The tunnel wound around a corner and out of sight, but there was only one route to take, so they took it. As they reached the corner, a sudden premonition rose like a flash flood, and Lily tugged on her sister’s hand to pull her back.
Too late.
Iris stepped forward and froze, and Lily had no choice but to follow and see what awaited them.
Her heart jumped into her throat at the sight of a wall of demons blocking their passage, the fangs in their ugly snouts bared in malicious grins.
“Well, well, well,” one said, rubbing his claws together, “what do we have here?”
* * *
The monsters were short,only coming up to Lily’s shoulders, with underbite fangs and thick necks. Their faces were asymmetrical and full of blemishes, making them some of the ugliest things she had ever seen.
Gargoyles, she realized.
“What do we do?” Lily whispered.
“I have no clue,” Iris whispered back.
“I’ll tell you what you’re going to do,” the first demon said, the others behind him shuffling excitedly. “You’re going to keep quiet while we take a little taste of you, and then you’re going to come with us to meet our mistress.”
“Yeah, how aboutnoto both those things,” Iris spat.
“Let me taste ’em,” another hissed. “The shiny one looks delicious.”
Lily wasn’t sure if they were talking about actually eating them or something else possibly worse, but she didn’t care to find out. She looked at Iris, trying to see if her sister had any sort of plan that could be explained through an intense look.
The only escape was down the tunnel, currently blocked by the gargoyle gang. Mist’s cave behind them was a dead end. Iris glanced ahead and then back at Lily. Lily’s eyes widened, and she shook her head. Iris nodded. Lily shook her head again. Iris nodded more forcefully.
Are we really doing this?
Iris’s gaze hardened, and Lily realized that yes, they were doing this.
“Now!” With her shout, Iris charged fearlessly into the mob, brandishing the torch like a weapon. Lily had no choice but to follow.
The element of surprise was their only asset, and that only lasted a split second. Shoving the demons out of their way, they managed to make it halfway through the crowd before their enemies caught on.
They were vastly outnumbered. Hands seized Lily from every direction, on every part of her body. The violation made her panic, and she kicked and fought desperately, but it wasn’t enough. Two gargoyles managed to catch her wrists and twist them around her back. Another shoved her from behind, and she fell hard onto her knees without her hands to break her fall.
Armed with the torch and her vicious temper, Iris fought harder and for longer, but eventually, she too succumbed. A minute later, she was beside Lily, the two of them surrounded by a circle of gargoyles. Their wrists were tied securely. Discarded on the ground, the torch cast long shadows across the smug faces of their attackers.
Fear made Lily’s insides churn and her stomach hollow. She swallowed the urge to scream, frantically seeking an escape and coming up with nothing.
Iris was right. They weren’t strong enough to rescue Mist by themselves.
What had she been thinking? That she couldglowher way through Paimon’s lair to his side? That the power of her love would give her magical strength to defeat a Queen of Hell? Stupid, immature, and ridiculous.
The gargoyle leader shoved his pig-like snout into her face, his fetid breath causing her to recoil. “Paimon knew you were here the second you arrived. You never stood a chance of escaping.”
His hand shot out and wrapped around her throat. He squeezed, but strangely, it didn’t choke her.
“Right now, she’s putting the Hunter in his place. She ain’t pleased he killed one of her monsters.” The responding murmurs from the other gargoyles sounded almost awed. “She’s got him strung up now, letting his blood drip into the Pit to drive the beasts into a frenzy. She won’t be letting him kill a second one, that’s for sure. It’ll be a bloodbath this time, no doubt.”
“You know what?” Iris snapped suddenly. “Fuck you and fuck this.” She spat in the face of the gargoyle trying to choke Lily. “Fuck all you stumpy little bastards! Talk about overcompensating—you have us on our knees because if I stood up, I could use your head as a step stool. I’m not scared of you little shites.”
“You’ll pay for that, witch.” Releasing Lily, he flexed his claws and stalked forward, snarling. “Hold her still.”
Two more gargoyles gripped Iris’s arms, and another gripped her blue ponytail and yanked her head back, exposing her throat. Lily struggled to come to her sister’s rescue, and Iris never stopped hissing and spitting.
