Hunters (Spirit Blade Part 1) Read Free Page A

had ever achieved.
    "They don't care. They want it."
    Nadia sheathed the cleaned dagger at her waist. "I'm not finished with it."
    She lied. She wanted nothing to do with it, but if the elders wanted the spirit blade that badly, they must have had a reason, and that reason couldn't be good. For too long, the Adepts of Te'Mea had talked of dethroning the demonlord clans ruling their world. In her training to harness her dispirit abilities, she had heard rumors hinting of talismans that might overpower the demonlords. Then, she had been all for it.
    Now, after realizing that not all demonlords sought to use humans but, rather, desired to co-exist as beings deserving of the opportunities life afforded, she wasn't sure. She had seen a different side to demonlords and half-bloods in the last few months, flipping everything she had believed on its head. Even Te'Mea, the founder of Adept training, had been a demonlord. Granted, her objective had been to teach humans to protect themselves from swarms of natters, but that couldn't have been her only purpose in training the first sorcerers to use what they could of demonlord magic.
    "Can it destroy a demonlord?" he asked.
    Nadia hesitated, keeping her back to him to avoid revealing her face and he dread of revealing the truth. She looked about but saw no hint of any of the tigers or humans. "Not yet."
    Steps tapped close behind her and he came around her side to block the light. "Then I will finish the task."
    She bristled and straightened, her eyes level with the top of his broad shoulders. Too often, she had to prove herself. Despite her achievements, they never quit questioning her capabilities. "It is mine to command."
    A smile curved up his lips, his face shadowed under the hood with the light behind him. Anger boiled up inside her to see that smug expression. How dare he of all people question her! How dare he return after all those years.
    "It was your assignment. By order of the Kodre —"
    "No! It is my right . It was a gift of the sorcerers. Serae Emon bestowed it upon me as a weapon to defeat all demons. Who are you to take it away?"
    He tipped his head, the shadows deepening beneath his hood, which he threw back.
    "Kaelen Dormivou..." Hatred burned through her and she did all she could to keep from thrusting the dagger in her hands through his heart. It might not have been the spirit blade, but it would do the job on a human; besides, he had proven he didn't have a soul after what he did to her.
    His lips twitched into an almost smile, but those dark eyes revealed a hint of something sad or regretful, as well he should be.
    "I have nothing to say to you." Emotions tangled inside her into a confusion of how to react. Rather, she turned to leave. The Je'Gri should never have allowed him within the city.
    A hand on her arm stopped her not a step away, but a spark of anger gave her the strength to yank it from his grasp. "Do not touch me," she growled and spun away.
    He grabbed her again and pulled her near. "Listen to me, Nadia," he said in a low voice. In an ancient tongue taught only to Adepts from the book of Kirian, he said, {"Forget us. The Kodre seemed...anxious to get that blade. Several others were presented at the gathering but none satisfied them. Yours is the last not examined."}
    She pulled her arm away, afraid of the implications of his words. {"It will remain that way until I feel it's ready."}
    {"How will you know?"}
    {"The demonlords will know."}
    He sucked in a breath. {"They are the last who should know."}
    {"They are the ones who revealed the truth. That blade possesses the souls of many half-bloods. It didn't only end their lives when it drew blood. It stole their spirits. That blade is dark magic. It is cursed."}
    {"It is strong."}
    {"No."} She stepped back, shaking her head. He didn't understand. He hadn't felt the darkness whispering through him when wielding the dagger. He obviously had never wielded such a blade. {"It is evil."}
    Before he could stop