Pulling out his daggers, he kept them in his sleeves, just in case he happened upon someone who wouldn't understand why a tall, dark-haired man wearing really dark sunglasses and unseasonably warm clothing would be armed to his fangs. Really, Officer, I was trying to protect humanity by killing these things that suck human souls out to live past their twenty-seventh birthday just didn't cut it. Why no one would believe that, he couldn't imagine. Really, the audacity of modern courts and judges.
Jess came to an abrupt stop as he found something even more grisly than he'd expected.
There were four Daimons on the ground, literally feasting on what must be a demon of some kind. At first glance, it appeared human. But there was no missing the odd skin tone, slightly off from normal, and the smell of it.
That body wasn't human.
One of the Daimons looked up at him as if he'd sensed Jess's presence. "Dark-Hunter," he growled.
Now, normally, Daimons would do that and run away. That had been the standard operating procedure for the last 139 years.
These didn't run.
Well, not true. They ran toward him. Last time that had happened was his brief stint up in Fairbanks, Alaska, with Syra and a couple of others. And that hadn't gone so well for him. It was even worse for the other Dark-Hunters who had died there.
Jess caught the first one to reach him. He kicked the Daimon back and plunged his dagger straight into the Daimon's heart.
It didn't explode.
It just pissed the Daimon off.
Aw, now, wait a minute....
"What the-?" His words ended as the Daimon picked him up and threw him against the far wall, where he slammed hard against the concrete. Pain exploded through his body. Been a while since he hurt this much. It brought back many an unhappy memory.
Still, he didn't take a lickin' and not give one back. No, sir. After flipping to his feet, he shrugged his coat off in one fluid movement and ran for his attacker.
Don't let them bite you."
Jess glanced over to where Sin had joined the fight. Almost a head taller, Sin wore his black hair cropped short. Dressed in black like Ren-something they all did, since it helped camouflage bloodstains they might collect in fights, and face it, it was a lot easier to look badass in black than in baby doll pink-Sin tossed him a new weapon, which was similar to a small scimitar.
He caught it just as the Daimon realized what was going on. The Daimon's eyes widened at the sight of the weapon. Now, that was what he was used to.
Respect.
Well, really fear, but he'd take it.
Sin flipped the Daimon nearest him flat onto his back and, in one swift stroke, beheaded him. He met Jess's gaze. "Now you know how to kill them."
Sure enough.
"Whatever you do, Jess, don't let even one of them escape."
Jess didn't. Of course, it took a little running, a near miss getting beheaded himself by a low-lying parking deck beam, couple of bruised ribs 'cause Daimons knew how to give a kick that counted, and more acrobatics than a man his age should be capable of, but he ran down the last one and made sure the Daimon took no more human lives.
Panting and sweating, he stood over the grisly body with a puzzled frown.
Sin grinned as he joined him. "That, I have to say, was highly impressive. You run like a jackrabbit. Too bad you were born before football. You, my friend, would have gone pro." He raked a hard stare over Jess's body. "They didn't bite you, did they?"
"Nothing not a willing female bites me, and definitely nothing without an explicit invitation." Jess indicated the body with a jerk of his chin. "Care to tell me why they're still here?" The one thing you could always count on with Daimons was the fact that they were self-cleaning. Kill one, and it exploded into dust. They didn't normally lie on the floor in a pool of blood, looking all grisly and nasty like that.
Sin kicked at the body. "Guess these haven't reached Reno yet."
"These?"
"Daimons who walk in daylight."
Ah, hell no ...