Releasing the Hunter hn-168 Page 14

  But she didn’t have time to answer him. She swatted his hand away, and then pushed him to the back of the truck. “Move.” He did, so did the other guy. They had no choice really, because she was forcing them forward.

  “What’s going on?” the guy asked. “Did something happen to Bill?”

  “Yeah, he switched sides.”

  Both their mouths gaped.

  Ivy ignored them and surveyed the situation. They had to move from their position or risk getting pinned down. She saw an outbuilding about ten yards to their right, but they had to cross the open yard to get there. It was a risk they had to take because staying where they were was going to get them killed.

  She grabbed Stewart/Chuck by the shirt lapels. “Look, we need to cross the yard to that building. Can you do that?”

  He nodded, but she still wasn’t sure he was listening. He had that glazed-over shiny look in his eyes. But she couldn’t wait to see if he truly got it or not. They had to move now.

  “On my count.”

  They both looked at her expectantly.

  “One, two...”

  Stewart/Chuck didn’t wait until three. He dashed across the yard. Sounds of gunfire exploded around them. And Stewart/Chuck went down. The other guy had been right behind him. Now he turned to dive back, but it was too late. He got nicked by a bullet in the leg and collapsed, grabbing at his knee and screaming wildly.

  Ivy swore again, and was about to rush out and see if she could pull the injured man behind the truck, but the press of metal into the back of her head made her stop.

  “Drop your weapons.” It was Bill behind her, stabbing the gun into her skull.

  She tossed the shotgun down.

  “And the tranq gun.”

  She pulled that out of her waistband and tossed it to the ground. “You’re a traitor to your species, Bill. How does that feel?”

  “You tell me. You’re the one sleeping with a cambion.” He grabbed her by the shoulder and pulled her to her feet.

  It took everything she had not to turn around and jam her blade into his big gut. But she stayed still. She could feel the barrel of his gun quiver a little. Obviously, Bill wasn’t too sure about his convictions.

  “He’s dead, by the way,” he said, as if she’d asked about the weather. “Had his neck slit down on Main Street. He thought he could take some of them out. But he was no match for them.”

  She started to shake then. She bit down on her lip, trying hard not to scream, or rage, or turn around and scream in his face that he was a big fat liar. There was no way anyone had gotten the better of Ronan. She knew it in her heart. She wasn’t going to let anyone, especially not this traitorous piece of crap, tell her otherwise.

  “What did the demons promise you to do this? To kill your own people?” she asked.

  “Everything I want.”

  She shook her head, still mindful of the gun pressed against it. “So you sold your soul for what, some money, a fast car, a hot vacation spot and some ass? Seems pretty lame to me.”

  “Shut up!” He kicked her in the back of the knee, sending her to the ground. She landed on her hands. “Keep talking and I’ll put a bullet in your empty head.”

  Ivy pushed up to her knees but kept her hands down on her thighs. She had a knife tucked into her boot. If she could get to it, she’d embed it into Bill’s femur. “Okay, Bill. No need to get angry. I’ll shut up.”

  He grabbed her again, this time by the hair. He pulled her back up to her feet, keeping the gun pressed to her skull. He turned her around and marched her out into the main yard in front of the house where she knew Quinn had stationed himself.

  There was a lot of commotion going on as he led her to the front. The others hadn’t seen Bill’s betrayal yet; they were still busy holding off their own sieges, manning their stations. Screams could be heard around them, and Ivy felt a bullet whiz by her left arm as they marched around the corner.

  “Quinn!” Bill yelled. “Quinn, I have your sister!”

  And just like that, all the commotion stopped. Bill had gotten everyone’s attention with that little piece of information.

  He pushed her forward to face the house. “Quinn, I know you’re there. I know you can see her. If I don’t see you in five seconds I’m going to blow her pretty head apart.”

  It was exactly four seconds before Quinn’s head popped up from behind the trellis on the roof of the house. Ivy was loath to admit that she breathed a little sigh of relief when she saw him.

  “What do you want?” Quinn asked.

  “Complete surrender.”

  Quinn looked at her. Even from the distance she could see the pure agony on his face. The agony of the decision he had to make. “Ivy?”

  She knew what he was asking. If she could take Bill out without getting killed in the process. She gauged the situation. The only weapon she had now was the blade in her boot. She’d used the others along the way. There was no way she could get to her weapon before Bill pulled the trigger. And even if she could somehow elbow him in the gut or take out his kneecap with a good kick, he’d likely mortally wound her even if it wasn’t a head shot.

  If Ronan had been here, with his healing hands, she might’ve considered it. But as it was, she didn’t see a way out of this right now.

  “No,” she finally said.

  “No, what?” He knocked her in the head with his gun. “No, what, bitch?”

  Quinn stood all the way. “You have my surrender.”

  “I’ll believe you when I see you face-to-face without any weapons.”

  “Fine. We’re coming down. No one do anything stupid.”

  She knew he not only said that for Bill’s benefit but for the rest of the compound. She’d counted about ten weapons trained on her and Bill the second they’d stepped into the front yard.

  About three minutes later, the front door opened and Quinn walked out, his hands out to the side, showing that they were empty. He came down the front-stoop steps.

  “I’m unarmed.”

  Bill snorted. “I highly doubt that, Strom, but as long as I have baby sister here, I know you won’t do anything dumb.” Then he put his fingers in his mouth and let out a high-pitched whistle.

  Eight demons stepped out of the tall grass and shadows surrounding the compound and walked into view. They were all smiles. One of them, a redheaded woman, stepped up next to Ivy. She ran her hand down Ivy’s arm.

  “Two Stroms for the price of one.” She laughed. “It’s a great day.”

  Chapter 24

  Ronan stayed hidden behind the silo in the field about one hundred yards from the farmhouse. He wouldn’t do Ivy any good by prematurely jumping out and revealing his position. He had the element of surprise on his side and he was going to use it to his advantage.

  Earlier, he’d lost the second demon through the town streets, but it had brought him closer to the demon rendezvous. Because of his superior hearing and vision he’d been able to overhear exactly what was going on from his spot. He knew they were planning an attack on the human compound. He also knew they had an inside man. Someone close to Quinn who’d been feeding them vital information this whole time.

  And because of their misplaced confidence in their strength and cunningness, Ronan had been able to follow them to the farmhouse.

  They’d known he’d been kicked out of the camp but they’d misjudged his willingness to return and help the humans. To save Ivy. He supposed the demons had no concept of loyalty, friendship or love.

  Yeah, he had to admit it to himself. He was in love with her. It probably wouldn’t change her mind about him, though. And he didn’t blame her. Despite everything, despite how he felt about her, he still needed the key. He wished she could understand that. His need to be fully human again. And if this was the only way, he’d do it.

  Through the binoculars he’d procured from one of Ivy’s bags that he’d gone back to their busted-up car to retrieve, he watched as the demons herded Ivy, Quinn and all the others into the
farmhouse. He imagined they would secure them in the basement. Now he just needed to get close enough to use the other goodies Ivy had in her gear.

  Some of the things that she’d invented for demon hunting were inspired to be sure.

  Once they were all inside, leaving two sentries out front, the possessed he assumed, Ronan hefted the pack over his shoulder and crawled his way across the field. He was wearing black so he knew he was somewhat camouflaged in the waning light. He just had to keep his patience and go slowly and carefully. Although everything inside him screamed at him to run and attack and kill everyone standing in the way between him and Ivy, he took in a few deep breaths and tried to stay calm and levelheaded.

  There was a thick copse of trees on the east side of the house. He would get there, and then plan the best way to get in without killing any of the possessed. And save Ivy. He knew it was going to be damn near impossible on all fronts, but he had to try.

  It was a long, arduous crawl, but Ronan finally made it to the edge of the trees. Cast in shadow among the tall oaks, he could get around easier. He crept along the tree line and crouched behind a large oak directly opposite one of the guards.

  He knew there were two guards at the front of the house; he suspected there would be at least two more in the back. Unzipping the duffel bag, Ronan took out a modified rifle. He screwed on a front piece that looked like a silencer. It was, in fact, a housing for plastic bullets. He didn’t know where Ivy got them, probably an army surplus store somewhere, but it was ingenious for taking out those you didn’t want to kill—just incapacitate.

  Once he took out the side guard, he had to be on the run toward the house to take out the others. He wanted to go in as silently as possible. If the demons knew he was coming, they might panic and kill everyone inside. He had some time, he knew. Quinn wouldn’t give the key up easily. Ronan suspected they’d have to torture him for a while first.

  He lined up the sights on the rifle. He had to hit the guard in the head to knock him unconscious. Anywhere else would just be damaging but not enough to incapacitate. The guard could still cry out to the others.

  Ronan was cautious about using the plastic bullets. He knew there had been deaths in the past from precisely this—hits to the head. But there was no other way of taking the guy out from a distance. He’d get in closer for the others. But this first one had to be done this way. Muttering a prayer under his breath, he put his finger on the trigger and pulled.

  The bullet hit the guard right in the temple, exactly where Ronan had aimed. He went down like a ton of bricks, sinking to the ground without a word. One down.

  Ronan picked up the bag and ran to the corner of the house. He grabbed the fallen guard’s feet and dragged him to the porch, rolling him under it. He then hopped over the railing and onto the porch. He crept along the wall to the other corner and peered over. The guard was there, a woman this time, holding a shotgun. He reached into the bag and grabbed something for close encounters. A stun gun.

  He set down the bag, then walked to the end of the porch and leaned over the railing. “Hey.” He ducked back around so she couldn’t shoot him outright. Crouching, he watched through the porch rails for her to appear. He only had to wait ten seconds.

  Her eyes widened when she spotted him and she raised her weapon, but Ronan was faster. He had the stun gun through the rails and pressed the button. The two wires sprang out and attached to her cheek. Electricity zipped through the lines and into the woman’s body. She was down on the ground in seconds.

  Grabbing the bag, he jumped over the railing, landing softly by the downed guard’s body. He rolled her under the porch, then picked up her shotgun and shoved it into the duffel bag. As quick as he could, he ran along the side of the house to the back. He did a quick peek around the corner. He’d assumed right. There were two guards manning the back.

  Before he could consider how he was going to dispatch them, the guard closest to him came around the corner, unzipping his jeans to relieve himself. Ronan snuck up behind him, put his arm around his neck and choked him out. He dragged him to the side and laid him up against the wall. One more to go before he could get into the house and get Ivy out.

  Pressed against the side wall, Ronan waited until the perfect opportunity to take out the other guard. It came about five minutes later when he wandered over to find out what happened to his buddy.

  “Joe,” the guard called, “where you at?”

  Ronan waited until he was right in front of him, then he sprang into action. But he made a vital error. The guard wasn’t one of the possessed, but a demon.

  He swatted away Ronan’s arm and smiled. “Hello, sunshine.”

  Chapter 25

  Ivy wriggled her hands back and forth trying to loosen the ropes around her wrists. She was bound to a chair in the middle of the basement—the same spot she’d been in earlier when she and Ronan had been picked up. Quinn was bound to another chair beside her. The rest of their people had been herded into a corner by the demons. Unfortunately there were only six of them left.

  The demon horde, what was left of them at least, were piled in the room as well, all lined up to take a shot at Quinn. They wanted to know where the key was. So far, her brother was keeping mum. But she suspected that would get harder to do as the demons got more creative with their questions. Luckily, the questions had been just that, questions. No painful torture to accompany them. Not yet, anyway. She suspected that was soon in coming.

  Very soon, by the malevolent gleam in the current interrogator’s black eyes.

  He leaned into Quinn’s face, likely breathing his foul sulfuric breath onto him. “You do realize we’re going to torture you to find out the location of the key, don’t you?”

  “Whatever, hellspawn,” Quinn spat. “Give me your best shot.”

  Smiling, the demon clenched his fist and wound back, then hit Quinn across the nose. Ivy could hear the definitive sickening crack of cartilage as Quinn’s head snapped back.

  She had to bite her tongue to stop from cursing the demon. Her insults and anger weren’t going to help Quinn. It might, in fact, make it worse for him. When he swung his head back around, blood gushed from his nose and soaked his shirt. She closed her eyes and swore under her breath. She pulled at her hands a little more. If only she could get free.

  All the demons laughed at Quinn’s busted nose and swollen lip. One female stepped forward and ran a finger over his lips, gathering his blood onto it.

  She sucked the crimson liquid off and sighed happily. “Demon-hunter blood is the sweetest thing.”

  Quinn cursed at her. But it didn’t stop her from taking more from him.

  Ivy couldn’t hold back her fury any longer. She kicked out with her right leg at the demoness. She struck the demoness in the back of the thigh. It sent the demoness stumbling sideways.

  This made the other demons laugh again.

  The demoness swung around and glared at Ivy. It made her sick to see Quinn’s blood staining her lips and teeth. Ivy had to swallow down the bile rising in her throat.

  The demoness moved toward her, coming around the back of the chair. She gripped the back of Ivy’s head, yanking on her hair, pulling her head back. “You know, I think we’ve been doing this the wrong way. We could beat on Quinn all day and he wouldn’t tell us, but if we beat on baby sister...”

  Quinn erupted, pulling on his restraints. “You leave her alone! I’ll rip you apart if you touch her!”

  And that was the absolutely worst thing he could’ve ever said. Now they knew without a shadow of a doubt that torturing Ivy would work wonders on Quinn’s tongue.

  She looked at Quinn, wanting to smack him across the head. He knew better. “Don’t be stupid.”

  The demoness leaned down into her face. “I think it’s well past that point, don’t you, darling?”

  Ivy spat at her.

  The demoness wiped the gob away, then twisted her hand in Ivy’s hair and yanked even harder. Pain shot over her skull. She wondere
d how painful it would be if the demoness ripped all her hair out. Probably agony. She shivered just thinking about it.

  Another demon, the male that had struck Quinn, sauntered over to where Ivy was held. He stood in front of her, openly leering down at her. Her stomach roiled at the lecherous look in his black eyes.

  “How about we play with her first?” He kicked at her legs, driving them apart. “I’ve never screwed a demon hunter before.”

  The demoness shook her head. “That’s all you think about, isn’t it?”

  He shrugged. “I can’t help it. I am a lust demon, after all.”

  Ivy struggled in her chair, flailing her legs at him. “I’ll rip it off before you even get it near me.”

  He laughed, and then grabbed both her legs. “You’re fun.” He pushed her backwards.

  Her chair toppled over with her in it. She hit the hard floor, the back of her head smacking painfully against the cement. Her scalp throbbed like an acid burn, and when she saw strands of her black hair in the demoness’s hand, she understood why.

  “You stupid fool,” the demoness berated the other.

  Ivy let them argue because her fall had done two wonderful things. It had broken one of the spokes in the chair back and it had loosened her ropes. Without bringing attention to herself, she managed to pull one of her hands free.

  She looked at Quinn and winked.

  He started to struggle in his chair, bouncing up and down and kicking his legs. “I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you all!” He yelled so loud it made her ears hurt. “You’ll never find the key!”

  But it did the job. It got the attention of all the demons. All the focus was on Quinn, so no one noticed, at least for the first three seconds, when Ivy rolled to her knees and scrambled to her feet.

  “Run, Ivy!” Quinn screamed as he launched himself, chair strapped to his body, at the closest demon to the stairwell, affording her a small window of escape.

  She took it. As fast as she could, she sprinted toward the stairs. She was on the bottom step when the demoness came up behind her and grabbed at her hair again.