Marked For Death: A Dark Urban Fantasy Novel Becca Blake (fiction novels to read .txt) 📖

it was only a matter of time before they overpowered her. No matter how much she was able to dance around her opponents, it was still two-on-one.

I mentally called out to my sword, searching for the connection Ed forged for me, but I found nothing but silence. The weapon was just a mundane blade in my hands, with no magic to guide my strikes.

Ice rushed through my veins as I realized how vulnerable I was. I relied on magic so heavily in fights, especially now that I was learning to wield flames. Fighting with no magic left me with a cold fear that I had no time for.

As the two Arbiters cornered Celia, they left their backs exposed. She parried Roland’s attack, but she left her other side open for Hart, who lunged. She would have caught Celia with a fatal blow to the chest, if not for me diving in and catching her sword with mine. My blade slid up the length of hers and sliced clean across her throat.

Roland noticed me too late to help her, though that didn’t stop him from trying. He lost all reason and spun toward me, giving Celia a clear opening to disarm him.

He surrendered without a word, his face pale as he dropped down beside his fallen companion.

“You killed her.” Roland looked up at me in disbelief. “You killed Jen.”

The ache in his words pulled at my heart, but I didn’t know what to say to him. What else could I have done? They were going to kill us.

He tore his gaze away from me to look at Celia, and all of his grief turned to rage. “Leader Thorne said you were siding with the Oathbreakers, but I didn’t believe him.”

A heavy thud came from across the room. Moments later, Orion joined us, wiping fresh blood off his sword.

“What did you just say?” Celia asked Roland.

He squeezed his eyes shut. “Marcus warned us about you.”

“What else did Marcus say?” Orion asked.

Roland swallowed hard, then looked up at Celia with a steely gaze, as though he’d summoned the last of the courage he possessed. “He said you’ll die like a traitor along with the rest of them when Raxael comes for all of you tonight.”

She drove her sword through his chest, and his lifeless body fell beside Hart’s.

Something about the sight of the three Arbiters made me uncomfortable. Not that they were dead—I’d seen my fair share of death. But it struck me that they were just doing the job they’d signed up to do.

As I sat to take a breather, Roland’s last words before Celia struck him down echoed in my mind. There had been so much venom in his voice. Even before we killed his companions, Roland fought us with a fury he believed was righteous, and he’d been fighting to kill. Celia, Orion and I had betrayed him, just as Jacob betrayed us, and he hated us for it.

It would be easier if I could view the three hunters as a clear enemy—an evil that had to be defeated. I had no trouble sleeping at night after killing demons. But a month ago, I could have been in their place, hunting down Oathbreakers at the Council’s command. Just like them, I would have never stopped to think twice about it.

Did these hunters deserve to die just for doing as they were told? For serving an organization they believed to be just?

Then again, all three of them were members of the Council’s personal guard. They had to know the truth about the deal the Arbiters of Shadow made with the demon lords, and not a single one of them had spoken up against it.

I couldn’t imagine making the same choice. Before the night of Maki’s ritual, I had always believed our work was about keeping people safe from demons. Once I learned we were actually working for them, my choice was obvious: I could stay with the Arbiters and work for the demon lords, or I could fight to stop them.

And I’d never been one to walk away from a fight.

My loyalty was never to the Arbiters—not really. My loyalty was to humanity. My purpose was to hunt demons and protect innocents, and I intended to do so until my last breath. Even if it meant turning my back on everything I knew.

I couldn’t be the only one who felt that way.

How did the Council intend to explain away Raxael’s attack on Haygrove? There were so many witnesses when Raxael confronted them on the steps of the town hall. No matter what they said or did in the aftermath to cover it up, word would spread, and those who were left alive would learn the truth. Were there others like me, who would break their oaths and leave? Or would most be content to pretend nothing had happened?

I had to believe that most hunters would be just as horrified as I was. I had to believe that, if we ever returned to Haygrove, there would be some who would choose to join us and stand against the demon lords.

“Riley?”

At the sound of Orion’s voice, my head snapped up. He and Celia stared at me, as though they were waiting for my answer to a question I hadn’t heard. How much conversation had I missed while I’d been lost in my own head?

“Sorry, can you repeat that?”

“I said, we should leave before anyone comes to check on these three,” he said.

“Or before Raxael gets here,” Celia added.

“Right,” I said, shaking away my thoughts. There would be plenty of time to worry about everyone else in Haygrove later. For now, we had to take things one step at a time and focus on surviving.

Though, I had no idea how we would do that. Where could we go that the Council wouldn’t find us?

Or Raxael?

I touched my shirt just below the spot where the demon lord left his mark on me. He told me I could use it to call him to me, but