Page 280 of Blood and Ruin: The Complete Series

“Just do what you can, but get yourself out of here the minute it gets to be too much,” Kai demands. The others back up Kai’s demand with warning glares.

I nod a reply, knowing now isn’t the time to tell them I can handle myself. I am scared as hell for them, too.

Jax salutes him, giving me a wink. “Yes, sir.”

Kai shakes his head, walking over to me. Pulling me into him, he takes a deep breath. “Don’t youdareleave me again.”

“Same goes for you.”

“Deal.” Kai pulls back, his eyes filled with worry and fear, not making the dread in my stomach ease.

Kai gives Axel a nod before heading towards the chaos.

“Princess!” Axel’s tone is demanding, making me look at him.

“Axel.” I use the same tone but barely get a tilt to his lips. His whole face is drenched in worry. “Please, be careful.”

“I promise.” Axel nods his head before following Kai.

Rion moves in front of me, sharing a look with Luka before nodding. “If anything happens—”

“Get out of here. I know. But you all know—”

“That you would never leave us. I know.” Rion pulls me into him, his scent wraps around me. “I’ll stay close by.” “Be careful.”

Rion nods his head, giving us one last look before turning in the same direction as the guys.

Luka stays near me like before. He takes a step back, giving me a shy smile before closing his eyes.

His shadows appear, trailing down his body, but instead of black like they normally are, they have a tint of red in them. They’ve also changed shape, looking more like Jax’s full flames instead of shredded tendrils. They engulf his entire body, slowly receding to reveal a large wolf.

His dark mane has hints of silver in it that I didn’t notice before. His flames are redder, cloaking his entire body.

Luka’s wolf comes up beside me as we head toward the nearest group of demons and beasts.

Just as we near them, I reach down and pull up the energy hidden inside me. I feel it as it slides over my body, expanding outward.

Once I’ve gathered enough of it, I push it out around me.

It shoves most of the demons and hybrid beasts closest to us back long enough for Luka’s wolf to rush forward and blanket them in flames.

He travels around them, lighting them up before moving onto the next one. But it’s like we’ve become a beacon, and every beast and demon heads straight for us.

I push more and more power out around me, keeping most of them away from Luka and me, but they keep coming.

It starts to feel endless, with no end in sight. We kill one, only for three more to appear behind it.

I glance over and see Kai’s two headed hound take on a large demon that looks like it’s made from black rock with eerie yellow eyes. He’s holding his own, but there are so many other demons around him, trying to take him down.

Rion is already in his basilisk form, taking on a dark demon with lava running down its body, but just like Kai, he’s surrounded by hundreds of hybrid beasts.

I find Axel in the sky, swooping down to attack wherever he can, but there are so many demons and beasts, his flames or power to absorb and amplify energy barely make a difference.

Luka shifts back, coming up beside me panting heavily from constantly fighting. “There are too many of them. We need to get you out of here.”

I’m about to reply, to tell him there has to be another way, when I notice something wrong with Kai. Something is happening to his hounds. Shaking their heads, they back up, stomping and scraping their clawed paws against the ground.

“What’s wrong with Kai?” I ask Luka.

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