had a feeling one was the direct result of the other. I also suspected that his sword would protect him against anything I could throw at him. Anything except the multiple paths of energy that Elysian allowed me to call on, perhaps.
A choice loomed, but it was one I wasn’t yet sure I was willing to make.
“How could you know that?” he said. “The writing is almost illegible and old script.”
“It’s not illegible if you know how to enhance it and can read old script. Which Mo can.”
“Indeed?” His expression was one of tolerant amusement. “Then what does it say?”
“That which is beautiful is not always powerful. That which is plain often hides a mighty heart. The hand that claims one will never be worthy of the other.”
He stared at me for several long seconds, his expression a mix of disbelief and consternation. “That inscription makes no sense. Anyone who thinks this sword isn’t powerful doesn’t know what they’re talking about.”
“The inscription was written by Mryddin, who also happened to make that sword. There’s no doubting it holds power, brother, but it is not the sword of power. It’s not Elysian.”
“And you know this how?”
“I spoke to the woman who made Elysian.”
He blinked. “Vivienne? You spoke to the goddess Vivienne?”
“Yes. Well, Mo did, but I was there. You might want to call off your Darkside dogs, because Mo’s the only one alive who currently can summon her.”
His fingers twitched on the gun. My heart rate zoomed yet again, and lightning pressed so fiercely against my fingertips, its heat burned my palm. The demons stirred, and several snarled. A warning, nothing more.
For the moment.
He raised the sword again. “Did Vivienne tell you where to find Elysian, if this isn’t her?”
“No. She said something along the lines of ‘you lost her, you find her.’”
“Huh.” His gaze narrowed. “I believe you might be lying, dear sister. This sword is powerful enough to smash through Mo’s protection spell. I have no doubt it will also open the gate for me.”
“Then you haven’t fully tested it?”
“There were a few things that needed to be taken care of first.”
Like the Blackbirds? And the royal family?
Before I could ask, something darted across the edges of my vision. My gaze went left, but none of the demons there appeared to have moved. Yet there was a wave of expectation coming from them now. Their hunger for blood was growing, but, given what Max had said, whose blood had they been promised if not mine?
Mo’s?
Was that why he was waiting? Why he was so casually standing there talking, rather than acting? Was he somehow tracking Mo’s approach?
If that was the case, then I had no choice but to stop him before she … The thought died as his phone beeped. He drew it from his pocket, took a quick glance, and smiled. “Finally—”
I unleashed the lightning before he could finish. He swore and raised the sword. The twisting threads of blue-black and gold reacted instantly, flaring out to form a shield, covering his body and repelling my attack.
He released his hold on the demons. They screamed and lunged at me, talons at the ready and wicked teeth bared. I unleashed the lightning and whipped the ragged forks around in a circle, ashing them all in an instant.
All except the ones above.
They screamed, and my gaze jumped up; the sky was filled with claws. I raised both fists and punched the lightning upward. As their soot rained around me, something hit my back, sending me staggering even as claws and teeth tore into flesh. Lightning erupted from my body, ashing not only the thing on my back but all those within close proximity.
But it came at a cost.
Crazy men with ultra-sharp daggers were now hacking away at my brain, and my heart raced so badly it felt as if it would tear out of my chest. I sucked in air and pushed more lightning at the demons that crawled over the wall and lunged at me. They died hard and fast, but blood now seeped over my eyelashes. I was pushing my limits; too much more and I’d—
The thought stalled as the air stirred behind me. I threw myself sideways but wasn’t fast enough. Something hit the fleshy part of my arm, and an odd chill flared, spreading quickly to my shoulder and across my chest.
I pushed to my knees and looked down.
Saw a dart rather than a bullet hole in my arm.
Swore vehemently.
Heard footsteps and looked up, straight into