Mate to the Demon Kings by Lacey Carter Andersen

19

Lily and Rordestood on the other side of the door. Sharen pulled back her magic, waiting. She didn’t want to hurt her students. The idea sickened her. But I’ll do it if I have to.

Please let them just get out of my way.

Their gazes widened over her, lingering on her blood-drenched arm, and then moved to the room full of bodies. Lily was the first to speak, “what happened?”

“I have to go,” Sharen said. “Before it’s too late.”

A painfully slow second ticked by.

Lily’s hazel eyes flashed with something. “Rorde, help her carry that man.”

“Man?” Rorde sputtered. “I told you, it’s the demon from the last realm. It must have got her ring. She’s under its control.”

One of her sculpted brows rose. “Mrs. Bran, are you under his control?”

Sharen shifted Ryder on her shoulders, not sure how much longer she could hold him. “No. I can explain everything. But I have to go now.”

Lily nodded. “Help her.”

Rorde swore. “Are you two out of your fucking minds?”

Moving as fast as lightening, Lily caught him by the throat and shoved him against the doorframe. “I’ve trusted Mrs. Bran with my life a hundred times, and I’m going to do it again now, so you either get out of the fucking way, or you help us.”

Rorde shook his head.

Lily made an annoyed sound and smacked his head back, knocking him out cold against the doorframe. Dragging his body in, she laid him down among the other bodies. With a cold efficiency, she moved and placed Ryder’s other arm over her shoulder.

“My car’s just outside.”

Sharen shook free of her shock. I knew I liked this girl.

They started down the hall, huffing as they shouldered Ryder’s weight. In the elevator, they hit the button, and Lily stared at her.

“Can I get a little info about what’s going on here? Because I’m thinking it’s a hell of a story.”

I’ve only got a few minutes with her. And after she helped me, she deserves the truth.

Sharen held her gaze. “They’ve been lying to us, Lily. Not all demons are bad. Not all angels are good.”

To her shock, Lily simply grinned. “Glad to hear you think so.”

She stared in surprise.

The girl laughed. “Half-breeds understand a hell of a lot more than humans do about the complicated problems with labels, and the struggles of the different realms.”

Wait… what?

“You’re a half-angel?” Sharen asked, shocked to her core.

Lily winked. “Who said I was an angel?”

The doors opened, and they shuffled out on instinct. Sharen’s head spun with confusion as they approached Lily’s car. There were actually half-breeds running around? How was such a thing possible?

I really didn’t have a clue about my own world. Not a clue.

They made it to a gray car, parked right outside. The lights were on, and rock music was blaring inside. As they made their way around the front, she spotted Lily’s fiancé, Blake, in the front seat. They shoved Ryder inside, and Lily climbed in the front, while Sharen sat with her demon’s head lying in her lap.

Blake turned down the music. “Uh, what’s up? I thought you were here helping Rorde with some emergency.”

How much does he know about all of this?

“Things have changed,” Lily said, her voice too calm. “Let’s head for Mrs. Bran’s house.” She looked back at her. “Right?”

She found her voice. “Right. Just turn left. It’s a few miles down Main Street.”

Blake did as he was told, but his eyes stared back at her in the rearview mirror. “So, what’s with the… hopefully drunk and not dead guy?”

Lily spoke before she could answer. “He’s a demon.”

Her fiancé hit the brake, causing the car behind them to honk and swerve. “You’re kidding me, right?”

The young woman shook her head. “Just keep driving. We need to get as far from here as possible, and we need to shut up while Mrs. Bran explains.” Lily gestured at her. “Start talking.”

Blake muttered something, but started driving once more.

So she talked, giving them the PG version of what happened as they bounced along the road to her house. When she finished, her very abbreviated tale, Blake spoke first.

“We’re all going to be thrown in jail for the rest of our lives. You know, if they don’t just kill us.”

Lily laughed. “I’m going to have a friend delete the security footage, so no one will know you and I were there, except Rorde, but I’ll handle him.” She picked up her phone and started typing, while continuing to talk. “Mrs. Bran needs to get the hell out of town, but we’ll be fine.” Then, she set down her phone and picked up a paper and pen.

Sharen heard the sound of ripping paper, and Lily started to scribble something down. The car grew uncomfortably silent, and her thoughts started to invade her mind. Lily’s right. When the Director and his men came to, they were going to start a massive search for them. Helicopters, Hunters, police cars, the works.

There’s no way we’ll be able to escape this city.

Goose bumps erupted on her flesh. What if we did all of this for nothing?

They stopped in front of her house, and Lily folded the paper and handed it to her. She stared at the girl in confusion.

“Read it when you get inside. It’s important.”

Blake turned fully around in his seat, glaring down at Ryder. “Okay, I can’t just sit here silently any longer. That thing is a demon. We just helped a demon escape its realm. This is against everything we’ve learned. We’ve become criminals. And neither of you see a problem with this?”

Lily placed a hand on his shoulder. “We’ll talk later. I’m sure I can help you—“

He shrugged her hand off.

A pained look came over her face, and then she glanced back at her teacher. “Read the note. And don’t waste any more time.”

“Thank you,” she said, shoving the paper into her front pocket.

Getting out of the car, she went around to the other side and pulled Ryder out, staggering under his weight. The second the door closed, Blake sped off. She didn’t blame him for not wanting to be involved, but she hoped he came around to the idea that not all demons were bad. Otherwise, she doubted his marriage to a half-breed would work out.

Lumbering toward her door, she barely made it halfway before her demons came pouring out. They took the weight of their brother from her without a word, and they all rushed inside. She locked the door, and they laid Ryder on the couch, before turning to her.

“What happened to him?” Alec asked, his dark eyes filled with concern. “And what happened to your arm?”

She ignored his second question. “He went through the portal to help me.”

Alec’s face paled. “How is he still in one piece?”

Her throat felt raw as Kade knelt down beside his brother and bowed his head.

“I—“ There was so much to explain, but time was ticking away with each moment. “Don’t interrupt me. We need to pack and go.”

“Wh—?” Alec began.

“I said don’t interrupt.” She took a deep breath. “One angel helped me. She gave me magic to bring him back safely, but I haven’t been able to wake him. She also killed another angel who stabbed Elaina, and slashed my arm. The Director of our organization found out somehow, and he and his men tried to attack us. We escaped, but they should be after us soon.”

Alec’s expression was thunderous, but Kade spoke first. “We don’t have time to pack. We need to get in the car and go. Now.”

“Go where exactly?” Alec asked, his voice tense.

But neither of them had an answer.

Instead, she scrambled to her room and grabbed her duffel bag. Opening her safe, she threw her various weapons, a few daggers and a couple guns in, and her stash of money, about three grand in total. And then… she reached for the four aged books in the back. Her most precious treasures. Putting them gently in the bag, she felt a small measure of relief. As she stood up, Lily’s note fell out of her pocket.

Heart racing, she unfolded it, hearing the sounds of Kade and Alec arguing in the living room. Scribbled in the note was an address, and the following words:

A safe place for people who know the truth.

“Guys,” she shouted. “I know where we’re going.”