Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 90630 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 453(@200wpm)___ 363(@250wpm)___ 302(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 90630 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 453(@200wpm)___ 363(@250wpm)___ 302(@300wpm)
I follow his gaze, hardly able to make out the red handprint in the dim light.
“He wants my soul,” I say through gritted teeth. “I can feel him trying to get in my head.”
“He’s not fucking getting it,” Xavier growls. “Show yourself, coward!”
“Bold invitation,” the demon says, yet for some reason, only I can hear it.
“There,” I grunt, feebly raising my hand. The demon materializes and lunges toward me, but Xavier is faster. He brings the dagger down on it, and this time, it rips through the demon’s flesh. The demon stumbles to the ground, landing against a tree. With its hold on me lifted, I spring into action and dive over, hands landing on the tree’s roots.
“Vincti estis,” I cry and the demon’s body seizes before he’s able to vanish. The dagger pushes through the air, tip of the blade clipping the tree. Demon blood drips from it.
“Holy shit,” I rush out. “That means the vanquishing potion and the dagger together might be enough to stop it if I can get it into a physical form.”
“Can you bind the demon to something?” Xavier asks, holding his arms out slightly at his sides, ready to attack. With his fangs drawn, he looks absolutely terrifying.
“Not with one incantation. Actually binding an evil spirit to something like a doll takes a full spell and even then, it’s not a guarantee it will stay trapped forever.”
His eyes meet mine. “We don’t need forever. We just need a minute so you can kill it.”
“Yeah, but killing a demon like this would mean having it possess someone. Who are we going to find that will willingly let a demon in so I can stab them in the heart?”
“Me,” he says without missing a beat. “The demon can possess me.”
Chapter
Thirty-Four
“That’s a terrible idea,” I blurt, looking at Xavier like he’s fucking crazy. Because willingly letting a demon possess him is fucking crazy. “It will take control of you.”
“I won’t let it.”
“It doesn’t work that way!”
“I can control it. Trust me, Wren.” His head moves up and down. “And trust yourself. Bind us and then you can stab it by stabbing me.”
“Xavier—no. Just no!” My brows pinch together and I shake my head back and forth.
He gently touches the handprint on my arm. “It marked you, Wren. We have to kill it.”
“I’ll figure something out.
“I just figured it out for you,” he says calmly. “I promised to keep you safe and I will by any means necessary.”
“Death isn’t a means you should take.”
“Death would be welcome if you were no longer here.”
“Don’t say that. Don’t make me everything.” Tears fill my eyes. “If something happens to me, you have to go on.”
“What would be the point?” He takes my hand and brings it to his chest. “I thought my heart died the day I did. With you, I feel alive.” Fingers tightening around mine, he steps closer. “I love you, Florence.”
“Xavier,” I breathe, breath hitching in my chest because this sounds too much like a goodbye. “I love you too. So we’re not doing this.”
The Ley line sparks and the demonic hand print on my arm starts to burn as if it’s on fire.
“Ah!” I shriek, grabbing my arm, but it makes it worse. Going on impulse, Xavier pulls the dagger from the trunk of the tree and stabs it in the ground, sending the blade into the Ley line. A bright spark of energy erupts, lighting up the forest for half a second before going dark.
“What the hell was that?” Devon asks, coming back to us. I’m temporarily blinded again from the flash and I squeeze my eyes shut before opening them again.
“The Ley line. The demon is pulling from it,” I tell him.
“Which is why we need to go with my plan,” Xavier says. “Now.”
“Absolutely the fuck not,” I say and look at Devon for backup. “He wants to let the demon possess him so I can stab him in the heart and hope to kill the demon.”
“It won’t kill me,” Xavier says.
“How do you know?”
“The dagger isn’t made out of wood.”
“It’s enchanted with a vanquishing potion right now,” I add.
Devon holds up a hand. “Won’t the demon control him?”
“Yeah, that’s what they do when they possess you. And you’re not just some human puppet, you’re a seven-hundred-year-old-vampire puppet.”
Xavier laces his fingers through mine, giving my hand a squeeze before letting go. “You said demons go after the weak because it’s easier. I’m not weak.”
“That doesn’t mean you can perform a self-exorcism,” I counter.
“I know,” he says. “And I know I can’t promise to fight against the control forever. We don’t need forever. Just a minute.”
“How do we know this would work?” Devon asks.
“Thank you,” I say, motioning to him. “This is a horrible plan.”
“I mean, how do we know the demon will even possess him?” he clarifies, looking at me apologetically. “Isn’t it listening to us right now?”