Touched by Fire (Demons of New Chicago #1) - Kel Carpenter Page 0,81

told me I had to find a different way. If chasing you doesn’t work, perhaps you’d rather chase me. Now that you’re awake, I’ll meet you at the pier in three nights’ time.

Ronan

I read the note three times before closing my fist around it. He took her. My sister. He stole her right out from under me, and I was the one that gave him the idea.

A soft touch on my shoulder made me blink. Nathalie stood in front of me.

“We’ll get her back,” she promised.

I nodded because that’s all I could bring myself to do.

The tables had turned.

Ronan hunted me like a dog, now I would hunt him.

I may not know how to kill a demon, but I knew how to catch one.

And when I did, he was going to regret ever answering my summoning.

30

Ronan

I stood in the woods, watching her from the shadows. Piper ranted and raged, but in the end, she pressed those full lips together in grim determination and straightened her spine. Committed to hunting me down.

I knew she would.

She was a hunter, after all. Perhaps not born, but a hunter all the same.

She wouldn’t be able to help herself. She would fixate on me. Obsess over every little way to get her sister back and punish me.

Little did she know, she already was.

Which is why I punished her. Well, one reason why.

I liked to watch her rage. To watch her hate. She could be cold and indifferent to the world all she wanted, but not to me.

She was still muttering my name in contempt when she stormed out of the house and back to the car. The little witch followed behind her, then paused. Her brown eyes turned a shade of gold as she scanned the forest.

I knew the moment she saw me because—despite how well she lied—she stiffened.

I smiled cruelly at the girl and she glared back.

A tense moment passed between us.

I could sense her debating telling Piper the truth.

“Nat?” my atma called. Irritation and anger still coated her tone, though it wasn’t aimed at the witch.

I lifted an eyebrow, silently asking her what she was going to do.

Her lips pressed together. She shook her head a fraction, conveying her anger. Then with a dismissive look, she turned on her heel, and called, “Nothing. Thought I saw something in the woods. It was just a squirrel.”

If Piper weren’t so angry, she would have noticed the way the witch’s hands shook. She didn’t like lying. In fact, while she could do it, she really hated doing it to Piper.

The car doors slammed shut, and gravel churned as they pulled away. I stepped through the void, into the penthouse, content with what I’d seen.

Piper would stew for the next few days.

Bree would be safe from all the supernaturals looking for ways to get their hands on Piper.

And me?

I would begin the search for Lucifer.

Piper’s power should have wiped him from this existence, but somehow, he’d survived and was again hiding.

But I was going to find him.

And then, I was going to kill him.

31

Lucifer

I’d been wrong.

So very wrong . . .

And now I was paying for it. Magic and fire ravaged my body, leaving me a near husk of a man. A shadow of a demon. A whisper of desire, but nothing more.

The Morningstar. The Devil. The King of the Underworld.

I’d been invincible for ten thousand years.

Until her.

A ragged cough tore through me, my chest seized, and blood splattered my form. I rolled to the side, trying and failing to reach for my magic. But where there was once a vast well of power, now only drops remained.

“Shh,” Sienna said. “You need to rest. You’ll never get better if you don’t.”

I would have responded to her, had I been able to form words. The best I could manage was grinding my teeth to keep from making any sound, because if I spoke, I would scream and howl and moan and weep.

So I chose silence.

She ran a comforting hand down my arm, and whispered, “You’re burning up. I’ll go grab another ice pack . . .” Her voice trailed off as she stood up from the bed. Her footsteps were quiet as they padded down the hall. I tried to focus on them, on her.

On anything but the pain.

I couldn’t understand how a human could kill Aeshma. No matter how deadly or rageful or lucky. It simply shouldn’t have been possible.

But now . . . now I understood.

I must have drifted off again because when the door opened, it wasn’t Sienna or Sasha that spoke. In fact, it wasn’t anyone I recognized at all.

“Well, well, well, look what we have here.”

To be continued...

—If you loved this book, please consider reviewing on Amazon or Goodreads, and don’t forget to preorder book two!—

Piper’s story continues in:

Haunted by Shadows

Magic Wars: Demons of New Chicago Book Two

Get it Now!!

Also by Kel Carpenter

Demons of New Chicago:

Touched by Fire (Book One)

Haunted by Shadows (Book Two)

The Daizlei Academy Series:

Heir of Shadows (Book One)

Trial by Heist (Novella)

Scion of Midnight (Book Two)

Queen of Lies (Book Three)

Vessel of Destruction (Book Four)

Queen of the Damned Series:

Lucifer’s Daughter (Book One)

Wicked Games (Book Two)

Infernal Desires (Book Three)

Brimstone Nightmares (Book Four)

The Grimm Brotherhood Series:

Reaper’s Blood (Book One)

Reaping Havoc (Book Two)

Reaper Reborn (Book Three)

The Dark Maji Series:

Fortune Favors the Cruel (Book One)

Blessed be the Wicked (Book Two)

Twisted is the Crown (Book Three)

For King and Corruption (Book Four)

Long Live the Soulless (Book Five)

About the Author

Kel Carpenter is a master of werdz. When she’s not reading or writing, she’s traveling the world, lovingly pestering her editor, and spending time with her husband and fur-babies. She is always on the search for good tacos and the best pizza. She resides in Bethesda, MD and desperately tries to avoid the traffic.

Facebook Group

Newsletter

Acknowledgments

This book is kind of special to me in a way that most of my series aren’t. It’s my first solo series after a long break in which I released eight co-authored books. It’s also a story, like Daizlei Academy—my first series—that I strictly wrote for me.

Touched by Fire is the book I wanted to read, with romance and action and magic and post-apocalyptic vibes, but also with some deeper emotions I’ve been working through as a person. It was a cathartic write, and these characters are probably some of my favorites that I’ve ever written. I’m so very, very excited to share this book with you, and I can’t wait to release more books in this world. Thank you to all of my readers that gave it a try. You guys are amazing.

Thank you to my team, for helping me perfect this manuscript and manage all the feels. You guys helped me more than you probably even know.

And lastly, thank you to my amazing husband, who has been my rock through this crazy publishing journey that we’ve been on. I wouldn’t be here without your cooking and never-ending support.