Page 54 of Truth Revealed

“Please be okay, please be okay, please be okay,” she chanted, begging anyone who was listening to take care of her demons.

If anything happened to them…

Her jaw clenched as she threw the car door open, slid behind the seat, and brought it to life. Tires squealed on the pavement as she zipped down the street, turning right and then another to take the very next neighborhood entrance.

She thought of all the shit Pandora had pulled. Kidnapping her sister. Holding her and Betrayal hostage. Attacking her workplace, hurting innocents. And invading her home.

If anything happened to her demons…

Pandora would have hell to pay.

* * *

HOPE

As soon as Daria disappeared, Hope and the others stealthily snuck onto the porch, wary of the weak spots that creaked. But with all the noise coming from inside, he didn’t think they would have even heard it if they’d missed a step.

Pandora was right in front of the door, and Hope gritted his teeth against the image of her with her arms crossed, looking bored of all things, as they invaded, wrecked, and attacked their home. Hope flared to life inside him like a ray of fucking sunshine and he swallowed down the urge to release it. But damn he hoped this was the last time he had to see her face, even if it was mottled with rage and shock as they kicked ass.

Which they were about to do in…

He glanced to the demons standing by his side, counting silently down from three.

When his lips formed the last number, he pushed the door in, met resistance halfway through, and kept going. The high-pitched cry of alarm, Pandora, was what he followed first. The others rushed in past him, jumping into the fight, but Hope’s focus was Pandora. If he could kill her, the whole thing would be over and done with.

He didn’t relish the thought of taking any life, but he sure as hell could make an exception for that bitch. She was backing up to the wall on his right, alone.

But he should have known it wouldn’t be that easy. He’d only taken one step toward her when someone grabbed him around the waist, taking him to the floor. The weight pressed against his back made the cuts left from the glass flare in pain. Using gravity to his advantage, he managed to flip himself over before they hit the ground, and he grunted at the burn of his wounds scraping against the hardwood.

The familiar face of Deceit was above him, with his fist cocked back, but Hope blocked it with a forearm when he followed through. Over his shoulder, Pandora caught his eye, her retreating figure darting out of the open front door.

Fuck!

Hope growled and bucked up from the floor, forcing his weight into Deceit and throwing him backwards, off balance. The demon caught himself on his hands, a grunt slipping past his lips. With a roar of a war cry, he leapt from the floor and onto Deceit, his fist leading the charge. It slammed into the side of his face with a dull smack of flesh on flesh. His head whipped to the side, but the hand Hope thought was trapped at his side by Hope’s knee was reaching for a blade tucked into his waistband. Deceit moved almost too quickly to track, but the glint of metal made Hope jerk back in time, barely missing the sharp edge of the knife.

“I’m not normally one to speak unless necessary. But I think it’s really important that you know how fucking tired I am of you,” Hope hissed. “What business do you have working with her, anyway? You know she’s just going to lock you up alongside the rest of us.”

“Nah, that won’t happen.” Deceit shrugged his words off. “Call it a… consolation prize for being on the right team.”

Hope shook his head. There was no getting through to this idiot. “One day, you’re gonna see how wrong you are, and I can only hope it won’t be too late for you.”

Instead of waiting for Deceit to respond, Hope tore across the few feet between them. The blade came swinging, but Hope anticipated it, dodging to the right and blocking with his left forearm. His right fist crashed into Deceit’s side, knocking the breath from the demon. Before he could back away, Hope grabbed the wrist holding the blade and twisted, his grip iron tight until it clattered to the floor. He cupped his ears and then brought his knee up at the same time he slammed Deceit’s head into the top of his knee.

The demon slumped to the floor, and Hope grabbed the fallen blade.

Grunts and the smack of flesh on flesh surrounded him as the fighting continued. Facing the room, he took quick inventory of each demon, trying to work out where he was needed most.

Usually one with a cool head, Hope sucked in a deep breath before his adrenaline got the best of him. Still, his frustration, his worry, his fury at the audacity Pandora had to attack innocents out in the open—at Daria’s bar—then at their home, all came out in a growl of rage.

They were outnumbered, Hope realized. Pandora had brought her whole little army, demons he didn’t recognize, but there were enough of them to warrant a pang of worry. Between himself, Pain, Misery, Death, Betrayal, and Wrath, one would think they’d have it taken care of. At least with Deceit out of the picture.

But Deceit wasn’t the only one who’d brought a weapon, and he wouldn’t stay down for long. With two more bodies than their own seven, Hope’s namesake dwindled by the minute.

But at least Daria was safe with Sofia, Persy, and Truth. As long as they kept Sofia out of Pandora’s hands, everything would be fine.

The thought boosted his confidence, and wielding the blade, he dashed between bodies to get to the kitchen. To the fight between a big, husky demon and Misery, if he could call it that. The bigger one had Misery shoved up against the counter, one fist in his shirt and one fist grasping a blade and holding it to his throat. Hope would have been concerned if not for the bored expression on Misery’s face, his brow arched in annoyance. Drawing closer, Hope made sure to keep his steps silent, all while maintaining awareness of those around him.

“Ooh, what are you gonna do, stress me out? So scary,” Misery taunted with his hands raised.