Chapter 38

Bael and the oneiroi worked for hours, filling in holes and constructing fortifications. Ursula had continued to heal groups of oneiroi as they straggled into the refuge, exhausted and hungry. After a few hours, Zee had wandered down from her perch on the roof. She’d looked exhausted as well, and Ursula had wondered just how much effort she was expending to maintain the glamour on the entire manor.

It wasn’t long before Bael was directing people into rooms to sleep. Then, he went out to search for more survivors.

Exhausted, Ursula climbed into his bed on her own. She closed her eyes, mentally reviewing all the possible outcomes of a battle with Abrax. Tonight, as her mind whirred over battle scenarios, the image of her mother’s dying face did not haunt her dreams.

Instead, a thunderous bang jolted her from sleep. She flew upright in bed, her heart galloping at the sound. The entire building shook, and her pulse raced. Abrax?

Grabbing Honjo, she ran to the balcony, finding the atrium in chaos. One of the scaffolds had been ripped out, and a horde of oneiroi was pouring in through the gap. Dressed in black uniforms, they wielded swords and daggers. Ursula’s blood thundered in her ears. Abrax’s army has found us.

She could hear Bael shouting as she scanned the balcony for a way down. The metal elevator wasn’t on her level, and she didn’t relish the idea of getting stuck inside it with a pitched battle going on five levels below.

She rushed to find a stairwell, when a door at the far end of the balcony burst open. A pair of golems stepped out—followed by Abrax himself. Like ink in water, dark shadows swirled around him, and his eyes shone like starlight through the gloom. Her stomach dropped at the sight of him.

He shouted, pointing in her direction.

Even with Honjo in her hand, Ursula knew this wasn’t a fight she was going to win. Two golems would eviscerate her in moments.

So—the only option was to run. She turned, sprinting over the balcony, only to find that it ended abruptly, torn apart as though by a massive talon. As she neared the end, she realized this was one of the portions of the manor Bael had been trying to repair. Bits of scaffolding spanned the gap three floors below. Her heart slammed against her ribs, and she turned to look back at Abrax.

The incubus had disappeared, but his golems loped toward her with easy movements that belied their speed. She had only seconds to decide what to do, and adrenaline burned through her nerve endings.

Sliding Honjo into her sheath, she crouched at the edge of the broken balcony. A bit of iron bar poked out horizontally into the gap. With her heart in her throat, she gripped it with both hands and swung out into space.

She hung for a moment, suspended above the throng of violence below her. Bodies surged in the small space of the atrium, and oneiroi screamed as they stabbed and bled onto the floor.

Kicking her legs, she swung her body—once, twice, three times.

A golem appeared above her as she leapt onto the balcony below. With a quick glance, she confirmed that the balcony was empty. When the golem’s legs swung into view, she slashed at them with Honjo. The blade ripped through bone—or clay, or whatever it was golems were made of. The golem didn’t make a sound as its legs fell to the ground. It just silently pulled itself up to the upper balcony.

From the lower balcony, Ursula considered her options. If she could leap about ten feet across, she could make it to an even lower balcony. She should be able to find a way down from there.

Battle fury began humming in her blood. I can do this.

Holding Honjo tightly, she sprinted, leaping into the air. Time seemed to slow, and she hung suspended above the drop. Then she was landing, rolling on the rough balcony a full floor lower.

As she clambered to her feet, a thumping sound jolted her, like the whirring of a helicopter’s blades. She knew that sound—detested that sound.

Slowly, Abrax rose into view, his black wings beating the air. His eyes blazed with an otherworldly light, and talons had replaced his hands and feet.

Ursula’s heart slammed against her ribs, and she turned to run. She sprinted down the dusty balcony, but Abrax swooped behind her. She reached another break in the floor—a second place where Bael’s manor had been fractured. This one too far to jump.

“You can’t escape me,” Abrax hissed from behind her.

With two beats of his wings, he was ahead of her, alighting on the edge of the fractured balcony. The floor shook as he landed on it and began stalking toward her.

Ursula trained Honjo on him, battle rage filling her blood.

“I see you’ve got your pretty sword back.” Abrax prowled closer, his movements eerily smooth. “But you and I both know it’s not going to help you.”

“I’ve stabbed you before, demon. And I’ll do it again.”

“And you’ve discovered I’m immortal. You cannot kill me. Not even with that lovely piece of steel. Give up now, and your death will be painless.”

Abrax prowled closer, and Ursula took another step back, fury igniting in her blood. Below her the battle raged on. She considered jumping over the railing, but she was still four stories from the floor of the atrium, too high to make it.

Fight or flight, Ursula. First, fight.

With a familiar power roiling through her body, she lunged for Abrax. He shifted, and she sliced his wing. She attacked again, striking him between his ribs, and he roared.

“Ursula,” he bellowed. “You can’t defeat me.”

True, but at least she’d hurt him.

Black magic began snapping around him—and that would be her cue to get out of there. Flight time.

She turned and ran. From behind her, Abrax lunged forward, his talons raking on the balcony floor. Her heart fell as she saw a golem blocking her path, holding a dagger in each of its hands. I can only win by trickery.

She lunged forward, gripping Honjo. She feinted, at the last instant diving right. She flew past the golem, her momentum carrying her over the edge of the balcony and into the abyss.