Free 1305 & 1306 The Oracle & the Vampire (The 13th Floor) by Christine Rains Page A

turned red this time, they stayed that way.
    “No!” Harriet pushed Kiral aside and stumbled forward. “You can’t have him.”
    “Grandmother.” Kiral reached for her, and she moved away from his hand.
    “Go. Find Harriet. She needs you more than I do.” Harriet disliked playing on his obsession, but it would keep Kiral safe. If he was racing around looking for her, the demon wouldn’t catch him. “Please go find my granddaughter.”
    Kiral’s face twitched. Cheeks, mouth, eyes. Finally his mouth set in a firm, thin line. “I will not leave you.”
    “But she needs you—”
    “I will not leave you.” Kiral repeated more firmly.
    Her heart fluttered as her cheeks warmed. He was going to stay with her. She was close to swooning when she remembered what she was trying to do.
    “Wait, wait, wait.” The demon walked closer. “Let me get this straight. The witch is trying to save the vampire. The vampire who was earlier rescued by another demon. The vampire who drains the life from people, murders them. The soulless creature within a pretty package.”
    Beside her, Kiral cringed at the last bit. Did he truly believe he was without a soul? Harriet could see his aura clearly. A soulless being wouldn’t have one. She was going to tell him so when the demon continued on.
    “And she’s sending him after her granddaughter. She’s not even old enough to have a grandkid!” He laughed, flames licking at his arms.
    No! This wasn’t the way she wanted Kiral to find out. However much the demon knew, she couldn’t let him be the one to tell Kiral the truth. She scurried forward, ignoring the heat from the fire. “Enough. Let him go.”
    “Grandmother!” Kiral lurched forward to be stopped as the demon held up a ball of flame.
    “Why should I let him go? You don’t frighten me. My minions told me what you did with the wisps earlier. I’d eat those sparkly buggers for breakfast.”
    “We both know there’s nothing I can do to stop you. But I do have one thing you might be interested in.” Unintentionally, her voice dropped to a whisper. “My soul. Freely given in exchange for his life.”
    “No!” Kiral roared and nabbed her by the back of her sweater, yanking her away from the demon. “Take me! I’ll come freely.”
    “Now, now.” The demon waggled a finger. “I do like what’s happening here. You’ve a mighty bright soul, witch. A heavy curse, but it does nothing to hide your light. I would have such a fun time with you.”
    “No!” Kiral shouted again.
    “Mine for his.” Harriet offered, ignoring the vampire’s protests. She’d save him one way or another.
    “But alas, we can’t deal tonight.” The demon tossed back his head in an overly dramatic rock star manner and slammed a ball of fire into Kiral’s chest.
    Harriet screamed as Kiral did. She grabbed him when he started to fall, but she couldn’t hold his weight. They toppled to the ground, and she wrapped her arms around him. He shuddered with his pain. His blackened chest still sizzled even though the flames had been extinguished.
    “I have a much bigger fish to catch than you or your undead boy toy.” The demon walked over and snatched one of Kiral’s ankles. The vampire kicked at him, but he was slipping in and out of consciousness. “Maybe another night, Grandmother .”
    Harriet hung on to Kiral as long as she could. The remnants of his shirt tore off as the demon dragged him away from her. She screamed again and crawled after them.
    “Kiral.” She breathed out his name. “I will save you.”
    The demon’s manic laugh filled the street. He threw a huge fireball onto the ground and jumped into it with Kiral in tow. The flames flared and flickered down to nothing. They were gone, and Harriet was left kneeling on the pavement feeling as if the bastard had truly taken her soul.

CHAPTER 14
     
    As soon as Kiral healed enough to start fighting back with more than wild kicks and punches, the demon rammed another fireball into