“How were you able to get away?”
“I made a deal with him.” Uriel looked up at Azazel. “Honestly, I didn’t expect him to agree to it. I promised to forgive him for imprisoning me for all those years and not tell his secret if he released me from his hold, along with the restoration of all of my powers.”
Azazel’s brows furrowed. “What secret are you talking about?”
“Fuck if I know. I was bluffing, just to see what he’d do. He agreed, and in return, I cannot seek revenge on him.”
“That was smart, but risky,” Azazel said.
“I know, but I also think he suspected that I don’t know his secret.”
“No one but me knows,” Azazel said.
“Are you going to tell me what it is?”
“Baby, I told you no more keeping things from each other. I make it no secret that I hate Dio for not saving my bearer. He and I were fated to be enemies, where I can kill him but he cannot kill me. So he tries to get others to do it for him.”
Uriel sat up, realizing he was able to move his legs even though twenty-four hours hadn’t passed since he was stabbed.
“You can kill him?” Uriel said in shock.
“Yes, but as much as I hate him, I can’t do it. He’s my father and the man my bearer once loved and thought was a good man. Any ounce of feelings I still carry for Dio is because of Kristoph. I once wanted my father’s love and affection, but he never saw me as his son, only as a tool to be used. The war between angels was something I tried to avoid, and when it started, for years, the light would attack the dark, until we grew wary of losing more of our kind and attacked with force.”
Uriel lay back down on Azazel’s chest, listening to the beat of his heart. He let the information wash over him and realized Azazel was far more powerful than he knew. He had the power to kill the god of angels, but never exploited it or lorded it over Dio’s head as far as Uriel knew.
“You’re a good man, Azazel.”
Azazel snorted. “I’m only good to you and our children.”
“I think you’re wrong.” A thought came to Uriel, but he didn’t voice it.Does that mean Azazel should be the god of angels?
“What happened after you left the heavenly realm?”
“Once I was given my freedom, I went and retrieved Kristoph, but because of how broken I was, Sagittarius the blessing leader had me wait to pull him out of stasis and instead ordered me to get some mental help. I couldn’t blame him, and so he took me under his wing and helped me. During the time I started to get better, I would feed my powers to Kristoph, letting him know I was there, until the day I came to wake him. Once I was well enough, I went to see Donald. He’d just turned twenty-five, and just like Dio said, he had a healthy life with friends and family I couldn’t take him away from.”
“Uriel, look at me.” He raised his head and looked at Azazel. “Knowing what I know now, I don’t blame you for what happened. I meant it when I said I forgive you, but I will never forgive myself for not coming after you or for not knowing what Dagon and Gadriel were up to. And I especially will not forgive my father. You were a victim in our fight, and I will spend every day making up for the time we lost together. I’ve never stopped loving you, baby.”
Tears clouded Uriel’s eyes, and he reached up to caress Azazel’s face. “Even through all of that, I never stopped loving you, either. I might be a fool for taking you back so easily, but I need you in my life. If I could change anything about the past, it's not going back to you sooner.”
“Let’s promise never to run or push each other away,” Azazel said.
Uriel moved up and pressed their lips together. “I promise.”
He kissed Azazel, infusing it with all of what he was feeling. Uriel felt relief after finally telling Azazel everything. He hadn’t expected to tell him so soon, but he was glad that he had, and now they could move on with their lives. Uriel trailed his lips down to Azazel’s neck.
“I’m going to kill them,” Azazel said.
Uriel moaned and bit down on Azazel’s neck. “Can we not talk about them right now?”
Azazel sighed and wrapped his arms around his waist. “I’ll put the issue to rest for now, but we will get back to it.”
“Okay.” Uriel leaned back and looked at Azazel.
“What do you want?” Azazel asked.
“Truthfully?” Uriel said.
“Baby, I will give you anything you want.”
