Page 67 of Hell Fae Warden

Because Az took back the dagger and Ajax hadn’t bespelled a new one for me with this outfit.

Fuck.

Az had had no right to take that dagger back. His Phoenix—myPhoenix—had given it to me as a gift. I wasn’t quite sure what that meant, but I liked that his beast seemed fond of me. It would hopefully afford me some protection.

Maybe.

But also unlikely,I thought. Because Az seemed like the type to keep his Phoenix on a tight leash. Which meant I had to win over the man before that protection would be a guarantee. And, well, I didn’t see that happening anytime soon, even with all the sexy playtime we’d just shared.

However, I’d enjoyed the complete and utter devotion his beast had demonstrated. No one else had tried to protect me like that. No one else had been willing tokillfor me. Not just in the Hell Fae Realm, but in general.

“Camillia,” Melek called from several feet ahead, his expression expectant. “This way.”

Right. Palace tour. Distraction. Got it.

It wasn’t my first choice of activities, but it beat being eaten by one of the snarling Hellhounds.

Moving as fast as my annoyingly tall heels would allow without breaking an ankle, I followed Melek into a corridor that burned with more flames. Fortunately, the heat didn’t seem to be impacting me at all now.

Because of the necklace?I wondered.

My fingers went to the talisman, and I found the metal cool against my touch. When I concentrated on its stone, a refreshing wave swept through my body.

“So, uh, this is Lucifer’s palace?” I already knew the answer. I just wanted Melek to start talking.Preferably about Lucifer and what the hell he’s going to do to me.

Not just because he probably thought I’d seduced his Warden and his Commander, but because I’d touched his precious source.

Which shouldn’t have been possible.

None of this makes any sense.

“Part of it, yes,” Melek said noncommittally as he turned a corner and walked past two sentry-like guards into what appeared to be a private space.

Or I assumed it was private because we were the only ones in the hall, leaving all the Hellhounds and other fae behind.

He continued in silence for a few minutes, leaving me to admire the Hellfire walls and stone floors.

No windows.

No doors.

Just an endless corridor of blood and flames.

It felt ominous. Deadly.Like I’m walking to my own execution.

However, the hallway ended in a large open space framed by a huge balcony. But it was the object at the center of the room that captivated me.

Because it wasmassive.

My eyes widened as I took in the statue of Lucifer, his body adorned in red marble and threaded with gold.

If someone had asked me to artistically depict the Hell Fae King, I would have set him on a throne and shown him ruling over his subjects. But this wasn’t like that at all.

Instead, the colossal piece of art showed a broken Lucifer stretched out on the ground with his head bent. The statue appeared almost lifelike with the individual strands of his hair visible as they layered over him and fell to the ground.

My heels clicked against the floor as I began the journey of making a slow circle around it.

Every muscle was taut in the depiction, demonstrating pure agony without even showing the emotion on Lucifer’s face.