Page 18

Chapter eighteen

I followed Deus out of Nonna’s room and down the hall without a word. His frustration and anger rippled through the bond. His pace made it difficult for me to match his speed as we weaved through the crowd of witches and warlocks. Deus headed for the front doors and threw them open in utter silence.

He spun on me, grabbed hold of my arms and shifted us away from the castle. I staggered backwards as the wind hit my face, sending my head spinning. I took in my surroundings, catching my breath and bearings. We were on the ledge of the belltower that stood at the highest point in Triora. From this high up, you were able to see the beauty and simplicity of my ancestral home.

Deus stood at the edge, looking across the landscape. His hands were firmly clasped behind his back and his eyes fixed on the horizon.

“A little warning would have been nice,” I said, stepping next to him.

He didn’t turn to me. “Why did you keep this from me? How—” He paused, furrowing his brow. “The bond. How can you still be hiding things from me, even with the bridge linking us?”

“Deus, I’m sorry. I didn’t want to hide this from you, but I didn’t want to worry you if it was nothing. You’ve already been through so much, and I—”

“So have you,” he interrupted, finally turning to face me. “We all have, Seren. That doesn’t give you the right to keep things from me. Especially of this magnitude. I am your mate. Your fiancé. The person you are supposed to trust above all else. The person who is supposed to protect you—”

“Exactly, Deus,” I snapped. “And though I love you for wanting to protect me, that need to intervene, to put yourself at risk for me, sometimes gets in the way of me doing my job.”

“And what is your job, exactly?” He faced me then, his expression stern and unyielding. “Have you not given enough? Your time of sacrifice has come to its end, and I’ll be damned if I don’t see to that personally. If this burden is anyone’s to carry, it is that of my brothers and I, not yours.”

I was approaching my limit. “Don’t tell me what I can and can’t do with my life. If I choose to sacrifice myself to save the people I love, then that is my choice and mine alone!”

His angry demeanor stilled. “What are you planning? What else are you keeping from me?”

“Nothing,” I said, a little too quickly. I broke away from him. Before I could take another step, he grabbed me by the arm, forcefully turning me back to face him.

“Do you not understand what you mean to me?” he said, aggression masking the pain entangled in his words. “Do you understand what it would do to me if I lost you? How can you stand here and say that your decision to sacrifice your life is yours and yours alone?”

“Deus, I didn’t mean anything by it. I was just frustrated by you telling me what I could and couldn’t do. That’s all.”

He let me go, dropping his eyes to the floor. “You’re keeping something from me,” he whispered. “I don’t need the bond to tell when you’re lying. Your face is horrible at keeping secrets.”

I reached my arms around him. “I’m sorry,” I said again, softer. “I’m sorry for keeping Talia from you and I am sorry for contacting her without you knowing. You’re right. We’re a team, but you must understand … that same drive you have to protect me, I have for you. Thus, my little trip into the tormentor’s pit.” I smiled playfully.

He smirked, pulling me closer against him. “You’re insane,” he replied.

“Of course, I am,” I said flatly. “I’d have to be. I mean, my mate’s the Prince of Lust, my best friend is the Prince of Sloth, my cousin-in-law will most likely be the Prince of Envy, and Lucifer Morningstar is pretty much my father.”

Deus grimaced at the last comment. “Father, please spare me,” he said.

I laughed, pressing my face against his chest. I took a deep breath, the peace of his arms enveloping me. “I guess I should start working on the door.”

“Mm,” he hummed, running his hands down my back. “Or … we could take a little break from the whole saving humanity bit and grab a bite to eat.”

I pulled away, shaking my head. “We don’t have time. I need to—” His hands cupped either side of my face. He bent his neck so we were eye to eye.

“You have time to eat, my love. Everything will be as it was, even after you fill your belly.”

I smiled, leaning into his touch. “Okay,” I replied. “But it has to be quick.”

He pulled me close and we shifted to a restaurant near the edge of the town. Deus led me to the back of the brick building, where a private dining room was separated from the public. Around a large rectangular table sat all our family and friends.

Levi and Frankie, Aunt Thora, Nonna, my mother. Giana, Gor, and Tony. Belz and Mammon. Everyone was laughing, wine poured freely and passed from person to person. It was the most beautiful sight I had ever seen.

“How did you do all this so quickly?” I asked Deus.

He shrugged. “I sent a mental message to my brothers to collect the others. Everyone agreed, a relaxing, apocalypse-free dinner was in order before the work began tomorrow.”

I wrapped my arms around his waist. “You’re amazing.”

He smiled. “I know,” he whispered, leaning down, and pressing a soft and suggestive kiss against my lips.

“Alright already,” I heard Frankie say as she approached us with two glasses of wine. “Give it a break for all our sakes. Honestly cousin, I don’t even know how you can manage to stand upright from all your … dalliances.”

“What can I say,” I replied, taking the glass, and holding it up towards my nonna, aunt, and mother. “I’m a Salvo woman.”

“Through and through,” they answered back, holding their glasses up and then laughing in the most extraordinary melody I’d ever heard. Every woman in my family, every woman I loved, cared for, and looked up to, was sitting in this room, sharing in this joyous moment.

I took a seat between Nonna and my mother. Deus sat amongst his brothers, grabbing the bottle of whisky and pouring himself a glass. The food was brought out: every dish, appetizer, and fixing you could imagine. Stories were shared. Jokes were had. Memories were made .

By the time dessert came, Frankie and I were doubled over laughing from a story Mother and Thora had told us a story from their youth. Watching them together was like watching the night sky meet the horizon. It was seamless and fluid. My heart filled with happiness for the two of them.

Frankie squeezed my hand as if she could read my mind. She gave me a tender and understanding smile. I leaned into her, laying my head on her shoulder. Nonna sat amongst us, shaking her head in horror of the secrets her daughters had just divulged.

Down the table, my mate sat casually in between his brothers while they argued and yelled across the table at one another playfully. As usually, they were ganging up on Gor. Tony sat amongst them, observing their actions in disbelief. Deus arched a brow, revealing his perfect set of white teeth. My skin heated at the sight.

“What are you thinking, my love?” He whispered into my mind.

“I’m thinking that this … this moment might be the most perfect moment of my life. I’m thinking that if you were to ask me to describe the word happiness … it would be this moment.”

“And if I were to paint the image of happiness,” he replied , “it would be the smile that has not left your angelic face this entire evening.”

I blushed, speechless. The only thing that could have made this night better would have been the promise of many more dinners like this to come. Where we all sat around a table, sharing stories and memories, knowing tomorrow held the promise of a better future. A future where we all walked out of this alive.