Urian looked less than impressed. "I know you think you share powers with him, but trust me he didn't give you anything but the leftovers. Not to mention one small thing. No one gets a piece of him until after I do."

Ash let out a shrill whistle. "Down, children. We have more important things to do than just save your machismo."

Tory hid a smile as she finally understood exactly what Ash's job was and why he described himself as a wrangler. He really was.

Ash leveled a determined look at Nick. "We have a battle to prepare for. I'm not letting Stryker take Nick."

Nick laughed bitterly. "I don't need your fucking help. I can fight on my own."

Ash didn't respond to the hatred in his tone. "I know why you hate me, Nick. I get it. But your mother wouldn't want you to kill yourself again. Hate me tomorrow. Tonight tolerate me as a necessary evil."

Nick shoved him back. "This doesn't make us friends."

Ash held his hands up. "I know." He turned back to Tory. "Styxx, take her out of here. Keep her safe."

Tory gaped as she realized that this was the same Styxx she'd read about in the journal-the same one who'd tortured and castrated Acheron.

A wave of rage so bitter she could taste it washed over her. She was going to tell Ash that she had no intention of going anywhere with the man who'd gone out of his way to hurt him, but before she could even open her mouth a bright flash of light blinded her.

A nanosecond later a herd of mean, blond men stepped out. They looked deadly serious as they took up formation.

Stryker came through and his gaze went straight to Urian. "You've betrayed me for the last time." He threw something at Urian.

Tory had no idea what it was until Ash caught it in his hand. It was a strangely shaped dagger that reminded her of an ancient Greek design and yet it bore the same sun symbol on the pommel that Ash had on his backpack.

Ash narrowed his gaze on the Daimons. "Take your girls, scream and run away now, Stryker. It'll save you time later. Believe me, you don't want a taste of me in the mood I'm in."

Stryker ran his tongue over his fangs as if he was savoring the idea of feeding on Acheron. "There's nothing I crave more than the taste of blood. Your Dark-Hunters aren't here." He looked around at the men who stood with Ash and laughed in derision. "Tonight we feast, Spathi. Attack!"

Tory was snatched behind the group that stood with Acheron. She wanted to tell them that she could hold her own, but as the men attacked and the Daimons fought back with punches and lightning bolt strikes, she realized that she wasn't as proficient as she needed to be.

They weren't just fighting with their fists and weapons, they were fighting with preternatural powers she could never compete with. And the thought had barely finished before a group of demons joined ranks with the Daimons to fight them.

Stryker went for Nick, but Ash caught him and the two of them went to the ground, slugging. Urian stabbed a demon between the eyes before he turned and ducked the fangs of a Daimon.

Tory stumbled back, looking for a weapon of some kind.

A demon launched itself at her. She tried to kick him back, but he didn't even flinch. Just as he would have reached her, Julian was there with a sword. He severed the demon's head with one well-placed swing.

Balancing the blade of his ancient Greek sword on his shoulder, he turned to face her. "Can you handle a sword?"

"Yes."

"Kyrian!" Julian shouted to the other tall blond man on their team. "Give me a sword."

Kyrian tossed what appeared to be only a hilt. In one fluid move, Julian caught it and pressed a button on the cross hilt. The blade shot out to just under three feet in length. He handed it over to her. "Daimons have to be stabbed through their hearts. Demons between their eyes and if you cut the heads off any of us, we all die."

"How do I tell the difference?"

"Most of the Daimons are blond and they explode into dust when you pierce their hearts. Hit the heart and if that doesn't work, try the eyes. If you stab someone who whimpers, then hits the ground, you attacked a good guy. Just FYI."

She inclined her head. "Thanks for the tutorial."

He laughed before he put his battle face on and went back to the fight.

Tory swung the blade around her body, getting a feel for the balance. Out of nowhere a female Daimon came at her and manifested a staff. She swung it at Tory's head.

Parrying the blow with her sword, Tory pulled the blade back and went on the offensive. The woman met her stroke for stroke and she made every blow count. The ferocity of it rattled all the way to Tory's bones.

She hated to admit it, but the Daimon was actually winning. With a feral growl, she tried to shove the Daimon back.

Suddenly, Nick was there. He swung the Daimon away from her and into another one. "No one hurts a human on my watch," he snarled before he stabbed the Daimon through the heart. As Julian had noted, the Daimon screamed, then turned into a golden powder.

Nick moved away from Tory before she could thank him.

Another flash of light heralded an even larger group of demons and Daimons.

Tory stepped back, her jaw dropping. They were so outnumbered…

The guys on her team were brilliant fighters, but they were being overrun by the sheer number of enemies. "This is bad…"

Ash froze as he saw one of the Daimons sink his fangs deep into Vane's arm at the same time more demons joined them.

He couldn't let his friends be hurt. Closing his eyes, he summoned his staff from Katoteros. He'd just tightened his hand around it when he felt someone stumble into him.

He opened his eyes to see Styxx there with an Atlantean dagger stuck completely through his stomach. Stryker cursed as he jerked it free, then went for Ash again.

Ash caught the Daimon overlord with the blunt end of his staff and shoved him back. "Flee or die," he growled.

"Fuck you."

Narrowing his gaze on Stryker, Ash shoved him back, then slammed the staff to the pavement. A wave of raw, unfettered power shot out from it to the demons and Daimons around him. Every one of them turned to dust.

Except for Stryker. He hovered above the ground in his dragon form, snarling and flapping. Bellowing, Stryker spewed fire.

Ash lifted his arm, barely in time to keep it from burning him. He shot another god bolt at Stryker who dodged it.

"This isn't over, Acheron. Next time you won't be able to use your powers." With another blast of fire, Stryker vanished.

Vane shook his bleeding arm in an obvious effort to alleviate the pain of the Daimon's bite. "Why were we fighting if you had that kind of power?"

In unison, every ex-Dark-Hunter and Nick said, "Just because you can doesn't mean you should."

"And sometimes things have to go wrong in order to go right," Wulf said. When the other guys looked confused by his solo outburst, he added, "I guess I'm the only one he ever said that one to."

Fury made a strange wolf-like noise. "I still don't see why we were fighting when you could have just kicked their asses without us."

"Because I believe in giving everyone a fighting chance… until they piss me off." Ash cast Vane a quick stoic glance. "Bringing in reinforcements was Stryker's mistake."

"And be glad it wasn't yours," Fury said with a nervous laugh to Vane. "I know I'm thrilled it wasn't mine." The wolf looked around at the Daimon and demon remains, or rather what little of it there was. "Acheron. When it absolutely, positively must be destroyed overnight."

Ash knelt by Styxx's side to inspect the damage done. He wasn't overly worried since Styxx couldn't die unless he did. But that didn't mean it didn't hurt like hell. The dagger Stryker had held would have killed him had Styxx not stopped the attack.