Page 21 of Kiss of Death (Shadow of Death #3)

Audrey

T he sun set over an hour ago and still nothing. I’m beginning to think we might have been wrong about Michael’s plans.

I’m sitting on the couch between Wraith and Donovan, a movie playing on the TV that none of us are paying attention to.

My eyes rove around the room, but when they catch on Nex, I quickly look away.

I still don’t know what that was between us earlier, but I don’t want to think about it right now. Not when we’re supposed to be preparing to battle the angels—if they ever show up.

Whatever that was with me and Nex will have to wait until later .

As usual, every time my thoughts roam to him, confusion rushes through me.

The mate bond is strung tightly between us, feeling like it could break at any moment.

I’m still hurt by how he treated me and the things he said—the worst of the pain coming from when he left me and Brenden alone in bed at the hotel.

But how long am I meant to punish him for?

Brenden is softening on him already—at least, that’s what I think his earlier action of bringing Nex into the scene means.

I don’t want to be the person who holds onto their hurt and denies themself something they want and need, but I don’t know how to move past the pain.

It could be because I’ve never felt as destroyed as I did when I read his note, and I’m afraid to put myself in a position where it could happen again.

I’m ripped from my thoughts as the building shakes.

“Is that—“ I’m cut off by a blaring siren—our signal that the angels are attacking.

We’re all up and out of our seats in seconds. Nex transforms into his demon form, his wings flapping once before settling.

“Be careful—all of you,” I spit, my eyes jumping to each of my mates. “If you do something stupid like dying, I’m going to find a way to bring you back and kill you myself.”

From there, no other words are spoken. Wraith, Cassian, Brenden, and Donovan each give me a kiss.

Nex stands at the balcony door, giving me a sharp nod before stepping outside. He flaps his wings and then he’s gone.

Cassian follows him as I link fingers with Brenden. I take one last desperate look at Donovan and Wraith before pulling us into the shadows.

This is it.

We step onto the street outside the hotel and into absolute chaos.

No more than a minute or two has passed since the siren rang out, but already buildings are destroyed around us. Angels fly through the sky, raining havoc on the buildings that still stand and some of our people who are also in the air.

There are more on the ground, fighting demons and reapers alike. I’m surprised they’re not trying to keep to the sky since most of our allies are unable to fly.

I lose my grip on Brenden, and he’s swallowed up into the crowd that sweeps me along. I fight against them, needing to keep eyes on my mates, but it’s no use.

I duck when a sword comes flying at my head. I glare at the angel wielding it, but they just smirk and swing again.

Calling on my hellfire, I reach out, grab the sword, and stop its forward movement. It cuts into my skin slightly, a trail of blood dripping down my arm, but I don’t even feel it.

My lips turn up into a smirk as the angel’s eyes widen. He doesn’t have any time to back away as my purple hellfire rushes down the sword and engulfs him in seconds.

Hellfire and angels don’t exactly get along well.

I swing around, taking in the sights of the battles being fought around me, but I don’t see any of my mates.

I lift myself into the air using my fire, hoping I can see a little better from the sky. I don’t even have to dodge the angels barreling around as they quickly realize I’m not surrounded by any ordinary fire.

It only takes two of them dying before they back off and give me plenty of room to search the battlefield. As I get higher, I see the fighting seems to be contained in downtown Leyton. There are fewer angels than I thought there would be.

Does that mean that not all the angels are fighting for Michael?

I really hope that’s what it means, and he’s not just holding them in reserve in case he loses too many people.

The angels are still avoiding me, so I send hellfire flying toward the two closest ones. They fall to the ground below us, and I wince when they take out a demon. I wait for the demon to get back to their feet, but they never do.

Damn it.

I force myself to look away, seeking out my mates, friends, and family. We were all staying in hotels on the same street so we could stick together, but I don’t see any of them below me.

My eyesight seems to focus, and I’m suddenly able to see further away with more clarity than I could before. Apparently, not all of my powers have revealed themselves yet.

It takes me a few more minutes to locate Diana and Celeste, fighting alongside most of the war council. Lucifer and my mom are fighting a few feet away from them.

Two streets over, I find Wraith and the other three horsemen fighting alongside my sister, Nex, Donovan, and Cassian. Brenden joins them moments later, and I head toward them. I don’t know how I ended up so off course, but I’m glad I know where they are now.

I’m forced to stop again and again as the angels get braver. They don’t get too close, knowing what will happen to them if my hellfire touches them, but they start sending their magic toward me.

For the most part, the hellfire burns up the magic they throw at me, but some sneak past. I almost lose control of my magic when a lightning bolt collides with my body.

I shake as it jolts through me, my limbs feeling like jelly.

Luckily, I’m able to rein in my magic and keep myself in the air, but I’d prefer not to be hit by that particular bit of magic again.

My eyes rove over the battle beneath me as I wait for my body to stop jerking. Bodies litter the ground from both sides, and I don’t understand how it’s happened so fast. I feel like the battle has just begun, and there are already so many people dead.

My stomach turns at the number of bodies I see, nausea rushing through me.

There’s just so much death already, and for what? Because some demigods got jealous?

I dodge another slew of magic, grateful my body has finally recovered from the electric shock I got.

I find my mates once more and realize I’m no closer to them than I was just a few minutes ago. This isn’t working. There are too many angels in the air and not enough from our side.

It won’t be any better trying to run to them on the streets below—not with how crowded they are with both angels and our allies.

Spinning in a circle, I send hellfire through the air. I’m not aiming for anyone, just trying to get them to back off so I can get to my mates.

I ignore the screams, knowing I hit at least a few of them as I dip down and push myself through the air.

I’m finally almost to them when something knocks me off course, my hellfire sputtering out as I begin making a rapid descent toward the ground.

Panic flails through me, making it hard for me to grasp my magic again. Finally, I yank on it and my hellfire flares around me once more. I’m no more than twenty feet above the ground now, hovering over the battle.

Scythes slice through the air, and I realize I know some of the reapers down there fighting. Tears pool in my eyes as I watch three of them felled by a bolt of lightning.

I knew war wasn’t going to be easy, but experiencing it is horrendous. Watching people I know falling to the ground, unseeing eyes staring up at me, is more than I can deal with.

I shoot back into the sky, zeroing in on my mates. I need to be at their sides, and I’m not going to let anything stand in my way—especially not the selfish angels who want to destroy the world I grew up in.

Determination rises within me as I move closer and closer to my mates. Hellfire flies through the sky, taking down angel after angel, and I don’t even feel bad about it.

They brought this on themselves. We’re protecting the people of this world from the hell they want to rain down on them.

Fuck that.

I’ve almost reached my mates when Nex’s head snaps up toward me. His eyes go wide, and I see his mouth move, but he’s too far away for me to hear him. Then he’s launching himself into the air toward me, and I swing around to find Michael hovering twenty feet from me.

“Fancy meeting you here, Audrey.” He smirks, dodging the hellfire I sent toward him. “ Tsk tsk. I’m just here for a friendly chat. There’s no reason to try to kill me.”

“Sure there is. There are a million reasons I should try to kill you, you selfish prick.”

Michael doesn’t look offended by my words. “I wasn’t sure you were going to figure out what I had planned, but I’m so glad you’ll be here to see the beauty of my plan. It’s going to be spectacular.”

“We will not let you win, Michael.”

His smirk finally slips away, his eyes flashing. “And who do you think is going to stop me? You? It’s funny that you think you can. No one can stop me, Audrey. You’re all too weak.”

Then, before I can respond, he sends a bolt of lightning at me, and there’s not enough time to dodge it. He’s too close.

Fuck.