“Yes. He lured her to the club.”
My body begins to shake as the ground trembles under my feet. My mind swims and nothing makes sense. I forget to breathe, to think, to stand.
My friends hold me up as my legs refuse to bear my weight.
Aydan. He betrayed all that we ever were to each other.
His promise to me.
His love for us.
Everything
“Nesy?” Cass reaches out for my heart.
“No, don’t. This is all my fault. I never should have let that UnHoly live.”
My tattered emotions fuse to my heart as my pain turns to bile in my stomach.
Maybe it’s a big mistake? Maybe the Guardian was wrong.
No. I know the truth.
Aydan is the UnHoly, forever bound to Azza. Soon he would bear the marks and become the Beast. Whatever he used to be, he is what he is.
A monster.
“Nes, Aydan—”
“Died the minute he took Lori.” I glare at my friends, my body cold. Rigid. The emotional wave is gone, replaced by a cold and fierce hatred. “I should have listened to you, Zane. I’m sorry.”
“Don't think about that now,” Zane says.
“You’re right. I don’t have time to feel anything. I messed this up. Just me. I trusted the wrong person.” I take a deep breath, inhaling every ounce of rage, pain, torment. I’m going to the club. Lori isn’t dying because of me.”
Chapter 35 - Tribulations
Aydan
I escort Lori into the deserted club through the alley. The dark hallway spills onto the main dance floor. The only light comes from the pulsating neon overhead. Music blares from the speakers, a strange mix of gothic rock that shakes the floorboards. Time has no meaning in this club. It seems late. Much too late.
My time is up.
“So, where is she?” Lori asks.
Candles light the old altar at the far end of the dance floor. The scene looks ominous. Lori's eyes widen. She begins to tremble and back away. “Aydan?” Her voice quivers. “What’s going on? Where’s Nesy?” Goosebumps erupt over her pale skin.
“I’m sorry, Lori.” I didn’t have a choice. I grab her arm and force her forward. “This is the only way I can save Nesy.” A lone tear slithers down my cheek as the words sputter out.
Lori stiffens against my weak grasp, breaking free. She runs down the hall and pushes against the doors, pounding them until her fists swell. The doors refuse to budge.
She turns back to me, her face contorted with rage. “How could you?”
Smoke coils around her body. Bat-like creatures with black beaks and sharp claws emerge from the smoke. They push her, forcing her toward me. Toward the altar.
Lori’s scream pierces my heart. The demon next to her clamps his clawed hand down on her mouth, nearly breaking her jaw. It nips the air next to her face.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you. My pets go a little crazy when they hear a scream.” Azza steps from the dark recesses next to the altar, his black eyes ablaze. “I don’t know how long I’ll be able to control them.”
He laughs as Lori screams again. The demon digs his claws into her face.
My mind snaps as her cheek bleeds. I swing my arm, colliding with the dark creature. I look at Lori, her eyes filled with the disgust I feel. I wipe the blood from her mouth, whispering “I’m sorry.”
Azza’s voice turns cold, menacing.
Dangerous.
“I told you not to scream,” he says as he slithers next to Lori. He slaps her face and my blood boils. Another trickle of blood runs down the corners of her mouth.
I’ll kill you, I think, careful not to act.
Yet.
“Now, now Aydan,” Azza mocks, reading my intentions. “Your interference does not bode well for your trustworthiness.”
Wait. I must wait.
“I think it’s time you proved your loyalty, my apprentice. Bleed her.”
The Beast screams within. And I can’t move.
“Am I to assume our deal is off?” Azza’s voice holds the threat I fear most.
I walk to Lori and stare into her eyes. With a finger, I catch the blood dripping from the cut on her mouth. I bring it to my lips. The coopery scent fills my senses. I lick the scant blood from my finger.
The Beast rages, begging for more.
I steel myself against every instinct I have to devour Lori in a single act. And take a step back. “Satisfied?” I ask.
“For now.”
Azza slides next to Lori and brushes a clawed finger against her cheek. “I have big plans for you tonight.”
Lori twists out of his grip and backs into a large post at the bar.
Azza follows. Grabbing her by her shirt, he dumps her onto the barstool and spins her to him. “I told you I’d be back. It’s time to serve the same fate as your mother. But unlike her, you will not deny me your soul.”
Lori spits in his face and runs.
No! Don’t! Fissures crack through my heart with each step she takes.
Stupid girl. Don’t fight him. You can’t win.
Azza catches her before she makes it past the dance floor. “So, you want to make this hard, do you? I like hard.”
He throws her across the room. She collides with the marbled edge of the bar, opening a larger gash over her eye. In a flash, he’s over her, pulling her to her feet again.
Too weak to move, too disgusted with myself, I weigh my options.
Rescue Lori
—condemn Nesy.
Kill Azza
—condemn Nesy.
Kill myself
—condemn Nesy.
There’s no way out for me now. For Lori. I’m too weak, too broken. Every choice condemns the one I love. There’s no way to prevent the agony of this night.
Azza squeezes Lori’s jaw. “It’s okay, little Seer. I like a challenge. It makes things so much more...interesting.”
“Stop,” I bellow, unable to watch any more of his sadistic fun. “You don’t need to do this.” I rush to Lori’s side. “I took her blood. Bound myself to my word. I have no choice but to finish this now. You don’t need to torture her.”
Lori glares at me. Her hatred of me filters into my thoughts, mirroring my own. Weakening me.
“Oh, but I think I do. I’m enjoying this far too much to stop.” I feel him pulling on my emotions, tasting every ounce of torment and anguish. “Oh yes,” he whispers. “Much too much.”
Azza wipes the blood from Lori’s face and brings it to his mouth. “It doesn’t have to be like this, Seer. I could make it almost pleasurable for you to die.”
Lori turns away in defiance.
Azza grabs her chin and forces her to look at him. “What? You don’t like this face?” Candlelight reflects off his skeletal frame, bathing him in a hideous glow. Terror reflects in Lori’s eyes as a smile curls Azza’s lips. He changes into the image of his human host. Black hair, hard jaw, pale skin. Only the markings down his neck and the inhuman, empty eyes remain.
The same eyes I’ll have after tonight.
“Perhaps this is more to your taste.” Azza says as he leans in and forces a kiss on her mouth.
Lori twists and writhes, pounding his chest.
The Beast pushes me forward. Begs me to finish her off now. I turn away, unable to stomach the image of Azza tasting Lori’s soul. The image of what I must do.
Lori’s muffled screams feed the Beast as I fight the urge to rip Azza to shreds and take Lori’s soul for myself.
Azza releases a feral growl. I turn, surprised. Lori has clawed his face, leaving a bloody trail of scratches deep in his skin.
“You will pay for that one, Seer.” Azza slams her against the post, knocking her head against the marble. She slumps to the ground, bleeding and unconscious.
The metallic scent of her blood beckons the dark creatures lurking in the shadows. They swarm around her body, consumed with their need to feed.
Her scent pulls on me a
s well. I strain against it, too weak to ignore the siren call of her soul. My hunger rips through me as I stare at her still unconscious body on the floor.
Azza holds the creatures back, a smile glinting in his eyes. “Are you ready to drink her soul?”
I tremble, unable to withstand the Beast. My legs move on their own toward her. My throats constricts. There is only one thing can quench the building thirst. Her soul.
“Yes, Aydan. Drink.” Azza tempts.
My legs wobble as desperate hunger consumes me. I watch the way Lori’s chest rises and falls with each breath.
The Beast urges me forward.
Drawing a deep breath, I lean down, kiss her forehead.
And walk away.
“I guess you get the first taste, my pets,” Azza cackles.
I walk into the alley as the sounds of the dark creatures feasting on Lori’s emotions, her suffering, fills my ears. My need for the Seer consumes my thoughts.
My body.
My soul.
Chapter 36 – Forsaken Love
Nesy
I run towards the club, determined to save Lori. Kill Aydan. End this nightmare. The sun drops below the canopy of the buildings.
Too fast. Everything is happening too fast.
I want more time with Aydan. I need to make sure he’s really a monster. My heart knows he can’t be. Conflict paralyzes the whole of me. I don’t want to kill Aydan, but he leaves me no choice. I must protect Lori. I must prevent the bond from taking place.
I must be the Sentinal I was trained to be, no matter the cost.
My heart seizes with every step. I can’t breathe, can’t think. I’m locked in turmoil as the truth—my truth—coils around me. I must kill Aydan.
And his death…
Will kill me.
My pace quickens. I push aside the feelings suffocating me. Mikayel’s voice enters my thoughts. Get this done, Sentinal. Now. I cling to his words, letting them remind me of my true duty.
The Council.
Celestium.
Mikayel.
I cross the crowded streets with a new plan.
One: Pierce Aydan’s heart.
Two: Cast him to the Abyss
Three : Take Lori and run.
Every move is choreographed to perfection in my mind. No hesitation. No opportunities for Azzaziel to interfere. No mistakes.
Not this time.
I slow to a walk as sweat streams down my brow. I’m ready. Reaching over my shoulder, I finger the sword hidden in its sheath. I long to feel its weight in my hand and breathe in its power.
Wielding a sword is second nature to me. Ever since Mikayel taught me how to use it, I’ve needed its power. Craved it the way this body craves air. And yet, today, the hilt of my sword feels foreign. There is no strength in it. No security.
Today it means nothing but death.
His death.
Only a few more blocks to go. I create a mental map of the club and begin to run again, desperate to save my sister.
Stop! Lori’s voice rings through my mind. Burning sensations, mixed with the tearing of flesh from bone, spring to life in my thoughts. They consume me, searing my soul.
I stop running. My body buckles with pain. A sea of people swarm around me, almost trampling me. I can’t move. And the nightmare unfolds in front of me.
Lori’s living nightmare.
Something, someone, lifts Lori from the floor. Her lip is open and bleeding. She’s barely conscious.
Azzaziel stands inches from her face. “Are you done fighting me yet?”
“Never,” Lori says, her voice nothing more than a whisper.
“Then you leave me no choice.” He rips his demonic hand across her flesh, opening new wounds.
The demons and other dark creatures crowd around him. Waiting. Azzaziel turns to the UnHoly standing guard at the doors.
“He wasn’t lying.” My voice floats off my tongue to no one in particular. I look at the pictures burning into my thoughts. The club, as crowded as any Saturday night. But not with humans. The UnHoly. Hundreds of them.
Azza’s army.
Lori screams. It echoes through the club as the assembled mob cheers and screeches.
“String her up,” the Dark One commands.
Two of the UnHoly walk forward and bind her arms and legs. They hoist her up until her face is even with Azza’s.
“Aydan will be back for you. He will drink your soul while my pets devour your flesh. You’re the key we’ve been searching for. You will help us make Aydan more powerful than the angels. More powerful than his precious Nesy.”
“Don’t you dare say her name.” Lori’s voice cracks on the words.
“Oh, didn’t I tell you? She’s the reason you’re here.” Azza’s sadistic laughs floats in the air as he walks away.
I pull myself from the nightmare. “You’re not there,” I say to the passing hordes. “Where are you?”
I replay the scene, searching for Aydan. Nothing.
Something’s wrong.
This is different than I’d planned. Maybe Aydan can’t do it. Maybe the Guardian was wrong. Zane is wrong.
Hope punctures my heart. None of it matters now. We’re locked into a similar fate. He will kill my sister. He will receive the marks. He will become the Beast. His vows allow for nothing less.
No matter what our love might mean.
The club looms a block away, bathed in shadows. Night will be here soon and Azza will finish his ceremony.
Unless I stop it.
Adrenaline courses through me as my senses heighten. Detach. Prepare. Commit. I focus only on my creed as I walk the final steps to my end.
Standing in front of the old church-turned-club, I stare at the gargoyles adorning the top of the gothic bell tower. I rehearse the plan one last time, slowing each second down.
One shot. That’s all I’ll get to save Lori.
And kill Aydan.
I walk into the narrow corridor behind the church. Shadows dance across the stone walls as the sky turns fiery in its final moments before nightfall.
The back door opens. Demonic music cuts through the silent alley. I flatten myself against the darkness, desperate to remain invisible.
Aydan walks out, his human face ashen. His body trembles as he paces in front of the door, tensing and releasing his fists. Mumbling words I can’t hear.
Anguish rolls off of him in waves. It slices through my warrior’s shell. I edge closer to him, my body almost free from the shadows.
I want to run to him and comfort his broken soul.
I want to kill him for the misery he causes.
I take another step. And then another. His torment, his remorse compels me forward.
Aydan stops pacing and turns, staring into the shadows.
And into my eyes.
I freeze, my body barely shrouded.
“I’m sorry, Nesy.” He whispers to the darkness hiding me. “I messed everything up. For you. For Lori.” His voice catches on the last word.
A tear slides down his face.
“No Aydan, it’s my fault,” I whisper. “I let this happen. And now Lori, you, Mikayel’s army—you will all pay the price for my selfishness.” My vision blurs as tears overtake my eyes.
He stands so close.
“I have to do this,” he says. “I know you can’t understand. And you’ll never be able to forgive me. But, it’s the only way. There really is no other choice.” His voice trails off.
I release a small gasp as I realize what he’s preparing to do.
Aydan tenses, his eyes narrowing on me. I pull back into the shadows, barely breathing.
He takes a fragile step towards me. My heart rams against my chest and I’m certain he sees me.
Aydan pauses, shakes his head slightly and turns back towards the club. He stops at the door and takes a deep breath. Laying a hand on the handle, he pulls.
Lori’s screams flood the alley.
And my world implodes under th
e weight of my anguish.
Chapter 37 - Requiem
Aydan
My hopes fall away as I walk back into the club. Lori is strung up against the backdrop of the altar, the candles burned down to their ends. Her arms and legs are bound together. Pieces of flesh have been torn from her body. Bruises—angry, purple and red—color her face, her legs, her torso. My insides clench as I look at her, pain forever carved into her face.
The crowd has grown in the club; one big mob of the UnHoly. They clamor around the nearly dead Seer, hungry.
Azza strokes Lori’s hair, caressing her. Bile churns in my throat as rage surges through me. I want to kill Azza.
Later.
Right now, all I can think about is Lori and the way her soul calls to me.
“Ah, you’ve come back,” Azza mocks. “I knew you wouldn’t be able to resist her. But just to make sure—” Azza rips his claws against her torso.
She screams. The sound reaches into my soul, pulling on the Beast. I can’t control the need rushing through me. My breath comes in small, shallow gasps as my legs move against my will, bringing me closer to her.
“It’s time to make good on your promises, Aydan. For Nesy’s sake.”
The sound of her name on his lips crushes me. I want to scream “No!” Tell him to forget his miserable plans.
Lacrimosa (Requiem Series) Page 17