It screamed in pain and reared up, trying to knock Iain off.
He stabbed the thing at the base of the neck, but all he hit was a heavy lump of fat.
The demon staggered back, racing toward the cave wall. Iain didn’t have time to move. He was going to be crushed. If he dropped off, the huge paws would smash him just as dead.
That couldn’t happen yet. The girl was still trapped.
Iain’s mind raced to find a solution as he scrambled up the slippery body, reaching to cling to the thing’s head. The demon slammed backward. It was too late. Iain hadn’t moved enough. He held his breath, bracing himself for the pain.
Blue sparks spewed out from the wall, but there was no pain. Not even the chill of the stone touched him.
Jackie. She’d protected him.
Not that it would do much good. The burning sting of poison began sinking into his hands where he’d come in contact with the demon’s oily skin secretions.
Let go! he heard Jackie shout in his head. Trusting her, he did as she asked, releasing his grip.
She caught his body, and he swore he could feel the warmth of her hands lowering him to the ground. Not that that was possible, since she was across the room.
His body rolled in the bottom of a faintly glowing bubble. He didn’t try to fight his way free, because he could already feel her drawing in more power for another task.
Golden fire spilled from her fingertips, lashing out at the giant demon. The licks of flame wrapped around its body, setting its oily skin ablaze. It hissed in pain and fury.
Iain hit the ground hard, rolling over bones and filth to break his fall. His hands burned, and the tips of his fingers had started to go numb. He landed at Jackie’s feet, and his world hadn’t even had time to stop spinning before she locked her hand around his wrist and began pouring power into his arm.
Hot, tingling lightning erupted over his skin, burning away all traces of the poison. He felt something wet seep out of his palms, and then saw smoke rising as it evaporated.
The poison. It was gone, along with the burning, numbing effects.
There was no time for words, but he let his thanks slide into her, along with the next pulsing glow of energy she was pulling from him.
She hadn’t stopped slinging magic around since combat had broken out. He didn’t know how much more she could do, but it was already more than he’d ever expected for such a short burst of time.
Cain was holding his own, keeping the demons off both of them, herding them toward the flames consuming the hulk they’d taken down.
Iain ripped off his shirt and wrapped it around his hand. The hilt of his sword protruded from the burning demon, and he made a quick grab to recover it. His shirt smoked, but none of the heat met his skin, so he shoved his way up to Cain’s side, cutting a path through the few remaining demons scurrying about.
When the last one had fallen, he turned to find Jackie. She was slumped against a wall, breathing hard. A bright, pink flush covered her cheeks, and her bloodshot eyes glowed with a sense of accomplishment.
“Autumn,” she panted. “Over there.”
Iain wasn’t letting her get more than a few steps away, so he wrapped his arm around her waist, taking her weight, and urged her forward.
Smoke wafted through the room, obscuring their vision. Jackie waved her hand, and the smoke parted from their path. Lying on the floor, on the other side of the bars, unmoving, was a young, scrawny girl.
“Autumn?” said Jackie, as if she found it hard to believe.
The metal bars were rusty, but not flimsy. Each one went into the surrounding stone at top and bottom. Iain grabbed one to test it and found it sturdy.
He was strong, but there was no way he was breaking those without some tools.
“I’ll do it,” said Jackie, weaving on her feet.
“Just unlock it,” said Cain. “Save your strength to cover our exit.”
She nodded and put her hand on the lock. Her eyes closed for a moment, and then he heard a faint metallic squeak. The door slipped open a scant inch.
“I’ll get her,” said Cain.
Iain turned to watch their backs, peering through the thick smoke. Smoldering demons lay scattered across the floor. The big one still twitched occasionally, its skin blistered and cracking.
Jackie’s jolt of panic was his first sign that something was wrong. His head spun around to find the threat, his sword rising to destroy it.
Before, all that had been on the other side of the bars was a rock wall, but that had changed. Whatever illusion or veil had covered what really stood there, it was gone now, revealing a larger room stuffed full of eerily human guards. Each one was armed with a sword, and there were at least thirty of them, maybe more.
Standing in front of them, with his long, bony fingers wrapped around the throat of the little girl, dangling her unconscious body off the ground, stood another demon. He radiated power. Not a single creature behind him twitched, as if they wouldn’t dare do anything without his permission.
He was so human looking that it took Iain a moment to figure out that he was Synestryn. The faint green glow to his eyes and the black blood pulsing beneath his pale skin gave him away.
“Murak,” said Jackie, her hatred for the demon coming through both her tone and their link. Pulsing waves of anger spilled out of her, splashing against him, rousing the monster inside.
It wanted to kill this creature for her. It wanted to mount its head on a plaque and offer it at her feet as a tribute.
Iain tightened his control and shoved the desires of his beast aside.
“You’re looking well,” said Murak, his eyes lingering on her throat.
Cain shifted forward. Murak tightened his grip until Autumn’s face began to darken with lack of oxygen. “I wouldn’t do that. Not if you want the girl to keep breathing.”
“What do you want?” asked Jackie.
“To bathe in your blood. For starters.”
“Fine. Take me,” said Jackie. “Let the girl go.”