Page 8

AJAX

A Few Minutes Earlier

“ W here the fuck did she get that?” Az’s brother demanded, his finger pointing toward the black pebbles on the floor.

Pebbles that used to make up the death stone.

A death stone Cami had just used to bring a small army of Death Fae and Corpse Fae to their literal knees in agony.

My lips twisted, then I cleared my throat. “From me,” I said. “But I had no idea it could do that .”

“?‘No idea it could do that,’ he says,” Maliki mocked, shaking his head. “Un-fucking-believable.”

“Where did you get it from?” Az asked me quietly, ignoring his joker of a brother. He sat beside me in a booth, the obsidian table cracked before us.

I ran my fingers through my tangled hair, then palmed the back of my neck, my body abnormally sore from everything that had happened here. I should be mostly healed by now, but those death fuckers did a number on my body and soul.

Az seemed to feel similarly, his actions slower than normal as he brought a glass up to his lips to down a shot of some sort of brown liquor. Bourbon, maybe?

Eh, probably not, given where we were. Death’s Den . I’d never been in the skull-shaped bar before, only seen it from afar. Yet the death stone had led me right to Az’s side with a softly worded incantation.

One Zenaida had told me to murmur.

Right after giving me the death stone that her grandson, Shade, had delivered to me months before.

“I think you misplaced this,” she’d told me, setting it next to a plate of her famous cookies. “Too bad you never had a chance to show Camillia how to use it.”

I’d frowned at the obsidian stone before meeting the prophetic woman’s gaze. “Why do I suspect you’re giving this to me for a reason?”

“Because you’re a smart boy,” she’d murmured, making me feel ten years old again. “Don’t forget to give it to Camillia. It’ll help.”

“Help with what?” I’d asked her, hoping for more information. A hint. Anything to help guide my next moves.

“Training, of course,” she’d replied. “She’s going to need it. A lot of it.”

Before I could press her for more details, I’d felt Az’s pain.

Shade and Zakkai had both sat there with neutral expressions, saying nothing as I’d wheezed and coughed and reacted to my mate’s agony.

Then Zenaida had tapped the table, right next to the rock.

I’d picked the stone up, then noted the scripted enchantment on the parchment beneath it, and recited the words without thinking.

And landed next to Az.

Then I’d handed Cami the stone. Because fuck if I was going to ignore Zenaida’s mysterious instructions.

Leaning my head back now, I explained all of this to Az while his brother listened.

“When Shade originally gave me that stone—on behalf of his grandmother—he’d told me it was for my date.” He’d been cryptic as fuck, which was nothing new. “I’d assumed he was just trying to imply he knew about Cami. Apparently, his intentions went deeper.”

It didn’t surprise me at all. Shade had always worked seven steps ahead, and sometimes even five paces sideways.

“I don’t understand why he gave it to you so long ago,” Az said, a frown marring his features. “It’s like he expected this to happen sooner.”

“Or perhaps anticipated several different types of events,” Maliki added. “He’s part Fortune Fae, right? His mind is a web of potentials. All he knew was you’d need that stone eventually. I care more about how Zenaida acquired it.”

“Likewise,” Melek inserted, his tone and expression uncharacteristically serious. “Ajax, would you mind creating a protective barrier so we can speak freely?”

I stared at him for a beat, surprised by his request. Melek rarely asked me for anything. Hell, we barely spoke to one another until recently.

But the way he looked at me now made me feel seen.

I wasn’t sure if I liked that change or not.

Rather than dwell on it, I glanced around to determine my enchantment options.

The club was vacant, the Corpse Fae and Death Fae—those who were awake and alive—having vanished in a cloud of icy mist. No one wanted to be here when Lucifer returned.

No one except the four of us, anyway.

However, that didn’t mean there weren’t any nosy fae lurking around outside.

With that thought in mind, I cast a fluid spell around the four of us, one that could not be seen or felt. But it basically silenced our voices for anyone outside our invisible bubble.

“You couldn’t have done that the other day?” Az asked me. “Instead, you made a paradigm to show off?”

I arched a brow at him. “I don’t need to show off for Cami,” I told him, aware of the instance he was referring to. “Shade and I used to crack this enchantment all the time to listen in on conversations between my parents and a local tavern owner.”

Anrika .

Recalling her name sent a jolt through my heart, her death one that still haunted me.

Just like the deaths of my parents and Emelyn.

All at Constantine’s hand.

I braced for the wave of anger to assault my spirit, the fiery heat one I’d long embraced. But the usual fury didn’t come, rather all I sensed was a hint of nostalgic amusement.

“I couldn’t use this spell in the Midnight Fae Palace because I knew Shade would be instantly intrigued and fuck with my spell.

” Our elders had reprimanded us for spying on countless occasions, which only provoked us to perfect our technique.

“We wouldn’t have sensed him, but he would have been there. ” I was sure of it.

“Instead, Zakkai played the part of spy by breaking into your paradigm,” Melek mused. “I do very much enjoy those Midnight Fae.”

I frowned. “Zakkai did what?”

Melek gave me a look. “Come now, you can’t be that surprised. You were talking about Virtuous Fae. Naturally, he wanted to listen.” His focus went to Maliki. “A topic that brings us full circle to why I requested some privacy—-that stone is riddled with Virtuous Fae energy.”

“I know,” Maliki drawled. “That’s why I asked how the Fortune Fae acquired it.” He narrowed his gaze at Az. “Your little mate is quite a treat, dear brother. Care to explain how she knew what to do with that dangerous stone?”

“Cami is a gift,” Melek murmured. “ Our gift. Her talents are not for you to understand. So let’s keep our focus on the origin of the stone and leave our mate out of this discussion.”

Maliki grinned. “Possessive, hmm?” He glanced around the three of us, his golden irises twinkling with devilish intent. “That’s fascinating.”

“And entirely off topic,” Az returned, his tone holding a bite to it. “What do you know about the stone, Melek?”

The Hell Fae Prince pursed his lips, his vibrant gaze falling on the pebbles once more. “It’s a relic, one created by Vivaxia.”

Az stiffened beside me.

“I saw her use it once to destroy one of her pets,” Melek went on, seemingly oblivious to Az’s reaction. “We need to find out how it came into Zenaida’s possession.” He blinked, glancing back at us all. “I’ll talk to her.”

“No, we will be talking to her,” a deep voice interjected as Lucifer appeared with Cami beside him.

My brow furrowed, his sudden arrival dismantling my magic and reforming it in a blink. Almost as though he’d commanded it himself.

How the hell did he do that?

Cami made sense—she was my mate. My magic automatically wrapped around her, welcoming her into my space.

But Lucifer wasn’t anything to me. Not my mate. Not even my friend. Hell, he wasn’t even my king.

So how the fuck did he break through my spell without so much as a blink?

Was it his bond with Az?

“Are you all right?” Melek asked as he captured Cami’s face between his hands.

His words and reaction had me blinking, my focus instantly returning to her and away from Lucifer’s intensity. I’d figure him out later.

And determine a way to block him for good , I decided.

Oh, he might have offered a temporary alliance. But that didn’t mean I trusted him. Not after everything he’d done and said.

“I’m…” Cami trailed off, then glanced at Lucifer before clearing her throat.

My eyes narrowed at that small detail. Did he threaten you? I demanded via our mental connection, my gaze tracking over her mostly naked form. All she was wearing was Lucifer’s suit jacket—a look that would have been hot under any other circumstances. But not right now.

No. He… Her brow furrowed. He helped me.

My lips curled down to match her frown. Her response was unexpected. Especially considering Lucifer’s previous reactions to her displays of power—a power she borrowed from his Source.

“Cami?” Melek whispered, his expression and tone reverent.

“I’m okay,” she replied aloud to him, leaning into his touch. “A little startled, I guess. I’m just thinking about…” She looked at Lucifer again. “Tell them what you told me.”

The Hell Fae King arched an arrogant brow. “Commanding me already, darling siphon?”

She gave him a look that said, Yes. Yes, I am.

Which would have previously earned her a growl from the powerful male fae, but now merely made him chuckle. “All right.”

Surprise echoed in Az’s mind, though he didn’t outwardly show it.

Pretty sure my face wasn’t nearly as neutral because all I could think was What the fuck is happening?

Typhos no longer sees Cami as a threat, but as an ally.

Yeah, that much I already knew from our conversation while walking through Lucifer’s palace courtyard. And you believe his intentions with her are good. Not a question, but a statement. Because otherwise, Az would be jumping to Cami’s defense. That much I trusted. That much I knew .

I believe his intentions where Cami is concerned are in a constant state of flexibility, Az admitted. However, right now, his intentions are definitely good, yes.

“The Death Fae and Corpse Fae were manipulated by magic. That’s why they attacked you—they were being controlled by a Virtuous Fae.”

Lucifer’s words snapped Az’s attention—and mine—up to the Hell Fae King. “You’re certain?” Az demanded.

“Yes.” The Hell Fae King shifted his focus to Melek. “You feel it, too, yes?”

The Hell Fae Prince nodded. “Yes.”

“And you didn’t think to lead with that?” Maliki interjected, his lazy sprawl across from me belying the dangerous glint flashing in his gaze. “Instead, you let me ramble on about the stone?”

Melek shrugged. “The death stone was just as relevant to our discussion.”

“Hmm,” the male hummed, his attention shifting to Az. “And this favor you needed, does it involve the Virtuous Fae?”

Az drummed his fingers against the obsidian rock tabletop once, then pushed off the tattered booth behind us to lean toward Maliki. “I was going to ask you to take a trip through time and see if you could find out what Vivaxia did to my mate. But I’m rethinking that plan now.”

“Because you see all this as a warning,” Maliki replied. “A bit too coincidental that she would ensure a death stone ended up in your darling mate’s hands just after siccing a bunch of Death Fae and Corpse Fae on you.”

“Yes.”

“Hmm,” his brother hummed again. “That would be one hell of a favor, though.”

“I think we’ve already covered the part about you owing me.”

Maliki huffed a laugh. “I believe I rejected that claim rather soundly.”

“You’re alive, aren’t you?”

“Am I?” Maliki asked, cocking his head to the side. “I suppose.” His golden irises flickered with fire as his attention moved over Az’s shoulder, his expression darkening in an instant.

A gentle stroke against my enchantment had me following his gaze, my own eyes widening at the dark figment standing in the shadows. Who the fuck is that? I wondered, causing Az to glance over his shoulder.

Hades, God of the Netherworld, he informed me with a mental sigh that told me how unenthused he was by this unexpected visit.