Katie's Hope

"Get the fuck out of here," he hissed.

She reached into her pocket and withdrew the vial, shoving it at him.

"I may be a stupid mortal, but I know right from wrong," she said in a trembling voice. "Sasha's at the Caribbean Sanctuary. Go rescue him again, so he can kill more of the Immortals, like those you sacrificed to protect him the first time!"

She fled, her ears ringing and cheek burning from his strike. She'd never understand a man like Kris, who saw the world only in black and white! The image of baby Rhyn and Kris's words distracted her as she hurried through the hall back to the stairs. She couldn't imagine what he'd been through: thrown out at such an age with a father who wanted him dead and brothers who hated him. He wasn't the kind to pity himself. She doubted he saw anything wrong with the treatment he was accustomed to.

Soon enough, nothing would matter, not when Gabriel came for her.

For the first time since arriving over three weeks ago, she missed her cavernous chamber. She wondered if twelve-year-old boys played with stuffed animals. Toby had tons of them in his small bedchamber off hers. She found herself ascending the servants' stairwell at a run, in case the Ully-demon was still stalking her, until she reached her floor, which appeared blessedly free of any signs of battle and death. She pushed her door open and scanned the room before entering and closing it fast.

She'd never liked her room, but she found some comfort in its familiarity. One of Toby's stuffed animals had fallen to the floor when she carried him to the basement before the demon attacks. She retrieved it and hugged it, not at all certain what the new Toby would and wouldn't want that the old Toby had loved. The bag she'd started to pack still gaped open, half-full on the trunk at the base of her bed.

"Hey."

She turned at the familiar voice, pleased and surprised to see Megan, the Immortal warrior who befriended her and showed her around when she arrived to the castle several weeks before. Megan's dark eyes were glowing though her clothing was covered in blood.

"You shouldn't be alone up here yet," Megan warned. "Bad guys in the castle still. We're sweeping the castle now."

"So it's over?"

"Mostly. The Council sent in their warriors to help Kris. We lost quite a few of our friends," she said with a frown. "Defeated the demons, except for a few hiding out here." "I'm so sorry, Megan," she said softly.