35. Hayliel

35

“ W ho’s that?” Raphael asks, like he can tell just from my expression that the answer isn’t a good one. It’s not.

It takes a few tries before I can make the words pass my lips. “I can’t say for sure, but his voice is almost identical to the masked man from the library. It doesn’t vibrate with power like it did that night, but the way it makes me feel like I’ve stepped into utter darkness is the same.” A shiver races down my spine, all the way to my toes.

Raphael’s gaze sharpens, and I wonder if he can tell how afraid I am. “What the fuck is he doing here, of all places?”

Outside, the voice booms again. “I know you’re in there. Come out and greet me. I have an offer for you.”

The more he talks, the more something itches in mind. But what? Where else have I heard him?

“There’s no way in fucking hell you’re going out there, hummingbird,” Zeke says, looking angry.

Raph nods. “For once, I agree with him.”

I expect the same from Theo, but he surprises me. Stepping forward, he grabs my shoulders and stares into my eyes. “Tell us what you’re thinking.”

Internally, I smile at how well he knows me. Even through this terrible situation, he’s thoughtful. “His voice. Is it familiar to you?”

My three guys share a glance, and I know they hear it, too. “From the barn,” Theo goes pale.

“Oh, shit.” Raphael says.

“This is the boss, the angel who ordered demons to nab Roderick.”

Pieces slot into place in my mind at the revelation. If this asshole has my parents, I have to go outside and face him. “I’m sorry,” I whisper, locking eyes with each of my guys. “We need to know who he is and what he wants. If he really is who we think he is, then he has plenty of angel blades and I can’t just—”

“We’re coming with you,” all three of them say in unison. My supporters. My protectors. They’ll back me until the very end. I fight back the tears threatening to consume me. I can’t let them out yet. Not now. Not when my parents’ lives sit on my shoulders.

On legs that don’t feel like my own, I walk through the now unfamiliar house, past demon dust and broken furniture, until I reach the front door. It’s open, but not wide enough for anyone to walk through. My heart pounds in a sporadic rhythm as I push the door all the way open.

There, standing on the edge of the street, is a figure so magnificent it puts all the drawings I’ve seen before to shame. Four white wings stretch wide behind a massive frame, with his signature flame-topped staff held loosely at his side. He’d be handsome if the manic look in his eyes wasn’t so prominent, or his smile wasn’t so gleeful. If I weren’t seeing this with my own eyes, I’d never believe it.

Archangel Auriel stands in front of me on a nameless street in the Fallen district, and I’m pretty sure he took my parents.

“It’s so good of you to join me, my little seraph. I was beginning to think we’d never get a proper introduction.”

Now that my initial shock at seeing a fucking Archangel has worn off, I walk past the threshold, feeling my guys disperse around me on the front step. I don’t miss the fact that somehow this guy knows my secret. While few of us know it, the pool of angels who could have blabbed is still too large to know who it is without looking into it.

Raphael, Theo, and Zeke say nothing. Likely sensing that it’s me who has to run this little game. “There were other ways to meet me, Archangel Auriel. You didn’t have to harm my family. Especially not after all the offerings we’ve given in your honor over the years.”

His joyful expression darkens slightly. “Except for this year, isn’t that right? Besides, I rather like this method. It promises a more, shall we say, obedient partnership.”

I can’t halt the derisive laugh bubbling out of me. “Partnership? You expect me to work with you after what you’ve done?”

“Well, yes.” He says it so matter-of-factly that my jaw falls open. “It’s that or watch everyone you love die before meeting the same fate. You can laugh all you like, but over time I believe you’ll come to see things from my perspective.”

Pain threatens to drown me, but in that moment I feel the mental connection with my guys warm, like a silent offering of comfort. I do my best to keep my expression as neutral as possible, not wanting Auriel to see just how much his words affect me. “And what would this partnership entail, exactly?”

His deep laughter sounds like a forest of trees falling in a storm. “So eager! All will be explained in due time. You’ve certainly got my friends in a tizzy, little seraph. They’re all worried about the powerful angel who can’t seem to die. They can sense your power, smell it even, but you know that. It’s only dead little angels who don’t have power, isn’t that right?

Anger flares in my chest as he throws the words of that scarred demon back at me. The only way he could know what was said that day was if that damn demon survived to tell him about it. I guess the guild never managed to track them down after all.

Zeke steps forward, but I hold out a hand to stop him. Through our shared mental connection, I warn them all off about making a move. Please don’t. I couldn’t handle it if he hurt you, too.

“How cute. Listen to the powerful woman at your side, boy, and stay down. I have no intentions of harming you. At least not today.”

“Then why are you even here? What do you want?” I grit out, my jaw locked.

“You, of course,” he answers, like there’s nothing else he could possibly want.

“But why?”

“Well, for starters, a Seraphim would do wonders for my cause. You could help keep my friends in line and build a brighter city. Besides, you’re rather pretty. You might not know this yet, but I like to collect pretty little things.”

The shine in his eyes makes me uncomfortable. The smart thing would be to back down, but I can’t seem to force my tongue to behave. “So that’s what you want me for? Why you took my parents? Not for a partnership at all, but to be my employer?”

He rolls his eyes, laughing like he would at a toddler attempting to make a joke. “I never did like that word. Join me and help me cleanse the city of those who are undeserving.”

“I think we might have a different idea of cleanse and undeserving ,” I say, deadpan. The only one undeserving right now is him.

His entire demeanor changes. Before now, a devilish smile lurked behind his every word, but every trace of it is gone. Wiped away like it never existed. All that’s left is a poisonous rancor that turns my stomach. “I see. Fine. You want time? Have it. Don’t say I was never gracious and giving.”

I doubt this guy has ever been either of those things a day in his damn life. How could he be when he’s killed so many, with plans to do it again?

“Returning my parents will help me decide. It’ll prove I can trust you. No partnership survives without trust,” I say, like I might actually work with this psycho.

As expected, he isn’t fooled. “No. They stay with me. Though of course you can see them. This very moment, in fact. You only need to come with me.”

“Hummingbird,” Zeke growls beside me, like he knows I’m considering it. How could I not? Archangel Auriel has my fucking parents. A headache builds behind my eyes, threatening to take me down.

This is all too fucking much.

“The next move is yours, little seraph. Join the cause, or prepare for war. You have seven days to give me your answer.” His wicked smile has returned, warning me I won’t like his next words. “While you contemplate, I’ll do my best to keep your parents alive. Comfortable, even. You have my word.”

Then, so quick I would have missed it with one poorly timed blink, he taps his staff on the ground once, and he’s gone. Leaving me with an impossible choice to make.

Agree to his disgusting plan to cleanse the city while saving my parents in the process, or work against him and lose them forever.