Page 3 of Mortal Magic (Shadow Shifter)

Her eyes narrowed. The reality of talking to her nightmare made the horror show almost comical. She had totally slipped her nut, but if her delusions wanted to offer information. Who was she to decline? “What is foreshadowing?”

“Foreshadowing is a shadow gift. In my world, it’s possessed by the king alone,” Halak said.

Part of her wondered if she was having a complete breakdown, but in her visions, she couldn’t smell the demon. As the wind blew against her face, it brought the odor of iron and rotting meat.

“What are you?” she asked.

Halak’s eyes moved over her. “Humans call us demons, but we are much older than your biblical lore.”

Riley took another step backwards. Gravel crunched beneath her boot as her heart thumped in her chest. “What do you want with me?”

“My master waits for you and will explain your destiny. It is time for you to talk to Deruthel,” Halak said.

While she’d never heard that name in her visions, her blood cooled in her veins, sending a shiver through her body. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”

Halak growled. “Fate is with us. The king has foretold it. We have waited centuries for the portal to open. My brethren are starving. You will save my species.”

She had no idea what he was talking about. Portals. Starving demons. Her visions had never included the reasons behind her death. Only that it ended in excruciating pain. While she was coming to accept that her visions were very much real, she was still human, and the instinct to live was more powerful than fear. She bolted down the alleyway.

Her boots thumped against the pavement as her heart thundered in her chest. Her cap flew off, falling to the ally pavement as her hair whipped behind her. A ribbon of dark silk, waving like a pendant in the wind. A precursor to an impending battle.

The low whistling sound sent alarm bells blaring in her mind. She slid to a stop before Halak coalesced in front of her. His neon red eyes flaring in anger as he reached for her again.

She backed up slowly, holding her hands in front of her chest, as if the subservient action would somehow warn the snarling demon away. It didn’t.

Though she had some sparring experience, fighting wasn’t in her nature and nothing could prepare her for a demon adversary. She had always preferred to talk through arguments or problems. Since, neither one of those options was available to her, she lowered her hands as if she was about to give up. While she was truly afraid, she forced a look of complete panic.

Halak’s body relaxed. He walked toward her casually. “Come now.”

While the demon’s proportions were much different from that of human, he was obviously male. She waited until he was within striking range, then kicked hard between his spindly legs.

Halak screamed before his claws whipped out, slicing her shoulder like a hot iron searing her flesh. She stumbled back, clutching the wound as her stomach heaved. Fire burned through her body like he had injected her with acid.

Riley’s surroundings blurred as the alley spun in a circle around her. She was a child the last time she had a dizzy spell but she closed her eyes, taking deep breaths until the sensation passed. She opened her eyes as Halak stood before her, recovering from her blow to his genitals.

“I was not supposed to turn you. Deruthel will be angry. You need more venom or you will die. Come here.” He motioned with his gnarled fingers.

She knew what would happen next. This was the part of her vision that had kept her up at night. The pain. The regret. Her death. “I’d rather die than help you.”

“Not die, priestess. The king needs you,” Halak said.

Riley knew it was futile, but the instinct to avoid the vision hadn’t wavered. Despite the nausea and dizziness, she sprinted down the alley away from Halak, stumbling when her surroundings spun and her stomach lurched.

The blow to her back had her staggering before she fell forward. Her hands slid across the pavement as pebbles tore open her flesh and embedded in her skin. The momentum ripped the fabric of her pants at her knees. Still, she crawled toward the street before slick black fingers wrapped around her neck and squeezed tightly.

His putrid breath heated her cheek when he yanked her against his slimy body. “Halak will taste your blood.” His fangs punctured her skin as she fought for consciousness.

She had thought the fall, and the claws shredding her flesh had been painful. Those were nothing compared to the needlepoint knives perforating her neck. Her entire body convulsed as boiling lava shot through her tissues, searing away her humanity. Pieces of her life were sucked away with each deep gulp of Halak’s fangs. The dark destiny she failed to avoid.

Since demons and her impending death were real, that meant her angel was as well.

Her eyes began to droop as she waited for the angel of the mist. He was right on cue.

As her heart stuttered, he coalesced from the shadows. While she had never been able to see his face in her visions, this was real. The angel of death was beautiful, and he had come to collect her.

His ice-blue eyes burned with rage as black mist rolled off his shoulders. “Get away from her demon!” he roared before materializing a silver blade with strange markings etched in the steel. Another man coalesced beside him before they advanced on Halak.

“She belongs to me,” Halak hissed.

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