Destroyer Rising Read Online Free Page B

beside the
reality I took for granted. Each was blocked by a Seal, except for
those that weren’t. The book didn’t define Seals very clearly. One
passage described them as physical barriers, while others were
wholly focused on ley line energy. What followed caught my
attention.
     
    It is a long-held belief that a
Seal can be created only by an immortal or an Old God, but that is
not entirely true. The truth is always fluid. A being or beings
can, with enough power, reforge a broken Seal or create one anew,
bringing to light a shield or a punishment against an entire
realm.
     
    “Damian,” Aideen said, pulling my attention away from
the Book that Bleeds. She frowned. “What?”
    I shook my head and closed the book on another
manuscript. “I don’t know, maybe nothing.”
    She took a deep breath. “I understand why you don’t
trust us—though I hope one day you’ll understand we had no
choice—but please, go see Koda. This is beyond us all.”
    “I don’t even know where to find him right now.”
    Aideen looked away for a moment before she met my
gaze. “Go to the restored church off Main Street. He will find you
there.”
    I crossed my arms and narrowed my eyes. “Were you
just talking to him?”
    She nodded. “He has been away for his safety, and
yours. Please, talk to him, Damian. We may be able to trust Edgar,
but not the other Watchers. Koda can’t be seen here.”
    Aideen had never steered me wrong. She may have
helped hold Cara’s ruses together, but she’d never lied to me
directly. At least not that I knew. No matter how angry I was with
her and Foster, I still trusted them with my life. Maybe that was a
mistake.
    I frowned and gave a sharp nod. “I’ll be there
tonight at ten o’clock.”
     
    ***
     
    There was another call I needed to make before
visiting Koda. I stared at the page before me and waited. The phone
rang four times before the receiver clicked and an old New Orleans
accent sounded across the speaker.
    “What is it, boy?”
    “Zola, I have the Book that Bleeds.”
    Silence greeted my words. What seemed like a minute
passed by before she asked, “How?”
    “Koda. He gave me the key. I need your help. I’ve
already found information on the Burning Lands and Timewalkers.
This thing could have some of the answers we’ve been looking for.
There’s … there’s something you need to see.”
    “And it may pose more questions than we’re prepared
for,” Zola said.
    “Are you coming?”
    “Yes, let me tell Vik what’s happening, and Ah will
see you shortly.”
    The phone went dead. She was definitely still at the
Pit if she was talking to Vik. That meant she’d be up in twenty
minutes, maybe thirty at the most. It gave me more time to stare at
the monstrous tome.
     
    ***
     
    “That is … disturbing,” Zola said, watching the blood
pool on the table only to run off and vanish. I ran my hand through
the stream and held it up.
    “It doesn’t stick to anything. It’s like the blood on
Vicky’s hands. Do you remember that?”
    “Yes, boy, Ah remember. Show me what you’ve
found.”
    “I’m not even sure what I’ve found,” I said as I
turned the tome toward Zola. She settled onto the edge of one of
the leather chairs.
    “ Daemon Exilium.” Zola spoke the words
and then leaned closer to the book. “It’s Latin, but Ah can read
this page as if Ah’ve spoken the language all my life. Be wary of
what you read aloud. Some of these phrases may be
incantations.”
    “Will that allow us to banish a demon?” I asked,
pointing to the phrase Excutio Daemonium.
    Zola’s eyes trailed down the page. She shook her
head. “Not in the way you hope. Ah don’t believe anything can
banish the Destroyer from Vicky’s body.”
    “Only what Mike said? Burning the devil that holds
her contract?”
    “Contract,” Zola snorted. “That makes it sound like
some ridiculous religious hokum. It means a devil has bonded her
aura to Vicky’s, allowing a piece of herself to cross