Helena's Demon

Evernight
Publishing ®

www.evernightpublishing.com

Copyright©
2015 Charisma Knight

 
ISBN: 978-1-77233-205-6

Cover Artist: Sour Cherry Designs

Editor: Jessica Ruth

ALL
RIGHTS RESERVED

WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or
distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal.
 
No part of this book may be used or
reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the
case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All names, characters,
and places are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales,
organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

HELENA’S DEMON

Charisma
Knight

Copyright
© 2015

Prologue

Silas Taylor held back his
emotions and his fear as he closed the circle. “I’m going straight to hell,” he
blurted as he stared into the flames of the pillar candles.

He barely paid attention to the
she-thing rustling in the woods as she tried striking a bargain with him in
addition to the bargain he sought with
Barius
. In
return, the she-demon lurking in the woods would assist him in gaining power
over
Barius
one day.

He’d knowingly let darkness
into his life. It stalked him. Called out his name, making him seek things no
righteous human man should ever want to lay claim to.

His visions of the future
haunted him. A young witch of twenty-eight, he was gifted with the power of
sight. His vision had always extended far into the future. The faces of his
future family members were as clear as if they stood right in front of him.

Over the years, his visions of
the vile, cruel things he’d do in order to gain the power he sought had
increased. The face of an innocent young woman from a distant future loomed
within his mind. Oh what he’d do to his entire line. He hoped it wouldn’t come
to that, but if
Barius
insisted, he’d have no other
choice.

Just in case, he’d set into
motion a plan for his future generation as he mentally communicated with the
she-demon in the woods. His future family would literally walk through hell on
earth as they paid the price for his actions. He knew from this night on, his
deeds would cause a disturbing ripple effect over those he’d never meet. That
was the best part of it all, he kept telling himself. He’d never meet them.
Death would claim him and he’d be free. Well, as free as a man turning his soul
over to darkness could be.

To Silas, his soul was already
lost and this last feat would only reinforce that. With every thought and
emotion over the years, he’d let the darkness slip in, first a little at a
time. Eventually, it increased, until it became a vital point in his life. His
soul was now poisoned, filled with a vile, inky-black mark.

Almost hypnotized by the pull
of the full, blood-red moon, he reflected upon his life. Voices from a black
abyss called to him. Night after night, he wrestled with the whispering in his
head. They’d insisted he take matters into his own hands. But they also warned
him there would be a hefty penalty to pay.

Soon he’d be in control of his
life. Not his
overseer,
or the Caucasian woman who now
refused to have anything to do with him. He loved her dearly, but to her, he
was a simple slave with no power. To make matters worse, he’d been cast out
among his people. To them, he was nothing more than a traitor and a witch.
Silas’s fists tightened and his pulse raced. He’d change it all.

It was a shame things had to
come to this. Telling himself he no longer cared of the consequences, he opened
the black leather book and chanted a summoning spell. As Silas chanted, a death
chill slid up his spine, to the base of his skull. Something, perhaps some
inkling of good that lingered within him, warned him to cease this madness.
Perhaps he could take another path instead of the coward’s way out?

No, he wouldn’t hear of it. The
black shadow within overpowered the good, demanding that he carry on. In his
head danced visions of a life filled with love and respect. Not fear and shame.

He caught a whiff of fire and
brimstone, and as soon as he completed the spell, a dark shadow rose outside
the circle, looming over him. Yellowish eyes peered into his soul, and the
entity smiled, flashing jagged white teeth. “I see your desires lurking in your
soul.” The demon,
Barius
, spoke in a deep, raspy
tone.

The beast exhaled, and the
atmosphere around Silas became dense. He inhaled but was unable to breathe
comfortably. He tried to stand, but an unseen force pushed him to his knees. Claws
tightened around the back of his neck as he was forced to bow to the demon.

“
Surely you didn’t think this
simple circle would deliver you from my powers?” Demonic laughter rolled
through the depths of the forest, making the trees sway. Inhuman cries filtered
out of the woods, and out of the corner of his eyes he could have sworn he saw
a pair of
glowing
eyes staring back at them.
Even so, Silas was determined to carry through with his dark deed.

“
I want it all,” Silas grunted
out. His chest became heavy, and he feared his lungs would collapse. But he
couldn’t go back to life as a simple slave. “I’ll make an even trade with you!”

“
Hmm.
I like the sound of that. Say
out loud your words.”

“
For all that my heart desires
,
I will give my soul to you.” Suddenly, the pressure on the
back of his neck eased and Silas rose.

“
Is that all?”

“
Isn’t it enough?” Silas
challenged.

A tremble shook the earth,
making Silas’s heart lurch. Sweat beaded his forehead, and he swallowed hard as
he watched the ground in front of him split apart slightly. The sound of souls
in despair emanated from the plane below. The plane that Silas knew would one
day become his permanent home.

“
Just your soul won’t do,”
Barius
scoffed. “I want more.” His words ended in a snarl,
making the hair on Silas’s neck stand on end. “Make it quick, or you’ll join
those souls earlier than you would like!” he warned.

“
I have nothing else to offer.”
Silas held his head down with regret. “My soul is all I have.”

“
No…” the creature breathed.
“There’s so much more. I can see it in your mind. You care for them, but not
enough to give up the earthly desires you hold close to your wicked heart.
Wouldn’t you like to see your family pay for the pain and misery they inflicted
upon you in the here and now? Surely they envy your power.”

“
Yes. I do want them to pay.” He
bit his lip, and his body trembled with rage. He’d love to inflict pain upon
those who’d cared nothing of him and cast him out. “Yes, they will be the first
to suffer.”

“
And…your future relatives,”
Barius
insisted.

Now he’d have to betray his
future family members, the innocent ones he saw in his head day after day.
Silas sought to back out. He closed his eyes and tried to pray, but it was
already too late. Something in his mind clicked and any prayer he may have held
in his head dissipated.

“
It’s too late, Silas. You’ve
already summoned
me,
now give me what I want!”

“
Okay!” Silas belted out. “It
starts with me and will continue down my line. Greed, selfishness, let it
flourish. I don’t
care,
just give me all I desire!”
Tears streamed down his face.

“
And…the girl,”
Barius
sneered. “There is a girl in the future.”

“
She means nothing to me,” he
lied. He hung his head as the woman’s face snapped him back into reality.

“
Very
well.
By
this simple act, you’ve delivered your entire line of young women to my
soldiers. By your hand, they will never know happiness, or true love, for that
matter. They will wield power, but will never learn the proper way to use it. ”
Barius
grinned. “When in need, they will always call
upon and rely on the powers of demons.
My demons.”
He
held up a glowing, red pendant and placed it upon the ground. “Take it.”

“
What is that?”

“
Your life,”
Barius
sneered. “Never take it off, but keep it hidden. It is the source of your
power. Should you be separated from it, you’ll become powerless. Remember our
bargain when your time of death approaches.” With that, the demon disappeared.

With haste, Silas opened the
circle and stepped out. He bent down to pick up the strange, glowing pendant.
Immediately a power he’d never known before slipped over him, and he felt like
he could conquer the world. With new self-confidence, he put the pendant around
his neck.

As he prepared to leave,
Sorscha
, the thing lurking in the woods, approached him.
“So, we have a deal?”