back to the other room when a thought occurred to her and she grabbed the reminder of the knives and shoved them into the oven. Better to be safe than to let one of the other knives fall into enemy hands.
The entire living room was almost lost to the black hole. It had grown much larger in the past few seconds. Red eyes glowed from the depths of midnight and the air filled with a pungent burnt smell that had her wrinkling her nose in displeasure.
Leander stood still as a statue, sword arm raised and ready. His other hand had morphed into a large claw-tipped paw, which she had to admit was more effective than simply using a knife. Those lethal claws meant he could really take a nice-size chunk out of his enemies.
Her bloodthirsty attitude surprised her. But then again, when a girl was fighting for her life her priorities changed. She was glad to have Leander on her side, even if she wondered if it would be enough.
“Stay behind me.” He kept his voice low and calm even as the first creature stepped out of the void.
Araminta swallowed hard and her knees went weak. She forced herself to straighten them but took a step back when a second demon appeared quickly behind the first. Shit, these guys were big and ugly and ready to fight. One of them opened his mouth and roared. Spit flew from his mouth and spattered onto the floor. The wood began to sizzle and burn. Crap, there had to be some kind of corrosive property to his saliva. Not good. Not good at all.
Leander attacked immediately, which wasn’t easy given the small space. The demons were as large as he was, and there were more coming through the black swirling circle. Swords clashed and sparks flew. Leander thrust one demon up against the wall. The picture window shuddered and photographs fell from the wall, the frames crashing onto the floor.
The fighting was fast and intense. There were now four demons in her home, and Leander was holding them all off at once. This was so unfair.
Leander raised one large booted foot and hit one demon in the stomach. The demon crashed into one of her bookshelves and tipped it over. Books and trinkets flew everywhere.
Not her books! They were her most treasured possessions and she had to fight the urge to try to gather them up and move them to safety. Paper and ink, that’s all they were. She could replace them when this was over. Not the ones her grandmother had given her as a child, the voice in the back of her head taunted. They were one of a kind and very precious.
Her television went flying and she ducked as it barely missed her head. It shattered into several large pieces. No loss there. She’d needed a new one anyway.
She realized she was practically hyperventilating and forced herself to take a deep breath. Leander was a fighting machine, keeping all the demons back, but their sheer numbers and the fact he was protecting her meant he wasn’t able to kill any of them.
Just when she thought it couldn’t get any worse, two more figures stepped out of the void. Araminta’s blood ran cold as she got her first glimpse of the one in the fancy suit. These weren’t demons, but she was very afraid she knew who the first man was, no, not a man, a god. If she wasn’t mistaken, that was Hades himself.
She tightened her grip on her knife, not really knowing what good it would do her against the Lord of the Underworld, but it was better than nothing. Hades jerked his head at the man slightly behind and to his left. He was tall with jet-black hair that hit his shoulders and eyes as dark as midnight. He was wearing boots and khaki pants and a skintight T-shirt that stretched at the seams. He was big and broad and, when he looked at her and smiled, it sent a chill down her spine.
Mordecai. Had to be. He was exactly as she’d described him in the first book. This was the warrior who’d killed the woman who’d freed him and then joined up with Hades.
Leander released an ear-splitting roar and attacked with a vengeance. One demon lost his head before he could move out of the way. The demon’s head bounced to the floor, leaving a slimy trail of blood and brain matter. The wood sizzled and burned.
With the area so tight and space at a premium, there was little room for the three remaining demons to maneuver. She noted with a sneer that Hades and Mordecai stayed near the portal opening where it was safest. Cowards.
Leander kept the demons blocked in as best he could, but one of them managed to slip around him and came straight toward her. He was huge and wearing some kind of leather armor. She didn’t want to speculate what kind of creature the leather was actually made from.
Araminta kept moving away from the grotesque creature until she hit a wall. She had two choices. She could run and hope she stayed alive or she could stay and fight and probably die.
Leander ducked under a demon, stabbing him in the stomach where the breastplate of protection ended just above his waist. A quick twist and he pulled his sword arm up, slitting through the leather armor and opening the demon from navel to throat. Demon blood and guts spilled everywhere. Leander’s chest and arms were covered in blood and burns where the demon’s spit had hit him. Their blood burned too. He had to be hurting, but you’d never know it from the fierce gleam in his eyes. He caught her gaze and roared. “Run!”
Araminta half-turned to escape out the back door to freedom but couldn’t make herself do it. If she left Leander alone in this fight she’d regret it for the rest of her life. Better to take a stand with him than to run.
The demon was smiling at her and she hid her right hand behind her back, concealing the knife as best she could. Her only hope was to surprise the creature. He stalked toward her with a smile on his face. She shuddered at the display of black gums and rows of sharp teeth. He’d tear her to pieces if he caught her.
Her chest heaved as she struggled to take in enough air. Her limbs felt weak, but determination flooded her. She would not let Leander down.
The demon rushed at her, arms raised, sword outstretched. He struck out, his blade cutting through the air as she ducked beneath his arm. Being short was an advantage in this situation. She jammed the sharp carving knife into the creature’s belly as she’d watched Leander do to the other demon and yanked upward. Her blade met the edge of the armor and went no farther. Her kitchen knife was no match for the demon’s armor and nowhere near as strong as Leander’s sword. Knowing she was in trouble, she yanked out the knife, avoiding the worst of the spray of blood and guts. But some of it hit her and she winced as her skin began to burn.
The demon let out a roar and fell to its knees. It glared at her, death in its gaze as it dragged itself toward her. Her arm and hand were burning from where the creature’s blood had hit her. Crap, it hurt. Tears filled her eyes as she twisted on the kitchen tap and stuck her hand, knife and all under the stream of water. It helped soothe the burning sensation a little so she no longer wanted to scream aloud with pain.
The creature was on its hands and knees, crawling faster and getting closer. She pulled her arm from beneath the spray, prepared to defend herself once again.
The demon sprang at her, and she dropped to her knees and scuttled away as fast as she could. Her attacker hit the counter hard enough that he should have been knocked unconscious. But no such luck. The creature fell but shook his head and picked himself up again. This guy just wouldn’t die.