bedeviled & beyond 02 - bedeviled & bedazzled (43 page)
Read bedeviled & beyond 02 - bedeviled & bedazzled Online
Authors: sam cheever
Tags: #science fiction romance angels & devils, #humorous paranormal romance, #books romance angels & devils, #Romantic Comedy, #fantasy & futuristic romance, #books futuristic romance, #Demons & Devils urban fantasy
I fired another power arrow at the thing and it shifted away in the blink of an eye. Unlike last time, I anticipated the evasive maneuver and immediately shot a second arrow about a foot to the left of my first one.
I was gratified to hear the demon scream in pain as my beam of energy sliced about two feet off the end of its body.
Rearing up, it struck back before I could move away, sinking its fangs into me and leaving two large holes in my thigh. I bit back a scream and pulled my power forward, shifting to the left of it and then shooting a jolt of power into its slit of an eye before it could react.
The head whipped around and it struck toward me again, but I was ready for it. I leaped over the whipping oblong head and landed on the other side, shooting another jolt into the frantically thrashing body. I managed to tear a fist sized hole in its thick body just behind the head. Black blood ran from the hole and sizzled upward in a wide arc from the whipping body.
I jumped away from the acid-like substance and it landed just in front of my boots.
The demon struck again, catching a five inch long tooth in the top of my boot and ripping the soft leather all the way to my ankle. It dug a deep gouge out of my shin on the way down. Shit! Why do they always go for the boots?
I raised my hand to blast a hole in its head just as it grabbed what remained of my boot and flung its head upward with a violent jerk, pulling me off my feet and sending my power arrow harmlessly into the wall behind it. Wood splintered behind the demon, followed by the acrid scent of smoke.
I sailed over the snake demon’s head, hanging in the air long enough to twist my body before I hit the wall so that I slammed into it with my back instead of my head. The impact knocked the wind out of me but I stayed conscious, which was what I’d been hoping for.
I slid down the wall and landed on something soft that smelled like raw meat. My horrified gaze slid to the man at the top of the pile. The demon had apparently been hungry because a large portion of the man’s chest was missing.
I gagged and leaped back to my feet. The monster fixed me with a cold, red gaze. I held that gaze for a moment, trying to figure out what it was thinking. That was when I realized there was nothing between the door and the demon.
And the door had a huge hole in the middle of it.
The demon’s wide snout opened in what looked suspiciously like a grin and it surged toward the exit, aiming for the hole in the center.
I panicked, pulling as much power as I could gather into my fingertips. The energy cocktail sizzling in my palms included power I’d grabbed from engaging the daemon hickey on my neck, tapping into Dialle’s power. I flung out my hands, flinging every bit of my accumulated energy at the demon.
He exploded into several pieces just as he reached the door, the pieces slamming against the splintered wood.
The walls of the room shook from the force of impact.
Dropping to my knees from exhaustion, I gasped, “To Hades with thee fool, for God hath tired of you.”
I leapt to my feet and ran toward the door. Yanking it open, I peered through a fog of smoke, looking for the small priest. He was lying on his back several feet from the door. I prayed fervently as I ran to him. If I’d inadvertently killed him with an errant power arrow I’d never forgive myself.
Kneeling beside him, I felt for a heartbeat. Fortunately, it was beating strong, really strong, as if he was running on an adrenaline cocktail. His eyes shot open as I checked his body for holes or gouges. Finding none, I reached under his scrawny shoulders to help him stand.
He groaned a bit as I helped him to his feet but he seemed unharmed. I turned him away from the door. “Don’t look at any of the debris until I’ve had a chance to examine it. I need to find and extinguish the eyes.”
He nodded, not asking the obvious question, which told me he’d known all along what was behind that door.
The air shifted behind me and I turned to find Flick in his robes. “I got them all out.”
I nodded, “Thanks.”
He shrugged, “Least I could do.”
The little priest was staring wide eyed and open mouthed at Flick. Finally he reached out a small, gnarled hand and Flick took it. “I am truly blessed in your presence,” said the little man.
Flick blushed. He wasn’t used to being worshipped. He really wasn’t all that powerful.
I grinned and jerked my head toward the mess in the hallway. “I’m just gonna pick through this gore and find the demon’s eyes. Why don’t you two go have a cup of tea or something.”
Flick’s eyes widened in horror and I couldn’t help laughing.
He tried to pull his hand away but the little priest held on tightly.
“I’ve always known you existed but I never dreamed I’d get to see you. Thank you for protecting me all these years.”
Flick blanched and his brown eyes flew to me. I shrugged. It was against the Big House rules to reveal another guardian to a human, so Flick could hardly explain that he wasn’t the one the little priest should be thanking. But his innate goodness made him feel guilty for taking credit for someone else’s hard work. Finally he just smiled and laid his other hand over the priest’s. “You’re welcome. Go in His name.”
The little man, thinking himself both blessed and dismissed, let go of Flick and shuffled down the hall, looking a bit shell-shocked but happy.
“Good thinking.” I told Flick with a grin.
He shrugged. “Let’s get this mess cleaned up before anybody sees it.”
For blurbs, excerpts and buy links for the
Bedeviled & Beyond
series, visit the book page of my website:
http://www.samcheever.com/series.html#bedeviledbeyond
Also by Sam Cheever
ALPHAS OF THE BLOOD
Sangui
Mavim
APOCALYPTIC SERIES
Apocolyptic Mojo
Tall Dark and Apocalyptic
An Apocalyptic Need
BEDEVILED & BEYOND
Bedeviled & Bedazzled
Bedeviled & Beleaguered
HONEYBUN HEAT
A Honeybun and Coffee
Life, Liberty and Pursuit of a Honeybun
Fast Track to a Honeybun
A Honeybun in Hell
Honeybun in a Loin Cloth
Honeybun at a Dude Ranch
Honeybun on the Run
Honeybun, One and Done
Honeybun Heat Box Set
YESTERDAY'S MYSTERIES
Yesterday's News
Threads of Yesterday
Standalone
Guardian
Watch for more at
Sam Cheever’s site
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About the Author
USA Today Bestselling Author Sam Cheever writes romantic paranormal/fantasy and mystery/suspense, creating stories that celebrate the joy of love in all its forms. Known for writing great characters, snappy dialogue, and unique and exhilarating stories, Sam is the award-winning author of 50+ books and has been writing for over a decade under several noms de plume.
Read more at
Sam Cheever’s site
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