Rival Demons Read Online Free

the shadow world for the rest of my life.
That was ridiculous. I must have misunderstood.
    "What do you mean forever?"
    "I mean you can never go back there, Harper," he
said. "The Order of Shadows is too powerful. They'll find you no
matter how far we run."
    "So we find a way to fight." I pulled my knees
up close to my chest. Despite the fire, I was shivering. "And what
about Aerden? Do you just plan to leave him over there all alone?
Eventually I will die, you know. Even here. Then what?"
    Jackson closed his eyes, his jaw clenched as if
trying to keep himself from saying something.
    "I won't just sit back and let them win,
Jackson."
    His left hand balled into a tight fist. "You're
not listening to me," he said. "They'll kill you. Or did you forget
everything that happened a few days ago? If we hadn't shown up and
brought you here, they would have killed you."
    "But you did show up," I said. "Alone, I might
not have a chance, but if we all stick together-"
    "We barely made it out of there alive," Jackson
said. "We didn't even have the power to fight them all. They're too
strong. All I did was freeze them just long enough for us to pull
you through the portal. If we had stayed to fight, we'd all be dead
right now."
    "Maybe so," I said, practically shouting at him.
"But it was four of us against a few dozen of them."
    Toward the back of the cave, Mary Anne shifted
and moaned. I took a deep breath and lowered my voice.
    "What if we built an army?" I asked. "If we find
enough witches and demons to fight with us, we could win with sheer
numbers."
    "And how are we supposed to do that?" he asked.
"Every time we get a coven of witches on our side in the human
world, the Order kills them all without hesitation. And here in the
demon world? There's a handful of rebels, but most demons are under
the rule of the King of the North who would rather ignore the
Order's entire existence while our citizens are stolen out from
under us."
    "Maybe we could talk to the king. Reason with
him. Tell him what we've seen the Order doing to the demons. Maybe
he just doesn't understand."
    "The king isn't going to listen to a human," Lea
said, taking me by surprise.
    I hadn't heard her move from her spot at the
mouth of the cave. She stood next to the fire and nudged a log with
the tip of her boot, sending sparks up into the air.
    "Then maybe he'll listen to you and Jackson," I
said.
    "We are the last demons he would listen to," she
said. "Besides, he isn't going to change his mind about the Order.
He's a coward when it comes to fighting them."
    "How can you be so sure?" I said, lifting my
chin defiantly.
    Lea laughed and shook her head.
    "Because he's my father."
     
     
Rivals
    "You're a princess?"
    "You say that like it's so hard to believe," Lea
said with a sly smile.
    In her leather pants and tight corset top, she
didn't look like any princess I had ever imagined. Plus, she didn't
exactly seem refined and regal. She was definitely more biker chick
than royalty. Of course, I had no idea what royalty even meant in
the shadow world. Maybe their princesses were supposed to be tough
and snarky and difficult in every way.
    "Close your mouth," she said. "You look like an
idiot."
    I hadn't even realized I had my mouth open. I
shut it quickly, embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I'm just surprised I
guess."
    "Don't be," she said. "My father didn't think I
was good princess material either. I was a constant disappointment
to him and my mother both."
    "Is that why you left?" I glanced from her to
Jackson. I had a feeling I knew why she left, but I wanted to hear
her say it.
    She shrugged and sat down. "Partly, I guess."
She looked down at her boots. "And partly because Jackson had gone.
Aerden was my friend too, you know. We all grew up together. And my
father? Well, he refused to help after Aerden went missing. He was
too scared of what the Order might do to his kingdom if he invaded
their territory."
    I bit my lip. She'd gone because of Jackson, not
his brother. I felt