Without another word, he left me there in the hallway staring at the swinging screen door as he bounded outside. If my brain weren’t so scrambled from the twists and turns of that conversation, I might have taken a second to enjoy my win. It was the first time I’d gotten Lucifer to run away fromme.
Too bad the victory would be short-lived. Because if nothing else, one thing was abundantly clear.
He wasn’t going to give up. And unless I figured out where he was keeping me, I wasn’t going anywhere. Which meant we’d keep facing off like this, over and over again. And if that was the case, I didn’t feel good about my odds.
I didn’t want to admit it, but I might be starting tolikehim, and that was exactly what he wanted.
At the very least, I understood him, and that was dangerous because it left room for empathy. And once there was empathy, it was impossible for hate. And if I couldn’t hate the devil, the world’s biggest enemy, then how could I possibly hope to keep myself from the inevitable fall?
Chapter
Twenty-Three
LILITH
“Well, I must say, I think you made the right call,” I murmured, having just listened to Alek’s full report from their aborted supply run. “We haven’t seen a mass possession used like that since before the Princes were locked away.”
“So it was demons,” Alek murmured. “I didn’t realize they were so willing to work together to possess armies.”
“I believe this to be the work of Sloth,” Evander murmured from his perch in the corner. I’d invited the angel to be part of this meeting due to his unique insights. My Drystan was still sulking and hadn’t stopped shooting daggers at him with his eyes. Possessive little poppet.
“He’s done this before?” I asked, even though I knew the answer. I wanted Evander to share what I’d already learned so as to keep from giving all my secrets away in front of the angel. We may currently be working on the same side, but we would always play for different teams.
“Once, right after the Fall. When the Princes went unchecked and Lucifer attempted to strike on the heels of being cast out.”
“What makes you sure it’s him?” Alek asked.
“The pope.”
“What about him?”
I sat back and waited for Evander to relay the information I already had.
“He is under Sloth’s control. He used his influence to possess the surviving humans in Vatican City as they flocked to him for guidance and salvation. The sloth demons are spreading faster than a plague. Before long, humanity won’t exist, and all of those souls will be lost to hell.”
“Why not wait a few more weeks? Seems like a big risk when they’re going to be wiped out anyway,” Drystan asked.
This one I had no trouble answering.
“It’s the difference between a guaranteed payday and a potential windfall. If left to die of ‘natural causes,’ most of those humans would inevitably end up in heaven, but by getting them to agree to possession, they signed their souls over to the other side.”
“What use will anyone have for souls if all this comes to an end?” Alek asked.
Evander spoke before I could. “Souls have power. Lucifer wants to shore up as much power as possible. Life finds a way, Alek. The humans may die, but new life will come crawling out of the primordial soup before long. If Lucifer has control, he will claim them as his people, and heaven ceases to exist.”
The Novasgardian grunted. “And so what happened in Central Park was what? A precursor? A test of some kind?”
“Not quite,” I said. “If I had to guess, I’d say it's the next wave of attacks against you and your fellow...” I struggled to find the appropriate word. What did one call a collection of people persecuted both for random blood ties and who they dared to love? “Family members,” I eventually said.
“This was about us?”
“Darling boy, haven’t you been paying attention? It’s always been about you. And Sunday. And dare I say, little Eden. Your connection to the horsewomen has painted a lovely target on your back. Yours as well as your brother’s and everyone else you love in this world.”
“So we will never be safe? That’s what you’re telling me.”
“I—”
“I did it! I did it! Call me Moira-the-fucking-exploira, because I did it!” Moira burst into the room with the glowing crystal orb between her palms, excitement blazing in her eyes.
