“Show off.” She rolled her eyes and conjured a second sword, not to be shown up.
Claudia drew spell knots, warding each of us against the demon blood.
I grabbed two vials. “Everyone have enough?”
Raphael pulled the last vials from Shane’s backpack and shoved them in his pockets. He gave his bat a little test swing. “Ready.”
“What about you, Claudia? Vials?”
She grinned, and it was about as mischievous of a grin as I’d ever seen from her. “I’m ready.” Lucas bumped her hand. “And I’ve got my wolf.”
“Good.” Love you, I said to Dastien.
But there were no promises in life. No guarantees. I had to live every day like it was my last, and do my best to make my life count. So, that was what I was doing.
And if we survived tonight, that’s what I’d continue to do. “Let’s do this.”
A call went up among the cops. Some yelled out to not shoot the wolves. Others yelled about not shooting the witches.
I grabbed out two vials. “With the power of Jesus Christ, I banish you from this earth.” I threw the vials, and started running before the explosion hit.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Little pieces of demon bodies rained down on me, turning quickly to ash, as I hit the pavement in front of the church. Claudia’s spell held—their acid-like blood rolled off me without even the slightest burn. There might be a lot of these raccoon suckers, but they were much easier to kill than the bigger demons.
Claudia tossed another two vials, and the heat from exploding potions licked along my face. I reached into my bag, and grabbed two more. We’d made a bunch more at the motel, but we didn’t have a limitless supply. We needed to get in there and get this done before Luciana fully opened that portal.
We were maybe ten feet from the front door of the church. Not much more to go.
“In the name of God, the Father, I send you back to hell.” I threw the vial, and more demons turned to ash. Dastien jumped on one, ripping its head off with a well-placed bite.
“One more blast and we’ll be inside,” I yelled.
Claudia stepped up beside me. “One. Two. Three.” We said the words, tossing the vials in unison, and then charged the door.
Inside looked just like my vision. The portal wasn’t open yet, but there were at least twenty minor demons and half as many major standing in the circle Luciana had drawn in front of the altar. Pews were turned on their sides—some ripped apart. Red flares lit the inside, giving everything a hazy, red glow. The helicopter’s spotlight shone in through the broken stained glass window.
My throat tightened. Dastien? I felt him beside me, but I didn’t dare look away from what was in front of me. He sent me strength through our bond, and I could breathe a little easier.
I stepped into the church, focusing on the altar in the back. There was movement back there.
Luciana.
She shouted something in a language I didn’t understand, and the demons started moving toward us.
A major demon caught my attention as its red gaze stared. Its scaly gray skin glistened pink with the flares. It was taller than the rest, with muscles that looked like it could rip me apart. “Teressssssa,” it hissed.
I didn’t hesitate to reach inside my bag. “In the name of Jesus Christ, I send you back to hell.” Three vials hit it at once, but it kept coming.
“You’re mine, Teressssa,” it said as its leathery skin smoked, burning from the spell.
“Not likely,” Cosette said as she swung her sword, severing its head. “Did they send a demonic memo around with your name?” She asked as the demon turned to ash, and was sucked back where it belonged.
“That was creepy as fuck.” I reached in my bag, and my fingers brushed the bottom. Only three more potions, and then I was going to have to rely on my spells—which I sucked at—or go wolf—which wasn’t my best fighting form.
The pews were all over the place. I stepped over one, and a small demon—no bigger than a child—clawed at my foot. “Try that again, fucker!” I shifted my free hand, going half hand, half paw—thick, razor-sharp nails extended. I slashed its arm, and it fell to the ground with a satisfying thud. Black sludge spewed from the dangling limb and the demon leaped at me, baring a full mouth of pointed teeth.
I twisted my body and slashed, and the demon burned as it died, turning to ash.