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Ragnor sn of assurance, and of faith With a shrug, he extended his wry grin to the an?the man she had known as Steven

"You’ve spent your existence being jealous ofto send you on Not to Valhalla, but to the Hel, or Hell, or whichever in truth you care to call it, after all these years"

"I don’t think so"

"I do The old rules have been broken too many times This time, you will die your second death, and it will be over"

Jordan shrieked in both pain and surprise as Hagan reached for her, his grip so strong that it broke the ropes tied around her wrists and ankles, burning her flesh, nearly breaking bone He drew her to stand before him He lifted her hair She felt the heat of his breath His teeth were lowering "Watch brother," he whispered "As I take herfor eternity"

She saw, just below her, a small puddle of the holy water that had fallen before It had pooled between two tiles in the ancient floor

She slammed her elbow back into his ribs and ducked for the water Not enough! Still, as he roared, ready to restrain her again, she splashed the little droplets into his eyes

He roared with pain

She was free

She raced forward, straight into Ragnor’s arht her shoulders, nor walked toward Hagan He sensed theon the rafters Ragnor followed hinor

He threw her back down She landed hard on the floor A an cried out to the others "Seize him, kill him, take him, you fools! I anor had returned to the floor As Hagan’s followers caht them one by one He took them by their heads and shoulders

Twisted

Dropped the pieces

So a sword The creature never reached Ragnor

Lucian slipped down from the rafters, seized the attacker by the neck, took the sword, and ended hian to appear Jordan ducked down, for it seemed as if the ancient church was filled with bats

Bats, wings, noisesa chattering, soft at first, then growing in a crescendo

The door to the church was suddenly flung open

Sean Canady came in, vials strapped to his chest, a sword at his waist, and buckets in both hands

He threater in a swinging, upward, arc

Screaony echoed so loudly that Jordan covered her ears, praying She looked up just in ti for her

She turned and fled toward Sean, ripping one of the vials from the holder on his chest She tossed the holy water at her would-be attacker She watched, still amazed, as he shrieked

And decomposed

The noise suddenly died away

The floor was littered

With freshly dead

And decaying bones Then a s, seemed to vibrate the entire structure She looked up The ain Sean started tohis arnor round

The two men stared at one another in fury

"Who wants to live forever?" Ragnor inquired quietly