The Second Coming Read Online Free

sharp metal object. John knew it the moment he saw
it.
    “ The Spear of Destiny,” he muttered.
    “ It will be the only thing that can draw his soul from his
body. Once it is done we can imprison his spirit and keep the world
safe for a thousand years. You will have only one chance.” She
studied him as he ran his fingers along the length of the
spearhead.
    He nodded as
her logic revealed itself to him. “And if I cannot kill him, then
my own death will be a blight upon his soul.”
    There was
cunning acknowledgement in her eye. “Now, what will it be,
assassin? I want to know what you know.”
    John pondered
his options. Go on a treacherous hunt that would likely result in
his own death or remain under the cardinal's watchful eye. His
decision was quick and concise, so he motioned her closer, opened
his mouth, and spouted truth from the sacrilegious fountain of his
soul.

Chapter
2

    Paine opened a
collection of parchment and papers that were bound loosely with
thinning twine and shoddy leather. He found the odd assortment
under the floorboards just after the voices in the mirror came to
him. He did not know its origins and chose not to tell his parents
they had it. The grimoire’s discovery would have likely done more
than merely upset them. There were quotes by someone named Cyprian
of Antioch, but if that man was the author, Paine did not know.
What he did know was that had his parents caught them practicing
the bloodcraft that lay within its brittle pages, Gwen would have
had them flayed, skinned, and hung.
    The fact their
children were different from others never rested well with his
parents. It was part of a heritage Paine never fully understood.
They spoke little of his birth mother. All Paine siphoned from them
was that she could no longer care for Paine and Lya. And the two
were reminded often that they were not Gwen and Charles’ seed.
    He handed the
book to his sister and stepped outside of the barn. He feared his
parents might come around the bend at any moment, but smirked as
they lounged in the hammock under the old beech.
    Perfect.
    Paine looked
back to Lya. With her pale fingers she delicately flipped each
page. It amazed him that her features were so different from his
own. Although not identical twins, he expected some resemblance.
Where Paine’s features were subtle and ordinary, his sister’s face
was inimitable; her slanted eyebrows, pallid complexion, and strong
cheekbones were unlike anyone he knew. The only feature the two
siblings shared was the shape of their slightly snubbed noses and
round eyes — and those seemed more coincidental than anything.
    She caught him
staring at her and squinted her annoyance. “I’m not sure if there’s
anything in here. Most of this is about how to call upon different
souls, heal an injury, or how to summon a rainstorm. It’s the usual
— summoning, bloodcraft, and divination.”
    Paine scuffed
his feet along the dry ground. The buckthorn and black willows that
littered the farm had long folded up their dried leaves in a prayer
for water.
    “ Rain would be good.”
    “ That requires bat’s blood. You got any?”
    If he did have
a bat, she would take it from him and slice its throat without
asking. She was a little eager, but he supposed that bat would be
just as dead at his own hands. It was the price of the craft.
    Blood .
    Paine shook
his head. “Keep looking. I want to know what that Reverend is up
to.”
    A screech
caught his attention. A nondescript, dappled falcon stared at him;
its only distinguishing quality was the missing appendage on its
left foot. Lya had healed the injured bird three years back and the
two had been inseparable since. She could sense Talon’s thoughts, a
skill Paine did not possess.
    He scowled at
it.
    The fucking
bird hated him.
    His sister
continued to thumb through the pages, scanning each one. “Wait,
there’s a divination that might work. You can spy on the object of
your affection. You still got that knife Billy