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“Here.” Nex shoves a warm sandwich into my hand before passing one to Brenden and then my other mates. “I figured a breakfast sandwich would help keep anyone from getting too hungry, and I have two thermoses of coffee as well.”

I step forward, ready to throw myself into his arms for his thoughtfulness. Then I remember that’s not the relationship we have and why we don’t. I pull up short and nod. “Thank you.”

“Of course.” He nods, eyes averted.

I take a bite of my sandwich, waving over Cassian and Brenden, who each grab a hold of me before I step us into the shadows and then into the war council room.

Everyone is already seated around the table, many of them with sleepy gazes. I take my seat as my other mates step out of the shadows and join us.

“Good, I’m glad everyone could make it on such short notice.” Lucifer cocks an eyebrow at me, and I flip him off. If he wants us here quickly, then he should call meetings during the day.

He just chuckles. “Hecate and Wren have been working together to comb through both of their memories, and they think they have an idea of what his plan might be. Ladies? The stage is yours.”

When they both stand up, I realize Wren was sitting between Hecate and my mom instead of at this end of the table, like she usually does.

“So, umm…” Wren looks around the table, her nervousness clear for all to see. “I remembered a conversation I had with Michael shortly after we got married. He wasn’t happy with the house we were living in at the time, and there wasn’t anything that met his standards in Leyton. He almost bit my head off when I suggested we look at some of the other cities in the area. He insisted we needed to live in Leyton. I didn’t really think much of it at the time. It’s not like I wanted to move away from Mom or Audrey, so I just never brought it up again, and then we found our house.”

Hecate offers her a soft smile. “Which led me to do some research on Leyton. Are any of you aware that the city is built on top of some of the most powerful ley lines? Not just that, but the three strongest ones intersect in the center of downtown. I think this is why Michael spent so long in Leyton and why there were so many witch covens there. They were all drawn to the power of the ley lines. They probably played a part in whatever spell Michael cast when he sacrificed Audrey and Wren.”

“Do you think that’s where he’ll attack?” Lucifer asks, and she nods.

She glances around the table, making sure we’re all paying attention. “It makes the most sense. He spent however many years living there. He would’ve been able to learn the lay of the land, and it’s a highly populated city by both humans and supernaturals. If he wanted to make a statement that he was coming for them, it’s probably one of the best places he could. It’ll make the angels stronger, but it can also make our forces stronger. I have a spell that I plan to weave into an amulet for as many of our people as I can. It’ll pull on the power of the ley lines and allow us to use it.”

“I’m glad that we’ve finally figured out the where,” Thanatos admits. “But we still need to figure out when.”

Wren grins. “We’re actually pretty sure we know that, too. After Hecate found out about the ley lines, we got to thinking about what else he could try to use in his favor. That’s when I remembered Michael’s obsession with the moon and astrology. It seemed at odds with who he was as a person, but everyone believes in something, so I just figured that’s what it was.”

“With that new information,” Hecate continues, “we started looking into different aspects of astrology, but especially the moon. We believe he’ll attack on either a new moon or a full moon. The full moon brings illumination and clarity. It symbolizes release and closure, completion, and abundance. All things that Michael wants. Wren, why don’t you explain about the new moon?”

“The new moon signifies a fresh start, a time for introspection, and the potential of new beginnings. It’s also a time for setting intentions and manifesting desires.” I’m not sure I’ve ever seen Wren more excited as she explains all of this to the room. It’s a good look. “Once again,these are things Michael would see as a positive.”

Nyx nods slowly, considering her fellow god and my sister. “I can see why you’ve brought this to our attention. Remind me, when is the next new moon and full moon?”

Wren grimaces at the question. “The new moon is in two days. The last full moon was the day he told us he’d attack within the month. We believe he’ll choose the new moon because why wouldn’t he have just attacked that day if he wanted a full moon?”

“So we have two days to come up with a game plan?” Erebus asks with a grimace of his own. “Less than that, actually, since it’s already so late.”

Lucifer nods. “I agree with Hecate and Wren, for what it’s worth. That’s why I called you all in so quickly. We don’t have much time, and we’re not leaving this room until we have a plan in place.”

Fuck. There goes my sleep, but I know Lucifer is right. Sacrificing some sleep so we can figure out how to defeat the angels and save the mortals is nothing in the grand scheme of things.

I just don’t know how much I’ll have to contribute to the conversation.

Everyone starts throwing out ideas, and we get to work. I pour myself a cup of coffee and down it before making another.

It seems nearly impossible, but I know we’ll figure this out.

Chapter Seventeen

Wraith

We end up staying at Lucifer’s after the war council meeting ends at five o’clock in the morning. None of us can bring ourselves to head home, and I’m sure my mate would like to spend some time with her family before we go to war.

It’s after noon when we drag ourselves out of bed and down to the kitchen. We’re all starving since we hadn’t given food much thought before passing out for the night.

I can’t believe that tomorrow’s the day.

Tomorrow can bring anything. Any of us could die—including my mates, which I’m not happy about, but I know better than to voice those concerns.