Saturday's Excerpt from The Broken by Julia Duncan #MFRWauthor

Excerpt for THE BROKEN:

The time before the start of the invasion dwindled, as did the fear of my own death. I felt for Ouriel’s knife strapped at my back, and the weight of it steadied me...

I didn’t notice the demons until one had his arm clamped around my throat. Choking, I looked around and saw we were surrounded.

Without thinking, I reached for the knife at my back. Instinct and training took over, and I slammed my gift from Ouriel into the abdomen of the demon holding me. He dropped to the ground. I turned to stab him a few more times, to keep him out of the fight a bit longer, and ran for Miriam and Ouriel. My sister was rapidly firing off arrow after arrow, sinking as many as left her quiver into demon flesh.

But more kept popping in all around us.

I can’t say how many demons I cut and sliced with my knife and nails to get to my sister and my Warrior, but I got through enough to guard their backs. Finally, the three of us stood together, facing down the enemy. Ouriel slipped me his knife, and both of my hands became deadly. Behind me and out of breath, he shouted, “Miriam, get Rose out of here! Run for Ishmael’s house. I will cover you!”

“No way!” I yelled back. “I’m not leaving you!”

Ouriel decapitated two more of the demons rushing him. “You have to!”

“No!” I screamed and took down one of my own, kicking and jabbing her into a bloody pulp.

“We can’t hold them all off,” Miriam panted. “And I must save you at all costs.”

Ouriel spun and, in one fluid move, gored a demon and pushed me through the opening toward Ishmael’s house.