Page 69 of The Mating Need
“Easy,” the Crimson Wizard murmured. “That was a blow from a demon. You need torest.”
“Rest my ass. Let me at him.” Snake fisted his hands. “He hurtZoe.”
Tristan pulled the shifter away and gentled his voice. “Zoe is fine, but she is shaken. Go to her. See to her needs. Let us handlethis.”
Now Troy understood Snake’s dislike for him and his change of attitude after meeting Jenny. The Lupine had thought Troy and Zoe wereinvolved.
“She needs you,” Troy told Snake. “Only you. Get her out of here and backhome.”
Snake threw him a grateful look, and walked off, picking Zoe in his arms. Sobbing, she curled against him as Snake jogged to his pickuptruck.
Jenny looked after them anxiously as they drove off. “Will Zoe be allright?”
“She’s got the best medicine, sweetheart. She has someone who cares,” Troy said somberly. He glanced at Tristan. “D.L. He branded her. What does that standfor?”
“Dark Lord,” the Silver Wizard said grimly. “Ellison has been the one breaking the warding on the land. He invited Perry and the cult onto Aiden’sranch.”
“And you kept this information to yourself? Damnit Tristan, you should have told me!” Aiden took off his Stetson and threw it to the ground. “I could have savedher.”
“No one could have.” Tristan looked solemn. “He’s a rare morphing demon, a shifter turned to evil who does the explicit bidding of the Dark Lord and thrives on drinking blood. This particular demon blends easily. Even I, with all my powers and my advanced magick, could not detect he had turned to darkness until Perry and his cult werenearby.”
“That burns my biscuit,” Aiden growled. “You’re more than a thousand years old and hell, if you can’t tell these morphing demons apart from regular Others, whocan?”
Tristan, Drust, Gideon and Xavier turned toCaderyn.
“I can. I fought these demons centuries ago and vanquished them. Now that we know they walk among us, I can teach my fellow wizards, and I will teach my daughter as well,” Caderyn said slowly. “I have a particular talent for seeing their true guise. True evil bears a death’s head skull beneath theirface.”
He looked down at Jenny. “A talent I passed onto my daughter, itseems.”
Jenny shook her head. “I could see it with Perry, but not withEllison.”
“It is easier to detect with Skins. I will show you how to do it with morphing demons like Ellison,” Caderyn said. “A little practice and you will be as skilled as Iam.”
Suddenly Troy knew Jenny did have a greater purpose. She wasn’t merely different and possessed power beyond that of an ordinary Lupine, but a skill at seeing through to thesoul.
He touched her face, marveling at her uniqueness. “Always knew you were special, sweetheart. You were born to vanquishdarkness.”
“Now, Jenny will receive her first lesson in how to use her powers on how to kill a demon.” Caderyn flexed his fingers. “Without using asword.”
Aiden threw the unconscious demon a disgusted look. “I’d love to wring his neck with my bare hands, but I’ll let you take care of this situation. I’m going back to my ranch to have a talk with the pack. Tristan, after, I want you or someone to go through every single member and make sure there’s no more of these bastards amongus.”
“I will do it,” Caderyn said. “My fellow wizards will accompany me and I shall teachthem.”
“One question before I go.” Aiden picked up his Stetson, clapped it back on his head. “How the hell did a Skin professor from a college turn into ademon?”
“He wrote a book,” Tristan said, sighing. “The wrong kind of book that required research. Perry was always fascinated with the occult as an adult. He found an ancient manuscript with a chant to call up evil and summoned the Dark Lord, who promised power and immortality if Perry turned his soul over to him and became ademon.”
Xavier’s handsome face tightened. “Perry is only one Skin masquerading as human while concealed his demon self. We destroyed the ancient manuscript, but there are more Skins like Perry who will do the Dark Lord’s bidding in the coming days when mortals and immortals must battle evil for theirsurvival.”
Aiden shook his head. “If it’s a war we must prepare for, then we will. I’m not afraid to fight and neither is mypack.”
The alpha headed for his pick-up truck and drove off. Ellison had begun to stir. Troy and the wizards backed away, while Jenny and Caderyn approached the demon. She threw an anxious look over her shoulder at Troy. Henodded.
“You can do this, Jenny. Let herrip.”
Let herrip.
Jenny took a deep breath as she and her father slowly advanced toward Ellison. Not Ellison, the happy, friendly cowhand whom Aiden had trusted. That Ellison was forever gone, having sold his soul to the Dark Lord in exchange forimmortality.
