Catching Dragos(11)

Down.

66 | GAIL KOGER

Chapter Ten

“Wake up, Mariah. Dammit, you’ve got to wake up. Now!”

I frowned. Why was it so friggin’ hot? Had the air-conditioning broke? And what

was up with that awful wailing? It sounded like someone was strangling a bunch of

cats.

“Focus,” the voice demanded.

“Grams?”

“Yes. How badly are you injured?”

“My back’s messed up.” Very carefully, I moved my arms and legs. “But my parts are

working.”

“Is Fabian with you?”

That was when I realized I was sprawled across a warm, masculine chest. I rubbed

my cheek against Fabian’s firm muscles. Yum. What a great way to wake up.

“Mariah!”

“Stop shouting. I’ve got the headache from hell.”

“You’re in the Ninth Hell,” Grams shot back testily.

“No way.” I pried open my eyes and gaped in horror.

An immense cavern lit by flaming torches stretched out before me. Strange

contorted rocks reared up from the floor. The humanlike stones seemed to writhe in

nameless agony while others clawed at the air as if to escape some unspeakable horror.

I rubbed my aching head. “How did we get here?”

“Asmoday opened a portal.”

“Man, he must really need a virgin.”

CATCHING DRAGOS | 67

Grams snorted. “You’re not a virgin.”

“I know that, and you know that, but try telling the demons that.” I took another look

around. “This wouldn’t happen to be the infamous Cavern of the Damned, would it?”

“It is.”

We were so absofuckinglutely screwed.

Fabian moaned.

I crawled off him. He had a nasty cut on his forehead, and his left arm looked kind

of bent. If we were going to have any hope of surviving, I needed him in fighting shape.

Patting my pockets, I found the bottle of healing potion and hugged it to my chest.

Thank God it hadn’t broken. Our luck might be changing. I opened the bottle and took

a long swallow. A sigh of relief broke from me as my pain vanished.

A thunderous roar shook the cavern.

And just like that, Lady Luck, the fickle bitch, fled.

Eerie voices wailed, “He comes. He comes. Asmoday comes for you. He will take

your virgin’s heart.”

I shouted, “Goddammit, I’m not a virgin!”

Asmoday bellowed back, “Then I find another, and you will serve me as my

necromancer. The Zoroastrian prophecy will be fulfilled. The dead will walk the earth,

and I will reign for a thousand years.”

My blood turned to ice. “Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and

at the hour of our deaths.”

“Your father didn’t raise a quitter. Heal your man and fight,” Grams spat.

“Yes, ma’am, but it doesn’t hurt to pray.” I pried open Fabian’s mouth.

“Hot.” He shifted restlessly, jostling the bottle.

Shit! I managed to keep from spilling any of the precious liquid. I had a feeling we

were going to need it again and again.

68 | GAIL KOGER

Sweat dripped into my eyes. I wiped it away. God, the cavern had to be at least a

hundred and twenty degrees. Without water, we wouldn’t last long. Which wouldn’t be

an issue once the demon king got his claws on us.

The hunter’s big hand grabbed my thigh. “Hurt?”





“Easy, big guy. I’m okay. You? Not so much. If you take your medicine like a good

boy, I’ll give you a big kiss.”

“Promise?”

“Yep, cross my heart. I need you to drink this. Can you do that for me, sweetie?”

Obediently, Fabian opened his mouth, and I poured in a couple of ounces.

My internal radar went on red alert. Asmoday? Or something else?

A rotting corpse shambled into the light.

I froze for a second. Since half of the creature’s face was gone it was difficult to tell

if it was male or female. “Fuck. What is it?”

“Hungry,” Grams answered. “Kill it.”

Its right eye popped out and rolled across the ground.

Oh, ick. “It sure looks like a zombie.”

“Does it really matter? It can and will eat you,” Grams snipped.

“Dicitur pretiosa materia mox.” Presto! My sword appeared in my hand. “Do you

have any idea on how to kill it?”

“You kill a revenant by beheading it,” Fabian answered, climbing to his feet.

“Okeydokey.” I studied his blood-covered face. “Can you fight?”

“I am Dragos.” A sword materialized in Fabian’s right hand.

Why did men insist on spouting that kind of macho bullshit? Did they think it

impressed us?

The eyeball lurched to a stop and stared up at me.

I pointed to it. “Eyeballs seem to find you attractive.”

CATCHING DRAGOS | 69

Fabian stomped on it.

“Asmoday is coming. Kill it and flee,” Grams ordered.

A piece of the zombie’s scalp slid off and hit the floor with a squishy plop.

Nausea rose in my throat. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Distract the creature.” Fabian disappeared into the shadows.

“Sir, yes sir.” It felt like I was in the army. Maybe I should start saluting.

“He comes. The king comes!” the voices shrieked.

“I heard ya the first time.” I turned my attention to the zombie. “Hey, handsome.

Don’t I look yummy?”

The zombie grunted and clacked its jaws.

Fabian stepped out of the shadows. Swoosh! He lopped off the revenant’s head. It

toppled to the ground.

The voices grew louder. “He comes. He comes.”

“Jeez. Enough already.” I scanned the area nervously. Where was the freaky

snake?

Fabian’s brows came together in a fierce line. “He still thinks you’re a virgin?”

“Yep.”

“That’s easy to fix.” Fabian unzipped his cargo pants and out sprang Mr. Happy.

Damn. Was he eternally horny? Who cared? I just wanted some quality time with

his nice thick cock. “I don’t think the demon king is going to stand idly by while we

fuck.”

“We make it quick.”

“A quickie in hell? Sounds fun.” My hand caressed Mr. Happy.

Fabian groaned and yanked open my clown costume. His hand slid down my

stomach until he found my G-spot.

70 | GAIL KOGER

My head fell back. Oh, lordy. The man was a master. His talented fingers pinched,

swirled, and rubbed my clit.

Grams shouted, “Have you lost your minds?”

I winced and hastily fastened my costume. “Sorry. We kinda got carried away.”

“Well, it’s about to carry you away.”

“What is?”

Something fluttered in the blackness above us.

Grabbing my sword, I looked up and gasped.

A monkey-like face with glowing red eyes and curved fangs hovered over our

heads. Its leathery wings created a violent updraft that threatened to extinguish the

torches.

“A Hag Bat,” Grams announced.

It hissed.

I had a sudden irrational urge to laugh. “All we need now is a wicked witch, a

broom, and a yellow brick road.”

Fabian inquired drily, “Are you always such a smart-ass?”

“Only when I’m scared out of my mind. So, wise one, how do we kill it?”

“With cold steel, fire, or chocolate.” The hunter studied the monster. “If Asmoday

is as all-powerful as everyone claims, why is he trying to delay us?”

“Good question. Should we ask her?”

The Hag Bat suddenly swooped down and grabbed my shoulders, lifting me up.

I screamed as its claws dug deep into my flesh. Out of sheer desperation, I stabbed

at it with my sword.

The bat shook me violently, knocking the blade out of my grip.

Pain lanced through my body. I struggled to breathe. “Let. Go. Of me. You freak.”

CATCHING DRAGOS | 71

Doing a great imitation of superhero, Fabian took a running leap off a large

boulder and flew through the air. His sword flashed out. W hack! He severed the bat’s

right arm.

The Hag Bat let out an ear-shattering screech, and its great wings flapped mightily

as it struggled to gain altitude.

I managed to grab the severed arm and repeatedly whacked the Hag in the face.

“You’re one dead bitch. Do you hear me? One dead bitch.”

The creature slammed me into a tall stalagmite, knocking the breath out of me.

The arm slipped out of my grip.

Fabian’s voice seemed to echo on forever. “Stay alive, Mariah! Stay alive. Stay

alive. Stay alive.”

The cavern spun around me in a nauseating blur. I could feel blood running down

my chest as we flew farther and farther into the inky depths. The pain grew until all I

wanted to do was sink into the waiting darkness.

“If you pass out, you will become Asmoday’s minion,” Grams admonished.

Fabian’s mind slid into mine, sharing his power. “Fight, amore mio! I’m coming for

you.”

With every ounce of strength I possessed, I summoned my sword and cut the Hag

Bat’s throat.

It dropped me.

I clawed at the air, trying to grab hold of something, anything solid. I smacked the

ground hard and struggled to rise. Agony rolled over me, and I collapsed against the

hot earth, gasping for air. With grim determination, I held on to consciousness. I would

not die here.

A skittering noise drew my attention. Oh, fuck. Could this day get any worse?

Its head tilted at an odd angle, the Hag Bat dragged itself across the floor. Hatred