—
Benedek’s breath caught in his lungs as he watched the demon slayer standing her ground in the face of an all-out attack. The dark craving was gone from him. She had pulled the demons from every ancient, but now she was alone, facing them. His first thought was to put his body between her and the vicious killers seeking her death. There was no doubt in his mind that their every thought was to destroy the slayer.
Two things allowed his discipline to kick in. The urge to put himself between Silke and danger was strong; it was a compulsion. He didn’t trust any feeling or emotion that intense. He didn’t believe that he could be the one originating that strong of a need. That meant an outside source was attempting to control him for their own purpose. Secondly, he had seen demon slayers at work. Interfering with one could upset the delicate balance of power they wielded and place the slayer in more danger.
He could feel waves of power emanating from Silke. She didn’t appear to be looking at or acknowledging the four demons she’d extracted from the Carpathians. She seemed to be focusing her entire attention on the serpent, yet he knew the energy she put out into the room had somehow created a barrier between her and the other demons. They seemed frantic to get through or around it. He would have felt better had he been able to test the strength of that invisible wall between his lifemate and the demons so eager to tear her apart.
Benedek could feel their vicious intent. The desire to kill Silke permeated the entire room. It was sickening to feel the hatred in such strong waves coming at the slayer from every direction. His respect and admiration for her grew as she stood her ground in the face of such relentless, determined enemies.
The crystal sword wrapped in dragon lily petals converged on the demon as the creature shot forward toward her. The tube overhead continued to spray drops of sacred water just as if it were raining downon the demon. Hundreds of tiny holes appeared in the scales. Smoke spewed from the holes along with a noxious smell.
Various colored lights from the crystal sword struck the serpent head-on, right in its open mouth. The shriek was high-pitched, shattering an antique etched mirror in the room so that the glass fell in shards all over the floor. Just as Benedek was certain the serpent would strike Silke, orange-red flames shot from the dark maroon–wrapped prongs as if the dragon lily were spitting fire at the serpent.
Silke waited until the last possible moment, so her aim was absolutely true. The steady stream of flames shot down the serpent’s throat, igniting the insides of the creature so that a roaring fire instantly swept through it. The flames were so hot and wild that they shot out of the multitude of holes the sacred water had created. The air fed the fire.
Above their heads, close to the ceiling, the spinning drops of water had ceased over the serpent, raining instead on the four demons who continuously charged at the invisible barriers in an effort to get at the demon slayer. The smell of the burning demon was vile.
Benedek could see that Silke refused to cough or show any sign of discomfort, although she felt it. He had cautiously merged with her, staying very quiet in the background. The only thoughts in her head were to protect those in the room and destroy the demons. She didn’t once allow a thought to enter her head that there were too many enemies to take on alone.
He could find no ego in Silke. No desire for accolades. She thought of herself as the demon slayer. This was her sworn duty, and she took her job seriously. She didn’t think in terms of danger to herself, only of ensuring the protection of her village, the Bootsma family, Tora and now the Carpathians. As far as she was concerned, she needed to make certain everyone around her was safe.
The serpent’s scaly body was entirely engulfed in flames, burning so hot that white and blue ash fell to the floor in a fine powdery substance as the outside scales dissolved. Even as the creature died, it made one last effort to fling itself at Silke. She followed the motionwith the crystal sword, the spiky end of the dragon lily petals blasting a volcanic red gel-like substance much like magma. The material was thick and coated the entire flaming serpent, stopping the forward momentum instantly. The gel formed a cocoon around the burning serpent, the substance acting like a fuel so that the demon burned hotter and faster. The thick accelerant didn’t allow for the creature to move. As more and more of its body turned to that peculiar ash, the slayer lifted the sword high and severed the head, spilling the serpent open so the fire swallowed it entirely.
She didn’t hesitate but turned toward the demon nearest the fireplace, who was smashing at the barrier surrounding him. It was only her powerful energy that kept all four demons from rushing her. Benedek found no sign of her strength waning. She didn’t look at the other three demons, who had gone wild; she only focused on one of the demons.
Each demon was a wicked-looking creature with four horns and what appeared to be two serrated saber-like teeth protruding from their mouths. Benedek had never seen a demon like these. They were tiny when they emerged, but growing larger now that they weren’t confined in a tiny crevice of the brain. The one nearest the fireplace was already approximately eighteen inches. The others were close in size right behind it and still growing.
The demons stood upright on two clawed feet. Spikes covered their torsos, arms and legs. Their hands were claws with long, very thick curved nails that appeared to be razor-sharp. Despite their fearsome appearance, Silke didn’t seem fazed.
Benedek felt her mind moving against the demon’s. Once again, his lungs burned for air. With the gentlest of touches, she drifted into the demon’s memories, sifting through them, looking for his origin. Her touch was so light the demon was unaware of her presence. She had already been in their minds; it was how she hooked them to drag them from their hosts. Benedek was amazed at her skill, at her ability to be so low-key that the demons—and even the ancients—hadn’t felther entering their minds and moving through memories to get to what she wanted.
Silke sifted fast through the memories of the demon. There were very few. The demon had been a recent creation, a mutation wrought by mage, vampire and Lilith. Benedek found it interesting that the origins mattered to her. When he went into battle, no matter how dangerous or expert his opponent was, he simply destroyed it, even at great cost to himself. Despite the other three demons growing larger and becoming more agitated, she remained serene, didn’t hurry, merely sifted quickly through the demon’s mind until she found the exact moment when the creature became aware.
Benedek recognized the two mages. Xavier and one of his brothers, Xayvion. The two stood over a vat of noxious, steaming liquid. Crystal lights played over and through the liquid continuously. Along with the lights, repetitious chants played on a loop.
You crave fresh blood. You need to kill when you feed. The desire is strong and grows continually. Each rising the craving is more. Impossible to ignore.
The demon was being programmed from birth to target hunters, to amplify the dark whispers of temptation. The tiny microbes in the vats were designed to get hunters to join the ranks of the undead. The idea was clever. After feeling the effects on the ancients, hunters with centuries of experience and with the inability to hear those whispers of temptation for centuries, to hear those commands had been nearly overwhelming. They had been fortunate that all had taken vows and had such a strong code. And that Mataias hadn’t been affected. He was able to get the blood they all so desperately needed so none of them had to get near a human while feeling the curse.
Find and kill the slayer. Find and kill the slayer. Find and kill the slayer.
Not only was the demon programmed to hide in the brain of the hunter once injected into his bloodstream, but his goal was to get the hunters to seek out the demon slayers and kill them. Benedek knew his lifemate would have that knowledge now. She knew theancients had been tainted with demon, and that they’d been programmed to kill when feeding and to find and slay her. That wasn’t the best way to start a trusting relationship.
Methodically, one by one, Silke faced each demon separately. It didn’t seem to matter that the last two were larger and more powerful than the first two. Something in the origins had clued her in on how to slay them. Just as she had done with the serpent, she took her time, using sacred water and the crystal sword that was wrapped in the dragon lily petals. How she was able to use it to spew fire and the gel that was all too reminiscent of magma, Benedek had no idea.
Having watched slayers before, he had expected to understand her methods, but this was all new to him. When she destroyed the last of the demons, she sank onto the floor, pushing with her heels until her back was to the wall. Immediately, Tora opened her protective weave and rushed to her. The fisherman didn’t move, remaining under Tora’s command while she attended to Silke.
Chapter
9
Silke tried not to stare at the Carpathian she was certain was her lifemate. He was intimidating. Terrifying. The scariest man she’d ever seen. She was exhausted, her body feeling like a limp dishrag. She knew these men, ancients, all five of them, had been programmed to kill her. They had come unseen into her community andspiedon her. Had their original intention been to kill her? To use the villagers for their food and then devastate the population when the five turned vampire?
She wanted to be away from them until she was at full strength. At least she had managed to leave the Bootsma home and lead the men away from the village. She had no recourse but to use her own home for the confrontation. She’d sent Tora ahead to remove Fenja from the house, but Fenja had refused to go. Her mother sat quietly in the most comfortable chair in the sitting room. A shotgun leaned against the coffee table within easy reach, and a multitude of weapons were hidden in the chair.
“I am Benedek Kovak,” the scariest-looking man introduced himself. “This is Nicu Dalca and Tomas, Lojos and Mataias Smolnycki.”
Silke briefly closed her eyes against the sudden drop of her heart. She had known all along he was the stranger coming to claim her.There was a pull between them. A strong one. She hadn’t expected that. She found him physically attractive. She hadn’t expected that, either. Still, for all the attraction, she was distrustful of him and the others.
