But I loved her. God help me, I loved her.
And she was right about one thing. Vex would never forget what she did to him. Demons didn't forgive. They didn't move on. They festered. They planned. And when they came back, they came back worse.
Maybe the answer was to leave New Orleans.
Both of us.
I wished I had faith in Rose the way Selena did. But I'd seen too much. Felt too much. Had too many things crawl inside me and take the wheel while I screamed behind my own eyes.
And something about the shard nagged at me. If it could really ward off possession, why hadn't we known that before? Angelo and Costin wanted it to protect their loved ones from being dragged to hell. That was the mission. That was all anyone ever said. Nobody mentioned possession.
So either Rose was guessing, or there was something about that shard none of us understood yet.
For the next couple of hours, Selena and I were at a standoff. She wouldn’t move from the door and I had no intention of physically challenging her. That would defeat my purpose of defending her.
Someone knocked on the door. “Rocco, Selena.” It was Valentin. “They’re ready.”
They? Alice must be assisting her. She was a powerful witch, powerful enough to stop time.
I cocked my eyebrow. “Can I leave the room?”
“Very funny,” Selena growled as she opened the door.
Valentin and Darius waited for us outside. They led us into Valentin's room. The beds had been shoved to the side to make space. I glanced over at Lucien. His color had returned and he nodded at me as I entered.
I couldn't hold his gaze. I looked away.
Raven came toward me and I braced. Waited for the slap. The accusations. Every word I deserved. Selena edged in closer, her shoulder pressing against my arm. She wasn't as strong or as powerful as Raven, but her protective instinct washed over me like a shield.
"I know what happened to Lucien." Raven's voice was steady. Controlled. "You attacked him, Rocco."
I winced. My eyes darted to the door. Maybe I should just get the fuck out of here.
"Look at me."
I forced myself to meet her gaze. Her eyes were hard, but not cruel.
"It wasn't your fault. Am I angry at what that demon forced you to do to Lucien? Yes. But that wasn't you." She took a step closer. "I have fought evil before. It manipulates. It twists people into doing what it wants. I have seen it break people." Her voice softened. "It's never broken you, Rocco. Remember that."
Something cracked inside my chest. I clenched my jaw so hard my teeth ached, because if I didn't, I was going to fall apart in front of all of them.
Raven glanced over at Selena. "This time, evil lost. You're brave, Selena. He should be proud of you."
"I am," I said. My voice came out rougher than I intended. I squeezed Selena's hand and she squeezed back.
Rose held the shard in her palm. Her eyes were bright, her color returned — she looked like a different woman than the one slumped against the tree a few hours ago. "Alice and I have been in contact with Tinker Bell. She found a spell that we think will work to keep any of us from being possessed."
The room went still.
"Tinker Bell did more research on theLapis Umbraestone," Alice said. She looked at each of us as she spoke. "The stone was used by angels when they fought demons on Earth — it was their weapon for sending demons back to hell. It shattered and was lost."
"Lost," I repeated. "Something that powerful just got lost?"
"Centuries of war will do that." Alice's voice was steady, patient. "What matters is what's inside it. The shard possesses some of the Archangel Michael's power. The same power that's in his sword." She paused. "Excalibur."
The word hung in the air. I stared at the shard in Rose's palm. That small, jagged thing held a piece of Excalibur. No wonder the demons couldn't touch it. Excalibur could kill them.
"What we're going to do," Alice continued, "is cast a spell, and the Lapis Umbrae will blaze a tattoo of Excalibur onto each of us. The tattoo will carry some of the shard's power. Tinker Bell believes it will act as a shield around our bodies — a shield that no demon can pass through. Not even Balthazar."
