Page 15 of Salvation
Another explosion shook the ground. He looked at Xavier. “You have your orders.”
“Yes, sir.” Then the vampire was gone in a flash of speed, leaving Wolfe to whatever hand fate was about to deal him. He took a second to glance at the marking on his wrist, then headed for the sunlight. First, he stuck his arm into the ray that spilled into the room.
No burning. That was a positive, but then again, it normally took a little more than this to make him squirm. So, he stepped full on into the light that spilled across the faded carpet. His eyes watered a bit, but he hadn’t been in this much sun in months. Not one to waste time, he strode for the front door, shoved it open, then stepped onto the sidewalk and into the blazing sunshine. He was going to live or fucking burn, but he was tired of the shitty hand that had been dealt to all of them. Wolfe might be one vampire standing in the sun and not currently on fire, but he was chosen to lead these people and he would be damned if he would allow harm to come at them and not fight.
“Jesus, Wolfe, what are you doing out here?” A man dressed in fatigues and a 9mm submachine gun in his grip pointed at the ground asked.
“What the fuck is happening out here?”
“I’ve not gotten any answers as I have been at my post here guarding the door. But I can tell you there have now been two explosions south of us, toward the park.”
There was a park a block over from the hotel where the city used to have concerts in the summer when humanity was still alive. Now, it was nothing more than a huge chunk of broken-up concrete, overgrown bushes and weeds. The fucking weeds took over everything. It was then he noticed thick black smoke. That his skin still wasn’t on fire, or even slightly warm, urged him to move toward whatever hell awaited.
“Stay here.” Wolfe took off down Grand Ave on a run toward the smoke. His senses flared to aid him. There were definitely demons, and enough that he couldn’t nail down how many. There was also another presence that was more powerful, but he could not determine what it was. It wasn’t the smartest idea he had, running straight into unknown danger, and the closer he got, the more power filled the air. When he rounded the corner onto 5thStreet, he spotted some of his men standing on the corner, their gaze on a dilapidated apartment building, and that’s when he realized the smoke was rolling out of the broken windows.
“What the hell is going on?” The words left his mouth at the same time his gaze was drawn to the scene everyone else was staring at. “Holy fuck!”
CHAPTEREIGHT
Aurora had hardly stepped backinto the sunlight from her visit with Lilith when she heard an explosion. At first, she thought something might have happened at the hotel since the smoke seemed to be in that direction, but as she ran closer, she realized it was further down the street. A small group of men and a couple of women, all dressed in some fashion of military gear, gathered around as if they were watching a street show, so she figured this was the perfect opportunity to blend in and find out what was going on. Sliding in next to another female, her gaze caught what everyone else was staring at.
“Oh my god!”
“Stunning, isn’t she?” The female whispered, her gaze still transfixed.
Before them stood a tall, lean, beautiful angel. Her hair––pulled into a high ponytail––was a buttery blonde and her skin was a slight golden tan, but it was those wings that drew attention. Spread wide, they were as black as a raven’s feather covered in gold dust, so they sparkled when the sun hit them. Her sheer beauty was breathtaking, but when she tossed a ball of fire at a demon who tried to run from her, Aurora understood where the explosions and smoke had come from.
One pissed-off angel.
As the fire left the angel’s palm, it headed straight for what Aurora understood was considered a low-level demon. When it struck, the demon simply vanished. What she didn’t understand was why some demons seemed to be left alone while others were struck down. Was there a reason behind why the angel seemed to pick and choose?
“Why do you suppose she’s not attacking all of them?” the female beside her whispered.
“No idea.” But Aurora did now wonder if it was safe for her to be out here. Being vampire and all. She only detected one other vampire and recognized the scent of rosemary and mint as the same as she had caught before when she and Lilith were in the park. She inhaled deeply, and the smell made her mouth water.
“Hey, I don’t recognize you.” The female had finally turned to look at Aurora. “Where have you been hiding?”
“How could you possibly know every face living among you?” She tried to play along.
“Good try, but if you were living with the other women, I would know you, since I track all blood donations.” The female turned her body to fully face Aurora, a brown brow arched high over her blue eyes. “Care to try again?”
She sighed. “Fine. I’m not one of yours. Name’s Aurora. I’ve been living in this shit hole my entire life.” Well, her entire vampire life, that was.
“Survivor of the Red Death?”
She shrugged. “In a sense.” She wasn’t admitting anything. Yet. “Hey, the angel has stopped tossing fire and is walking this way.”
They both turned their focus back to the angel and the man who had stepped from the crowd and was moving to greet the angel. Aurora’s superior hearing tuned into the conversation as she drooled over the fine male ass encased in denim. His top half naked of any clothing benefited her with the view of narrow hips, broad shoulders and a very well chiseled back. She could only imagine the front was even better and her senses told her that was where the delicious smell of rosemary and mint was coming from. He was very much a vampire.
The angel stopped in front of him. “Sorry to disturb you, but I had some cleaning up to do.” She extended her hand. “Ashley.”
He accepted her hand. “Wolfe, and you must be the Angel of Death I’ve heard about.”
Ahh, so he was the leader of this group of humans and vampires. Good to know.
“I am that angel and have been busy sending demons who escaped from Lulerain back to their prison.”
Aurora recalled Lilith telling her the story of Lulerain, or what many demons referred to as the pits of Hell. It was where they sent the worst of the worst and apparently, had been where Morbus, the demon who started this plague, had been kept. Until the fucking gate had been opened by Lucifer, and Morbus strolled out, thus starting the end of most of humanity.
