by Mary Ting
No more. I had to fix this.
“It hurts. Too bright,” the demon hissed and swiped a claw at me.
“Are you Abigale? If you answer me, I’ll dim the light.”
She sank to the floor and gathered her knees to her chest. Sweat drenched her face. “One falls from the dark. That’s who I am. One will live. One will die. I will not die. It won’t be me.”
I dropped the power as promised, and before she could do anything else, I grabbed her head and dove into her mind.
The demon’s mind—thick and heavy—tried to keep me out. I pushed harder, like swimming through mud, but still, she did not yield.
Cool air brushed against me and invisible fingers clawed to tear me away. She was stronger than I’d thought. Our powers twisted into a dance of push and pull.
Darkness coated me. So I drew up my angelic power, my last resort, and her shield finally went down.
I was back at St. Margaret’s cemetery, the demon by my side.
Impossible.
Then Kelly faded. No. She slid into me.
I twitched and shifted my body to accommodate her. I had never done this before, but as I saw her past, she would see mine and feel everything I felt.
Ko held Abigale in his arms, ready to cut her throat if I didn’t give him the Book of Watchers. The burden of wanting to save her and doing what had to be done weighed on my shoulders.
I took a chance and opened the book, my handprint the key. Blinding light poured out, enveloping us, and I could do nothing but watch my brothers fade away into another realm.
After I closed the book, I soared overhead and wrenched Abigale out of Ko’s grasp. When the light finally dissipated, everyone else ceased to exist. I whispered a promise to Abigale that I would find her and we would reunite once again, just before we died in each other’s arms, the book vanishing with us.
I remembered blending in with the universe, becoming the brightest star. Mystical peace. Serenity. I floated among the other souls for one hundred years until it was time. But where was Abigale?
Apparently, I didn’t know she wasn’t with me. My mind was not my own.
As if the demon knew my question, she took me back to just before we died in the cemetery again. The power from the book boomed across the land, taking my brothers and the watchers to a realm to stay for eternity, or until the book opened again.
I held tightly to Abigale so we wouldn’t be separated. When my time had been spent, and my strength deteriorated, I had no choice but to let her go. We should have moved onward together, but Ko had snatched her. She was halfway inside the power of the divine, and the other half in the living.
Damn you, Ko!
He fought hard against the spell and managed to hold on, just to cause me harm, to get his revenge.
I had forgotten what had happened. I was seeing through the demon’s eyes. Abigale split into two just as she died. One soul went to the light, the other into the darkness. One falls from the light. One falls from the dark. When it was time to be reborn, they both entered the world of the living, not as a whole, but as two separate beings.
So the demon spoke the truth. She was the darkness of Abigale. So where was the other light?
Fear not, for there is release. A child of love and scorn is the key. For the gatekeeper, she will be.
How did Keira play into all this, besides the fact that she was the demon’s daughter?
How do I fix this? How do I tell Keira this demon is part of her mom?
Kelly had been spying on Keira. She had followed her to restaurants, her apartment, and on a mission. She purposely allowed herself to be taken in order to get closer to Keira.
A part of her loved her daughter, and the other part wanted to kill her. Kelly struggled with conflicting emotions. But it seemed in the end, she was determined to …
The demon zapped me back to the present. She gasped, her chest heaving.
“Stay away.” The demon spat at me and hissed. “I don’t want to feel your pain, your loss, especially not your love.” She lowered herself, defeated, and clutched her chest. “It hurts. Your fault for being a fool. You loved her too much, but you gave her up. How could you? You never went back for her, for the child.”
My heart split in two. “I—I didn’t know. I swear it. I thought I was doing the best for everyone.”
Kelly’s eyes glistened with tears, but so much hate and anger showed in them. “We could have been in the living as a happy family. You destroyed us, so I will destroy what you love. One must die. She will die. Not I. And you cannot kill me. I’m made from the stars. I will be re—”
“I can’t kill you, you say? Let me test that theory.” I plunged my sword into her heart.
She withered and shrieked from agony, holding onto the blade. Black blood spewed, pooling on the floor. Then she shuddered and took her last breath as inky liquid oozed out of her mouth.
Everyone has a darker version of themselves. The demon was the dark part of Abigale, but she was not my long-ago lover. I would not take her words to heart. Kelly spoke with anger and hatred. Abigale did not feel the same as her. She would forgive. She would understand.
I had to find Abigale before it was too late.
One last time, I studied Kelly’s features. She had some resemblance to Abigale, but it was difficult to tell under the tangled hair and filthy face.
“I’m done.” I tapped the glass, exhaustion weighing me down.
The door opened and closed behind me when I stepped out.
“You … you killed her?” Keira paled and took a step back from me like she was disgusted or upset.
Did she know the demon was part of her mother?
“I did it to save her. If one must die, it will not be your mother.”
Keira swallowed, tears filling her eyes. “My mother … she’s out there somewhere, isn’t she?”
“We don’t know for sure. The demon could be lying.” Ezekiel guided Keira to a chair.
Seeing Ezekiel treat her like his own daughter made me smile yet broke my heart. I didn’t know how to be like him, warm and attentive. He made her feel safe, loved. And I made her feel worthless.
Jealousy wasn’t what I felt … Guilt, always guilt. An image of a little Keira crying out for Mom and Dad flashed in my mind. Wondering why she didn’t have parents. And what demon had killed them.
I was the demon. I’d made the choice. Nobody’s fault but mine.
Everyone else kept silent, giving us space. I could only imagine what they were thinking.
Daniel gaped toward the demon. Samyaza gasped. Chills pricked me. I slowly turned. The demon craned her neck, stretched her limbs, and whipped her head to us.
“Hello.” She rose and shoved her face to the glass. “Surprised to see me? I will not die. Cannot die. Do you believe me now?”
Impossible. My sword, the sword of the divine, could kill an archangel. How had she survived?
“I’m not among the living nor the dead. Help me find your Abigale and I’ll end her suffering.”
“Liar.” Keira stomped and hit the glass over the demon’s face. “You tell me where my mother is, or so help me, I’ll torture you. I’ll kill you over and over again. I’ll kill you thousands of times, if I must, to get an answer from you.”
“Tsk. Tsk. Tsk.” The demon shook its head. “You poor child. I wouldn’t throw you away to be raised by someone else like your father did.”
Keira stole a glance at me and then back to the demon. “I had a happy life, so don’t worry about me.”
I suspected those words were more for me than the demon.
“Now, tell me where my mother is.” A light flickered in Keira’s palms.
Kelly moved back. “Don’t treat me like that, girl. I did no harm to you. Release me, and I’ll help you find your mother. Your mother loved you so much. It pained her to leave you. Her last thoughts were of you. You know what I say is—” She clawed at her chest and gasped for air as if a wall had closed in on her. “Something
is happening. Something. Something. I can’t breathe.” And then she stopped and peered back at us with a baleful grin. “She’s dying,” she sang happily. “One must die, and it won’t be me.”
“Shut up. Don’t listen to her.” Daniel tugged Keira. “She’s trying to get to you.”
Keira stumbled back, her voice so soft, almost inaudible. “I understand now. I am the gatekeeper between the light and dark. A child of love and scorn is the key. For the gatekeeper, she will be. I am the child of love, love from my mother. And I am the child of my father’s scorn. But I have no idea what to do next.”
“What are you saying, Keira?” Ezekiel asked.
Keira snapped out of her thoughts. “Keep the demon here. I’m going to have a chat with Malum.”
Ezekiel gripped Keira’s arm. “No. You are not a gatekeeper. The demon speaks in riddles to throw you off.”
Keira yanked herself away and squared her eyes on his. “Uriel is my father. But you knew all this time, didn’t you? I understand you were trying to protect me, but now that I know, everything changes. Don’t try to stop me. I am my own person, and I’ll do whatever the hell I want.”
Her conviction tugged my heart, and bliss filled me. She’d admitted out loud that I was her father.
Ezekiel blinked and ran a hand down his face. Then he looked at me, and then back to Keira. “I wanted to tell you. But I made a promise to your mother. She did it to protect you and your father.”
Keira nodded. “I hate that you kept secrets from me, but I understand. Now my mother needs me. I need to help her. The other half of her is alive somewhere. I need to bring them together.”
“Why Malum’s place?” Ezekiel asked.
“Because he had one of his soldiers capture Abigale,” I said. “Malum will have answers.”
“You’re not going alone.” Ezekiel gestured Daniel to follow Keira with a flick of his finger. “But Kai, you stay here and debrief me. We need to figure out a way to get Suri home.”
“I’ll help you as soon as I take care of this matter. I’ll go with Keira. Jonah and Samyaza will come along.” I needed to meet the witch with the book, anyway. Perhaps she could give me some answers.
Chapter 22
Sisters
Awan
I paced angrily in my room. I needed to discharge some lingering energy after visiting Ko and his brothers in their prison.
Ko was quite the character. Charming. Arrogant. And convincing in his bid to be released. I had told him I would think about his proposal, allowing the witches to rule with Ko instead of the demons.
Hell would have to freeze over before I let that happen. Watchers or archangels, they were all the same to me. Cocky and ruthless and didn’t give a damn about the enchantresses. The second they were in power, they would likely get rid of us.
And did Ko really think that I would actually allow Dom and Malum to rule by my side? I might allow them to rule beneath me, but never with me.
I will do whatever is needed of me to bring my people out of shame and into victory.
Before anything could happen, I needed that book.
“Where are they? They should have been here with the book by now,” I said.
“I hope they didn’t get themselves killed in the process,” Corian said from the bathroom, filing her nails.
“I don’t think you gave them enough time.” Giselle sat on the sofa, not a wrinkle of concern on her face.
Why did my sisters not take this seriously as I did?
I gave her my most evil gaze. She blinked and shrank into her seat.
It seemed Giselle only cared about keeping Malum’s bed warm. She carried out her part in our dirty plan by sleeping with him, but my gut told me she’d allowed herself to get too close to him. She had slept with him practically every night and only stopped when I reminded her of her duty.
As soon as he tired of her, he would leave her. Supernatural beings were not to be trusted. Demons especially. I knew this all too well.
“Relax, sister. I have every faith Uriel will find it.” Corian slinked out of the bathroom and sat next to Giselle. “He’s as desperate to get his brothers back as we are to bring our sisters back from the dead.”
“They’re not dead,” Giselle said softly. “They’re in the realm of the between.”
Corian raised her chin. She hated being corrected. “If they are not here in the living, then they are dead to me.”
Giselle rolled her eyes and turned away. Those two never got along. The tension between them spiked the air with deceit.
“Listen.” I stopped and sat on the edge of the bed. “Whatever squabble is going on between you two, put it aside. I need to show Lotus a united front. We can’t give her any cause to reconsider. We need to get inside Trinity Order.”
“Then what, Awan?” Giselle looked at me sternly. “You never told us what you will do once you hold a seat.”
I ran my fingers along the velvet duvet. So soft, like Dom’s skin in human form. A flashed image of our previous night together made me tingle with pleasure. “What do you mean what will I do? I want to bring back respect for all witches. We deserve that after all the suffering they have caused by casting us out. This new generation must not be reprimanded for past mistakes.”
Giselle knitted her eyebrows together. She didn’t believe me.
“Why must it be you on the seat? Why not me?” Corian crossed her legs and leaned back.
Anger coursed through me and I nearly pounced on her. I stifled my rage. How dare she question me? Time to remind her who I was and put her in her place.
“Because, Corian.” My tone was level yet stern. “I am an elder, the only surviving original, and you are not. Don’t you forget it.”
She stiffened, her lips in a thin line. “Yes, of course.”
“Do you think Lotus will speak to the councilors on our behalf?”
Leave it to Giselle to switch topics when our current conversation displeased her.
I sauntered to the vanity table and picked up my hairbrush. As I stared at my reflection, I combed my hair again and again, in a hypnotic rhythm.
“I think she will. Dom promised me she will, and he will keep his word.”
“And if he doesn’t?” Corian stood behind me, took my brush, and ran it through my hair.
I tipped my head back as she combed through a knot. “If he doesn’t, then I’ll kill him.” I looked at the reflection again, focusing on Giselle to get her reaction when I said, “Then I’ll kill Malum, and then the one Balen loves.”
Giselle gave me a placid expression, but I knew a storm raged underneath. Her flushed cheeks said it all. She had to do a better job concealing her true feelings.
“Oh, but don’t worry, Giselle, I’ll let you have the killing blow.”
I wanted to know where her loyalty lay. I’d never had cause to question it before.
Giselle joined us, standing opposite Corian. Without a brush, she raked her nails through my hair.
“That is very generous of you, Awan,” she said, unable to meet my eyes.
“What are sisters for? You two mean the world to me. I wouldn’t have come this far without you both. I would give my life for you, and I know you would do the same.”
Corian spoke her mind, however rude at times, but Giselle was a puzzle. Between the two of them, she was the one most likely to betray me. I felt it in my core.
“‘Til death do us part.” Corian placed a hand on my shoulder, her eyes meeting mine through the mirror.
Giselle’s thin-lipped smile became a scowl. “Do you feel it?”
I had. A flurry of pinpricks along my arm alerted me. But I’d waited for Giselle to mention it. I wanted her to remember her responsibility. Who she was. Who she needed to protect.
“Gather our sisters. Hurry. I’ll go find Dom.” I stormed out of there, ready for battle.
Chapter 23
Intruders
Awan
I didn’t get far. Dom’s roar led me to the fo
yer. Bodies slammed against the wall, shattering the plaster and breaking furniture. Crimson liquid spotted the white marble floor, and dead demons and vampire bodies scattered about.
“Where did all these vampires come from?” I yelled, loud enough that Dom could hear. “And why are they attacking a demon household? Vampires agreed to keep the peace. They must have known the witches were teaming with the demons.”
“Do we need to help?” Corian asked nonchalantly, standing beside me on the second floor.
“We should stop this before anyone gets hurt.” Giselle fixed her attention on Malum. Vampires surrounded him even after he’d terminated a handful.
Malum and Dom changed into their demon forms as they fought. Their hideous bodies rippled with muscles and strength, tearing their clothes like the Hulk. And their handsome features contorted into leathery skin and unrecognizable masks of rage.
Beasts indeed.
It turned me on.
A vampire leaped onto the crystal chandelier. A demon soldier jumped to attack it and latched on to its waist. Too heavy. The fixture would not hold their weight. The vampire, demon, and chandelier plunged, crystal shattering like tiny raindrops.
Even as glass splintered around them, they continued tearing at each other.
Then to my horror, one of the vampires exploded like a bomb, taking several demons down with him. The ground where he’d been standing was blasted open.
I stumbled backward, and so did my sisters.
“Where are the rest of our sisters?” I asked.
“I told them to stay in the library and wait for my instructions.” Corian looked behind her shoulder as if she could see them.
Another vampire exploded. Dom flew across the room, blood dripping down his head. Malum grabbed him and pulled him away from the debris. With bloody hands, he took Dom’s sword and slaughtered vampires like a madman. Until another vampire near the front door blasted into pieces, then another, and another.
If Dom or Malum died, we could take over. Neither Paymon nor Liana had the strength to overthrow us. We could take their home, and rule over them all. How powerful we would become.