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“I bet Fireswift loved that,” I chuckled.

“Fireswift’s feelings do not concern me. I am the Legion’s Executive Officer. He will do as I command him.”

“I think you might have been wrong about Nero no longer being a hardass,” Li said to me.

“His ass is hard in all the right places.” I smiled at Nero.

And Li snorted.

“Just as his heart is soft in all the right places,” I added, smiling at my husband.

“Wow, she is something special, isn’t she?” Li told Nero.

“Yes, she really is.” Nero entwined his fingers with mine, gazing into my eyes.

“Well, I guess I’ll just give you two a few minutes alone.” Li rose from his seat and left.

“So, this guy Li,” I said to Nero when his friend was gone. “Do you trust him?”

“I made him second in command of the Vanguard.”

“Yeah, I know, but do youtrusthim?”

“Numerous angels warned me that Li is a falling star, one who rose so high but then fell so fast,” Nero said. “They say he’s broken.”

“And what do you say?”

“I say I don’t care what a bunch of grumpy old angels say. Li took a stand to protect people who could not protect themselves. That is what the Legion stands for. It’s what Li stands for. He did the right thing, knowing it could very well ruin his career. That’s the kind of person I want beside me at the Vanguard, someone who will always insist that I do the right thing too.”

I took Nero’s other hand. “And that’s what I love about you, Nero.” I leaned in, pressing my forehead to his. “You always see the true potential in people—whether they’re a disgraced former rival, or a scruffy bounty hunter from Purgatory.”

CHAPTER 30

SIX DAYS

I’d been so confident. So certain. And now I was terrified.

For the sixth time in as many days, Sierra woke up from a nightmare, screaming in terror. Except it was much more than just a bad dream. This nightmare was very real. And it was only getting worse.

Sierra was lying right beside us, here in the living room, so we could keep an eye on her. Because every time she closed her eyes and fell asleep, Mordon used Vertigo’s powerful telepathic magic to bombard Sierra’s mind, whittling down her defenses. And each time he got a little closer to breaking through. When that happened, he would be able to take control of her.

He would have everything he ever wanted: the most powerful magical body in all the universe.

“Here, drink this.” I gave Sierra a cup of water.

Her pale face was wet with tears, her auburn hair drenched in sweat. There were dark circles under her eyes. There were dark circles under all our eyes.

“Monsters,” Sierra muttered, groggy.

Angel hissed. Then she went back to pacing back and forth in front of us, her tail swishing in sharp, agitated flicks. Ourusually-lazy cat hadn’t stopped pacing for hours. She was clearly worried about Sierra too.

“Bad monsters,” Sierra said.

I hugged her tightly to me. “We won’t let them get you.”

Other children dreamt of monsters that weren’t real. The monsters in Sierra’s nightmares were very much real.

Sierra whimpered, then set her heavy head on my chest. She was so tired. She couldn’t stay awake forever. She was so young and exhausted and scared.