Switching tactics, Travis backed up, putting a little distance between them. What he hadn’t expected was to lose his footing under the slippery wet snow. A fatal, stupid mistake and it was going to cost him his life.
Falling to the stiff earth, Travis cursed his luck. It was too much to expect that the lesser demon wouldn’t take full advantage of his screwed up misfortune.
Of course it was.
In a blink, Travis found himself immobilized and shit up a creek. The demon had one dirty hand around his throat, and the other wrapped around a hematite blade.
“That little strawberry back there… I’ll enjoy every last drop of her life.” He licked his black lips sneering. “Tasty,” he hissed, raising his blade for the kill strike.
Travis saw nothing but red at the image his words caused.
Red.
Hot.
Rage.
Emma. His body vibrated with her name. He had to save her. But first he had to save himself. It was time to open a can of whoop ass.
Surged with adrenaline, Travis waited, counting each precious second before he made his move. It had to be precise and accurate, or his was a goner. As the lesser demon arched the shining blade over his head, Travis reached for the ruby dagger embedded in his boot. Hand secured around the hilt, he twisted and sent the dagger home, in the demon’s back nanoseconds before his blade struck Travis. He had been able to avoid the demon’s knife only to have it scrap over his shoulder. A better option than his heart, as far as Travis was concerned.
The demon in all its horrible glory erupted into a shower of ash, spraying Travis with its remains. Breathing heavily, he laid on the ground, letting the innocent snowflakes melt on his heated face. His shoulder throbbed, and he could feel the sticky substance of blood. It was only a matter of waiting for it to heal on its own. By tomorrow there wouldn’t be a trace of the fight he had barely walked away from.
Rickety on his feet, he forced the wave of hurt down and took off at incredible speeds to his house. Lexi was going to kill him if he got blood on the carpet.
Chapter 2
Stumbling through the front door, he braced himself up against the wall, waiting for his brain to catch up with his body. The run had been difficult, but necessary.
“What the hell happened to you?” his cousin Chase barked, eyeing his tattered and bloody clothes. “You like you were wrestling with a bear.”
“Close enough,” Travis groaned, sinking into the couch. He was willing to risk his little sis’s wrath, which said just how badly he was injured. It had been quite awhile since he had battled with a lower demon, and fighting had always been Chase’s thing. Travis was more of a lover. “Demon,” he winced. “In the woods.”
“You know Lex is going to burn your ass when she see’s you dripping blood on the furniture,” Chase commented.
Travis closed his eyes. “Lex, is just going to have to cut me some slack.”
“You okay man?” Chase asked, his silver eyes serious.
Travis nodded his head. “Yeah. I got him,” he said, grinning.
“I would have to disown you if you hadn’t.”
“Funny.”
“Come on, let’s get you cleaned up.” Chase gave him a hand up, supporting his weight as they made their way upstairs.
Lexi’s bedroom door swung open. Her long blonde hair haloing her face, the same shade as Travis’s as well as the dimples they shared. “Why does it sound like there is a herd of elephants outside my door?” One look at Chase and Travis had her gasping. “What happened?” Her turquoise eyes brimmed with instant concern.
“I’m fine,” Travis insisted, not in the mood for her fussing.
“That,” she pointed to the blood on his shirt. “Does not look like nothing.”
“You heard the man, he’s fine,” Chase butted it, leaving no room for arguing.
“Fine,” she huffed. “But you better not have gotten blood on the furniture. Should I assume this has something to do with Emma Deen?” she asked sweetly sarcastic.
When had his sister become so intuitive? It was disconcerting to say the least.
“Lex stay out of things you don’t understand,” Travis warned.
She crossed her arms, a winning light in her eyes. Chase just uplifted his pierced brow. Everyone knew she’d hit it head on, whether Travis would admit it or not. She was neither blind nor dumb. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to see how her brother had pinned after Emma since school started. What she didn’t understand, was why her brother hadn’t made a move. He wasn’t usually so standoffish when it came to girls.
Not that she approved of his typical methods, but she sort of understood. Being a Divisa was far from easy. At times it was darn right lonely and pathetic. She was a junior in high school and never had a true friend or a real boyfriend.
Totally pathetic.
Being half-demon made it nearly impossible to get close to humans. They gave off some kind of demon mojo that had humans keeping their distance, but she sensed what her brother did in Emma. She was different. Although they were in the same grade and had a few classes together, they weren’t very close. Emma was kind of driven and focused mainly on dancing than her social climb.