Everywhere, clones of Castello desperately tried to get to theslayer, their one purpose. They had been created with that end in mind—locating their target and eliminating her. Nothing else mattered, not even the kaleidoscope of colors shimmering through the sky, raining down dragon fire.
Benedek and Emil crashed through the ashes of several of the clones, both wincing as dragon fire swept the yard. The heaving ground aided Emil, allowing him to roll, changing the weight of his body so that when he rotated over Benedek he became equivalent to a steamroller, smashing Benedek beneath him. Benedek was forced to release the heart, changing his body composition to flat and soft so Emil didn’t crush him.
That enraged the beast, and he rolled back and forth, turning the ground beneath Benedek into a mudhole. Benedek sank, burrowed under the soil to come up to the left of the porch, the side the vampire most likely would take to avoid the dragons spewing fire in every direction. It was imperative that he keep Emil from escaping.
As he emerged, the vampire once more ran into his extended fist. Emil shrieked his hatred, slashing at Benedek’s throat along the line where it had once been cut.
“Someone gave me a blueprint to follow,” Emil taunted as his talon, sharpened to the point of a razor blade, followed that white scar around Benedek’s neck.
The blade snapped off as Benedek stepped closer, giving himself leverage to dig closer to the heart. Black acid bit through flesh. He cut off all feeling, refusing to acknowledge pain as he tried to extract the vampire’s heart.
The withered organ wouldn’t budge. Instead, great jaws clamped down around his wrist, serrated teeth sawing through flesh. He had no choice but to change the composition of his arm or he would lose it. The vampire continued to tear at his neck, throat and chest in an effort to get away. Blood ran like twin rivers. Bright crimson red and oily black sludge.
He stumbled back and instantly the vampire raced away.
Chapter
17
Silke couldn’t continue looking at Benedek and what was happening to him. He was covered in blood, in a life-or-death struggle with the vampire. From the direction of the forest, a dragon streaked across the sky, breathing a steady stream of fire at the vampire. He was extremely precise, or Benedek was protected, because not a flame touched him. The vampire screamed in rage and pain, wrenching himself away from Benedek and taking to the sky.
Ainaakfél.It was more a soft call on the wind.Awaken. Evil comes to your territory. I may have need of you. He cannot get away.
Even as Benedek called to an unknown entity, he leapt into the air, shifting into a dragon as if he’d done it a million times. Maybe he had. Silke didn’t know.
The ground trembled as if far off there was a quake. She heard a boom, again in the distance but in Benedek’s mind. Something large awakened. Something ancient.Ainaakfélmeant “old friend” in Carpathian. Benedek had reached out to something or someone who was of ancient descent.
What she did know, through her link to Benedek, was that it would take several hunters to bring the mix of beast and vampire down. He was powerful. He had centuries of battles and had acquiredvast knowledge and skills, just as the other ancients had. This was what Benedek feared he would become should something happen to her—or if she rejected him. He was already close to themore, to the beast. She’d felt that rush he got from the battle. The absolute joy. He was so close.
The ground shook again, and the hollow boom sounded as if someone tried to speak in a deep cavern and the sound reverberated. Benedek didn’t seem to be upset by the strange far-off sounds. He whipped around in the sky, looking in the direction the vampire had taken.
You can’t have him,she whispered to the universe, more determined than ever to keep Benedek safe.
Can you handle Castello’s replicas?Benedek demanded.I need the hunters.
Go. This is what I do.
I stay with the slayer,Tora announced firmly.I would get in your way. Good hunting.
Silke was grateful. Tora and she had been fighting side by side for as long as Silke could remember. She doubted Tora would be in anyone’s way—she was a fierce fighter—but the hunters knew one another and had worked together before. She wanted them to go with Benedek. She sensed his conflict. He needed to see that she was safe, but this vampire-beast creature they chased was extremely powerful and couldn’t be let loose on the world.
Go, Benedek. I’ll be fine.She kept confidence uppermost in her mind, holding her concerns at bay.
Be safe.He gave a flick of the dragon’s tail and was gone.
There were so many demons, all targeting the slayer. The moment the dragons pulled back, whipping through the sky to follow the vampire, the demons went into a frenzy, rushing the porch.
Silke didn’t wait. She ran across the stone floor toward the highest point and leapt into the air, calling, “Lily,now.”
Her dragon launched herself from the flower bed, exploding into the sky and streaking to intercept Silke before she began her descent.They had practiced the move countless times. Silke landed perfectly just behind the dragon’s head, knees digging in as Lily whipped around. Silke held the sacred water in one hand and her crystal sword in the other.
She couldn’t kill the demons with crystal light. That only seemed to make them stronger. But they had no protection against dragon fire. The armor they had wouldn’t stand against a pure earthen creation such as a dragon. The dragons were of the earth, just like the ancient forest. The creatures might be slowly going extinct. They had had their time on the planet, but they weren’t evil. Like Benedek, dragons could be violent, but they weren’t evil despite the way they were often portrayed in books or modern movies.
Silke thought Lily was beautiful and unique. She had dragon lilies for horns and more down her back. The petals were rolled and dark, looking for all the world as soft as velvet. She had a full open lily at her tail. Her body was covered in leaves. Wherever she chose to rest, she appeared to be several dragon lily plants clustered together. It was impossible to tell that she was a live creature. She often lay in the beds in the forest where the dragon lilies were planted.
Every scale tipped in those petals going down her back was a weapon. Her paws were weapons. Not only was the fire coming from her belly a red-orange flame that burned so hot it could incinerate in seconds, but her breath was poisonous. Those fumes, combined with the flames, were deadly.
Silke’s vision expanded, taking in the entire yard, the demons on the porch roof, the ones rushing to climb so they could try to knock her from the back of the dragon. Some had climbed plants and trees; others were on the porch tracking her dragon. All were desperate for her to hear their voices, trying to compel her to obey as Castello had. She heard the buzz in the back of her mind as the demons made a concentrated effort to compel her to listen to them. She was able to keep the voices at a distance, but found it alarming that they managed to penetrate her shield enough that she could hear them.
