Page 115 of Devoted

The creature’s shell cracked, fissures spreading all over that glossy dome, then collapsed inward, legs curling like a spider’s, mandibles clicking reflexively before falling silent. The body folded into itself and melted away, leaving nothing but a smear of black residue on the rug.

A foul reek filled the room, and someone behind me gagged.

Dante fell to his knees beside Emberline before the last of it had dissolved.

I spun, angling for a shot at the Drax pinning Gabriel down, but the slippery little fucker kept its mouth closed, body hunched low over my friend.

“Kill the little bastard,” Gabriel hissed, unable to move, one hand impaled to the floor. “Get this fucking piece of shit off me.”

“Working on it.” I moved to my left, the Drax shifting with me. “I need the thing to open its mouth.”

“You look like you have a clear shot to me,” Emilia said drily.

“I really don’t need your advice right now,” I snapped, shadows spinning around my hands, stomach lurching as everyone focused on me. Normally, I loved the attention, but right now…

“Just kill it already,” Gabriel’s normally steady voice disintegrated beneath an edge of absolute panic. “Now, godsdamn it.”

The creature lunged, skittering across the floor with unholy speed, sharp-tipped legs impaling papers and cushions and narrowly missing Gabriel’s head. I evaded drawing it to the opposite side of the room, where Severin and two bolder Demente soldiers joined me in herding the Drax backward until we trapped it in a corner, surrounded by my shadows.

Hissing like a godsdamned cockroach.

Bigger than a fucking dog.

“What are you doing? It’s still moving.” Valeria squeaked from behind the couch. “Why isn’t it dead yet? Oh gods, make it dead. Make it dead.”

“He’s trying, Valeria,” Gabriel muttered, applying pressure to his bleeding hand. “But I agree, kill the fucking thing faster, Nico.”

“There are wards on this villa,” I murmured, watching the beast skitter back and forth like a crab, searching for an escape. “We checked every room, every floor three times. This building was fucking clean. I am sure of that.”

“Your point being?” Gabriel followed the thing’s movements, horror written all over his face.

“My point being that they didn’t come from outside. They were already inside. But where are they coming from?”

Valeria made a helpless sound as the Drax lunged straight for me, the soldiers scattering behind me with a shout.

For one frozen second, I let it come, noting every horrifying, familiar detail.

The way those sharpened feet slipped on the smooth marble, the hissing in its belly, as though it was powered by steam. Only when it was close enough to touch did I act.

I sent shadows pouring from both hands, unleashing the full weight of my magic since everyone was at a clear distance, and precision was no longer imperative. Even so, the force of the impact knocked Severin back a step, shadows cutting off the afternoon sun in a fume of black.

A second smear of reeking black residue joined the first on Valeria’s pristine marble floor.

The room was quiet except for everyone’s too-fast breathing. I kept my back to the room until my hands stopped shaking. Until fear stopped ripping through me like a saw and I could draw a single, steady breath.

How had I missed two Drax, hiding at arm’s length?

I was getting sloppy.

And the proof of my failure was all around me, stained in blood.

Emberline was propped upright, Dante’s arm around her, some color coming back into her face. Her wrist had stopped bleeding, and I recognized that shimmer of blue magic binding up the hideous gash, remnants of his healing magic.

I was supposed to protect her. I dug my knuckles into my sternum, trying to dig out the ache. To carve out the fact Emberline wouldn’t have been hurt… if I’d just done my job.

My fault. This was my fucking fault.

What had I missed?