Crown of Darkness (Divisa Huntress Book 1) Read online

Page 2


  I crouched down and wiped the length of my blade in a patch of grass and stood, returning the dagger to its sheath and loosed a sigh. I felt better. Relaxed. The demon inside me sated. And I was ready to go home.

  It was several miles back to my car, not a big deal for someone with my speed, but until my ankle fully healed, it would take longer than I’d like. Testing its ability to hold my weight, I bore down on my foot and grunted.

  Asswipe.

  I had a feeling I’d be cursing that demon’s name the entire way back to my car. The sky chose that moment to open up. Big, fat drops of rain plummeted down, washing away the blood and grime. Fucking fall.

  2

  I was drenched from head to toe by the time I got to my car. A few miles down the road, I finally pulled into the driveway of my childhood home. The world was washed in starlight and hues of dark blue as I killed the engine. Soft buttery light spilled out of the downstairs windows, and through them, my family laughed and milled about, eating chips and dips Angel’s mom made. Chloe, who was also now my stepmom, married my dad after we graduated high school, and the two seemed genuinely happy, which made me both glad and depressed.

  Everyone was moving on with their lives, finding much deserved happiness and love.

  Then there was me.

  Poor Lexi.

  They might not have come right out and said it, but they pitied me, worried about me, talked about me. It stung to be the only one who hadn’t been able to live their dream.

  Not that it mattered now.

  Love was the very last thing I wanted. Loving someone meant opening yourself up to a hurt so deep the wound might never heal. I never wanted to feel the force of that pain—not again.

  If only my family could see that as well and get off my back about dating a nice boy.

  Pfft.

  There were no such things as nice boys. Not for me.

  Flipping down the visor mirror, I tried to fix the messy flat blonde hair plastered to my face. There was not much I could do about my half gone makeup or the smeared mascara that gave me raccoon eyes. I looked so unlike my usual put-together self, which would be another warning trigger for my family and open up another discussion about my well-being.

  A discussion I wanted to avoid at all costs.

  Exhaling, I stepped out of the car and trudged up the walkway to the front door with my shoes in my hands. I cast a quick glance at the house next door, seeing only the front porch light on. It was Chase and Angel’s house now. Even three years later, that was a weird adjustment.

  Chase was like a brother to me. He’d lived with my family all my life. His mother was my dad’s sister, who had died in childbirth. Chase had it harder than most. If it weren’t for Angel …

  I shuddered to think of who Chase would have become if he hadn’t met the girl next door—my best friend. She changed him in ways I never thought possible, but it was a two-way street. Angel wasn’t exactly the girl she’d been when she first moved to Spring Valley.

  My family was … unique, to say the least, but they were the only ones who understood even a degree of what I went through every day.

  From outside the door, I could make out the voices of Travis and Chase bullshitting each other, their deep laughs fluttering to greet me. I put a smile on my lips and edged through the front door. “Lexi!” a round of voices all proclaimed as I dropped my shoes, letting my eyes adjust to the brightness of the room.

  Chase and Angel were cozied up together in the oversized chair. She sat on his lap, his hand resting on her knee. They were so cute it made me sick, but in a good way. Travis sat on the dark blue couch beside Emma, his arm slung casually over the back cushions. It was all so familiar and comforting that I just wanted to sink down into the couch and forget about everything but the people in this room.

  Love filled my heart—a different type of love than romantic. Yet I would fight until my dying breath to keep the people in this house safe. We had a bond, the five of us. It was unbreakable.

  Chase lifted a brow at me as I sank into the only free chair in the living room. The humor in his silver eyes dimmed as he took in my appearance. “Care to explain why you’re covered in demon blood and smell like ass?”

  I could always count on Chase to keep it real. “Not really.” I sighed, propping my foot on the coffee table. Dad and Chloe were in the kitchen rummaging for more food, because when this group got together, it was like a nonstop buffet. “It’s been one hell of a drive home,” I replied, resting my head on the back of the chair.

  “I bet, little cuz. If Devin found out the danger you were putting yourself in …“ The muscle along Chase’s jaw tightened. His disapproval wasn’t lost on me. My dad would, in fact, lecture me on my choice of extracurricular activities. The muscle along his jaw tightened.

  “Chase, leave her alone,” Angel defended, a pout forming on her lips. Her violet eyes were rimmed in crimson, a feature she acquired four years ago when she acquired demon traits. It still took me by surprise every now and then. “You can puff out your overprotective chest tomorrow. Tonight, let’s just have fun. It’s not like we get to see each other every day.” Not like in high school.

  I awarded him a sweet smile—the one that got me out of sticky situations. But I had a feeling Chase wasn’t going to fall for my innocent act this time.

  Emma raised her beer in the air. “I’ll drink to that.” She winked at me and took a swig from the can. Emma was one of the girls who hung with the guys and could slam down a brewski without taking a breath. Her wavy red hair was knotted into a messy bun. Wisps hung loose, framing her oval face.

  My eyes darted to the kitchen at the sound of my dad’s deep laugh. I didn’t want him to see me like this. He worried enough as it was. Why add to it? “I need to shower and change,” I announced before Chase or Travis could grill me further.

  When I got up, Angel slid off Chase’s lap, much to his chagrin. His eyes followed her every move, a glimmer of gold flecking in the center of his irises—his inner demon.

  Every Divisa had one and fought to maintain control over it. For me, control hadn’t been a problem, but for Chase, he struggled with the power that came with being an influential high demon’s son.

  Angel came up to me. “I never got a chance to give you a hug.” She came up to me and wrapped her arms around me, regardless that I was a wet mess. “I’ve missed you. A lot,” she added.

  “Me too,” I replied, my arms giving her a squeeze before releasing her. She smelled like home and it wasn’t until right then that I realized how much I needed to be here. The anger and bitterness building inside me over these last months, was harsh and consuming to the point of exhaustion. I could drop down into a deep sleep for a week straight.

  The late nights were finally catching up to me, but what better way to rejuvenate than a relaxing week at home?

  And I planned to do just that.

  I jogged up the stairs, my ankle already feeling better. Sometimes my demon blood came in handy, like expedited healing. I walked down the hall into my room. It was precisely how I had left it, not a single stitch of clothing out of place. The pillow-soft white bed was made and I leaned against the doorframe, soaking up the glory of the pale pink walls. This room was everything I loved. It was a struggle to avoid the bed and go straight to the bathroom. I kicked the door behind me and stripped, letting my soggy clothes fall to the floor.

  The hot water hit me, seeping into my pores and I breathed the steam into my lungs, letting it cleanse more than my skin. Being home always brought on a smorgasbord of emotions, remembering all the good and bad things that happened here. Including Colin’s death. I was no stranger to losing people I cared about, but no one’s death hit me as hard as Colin’s did. Losing him changed me.

  Changed everything.

  Parts of me were broken, and no matter how hard I tried to be the girl I’d once been—bubbly and sweet—she was a fraction of who I was today. I still loved chocolate cheesecake, designer handbags, and the col
or pink, but the innocence of youth was long gone.

  I was tougher. Harder. More disciplined. And ready to kick some demon ass.

  It was one of the reasons I looked forward to coming home. Family still came first, but demon hunting was high on my list of shit I was good at. My family knew I hunted, but they didn’t like it. In fact, Chase was very vocal about my choice to be the predator instead of the prey. Travis and he had protected me my whole life, and that wasn’t something that just went away. I understood that, but nothing they could say would change my mind.

  When I opened the door in a towel after my shower, Emma was sprawled out on my bed with Angel beside her. Their giggles filled the room, and a sense of déjà vu came over me. How many times had the three of us hung out in this room bitching about boys and demons? Mostly typical girl talk, but we weren’t your typical girls either.

  “What are you guys doing?” I asked, glancing between them with narrowed eyes. They were up to something.

  Angel’s feet dangled in the air behind her as she lay flat on her belly, her elbows propping her up. “Waiting for you, obviously.”

  “And the guys let you come up here alone?” I pressed my lips together to keep from grinning.

  Angel rolled her eyes. “They’re worried about you.”

  Wrapping my damp hair into a bun, I said, “I get it. So they sent you up here to do their dirty work.”

  Emma wrinkled her nose, her emerald eyes darkening. “As if we’d ever do what either of them told us to.”

  That made me smile. It was so true and drove my brother and cousin crazy, having two strong-minded females who could take care of themselves. I flopped down on the bed between them, making the mattress bounce. “Hey!” they both protested before laughing.

  I settled in, flipping around so the three of us lay in the same direction. “I don’t know how the two of you deal with them. I’ve been home for less than an hour and already they’re hovering.”

  “Chase, hover? Are you sure we’re talking about the same guy?” Angel’s violet eyes sparkled, and the straight face she wore only lasted a few seconds as the three of us burst out laughing.

  It had been too long since I’d laughed.

  “Are you sure you want to be tied to that egotistical jerk for the rest of your life?” I teased.

  “I heard that!” A deep voice bellowed from downstairs. “Don’t make me come up there.”

  I snorted. “Some things never change.”

  “You say that like it is a bad thing,” Angel said, watching me carefully.

  We all knew I was not the same girl, but it wasn’t something we talked about. I wanted to keep it that way. My business. My problems. “Depends. When it comes to you and Chase, the world would end if the two of you called it quits.”

  She playfully shoved my shoulder. “I forgot how dramatic you can be.”

  I batted my eyelashes. “It is one of my more endearing qualities.”

  “How’s college life? Meet any hotties?” Emma asked, bumping her shoulder with mine.

  I had taken a sabbatical of sorts after my first year of college (aka a demon-hunting spree), which meant while the rest of my class had graduated last year, I was stuck in my senior year. “What’s your definition of hot?”

  “That bad, huh?” Emma slung an arm around my shoulder and pulled my face toward hers so our foreheads bumped. “Don’t worry. I got you, girl. I’m sure Angel and I can set you—”

  “Don’t you even think about it,” I interrupted her before the idea could manifest itself further in both of their heads. Once Angel set her mind to something, there was no stopping her. She was like a train full speed ahead with no brakes, and the last thing I needed was to be set up on blind dates. Hell no. If the two of them decided to gang up on me …

  No. I wouldn’t let them.

  “I don’t need a date for the party,” I said, referring to Spring Valley’s annual fall festival. “Besides, my sex life is probably better than both of yours. I don’t have to sleep with the same guy every night.”

  “How do you know you won’t find the love of your life if you’re not willing to give it a shot?” Angel protested. My best friend, the hopeless romantic. When your friends are over the moon in love, they want you to have the same thing. Without being an utter bitch, I had to find a way to make them understand that I no longer wanted the white-picket-fence happily-ever-after.

  I needed to steer this conversation away from my sex life and the desire to not have a boyfriend. Yes, my friends wanted to talk about normal college girl stuff, but that wasn’t me. I opened my mouth to spew some bullshit about a college party when something crashed downstairs and was followed by a scuffling noise.

  The three of us shifted our eyes toward the open door and into the hallway. I shook my head, knowing my bonehead brother and hotheaded cousin were up to no good. “Do they ever grow up?”

  “No,” Emma and Angel recited in unison.

  Angel swung her feet around and over the edge of the bed with a sigh. “I should probably go and make sure Chase doesn’t do something stupid … like destroy the house. Again. We’ll talk more about the party later.”

  Right. Spring Valley’s annual fall festival.

  I swear Angel was a saint, putting up with my cousin as she did. Love made people blind to flaws. And Chase Winters had flaws in abundance, yet he still managed to be an impeccable husband. There are just some things I’ll never understand.

  Emma waited until she heard Angel run down the stairs before turning to me. “So, are you going to tell me what you really plan on doing Saturday night?”

  “You mean while the rest of you are getting drunk off your asses?”

  She lifted her dark red brows, undeterred by sarcasm.

  “If I said watching scary movies, eating from every takeout place in town, and online shopping, would you believe me?” I did, in fact, plan to do all of the above in between my other projects.

  Twisting around, she sat up and tucked her legs underneath her, a gleam of persistence dropping over her feminine features. Emma had the dainty frame of a dancer, but there was nothing fragile about her. “Not on your life. Spill.”

  I sat up beside her, but let my legs dangle over the edge of the bed. “And give away all my secrets? Where’s the fun in that, future sister-in-law?” I added, a hint of a smile on my lips.

  “We are practically family, which means I need to look out for you.” She lowered her voice. “Are you still planning on trapping a higher demon?” Emma whispered.

  She was the only one who knew of my plans, of what I’d been secretly collecting over the last year—information on demons, specifically higher demons. Take out the boss and the empire crumbles. “If I tell you, are you going to run to my brother?” Or worse, Chase, I thought. My brother I could handle, but Chase was like trying to shove a brick wall out of the way when he decided to go against you. It was best he didn’t know. Ever.

  Emma’s brows drew into a straight line. “You know you can trust me. Haven’t I already proven that?”

  She had and then some. Travis would blow his lid if he knew the things his girlfriend and I did when we hung out. Girls nights were code for hunting. Emma loved the thrill of the kill as much as I did, tracking and sending those a-holes back to where they belonged.

  But Emma and I hunted for different reasons.

  Regardless, it was a relief to have someone to talk to who understood to a degree. Emma got that I needed to do this. It was my way of coping, no matter how warped, messed up, or dangerous it might seem.

  Yes, I put my life at risk each time I went chasing after a demon, but I was damn good at hunting. Everyone excelled at something.

  I tucked a few loose pieces of damp hair behind my ear. “Fine. You got me. There’s no way I can pass up this opportunity. It’s the autumn equinox. You and I both know what that means.”

  “It’s the single night of the year when the veil between the living and the dead is at its absolute thinnest. Isn’t
it bad enough you hunt demons on normal days? I can’t imagine what it is going to be like out there during the equinox.” A shiver rippled down her spine.

  “Which is exactly why I need to be out there. They don’t belong here, Emma.”

  “And you’ve made it your personal revenge mission to send them all back to the Underworld? That’s an absurd task alone, even for someone as skilled as you. You’ll get yourself killed. I can’t live with that.”

  She had it partially right. I didn’t just want to send them all back to Hell. I wanted to rip apart the Underworld. I wanted to destroy it. It might have seemed like a lofty goal for one girl, but I dreamed big. “Don’t try to stop me,” I warned, my voice dropping. I hadn’t come home to fight with her, to fight with any of them.

  Her eyes observed me for a moment, studying my face. “What do you have up your sleeve?”

  Indeed. I had a plan. “It’s best if I leave out the details, but if you’re serious about coming with me, I’ll find you at the party.”

  “If Chase or Travis found out—”

  “They won’t,” I cut her off, the muscles in my jaw tightening. “I’ve learned a thing or two about keeping secrets.”

  She glanced up from beneath her thick lashes. “Yes, you have. They would be so pissed at me if they knew I was helping you.”

  The tension in my shoulders released as I took a calming breath, forcing the lines in my face to soften. “My lips are sealed,” I promised, pulling closed an imaginary zipper across my lips. “Besides, from where I stand, you’ve got my brother wrapped around your pinkie.”

  Her lips quirked. “Oh, I’m not worried about him. It’s the dynamic duo that has me peeing my pants.”

  “Since when are you afraid of Chase and Angel?”

  She shrugged. “I’m not. I’m afraid for you.”

  I snorted. “I’ll be fine. I can handle them,” I assured her with a wink.

  The look she gave me suggested she thought otherwise.