Аполлион

It went up on two wheels, tires spinning in the air as the headlights pierced the night sky. The Hummer hovered there a second, and then flipped over the second vehicle. Through the air it tipped over and over—something was flung from one of the windows, perhaps a person.

Seatbelts save lives.

The first Hummer landed on its roof. Metal crunched and groaned, then gave way. The one behind it spun to the right to avoid a direct collision. Amber-colored sparks flew.

The doors on the second opened and I counted six Sentinels garbed in black. They were halfs, playing on the wrong side of the field.

One charged forward, and I flung him into the thick elms that crowded the roadway with a flick of my wrist. There was a sickening crunch upon impact that said that tool would be out of commission for a while.

A second brandished two Covenant daggers as he headed straight for me. “Come with us and we’ll let your friends live.”

I tipped my head to the side and smiled. “Well, isn’t that cliché as hell? How about this—turn away and I might let youlive.”

Apparently the Sentinel didn’t understand English, because he lurched at me. I stepped to the side, reaching up and catching his arm. I swung it down as I brought my knee up, making contact just above the elbow. Bones snapped and the Sentinel yelped. Swinging behind him, I caught his other arm and twisted. His back bowed and the dagger fell to the pavement.

Marcus appeared in front of us. Without blinking an eye, he shoved a dagger into the chest of the Sentinel I’d dropped. The man didn’t even make a sound.

I let go, and his body fell to the street.

My eyes met my uncle’s. A second later he had the Glock raised and aimed. I was so close I saw the tiny spark as the trigger pulled. Gasping, I spun around.

The bullet smacked between the eyes of a female Sentinel.

“Geez,” I said, stumbling back.

“They know they can’t kill you.” Marcus grabbed my arm and shoved me back toward the Hummer. “But I do believe they wish to take you in, no matter what your condition is.”

“I’m starting to see that.”

Solos and Aiden were working on two Sentinels. Looking behind me, I saw that Olivia and Lea had two more cornered. My attention swung back to the crumpled Hummer.

There were halfs in that car, and as expected, they weren’t down for the count. Another six piled out. Feeling the rush of adrenaline coiling tight around the cord, I shot forward with Marcus right behind me.

I reached a Sentinel, gripping the dagger in my right hand. He dove at me, but I ducked under his arm, faster than the half-blood’s eyes could track. Swinging around, I caught him in the back with my boot and he went down on one knee. Something inside me turned off as I gripped his hair and yanked his head back. These weren’t Sentinels. They were enemies, like daimons. I couldn’t think of it any other way. I brought the dagger down in a clean and quick kill.

Hearing pounding footsteps behind me, I whirled and jerked to the side, narrowly missing a meaty fist to the face. Springing into the air, I spun and delivered a nasty I-hope-someone-sees-this-spin kick.

The Sentinel hit the ground, clutching what was most likely a broken jaw. Flipping the dagger over, I started forward. Man, I sort of missed fighting with Apollo. We’d be keeping count—

Hands grabbed my shoulders and yanked me back. I hit the pavement and slid. Pain burst along my spine and I stared up, stunned.

A dark-skinned Sentinel stared down at me. “You could make this—” His words were choked off. Something wet and warm sprayed into the air. His body went in one direction and his head went in the other.

I rolled onto my knees, clamping my mouth shut against the urge to hurl.

Olivia stepped back, her gaze flicking from me to the dagger. “That… that was nothing like what they teach you in class.”

Pushing to my feet, I shook my head. Was this the first time Olivia had fought? For her first kill to be another Sentinel… I didn’t know what to say. And we didn’t have time for a therapy session.

Broken Jaw was standing. He spun around, his dagger arced low. I felt the hiss of the sharp blade along my stomach. Material split, but that was as close as he got.

Aiden appeared behind him and gripped the sides of his head. There was a quick twist, another sound that would creep back in and replay over and over again later, and then the Sentinel dropped.

Aiden’s eyes met mine and they were the color of steel. “Even though that display of power was hot as hell, try not to run out in traffic anymore.”

I started to respond, but a shadow slipped up behind him. My heart stopped. “Aiden!”

Before I could even raise a hand, he spun around like the wind, letting go of the dagger. It smacked into the chest of the white-garbed Guard sneaking up on him. Darting forward, he pulled the blade free before the Guard collapsed, and then threw it again, taking out the other Guard who’d cornered Solos.

Damn. Aiden was a badass ninja.