“Amelia,” Marcus breathed and Veiron’s eyes widened when he finally made out her silvery half-feather half-leather wings.
She was coming down too quickly, Erin and Taylor hanging from her arms, both of them struggling to hold on and close to falling.
Veiron’s crimson wings erupted from his back, tearing through his black t-shirt and he beat them hard, his eyes fixed on Erin and his heart hammering against his chest. He shot upwards, beyond the plateau, heading for her at maximum speed. He could hear Marcus behind him, his wings beating the hot air as urgently as Veiron’s were.
Amelia screamed and Erin slipped, almost losing her grip on her sister’s arm. Taylor reached for her. Veiron growled and Erin looked at him, her wide amber eyes brimming with fear. He doubled his effort, his wings aching with each beat, and reached for her. She shrieked and slid another few inches down her sister’s arm. Amelia rolled that way, dragged by Erin’s weight. Erin flailed her legs and closed her eyes. Her hands slipped.
Veiron grabbed her around the waist as she dropped and gathered her close to him, heart racing with the need to feel she was safe in his arms. Amelia used her now free hand to grab Taylor and keep hold of her. Marcus reached them and caught Taylor under her arms, and Taylor released her death-grip on Amelia so she could right herself and fall into a steady glide.
They all drifted down on the hot air to land on the black plateau.
“Everything alright up there?” Einar called, a detached voice curling up from the abyss.
Veiron had forgotten that the angel couldn’t fly.
Marcus shouted, “All fine. Wait there, I will come and get you.”
He shot off towards the edge of the plateau and then dropped over it.
Veiron looked down at Erin. She curled into him, her eyes still closed and her heart beating frantically against his chest. He sighed and stroked her sleek black hair, paying close attention to the lilac streak down one side. She felt so small in his arms as she shook against him, her fear still palpable. He wrapped his crimson wings around her and held her closer, wanting to reassure both her and himself that she was fine now. He would never let anything bad happen to her.
He would sooner die than let that happen.
He frowned. All this time he had been intent on living and never dying so he couldn’t be dragged back into the game through rebirth as a guardian angel. Now he would let that happen if Erin was in danger. He would die to protect her.
“You okay?” he whispered down at her and she nodded and finally lifted her head. Her amber eyes met his and he was glad that the touch of fear that had been in them was gone. He smiled. “So you want to tell me what the fuck you’re all doing down here? I take it this visit isn’t because you all missed us so much and can’t live without us?”
Marcus landed hard beside him, almost dropping Einar. The fallen hunter angel straightened himself out and then wrapped Taylor in his thickly muscled arms.
Marcus frowned, his pale blue eyes intense and hard. “I second that question. What are you doing here, Amelia?”
Amelia looked down at her feet and her wings shrank into her back and disappeared. Veiron focused so his disappeared too. His black t-shirt hung in tatters on his back so he removed it and tossed it onto the ground.
“I had a vision,” Erin said and his attention was immediately with her. The fear was back in her beautiful eyes. She pressed her hands against his bare chest and he felt her shaking. “The Devil killed you all. Apollyon came to help us get down here and get you out before anything happened.”
“Apollyon?” Marcus said on a growl. “Where is he now?”
“He was supposed to come with us but that guardian angel attacked before we could all come down. He’s still up there fighting him. We have to go now.”
Veiron stroked her cheek. “We’ll go, and when we get topside I will kick that angel’s arse so he never bothers you again.”
She smiled shakily. “Sounds good to me.”
“Change of plans?” Einar said and Veiron nodded. As much as he wanted to see what his future held in store for him and discover more about Erin’s powers, he needed to get the women out of Hell and back to safety, and ensure that Erin’s so-called guardian angel stopped coming after her.
“We use the pathway that Apollyon opened. All agreed, raise your hand and let’s get the fuck out of here.”
Marcus actually raised his hand and then scowled at everyone when no one else did. Veiron stifled his laughter. Trust Marcus to think he was talking literally. The former angel still had a lot to learn about the world and mortal turns of phrase.
“I’ll take Erin. Amelia takes Taylor and Marcus takes Einar.” Veiron stooped, grabbed Erin’s bottom, and lifted her. She wrapped her legs around his waist and looped her arms around his neck. She felt so good against him. He was never getting tired of carrying her. His wings grew from his back and he flapped them to get all the feathers into line. “Let’s go.”
Before he could lift off, the rift above them began to shrink and heal.
That wasn’t good.
Einar exhaled a black curse. Veiron looked across at him where he stood in front of Marcus, ready to agree with him, but he wasn’t looking at the ceiling and the closing gate to the mortal realm. He was looking towards the edge of the plateau where it dropped into the bottomless pit.
The low thunderous hum of hundreds of wings filled the air.
Veiron turned slowly and swallowed.
A legion of Hell’s angels approached and the nearest escape route had just closed. He couldn’t create portals large enough for all of them and the gate they had entered through was too far away even by flight. The angels would be upon them before they reached it.
This really wasn’t good.
CHAPTER 25
Erin couldn’t keep up with the insanity erupting around her. Her heart beat like a jackhammer against her chest, thundering so hard it felt as though it would either break through her ribs or stop. Veiron dragged her with him as he ducked and wove through the battle, one hand on his spear and the other clutching her wrist. He shoved her behind him whenever they came under attack, shielding her with his body as he fought his own kind.
Her amber eyes wildly searched the fight, scouring the chaos for her sister. She spotted Amelia hovering above it all over fifty metres away, unleashing bright blue orbs of power at any Hell’s angel who came too close. Marcus had her back, fending off all who tried to attack her from behind.
Below them on the ground, Taylor and Einar fought against a swarm of Hell’s angels, each wielding a silver blade with deadly expertise.
Veiron growled and turned, spinning with Erin and slashing at another angel that she had failed to notice. The long thick blades of his black-handled double-ended spear glinted red as he turned with her again, pulling her hard against his chest this time. He swept his spear downwards and the demonic angel blocked it with his own weapon, cutting upwards. Veiron beat his crimson wings and shot backwards with her, narrowly avoiding the blade.
Around them, bright white flashes of light punctuated the fight, blinding her at times. Each Hell’s angel that fell disappeared only moments later, leaving the battlefield clear of dead. She wasn’t sure why the light took them. Was it Heaven reclaiming their fallen warriors?
Erin shrieked when Veiron spun her again and she came face to face with a Hell’s angel. He snarled down at her, towering several feet over her, immense in his black demonic form. Instinct made her raise her hands to defend herself and a fiery orange orb exploded from her palms, hitting him square in the chest. He screamed and glowing red cracks appeared on his black skin and then he exploded into ashes.
“What the fuck did you do?” Veiron snapped and then grunted as he leaned back and threw his weight into his swing. It connected with the demonic angel he had been fighting and the spear’s blade cut straight through his middle. The two parts of him fell to the ground and Veiron kicked off, pulling Erin into his arms at the same time.
&nb
sp; He beat his wings and rose with her.
“I don’t know!” Erin looked down at her hands and wished that she hadn’t. Veiron was holding her from behind and she had a terrifying view of a long drop to a painful death. “It was instinct. He was there and it just happened and then he went poof.”
“Well… just make sure who you’re pointing those hands at before you fire, okay?”
Erin’s eyes widened. He was worried she was accidentally going to unleash a fireball on him. Erin looked down at his arms around her waist. His skin gradually turned black and now that she knew he was changing, she could feel him shifting against her back. She looked across and watched his crimson feathers draining to black and then falling away to reveal the leathery membrane beneath.
“I’ll just stick to you like glue and then we won’t have to worry, right?” she said and cursed herself for not sounding sure. She didn’t want to incinerate her lover by accident.
Veiron kissed her shoulder with his wide black mouth and squeezed her as he took them higher. His voice was a deep rumbling purr in her ear. “Absolutely. Ah, fuck.”
“What?” Erin raised her eyes and saw what had Veiron swearing.
Another contingent of Hell’s angels swarmed towards them. She was beginning to feel as though for every one they defeated, another five took their place. It was an endless surge, a relentless tide of demonic angels. Was there no end to the Devil’s army?
Veiron cut down an angel that dared to attack them, smashing his spear into one of his wings and sending him careening down to the ground. He hit with a boom and a bright light engulfed him. When it faded, the demonic angel was gone. How many was the Devil willing to send back to Heaven in order to capture or kill her and her friends?
Veiron beat his wings and shot through the Hell’s angels fighting in the air, heading straight for Amelia. Her sister turned as they approached, her silver hair flowing around her shoulders and grey eyes glowing. Amelia raised her hands, a blue orb of light appearing between her palms, and glared at Veiron.
“No.” Erin held her hands up.
“Not the enemy, so back off, bitch,” Veiron snarled, his voice deeper and rougher than usual. He flapped his wings and came to an abrupt halt close to Amelia, who launched her fireball at another approaching wave of demonic angels. “Like I would let anyone grab Erin. Try to have some faith in me.”
“That does not look good.” Marcus cut down another demonic angel with one of his curved silver swords and pointed towards the incoming swarm of Hell’s angels with the other.
“Not good at all. It’s the First Battalion. These boys live to fight, and if they can dismember and torture in the process, all the better. The Devil isn’t looking to take prisoners.” Veiron shifted his grip on her and Erin swore he was trembling. She glanced at her sister and Marcus. They looked tired too, blood coating them and both of them sporting minor wounds.
“Incoming!” someone shouted and Erin was too late.
By the time she had turned to see what was happening, a huge black blast of energy sent her, Veiron, Amelia and Marcus flying. Veiron tried to keep hold of her but the shockwave tore them apart.
Erin tumbled through the air and hit a demonic angel, taking him down with her. He snarled, exposing sharp red teeth, and barely managed to stop himself from crashing into the ground. Erin pushed away from him before he landed and hit the ground, rolled and grimaced as she twisted her ankle.
Damn it.
She quickly pushed herself up. He would come after her and she didn’t have a weapon other than her powers, and she still wasn’t sure how to use them. The times she had used them so far, she had been reacting on instinct.
When she had made it a few metres and no one had grabbed her, she paused and looked back at him.
He stood exactly where he had landed, growling as he straightened out his leathery wings and his armour.
Not attacking her.
Erin spun around, searching for everyone. Marcus was back with Amelia, battling on the ground now. Amelia had put her wings away. Had that black blast of power damaged them? Taylor and Einar were fighting close to them, forming a square with them and driving back the demonic angels. She couldn’t spot Veiron anywhere but then she hadn’t expected it to be easy considering he had gone demon on her.
He would find her, she was sure of it, but until then she was on her own and she had a lot of ground to cross to get to her sister and friends. Erin spotted a discarded sword just a few metres from her and ran for it, keeping low so the Hell’s angels flying above wouldn’t spot her. Hopefully.
She grabbed the sword. It was smaller and lighter than the broadsword she had once tried to wield but she still wasn’t sure she would be able to use it. She had seen plenty of action movies. How difficult could it be? She gave it a few test swings and was surprised by how powerful she felt. Strange considering she had power in her that could do infinitely more damage than a piece of steel.
Erin ran at the nearest Hell’s angel, roaring a battle cry at the same time and ignoring the pain in her ankle. He turned sharply and she brought her sword down, intent on cutting him straight across the stomach. He sidestepped her and then evaded her second strike and even her third. Erin blew her short black hair out of her face and growled as she swung again. The demonic angel didn’t even block her or raise his own weapon. He just kept sidestepping.
It was frustrating as hell.
She decided to forget him and try another. She ran at her second target, going for a sneak attack this time, and swung so hard she would have fallen over if it hadn’t connected with him. The sword sliced into his side and he snarled and turned on her, eyes burning crimson. He raised his own curved red blade and brought it down hard. Crap.
Erin flinched and clumsily brought her sword up, hoping to block his strike. His sword didn’t even hit hers.
She peeled one eye open and frowned. He had stopped with his sword mid-strike and was staring at her. Affronted didn’t cover how she felt when he huffed, turned away and beat his dragon-like wings, taking off.
What the hell?
Did no one want to fight her?
She tested her theory by strolling straight up behind another demonic angel and kicking him in the back of his left leg, so it crumpled beneath him and his knee hit the basalt. He snarled as he turned and then snorted and just shoved her aside before stalking off towards Taylor and Einar.
Erin’s hands burned. No one wanted to fight her. Why?
Heat prickled down her spine. Another black bolt arced through the air. This time it sent a demonic angel flying.
Veiron. It had to be him. He landed hard, spraying fragments of black basalt everywhere. Erin ran towards him, weaving through the demonic angels that were heading for him too. Marcus beat her there, landing hard and attacking with both of his curved blades. The demonic angels shifted backwards and a gap opened, a path that drew her eye and formed a straight line between her and someone she had never wanted to see again.
The Devil.
He sat on a black throne at the periphery of the battlefield, dressed impeccably in a black suit and deep blue shirt, with his legs crossed at the knee and his fingers steepled in front of him. His eyes glowed so brightly that she could feel them on her, burning across the distance. Her hands heated another ten degrees.
This was his doing. Her sister, her lover, her friends were all fighting for their lives because of him. And he had ordered his men not to touch her. There had to be a reason for that. She had to be of some value to him, just as everyone had said, if he didn’t want her to come to harm. When he had held her captive in this horrific realm, he had been angry with those who had hurt her and he had treated her well.
If anyone could make him stop this insanity and call off his men, it might be her. Her hands shook, heart trembling in her throat, beating timidly now. The sound of battle and the sight of her friends and Veiron fighting so hard to win against his Hell’s angels made her strong though. She straightened, clutched the
sword tightly in her right hand, tipped her chin up and strode towards the Devil.
Some of the Hell’s angels stopped to watch her pass while others continued the fight. Erin drew slow deep breaths. She had to do this. If the Devil wouldn’t call off his men, then she would damn well fight him and make him call them off.
He smiled as she approached, a sensual one full of pleasure. He had been waiting for her all this time, toying with the lives of her friends until she had noticed him and come to him. He had known what she would do. Erin cursed him for that and for manipulating her by endangering those she loved.
Erin stopped directly in front of him, flexed her fingers around the grip of her blade and looked him straight in the eye.
“I want to bargain with you.”
His amber eyes sparkled. “I had not expected you to return so soon, Erin. It was very brave of you but also very foolish. Your compassion makes you weak.”
No, it didn’t. It made her strong. Her love for Veiron and for her sister, and her newfound friends, all of it made her strong.
Erin held her head high, refusing to waver and give in to her growing fear. This man didn’t scare her. She wouldn’t let him scare her.
“I said I want to bargain with you.”
His smile widened. “A deal with the Devil? How cliché. Speak. Ask what you will of me.”
“Call off your men.”
The Devil didn’t seem very interested in doing such a thing. He sighed and looked at his polished fingernails, picking at them.
“Please?” she said and hated that he had reduced her to begging so quickly. The battle raged on behind her, the sound of it shredding her nerves. She wanted to glance around and see if everyone was still fighting, still alive, wanted to reassure herself that Veiron was safe and with the rest of her side at last, but she couldn’t look away from the Devil. She could show no weakness. She had to keep calm, play it cool, and keep holding his gaze. He didn’t scare her.
Her Angel: Eternal Warriors Complete Series Box Set Page 58