Tainted Blood . Amy Blankenship

steps were slow as she approached the seal around him. She’d never seen such dark flames coming from him and knew it couldn’t be a good sign.

      “What’s wrong?” she whispered, wondering if Zachary could hear her.

      Placing her hands on the barrier, she watched a river of what looked like sparkling water rush between her fingers and disappear before hitting the floor. The shield turned an electric blue around her hands and she pushed on it… testing its strength.

      “Zachary, open your eyes. Please… just to let me know you’re okay.” Angelica felt her hope plummet with every passing second that he didn’t respond.

      His blond hair fluttered around his face and his body was just barely swaying gently in the flames letting her know that it was what kept him levitated above the floor. What frightened her the most was his complete stillness… she couldn’t even tell if he was breathing.

      “Is it a spell Zachary? Did someone do this to you? I’m coming… just hold on.” She closed her eyes and started mentally picking at the locks around the barrier. She could do this… she would do this… for Zachary.

      Syn had remained quiet, giving her privacy with her friend but he could not take her heartache a moment longer. Stepping up behind her, he laid his palms against the shield above hers… strengthening it rather than helping her bring it down.

      “Why? Why are you stopping me?” Angelica asked not understanding.

      “Because, I do not think your friend Zachary will be very happy when he wakes up only to find he has harmed you with his phoenix fire. He is not dying… he is reviving himself. And from the looks of it, he is going to bring all of his power with him when he awakens.”

      Angelica turned her back on the barrier not wanting to watch the eerie image of Zachary burning. Wanting to feel safe, she wrapped her arms around Syn’s waist and hid her face against his warm chest.

      Syn folded his arms around her giving her the comfort she was quietly seeking. He gazed at Zachary and silently wondered what would have happened to her in this life if he hadn't found her. Would her friendship with Zachary have grown into something more intimate?

      He tightened his arms around her, burying his face in her dark hair and decided not to dwell on it. She loved the phoenix dearly and for that he was at least thankful… but it was time for his mate to remember what true love really was.

      Chapter 3

      Damon crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back against the tool shed used by the caretakers of the cemetery. This area was lacking in hunters because it was in the very corner of the massive graveyard and fairly secluded. It also seemed to be a refuge for a lot of the Spinnan that had survived this long, almost as though they were trying to regroup and hide.

      He had promised to let Alicia practice fighting and, all in all… this was an excellent place for her to do it… as long as he was there acting as the referee. These Spinnan were weak compared to most of the things running around the city right now, but still he only allowed Alicia to fight one at a time.

      Every time a brave Spinnan would try to tag team her, he would shatter them before they got close enough to distract her from the one she was fighting. Destroying the monsters coming at Alicia was giving him a sense of satisfaction and Damon was quite enjoying himself. She wasn’t half bad… for a beginner.

      He’d also noticed a drastic drop in the creatures since the explosion a few hours ago and concluded that someone had found and destroyed the nest. Personally, he wouldn’t have minded getting a look at the demon that had spawned these creepy critters but he shrugged it off. It was probably just as ugly as these things were anyway.

      Hearing footsteps and the sound of voices coming from the boundary of trees down the short hill he was standing on, Damon stepped around the corner of the shed and went to investigate. This edge of the cemetery was lined with tall, stately pines that separated it from a suburban neighborhood.

      Being this close to houses, Damon was curious as to why no one had heard anything during the night and come to investigate. There were a few times he thought he’d seen the shimmer of a barrier around the property but dismissed it as part of his imagination. If a barrier had been put in place, then maybe the demon hunters weren’t as useless as he’d assumed.

      He was almost to the tree line when two men emerged from it, but they stopped when they saw him. Seeing the white outline of a structure through the trees, he summarized that the main maintenance building was probably on the other side of them and these men had just shown up for work.

      These guys couldn’t have used any of the major roads to get there… they’d been blocked off. Add to that the fact Damon hadn’t heard any car engines approaching told him the men lived within walking distance of this cemetery.

      “Good morning,” Damon said closing the distance between them so he could put them under his thrall.

      The two men frowned at him. There had been a lot of strange things going on in the graveyard the last couple days and it made them suspicious of anyone who looked like trouble… and the guy walking toward them fit that description to a T.

      The one with a white tank top under his unbuttoned uniform shirt spoke in an authoritative manner. “Can we help you? Visitors are not supposed to be hanging out near the equipment.”

      Damon nodded, focusing his vibrant amethyst eyes on them, almost smirking when their expressions mellowed out into a dazed state. “Actually, I’m here to help you by letting you know that you have already finished your work for the day. Your employer said to go back to the maintenance shed and relax until your shift is over. You do not remember seeing me and if anyone asks… you worked hard all day.”

      The second worker with his uniform shirt buttoned up and looking more professional glanced over at his co-worker. “It’s time to try out that TV you hooked up in the shed.”

      “Yeah, let’s go catch Jerry Springer,” worker number two said in a stupor.

      Damon smirked and waited until they were completely out of sight. Once the humans were gone, he turned to start walking back up the hill when he saw an impressive mound of dirt go flying into the air. When he made it back to the top of the hill to check on Alicia’s progress, his expression darkened.

      She was now fighting not one… but three Skitters at the same time and it looked like she was having a hard time of it. A deep growl rumbled in his chest when one of them knocked Alicia to the ground with a bone-jarring thud.

      Alicia lay there staring up from where she’d been thrown. Everything had been going good until Spinnan number two and three decided to show up and have a tag team. Damon had been helping her out and when nothing happened to the other two right away she’d looked around for him.

      Not finding him anywhere, she’d felt a little bit of happiness and frustration at the same time. Happiness because she thought he was allowing her to fight it out… and frustration that he wasn’t there to witness her kicking all three of their asses. Lifting her head up off the ground, she was about to push herself back to her feet when the Spinnan suddenly froze. They stood there for a second before abruptly shattering like glass.

      Alicia covered her face with her arms to avoid getting hit with the debris. Thankfully, all of the bits and pieces had blown outward and away from her. When she lowered her arms, she found Damon standing there, straddling her lower legs and looking just as angry as ever. She flinched when he suddenly held his hand out offering to help her up.

      “Damn it Damon, I could have taken them if you’d just given me a chance,” she said while grasping his hand.

      Damon gently pulled her to her feet and flush against his chest. Alicia was about to protest when she saw the tightness of his jaw and the hardness in his amethyst eyes. Her temper vanished realizing she had unintentionally scared him.

      “The rule is one monster at a time,” Damon growled, gearing up for an argument he intended to win. He was taken by surprise when Alicia wrapped her hand