MY MOUTH OPENED, but nothing came out.  An iron blade was sticking out of Kye’s chest.  He had to be faking.  He missed the heart.  He was only bluffing to get Lorne to release me.

But when Kye’s flesh began to gray, I knew he’d done it for real.

“NO!”  Lorne dropped me.

I swayed and stumbled toward Kye as he fell.  I slammed to my knees next to him, my eyes watering.  “No.  No.  No."  I shook him.  “Why would you do that?”

He laughed.  “It was the only way to save you.”

That wasn’t the truth.  He could have killed Alec and then hunted down his parents and killed them.

As if he read my thoughts, he shook his head.  “I told you I’d make up for what I’ve done.”

I felt Rex behind me, but I couldn’t tear my eyes from Kye.  This wasn’t the demon that had tormented and hurt me beyond measure.  He wasn’t the demon who wanted to create a race of super monsters to take over the world. 

This was my former soulmate who just sacrificed his life for mine.

His eyes melted to blue, warmer than I’d ever seen before.  “You deserve to be happy, Koralein.”  He coughed.  “Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.”  He slowly blinked, and the life gently faded from him.

The tears streaming from my eyes burned my cold cheeks.  I shook him.  “No.  Come back.”  I wasn’t ready to let him go.

“He ruined everything.”  Lorne’s voice was like a cold slap of water to my face.  It stung my skin and woke me up.

It woke up my darkness.

My teeth ground together.  He was the true monster behind everything bad in my life.  He forced my parents to run from their world and everything they’d ever known.  He was the reason I grew up without them, the reason my childhood was hell. 

Lorne created the demon race all because he was angry over his punishment for harming someone innocent.  He took thousands of lives all because he could.  He was a spoiled child tearing off butterfly wings for sport.

Someone needed to put his disobedient ass in time out.

My knife was lost somewhere in the crowd of demon corpses.  I yanked the one out of Kye and shakily stood.  My blood seeping from the wound on my neck dripped onto the blade, mixing with Kye’s.  It was the first time the sight of deep burgundy blood mingling with scarlet ferrum blood didn’t sicken me.

I couldn’t kill Lorne, but he needed to feel my wrath.  The demon darkness was owed that much.  I wanted him to know I would find a way to destroy him no matter what.

Rex tried to stop me, but I shrugged his grip off, surprisingly stronger than I should have been.

I spun around and faced Lorne.  “You will spend the rest of your life running from me.”  My icy voice dripped with danger.  “Every moment you think you’re free, I’ll show up and remind you I exist.  I’ll be the thorn in your side, sinking deeper into your flesh until it becomes infected.  And if it comes to it, I’ll turn and hunt you down for all of my immortal years.”

Lorne’s eyes hardened into onyx.  “You’ll never find me once I leave here.”  The edges of his lips twitched.  “I’m good a disappearing.”

“And I’m good at surprising people.”  My hand lifted, and I jabbed the blade into his heart with all my might, twisting it for good measure.

It wouldn’t kill him, but it sure felt good doing it.

Lorne stumbled back and grabbed the hilt.  His lips thinned as he pulled it out—or tried to.  His hands unexpectedly faltered.

The room stopped.  Ferrum and demon.  No one moved.  No one breathed.

Black melted from his eyes.  “Impossible,” he sputtered as his skin began to gray.

I glanced at the crimson smeared on my hands.  My blood. 

Was it that simple?

“Blood of my blood,” I whispered.  Flashes of it dropping from my wound onto the blade before I stabbed him ran through my mind. 

The unnatural golden color of Lorne’s eyes was dimming as his life faded.

A barking laugh slipped from my mouth.  “Looks like the only thing that could restore your light was the only thing that could kill you.”

Lorne stumbled and dropped to his knees.  He gasped for air and tried to yank the knife out.  Like any other demon, his skin began to gray, and dark veins pulled toward the surface.  His head frantically shook.  “It wasn’t supposed to be like this.”  He clawed at his chest, his fingers gripping his shirt.  “I only wanted the immortality I deserved.  It was rightfully mine.”  His body crashed to the ground with a thud.

The silence was deafening.

It reminded me of the first few moments after I killed the demon that had murdered Aunt Maggie.

A hand landed on my shoulder.  “Koralein, are you okay?  Talk to me.”

“He’s really dead.”  A shudder rippled over my spine.

“Yes.”

I swayed on my feet.  Why wasn’t I three sheets to the wind from Lorne’s demon toxins? 

“How?”  My mother stood in front of me, dark stains splattering her clothes.   

“Blood of my blood,” I mumbled, staring at his corpse.  “My blood was on the blade I used to stab him.  I didn’t know it would kill him, but…”  My voice trailed off.  Was it really over?

My soul was intact, and I was alive.  Lorne was dead, and he could never hurt anyone again.  I killed him, but it wouldn’t have been possible without Kye.

I spun around, my heart squeezing as I found his body.  I stumbled forward and dropped to my knees by him.  Kye’s blue eyes were a striking contrast to his graying skin.  Dark veins were pulled toward the surface, and his body was already beginning to chill.

My fingers brushed pale locks from his face.  He sacrificed himself for me.  He died so I wouldn’t. 

“I’m sorry, Kory.”  Rex was beside me, stroking my back. 

“I never thought he was capable of something like that.”  My father was somewhere close by. 

“He was different,” I whispered.  “He changed.”

Lorne was the one who wanted to live in the light again.  Kye may not have been a ferrum when he died, but he had more light in him than Lorne ever did.

Energy in the wrecked church suddenly crackled.  A wind kicked up out of nowhere, tossing my hair in my face.

“What the hell?”  I glanced around as everyone stiffened even the remaining demons.

A ball of bright light formed near Kye’s head, swirling and iridescent.  Warmth pulsed from it, drifting over my cold skin.

My dad grabbed my mom, yanking her away.

Rex and I remained frozen, watching as the shimmering light began to take shape.  The outline of a body appeared, and slowly a woman stood encased in a beautiful glow.  Her skin held a golden sheen, and her eyes were the color of a brilliant sun.  Hair as dark as midnight flowed around her shoulders, framing a delicate face.  The white, silver, and gold dress fluttered around her bare feet from the phantom wind moving through the room. 

Aurora, goddess of Dawn.  Creator of our race.

All the moisture left my mouth as I stared up at a goddess.  Knowing you were descended from a god was one thing, but actually seeing her was earth-shattering.  Consider my mind blown. 

The remaining demons in the room besides my parents tore from the church, terrified of provoking the goddess’s wrath.

She didn’t pay them any attention.  Her eyes were on Kye, her second born son.  Aurora slowly dropped to her knees, placing her hand on Kye’s forehead.

My pulse spiked.  “What are you doing?” The shock of being in her presence quickly melted away once she touched him.

“Kory,” Rex hissed in my ear, his fingers tight on my shoulders. 

Panic drowned out his warning.  Would she punish Kye’s soul for all the bad he’s done?  Would she destroy his soul to prove a point? 

Her golden eyes flickered to mine, a gentle smile spreading over her face. 

No need to worry, Koralein.

I blinked.  Her lips didn’t move as she spoke. Her voice was inside my head. 

I am not here for vengeance or punishment.  My intentions are pure. 

I swallowed hard and restrained myself from arguing.  Despite my cockiness, she was a goddess and could end me with the snap of her finger.  I didn’t want to challenge that.

Her gaze lowered back to Kye.  Warm air kicked up around her again, rushing over me.  My lids fluttered closed as I recalled a time my parents took me to the beach one summer.  The salty air surrounded me as warm, foamy water lapped around my feet.  My parents’ laughter echoed, mixing with mine and the crash of waves. 

When my eyes opened, a brilliant glow pulsated from Aurora again.  It felt like the rays of the sun that day at the beach.  The iridescent light slowly spread over Kye’s body.  My eyes widened as his skin began to change.  The veins sank back inside, and that pale, flawless complexion returned.

A choked gasp lit the air, and my heart thudded to a stop.  Life returned to Kye’s blue eyes as he dragged in another ragged breath.

The room tilted on its axis as I stared at the miracle before me.  Kye was still a demon, but he was alive.  Aurora brought him back to life.

He blinked and sat up, twisting around to look at her.  “Aurora,” he whispered.  He shook his head.  “Why?”

She placed a finger over his mouth and then leaned forward, whispering something in his ear.  Time seemed to stretch for an eternity as she quietly spoke to him.

“I understand,” Kye murmured.

Her eyes landed on me again, burning against her thick, sooty lashes. 

I can’t turn your parents back into ferrums, but I can lessen the darkness they struggle with.

A lump clogged my throat, and I nodded.  I’d take anything to help them.  They deserved it.

She stood and walked toward them.  My father tried to pull my mother behind his back, but her feet remained planted.  She trusted the goddess even if they were demons. 

Aurora smiled and leaned forward, kissing my mother’s forehead.  My father stiffened but allowed her to do the same to him. 

No one spoke, but they were all looking around, wondering what exactly was happening. 

Aurora left my parents and made her way to Lorne’s corpse.  I hoped she wasn’t going to bring him back to life too.

She stared down at him, her mouth dipping into a frown.  Her glow dimmed for a moment, sadness overshadowing her light.  She wordlessly bent and placed her hand on his forehead like she’d done to Kye. 

My body trembled in anticipation, waiting for what would happen next.  She couldn’t bring him back to life.  She wouldn’t.

Her light grew again, spreading down Lorne’s corpse.  It encased them both, growing more brilliant by the second.  When it became too bright—like staring at the sun—my lids clamped shut.  Warmth dusted over my skin and electricity popped in the air. 

And then it stopped.  My eyes fluttered opened to find Lorne and Aurora gone.

“Well, that was unexpected.”  Kye’s voice broke the heavy silence through the church.  His blue eyes shifted toward mine.  “Are you okay?”

I nodded.  “You?”

He drew his shirt up, revealing his unmarred chest.  “Yeah, I think so.”

“Good.”  I lunged forward and socked his arm.

“What the hell was that for?” he hissed.

“For dying.”  The room spun, and I swayed. 

Kye caught my shoulders, and his eyes flickered up.  “I think our girl is starting to feel a little woozy.”

A growl vibrated through Rex’s chest.  “My girl, demon.”  He pulled me back so I rested against him.  I glanced up, his eyes trained on Kye, but there was no malice in them.  “Thank you.”

The demon gave a quick nod, his lips tight.

My gaze shifted to where Lorne had been.  It felt surreal.  Unbelievable.  The creature that had been the cause, the epicenter of so much pain in my life was gone.  If it hadn’t been divine intervention that took his corpse, I’d expect him to come back to life any moment.

I surveyed the dilapidated church, the destruction still settling over it.  Demon bodies littered the ground and the metallic tinge of blood mixed with dust in the air.  But I was alive.  I’d made it to my eighteenth birthday and defeated the big bad.

“Kory.”  My mother dropped down beside me, tilting my chin up to meet her eyes.  They were soft brown instead of demon black.  “Are you okay?”  Her hands ran over me to make sure I was in one piece.

“I’m okay.”  Well, as okay as I could be considering the circumstances.  I had a savage wound in my throat, and the church was beginning to spin.

My father was beside her, grabbing my shoulders.  “You’re amazing, you know that?  You kicked ass, little superhero.”

“I killed a hundred dragons.”  My words were slurred as the demon toxins finally entered my system.  “I got my spots.” 

A sad smile tugged at his lips as he pulled my sleeve up.  A multitude of broken infinity symbols was darkening in, adding to the twenty-three I already had.  “You sure did.”