A Job From Hell (Ancient Legends #1)

Aidan, or I swear to
God—” Jabbing a finger in his chest, I sent him stumbling backwards. I
frowned, hesitating. Something wasn’t right.
    I couldn’t have—
    I couldn’t be—
    “No.” I shook my head as I grasped the
meaning of what just happened. But why wasn’t I a raging psycho, kicking the
furniture in search for a few mortals and a drop of blood?
    Aidan raised his hands in mock defense. “It
was Kieran, not me. I couldn’t stop him because I was almost dying. I pledged,
but he wouldn’t listen.” I didn’t believe a word he said. He continued, “But
look at the bright side. It happened after the ritual, so you can still get
your nails done without sucking the town dry.”
    What would Mom and Dad and Dallas think?
Now I wasn’t just bringing home Dracula’s relatives, I was basically one of
them. How could I explain why I wasn’t tucking into the Christmas dinner? Mom would
be so upset.
    “I’ll kick his butt.” I stomped out the
door with Aidan on my tracks.
    “I’ll help you,” Aidan said, laughing. “Blake
almost killed me because my dear brother had to take care of his hair first before
jumping to my rescue.”

 
    The End…for now.

 
    Ancient Legends Book Two, Beelzebub Girl,
is out now. Read on for an exclusive preview.

 

Beelzebub Girl (Ancient
Legends Book Two) by Jayde Scott Preview

 
    Chapter 1 – Family relations

 
    I stood in the corner of the torture chamber,
back pressed against the ancient stone. The air was hot, sucking every bit of
oxygen out of my lungs. Bright rays seeped through the few loose stones in the
wall, leaving a trail of whirled up dust particles in their wake. I sighed and
pointed at the heavy mahogany door.
    “How long is this going to take, Dad? You
know I’ve to get to my job.”
    A guy hanging from long chains in the
ceiling yelled like a pitchfork just stabbed him in the bum. I figured that was
about the only answer I’d get. Groaning, I averted my gaze, hoping Dad, dressed
in his usual business suit, gaze fixed on the guy undergoing some major
torture, wouldn’t notice, but of course he did.
    “This is your job, Cassandra. Are you
watching and learning ?” he asked.
    Nodding, I curled my lips into a forced
smile, grateful Dad couldn’t read my thoughts because we were blood-related. My
stomach turned at the metallic smell of blood hitting my nostrils. You’d think
after growing up there I would’ve been used to the whole shebang—torture,
famine, death and so forth—but I still flinched and gritted my teeth.
Truth be told, I’d rather do my nails and smell of YSL than dust, sweat and
what else not. Even at King Louis XVI’s court, which we were forced to visit as
part of a history project at school, I was the one who stayed inside and ate
all the chocolate truffles instead of joining the cheering crowd to watch the
henchman decapitate France’s traitors. Trouble was, Dad didn’t quite agree with
my pastime choices of shopping and doing my nails.
    “ Looky here, kiddo.”
Dad pointed at the poor soul who had probably made a few wrong choices in his
life. “If you tickle that spot right under his solar plexus, he’ll be in
painful giggles for days. That’s enough time to come up with the next step in
his endless loop of torture. We have a reputation to maintain, got to be
versatile.”
    Groaning, I rolled my eyes. I couldn’t
stand the yelping, shouting and crying any more, so I inched closer, holding my
breath because the smell made me sick. “Dad?”
    Dad’s green eyes focused on me. “You know
you’re not supposed to call me that when we’re at work.”
    I nodded, carefully preparing my words. “Right.
Sorry, Lucifer. Do you think you could let me finish this for once?” I ran a
hand through my frizzy red hair, which I did mean to straighten in the morning,
but let’s face it, with the heat down there I wouldn’t have done my split ends
any favor.
    Dad cocked a brow. “You want to—”
    Not really. “Uh—huh.”
    He beamed at me. “That’s my girl. Want me
to help you?” I rolled my eyes again. He held out his hands. “Okay, I was just
checking. If you need anything, call me.”
    I waited until he disappeared out the
torture chamber, then walked over to the guy dangling from some kick-ass
chains, and tapped him on the shoulder to get his attention.
    His eyes darted about; I could smell his
fear, or maybe it was just the sickening odor of someone who hadn’t showered in
at least a week. Combine