Melusine spit my blood at Ceff and raised her blade a foot above his chest. The bitch was going to kill us both, but first she’d make me watch as she cut out my boyfriend’s still-beating heart.
No way was I going to let that happen. I gathered my anger to me like an old friend. I wasn’t going down without a fight.
My skin flashed warm, then molten hot and began to glow. The cold slush in my veins was replaced by liquid fire. The sparks of light that I’d mistaken for the beginning signs of unconsciousness gathered around me in a burning cloud of light—and power.
Fire rushed through my body to burn away the venom’s deadly chill. Energy poured into me as I drew power from the wisps that had come to heed my call. With renewed strength, I pushed myself up into a sitting position. I slid my last throwing knife from its sheath and pinched the blade between the fingers of blood-slick gloves. I held my arm straight and raised it above my head. In one lightening fast move, I flung my arm forward and released the blade.
The knife struck Melusine between the eyes.
I gasped. The blade shouldn’t have flown true. I hadn’t been standing in a proper throwing stance and my gloves were slippery with blood and other fluids.
Melusine dropped the blade from her hand and toppled over, a surprised look on her face. Part of her large body fell atop Ceff and I tried to rush forward. I had to make sure that Ceff was all right. A seven foot tall lamia was no lightweight. I staggered toward Ceff, but the strength that had filled me seconds before was gone.
I fell to the ground beside Melusine’s discarded blade, vision fading. As I began my descent into the oblivion of unconsciousness, or possibly death, I sent up one last prayer that Ceff had survived.
The last thing I saw as sleep pulled me under was my own reflection in Melusine’s blade—my eyes glowing like the sun.
Chapter 24
Nightmares tore at my mind—rats drawing blood, children dancing hand-in-hand with the dead, Marvin’s cry of warning, the whip-fast lash of a serpent’s tail, and fangs dripping deadly venom. The images burned like the fever raging through my body. I was caught in a typhoon of fear and fire, not sure if I’d ever find my way home.
In the distance, a man held a lantern aloft to guide my footsteps. If only I could find solid ground beneath my feet. My boots made a sucking sound with each step. The bog was pulling me under, trying to swallow me whole.
I took a step forward and plunged into cold water. I held my breath and struggled to find my way out. When my boots hit something solid, I kicked and thrashed. My head broke the surface and I coughed up foul tasting water, gasping for air.
I spun in a circle, blinking water and mud from my eyes as I searched for the man and his lantern.
I thrashed my arms and legs, struggling to escape. Water weighted down my clothes and mud sucked at my limbs. I lost sight of the lantern light as my world was consumed by darkness and the nightmares that linger there.
Chanting and incense joined the images of my dreams and I floated, helpless, like a leaf on the surface of a raging river. I was caught by the currents of my fevered mind, condemned to smash against the rocks of my fears and memories.
Was I dying? If this was death, I wished it would get on with it already. I always thought that death would bring an end to the nightmares, but this world in between the dead and the living was even more frightening than my life had been.
If there was a chance at living, I would grab it and hold on tight. But there was no life preserver here, not even a piece of driftwood. There were only monsters hissing and growling in the dark. My heart raced and I reached for my knives, but they were gone. I had no weapons here. All I had was fear and pain and the certainty that I was in this alone.
The monsters drew closer scenting my fear like sharks drawn to a single drop of blood. My body shook as I tread water. I was without both weapons and armor. My leather jacket was gone and, in the way of nightmares, I was wearing only a camisole and panties. My skin was naked, exposed.
I tried to be quiet, but failed to hold my breath and calm the shaking. The monsters would find me soon and when they did I wasn’t sure what I was afraid of most—their killing teeth and claws or the simple brush of their touch.
I slipped beneath the waves and deeper into the abyss.
I emerged from the depths of my nightmares to a new series of fears. I awoke in my body, but found that I couldn’t move my arms or legs or open my eyes. There was nothing except darkness and pain and the staccato beat of my heart.
My body, and the pain, seemed real. I didn’t think I was still trapped in that in-between realm of fever dreams, but that didn’t mean I was safe from monsters. I needed to move, to hide, and grab my weapons. I focused on trying to move my right arm and red hot needles stabbed my nerve endings. I sucked in a gasping breath and stilled, catching a familiar scent.
I sniffed at the air and my racing heart slowed. I smelled salt brine, cool skin, and sea breezes—Ceff’s individual scent. I didn’t like being defenseless, but at least Ceff was here, wherever here was. If someone threatened, he would protect me.
I tried to recall my last memory before I blacked out. I’d been battling Melusine in the city cemetery, but the details were blurred. I had a feeling that the fight hadn’t gone well.
I needed information, and that meant opening my eyes and getting back on my feet. Maybe I could succeed if I started small—baby steps. I ignored the pain and focused on my feet. I hoped that my lower extremities hadn’t been injured as badly as my arms. I tried to wiggle just my toes, but the attempt brought on a wave of nausea. I couldn’t move a muscle.
Melusine and her pet snake had done a number on me. I suppose under the circumstances I was lucky to be here at all. If I was conscious, then I must have survived the fight—unless this was one of the circles of Hell.
I was a survivor; I preferred to think on the bright side. I’d fought a psycho crazed lamia and lived. Not bad for someone who’d only had a couple years of self defense classes and a few intensive months of weapons training under her belt.
I’d begun training with Jenna back in December in the hopes that I could add the knowledge to what I knew of self defense and use the new skills in the protection of those I cared about. After the
It was worth every penny.
If it hadn’t been for our training sessions, I’d surely be dead right now. In the past I’d given Jenna a small, ironic bow at the beginning of each class, but as soon as I was healed enough to begin lessons again I planned to bow deeply. I owed the Hunter a great deal of respect, and the gratitude of a princess.
At least, I hoped I’d be returning to training. I hurt all over. Without the ability to move or open my eyes, I had no idea how serious my injuries were. I tried again to move my arms and legs, but all I could feel was the heavy weight of pain.
My heart raced and I struggled for breath. The world fell away beneath me, sucking me back down into unconsciousness.
