Red Demon Read online

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Dedication

  Acknowledgements

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Epilogue

  Teaser chapter

  Praise for the Novels of Deidre Knight

  Red Kiss

  “This is a sensual, action-packed, steaming-hot romance! Filled with demons, gods, immortal warriors, and unique world building, Red Kiss will leave you begging for more.”

  —Armchair Interviews

  “Ms. Knight did a wonderful job blending the old-world sensibilities with the modern age.”

  —Eye on Romance

  “Red Kiss breathes life into some of history’s most amazing men, gives them new purpose, and spins a captivating web of honor, deceit, and the overwhelming power of love.”

  —Darque Reviews

  “A sensational story that packs a ton of heat, action, and fantasy into its pages, Red Kiss is an enthralling read you just can’t miss!”

  —Romance Reviews Today

  “A must-read for any romantic at heart.”

  —TwoLips Reviews

  “The women are strong and the men are hot! Deidre Knight really knows how to steam up a cold night.”

  —Fallen Angel Reviews

  “A terrific tale that once again will have readers believing in the Knight world, where gods and immortals intervene in the lives of expendable humans.”

  —Midwest Book Review

  “Just as action-packed and passion-filled as the first one. Definitely a must-read!”

  —Fresh Fiction

  “Deidre Knight has outdone herself with Red Kiss, a novel that will rest on our keeper shelf.”

  —Single Titles (5 stars)

  “Knight’s expertise at combining sensuality and pulse-pounding action is on full display. Make room for another ‘Knight’ on your keeper shelf.”

  —Romantic Times (4 stars)

  Red Fire

  “Knight expertly blends scorching passion, gritty danger, and a wildly creative plot in Red Fire, the first in an edgy new paranormal series.”

  —Chicago Tribune

  “Exciting . . . a fantastic series.”

  —Romance Junkies

  “An incredible tale populated by only the most incredible characters. . . . Fast-paced, emotional, riveting . . . I promise you’ll love it!”

  —Romance Reviews Today

  “What an exciting beginning to this new Gods of Midnight series! Very well-done by the talented Deidre Knight. I loved it!”

  —Fresh Fiction

  “Knight provides an intriguing new twist to both Greek mythology and legendary Spartan warriors with this searing new series.”

  —Romantic Times

  “Scorching-hot with a pace that never lets up.”

  —New York Times bestselling author Christina Dodd

  “White-hot immortal warriors, heart-pounding romance, and thrilling action. It doesn’t get any better than this!”

  —New York Times bestselling author Gena Showalter

  “Deidre Knight has created a fascinating world of gods, demons, and immortal warriors. I can’t wait for more!”

  —New York Times bestselling author Angela Knight

  “Hot Gates, hot men, myth, and magic in modern day . . . sign me up for more Gods of Midnight!”

  —Jessica Andersen

  “A fantastic and riveting new voice in paranormal fiction.”

  —New York Times bestselling author Karen Marie Moning

  Parallel Desire

  “[A] wonderful book . . . [an] outstanding series.”

  —Affaire de Coeur

  “Twists, turns, and . . . scintillating romance.”

  —ParaNormal Romance

  Parallel Seduction

  “Intriguing . . . there’s never a dull moment in this terrific series!”

  —Romantic Times

  “Deep emotion, fast-paced action, characters who come alive, and a plot full of surprises.”

  —Romance Reviews Today

  Parallel Heat

  “Powerfully sensual and mind-blowing . . . a hot romance . . . a great paranormal.”

  —Romance: B(u)y the Book

  “Once again Knight explodes with another compelling page-turner . . . one heck of a riveting, sensual ride.”

  —The Best Reviews

  Parallel Attraction

  “This book swept me off my feet. A fantastically original, smart, and sexy adventure.”

  —National bestselling author Susan Grant

  “At times humorous, at others heart- wrenching, but always compelling.”

  —New York Times bestselling author Gena Showalter

  ALSO BY DEIDRE KNIGHT

  Gods of Midnight

  Red Fire

  Red Kiss

  The Midnight Warriors

  Parallel Attraction

  Parallel Heat

  Parallel Seduction

  Parallel Desire

  SIGNET ECLIPSE

  Published by New American Library, a division of

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  Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

  First published by Signet Eclipse, an imprint of New American Library, a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

  First Printing, June 2010

  Copyright © Deidre Knight, 2010

  All rights reserved

  SIGNET ECLIPSE and logo are trademarks of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

  Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), with
out the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

  eISBN : 978-1-101-18788-3

  PUBLISHER’S NOTE

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party Web sites or their content.

  The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

  http://us.penguingroup.com

  To Kerry Donovan, editor extraordinaire. Thank you for your talent, your wisdom, your expertise, and especially your friendship.

  Acknowledgments

  Big shout-outs and thanks go to Angela Zoltners for all her insights and assistance. To Pamela Harty for always guiding me wonderfully. To Christina White, such a nice Greek girl! To my new friend Kathaleen Cassedy for knowing what the Iraqi desert would be like at night and what a marine might say if he wanted someone to move quickly. And especially huge thanks go, as always, to my children and husband for their love, nurturing, and encouragement as I wrote this book.

  Prologue

  More than twenty-five hundred years ago there was a land where the bravest, most valiant warriors were hammered like bronze, forged into human weapons by years of rigorous training and sacrifice. These men were noble, heroic, and stalwart; they would willingly give their lives for their homeland and face down even the most terrifying enemy. Their home, called Sparta, lay nestled deep in the rocky heart of ancient Greece. Its people were private and plainspoken, their lives austere. The men made a life of war, always eager for the next battle.

  Then there arose a threat of epic proportions, a Persian force numbering in the hundreds of thousands. The Spartans’ Greek neighbors to the north reported that this Persian war machine had trampled entire villages, left forests devastated, the land ravaged and scorched, and that their ranks numbered more than the stars in heaven. Unbeknownst to these mortal soldiers, a much more sinister force stood behind the enemy’s massacres. Djinn demons, on their own quest to carry darkness into the souls of mankind, drove the bloodlust of the Persian forces and influenced the outcome of the battles.

  When this invading Persian army came, they seemed invincible. The Greek forces allied against them, but could not halt their advances. The Greeks were desperate for more time to plan and strategize since it was their only hope of stopping the Persian hordes. One man, King Leonidas of Sparta, announced that he would provide the necessary delay. That he would lead his three hundred most elite officers to make their stand against the invaders at the narrow spit of land known as the Hot Gates.

  Thermopylae.

  This pass, an opening wide enough to accommodate only a few men fighting side by side, would be the stage. There Leonidas and his Spartans would bottle up the Persian forces, using the Gates themselves as an advantage to limit the power of the Persians. They would fight to the last man in order to restrain the enemy for as long as they could—even until the very last Spartan lay dead. These three hundred would give up their lives for Sparta and Greece, for duty and loyalty, for homeland and family. And for a hero’s passage to heavenly Elysium.

  And so it was that for three sweltering August days this courageous, stubborn king fought alongside his crimson-cloaked warriors. Leonidas made no distinctions among them. All were soldiers, equal in battle, and all would drink from the cup of death as the gods decreed. Beside him, his senior captain, Ajax Petrakos, led charge after charge. Together they blocked the pass, warring with swords, shields, and eventually nothing but their bare hands.

  The king and his soldiers never relented, never backed down, and, on the third day, when the burning sun began to slide behind the mountains that marked the pass, only a handful of Spartans remained standing. It was then that the final moments came, and one by one the last of these Spartan warriors, inseparable in life, fell together in death. With their passing the battle was lost, but their Spartan duty was fulfilled.

  Captain Petrakos was the first to awaken facing the River Styx, that boundary between mortal life and the mystery beyond. Next his servant Kassandros materialized beside him, the two linked together in death as they had been in life. One at a time, other Spartans appeared out of the mist: Ajax’s brothers, Kalias and Aristos; then Nikos and his fellow warrior Straton. And finally their beloved King Leonidas, battered, broken, and mutilated from battle, yet standing tall among their ranks. But an unexpected being also emerged from the mist to stand beside their king. One beyond the warriors’ imaginings. Before them stood a towering golden god wearing a proud smile upon his face. It was none other than Ares, the lord of all Spartan soldiers, their god of war.

  Ares had come to present an offer, one final choice, as the seven warriors stood at this place between life and death. They could lay down their swords and move on to Elysium and the afterlife that awaited them, or they could turn back to the world, take up their arms once more, and become immortal protectors of mankind for eternity.

  They would fight every form of evil that threatened humanity, becoming ageless battlers of demons and fighters of wars. They would serve under Ares, in the name of mankind. With the deity’s offer, these warriors could ensure safety for their families, for Sparta, and for the sons and daughters of Sparta for centuries to come. In their immortal form, each man would possess abilities akin to those of the gods. They would be stronger than before and in the heat of battle could assume the form of hawks, with the flight, lethality, and grace of these warrior birds. They would become dark angels, saviors of the night.

  The will of warriors was in their blood and in their souls, and they knew in their hearts that it was a noble quest. But it was a noble quest for a capricious god. Still, they would have followed their king to the ends of the earth, to Hades itself if he asked it of them. And when they looked into his wise eyes, they knew his decision had already been made.

  Leonidas did not beseech them; the choice lay with each man alone. But these were men born and bred to fight for the glory of war. Their duty, honor, and love for one another bound the warriors in unspoken agreement. One by one, each of the seven men drank from the River Styx, binding their immortality and their vow.

  There was no time for second thoughts and no place for regrets. The seven Spartans, now the immortal protectors of all mankind, turned away from what might have been and bowed down before the voice of war.

  Chapter 1

  Maybe Super Mario Cart would’ve been a better starting point. Or perhaps Pirates vs. Ninjas Dodgeball. Anything else, Ari decided, would’ve made a less frustrating introduction to the world of Wii than Dance Dance trating introduction to the world of Wii than Dance Dance Revolution.

  Especially for King Leonidas, Ari’s immortal commander, who happened to be well over twenty-five hundred years old, and a gamer virgin until tonight.

  Ari was about to suggest a change to his newbie pupil when the Old Man glared at the flat screen, releasing a shocking string of obscenities. The ordinarily quiet Spartan might have been facing a legion of bloodthirsty Persians; the aggression in his dark eyes was that fierce.

  “Uh, sir?” Ari ventured, struggling to tune out the game’s tinny disco music. “This is supposed to be entertainment. Not warfare.”

  Leonidas didn’t acknowledge him, only narrowed his eyes when loud booing began pouring forth from the television set. Oh, gods above, this wasn’t going to be pretty. Nobody, not even an electronic device, booed King Leonidas of Sparta.

  Ari decided distraction was in order. “It’s like ba
ttle drills, sir. Fancy footwork; that’s all.”

  Leonidas barely grunted in reply, and Ari began reaching for the Wii remote his king still held in a viselike grip. “Let’s try a slower song.”

  “No,” Leonidas answered in a low growl, drawing the word out like a slow peal of thunder—and Ari burst out in loud, admittedly disrespectful, laughter.

  He just couldn’t help himself; there was such raw pride and fierce determination in the way the Old Man said it. So, hell yeah, Ari laughed, and so did Nikos from his position at the bar. And when grumpy Nik got rolling, it was such an unexpected outburst that even solemn Kalias joined the action. Which was really saying something because Ari’s eldest brother wasn’t exactly a blinding ray of sunshine himself.

  It was a real Give a Pig a Pancake moment, to quote the children’s book—which Ari actually owned, ’cause he liked kids’ humor—pure and basic. All the brotherhood knew the book, too, because the day Ari had bought it, he’d followed them around reading from the thing, claiming that the pig made him think of the scrappiest of them all, Straton. Or, really, that the pig reminded him of their whole immortal brotherhood—if one did something, the rest of the cadre invariably got in on the action.

  So, watching the lot of them begin to lose it in the face of their king’s disintegrating Wii composure, he just couldn’t help blurting out, “You know, if you give a king a pancake . . .”

  Which most decidedly did not help the situation.

  Neither did the wine they’d all imbibed during dinner a few hours earlier.

  Tonight marked two months since they’d defeated Ares at the River Styx—as well as the fact that they’d not heard from the bastard god ever since—so they’d laughed. Drunk uncut red wine from goblets. Celebrated their liberation from eternal servitude to Ares. Gotten uncharacteristically giddy, tossing back quite a few of those overflowing goblets.

  Everyone, that was, except Leonidas, who’d seemed as reserved as always, maybe even more so. Ari suddenly wondered whether his king’s current fury with the flat screen had little to do with dancing or electronic games, but instead signaled something much more serious.