Yet.
Sam was still under his control, and honestly, she was getting tired of it. She wanted to fight, not lie in the street like a worthless lump. With every piece of iron will she had, she tried to inch away from them as they went at each other like Titans after Zeus. It was impressive and made her really want to take them down. The shadow cut and dodged, and hit the demon with enough power that it lifted him almost ten feet off the ground.
Don't pay attention to them. If she could just crawl into the alley next to her, she might be able to get free while the demon was distracted.
Come on, body, don't fail me now. You can do it.
But that was easier said than done. What had the demon done to her that she was so helpless? Worse, that feeling of being powerless was eking away at her Dark-Hunter powers as memories of her death surged.
Stay calm, Sam. Focus.
If only she could...
Another shadow fell over her.
Sam cringed as someone rolled her over, onto her back. She looked up and met the face of a perfect blond angel. Skinny as a rail and yet muscular, the woman should have been an Amazon. But the eeriest part was her eyes--dark brown with ribbons of bright yellow twisting through the iris.
Was she another demon?
She angled Sam's head until their gazes locked. Something inside Sam snapped like a pane of glass. One moment she was basically paralyzed. The next, she was free of what ever the demon had done to her.
Her blood rushing through her, Sam flipped up onto her feet and started for the demon only to have the woman grab her by the waist and stop her. "Cael has him."
Yeah, right. Like she was going to let this go after what he'd done to her? "Oh, like hell. This is a grudge match."
"More than you know, Sam. Stay back."
How did she know her name? That shock kept her still as Amaranda's past went through her. She saw Amaranda as a little girl in Seattle growing up in her family's business, playing with her sister. But what floored Sam wasn't Amaranda's family.
It was the fact that the woman was a Daimon....
And something more.
Something...
Sam tried to delve deeper into that, but Amaranda released her before she could get any more details from her. Lazaros turned toward them and realized she was on her feet. He ran for her then, but Cael grabbed him from behind and tackled him straight to the ground.
Lazaros tried to bite Cael, who quickly dodged him. "Don't need a DNA sample. Thanks for the offer though." He punched Lazaros hard in the side.
Howling, Lazaros hissed at Cael, then vanished into a foul-smelling cloud of sulphur.
"Gah! What did you eat?" Cael snarled. He fanned the cloud as he jumped back trying to escape it. "Coward! Get your ass back here and fight like a demon, you sniveling waste of a scary monster. C'mon, who trained you? Casper?"
The woman next to Sam laughed. "Quit taunting the weak, love. It's pointless."
Cael flashed a grin at her. "Yeah, but did I impress you with my fighting prowess?"
"You always impress me with your fighting prowess, baby. Ain't nobody better." Those words were said in an almost mocking tone.
Cael walked toward them with the deadly lope of a predator. His hair was a riot of loose black curls that framed a face chiseled out of stone. He was stunningly handsome. And one arm was covered with an intricate tribal tattoo.
Ignoring Sam, he slid up to the woman and pulled her into his arms to give her a kiss that was so hot, Sam felt awkward watching it. The two of them kissed like they hadn't seen each other for years and one of them had a terminal disease that would claim them in less than a minute. Any second she expected clothes to go flying.
Okay...
Sam stepped away from them. "Tell you what. You two get a room. I'm going back to--"
"No!" Cael pulled back from his kiss and grabbed her arm to keep her from leaving. "You can't go back there."