Page 84 of Demon Unleashed

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For a few seconds, silence filled the large room. None of the assembled talked; nobody even breathed. If Zoltan had the sensitive hearing of a vampire, he would’ve heard his child’s heartbeat. Wide-eyed, they stared at him. Myriad facial expressions showing mixed emotions prepared him for an onslaught of questions. It was evident that disbelief was the predominant emotion in the room.

Even Enya seemed surprised. However, she didn’t mirror her brethren’s feelings. Instead, love and gratitude shone from her eyes that were now covered with a wet sheen.

Finally, Aiden cleared his throat. “Are you serious?”

Zoltan nodded.

“And why would you do that?” Logan asked. “Why destroy your own kingdom and kill your subjects? What’s your motivation?”

Manus grunted. “Yeah, same question here. Plus another one: why should we believe you?”

Zoltan let his gaze wander over the men, contemplating where to start. He knew he had to win them over, because he needed their help for this endeavor. Without help, his plan was dead in the water.

“I know you still have doubts about me. I don’t blame you. Hell, I’d have doubts if I were in your shoes. And all I can say to dispel them is this: I love Enya, and I love my unborn child. To make sure they’re safe, I will do anything. And if you love your women the same way, then you know that I’m not lying. You risked everything to save them, your very lives.” He pointed to Logan. “You even invaded the Underworld for the woman you love, not knowing if you would ever make it out alive. That’s the kind of love I’m talking about when I tell you that I love Enya.”

Again, there was silence in the room. The men dropped their gazes, suddenly studying their shoes as if they were of paramount importance. Almost as if Zoltan’s declaration had embarrassed them. Only one person looked straight at him: Enya.

She said nothing, but her lips formed silent words. I love you too.

“Okay,” Aiden said, glancing at his brethren. “I believe you.”

The others nodded in agreement, but didn’t go so far as putting it into words. It was good enough for Zoltan.

“Thank you,” he said.

“So tell us how you think of destroying the demons,” Aiden said. “We’ve sure tried for centuries and haven’t gotten anywhere.”

“It’s rather simple. We won’t have to kill them all. We won’t even have to engage them in a battle.”

Several eyebrows rose.

“We only have to make sure they can’t leave the Underworld anymore.”

Manus scoffed. “And how do you suggest we do that?”

“I assume you’re aware of the vortex circles in the Underworld?” When the men nodded, Zoltan continued, “There are only three of them. No demon can cast a vortex in the Underworld unless he’s standing in one of the vortex circles. If we destroy them, the Underworld will become their tomb. They wouldn’t have a way out. And the few demons that are currently topside won’t be too hard to annihilate. It might take us a few months, but one by one, we’ll kill them.”

“Interesting idea,” Aiden said, “but what if they build more vortex circles? What then?”

Zoltan shook his head. “They don’t know how.” When several of the Stealth Guardians grumbled in disbelief, Zoltan lifted his hand. “Yeah, I didn’t believe it either at first, but I put my best men on the task. See, my plan, once I’d destroyed your race, was to invade the human world, and to do that, I needed more than just three vortex circles. We looked at everything we could get our hands on—old scriptures, magic, anything that would give us a hint at how the vortex circles were created in the first place. We came up with exactly zilch.” He paused and let the news sink in. “There isn’t a single demon alive who knows who or what created the vortex circles and how. Which means if we destroy them permanently, the demons have no way out.”

“And how do we destroy the vortex circles?” Manus asked.

“We flood them with lava.”

“Where exactly is the Underworld?” Aiden asked.

Zoltan sighed. “I wish I could tell you.”

“I see,” Aiden said tightly. “Still keeping things from us. That’s not tipping the scales in your favor, just so you know.”

“I’m not keeping things from you. The truth is, nobody knows where the Underworld is located. It could be under Antarctica, Russia, Australia, or the U.S. For all I know, it moves constantly. Nobody knows. That’s why the demons need the vortex circles. They are the only things that can anchor them to their home. The only way to find their way back.”

When he saw the skeptical faces of the Stealth Guardians, Zoltan added, “But we don’t need to know where it’s located. All I need to do is open a vortex topside and travel down to one of the three vortex circles in the Underworld. Once I’m down there, I can set the plan in motion. But I need help.”

“What do you need?” Aiden asked.