Released (The Eternal Balance #3)(39)
What followed was a series of bone-shattering blows as all four of the Trackers converged. The breath hitched in my lungs and everything swam. Azi blinked and the landscape bowed before tipping dramatically to the left. A sense of weightlessness came over me.
Get up! Get my ass off the f*cking ground.
But the demon was beat. Someone screamed. Azi tried to turn my head to see who it was—sound had taken on a hollow kind of quality—but it was no use. Everything was spinning at light speed.
With great effort, the demon lifted my arms, thrust out and blindly groped for something to pull my body upright. After a moment of searching, my fingertips brushed jagged bark. Azi used the solid surface to drag me vertical.
“Aaas determined aaas ever,” the Trackers spat. They surrounded me. Each wore an identical expression, and the only difference between them was that one had something sharp and cool pressed against my throat. “Zenaaak will undoubtedly be furious thaaat I’ve killed you, but when I return the Brim Stone to him, I think aaall will be forgiven.”
The blade pressed down, and I felt it break the skin. The sting of it permeated every nerve in my body, sending a wicked chill to my core. It wasn’t a normal blade. This was something Azi truly feared. A weapon forged in the fires of hell. The Tracker’s lips parted, a victorious grin slipped into place, and it pushed a little harder on the blade.
But before Zenak’s lackey could finish the job, something slammed into me. I hit the ground again, the weight of the blade gone as everything slowly leeched back into focus.
Sam stood above me, facing off against the four Trackers like an angel. No. A warrior. Even in the dark, I could see her clearly—the stubborn set of her jaw, and her strong, unyielding frame. She was a protective barrier between my body and the Trackers, and the glow Heckle said she had, the one I’d never noticed, was suddenly so obvious. “Another step closer and I’ll roast you.”
The Trackers looked from her to me and back again. They said nothing as they stepped around her, walked to where Van stood, cowering behind the large pine tree. They latched on to the witch, two on either side, and turned to Sam with a challenging grin. “Feel free to use your power to stop me, child.”
It waited, but neither Sam nor Azi made a move. The demon knew killing the Trackers wasn’t an option. That would only buy us time and, in the end, make this ten times harder. The last thing we needed was eight of those bastards on our asses instead of four.
Sam must have been thinking the same thing. With a sigh, she relaxed her shoulders, and she took a step back. To Van, she said, “I’ll keep my promise. I swear.”
“You can’t help me, Sam,” Van said. She struggled for a moment in the Tracker’s grip, then gave up. “They have me now. And in a few moments, I’ll have to take them to get the key. I’m so sorry…” She kept her shoulders squared and her chin up, and she held her head high with an admirable air of defiance. “You’re a very special person—with very specific traits. A rarity in this world. Take care of yourself.”
Specific… Holy shit. Does she mean…?
Elation overcame the demon. Savannah Gray had just bought us time to get to the stone first, but better than that, she’d told us Sam would be able to steal the stone.
Chapter Eighteen
Sam
“I can’t believe we let them walk off.” I hadn’t moved since they’d taken Van away. I’d promised to keep her safe. I’d sworn nothing bad would happen to her.
I’d lied.
Just like Azi had, I’d lied. The guilt was an albatross around my neck. It didn’t matter to me that it hadn’t happened on purpose, or that I had every intention on righting this. I’d failed.
I turned—and gasped. Jax’s face was inches from mine. I backed away, but only made it a half step before Azi grabbed me, Jax’s fingers wrapping painfully tight around my forearms. The demon spun me hard and slammed me against the nearest tree, the one Van had been hiding behind.
“Do not ever do that again!” The fury I saw in Jax’s eyes stole my breath. I’d seen it a thousand times, directed at everything ranging from Chase to the scoop of ice cream he’d dropped in the dirt during our high school freshman carnival. This was the first time, however, that the full weight of it had ever been directed at me. And even though I knew in my gut that it wasn’t really Jax glaring death at me, it was still unsettling. The air turned cold and making my lungs work got just a little bit harder.
It took a moment, but I calmed myself and realized the demon was referring to what I’d done to the Trackers. How I’d gotten between them and saved its miserable life! “Are you for real?” I tried to wriggle free, but I didn’t so much as jostle it. I wasn’t moving until Azi allowed it. “How about a thank-you instead of being a complete asshat?”
The demon blinked, and Jax’s stormy gray eyes clouded over in confusion—then rage. “Your actions were not to save my life. They were to save his—which is a waste since he is already dead.”
Of all the things I’d expected the demon to come back with, that wasn’t on the list. The temperature plummeted, and in that moment the only thing keeping me from crashing to the ground was the demon’s grip. “What?”
It watched me without answering. Jax’s head tilted to the left, and then to the right. Like it was listening to something only it could hear.