Passion of the Vampire King (Blood Fire Saga Book 5) by Bella Klaus (best motivational books txt) 📗

Council. There were forensic wizards holding ward detection devices, air and water mages holding steady to counter fire magic, and demon enforcers who looked like they were ready to drag the souls of fire users to Hell.

My insides sagged with defeat. At any moment, Captain Zella would activate the enchantment that stole away my consciousness, and I would awaken on the executioner’s block.

A tall figure appeared in the middle of the courtyard, dressed in a red shirt unbuttoned to the sternum that exposed prominent pectoral muscles. He wore a slim-fitting black jacket and matching pants, tailored to highlight an athletic physique and a black hat with a red trim. I couldn’t see his socks, but I was guessing they were also red.

He stepped into the light, revealing maroon eyes that smoldered like banked coals, set within a smirking face, and a five-o’clock shadow made him look like he’d spent the entire day frolicking within silk sheets.

Hades.

My eyes narrowed. He’d either come to gloat or come to retrieve the Hell ring in my pocket and the last of his ashes.

“Release that young woman,” he said in a lazy drawl.

Captain Zella placed a hand over the weapon on her hip holster. “Who dares to question the authority of the Supernatural Council?”

“Do you not recognize one of its monarchs?” Hades spread his arms wide, flaring out demonic magic that lashed against my skin like the crack of a thousand tiny whips.

His display of power intensified with ghostly impressions of hellfire rising from the marble floor, engulfing our bodies. The air thickened with the scent of brimstone, and I held my breath. Some of the enforcers around me thudded to the floor, and groans mingled with the howl of the wind.

If I wasn’t held in place by magic, I would clench my teeth and shudder at the demon’s magic. Right now, all I could do was squeeze my eyes shut against the onslaught of his dark power.

As quickly as the magic had started, it stopped. I opened my eyes to find everyone had either dropped to their knees or lay on their side, panting at the force of his magic. Me? I floated in the middle of the hallway like an idiot because I was still frozen in place and suspended by Captain Zella’s device

Hades strode across the courtyard, stepping over fallen bodies into the room with the grace of a wealthy aristocrat out for a stroll within his country estate. As he crossed the threshold of Kenwood House, his eyes sharpened, making all the fine hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.

My pulse fluttered in my throat like a moth caught within a trap. Hades could have stayed in the cupboard at my side and explained himself to Captain Zella, yet he’d chosen to let me get arrested before making his grand entrance. I had no idea what he was planning, but I could almost certainly guarantee that the Demon King was up to no good.

“Miss Griffin,” he drawled. “I apologize for the delay in reaching you.”

“Hmmm!” I said, with a pitch of urgency I hoped he would interpret as “let me out of here.”

He curled his fingers, indicating for Captain Zella to rise. “Report.”

The tall woman rose to her feet, her long limbs trembling like a sapling in the wind. Sweat clung to her skin, which had paled several shades since she’d announced my impending execution. Clearing her throat, she smoothed her expression, pulled back her shoulders, and stood to her full six feet of height.

I had to admit that I was impressed at her composure.

Hades towered over the woman by a mere four inches, but his presence was so overwhelming that she shrank into herself, stepped back, and tilted her head to meet his eyes.

“Your Majesty.” Captain Zella’s voice caught. She cleared her throat and coughed. “There are traces of residual magic all over the grounds—”

“Fire magic?” Hades asked.

“Temporal, sire.”

“What of its caster?” His tone was more businesslike. “Have you traced its source?”

My brows drew together. Didn’t he mean Kresnik?

“Ward breakers have reported no magical trails, ward stones, or escape routes,” she said, her voice trembling. “It looks like they just vanished.”

“Hmmmmm,” I said, infusing my tone with impatience.

Hades spared me a glance and tilted his head to the side. “Did you have something to contribute, Miss Griffin?”

I flashed my eyes, unable to move anything else apart from my vocal cords. Was he letting me remain silent on purpose? From the way Hades had appeared in the courtyard, it looked like he was trying to make it look like he’d just emerged from Hell instead of having spent days as a disembodied spirit tethered to his ashes.

“Release her,” he said.

Captain Zella straightened, folding her arms across her chest. Her features hardened into the expression she’d used when trying to explain to Valentine that I needed to step out of the wards of the Notting Hill villa to test my magic.

“Your Majesty,” she said, her words hesitant with a touch of trepidation. “Hemera Griffin was found guilty—”

“The souls of all fire users are sent to my domain,” he said in a voice as sharp as the points of a pitchfork. “As this young woman was found guilty of possessing fire, her soul belongs to me.”

Terror rippled through my insides, making my stomach shrivel into a tight ball. Hades meant every word of his proclamation. Was he going to restart all that bullshit about keeping me in a gilded cage?

My gaze darted from Hades to Captain Zella, who thinned her lips, looking like she wanted to follow protocol but might have to concede to the higher authority of the Demon King. I sent a silent plea for the woman to keep me in custody, at least until I got a chance to warn the rest of the Supernatural Council that Kresnik had returned from Hell. After that, we could negotiate my and Valentine’s freedom.

Hades raised a brow, giving her a look that said he could snatch me away at any