Total pages in book: 153
Estimated words: 141492 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 707(@200wpm)___ 566(@250wpm)___ 472(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 141492 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 707(@200wpm)___ 566(@250wpm)___ 472(@300wpm)
A blue light burst over the battlefield, illuminating the valley. Petru didn’t glance up, and neither did his enemies. His ancient blood was far too valuable of a prize, and all attention was riveted on the richness flowing freely from his terrible wounds.
With casual ease and without looking at his prey, Petru reached over his shoulder with one hand and yanked the enormous toad from his back. As he did, he punched through the toad’s back to find the withered heart. Yanking it free, he tossed it into the sky. Several lightning bolts struck it. The toad’s mouth gaped open as the body flopped over and hit the ground.
Petru’s eyes, a penetrating silver, had never left the undead facing him. Draven stood what he considered a few safe feet away. He couldn’t conceal the greed on his face as he stared at the blood covering Petru’s body.
“I have only to wait until you bleed a little bit more. Your strength will be gone.” He grinned, indicated the toads doing their best to eat through Petru’s legs. “Soon, their venom will paralyze you, and you won’t be able to fight me. I may keep you alive just for your blood.”
The blue light seemed to pulse in the air, and a low musical voice chanted softly. The toads suddenly pulled back from Petru in alarm, leaping from his legs to the ground, lifting their heads and looking in all directions. They began to utter loud, obnoxious croaks in counterpoint to the soft melodious chanting.
I am behind you, Petru, Aura said. I am keeping the illusion of your body covered in blood but am healing your wounds while you push the venom out.
I fear there is going to be an attack on the shortest member, which is Izem. I will be able to destroy this vampire. He is too sure of himself, Petru informed her.
Nicu sent me to give you blood. He said if you do not take it and allow me to heal you, he will come save you himself and never allow you to forget it. He said to remind you, eternity is a long time.
Unfortunately, that sounded exactly like something Nicu would say. Aura was already healing him. Beneath the illusion Aura provided, Petru pushed the paralyzing venom from his body and took blood from Aura’s wrist. While he did so, he assessed how exhausted Safia was.
Safia was expending tremendous amounts of energy holding the hellhounds in place, keeping the generals and Lilith from realizing she had taken control of the beasts and searching for a way to destroy the demons. Destroying the toads while carrying that load would drain her further and was extremely risky. She would need to expend energy. If that energy was felt by Lilith or the demon generals, everything was lost.
Touching her mind, seeing through her eyes, Petru only felt her confidence. She was Ku Tappa Kulyak, his demon slayer. She was Pelkgapâd és Meke Pirämet, his fearless defender. She was calm as she assessed the toads, unfazed by their sheer numbers or size. She paid no attention to their hideous serrated teeth or their venom. She didn’t appear to look at the damage they did to her family, to his brethren or to him. She simply was the demon slayer.
He turned his attention back to Draven. The vampire was waiting for him to fall, his cocky grin still on his face. Petru didn’t have time to waste, not when his lifemate was under such pressure and something was stalking Izem through the continual clashing of vampires, demons and toads. Time was against them. Draven might think he was still the heir to the Carpathian throne, but he had never been more than a pompous traitor.
The moment Aura was safely away, Petru charged forward with his incredible speed. He struck Draven with the force of a runaway train, fist driving through the chest wall. The vampire’s eyes went wide with shock and horror as Petru’s fingers wrapped around his withered heart and began to extract it.
Draven tore at Petru’s chest with his claws in an attempt to stave him off, but Petru was too fast and too experienced. He swung Draven around easily, as if he were a rag doll, ripped the heart entirely from the chest and shoved the body from him into the middle of the frenzied toads. The heart was instantly incinerated as it met the lightning bolt sizzling across the sky.
Toads scrambled in all directions to get out of the bluish light that seemed to illuminate the entire valley. Drops of water rained down, as if the clouds had broken open. As the water hit the toads, holes began to appear in the bodies of the amphibians. A hissing sound erupted along with columns of bluish-gray smoke from hundreds of the toads as they tried to out-hop the pouring rain. The water fed the blue flames erupting from the holes rather than putting out the fire.