Read Online The Demon King and I by Candace Havens - Free Book Online
Authors: Candace Havens
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ran as fast as I could.
They acted as guards keeping me from the door, but wouldn’t come near enough for me to kill them. If I had brought one of the guns, I could have picked them off and been done with it. As I moved closer to the door where the other demons had gone, the three winged monsters dove for me. Claws out and teeth bared, the first swooped low and caught me from behind. He pulled me up by the hair.
My skull felt like it split in two as I brought the ax up with my right arm and sliced a clean cut in the creature’s neck. I knew I’d hit my target when it screeched and green goo dropped on my head and my boots. Luckily I was only a few feet off the ground when it dropped me, so I didn’t have far to fall.
I heard something human behind me and swung around. One of the priests had returned and he held a rosary as he prayed.
“Father, get out of here. These things will kill you.”
“No. I saw you come in to fight the hell spawn. I will not leave you alone.” He was young, and probably idealistic, but I didn’t have time to argue with him. Unless that rosary had blades on it, I wasn’t sure it would do him much good against the crazy birds. But I never questioned a person’s faith.
Another of the winged monsters dipped down and tried to pry the ax away with its claws. It had ahold of my wrist, and its claws ripped the flesh from my bones. I used my left hand to grab the saber from where I’d stuck it in my back belt. Swinging my arm up, I drove the sharp point through the head. The damn thing wouldn’t let go of my wrist even in death. I sliced away the claw still attached to me.
“Watch out!” the priest screamed as the last of the creatures swooped down. Not sure where its heart was, I pierced the chest with the saber and then brought the ax up in my other hand. There was so much blood I couldn’t see where the ax began and my hand ended. I used what strength I had left in it to slice upward and hit some kind of artery. The thing fell to the floor screeching.
“Father, I have to go after the others. Please, for both of our sakes, don’t follow me. I can’t protect us both. Keep everyone out of here until I can clean up this mess.”
He stared at me for a moment.
I shrugged. It was never easy explaining something most humans had no idea existed. “I know. Demon spawn on Earth would freak people out. So let’s keep this between you and me. The rest of those guys running for their lives just wouldn’t understand. I appreciate your bravery, but we have to keep these things quiet. Okay? I promise I’ll be back in a few minutes. This is what I do.”
I’m not sure if he believed me, but he nodded.
I took off down another long hallway.
A big light flashed at the end of the hall. “No!” I ran as fast as I could but I was too late. The demons had used a temporary portal to get out of the room. The remains of a steel door was all that was left. Whatever had been in the room was now gone. All that was left was a marble slab and several smashed safe-deposit boxes. Or at least that was what it looked like. It took me a minute to realize it was a room-sized safe. “This isn’t good.”
I raced back to the dining area. “Father, I need a couple of trash bags, and can you tell me what was in the last room on the right? The one with the bank vault inside?”
“Was?” His eyes teared. “No, they couldn’t have taken it all. That is the papal treasury. Priceless jewels and artifacts from centuries were stored there. Even some artwork in the larger boxes.”
Oh, damn. “You’ll need to find out what they took. Not all of the boxes were smashed so it’s possible they were after something specific.” I pulled out a business card from the back pocket of my jeans. “When you have a good accounting of what’s gone, call this number and ask for Jake. He knows how to get in touch with me. I promise I’ll do my best to get your treasure back, but first I need those trash bags.”
He ran
They acted as guards keeping me from the door, but wouldn’t come near enough for me to kill them. If I had brought one of the guns, I could have picked them off and been done with it. As I moved closer to the door where the other demons had gone, the three winged monsters dove for me. Claws out and teeth bared, the first swooped low and caught me from behind. He pulled me up by the hair.
My skull felt like it split in two as I brought the ax up with my right arm and sliced a clean cut in the creature’s neck. I knew I’d hit my target when it screeched and green goo dropped on my head and my boots. Luckily I was only a few feet off the ground when it dropped me, so I didn’t have far to fall.
I heard something human behind me and swung around. One of the priests had returned and he held a rosary as he prayed.
“Father, get out of here. These things will kill you.”
“No. I saw you come in to fight the hell spawn. I will not leave you alone.” He was young, and probably idealistic, but I didn’t have time to argue with him. Unless that rosary had blades on it, I wasn’t sure it would do him much good against the crazy birds. But I never questioned a person’s faith.
Another of the winged monsters dipped down and tried to pry the ax away with its claws. It had ahold of my wrist, and its claws ripped the flesh from my bones. I used my left hand to grab the saber from where I’d stuck it in my back belt. Swinging my arm up, I drove the sharp point through the head. The damn thing wouldn’t let go of my wrist even in death. I sliced away the claw still attached to me.
“Watch out!” the priest screamed as the last of the creatures swooped down. Not sure where its heart was, I pierced the chest with the saber and then brought the ax up in my other hand. There was so much blood I couldn’t see where the ax began and my hand ended. I used what strength I had left in it to slice upward and hit some kind of artery. The thing fell to the floor screeching.
“Father, I have to go after the others. Please, for both of our sakes, don’t follow me. I can’t protect us both. Keep everyone out of here until I can clean up this mess.”
He stared at me for a moment.
I shrugged. It was never easy explaining something most humans had no idea existed. “I know. Demon spawn on Earth would freak people out. So let’s keep this between you and me. The rest of those guys running for their lives just wouldn’t understand. I appreciate your bravery, but we have to keep these things quiet. Okay? I promise I’ll be back in a few minutes. This is what I do.”
I’m not sure if he believed me, but he nodded.
I took off down another long hallway.
A big light flashed at the end of the hall. “No!” I ran as fast as I could but I was too late. The demons had used a temporary portal to get out of the room. The remains of a steel door was all that was left. Whatever had been in the room was now gone. All that was left was a marble slab and several smashed safe-deposit boxes. Or at least that was what it looked like. It took me a minute to realize it was a room-sized safe. “This isn’t good.”
I raced back to the dining area. “Father, I need a couple of trash bags, and can you tell me what was in the last room on the right? The one with the bank vault inside?”
“Was?” His eyes teared. “No, they couldn’t have taken it all. That is the papal treasury. Priceless jewels and artifacts from centuries were stored there. Even some artwork in the larger boxes.”
Oh, damn. “You’ll need to find out what they took. Not all of the boxes were smashed so it’s possible they were after something specific.” I pulled out a business card from the back pocket of my jeans. “When you have a good accounting of what’s gone, call this number and ask for Jake. He knows how to get in touch with me. I promise I’ll do my best to get your treasure back, but first I need those trash bags.”
He ran
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