Dark Wings Descending Read Online Free

eyes. Shit, a crackhead , she thought just before he head-butted her soundly in the forehead, rocking her back on her feet. In the tussle he freed his knife and brandished it at her. Rafe clutched at her forehead. The pain was excruciating. She managed to raise her gun and pointed it at him. “Freeze!”
    He just laughed at her and took a step forward. The bullet that hit him didn’t even seem to register. He stormed at Rafe and stabbed her. The knife plunged into her side, the force behind it doubling her over. Slowly, he withdrew the blade, twisting it in the wound. He seemed to enjoy the howl of pain that escaped Rafe’s lips. He meticulously wiped the bloodied blade on Rafe’s pants and readied it again.
    Rafe tried desperately to stop the flow of blood from her side. She staggered backward and raised her gun again. “I’m warning you, you bastard. Put the knife down now.” She could faintly hear the sound of running from behind her and could make out Dean’s voice yelling for her. Her head pounded from the concussion she knew she was suffering. Her side felt like it was on fire and the man just stood there laughing at her. He stuck his neck out, his foul breath hitting her in the face.
    “Fuck you, bitch,” he growled as he lunged for her again.
    The second shot knocked him back but still didn’t take him down. He righted himself, looking down almost comically at his T-shirt where holes were pouring out blood. He switched his knife to his left hand and lashed out with his fist. He caught the side of Rafe’s head and knocked her off her feet. She was almost rendered unconscious from the force of the two blows she had received and the loss of blood she couldn’t stem. Her hand shook as she determinedly lifted her gun again. She was barely able to see the man as he loomed over her.
    The clouds finally shifted, and in the pale moonlight shining down on the alley, Rafe was finally able to see. She stared up into the face of a monster. His vile features were cast in shadows, but his face appeared oddly misshapen and grotesque. Protruding from his temples were lethal-tipped horns. His eyes burned with fire. Rafe aimed the gun at his head, but he snatched it easily from her hand and held it to his temple, taunting her. He laughed down at her as he crouched to straddle her body. His bulk pushed Rafe further into the broken glass and other debris that littered the alley floor. His knee pressed into her ribs, causing her to stifle a scream as the pain lanced through her knife wound. Looking up at the man who held her gun, Rafe prayed like she had never prayed before. She closed her eyes as he brought the gun down to crack it against her skull. She swore she saw stars.
    He bent down to whisper in her ear. “Now we’re even.” He held the gun to her forehead. “Now I put an end to your misery on earth.”
    Rafe remembered seeing a brilliant light, the purest white that seared her eyes and blinded her. She heard the sound of a gun going off but never saw the man take the bullet right between his eyes. She did feel him slide off her. His weight pinned her down, but all she could see was the light. It didn’t call to her; it didn’t draw her closer. It just surrounded her until she succumbed to it. She closed her eyes and slid mercifully into unconsciousness.
    She woke up in the hospital, surrounded by doctors all prodding and poking her. Rafe knew how lucky she had been. The colorful bruises that covered her face would take their time fading, a vivid testament to the battering she had sustained. The hairline fractures to her skull were slowly mending. Dean’s comments concerning the thickness of her skull had been echoed by the medical staff. Her hair being shaved off was the least of her worries.
    It was only when she was finally lucid that Rafe found out that Dean had fired the shot that finally brought the man, Marcus Armitage, down. He was an ex-quarterback from a local team who’d kicked him off the squad for