Kneeling down, Nick reached to touch his shoulder. “I’m sorry, Cay.”
Caleb continued to hold his brother. “It’s all my fault. We shouldn’t have come here.”
“We had no choice.”
Tears misted in Caleb’s serpent eyes, but he refused to let them fall. “We had a choice. Why are we trying to save a world that has never shown mercy on any of us? Why not let Cyprian burn it to the ground?”
He wasn’t wrong. That was the hardest part, and Nick struggled to find words that might comfort him. Sadly, he wasn’t good at these kinds of pep talks. That was why the good Lord had given him his mom and Kody. They knew how to soothe and comfort.
His knack was for saying the wrong thing at the worst possible time.
But this was his responsibility. “Itzal was with us, trying to prevent that. I know you don’t want him to have died in vain.”
Caleb curled his lip, and in that moment, Nick saw the ferocious demon lord who’d once led an army. “What do I care about any of this?”
He had no answer for that. Caleb had been done wrong by so many. The world was harsh and it was cold.
Nick wasn’t even sure whyhecared.
Vawn cleared his throat. “Nick?”
He looked over his shoulder. “How’s Kaziel doing?”
“Still alive, but I think he’s out for the count.”
Caleb might be, too. Honestly, he didn’t have a whole of fight left in him. It seemed like that was all they’d been doing. He missed having respite. Being a student who knew nothing of all this.
Curse you, Kyrian.
Had he not saved him, Nick would have known nothing of the Dark-Hunters.
Would it matter?
He would still have become the Malachai.
No, he wouldn’t have. He’d have died the night Kyrian met him. Had Kyrian not taken him to the hospital, his wounds would have killed him. Then his father would have continued on as the Malachai.
Maybe that would have been best. Adarian had seemed content to wait for his mom to take him in.
It would only have lasted until she died. Or he grew tired of her.
Anything happens to you, Nicky, they’ll have to dig two graves.
His mom wouldn’t have survived his death. Which meant his father wouldn’t have stayed in New Orleans. He’d have returned to being a bloodthirsty beast out to end the world.
You can’t go back.
Would have. Should have. Could have.
Whatever was past was done. This was their future, and he was in control now.
You are the Malachai.
But he sure didn’t feel like one, and maybe that was the problem. His powers scared him. There was so much that he still didn’t know.
Other than he was destined to end to the world and become a tool for evil.
No. Hewasevil. To his bitter core.
