Kissed By A Demon Spy (16 page)

Only one thing, other than fire, made wood sizzle like that.

Viper venom.

Garnet’s nerves jumped all over the place. She was happy to have a formidable presence like Leif around, but she worried about Aden, Dash, and whatever lurked around Ivydale.

“What do you think is going on?” she asked.

Leif shrugged, giving no indication of anything. “No clue. Aden just likes to look out for the village.”

She frowned. “I think it’s more than that.”

“You’re right.” Leif stalked through the inn, peering out each window. “Aden’s an expert scryer. He can see things the rest of us can’t.”

All Deserati were known for their ability to scry. But she hadn’t known Aden was especially gifted in that area. “So what did he see about tonight?”

“If he had foreseen trouble, he’d have already stopped it. So this, tonight, I’m not sure.” Leif scanned the street outside. “But hunches are worth investigating.”

“True.”
Maybe it’s nothing
.

Leif pulled out his phone and studied the screen, frowning. That expression told her more than any words could.

“What? Did they say what they found?”
Please let it be nothing.

“No.” He shoved his phone into his pocket.

“Something’s wrong, isn’t it?” Her breath was shaky. “Really wrong.”

Leif turned to her and opened his mouth to speak. “I—”

Crack!

In a heartbeat, Leif had Garnet pressed against the wall next to him, between two of the dining room’s front windows. A soft sizzle reached her ears. “Wh-what was that?” she whispered.

“That was an arrow,” Leif growled. “Shot by a Viper and dipped in their venom.”

“A Viper? Here?” Garnet’s heart rate tripled. She’d seen a few of the snake headed creatures at Stroehm. They were vicious predators and when captured for the gladiator fights, always drew huge crowds. “How…I didn’t think—”

“A group of them has been attacking peaceful villages lately. Motherfuckers.”

“But the wards…they can’t get in, right?” Garnet fought to keep the panic out of her voice.

Crack! Crack!

Two more arrows, then two more after that, hit the window.

Leif glanced at the glass. “The venom will weaken the ward if they hit it enough. We need to get upstairs. If I can get to an upper window I can pick them off. Now!”

Garnet squeaked as Leif scooped her up into his arms and ran from the dining room to the main staircase. Just as they cleared the windows, a rock flew through, shattering the glass. The panes burst in a cloud of tiny shards. Leif made it to the stairs as two high pitched whistles tore through the darkness. Garnet peered around Leif’s bulky shoulder and her jaw dropped in horror.

Each new arrow was on fire.

The first two landed on the room’s polished wooden floor, followed by four more. “No!” she screamed. More windows rattled with the crack of a new volley of poison-dipped arrows.

“Shit!” Leif charged up the stairs, holding her as if she weighed nothing. “Change of plans. We need to get your kid and get out.”

He set her down when they reached the top. She darted down the hall to her room, panic pushing her feet. She unlocked the door and crossed quickly to the bed.

“Dash.” She gently shook his shoulder. “Wake up.”

Leif was right behind her. “Want me to carry him? We gotta go. No time to talk.”

Dash shot upright. “Mommy!” Terror filled his eyes at the sight of Leif. Even though he’d seen him before, it had to be a shock to be woken up this way. Dash launched himself into Garnet’s arms, squeezing her neck tightly.

“Out.” Leif held her arm and half pushed, half pulled her to the door and out into the hall. Smoke billowed up the steps, and the downstairs was thick with it. She couldn’t see past the fourth step. With Dash in her arms, she didn’t want to risk navigating steps she couldn’t see. “How can we get down?” She had to shout over the noise of the fire.

Leif yanked his T-shirt over his head and tore it down the middle, then tore it again. He tied one of the scraps over her mouth and nose and did the same for Dash before covering his face with the last one. “Back stairway.” He pointed down the hall. “Any other guests?”

“Two pixies in room six!” she yelled, heading to the second staircase. They were passing the pixies’ room when the door opened and the frightened creatures ran out into the hall.

“Come on!” Leif gestured for them to follow and they all hurried to the other end of the hall.

The back staircase was enclosed, so it was smoke free. Garnet took a huge gulp of clean air as they made their way down. Good thing she did, because the first floor was a war zone.

They emerged near Aden’s office. A wave of heat blasted her front. She instinctively turned so that her back would take the brunt of it, and not Dash, who she held as best she could on one hip. He was getting heavy, but she could sense his panic, and she didn’t want to set him down.

Flames raged along the front of the inn. Black smoke hung in thick clouds along the ceiling. The fire roared and popped. Sparks flew and timbers groaned.

“Kitchen!” Leif bellowed, pointing down the hall. “Get out back!”

The fire hadn’t reached the back of the house yet, though the smoke had. The pixies ran out the French doors with Garnet and Leif close on their heels.

She set Dash down so she could catch her breath. “Okay, Dash. Breath.”

He buried his face in her stomach, shaking.

Oh Gods. She knelt to embrace him, hating that he felt this kind of fear again.

Leif placed a strong hand on her elbow. “We gotta move away.” He bent as if to pick up Dash, who screamed and pushed into Garnet so forcefully she almost lost her balance.

“I’ll do it.” She grabbed Dash with wobbly arms and glanced at the inn.
Oh no
.

The roof was ablaze. Fire-tipped arrows continued to rain down on the structure. In the street beyond, she glimpsed figures running. Large figures, not pixies.

“What’s happening?” she shrieked.

“We’re under attack.” Leif scanned the area, eyes settling on the root cellar door. “You four can hide in there. I’ll—”

An arrow zoomed through the back yard, landing directly behind their group.

Garnet whirled in the direction the arrow had come from. Cold terror rooted her in place.

Around the side of the house stalked a tall demon. Its skin was green and scaled. It had a humanoid form but its head resembled a snake. And it opened its mouth to reveal fangs. She hadn’t seen one in years, but she had no doubt about what it was.

A Viper.

A
DEN
WHIRLED
,
SWORD
DRAWN
,
EYES
scanning the trees.

Next to him, Luke unsheathed his own blade.

Crack!

A twig snapped ten yards in front of him.

“That all you got, fuckwad?” Aden growled. He stalked forward, knowing Luke had his back. “I’ll take the rest of those and shove ‘em up your ass.”

Another arrow zinged wide to his right.
There
. A flash of metal gave away the reptile’s location. Aden charged.

The creature sprang forward with its own sword drawn, reaching Aden and swinging. Aden dodged its blows. Another Viper jumped out of the brush, and Luke was on it in a heartbeat.

Both men fought, the clang of metal on metal echoing off the trees. Aden’s opponent was a miserable sword fighter.
I guess his arrow really was the best he could do
. Aden pushed him back, parrying until the reptile was backed up to a massive oak. Aden swung his sword in a wild flash of silver, making the creature focus on his sword arm, and then he raised his tail.

With a lethal snap, Aden’s tail bashed the Viper’s head into the tree and it slumped to the ground. To make sure it was dead, Aden brought his sword down to sever its head.

He turned to see Luke deliver a mortal wound to his opponent’s soft belly. The Viper crumpled to the ground, and Luke decapitated it.

Luke wiped a hand over his brow. “Shit. Thought they were supposed to attack Laurel Hollow tonight.”

“Yeah, they were.” Aden pulled out his phone and dialed Keegan.

Keegan’s growl shot through the phone. “What’s going on? My men are waiting at Laurel Hollow and it’s quiet as a church over there.”

“Fuck!” Aden explained the Vipers he and Luke had just fought, as well as his sense of foreboding. “Do you think they plan to attack both towns in the same night?”

“Or, did they change their plans?” Keegan cursed.

“Either way, we need back up here. I’ll wake up the rest of our kin, but I don’t know how many Vipers we’re up against.”

“I’ll send them, but you’ll have to distract them for now.” Keegan added more colorful curse words, then ended the call.

Aden looked at Luke. “You got all that?”

Luke nodded. “We need to check the town.”

Both men took off at a run, back over the bridge. As soon as their feet hit the stone, his heart froze.

His inn was lit up like a fucking fireworks display.

Garnet.

“Fuck!” A primal need to get her to safety ripped through him. He took off at a blistering pace, and so did Luke.

No, no, no
. He’d skin every last Viper.

How had this happened? His scrying was never wrong.

A figure ran toward them. Small. Male. Cole.

“We’re trying to redirect the irrigation system to get some water on the inn!” The pixie panted as he neared.

“Good. I need you to call all the Deserati here. Tell them to get ready for a Viper fight.” There were a dozen of his clansmen in town, staying under the premise of learning to farm. That was true, they could use advice on the topic, but they were here for other reasons.

They were here to learn as much as they could about the land, and gather objects to better improve their scrying. And to guard against surprise attacks just like this. Ivydale had grown much in the past several years, yielding tons of food that fed many other villages. It had become a key strategic town, and no one wanted to see it taken over by a vicious species.

“I’m on it!” Cole whipped out his phone.

Aden burned with the need to get to Garnet and Dash. The front of the inn was engulfed in flames. Had Leif gotten them out in time? He had to. Aden wouldn’t accept the idea of any harm coming to them. Not now, not ever.

He ran toward the inn, intending to circle around it, when the biggest Viper he had ever seen ran directly in his path. It drew a huge breath, nostrils flaring, forked tongue flicking out.

“You!” It hissed. “You’re the one. You got too close, demon.”

What the fuck does this thing want with me
? Aden growled and fell into his fighting stance. He stood sideways to the thing, ready for any move it might make. “Let’s get this over with so I can kill the rest of your friends.”

The Viper laughed, a raspy harsh sound. With its jaws open wide, Aden noticed its teeth.

One was missing.

This was the one who’d run the meeting. The larger Viper that had clearly spoken
Laurel Hollow
over and over. And who’d shut his comrade up.

“I’ll be ending your life tonight, spy. I will kill you and everyone in this town.”

“No need to get greedy.” Aden circled around it. “You can just kill me. No need to harm anyone else.” Not that the beast would succeed in killing him.

“I’ll kill as many here as I want. And it will be your fault. You’re the scryer.”

“What the fuck are you talking about? We all scry.”

“Someone has enough skill to keep doing it, and keep leaking word of our planned attacks, which have all been blocked!” It roared the last words and charged forward.

Keegan was right. The Vipers had guessed there was a leak somewhere. And to find it, they had switched their plans.

Motherfucker!

Aden darted to the side, avoiding the big Viper’s blade. He spun to the side, ducking as it sliced the air again. Definitely a better swordsman than the two in the woods.

The Viper swung a third time, not missing a step. It pulled back only to dart forward, faster than any Viper Aden had seen before. Too late, he felt the prick of its sword across his bicep. Then the sting of venom.

Aden gritted his teeth against the biting burn and the smell of his flesh sizzling from the vile liquid.

The creature chuckled. “It would be nice to kill you slowly. One cut for each blocked raid.”

No fucking way. He had a woman to protect, as well as the child at the center of her world. He barreled forward using his shoulder and the force of his rage to plow into the Viper and knock him off balance.

The demon hissed, poison spittle flying from its fangs. Aden ducked his head but kept his momentum, toppling the creature to the ground and rolling with it. Mindful of its jaws, he reached for the knife holstered to his thigh.

The creature wasn’t giving up. It tried to pin Aden’s arms, but since they were still rolling, it wasn’t working.

Thud!

Aden and the Viper came to a halt. The thing bellowed a curse, its foul breath blasting Aden in the face.

“Look out, Aden!”

Aden leapt off it, just before a brick smashed the Viper’s skull.

Aden looked up. “Ty?”

His maintenance worker stood, panting, another brick at the ready.

Aden held up a hand. “No, hold on to that one. You’re gonna need it.”

The Viper looked dazed and reached behind his head, finding the brick Ty had hurled at him. He growled, but Aden wasn’t wasting another second. He swung his sword in a high arc and severed its head.

“Ty. I need you and any males to fight. I don’t know how many Vipers are here. Can you do that?”

Ty nodded. “Cole’s ready over there.”

Aden glanced at the inn where Cole gave him a thumbs up, standing next to a pile of rocks and bricks. He had some sharpened sticks too.

“Good. Tell everyone you see to be ready.” Aden turned and charged toward his inn as flames licked up the front of the building.

Garnet sucked in a breath and clutched Dash tighter. Leif moved in front of her, sword out.