Free Horde of the Demon Priest (Demona Book 3) by Megan A. Hepler Page A

some ways it’s fitting that Darius turned me into a vampire. He’s contributed to making part of the prophecy come true and to giving me more power than he realizes. Aleph has only made me stronger since the transformation happened,” Demona said. “I still can’t help but wonder if I’m going to be able to go through with the rest of the prophecy. I don’t doubt my role as the chosen one anymore; I just wish things could be different. I wish you were here with me… to give me advice.”
     
    Felix walked towards her through the frosted, dried, and dead brush that was beginning to lean towards the ground. The brush and leaves crunched with each step he took. A gust of cool wind swept through the almost bare trees that surrounded them; blowing some of the remaining leaves off of the branches. Demona wrapped her arms around herself to keep the chill from seeping through her thin coat and watched the leaves flutter to the ground.
     
    I hate this time of year. Everything looks dead and I feel blah. It probably isn’t helping my mood that I’m hanging out in a cemetery either.
     
    Demona did not need to turn around to know that Felix now stood behind her. She could sense his presence. It was if her body responded to the close proximity of him, whether she was consciously aware of him or not. Felix remained silent, but the fact that he was with her gave her comfort.
     
    She sighed and stared at the headstones. She reached out to pull a few brown leaves away from around the plots. Most of the leaves crumbled at her touch and only managed to become wedged farther into the dormant grass. Still, Demona attempted to make the graves seem less neglected than they appeared.
     
    Felix’s hand lightly rested on Demona’s shoulder. “It’s almost time.” His words were soft and solemn, respectful to the dead.
     
    Demona changed to a kneeling position. She kissed her fingers and placed a hand on each gravestone. She stood and looked down at her parents. “I love you both.”
     
    Before she turned to leave with Felix she remembered how loving and kind her mother had been. How secure she had felt in her arms and the smell of lavender in her hair. She remembered the joy she felt as a child when her father had mussed up her hair and how she in turn would muss up his. He would laugh heartily at her while she did it; she loved the sound of his laughter.
     
    ****
     
    Felix and Demona met the field-agents in the park at Darius’ seemingly favorite location. The place was all too familiar to Demona in a not so pleasant way. Any passerby would have found the location in the park to be completely ordinary. It was, however, the spot where Darius had attacked Demona and began her transformation in to a vampire. It was the location where she had awoken disoriented as a hungry fledgling vampire. The memory of that night still haunted Demona. She ignored the uneasiness that she felt as she stood there.
     
    Darius just loves to try to make me feel powerless, that’s why he sends me here.
     
    Felix looked at her with sympathy. He knew what the place meant to Demona and how uncomfortable she was every time Darius sent her to that location for a rendezvous. However, it had also been the location of their first date, their first date alone; one where she had had a flashback of when Darius had attacked her on a dark night. Demona had enjoyed her date, despite the horrific interruption. Thankfully, the incident had been a moment to observe Felix’s sincerity, kind-heartedness, and his concern for what had happened to her. His big heart was one of the things she loved most about him.
     
    Demona tried to focus on the wide open space around her, instead of the claustrophobia she felt when she remembered how helpless, and seemingly paralyzed, she had been when Darius began to turn her. She shook away the feeling and noticed the few bright splashes of orange and yellow marigolds, which had survived the frost, growing around the base of each