by Sara Snow
“Hey, quit moving around so much,” Olympia demanded. “That potion I gave you is fast, but if you keep hurting yourself before it works its magic, you’ll just make it take longer.”
“Sorry,” he muttered. “It sounded like some romanticized bullshit my mom would have spread around as a rumor for the drama of it all, and I know she’d make sure that anyone who was anyone would catch wind of it, including Kingston. She’s crafty like that, and she never mentioned anything directly to me about it, so that makes it weirder. But that’s beside the point. Olympia told me you guys went there to turn Georgia over to Paimon in exchange for me. Is that true?”
I hesitated. “Sort of. There was more to it than that.”
Carter grit his teeth together. “I know your intentions were good, Georgia, but please don’t needlessly endanger yourself like that. Not for me. You don’t know what Paimon and his friends are capable of.”
I saw the damage they did at the cemetery and what they did to my mother. Of course I know what they’re capable of.
I had suddenly been reminded of Kingston. Carter had been dragged away by the demons before he got to see him. He still didn’t know what happened at the cemetery.
“Carter… About Kingston,” I started.
“It’s ok, Georgia. Olympia told me,” he said, casting his eyes downward.
Olympia gave me a sad little smile. She must have known I’d have felt compelled to give him the news myself again if she didn’t tell him first. I’d have to remember to thank her later.
“Carter, are you sure we shouldn’t take you to the hospital? You don’t look too hot,” Eli said.
“I’ll be fine. The potion is already working, it’ll just take a bit for it to work fully,” he answered.
“I put a special salve on his wounds that should help them heal even more quickly. He’ll be right as rain in a few hours, he just needs to relax.” She stood, making her way toward the door, herding everyone else out. “I think they need some time together. We can all catch up later.”
As soon as everyone was out and the door was shut, I took Olympia’s place sitting next to him. With great effort, he pushed himself up, reclining against some pillows that had been brought in from another room. I took his hand again, but I couldn’t hold back my tears anymore.
“I was so scared,” I said, shaking. “I really thought we were too late.”
“I’m sorry you had to go through that. It must have been hard on top of everything else,” Carter said, squeezing my hand.
“Don’t say sorry to me!” I said incredulously. “I should be saying sorry after all you’ve been through.”
“How about no one says sorry? We’re together again, and that’s all that matters.”
He reached up to cup my cheek in his hand, wiping away the tears that had spilled down my face. I took a deep breath, my heart overfilled with warmth at his touch.
“I love you, Carter. I mean it. Calling you my boyfriend wouldn’t even begin to describe it. It really feels like something bigger than that. When you were in danger, I realized just how important you are to me. Like you’re a piece of my heart that I can’t live without.”
“I feel the exact same way. It’s like our hearts are bonded now, almost like mates. Like it was meant to be.” He brushed my hair behind my ear, letting his hand rest softly on the back of my neck. “I love you too, Georgia.”
When I kissed him, all of the fear, all of the tension, all of the anxiety just melted away. It was just him and I left sharing our love, and it felt so pure and warm. I could have stayed in that moment forever, just holding him, feeling like nothing could ever tear us apart again.
I knew in that moment that I would do whatever it took to make sure nothing did.
Jacob
To say that I was exhausted would have been the biggest understatement in the history of understatements. From Paimon’s castle to the discovery that Carter had survived this whole ordeal, the past few hours had been an absolutely insane roller coaster that left me drained of any energy I might have had prior.
Despite the fact that I was getting used to the idea of not having him in the warehouse anymore, I really was relieved that Carter was alive. I wouldn’t have risked my neck going into a demon’s palace to save him if I didn’t really want him to make it. The idea of losing another team member so soon would have absolutely devastated us, and I didn’t know what our backup plan would be if Paimon had succeeded in killing him. If anything, I found a bit of respect for him deep within myself after all of this. The way he talked about nearly getting staked, I couldn’t help but admire his bravery. I was sure that whatever he’d said about it was probably a sugar-coated version for Georgia’s sake. The wounds Olympia was treating were pretty self-evident. He didn’t need to say he was tortured for me to know. He was a tough guy. I could admit it. That type of torment would have broken any sane person.
When he talked about Georgia and how the thought of her had kept him going despite the pain and suffering, it finally sunk in that he was really, truly devoted to her. Of course, that didn’t discount the possibility that he’d still manage to mess it all up somehow and when he did, I’d be there to rub his face in it and give Georgia the comfort she deserved.
I had another realization as well. I had been acting as a surrogate leader to the group since he and my dad had been taken from us, but now that he was back and recovering, it wouldn’t be long before he reclaimed his spot as the head of the Venandi. I didn’t really know how to feel about that. On one hand, it felt like that was the way it was supposed to be. He’d been part of the group for so long—it only seemed right that he’d replace my father. On the other hand, I wasn’t sure that I could see myself following orders from Carter. It wasn’t out of any selfish or self-important sense of rebellion, but I did have a rising concern that he wouldn’t be able to handle leading the group the way my dad did. I wasn’t convinced that he could live up to the standards my dad had set. After all, my dad had taught him quite a bit, but his angelic knowledge was immense, and that library was daunting.
If I had any hope of taking the group under my wing, I would have to start doing my homework.
Georgia
The light of dawn cracking through my bedroom window was a fairly gentle way to wake up, especially considering that if our plan had succeeded, I’d be waking up in Paimon’s palace right now, getting ready to face a demon army. So I definitely appreciated one more gentle awakening while I could still get it.
Part of me knew that it would probably be one of the last sunrises to wake me for a while, especially with the plans brewing in my head.
Our plan had succeeded only in the sense that Carter got out of the castle, though even that wasn’t our doing. But we were left with no upper hand, no inside information, nothing to help us plan against the Tenebris. All in all, we had Carter back, but we were still in a losing spot, and our disadvantage would come to bite us in the ass eventually if we didn’t change that. Unfortunately, I had already decided that the problem was worth solving, as dangerous as it was, and nothing would be able to stop me.
As I strolled through the kitchen and into the dining room, interrupting the din of idle chit chat and forks against plates, my eyes were first drawn to Carter. He seemed to be much more energetic, his wounds mostly healed thanks to Olympia’s magic, and he was devouring the breakfast in front of him like he’d never seen food before. I knew that he would be hurt the most by my decision and it made my throat tighten with anxiety.
For a moment I thought to sit, but when Carter invited me to the seat next to him with a plate all made up for me, I froze.
“I’m going to join Paimon at his palace,” I blurted to the group.
Everyone fell silent and blinked in confusion at me, like I’d just walked up and spoken Greek. Carter was the first to stand, his chair screeching against the floor as it shot backward.
“You can’t,” he said firmly. “That’s insane.”
“Not for real.
As a double agent,” I clarified. “Our last mission was a failure. We didn’t get you out, and we didn’t get any information that would help us fight the Tenebris. The only way we can do that is if I play nice with daddy and get some insider dirt.”
“Georgia, no.”
“Don’t tell me no, Carter. I’m serious about this. It’s the only way. If we just keep sitting around on our asses waiting for Paimon to come get us, then he won’t hesitate! The war is only going to get bigger and bigger. We have to be proactive.”
“Why would Paimon believe that you suddenly want to join him if he knows you know he killed Carter? And assuming he does believe you, what’s your exit strategy?” Eli asked. “You have to have some sort of plan to get out, right?”
“First of all, Paimon thinks he’s smarter, stronger, and a better manipulator than anyone else, especially someone who is half human. He’ll never pass up an opportunity for daddy-daughter one-on-one manipulation time. Secondly, Paimon hasn’t been able to sense my hatred or revulsion towards him so far. I think that because of my human half, I can keep him out of my head. Sort of like an emotional barrier. With that in mind, I think he’ll welcome me with open arms. After that, it’s just a matter of time. Once he trusts me, I’ll just be able to slip out,” I said. “And if not, I’ll figure it out. I won’t know until I’m inside, but I’ll be mentally mapping the place the whole time. And let’s say something does go wrong. What good are these cambion superpowers if they can’t help me when I need them, right?”
At least, I hope that’s all true. Otherwise I’m fucked.
Despite my minor hang-ups about it, I was fairly confident in the plan. It seemed ironic that my human side would be the one helping me against my demon father when I’d trained my demon side so much by this point. I guess that’s just how things shake out sometimes.
Olympia cleared her throat. “What are the other suggestions? We’re outnumbered. We don’t have a strategy, and we don’t know what their plan is. We don’t stand a chance if they attack. We’ve held them off so far, but we lost Kingston and Carter was kidnapped, and if they choose to strike again, then we’re going to be in bad shape. If anyone has another idea, we could try something else. Maybe something that won’t put Georgia in as much danger.”
I awaited another suggestion from the group, but everyone fell silent and suddenly no one had anything to say. That answered Olympia’s question enough for me.
“Let me do it,” I said. “I’m strong enough to hold my own, and if I can fake my allegiance and get us some insight into how to beat them, then we’d be idiots not to go for that.”
“I don’t like it either, Carter, but she could be right,” Jacob said. “We don’t have many options right now, and this could give us the edge we need. But Georgia, are you sure about this? Fighting our way through some guards is one thing, but staying in the palace and sneaking around is something else entirely.”
“I’ve never felt as strong as I do right now, and I know that I can do it. If it will make you guys feel better, we can make an exit plan,” I relented. “Just let me sneak around for a couple days, and if I don’t come back by a set time and date, you can assume something is wrong and come get me. I don’t know how difficult it’ll be to get in and out, but you guys will have time to figure it out while I’m gone.”
Jacob took a breath. “I’m not behind this, but I have to admit it seems like the best option right now.”
I was surprised to hear him back me up when he’d so vehemently opposed this plan the first time. Maybe I’d finally proved in Paimon’s palace that I knew what I was doing—a thought that brought me at least a little bit of pride.
I could see Carter’s knuckles turning white around his fork, and when it seemed like he noticed, he set it down overly gently, as if he were making a show of not dropping it or throwing it.
“I’m not going to talk you out of this, am I?” he asked, his voice weak with resignation.
“No,” I answered honestly. “It’s what I have to do, Carter.”
He let out a deep sigh. “I know.”
“We’ll back you up,” Jacob said. “Carter and Eli and I. We’ll be waiting outside the palace if trouble arises. We won’t leave you on your own.”
The first time we had intended to do this, that thought had reassured me and helped to calm my worries. This time, though, it just left me with a film of anxiety over my mind, wondering which of my friends was going to get hurt because of me this time. But I shook it off. I had to. There was strength in numbers, and even if our chances against them were slim, having the backup there would ensure us better odds of success if something went wrong. Besides, at this point, the danger was becoming more and more clearly integrated into the job. I’d be an idiot to say no. Maybe that was selfish, but by this point, they knew what they were getting themselves into.
I just nodded. “I have a different idea for Carter. You haven’t figured out your shapeshifting power yet, right?”
“No, not yet,” he said, hesitantly.
“You should go talk to your mother,” I said, watching his face fall at the suggestion.
“Georgia, I should be there with you,” he said adamantly.
“I want you there with me, I really do. But imagine what this power could be if you properly learned how to use it. Like I said before, we need all the advantages we can get. Once you can control it, you can slip into the castle and back me up from inside. Would that make you feel better?”
He had to know I was right, and by the way he fell silent, I could tell he did, even if he would prefer to be by my side the whole time.
“When are you doing this?” he asked finally.
“Tomorrow night,” I said. “I want one more day to prepare with my friends before I sell my soul to the devil.”
That got at least a small smile from a few people. It was honestly a pretty optimistic riff on what I’d actually be doing, but it felt better to say than “join my father to help lead his evil legion of demons.”
That one didn’t quite roll off the tongue the same way.
8
Georgia
“We should do something to honor Kingston,” I blurted, as if I had any clue what we could actually do.
It seemed like an appropriate way to end the night, and Kingston deserved a proper goodbye. We didn’t exactly get the chance to give him that at the cemetery and it only seemed right to do it now. That way, we could address our grief as a group and start off on a new chapter, turn over a new leaf of the Venandi.
“What do you have in mind?” Jacob asked.
I was drawing a blank. The best I could think of was to have everyone say some nice things about Kingston and call it a day, but he deserved more than that. I couldn’t for the life of me think of anything, though.
Thankfully, Carter seemed to pick up on my cluelessness. “A long time ago, Kingston came up with a ceremony to mourn the loss of a member. We could do that,” he said. “I’ve never had to do it, but there’s a write-up of it somewhere in the library. He said it was designed to sort of remember the life of the fallen and send them on their way back. Seems kind of fitting.”
“That sounds nice,” Olympia said. “I haven’t heard of that before.”
“Kingston never really liked to talk about it. He came up with the ritual after losing almost all of the members of the original group, way before I ever joined up with him.”
“The original group?” I asked, shocked. “What was the original group?”
I’d never really thought about an “original” group, though thinking back on it, I hadn’t given much thought to the origins of the group in general further than Carter and Kingston having formed it together. It didn’t occur to me that there could have been more Venandi before Carter. I couldn’t deny that I was curious, though. Besides, if there had been an “original” group, then how many groups had there been since? How many people had died doing what we were doing, and why didn’t Kingston tell me that? Did he not think
it was a good idea to let me know what I was getting myself into? My head was swimming suddenly with questions.
“The first Venandi,” Carter clarified. “Kingston started this group with a band of other fallen angels. They came together to fight demons that threatened the mortal world, and for a long time they were successful. The details are sparse since Kingston was one of only a small number left, but the long and short of it is that there was a battle and the Venandi were caught by surprise and completely outnumbered. Kingston managed to save one or two other members, but the rest were slaughtered.”
“Jeez, I didn’t realize…” I said.
Carter nodded gravely. “The surviving members scattered and Kingston vowed to never put anyone in danger like that again, fighting on his own for years until we met. Demon fighting isn’t exactly a great solo activity, so I convinced him to start the new Venandi. He needed some persuading after the first group’s end, but I finally got through to him that the secret to success was a well-rounded group.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“Well, the first group was all fallen angels. They’re powerful on their own, but they all have the same strengths and weaknesses. They become easy to predict. Now, put together a psychic, a half vampire, a human fighter, a cambion, and a fallen angel? Much more difficult to go up against. Different strengths let us work together differently in fights, and there’s no blanket weakness for every single one of us, so they have to be more creative when fighting us.”
“I guess that makes sense,” I nodded.
“We worked together to form this group, and—well, you know the rest.”
“There’s so much history that I hadn’t even thought about. It’s sad that he was on his own for so long,” I commented solemnly.
“If it’s any consolation, he didn’t feel that way. He always said it gave him time to reflect and focus on what was important in a group. He had a lot of hindsight by the time he got around to recruiting everyone here to make sure that what happened to the others would never happen again,” Carter said.