Surviving Demon Island Part 9

She tilted her head up and shot him a look of utter confusion. 'What? Of course he was human.'

'No. He wasn't.'

'I don't understand.'

At least she wasn't fainting on him. Bewildered, definitely. But not about to pa.s.s out. They were making headway. Now he just had to get her back to base camp without having to answer a lot of questions.

'Derek?'

'Yeah.'

'What the h.e.l.l is that mess over there? Really.'

Christ. Explanations were Lou's area. And they didn't have time for this anyway. 'A demon.'

Her brows lifted. 'You mean one of the guys portraying demons in the game?'

'No. A demon.'

She moved away from him then, though he noticed she didn't move toward the smoking pile of liquid demon garbage, but rather away from it. 'Seriously. Did you just kill someone?'

'No. I killed something.' He scratched his brow. 'Look. It's complicated. I mean really really f.u.c.king complicated. And there are probably more of these things out here. Our prime objective right now is to get back to base before we run into any more of them. I suggest you save the questions until we get back. Lou will tell you everything. I promise.' f.u.c.king complicated. And there are probably more of these things out here. Our prime objective right now is to get back to base before we run into any more of them. I suggest you save the questions until we get back. Lou will tell you everything. I promise.'

Her eyes were wide and searching as if she expected another one to jump out of the bushes. But she hadn't screamed or fainted or puked. He gave her big points for that.

'Okay. I really would like to get out of here now.'

'I'm with you there. Let's go.'

They trekked back to camp in virtual silence, Gina walking close enough to brush shoulder to shoulder with him. Okay, she was still spooked. He reached for her hand. She clasped onto his like it was a lifeline in a squall, d.a.m.n near cutting off his circulation. When he glanced over at her, she offered up a tentative, apologetic smile.

Even if it was terror on her part that made her reach out to him, it made good sense to hold her hand. He had to lead the way through the path.

Oh, screw it. He just d.a.m.n well liked feeling her hand in his. He didn't get to play the protective sort very often and he found himself enjoying it.

Especially protecting Gina.

They arrived back at base camp in about ten minutes without incident. Whatever attack had occurred was apparently over, at least for now, because they didn't run into any more demons along the way. Though he kept his weapon up and ready for any potential encounter.

Now it was time to count heads and figure out who was missing.

The new people were all there, looking sh.e.l.l-shocked and confused as h.e.l.l. After a quick count, he noted two of his hunters were missing, no doubt the two Gina had spoken of being attacked.

G.o.ddammit. They couldn't afford to lose any.

'We're two down, Lou. Griffith and James. They were with Gina,' he reported, keeping his weapon close as they entered the tent where everyone was gathered. He a.s.signed four of the hunters to stand guard at the perimeter.

They had until sunup. Once dawn hit, they were safe.

Lou cast his gaze downward, his shoulders slumped as he sighed. 'That is deeply unfortunate.' When he looked up again, his eyes were filled with sorrow. 'I didn't know they were here.'

'I know.' Which was unusual. Lou always knew.

Derek almost asked Lou if he was slipping, but withheld his question.

'I had feelings, but I brushed them aside. I just didn't think they'd show up here,' Lou said. 'I should have been ready for anything.'

'You're not infallible, Lou. None of us are.'

'I should be.'

Derek shook his head. Lou was harder on himself than anyone he knew. Sometimes it made Derek feel better just to know Lou was human and able to make mistakes like the rest of them.

Gina slumped into one of the chairs around the table, looking just as exhausted as the rest of the new people. Even the other hunters were wiped out, confused by all this. Derek jammed his fingers through his hair and looked at Lou. 'Game's over. We have a real problem here. We were ambushed, hit unarmed. This shouldn't have happened.'

'Someone going to tell us what the h.e.l.l is going on?' Ryder asked.

He knew that one was coming.

'Give us a minute here, Ryder. We'll explain it all.' He looked to Lou. 'We've got to get these new folks up to speed, and now. The time for deciding whether or not they're in the game is over. They're in the game or they're not. And if they're not, you need to do your thing and get them off this island so we can go after the demons.'

'Demons? What demons? Aren't the guys playing demon standing right here?' Shay looked around at the hunters in designated demon attire.

'No. They're hunters.'

'Hunters. Okay, I don't understand any of this,' Shay said, looking around at the others. 'Did I miss something?'

Lou stood and held his hands up. 'Please, everyone, hold your questions for now. I promise to explain everything about what happened tonight.'

Gina braced herself for what was to come, though she already knew she wasn't going to like it.

'You were brought here under false pretenses,' Lou started.

Two of the men on the other team, Rafe and Dalton, fired up the lanterns, the flickering lights not helping one bit. Instead, shadows loomed as giant specters over the tent, hovering like creatures about to pounce. Despite the humidity that refused to dissipate, Gina s.h.i.+vered.

Louis's lips formed a thin line. He lifted his chin, circling the main table to stand in front of the group. 'The show was a setup. The cameras and filming were brought in to fool you into thinking you were doing a reality show. We didn't expect to find actual demons here. They weren't supposed to be here. It was just supposed to be training, testing to see if you could handle the real thing.' Louis skimmed his hand through his thick white hair and stared at the tabletop. 'It wasn't supposed to happen yet.'

Gina frowned, this whole nightmare of the unknown making her skin crawl. She could barely sit still. 'You mean demons?'

'Yes.'

Jake snorted. 'Get serious. There's no such thing.'

'You didn't see what I saw tonight,' Gina shot back.

'Then why don't you tell us what you saw?' Jake challenged, his voice rising with a nervous tremble.

'He looked just like a regular guy. It was dark. At first I thought he was one of Lou's men who'd come out to find me and bring me back. But when he took my hand it wasice cold. And though he looked human, there was something in his eyes' She shuddered at the memory. 'When I pulled my hand away, he tried to force me to go with him. Derek came then. The guy said we were all going to die. He charged at us and Derek killed him.'

'You killed a man?' Shay's eyes widened as she looked to Derek.

'Not a man,' Derek corrected, his voice low. 'A demon.'

'Let me explain,' Louis said. 'Everyone here, with the exception of Gina, Ryder, Jake, Shay, Olivia, and Trace, works for me.'

'Even the other team?' Gina glanced at the others, who she had thought of as their compet.i.tors.

'Yes. Even the other team. Dalton, Mandy, Punk, Rafe, Rico, and Linc are all hunters. Just like the men posing as the camera crew and those who posed as the demons you were hunting. They all work for me.'

'Who are you people?' Jake asked in a near whisper.

'I'm going to tell you a story that you'll probably think unbelievable. I am what we call a Keeper, part of a secret organization known as the Realm of Light. Our kind have been in existence for centuries, since the time of Christ.

'We were given great power to guard the gates between Heaven and h.e.l.l, to maintain the balance between good and evil. Our goal, in essence, is to keep evil from entering our world. Demons, like the kind who showed up on the island tonight. We fight them, we kill them, and we send them back where they came from.'

Gina's jaw dropped and she looked around at the others. They, too, were shocked.

'There were a select dozen chosen, our bloodlines gifted with a special sight to recognize demons. This gift was pa.s.sed down generation upon generation for centuries, our children taught in the same ways, given the secrets of the Realm to pa.s.s down to their children, to hunt demons and become Keepers.'

'This is preposterous!' Jake cut in, wide-eyed as he looked around at the rest of them. 'Come on, this isn't real, don't you see that?'

Louis continued, ignoring Jake's outburst. 'Each generation is trained by the elders of the Realm of Light, brought into the secret society and sworn by oath to always protect the gates between our world and the demon world.'

Gina couldn't believe this. Demons couldn't exist, yet what she had seen out there tonight was real. What she felt when that thing had touched her hand hadn't been human.

'This is too far-fetched to be believable,' Jake said. 'If there were demons out there, wouldn't the world's governments know about it?'

Louis sighed and gripped the back of the chair. 'The Realm of Light is unknown to any government or world military organization. It has always been that way, run without government or military influence or interference. We must operate under the radar, if you will. Governments change power too frequently, and are too slow to be of any help to us. We could not ever afford to involve politics and bureaucracy in what we do. It is simply too risky. They don't understand it, they can't fight it like we do.'

'But their knowledge, their firepower,' Trace suggested.

'Are useless,' Derek answered. 'Trust me. Trust Lou. This organization has remained secret for good reason. We have to fight the demons on their own ground and without interference. Only we can do this.'

Louis nodded. 'We know how to fight them, and we have the resources to respond more quickly. As it is, even we're too slow sometimes in modifying our tactics and weaponry as quickly as they do. In the meantime, demons are increasing their numbers. Killings are becoming more frequent and the demons are spiriting away humans at a rather alarming rate. Something needs to be done, and needs to be done now.

'My intent in inviting all of you here was to recruit you to join the organization and help us in our battle. To train and prepare you for what is to come.'

'Why us?' Trace asked.

'Because you all have the physical capability of becoming hunters.'

'Wait a minute,' Gina said, shaking her head. 'You said that the Keepers, the demon hunters, were of this pure bloodline. If that's the case, why us? Are all these people here of your untainted bloodline? Are we part of the same lineage?'

'Uh, no.' Lou cast a look at Derek.

'Tell them, Lou,' Derek said, crossing his arms and leaning his hip against the table. 'They have a right to know the reason they were chosen.'

Gina so did not like the sound of this.

Chapter Eight.

D erek braced himself for the reaction to Lou's revelation, feeling s.h.i.+tty for all these people, knowing what they were about to hear was going to shatter them. His gaze shot to Gina. He wished he could hold her hand, do something to comfort her, but he knew she was just going to have to ride it out like the rest of them. There was nothing he could do to make it easier for her. erek braced himself for the reaction to Lou's revelation, feeling s.h.i.+tty for all these people, knowing what they were about to hear was going to shatter them. His gaze shot to Gina. He wished he could hold her hand, do something to comfort her, but he knew she was just going to have to ride it out like the rest of them. There was nothing he could do to make it easier for her.

'Your paths have all crossed with the Sons of Darkness,' Lou explained.

'Who are the Sons of Darkness?' Olivia asked.

'The demons,' Lou said. 'They are who we have spent centuries battling. They are, quite literally, descendants of the great evil.'

'So what you're saying is the Sons of Darkness are the sons of the devil?' Trace asked, his voice indicating utter disbelief.

'No, though they are descendants. The great evil has sired many over the centuries. The branches are too complex to follow.'

'Holy Mother of G.o.d,' Shay said, crossing herself. 'This cannot be happening.'

'I'm afraid it is,' Lou said. 'The Sons of Darkness are real.'

'How have our paths crossed with them?' Gina asked, almost afraid to ask the question, but needing to know the answer.

'Through some unknown genetic anomaly or heavenly curse, we don't really know which, for the past few centuries, female demons have been born sterile. This resulted in a fast regression of their numbers. As a result, the Sons of Darkness began capturing human females and using them to breed demon children.'

'Human females?' Trace asked. 'You mean running off with young human women and using them to breed with demons?'

'Yes.'

'Holy s.h.i.+t,' Gina said, feeling a chill skitter up her spine.

'I don't think I want to hear any more,' Jake muttered.

'I know you don't. But you must, because this is how the demons tie into all of you.' Lou inhaled deeply, then exhaled, his shoulders slumping as if a great weight sat on them. 'You all have mothers who went missing when you were very young.'

'What does that have to do with!oh G.o.d,' Gina said, her hand flying to her throat as she made the connection. 'Oh, G.o.d, no. That's not true.'

Derek winced as he watched Gina pale and tears glitter in her eyes over the realization of what Lou said.

'No. Not my mother. That's a lie,' she said.

'I'm afraid it's very true,' Lou said. 'All of our hunters here, with the exception of Derek, experienced the loss of their mothers through kidnapping by demons.'

'How do you know this?' Olivia asked.

'My connection to the Sons of Darkness is strong, but it took us a while to figure out what they were up to. When reports of so many unexplained disappearances of young women started coming in, we investigated on our own and confirmed the presence of demons in each of your cases.'