With swords drawn, the dragon warriors advanced toward the snarling red-eyed monsters. Audrey could feel their confidence and determination but wondered if they knew the sheer number of hounds that Adramelech had at his command.
No sooner had she thought of the despicable Demon Lord than he appeared, followed by his undead army and a few other creatures she still, after all these years, had no idea what to call. Standing tall, wearing the deep purple robe Audrey knew the Chancellor only wore on special occasions, the bastard smiled his twisted smile and tapped his tall, brass walking stick on the ground as if announcing his arrival.
The battle raged on. Blood, gore, and chunks of flesh covered in black fur flew through the air. Any other time, Audrey would’ve laughed aloud as Adramelech’s grin turned to a frown when no one paid attention to him.
Watching Rian take down a particularly large hound she was sure belonged to the only female Demon Lord on the Council, Audrey saw Balor—the Beta of the Chancellor’s pack—skulking around outside the combat zone. She’d never known him to allow Bás to fight alone. Lately, it had been obvious the relationship between Alpha and Beta had changed, but it still seemed strange for Balor not to have his leader’s back in a fight.
A man’s shout of pain had Audrey searching for Rian. She only breathed when she found him several yards away, stabbing a hound through the back and throwing his body to the side to help his youngest brother to his feet. Blood poured from the wound on Rory’s arm. Rian immediately pulled off his T-shirt and wrapped it around his brother’s arm like a tourniquet.
Without another word, both men turned in opposite directions, swung their swords, and took down the snarling hellhounds in synchronized fashion that could’ve only come from years of fighting together. Audrey sat amazed as Rian cut a path through the rabid horde of hell’s beasts. All the Guardsmen fought with intensity and purpose but her mate stood out among the crowd.
Every swipe of his sword eliminated another foe. Every step he took brought him closer to his objective. Losing was not an option for the Dragon Leader the Universe had so benevolently graced her with as a mate. He was a force all his own and he was all hers.
A cackle Audrey had prayed she would never hear again rang out above the roar of the battle. Even through the noise, she could tell he was much closer than he had been mere seconds before.
Spinning on her toes, Audrey’s eyes locked with Adramelech’s. All the hate, pain, and animosity of a hundred years of torture bubbled up out of her. Screaming, ‘No!” at the top of her lungs, she turned to run, only to be jerked back by her ponytail.
“You’re going nowhere, princess, but back to your cage.”
Momentary panic caused Audrey to stop, but the sight of Rian racing toward the Demon Lord at her back with his sword drawn spurred her into action. Grabbing the athame from the waistband of the tiny shorts she’d been given to wear as underwear when her clothes were taken away, Audrey tried to turn towards her captor. Unfortunately, he held on too tight.
Turning the other way as much as the hold Adramelech’s had on her hair would allow, Audrey gasped as she saw Balor leap into the air, teeth bared, red eyes glowing. He headed right for her. Now, she knew why he was staying to the outside. The hellhound was the Chancellor’s back up plan to kill her.
Closing her eyes, Audrey braced for the inevitable, but nothing happened. Her eyes flew open. Disbelief mixed with fear caused her to shout, “Rian!” as she watched her mate and Balor in a fight to the death.
Adramelech laughed and commanded, “Kill, my puppies! Kill!”
Blind rage took over. No amount of pain could stop her actions. Pulling against the hold the Demon Lord had on her, Audrey twisted from the neck down and stabbed the athame all the way through the taloned paw that held her hair.
“You Bitch!” The Chancellor screamed while holding his bleeding appendage to his chest. “Now, you die!”
Leaping on top of the boulder she’d been hiding behind, Adramelech aimed the pointed tip of his walking stick right at her heart. The rage driving her actions doubled. Her world became a haze of red. If the bastard wanted to kill her then he would have to come and get her.
Ducking out from behind the rock and running a few yards away, the breeze of the Chancellor’s walking-stick-turned-spear blew over her shoulder. Spinning on her feet, she saw the Demon Lord jump off the boulder and fly toward her with murder in his eyes. Running toward him, Audrey lifted the athame. Sliding under him, she stabbed straight into the air. Black blood rained down on her, scorching her with the acid and toxins only a Demon Lord’s blood contained. With her blade stuck in Adramelech’s ribs after ripping open his chest, the momentum of his enormous body drug her across the rocks and soot for a few feet before falling from its flight and crushing her to the floor.
The air was forced from her lungs. Warm, wet, demon blood pooled between their bodies. The sting had stopped and now it was only the stench she was left with. Audrey struggled to free herself from the deadweight holding her hostage but only managed to embed more rocks into her back.
Getting lightheaded from lack of oxygen, the princess tried to scream for help but only managed to squeeze out a squeak. Her vision blurred. Her body ached. She prayed for more time with Rian but also thanked the God she had to believe had never left her for giving her the strength to kill Adramelech.
“Audrey!” Rian shouted a second before heaving the Chancellor’s body off her.
“You did it! You killed the bastard!” was all he could say. Before Audrey could take her first deep breath, she was in his arms. His lips were on hers and he was flooding her mind with not only words, but also images of all the ways they were going to love one another as soon as they were topside.
They broke apart at the sound of gravelly Scottish brogue. “All right you lovebirds. We’re not outta here yet.”
“Shut the hell up, Maddox,” Rian teased while still holding her close.
Audrey was immediately embarrassed. Not only had she just been called out for kissing in public, but Rian was covered in Adramelech’s blood from their embrace. Looking away, she was shocked to see only one live hellhound remaining and not a one of Adramelech’s undead army to be seen.
Turning back to Rian she asked, “What happened? Did you kill them all?”
“No, mo chroi’, you released them.”
“I what?”
Maddox answered, “When you killed the big ugly over there,” he pointed at Adramelech’s body, “you broke his hold on them. They all hauled ass. Well, except this one and I have no clue why he’s still here. Your mate was about to skewer the mangy mutt when you stabbed the Chancellor and then the hound just sat down and looked around.”
Looking closer, Audrey said, “That’s Balor. He was the Beta of Adramelech’s pack. He never seemed as mean or deranged as the others. I mean, he’s a hellhound, but there was always something different about him.”
