A Shade of Vampire 80 A Veil of Dark - Bella Forrest Page 0,74

like we actually had a shot at succeeding. I felt like we might win this after all. But Seeley stiffened, his expression darkening as he looked at me.

“I can’t teleport us out of here,” he said. “Death magic.”

Zoltan grinned, suddenly in a position of power again. “That’s right,” he replied, showing us Seeley’s scythe. “Besides, there isn’t much you can do without your weapon, huh? Another Reaper’s scythe cannot do what yours can.”

Rudolph stilled beneath Zoltan’s boot. He was in a lot of pain, but I could see the glimmers of hope persisting in his gaze. He’d yet to give up. Looking around, the other ghouls were snarling and angry, tugging at their chains—I knew they’d tear into us if they were let loose now. Maybe we could get them on our side again, someday. Today wasn’t it, though. Today, Zoltan had gotten them back, since he needed them alive and under his command.

This was the lousiest standoff I’d ever imagined. At least Veliko was down, temporarily, in too much pain to do anything. But he raised his scythe, his lips moving, and I quickly realized that he had yet to run out of options.

Seeley, Rudolph, and I had gotten ourselves stuck in the middle of a power struggle. Wedged between Veliko and Zoltan, who were both aiming for the top of the Darkling faction, eager to trample on one another in order to get there. And Veliko had a lot to prove at this point.

“What do we do?” I whispered to Seeley, my entire spirit quivering. He didn’t let go of my hand, which did offer me a faint sense of clarity and comfort, but it wasn’t enough. We needed to get out of here, as both Veliko and Zoltan wanted us captured or destroyed—whichever came first.

“I’m not sure. Rudolph would’ve been a great distraction, but Zoltan’s got him under his boot. Quite literally.” Seeley sighed, though I knew the wheels were still turning in his head. He was looking for another way.

Movement around the Darklings’ circle caught my eye. A shadow bolted, left and right. A shimmer here. Another shimmer there. I held my breath, realizing that we were not alone anymore.

The Darkling circle broke. Someone screamed. A couple of legs and arms flew out, blood gushing and guards falling to the ground. A small ghoul had breached the line, taking down a couple of Darklings with it. It moved like the wind, vanishing and reappearing in different spots. It was impossible to follow.

Zoltan gasped. The small ghoul revealed itself, fangs sunk deep into the Scholar’s boot. It took a bite out, and Rudolph managed to pull himself away. He bolted through the circle’s opening, terrorized by Zoltan’s previous hold on him. I had a feeling he needed to put some distance between him and the Scholar now, just to stop the collar from affecting him.

“What the…” Veliko’s complex spell was interrupted.

The other Darklings tried to stop the small ghoul, but they failed. It kept disappearing. Moments later, its jaws clamped down on Veliko’s wrist, tearing the whole hand off. The Darkling wailed in sheer agony, blood pouring freely from the stump of his forearm, while the small ghoul made off with his scythe.

“What the hell?” Seeley murmured, likely finishing Veliko’s thought.

The Darklings were increasingly confused, constantly turning around, waiting for the small ghoul to come back. Among them, a familiar figure moved, taking advantage of the broken circle. Another shimmer beyond. A flash of light.

Seeley shuddered. “Someone’s breaking the death magic wards that Zoltan put on this place.”

“What’s going on?” Zoltan croaked, a mixture of dread and anger contorting his features. He looked around, downright helpless. Almost pitiful, but I could not find any mercy for this cold-hearted bastard. My only regret was that the small ghoul hadn’t torn his head off.

The familiar figure became clearer, revealed by… death magic. I’d recognize that faint shimmer anywhere. “Hey, kids,” she said.

“Lumi!” I cried out, as she revealed herself.

Her eyes were glassy with tears, but she remained focused, putting her hands out to her sides. “The Word is with us,” she replied. “The Word is with us, and so is Death. In the beginning and in the end, the Word and Death were one. The Word created, while Death annihilated. So it has been, and so it shall be again.”

“Oh snap,” I managed, pulling Seeley with me down to our knees. “It’s a whopper of a spell. Duck!”

Zoltan wanted to react, but Lumi’s entire body lit up like the