Penelope frowned, confused. “Abandoned him?” That was ludicrous. “Oliver’s never wanted anything to do with me. Ever since we were kids. Even after our mother left, I needed him, but he shut me out completely.”
“But you’re twins.”
“Yeah. We shared the same womb. That’s about it.”
“There’s something deeper,” Asmia said, her eyes serious. “Something inside Oliver that’s eating at him. You’re not the source of his anger, merely an outlet. I think he knows you’ll distance yourself because you have to. He uses that.”
“How do I fix it?” she asked, shocked by this revelation. The last thing Penelope would ever want to do was push her brother away, but it made complete sense.
“You can’t. Only Oliver can fix it.” Asmia placed her hand on Penelope’s arm. “He will, though. Very soon.”
She stared at the Fae, wanting her to elaborate, but she didn’t.
“I need to go find Taayin. I need to apologize.”
Penelope remained on the sofa when Asmia vanished into thin air. She’d gotten used to that move. They all did it. Randomly, at that. She could be standing in a room, surrounded by angels, and a second later, they were all gone.
It was a rather cool trick, one she wondered if she would be capable of eventually.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Monday, August 12, 2019
PERFIDIOUSPACEDTHEABANDONEDWAREHOUSE,ATTEMPTINGTOfind a corner far enough away from Seraphina so that he didn’t wrap his hands around her neck and squeeze. He’d been fantasizing about it for the past few hours, the idea of sending her back to Hell the only pleasant thought he’d had since he left Asmia at that club. Not that it would do him any good. He doubted he could send her back to Hell and be far enough away.
But that was a nice idea.
“Why are you smiling?” Seraphina asked when she joined him as he made his way into the small, cramped office.
“Just enjoying the fruits of my labor,” he told her, holding out his arms to encompass the room.
Her blue eyes slowly scanned the space, taking it all in. “Planning to make this your permanent residence?”
“Permanent’s too definitive. But I think I’ll maintain it for the time being.”
At least until he made his move. Until then, it was imperative he made Seraphina believe he was working toward the goal.
Turning to face her, he tucked his hands in his pockets. “Any word on whether Obsidian’s planning to kill his female so he can bring her back to life on the full moon?”
Seraphina’s glossy red lips pulled back to reveal bright white teeth. “It excites me to think of the female’s death. Wonder if he’d be opposed to letting me watch?”
“Not really an answer,” he told her, though Perfidious couldn’t care less as to Obsidian’s intentions, or theamsouelot’s,for that matter. However, he wasn’t an idiot and he knew Lucifer was keeping track of their progress.
She pouted nicely. “No word. Though I’m pretty sure they know you were at the club.”
The news made him smile. He was hoping they would put two and two together. He wanted them to realize how close he’d been, how easily he could’ve taken them out. Unfortunately, that would also mean one of those damn warriors had siphoned his mind control right out of Asmia’s beautiful head.
Seraphina moved toward him, her blood-red nail scraping a line down his chest. “While I know you’re enjoying yourself, you’re running out of time, my lord. Should he mate her, you’ll no longer have access to her soul.”
No, he wouldn’t. It would be safely ensconced in Heaven alongside Obsidian’s.
Not that Perfidious was worried. There were plenty of others he could seek. And once he had Asmia at his side, he could easily locate every single one of them, keep apprised of their progress. And the two of them together would take down Michael’s little army, acquiring all of them one by one. Perfidious figured the king of Hell would forgive losing Obsidian’s soul as long as he delivered the rest.
Perfidious peered down, watched as Seraphina slowly released the buttons on his shirt. She didn’t stop there, though, going lower, unhooking his slacks, freeing his cock.
“It gets me hot to think about you slaying the female,” she rasped, dropping to her knees as she stroked his erection firmly.
What got him hot was thoughts of that blond Fae, the feel of her body against his, the soft rasp of her voice as she said his name. It thrilled him to know she’d had no idea who he was while at the club, but now… Another smile pulled at his mouth. Now he could only assume Asmia was appalled to know he’d been so close. But in order to have feelings one way or another, she had to think about him.
