Slaughter Daughter by Eve Langlais

36

Hittingthe ground never felt good, especially when you were the bottom of the face-meeting-cobblestone sandwich. The only thing that saved me from serious broken ribs was that Kalinda didn’t weigh more than a hundred and thirty pounds soaking wet.

It still hurt when she barreled into me. Pretty sure I left some DNA on the rough ground. But it sure as hell beat getting plowed by Jag, who I’d bet was more than two hundred pounds. He’d been tossed a few feet past me and, after slamming into a solid monument—a man with a sword—lay unmoving on the ground, possibly dead. Definitely not getting up without medical intervention.

Kalinda scrambled off me, huffing, “You okay?”

“Define okay.” I shoved to my feet, hurting in too many places to count. Which oddly made it more bearable.

“You better be okay enough to run.”

Run? “What about Selena and Jag?” He still hadn’t twitched a single muscle, but I did see his chest rise and fall. He shimmered as if radiating something, yet I felt no heat.

With Jag out of the equation, the demon turned her gaze on us. More accurately, me.

Ever see a cartoon gulp? An exaggerated swallow of epic proportions? I experienced it. The fear hurt going down, a stark reminder of what Selena had said about me.

She’d called me a coward. She’d claimed I was weak.

That bitch. I didn’t have to make her statement true.

“I am not running.” Not when my mom’s murderer, the reason for my hellish existence, stood right in front of me. Smug as fuck. I wanted to slap the smirk off her face. Grab hold of her hair and pull it. Drag her along the ground by that perfect haircut.

Blame my stinging skin for my testiness. It and my loose tooth—all her fault.

I could taste blood. Smell the coppery tang. A throbbing pain filled me, but I didn’t understand the adrenaline coursing through me. The way my entire body vibrated.

Moving felt like tripping on acid. Things acquired a color trail, changing shape and density.

Jag pulsed a dark crimson, as did Kalinda, but Selena’s aura was a sickly green. It roiled and pustulated around her.

I didn’t need any lessons in magic to realize that I saw evil. Either that or I’d been drugged with some epic shit.

With a yell, I charged Selena. Not thinking. Not caring. Just knowing she was the reason for a good chunk of the bad things in my life.

To my surprise, she let me reach her. Still smirking.

I was gonna wipe it from her face.

The hand I raised to slap halted midair. Her lips moved, forming an O that she blew in my direction. Bands of nothing wrapped around me.

That didn’t bode well.

“Stay away from her!” Kalinda yelled.

It made me warm inside to hear her coming to my aid. The idiot. Seriously, I should have followed Kalinda’s plan to run.

“You’re not in a position to make demands.” Selena trailed a manicured nail across my skin.

I shivered.

“Don’t make us fight.” The new voice belonged to Cashien.

Huh. Another friend to my rescue.

“You can’t really think to stop me. I feel your weakness from here. When was the last time you fed the magic?” Selena purred, tracing a sharp nail across my cheek to my ear.

“You’ve drunk too much of the magic. You’re giving in to the madness,” Cashien declared.

“Am I mad? Or are you just jealous of my strength? Of you all, the boy on the ground probably had the most potential. Too bad he didn’t know how to use it.”

“Let her go.”

I could have cried hearing Mary’s voice. Her, too? I’d never had a friend who would stand up for me. Now, I had four.

“You want me to let her go? Make me,” Selena said smugly. “But let’s make this interesting.” She uttered a strange whistle, discordant and unpleasant.

At first, I couldn’t grasp the strange, whispery sound, the thrashing like sheets on a line in a brisk breeze. Then I saw the oddest bird swoop down.

No. Not a bird.

I blinked.

A flying fucking monkey.

They were the same as in the video, impish creatures in shades of gray mottled with teal. Their tails were long and barbed. Their wings created the flapping snap as they attacked.

I caught sight of Mary dressed in a pale pink tracksuit, her hair in jagged spikes. Her cheekbones sharp. Facial expression feral.

Just before an imp hit, she pulled a knife and attacked, slashing it across the attacking monster’s body. It squealed but continued reaching with wicked claws. Mary sliced again and shouted a word as her knife connected. A sigil on the blade ignited. A pentagram that lit with blue before fading, leaving the whole dagger glowing slightly. The imp hit the ground just as the next monster swooped in.

Two things saved Mary in that moment. One, given the imps wanted to fly, they couldn’t properly swarm without impeding each other. The second thing? Tiny but mighty, Mary could fight!

She did things The Matrix probably used stunt doubles for, bending and moving in ways that defied natural laws. She killed. Killed all the monsters. And with each death, her blade grew brighter. When the wave of imps stopped, Mary held that righteous weapon in Selena’s direction.

If I could have, I would have clapped. It was epic. No special effects. No do-overs. Just pure, deadly athleticism. And Mary was my friend.

Rather than cower, Selena laughed. “Did you enjoy that pathetic snack? As if those puny souls are enough. A drop of water against my sea.” Selena snapped her fingers, and a ball of fire appeared. “You’ll run out of juice well before me.”

“Let her go.” My eyes widened as I heard Jag’s voice from behind me.

He lived!

“You want the girl, then give me her father.”

“My dad is dead.” Something I grew less and less sure of. My world had turned upside down. I stared at the impossible. Maybe my father was alive.

If true, where the fuck was he? My anger had me simmering, but the bands of air held me tight.

“Geoffrey is very much alive, and he will turn himself over to me, or the girl dies,” Selena stated.

“Abby is not dying today. But you will if you don’t surrender to the cabal.” Jag boldly took a step forward, and the nail at my neck dug in, sharp enough to cut skin.

“Do you want to watch her die?”

“Do that, and you won’t have the choice to surrender. Right now, you can still walk away alive,” Jag said.

Selena giggled, the sound high-pitched, amused, and insane. “You challenge me, knowing you can’t think to match my power.”

“Says you.”

“I won’t surrender.”

“Then you’ll die,” Jag drawled. “Seems like the wrong choice. You sure you don’t want to rethink that?”

“I’m not dying, either.” Her frustration grew, and the pressure on me eased as she focused on Jag.

“You really are dumb. I’ll bet that’s why your fiancé dumped you.”

I winced. Oooh. Low blow.

Selena whirled to face Jag. “He didn’t dump me. A human whore seduced him.”

“Exactly. A human who didn’t even need magic. Did it occur to you that perhaps he genuinely liked Lily because you were annoying?” Jag shrugged. “I’ve only just met you and can see how you’d get on someone’s nerves.”

Her mouth rounded, and I snickered.

Bad move. Quick-tempered Selena only had to flick her hand, and my head rocked. Air punched. Pretty sure it hurt as much as a real fist.

Jag roared, “Don’t touch her!”

“Or what?” She grabbed my hair and yanked.

Tears pricked my eyes.

The growling I heard didn’t sound human at all. Selena yanked my head around, drawing a sharp cry, all so she could point my face in Jag’s direction. “You wanted proof of demons. Look at him. See what he truly is. What he hides.”

I couldn’t help but see. Jag looked like his evil twin brother, everything sharper and wilder. Feral and violent. His eyes glowed, but when he smirked over too-large teeth and said, “Don’t worry, buttercup, I got this,” I heard the Jag I knew. Still the same man, just a different face.

“Such balls. Maybe I’ll cut them off and have them for dinner later.” Selena licked her lips. My head went back as Selena held her knife over me. She liked her drama, and she milked it as she held the blade poised. “Give me Geoffrey, or she dies.”

“You won’t escape this alive. Is revenge worth it?” Cashien asked.

“So worth it. Once I kill you all, I’ll be even more powerful. Maybe I’ll have a talk with the cabal.” She clicked her tongue. “Thinking they can dictate to me.” Selena sneered. “Perhaps it’s time to replace them.”

“Good luck with that.” Jag dropped to one knee and placed his dagger on the ground. He then touched it and mumbled a word.

“What feeble trick are you trying now?” Selena asked.

“What’s it look like?” Jag stepped away from his glowing dagger.

“Stop that.” Selena wagged a finger. I no longer viewed it as innocuous. Not given what I’d seen her do.

“Surrender, and this doesn’t have to end with your death,” Kalinda said, and Selena spun me with her in time to see Kalinda had laid a glowing weapon down, too.

They were obviously doing something big, because Selena freaked. “I won’t be imprisoned! Your magic, even combined, can’t stop me. Now where is Geoffrey? Because I can see clearly now that none of you are him. Where is he hiding? Is he that professor you’re living with? It can’t be. The power signature is all wrong.”

“Hand Abby over, and no one has to get hurt.” Mary’s turn.

Each of my friends drew Selena’s attention, disrupting and distracting. Waiting for what?

“Haven’t you learned yet? Hurting is the fun part.” Selena cackled like a witch.

I almost giggled. Much as I hated the banter, the longer it lasted, the longer I lived. But what about when she tired of verbal sparring? While dangling in her fist, the knife remained a threat, as did the fact that I remained trussed like a turkey.

“Give up, Selena.” Cashien this time.

“Never.”

“You’ll never win.” Jag took over next.

As each of them taunted, drawing her attention, I had to wonder at the game. The glowing weapons formed four points on a lopsided square that made no sense.

Selena—Selena—seemed to think she knew what it meant. “Are you trying to contain me?” Her laughter bubbled with derision. “As if the four of you are enough.”

“You’re right, we need a fifth.” Kalinda tapped her chin. “Abby?”

Why did she eye me? Ever had that scary dream where you’re in danger and can’t scream? Opening my mouth, I discovered an inability to speak. My worst nightmare coming true.

“Don’t ask Abby. Even for a half-breed, she’s very ungifted,” Selena taunted. “Could be I’ve misjudged her worth. I am beginning to see why Geoffrey doesn’t care for such a weak and unsightly child. Perhaps I should do him a favor and rid him of his worst shame.”

The knife lifted, and this time, I knew she wouldn’t be distracted.

I closed my eyes.

Waited to die. Which was when the hero I least expected spoke. “Let her go.”

“Professor?” The word formed on my lips but didn’t escape.

“You’re not Geoffrey. Your aura is wrong,” Selena declared.

The professor stood, bathed in a green and taupe light, dull and boring until he snapped his fingers. A crimson glow burst free, and I gasped at the sight of it, billowing and bold.

“There you are. At last. Geoffrey.” Selena smiled in triumph.

“Yes, it’s me.” The voice shifted. “You wanted me, I’m here, Selena. Time we settled things between us. Leave my daughter alone.” Professor-Daddy flicked a glance at me and winked. “Don’t worry, Abby girl, Super Dadums is here.”

My eyes widened.

Daddy?

I burst into tears.