Smolder Chapter 18

Jade met Aiden’s eyes and felt the weight of unspoken thoughts between them. She wondered, not for the first time, what he thought about all this. After everything they’d been through, she knew he didn’t believe demons could be saved. He saw them as a blight an unrelenting evil that could only be managed, never eradicated. Did he think being a Vindicator was a curse? To know this horror existed and to only be able to temporarily protect humans because it was never-ending?
For the first time, Jade wondered if he looked at her powers with envy. She could fight demons head-on, and meet their savagery with equal ferocity, while Vindicators could only push them back. Sure, every demon on the eastern seaboard was out to kill her, but they feared her and feared her power. No Vindicator could say the same.
Her thoughts were cut short by a deafening crash as something massive slammed into the side of the car. The impact sent them careening off the road, the car spinning out of control. Metal screamed as the vehicle flipped, sending Jade and the others hurtling in slow motion.
Her seatbelt cut into her chest as her body lifted off the seat. Her hair whipped around her face, obscuring her vision, but the chaos was unmistakable. Grass and sky traded places as the car rolled, and distant screams filled her ears. Her heart seized with terror. This is it, she thought. This is how we die.
But instinct kicked in before the car even hit the ground again. Jade’s power surged, raw and primal, extending outward like invisible tendrils to wrap around the others. Aiden’s connection was immediate, like an extension of her own body, but it took longer to link to Summer and Isa.
As the car flipped and crumpled, she worked frantically, feeling the sharp crack of bones and the tear of muscles hers and theirs. Her mind blurred as she poured energy into mending each wound, closing every gash, and repairing shattered ribs. She felt glass pierce her skin, but she didn’t stop. Every ounce of her focus was on keeping them alive.
The car finally skidded to a stop on its wheels, the metal groaning in protest. Smoke and the sharp tang of gasoline filled the air. She opened her eyes, her vision swimming as she took in the mangled wreckage. The car was a ruined shell, its doors bent inward, windows shattered, and seats torn. But when she turned to her companions, she found them miraculously unharmed.
Summer sat up first, blinking in disbelief. “What in the world…?” she murmured, twisting her neck experimentally. Her voice was tinged with awe, and for once, free of its usual edge.
Jade’s gaze darted past her to the figure charging toward them: a demon. Its eyes burned with hunger, and its face twisted into a feral snarl. Her anger surged, hot and unrelenting. With a flick of her wrist, she sent a spear of fire shooting toward it, incinerating the creature the demon’s scream was cut short as it crumbled to ash.
“Out of the car!” Aiden yelled, wrenching himself through the shattered window. Jade pushed her door open, coughing as smoke stung her lungs. The four of them stumbled a few yards away, regrouping just as the car exploded in a fiery blast. The heat singed the air, and the ground trembled beneath their feet.
Isa stared at the wreckage, her face pale. “How are we alive?” she asked, her voice barely a whisper.
Jade hesitated, knowing the truth would change everything. But Aiden’s apprehensive glance sealed it for her. He wouldn’t stop her, but he didn’t want her to tell them either. Still, they deserved to know.
“I healed you,” she said, her voice steady despite the nerves fluttering in her chest. She saw Summer’s disbelieving eyes widen, and Isa’s expression shift to quiet admiration. “While we were falling, I used my power to heal your injuries. That’s why we’re still alive.”
Summer shook her head. “That’s not possible. How could you heal all of us at the same time? No one has that kind of power.”
“I do,” she said simply. There was no point in arguing. She turned and began walking away, unwilling to linger under Summer’s wary gaze.
Aiden caught up to her, shrugging at his sister. “We need to stick together and be careful,” he said firmly, ending the conversation.
The group moved through backyards and side streets, staying off the main road. They encountered three more demons, but dispatching them was almost routine. Summer, Isa, and Aiden trapped each one, while Jade delivered the killing blow with practiced precision.
Twenty tense minutes later, they reached the town square. Hiding behind the hedges of a house on the edge of the square, they crouched together to assess the scene. Smoke and fire filled the air, and the acrid stench of burning wood and flesh stung Jade’s nose.
The Seraphina had formed a protective circle, four or five rows deep. Flames shot outward in bursts as they tried to hold the demons at bay. In the center of the circle, Jade caught glimpses of terrified children huddled together. Tears glistened on their cheeks, their small faces pale with fear.
“There are at least twenty of them,” Aiden muttered, counting the demons circling them. Dismembered bodies littered the ground severed heads and limbs grotesquely scattered across the square. They had resorted to swords, their ancient blades flashing in the firelight.
But Jade’s attention snapped to the left side of the square, where three demons knelt over a single figure. Her heart plummeted.
“Luke,” she whispered, grabbing his shoulder and pointing. “Look.”
A Seraphina lay limp on the ground, their arms sprawled lifelessly as the demons drank greedily from their bodies. Jade’s stomach twisted as the familiar signs began to show: the body’s pallor, the gray hue spreading across the skin, the fading heartbeat.
“They’re turning immune,” she said, her voice trembling. She thought of her father, of the horrific transformation that made them unstoppable. If they finished feeding, they would rip through the protective circle like a storm, heading straight for the children.
“We have to go,” Summer said, already moving toward the door.
“No,” Jade commanded, grabbing her arm. “I have to go. They’ll only get hurt. I’m the only one they can’t become immune to. Stay here until I’ve dealt with them.”
Aiden met her eyes and nodded grimly, holding Summer back as Jade bolted from the house. She didn’t hesitate, leaping down the steps two at a time and sprinting across the square.
“Stop!” she yelled, her voice ringing out.
The demons paused, their heads snapping toward her. Hungry eyes bore into her, their fangs glinting in the firelight. For a moment, Jade wondered if she’d made a mistake, but she didn’t back down.
She charged forward, unleashing a wave of fire that engulfed the three demons feeding. They screamed as flames consumed them, their bodies disintegrating into ash. Jade knelt beside the body, pressing her hands against his chest, but it was too late. His heart was still, his body cold. She had failed.
Rising slowly, Jade turned to face the demons now circling her. They smiled hungrily, their razor-sharp teeth gleaming.
“Come on,” she muttered, daring them.
The first one lunged, and she struck him down with a spear of fire. Another charged and fell. She didn’t hesitate. She couldn’t. These demons were monsters relentless and cruel.
For a fleeting moment, she thought of Benjamin, the demon with a soul. But these creatures weren’t like him. They were empty, driven only by bloodlust.
No hesitation, she told herself, her fire blazing brighter as the battle raged on.