Vaewolf: Damn the Darkness: The Prophecy's Promise (Hearts of Darkness Book 3) Read Free Page A

scream of a large cat rang out through the quiet night.
    Jaguar.
    More than likely a rogue in this area. Jackson believed the demons were making more and using them to bolster their forces. He and Dylan weren’t sure his pack could stop them without outside help.
    If not, he’d call up a few of the other packs or get Dylan to conscript a few other members of the lore living out in their Parrish.
    With the increased number of unexplained killings, lately, his usual skepticism filled him with doubt about immediately ridding the area of the demons or rogues. Everyone sensed the demons were here even though the portal had been sealed. And none of them had any idea how many they were going to have to deal with when the attack came.
    Convinced the attack would come, Jackson paused to sniff the air.
    Wolf. Fear.
    Demon.
    And he smelled the rogue jaguars nearby, too.
    Then the sound of a wolf’s cry—high pitched, in pain, rang through the bayou.
    The night chatter stopped, and the sounds of battle urged Jackson on.
    His heartbeat picked up, but he slowed his breathing to conserve his strength. The change was upon him. He howled once for the others behind him and, not waiting, ran in the direction of his pack mate.
    Turning mid-stride, shifting from wolf to something more, something larger, he moved through the swamp past the snakes and gators and panthers...and yet in this new form, his speed was unmatched by any land animal.
    His vision encompassed everything before him, even in the thick underbrush, not because the light from the full moon penetrated the dense canopy of trees above him, but because he was vaewolf.
    He stopped short of the battle, stood upright to his full height, and entered the clearing where one of his pack was outnumbered and wounded. Jackson’s sheer size and formidable power was evidence enough he was the son of a demi-god. As a man, he stood over six-foot-five, and carried almost three hundred pounds of pure muscle on his frame. As the vaewolf, he was even larger.
    Covered with ebony black hair, the wolf shifter within him was evident. Where the appearance of the Werewolf took over in size and bone structure, he still was more human than animal. His vampire nature gave him an added advantage over the rest of his makeup. Brains—intellect he could use while in animal form.
    All demi-god characteristics—smart, powerful, fast, and deadly.
    He noted the disbelief on the demons’ faces and watched the jaguars back up at his appearance. The rogues didn’t stand a chance against him, and they knew it.
    Demons were cocky, another story. His experience with them had been limited until recently, and now wasn’t the time for him to hesitate.
    Surprise—he launched himself at the demon holding his pack member hostage, and removed Jude from his clutches. He relocated the wolf out of danger before planning his attack on the creature with the sixteen-foot wing span—wings covered with taloned claws which caused wounds to fester from the toxin within them. Jackson had his own arsenal of claws, not as many, but just as lethal, and beneath his black fur was a hide as rugged as armor.
    Always up for a good fight, he looked forward to this chance to test his abilities. But although he was immortal, he didn’t enjoy the pain a fight like this could cause—or the down time from the wounds. Injuries from demon toxin would mean weeks or even months of recuperation, and after seeing what these demons were doing, gathering forces and infiltrating his territory, Jackson couldn’t afford time away from his on-going training. Tonight, he needed to finish this, cleanly and quickly, while avoiding those talons.
    Behind him, the sound of Jude’s groan, sounded way too human, but Jackson didn’t dare take his attention from the group readying to attack.
    One demon? He could take him and stand against a few of the jaguars. Take them all? Probably, and handle the damage he’d sustain, yes. But he’d need help from the pack