Prologue
Saraqael
Twenty-one years ago
“My eternal star, I wasn’t expecting you,” Lucifer said, jerking up from his desk and striding over to me. He wrapped me in his arms, melding my body to his, and pulled me tighter. “Saraqael,” he breathed, the word heavy on his lips, as though the very utterance of it anchored him.
It was only years of training in the Ethereal Military that kept the tears at bay under his tender touch. I loved Lucifer with every piece of me. But I was breaking all the rules coming here, and we both knew it.
“Sara, are you alright?” He drew back. Two icy rings of Hell circled his gray eyes, gleaming like shackles. A pang of sadness hit me, the emptiness inside my soul throbbing in outrage. Those rings were a permanent reminder of what he now was—and what we would never have again.
Did he hurt as much as I did? Did he not see what they did to us?
I smiled. “Yes, my love. It’s just been a long year without you.”
The longest.
He didn’t know the half of it. Beneath my clothing were countless scars from Michael’s abuse—scars I explained away, blaming them on whatever evil I last faced. I was supposed to be this skillful warrior, able to defend myself against anything. Yet I didn’t fight back when Michael took advantage of me.
I needed him, so I endured his abuse.
Lucifer brushed his thumb along my cheekbone. “I know. There’s nothing I desire more than to see you. But we both know the King of Hell isn’t allowed a cordistella. I shouldn’t even allow you to come here. They’d punish you if they found out.”
“I know the risks, Lucifer.”
He shook his head, more at himself than me, a hint of sadness tugging at his lips. “You are a weakness I can’t help but indulge in.”
I used to be his strength. Half of his soul. Now we were both left with gaping holes from the removal of our bond. Because ofthem.
Lucifer clung to his duty to the Council of Righteousness. He trusted them and the choices they forced upon him. They destroyed us, and he saw it as necessary for the greater good. They cut off his wings, stole his angelic powers, and replaced more than half of the original council—and still Lucifer continued to trust them, to believe in them.
I looked away, my gaze catching on the carvings in his large fireplace. The cherry wood glistened with tormented souls clawing toward open air. Their silent cries echoed the voice in my head. The cold, empty center mirrored the shriveling thing in my chest. “You are no longer part of the council, Lucifer. Why do you continue to trust their word after what they’ve done to us?”
Did they have to sever our bond during the mysterious Unmaking Ceremony? Did they have to bind Lilith to him while he was unconscious?
He had no recollection of what they did, only what he was told when he woke. And despite all my investigating and accusations, I still couldn’t figure out what their underlying plan was.
Lucifer groaned. “I’m not fighting with you over this again. We only have so much time, and I still have a couple souls to condemn. Grab a drink, and I’ll see you in my room.”
I went to his room and pulled out the vial of blood Lucifer hadgiven me the last time I visited. The once-red liquid now swirled with ebony tendrils, mixed with Lilith’s powerful blood to give my body the ability to create life. Uncorking it, I drank every drop without hesitation. After shedding my clothing, I crawled beneath the silk sheets and waited.
I must have fallen asleep, because it wasn’t until I felt something wet and warm caressing my nipples through my lace lingerie that I woke.
“There she is,” he whispered, trailing kisses down my stomach to my core. “I was wondering how many kisses it’d take to wake you.”
I ran my hands through his white-blond hair. “And how many kisses did it take?”
He glanced up, smirking. “Two to make you moan in your sleep, four to wake you up, and”—he grazed a finger against my core—“five to make you wet.”
“Seems like you’re losing your touch.”
A cunning twinkle overtook his gaze.
“Am I?” He thrust a finger into my core, and I gasped. “I don’t think my touch is an issue at all.”
“Lucifer,” I moaned as he continued.
“Yes, my eternal star?” he asked, amusement in his voice, trailing his lips back up my stomach.
