Page 17

“Where's my Beast Bro?” was the first thing out of Killian's mouth after I laleked back to Hell.

“He stayed home,” I said.

“I guess I'll forgive the sex you had without me then.”

“How do you know she had sex?” Sal asked.

“She smells like Raza. But even if she didn't, just look at her. That's a woman who's been well-loved.”

“I really need to reevaluate my life choices,” Sal muttered.

“Where's the book?” Kill asked.

“I left it there. Raza found a summoning spell, but it required something from the target—blood, hair, nail clippings. Something from their body.”

“There's no way that Witch found pieces of Losuc's body lying around.”

“Exactly.”

“There wasn't anything else helpful in the book?”

I shrugged. “We didn't look through it for long. Raza attributes the spells to his grandfather's madness. We decided it was best to leave the book in the treasure room.”

“Or destroy it.”

“Destroying books like that can be tricky,” Star said as he came over holding a slender book. He went behind his desk, sat down, and opened it. “I think I've found something.”

The rest of us gathered around the desk to peer at the book. I couldn't read the language, but Sallales made a sound of interest.

“The summoner must be more powerful than their target,” Star said as he scanned the passage. “Or the summoner must have a direct connection to the target, either through kinship or a physical link.” Star looked up at me. “Such as blood. The spell is similar to the Fey one.”

“Summoning someone needs to be specific. Got it,” Kill said.

“So Demons can summon relatives?” I asked.

“Yes.”

I looked over at Losuc, frowning.

“What is it?”

“There aren't any half-Demon humans, are there? Or perhaps descendants of the offspring of Demons and humans?”

“You mean like, a Demon version of Witches?” Killian asked.

“Yes.”

A little wrinkle appeared between Star's brows. “I wouldn't rule it out, but I've never heard of such children.”

“Angels have had children with humans, right?” Killian asked me.

“I don't know,” I said in my why-are-you-asking-me tone.

“The Nephilim,” Star said. “Yes, they existed. For a while. Then the Angels slaughtered them.”

“What?” I whispered. “Why?”

“Ask your husband. He was the one who gave the order.”

I gaped at Star. Then I shook myself. “If Severriel gave that order, he had a good reason to. Either that or it was Anu's command.”

“The slaughter of an entire race?” Killian lifted his brows. “Would Anu do that?”

“If he thought they were a mistake, he would.” I met Kill's stare. “He sent Angels to destroy cities and kill babies. Why not genocide?”

“Shit.” Kill looked at Sal and Star.

They stared steadily back.

A shiver ran down my spine. Not for the first time, I had a crisis of faith. What was I doing? Deceiving the men I loved to ensure a future that Anu wanted? Raza was right. Not having babies wasn't the same as murdering them. Anu would know the difference.

I swayed on my feet.

“Seren!” Killian steadied me.

Star shot up and hurried around his desk. “Get her to a chair.” He took my left arm.

“I'm fine.” I waved them off. “Just doubting God. That's all.”

Star glanced at Sal.

Evidently, it was an unspoken order because she left without question.

“Sit down, Seren. Please.” Star waved at a chair.

I sat down and stared at my hands. Did I have blood on them because of Anu? Most definitely. But I believed the stains were justified. The Pearl Thief had believed he was doing good too, making all those wishes to help people. I would have agreed with him if I hadn't seen the imbalance it caused. He was a good man, doing good things that resulted in catastrophe. Only the Gods know what results our actions will bring. Which is why I trusted Anu. When he told me something was for the best, I believed him. That hadn't always been the case. Anu had won me over. He had proven himself to me again and again.

But now, he was back to shaky ground.

Or maybe that was just me.

Maybe the Gods did see the future and wanted the best for us. But Anu gave humans free will and generally stayed out of their way because he also knew that we had to forge our own paths. Sometimes those paths led us over a cliff. But what a ride. And it was our choice to fall.

Simply put, each child of Anu—be they Demon, Angel, or human—had to discern for themselves between good and evil. Everyone is responsible for their own actions, but their beliefs temper that responsibility. Morality changes for each of us. That's why the only person you can trust with the goodness of your soul is yourself.

I had a pure soul. Incorruptible. No matter how much I tried to stain it, it would remain clean. I could become the next Devil and still be pure. As evidenced by Satan himself. But was that an excuse to act against the tenets of my heart? The tenets and tenants. My husbands occupied my heart, and I was betraying them. Once more, I felt twisted into doing the bidding of the Gods. Maybe free will wasn't so great. Or maybe it didn't really exist.

The men were staring at me. Even Losuc, who still sat to the side in a chair with his drink in hand. I had to pull myself out of my spiral and get myself together. This was unacceptable.

“If Angels can have children with humans, why not Demons?” I asked Star.

He nodded. “As I said, it's possible. But I've never met one nor have I ever heard of the existence of one.”

“They may not even know who they are.” Kill looked over his shoulder at Losuc. “So, if he has a human descendant or even a distant relative, they could summon him?”

“Technically, yes,” Star also looked at Losuc.

“But he said she was a Witch.” Killian looked hopeful.

“He also said he couldn't tell what clan she was from because all he sensed was her magic.” I got up and went to Losuc. “Losuc, are you certain the woman who summoned you is a Witch?”

“I am certain she is human and has magic. I concluded she was a Witch.”

“Then maybe she isn't,” Kill said.

“Kill, don't let your desire for this to not be a Witch color your opinion.”

“I know, babe.” He stepped up beside me. “But you have to admit it makes more sense that she's a Demon descendant than a Witch killing her own kind.”

“I don't agree with that.” Star headed back to his desk and sat down. “Think about it. What are the odds that this woman is not only a descendant of a Demon, but also knows the name of the Demon she's descended from? That seems farfetched to me.” He waved at Killian. “Do any of your people know which fairy started their line?”

“I doubt it, but the farfetched happens all the time,” Kill shot back. “It happens so often with us that it's more like the norm.”

“Is there anything else in that book?” I went to lean on the desk across from Star.

“Maybe a note about Demon/human babies?” Killian added.

“This is a spellbook, not a history book.” Star looked over at Losuc. “It's time to release him, Seren. We've held him long enough.”

“What are you going to do?” I asked.

“Give him a choice.”

“Really?”

“I can't force him to be bait. That's not fair, especially after what he's been through.”

“He might be compromised anyway.”

“In what way?”

“If she was watching the bar, she'll know that we took him.”

“They cleared the place, babe,” Kill said. “As soon as you brought down that hakhil—nice work by the way—the Demons breathed their toxic breath on the humans and knocked them all out.”

“It's called brimstone breath.” Star rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, as I said.”

“The Witch could have had access to Losuc's security feed,” I said.

“The extinguishers and vexes are supposed to be handling that shit. We can ask them when we get back to Thailand,” Kill reminded me.

I looked at Star. “So, what will you do?”

“I can bind Losuc to Hell. It's usually a punishment, but in this case, it will keep him from being summoned.” Star waved at Losuc. “Or he can choose to help us.”

“Are you ready?”

“Yes. Uncross him, Seren.”

I went to Losuc, my fingers already filling with lavender light. When I touched him, I broke the star-crossing, and Losuc shuddered into a forward bend.

“How you doing there, buddy?” Killian laid a hand on Losuc's shoulder. “Did you catch all that? Or were you too dazed by my wife's enchantment?”

Instead of answering my husband, Losuc looked up and met his king's stare. “You are not Lucifer.”

Star flinched, then lifted his chin. “No, I will never be like him. That is why I killed him.”

Losuc nodded and got to his feet, but only to bend at the waist. When he straightened, he said, “Hail King Astaroth! I give you my fealty and offer to aid you in any way that I can.”

I lifted my brows at Star.

Star rose to come around the desk. He took Losuc's hands. “I accept your fealty and your offer of assistance. Thank you, Losuc. Even if you can't serve as a lure for the Witch, you can still help us find her.”

Losuc struck his chest with a fist. “I'm honored to serve, Sire.”

“Maybe we should head back now?” Killian suggested.

“It's late, and I haven't slept in over a day,” I said. “Let's go home and get some rest. We can go back to Thailand afterward.”

“Yes, we can all use some sleep,” Star agreed. “We'll find you a room for the night, Losuc.”

“One moment, Your Majesty.” Losuc turned to me and bowed. “Thank you, World-Strider. You saved me a lot of physical pain.”

“Do you remember what I said to you when I caught you?”

Losuc frowned, then his expression cleared. “You said that they are all your people.”

“You're included in that, Losuc. And what else did I say?”

“That no one messes with your people.” His expression turned adoring.

“Welcome to the team, Losuc.”

“Thank you, Light-Bringer..”

“Those are some great lines, babe,” Killian said. “Please, tell me you delivered them right when you apprehended him.”

“You know I did.”

We fist-bumped. Then I saw Star and Losuc watching us.

I cleared my throat and said to Star, “We'll meet at the vex house tomorrow. I'll scry them and let them know what's happening.”

“Very good. See you then.”

I took Killian's hand and laleked us home to Twilight.