Adonis’s eyes flashed with a pale light, and I felt his magic ripple over my skin in a dangerous caress. The hair rose on the back of my neck, and an invasive power crawled through my blood, wrapping itself around my bones like a vine. Against my will, I felt my arm rise, my fingers reaching out for Adonis’s face.
I couldn’t control my voice anymore, but if I could, I’d be screaming at him. His intoxicating magic gripped me against my will. He had complete control over my body. I stared, entranced, as my fingertips stroked down his smooth cheek. He closed his eyes, breathing in deeply.
As soon as the magic loosened its grip on my body, I yanked my hand from his cheek. Snatching my wineglass from the table, I flung the contents in his face.
“Don’t ever do that again,” I snarled.
He leaned back in his chair, wine dripping from his skin in red rivulets. That infuriating, amused smile curled his lips as he dabbed the wine from his cheeks. “You did ask for a demonstration.”
Once again, he had a point, but that didn’t negate the primal outrage I felt at being controlled by an outside force. I tried to still the shaking in my body. I had nothing to threaten him with, no power of my own to stop him. Just my own impotent fury. “Promise me one thing. If you rule the celestial realm, will you be able to stay the fuck away from our world? Because angels like you don’t belong here. This is our world. The demons, the fae, the humans. And we want it back.”
Adonis seemed completely unperturbed. Bored, even. He held my gaze for a long moment, shadows pooling in the air around him. “Johnny could wake at any moment, and when he does, you’ll be faced with not one, but two angels you’ve betrayed. I’m your only way out of here.”
True. I refilled my glass, not answering him.
“Here’s what you need to know for now,” he continued. “We’re going to my castle first. I have some informants there who can tell us about our next move. But if you think I’m going to tell you where to find that, you may as well dig yourself a shallow grave next to Johnny’s.”
I raised my eyebrows. “You have your own castle?”
“Where do you think I’ve been living all these years?” He rose from his chair, his pale gaze sweeping over me. “Get your things ready to leave quickly. Whether you like it or not, it’s me and you against the world.”
I shuddered, and his footsteps echoed off the high ceiling as he stalked out of the room.
Screwed. Adonis had all the power here, and I was truly and completely screwed.
Unless, of course, I could steal that book from his room and learn a few things of my own.
I lurked outside Adonis’s door, my ear pressed to the wood. I heard nothing inside his room. I sniffed the air—I couldn’t smell his exotic scent, either.
Darkness had fallen outside, and only a few guttering candles lit the hallway. My pulse raced as I thought of sneaking around inside his room without his permission. What would he do to me if he found me?
I grabbed one of the candles from the sconces. Best if I got in and out of there fast, before I had the chance to find out.
Slowly, I turned the doorknob, opening the door into darkness.
I loosed a sigh of relief when I found the room empty. With a slow, careful movement, I shut the door behind me. Adonis had closed his curtains, and shadows seemed to climb the walls. I glanced at Adonis’s bed, wondering for just a moment if he ever entertained women there, what it would be like to give in to his seductive power…
None of my business.
I crossed to the bookshelf, and a spark of hope lit in my chest when I spied the thin, black volume, Bringer of Light etched on the spine.
I pulled it from the shelf, holding the candle above it. I opened it with one hand, turning to the first page—a hand-drawn picture of light beaming from a tree branch.
That was when I felt something else in the room—a seductive, exotic presence that whispered over my skin. I froze at the sensation of breath warming the back of my neck, fingertips skimming my hips.
“Ruby, my darling,” Adonis purred in my ear. “Did you think you could steal from the Dark Lord?” His voice was a dangerous caress.
Goose bumps rose on my skin. Of course he caught me. But how did he sneak up on me so quietly? My pulse raced, breath speeding up at the feel of his body’s warmth behind mine.
I snapped the book shut, speaking to him over my shoulder, my heart pattering like a frightened animal. “I just wanted a little more information. Since you won’t just tell me things.”
“No one steals from me. But I suppose I have to let you live.” His fingertips skimmed my hips again, a subtle promise of tormenting pleasure. “I can think of one way you can make it up to me.”
Heat swooped through my belly. I pivoted, shoving the book at him. “You can keep your book. I’ll find out the truth, one way or another.”
Adonis plucked the book from my fingertips. “Honestly, this one doesn’t contain anything useful anyway. You need to know Phoenician and cuneiform for that.”
“Whatever.” I stalked out of the room.
A part of me wanted to give in to the torturous pleasure he promised, but I’d never submit to the seductive allure of a monstrous angel of death.
Chapter 5
A howling noise woke me from my sleep—something inhuman that chilled me to my marrow.
I glanced quickly at Hazel, who snored gently by my side.
But that ragged keening kept winding through the air, piercing ice in my blood. I pushed off my blankets and crossed to the window. I pressed my hands against the cold panes, jumping as a sentinel drifted past, dark eyes wide, soaking in everything.
Even as a creature rent the night air with its cries, the sentinels were watching me. The only creatures the sentinels didn’t watch were the angels.
I swallowed hard. Johnny couldn’t have risen already, could he? It had only been a few days. Granted, I had no idea how long poisoned angels stayed unconscious. It wasn’t like there were reference books for this kind of thing, and if there were, Adonis would probably just yank them from my hands.
I focused my vision, summoning my keen fae senses to search through the dark for signs of movement in the trees, but I could see nothing outside.
As I pressed my hands against the glass, a flock of ravens burst from the trees, squawking as they swooped away from the forest. They soared over the castle walls. More birds followed—crows, swallows—desperate and writhing murmurations that fled the dark forest in a chaotic panic.
Johnny. He was waking. I could feel it like a deep, gnawing hunger between my ribs, an emptiness I could never fill. I’d had the same feeling before, when I’d gotten too close to him on the castle parapet.
Adonis was right. These angels never belonged on earth.
A chill rippled over my skin at the sight of gray mist curling from the trees.
“Hazel,” I said quietly.
“Mmmm.” She rolled over, pulling the sheets tighter around her shoulders.
“Hazel,” I said a little louder.
This time, she sat bolt upright.
My mouth had gone dry. “I think Johnny is waking already. We have to get out of here.”
She rubbed her eyes, yawning. “Why?”