Lethal Blow: (Succubus Hitwoman Book 2) by Eliza Hendrix (best motivational books to read TXT) 📗

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The portal twirls like a cyclone, its bloodred and majestic purple flashes mixing so perfectly it’s making me want ice cream. I’m thinking the colors have something to do with the fact that it’s related to blood magic, but I can’t be certain. The room fills with a loud hum—a sound that could easily be mistaken for a nearby helicopter.

Preparing myself for the worst, I offer Ace a brief nod. I’m not afraid for my safety; I’m afraid I’ll get lost and won’t make my way back to Veerka and Mr. Mushroom. Okay, the rest of the gang, too. It wouldn’t be the first time I get transported through another dimension only to return five years later.

What if Rachel fucked up? What if her portal does lead into another dimension? I made it clear that I need to remain on this Earth, but vocalizing my concerns doesn’t change her abilities.

I step toward the portal, its sheer power causing my hair to flow behind me. Everyone else takes a step back like I’m about to step into a bomb.

Thanks, guys. Real comforting.

“Where you headed?” comes a familiar voice.

I spin around, my hair webbing my entire face. When I move it out of the way, my eyes land on Zane. With his back against the half-torn wall, he smirks arrogantly at the portal, and then at us.

“How the hell did you get in here?” I ask.

He gives me a one-shoulder shrug and then gazes up at the missing roof. Obviously, that’s not how he got in, but he seems to be amused that he caught us all off guard.

More than likely, he teleported. He is a witch, after all.

“This doesn’t concern you,” I say sharply.

I don’t mean to come across as a bitch, but I don’t know the kid. He can’t know what we’re doing. Surprisingly, my tone doesn’t faze him. Uncrossing his arms, he pushes himself into a standing position and walks toward us. The portal continues to twirl, creating little creases across his clothing.

Inspecting Rachel’s creation, he says, “This looks like a blood portal.”

Finally, some emotion on his face. His jaw loosens, and he turns to Rachel. “How did you pull this off?”

She looks at me, and when I shake my head, she doesn’t respond. Although I like the kid, I don’t approve of the way he sneaked up on us, especially when we’re in the middle of something both private and dangerous.

He throws his chin out at Rachel. “I saw that you managed to enter the Battalion meeting, and I had to figure out what you were up to.” As if suddenly possessed, he wrinkles his forehead and his brows meet above the bridge of his nose. With that furious look still on his face, he flattens his palms and makes two massive fireballs appear. “Did you take my mother?” he shouts.

I’m too shocked to say anything, and by how quiet the room’s gotten, I’m thinking I’m not the only one.

“Answer me!”

Rachel takes a step back. Ace steps in front of her with his chest puffed out and his wings expanded.

Hot and protective… Focus, Alexis.

“What the hell are you talking about?” I say.

The calmness in my voice seems to provoke him. He makes his fireballs double in size and raises one higher than the other, prepared to launch it at me. Rachel’s portal disappears in a flash.

Goddamn it.

Unable to contain myself, I laugh. I don’t mean to, but is this kid trying to make us believe that Zerachu is his mother? I can’t imagine that woman being with a man. She gives me that don’t-fuck-with-me butch lesbian vibe.

“Pretending to be Zerachu’s son won’t get you anywhere,” I say, extracting my claws.

If this kid wants a fight, he’ll get one. I’m not typically one to hit anyone under the age of eighteen, but he’s asking for it.

The sound of Zerachu’s name makes his fireballs disappear. “Zerachu?”

What the hell is going on here? What am I missing?

Clearing his throat, he composes himself as if the fireball threat never happened. “You don’t know who I am, and with how confused you all appear to be, I realize now that you aren’t the bad guys.”

You think? Jackass.

“No, we aren’t,” I say. “So who the hell are you and what does your mother have to do with us?”

He elevates his chin as if prepared to tell us he’s from a royal bloodline. “I’m Devania’s son.”

Okay, I wasn’t expecting that one.

He stares at the ground. “She went missing when the Great Witch disappeared. No one’s announcing it. They’re afraid it might cause panic among the Battalion.”

I sigh at the cloudy sky above us. “You have got to be kidding me.”

“If you aren’t one of the bad guys, why did you open up a blood portal?” he asks.

I don’t want to tell this kid who Rachel is, but it’s obvious that all he wants to do is find his mother. And if I don’t tell him what’s going on, he might refuse to leave. I’m all for using lethal force if necessary, but if I kill Devania’s kid, I won’t be around for long.

“First of all,” I say, “you made us lose the portal. Thanks a lot, jack—”

Drax clears his throat to keep me in line.

“We’re trying to find Zerachu,” I say.

Zane furrows his brows. “How does that explain the blood portal? The only way you’d be creating a blood portal to find Zerachu is if—” And then, as if just now realizing he needs oxygen to live, his eyes widen and he twirls on his heels. “Someone in this room is related to the Great Witch?”

Rachel’s stare lingers on me again, and this time, I nod as a way of giving her my approval.

“She’s my great-aunt,” Rachel says.

“Grandaunt, technically,” I