Suddenly a whistle rent the air. "Ladies," Leo snarled from where he stood beside Jack and Patricia. "Focus a minute. Ravyn, screw the car. We have a bigger problem here. How did Erika, Ms. I Can't Drive a Car If My Life Depended on It, elude a group of Daimons?"
Kyl finally released Susan. "She couldn't."
They all cursed as they realized it was a setup.
"Get inside," Leo said quickly.
"It's community property," Kyl snarled. "We have no protection here. They can get inside."
Leo glared at him. "You got a better idea?"
"No."
Erika and Jack were already running for the door that Patricia held open for them.
As Kyl and Leo made to join them, Susan, who noticed the look on Ravyn's face, paused there on the dock.
Patricia closed the door.
"What?" Susan asked as Ravyn turned his head as if he was listening for something.
When he spoke, his voice held a distant tone. "There's something strange here."
Now that had to be the understatement of the year. "You think? FYI, I haven't seen normal since I left my house this morning."
He gave her an irritated smirk. "No. I mean there's something really wrong with this-"
Before she could ask him what he meant, a bright ball of light flashed near his car. Two seconds later, a dozen men and women stepped out of it like some bad alien movie.
They were all tall, all blond, and all breathtakingly beautiful. Dressed all in black, they looked like angels except for the fact that they immediately attacked Ravyn.
"I'm assuming those are Daimons."
Ravyn grunted as he flipped the first one to reach him onto the ground. He pulled a knife from his boot, then stabbed the Daimon in the center of his chest. Screaming, the Daimon burst into an odd, gold powder that dusted the tops of Ravyn's boots.
He gave her a dry stare as another Daimon was headed for his back. "No, they're Avon ladies." He elbowed that one in the throat, then turned to confront him.
Susan started to run inside to get help, only to find her way blocked by another Daimon. He opened his mouth and hissed at her.
"Oh, get some Listerine," she growled before she drop-kicked him as hard as she could where it would do the most damage.
Cupping himself, he staggered back.
Relieved that maneuver worked on the undead as well as the living, she started for the door only to realize that Ravyn was in trouble. They had him pinned against the wall of the alley. His mouth and nose were bleeding profusely.
"Hold him still," one of the women said gleefully as she pulled out a hilt. She pressed a button and it extended to a sword.
Reacting on pure instinct, because if she'd thought about it for one instant she would have run the other way, Susan rushed the Daimon female. She knocked her away from Ravyn.
Cursing, the woman swung the sword at her. Susan jumped back, into the arms of another one.
She heard a fierce growl before she was released. Ravyn shredded the Daimon who'd been holding her, then he went for the woman with the sword. The female Daimon swung and missed. As she tried to recover the move to swing at him again, Ravyn caught her forearm and backhanded her.
The sword flew from her grip and rattled onto the pavement not far from Susan's feet. She quickly picked it up and turned toward the man who was rushing toward her. She twirled the sword, and planted it straight into his heart. He burst into a golden powder.
Her heart hammering, she turned to confront the next one.
"Retreat!" a second female shouted. She waved her hand to form another ball of light.