Kratos really didn’t want me anywhere near Adonis, did he?
“Kratos,” Hazel chirped. “Golden one. Can I walk you outside? I just want to see where you keep the hounds, and I was saying earlier that I had a burning desire to see the hounds, and I thought you might want to take me to them now, and to fulfill your heart’s desire by going to the hounds now, and you really just wanted to hunt and feel that sweet release in your chest like a great explosion of joy.” She rose, her chair scraping over the floor, and beamed a smile at Kratos. “Shall we go?”
Brilliant. My sister was a brilliant manipulator.
Kratos frowned, confusion clouding his features. “Right. Hunting.” He rubbed his chest, wincing for a moment. “I need to go.”
“Of course you do,” said Hazel. She strode out of the room, and Kratos trailed after her.
At the threshold, he turned back to me, his body flashing amber. A corona of light beamed around his head, and his copper wings appeared behind him, cascading down his back. “You’ll want to get back to your room, Ruby.”
As he turned and left, my stomach dropped. That was right. I couldn’t forget that I was a prisoner here.
When I glanced at Adonis, amusement was dancing in his pale eyes.
“He seems awfully eager to keep us apart,” I said.
Adonis picked up his wineglass. “Of course he is. I’m a monster.”
A shiver danced up my neck. Sometimes, his beauty had a cruelly mocking edge to it.
I took a long sip of my wine and glanced around the room, taking care that no servants lurked in the shadows. “If you’re a monster, why are you working against the other death angels?”
“Their vision is limited. They’re slaves to the commands of the Heavenly Host. They don’t want what I want.”
“And what do you want?”
His masculine scent wrapped itself around me, bringing with it promises of dangerous pleasure. “To rebel against those who seek to control us. To maintain my free will, to drag the gods from the heavens, and make them suffer, just a little.” The ice in his eyes hardened. “To put them in their place.”
“And you need a Bringer of Light to achieve…your rebellion?”
“Precisely. Powerful as I am, I can’t kill the other angels. Funny, isn’t it? You’re a fae from nowhere, but only the Bringer of Light can stop them.”
“What exactly is a Bringer of Light?”
He leaned closer, his dark magic curling around his powerful body. “Someone who can control the magic of the Old Gods. A power grew in the rowan branch. I couldn’t see it like you could, but I could feel it. When you fought Johnny, I watched you harness that power. You’re a vessel, Ruby.”
“I see. And you want to use me, but you haven’t explained what I need to do.”
In his eyes, I saw nothing but the cold, staggering arrogance of an ancient god. “It’s quite simple, Ruby.” The candlelight flickered over the chiseled planes of his face. “As the Bringer of Light, I want you to serve me. I don’t want to rule on earth. Worship from humans is hardly an achievement. I want to rule the celestial realm. You can help me achieve that.”
“How? And what’s in it for me?”
A wicked smile. “What’s in it for you, my little feral fae? You get to live.”
Chapter 4
My chest tightened. Of course, he’d keep his cards close to his chest. Bringer of Light—whatever that was—obviously came with some serious power, and he wasn’t going to give me access to it without keeping complete control.
“You want me to help you gain even more power than you already have?”
Adonis’s magic moved in menacing whorls around him. “Yes.”
“Call me crazy, but I’m not sure I’m keen to give more power to a monster.”
The air thinned around me. “You’re surrounded by monsters. You just have to decide which ones are your allies.” An easy smile, a predator toying with his prey. “I must say I find it interesting that you were perfectly happy to kiss a monster on Eimmal. I heard your heart speeding up, felt your blood racing. I saw the look in your eyes, how much you wanted me. Tell me, Ruby. Does death lure you in?”
I tightened my grip on my wineglass. “No. The spring fever affects me that way because I’m fae. I kissed you because you were there. That’s it. I would have preferred Kratos.” I wasn’t sure why I added that, except I thought it would help to keep Adonis at a distance.
Adonis’s eyes hardened like chunks of ice, and a cold draft whispered over my skin. “Is that right?” His powerful, shadowy magic slid through to my bones, making my body shiver. “Then you’re a wise one, Ruby. And you’re right to think me a monster. I’ve killed scores of humans. I’ve spread plagues over continents. When I lived among the fae, I helped them kill for fun.” His eyes gleamed with a terrifying intensity, and his magic coiled around my ribs. “I killed my own parents, Ruby. That is what I am.”
The hair on the back of my neck stood on end, and I swallowed hard. “Wonderful. Sounds like a promising partnership. Why the hell should I choose you as an ally?”
“Because I’m the only one here who knows the truth about you. Kratos’s reaction to your deception is an unknown. And what’s more, if I rule the celestial realm, I won’t be here. We both have the same goal, don’t we? Get me away from this world.”
“You make fair points.”
“You don’t have the first clue how to fight the Heavenly Host, or even what you’re looking for. I suppose I could fill you in on a few details, except that I don’t trust you at all.”
The wheels began to turn in my mind. He had a book in his room—Bringer of Light. If I could steal that from him, maybe I could learn this information on my own. Then I wouldn’t have to rely on a death angel.
“So in this partnership of ours, you’re not going to tell me what we’re looking for, or where we’re going, or anything remotely useful.”
He traced his fingertips over his wineglass. “What would be the fun in that? Besides, I don’t need you running off to the Order with every little morsel of information I give you. And I don’t need you turning your powers on me.”
Bastard was holding all the damn cards. “Hazel will never come with us if we can’t tell her where we’re going.”
A cruel smile. “And what makes you think I have a use for your sister?”
My fingers tightened into fists. “I’m not leaving without her. You need me, and I’m not going without her.”
“You do realize I can compel you to act. The fun I could have with a beauty like you.” His sensual voice promised excruciating temptation.
I sucked in a sharp breath. “But you never have compelled me. How do I know you’re not bluffing?”