Gabe followed me silently, his bloody scepter slung over his shoulder. He was pissed off about something, but I wasn’t interested in whatever his problem was.
We had an empty graveyard that had been filled with sleeping gods, my queen was mentally and physically in shambles, the Sorter of Souls was broken, and my home had been all but destroyed.
Whatever was up Gabriel’s ass was the least of my worries.
Most of these gods and goddesses had their own realms, many of which had been locked up and impenetrable in their absence. The realms lay on top of each other and were separated by the veil, much the same way Heaven, Earth, and Hell were. It had been so long since these beings had walked through the folds of reality that I barely remembered how we had all coexisted before Yahweh.
I had just been created when Yahweh started to really come into his power. He had already subdued many of them, and after I woke up from purgatory, most of them had already been put to sleep.
The raw and empty graves both unnerved and excited me. We were overdue for a revolution, and most of these gods wouldn’t be a threat. I wasn’t worried about the God of Healing and Love, the Sky and the Moon Goddess, or the God of Luck and Peace. I was more concerned about Ares, the God of Wrath and War.
I didn’t fear disruption. On the contrary, I loved disruption so much that I had been mistaken for the God of Chaos more than once in my long life… but I also wasn’t an idiot. I valued self-preservation over all else. As happy as I was to mix things up and watch the world burn, I didn’t have any intention of burning along with it.
Hecate’s grave was just as empty as I had expected it to be, and I knew she was pissed. Clawing her way out of her own grave was definitely not something she would have been thrilled about, and a small part of me wondered if she blamed me for not being there when she woke up. I did my best to ignore the twinge of guilt that shot through my chest at the thought that she might very well be pissed with me for many reasons. Not being there to help her out of her coffin was likely the least of them.
My ears pricked as I heard the unmistakable sound of two baying dogs. My hellcats hissed at the sound, but I felt my lip curl up.
“Shemhazai,” Gabriel said, his tone sour.
“Shut up,” I snapped, straining to see if I could determine which direction the barking was coming from.
“No, we had a deal. I help you, and you get Lilith to change me out of this shit form. It’s time to pay up.”
I grit my teeth in annoyance. The dogs were silent now, and I hadn’t been able to decipher where their howls had come from because of Gabe’s fucking yammering.
That had probably been the one fucking clue she would be willing to give me, and now it was gone. I whirled on the dark angel, my claws unsheathed, and I wrapped them around his throat.
“I told you to shut the fuck up, Gabriel; now you have cost me my prey,” I snarled, our noses inches apart. He didn’t flinch. He met my gaze head-on and jutted out his chin.
“I don’t really give a fuck, Shemhazai. A deal is a deal. Have your queen strip me of this form or there will be consequences.”
I narrowed my eyes on him, letting my claws scrape against the delicate skin on his handsome neck. I watched his Adam’s apple bob and wondered how it would feel to sink my teeth into it.
“I don’t know, Gabriel,” I purred, reaching around him with the hand that wasn’t wrapped around his throat. I traced a claw down the shining black feathers of his wing. He took a sharp breath and shuddered beneath my touch. I’d had wings once upon a time. I knew how sensitive they were. “I like you with wings. You remind me of a little bird.” I pressed my lips close to his ear, watching his skin pebble as I spoke. “Catseatbirds.”
We were standing close enough that I felt it when he hardened at my threat. I pulled back as he swallowed, relishing the feel of his throat contracting beneath my palm.
“A deal is a deal, Shemhazai.” He stood firm, and I released him, giving him what I knew was a feline smile.
“You’re right, little bird. A deal is a deal. Though, you should be careful what you wish for. Making deals with a demon is usually more trouble than it’s worth.” I winked, before brushing past him to head back to the manor.
I didn’t bother looking back to see if he was following.
I knew he would be.
“People incapable of guilt usually do have a good time.”
—RUST COHLE, TRUE DETECTIVE
After a hot shower and a thousand kisses, the light had returned to Lilith’s eyes.
I pulled one of the healers who had been tending to the wounded in the dining room away and had her mend the wounds in Lilith’s hands. Whatever those golden spikes had been made of had made it difficult for the healer to do her work, but happily, by the time she left, there were only two small pink scars left.
I opened her hands and kissed each palm reverently, stroking her new scars with my thumbs.
“I can’t believe you died,” she whispered from where I had her curled tightly under my arm on the bed. I gently kissed her forehead, greedily inhaling her scent.
“If you bleed, I bleed,” I murmured against her. “I’ll never forgive myself for not making it to you in time.”
