40. Thea

Chapter 40

Thea

T hea grunted as the slices along her palms tugged. They'd been cleaned up and bandaged, as had the rest of her.

"You sure about this?" Riley asked, his grey eyes as dark as any storm. Fitting considering the rage that dominated his expression. "You can wait outside."

"Try, and see what happens." Riley's lip twitched at her words, and Lucy chuckled darkly, an ominous presence at her back. He was the one to find her only seconds after Gideon had taken Jax, and hadn't left her side since.

‘Jax is my brother,' he'd explained when she'd told him to back off, as if that was any reason to become her shadow.

Time ticked away in her head. It had already been eight hours, the pressure beneath her ribs growing with every second that passed. She needed to figure out what to do, which was hard when she was surrounded. She wasn't used to working with others. Roach was the exception, and look how well that turned out.

"You have someone watching my family?" she asked Riley for what must be the tenth time, knowing he was the leader. It was the way in which he held himself, which was impressive considering every Guardian she'd met had the ‘danger, don't fuck with me' vibes.

Riley didn't bother with an answer, his attention on the red-head who stood to the side. Kace, not that he'd introduced himself, or even looked over in her direction. She only knew his name because someone else had called him.

Thea knew her family was safe, having called to talk to her mum only a few minutes ago. But she still couldn't help but ask, just so she could hear the words.

"It's rude to talk to someone else mid-conversation," she growled, forcing Riley's attention back on her.

"You already know the answer," Xander replied instead, his eyes so pale she would have sworn he could see into her soul. They were creepy as fuck, but somehow suited him.

Titus completed the group. His irises were the same shade as Lucy's, and his expression wasn't exactly unfriendly, but also not open as he caught her staring a few times. There was a tension beneath his skin that was more prominent than the others.

"He's not that impressive," Lucifer whispered, humour in his tone. Thea turned to find him smirking over her shoulder at Titus. "He only has one wing."

Titus flipped him the finger. "We ready to go? Our boy has been gone too long."

Riley nodded, knocking his knuckles against the large wooden door before using his heavy boot to force it open. Thea hadn't asked where they were going when she invited herself, Lucy advocating for her spot in the car. They'd pulled up outside a large, white building in the centre of the city. Wings had been carved into the stone, intricate designs that matched the finials along the metal fence.

It wasn't hard to figure out it was the home of a celestrial. Or maybe someone with a wing fetish .

They stepped into the white foyer, the building grand as several guards swept down with their wings held tight to their backs. Feathers were a spectrum of colour, ranging from white to pale blues and yellows. Copper wings appeared, a flash of irritation on the man's face before he quickly covered it with a neutral mask.

"Mr Storm," he said in his deep drawl. "I didn't realise we had a meeting." His eyes swept over the Guardians before returning to Riley.

Thea had watched the news enough to know it was Cassiel, the Councilman.

Lucifer shifted from behind her, a blur as he drifted until he was toe to toe with the archangel. With a snarl, he gripped Cassiel's throat, shoving the large man against the wall hard enough a portrait fell to the floor with a crash.

"Where is he?" Lucifer growled, the earlier humour replaced by an almost feral energy.

The winged guards pointed their weapons, ready to intervene, but with a barely discernible nod from their archangel, they all backed away.

"You can't kill me without causing a ripple in the power," Cassiel managed to push out. He made no effort to free himself, his wings spread impressively wide behind him.

Lucifer chuckled, the sound manic. "Like I give a flying fuck."

"Our brother's been taken," Riley said, so calm it frosted the air. "Where's Gideon?"

Cassiel met Riley's gaze, silencing his reply.

"He has two pages, not one," Riley continued. "Which means you betrayed us."

"You see, you really didn't want to betray us." Lucifer reached over with his spare hand and plucked a feather. "We're the monsters that hunt other monsters. "

Kace moved to stand beside her, his body coiled tightly as if he was a viper ready to strike. Thea kept herself quiet, studying the details of the pale foyer. Three guards stood and watched, spears held in white-knuckled grips. Leather straps criss-crossed their chests, bare and marked with what looked like an arrowhead. A brand, the skin darker than each of their tones and shiny. Thea had already counted the doorways, three including the exit at her back. Wide set stairs led to the floor above where another guard, this time female, hovered over the railing and watched the testosterone driven argument below. She wasn't bare-chested, instead wearing a long, light beige tunic that split high on her thighs.

Cassiel glared, finally reaching up to grip Lucifer's wrist. But Lucy wasn't letting go. "Unhand me, before I burn you where you stand."

Lucifer leaned closer, head having to dip slightly. "Try me."

The first flash of doubt crept into the archangel's gaze, quickly blinked away. "The document was stolen."

Riley crossed his arms, flanked by Titus and Xander. "Stolen?"

"I'm investigating the details. It was stolen a few days ago from my personal collection."

Lucifer laughed, his grip jerking for a second before he finally stepped back. "Are you telling me one of your own people betrayed you?"

Cassiel's expression tightened. "Gideon may have two pages, but the power isn't for just anyone. Only those born of celestrial blood can wield its true potential."

"Where can we find him?" Riley asked.

"Does it matter?" Cassiel's voice dropped dangerously low. "We all know nothing other than the final page would be exchanged, and we can't let that happen."

Thea swallowed, her cuts burning when her hands automatically fisted.

"You know as well as I do there are victims of war. Your brother is just one of them."

"Yet you let it get stolen," Thea said, immediately regretting the decision to speak when everyone turned to her.

Lucifer grinned, showing off his slightly sharper than they were earlier teeth. "Incompetent, if you ask me."

Cassiel didn't crack a smile. "There are no women amongst the Guardians, so who are you?"

"She's unimportant," Riley said, bringing the conversation back to him. "Now, where can we find Gideon?"

Rude, she thought, but was thankful she was no longer under scrutiny.

"Gideon wants power and control, which makes him easy enough to manipulate." Cassiel tugged at the edge of his shirt, straightening it. "You just need to push him in the right direction."

One of the guards stepped forward, his wings a pale blue and edged with silver. His words were quiet, his expression not giving anything away. Cassiel nodded at whatever was said.

"You enter my home, and inform me you have lost one of your brothers to the same Daemon you were tasked in destroying," he said. "I have already warned the mutt of what will happen if you fail, and it seems I'm going to have to intervene."

"Call my brother a mutt one more time," Kace threatened, his voice guttural.

"I have no care for your brother," Cassiel said, dismissing him with a flick of his hand. "He's likely dead already."

Thea flinched, Kace's gaze prickling the side of her face. She knew Jax wasn't dead; she could feel it. Even if the connection was weakening at an alarming rate. Before she'd purposely strangled the warmth of the bond, and now she mentally gripped it with all her strength.

"You should concentrate on retrieving the pages. Gideon cannot be given all three."

"We have no intention of handing over the document," Riley said, and Thea's stomach dropped.

"But that's the only way to save him!" The words exploded, unease prickling beneath her skin like a swarm of bees. "You can't pick a piece of paper over his life!"

"A single life isn't worth more than thousands, if not more," Cassiel said. "A warrior would understand that."

"Warrior my arse!" she seethed. "You're just a coward, otherwise you would have gone after Gideon yourself." Her voice had risen, and all eyes were on her once again.

Fuck.

This wasn't the time to speak up, her mind racing with ideas on how to save Jax. She didn't care about the stupid document, but apparently she did care about Jax. More than she thought. Enough to do something stupid.

"This is why women don't belong in wars," Cassiel grunted. "Your empathy is a burden."

She heard a sound of disagreement from above, Thea the only one to look up and find the female angel shaking her head. She'd moved to the top of the stairs, mostly hidden from her vantage point.

"Hold your anger," Kace whispered, and Thea had to swallow her retort.

"I need to go calm down," she replied, stepping out until the sun warmed her icy skin. She quickly moved to stand by the car, grabbing her phone from her pocket. She only had a minute or so, and she had to make it count .

"Swiper," came Roach's immediate reply. "Do you have it?"

"Not yet." Thea looked back over her shoulder, checking she was still alone. "But I will."