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14

The Garden Library

“We have a stop to make before we set off on the hunt,” Nyx told Nero and Damiel. “We’re meeting up with two additional angels: Colonel Fireswift and Colonel Dragonblood. Fireswift and Dragonblood will join us on the hunt.”

I didn’t know Colonel Dragonblood. He was the angel who was supposed to have run my Crystal Falls training, but at that exact moment, his wife had gotten the Fever, so Nyx had sent Nero instead.

I did know Colonel Fireswift, however. And as fun as it sometimes was to annoy him with my crazy ways, I wasn’t sad to see him leave. I could only spend so much time with Fireswift before his personality really started to grate on me. And then I got edgy.

Nyx, Nero, and Damiel spread their angel wings and flew off, leaving me and Cadence with Stash—and a really big Legion airship.

“One sec,” I told them. “I just need to gather up my family.”

Bella and Zane were all healed up. The problem was with the rest of my family. Calli, Gin, and Tessa didn’t go willingly onto the airship, at least not without protest. So I told them that my worrying about them, my concern that someone was going to kill them, was causing me distress and that was hurting the baby. After that, they all caved and came with me, even Calli.

Yeah, it was a dirty move, but I’d do what I must to keep my family safe.

We all boarded the heavily guarded and armored airship. On the way in, I spotted my friends from Heaven’s Army.

Octavian and Arabelle were waiting at the door.

Arabelle was the team’s only female soldier, but I’d never gotten the impression that this bothered her. She was good at what she did, though occasionally irreverent. That was one of the things I really liked about her, that she was a god but she didn’t take that fact very seriously.

Octavian, the tall and slender soldier next to Arabelle, was as reckless as the gods came. He wore black armor that resembled a suit—and he wore his fire-red hair in a long, skinny ponytail. His words were usually seasoned with a healthy dose of sarcasm.

He winked at me as I stepped aboard. “Hey, Pandora. Looks like we’re on angel babysitting duty again.”

“We promise to keep you out of trouble,” Arabelle said.

Octavian tapped the hilt of his knife. “If that’s even possible.”

The other godly soldiers were waiting in the hall. Devlin, the team’s straight-laced leader. Theon, the quiet and reflective god, who enjoyed soap operas and caramel-flavored ice cream. The big and bulky twins Punch and Patch, identical right down to the tattoos inked into their dark skin.

Devlin gave me a professional nod. Punch and Patch flashed me two sets of bright, shiny teeth. And Theon…well, Theon looked at me like I might explode—and take him with me. I could understand his caution. I did kind of blow him up the last time we’d worked together, but in my defense, it was a total accident.

The gods I’d met in Heaven’s Army were so unlike the seven gods who sat on the ruling council. They were so down-to-earth, so normal, so fun.

I liked Stash best of all, of course. He was my cousin, after all, and I’d known him back when we’d all thought he was just another werewolf, Stash included. I’d been little more than a fresh Legion recruit when we’d met at a fairy bar, where he’d earned his money armwrestling for dollars and tending bar. Now he was a demigod in Heaven’s Army, and I was an angel. My, how much things had changed in only two years.

I glanced back as Harker stepped aboard, Bella by his side. The rest of my family followed. As Harker showed them to their cabins, I continued down the corridor. I’d spotted another old acquaintance.

“Nice to see you again, Dominic.”

The airship pilot was an old friend of Nero’s. I wondered how he’d come to be here.

“Pleased to see you too again, Leda Pandora,” Dominic said pleasantly. “Lot’s changed since we last met. Heard about the bun in your oven. Good to hear it was Nero who put it there.”

Dominic was hardly subtle, but what could you expect from a man who slicked back his hair with grease and wore a leather jacket made of orange monster hide—and had the matching boots to go along with it?

I tried really hard not to laugh. Because that would have been totally inappropriate. “How did you come to be here, Dominic?”

“I’ve been doing contract work for the Legion, flying your airships. Nero set me up with the gig. Pay’s good. Get to meet all kinds of interesting people and angels. And…” He glanced at Devlin and his team. “…gods too. Well, just came down to greet you, Leda. I’d better get back to piloting. This ship won’t fly itself, but it’ll crash itself into a building real quick if I’m not at the helm.” Then he dashed up a staircase.

And I kept walking with Cadence, following Stash.

Nerissa was the next familiar face I spotted. “Leda, good, you’re here.”

“Nyx ordered me to come aboard. So where else would I be?”