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Chapter Twenty-Six

The world burned around me. Hell, it could consume me for all I cared. My vision tunnelled on Jack’s lifeless body, crumpled like a broken doll against the alley’s cold cement. The sight of him coupled with Zera’s smirk all blurred together into a seething rage that clawed at my insides.

I’d kill her and Tavira both and send them back to my father. And then he’d know—he’d created a monster.

I unleashed a scream, one that shook the very ground beneath my feet as hellfire surged through the alley. This wasn’t just fire. It was pure destruction. The flames roared, devouring everything in their path. Zera’s shadows practically shrieked as my fire swallowed them whole and obliterated them.

But it wasn’t enough.

I stalked through the alley, my steps slow and measured. The heat crackled over my skin, but didn’t burn my flesh, because I wouldn’t allow it to. I was in complete control. And I gave the flames a direct purpose, two targets that were very much flammable. I focused my wrath—and the wrath of my power—on them .

“Burn,” I snarled at Zera, launching a firestorm in her direction. It whipped through the air, moving at unimaginable speeds, its heat inescapable.

Zera’s eyes widened with panic as the flames closed in, and with a choked cry, she stumbled back, her shadows scattering in a desperate attempt to escape the hellfire. I didn’t have the skill to wrest control of her shadows, but extinguishing them was well within my reach—and I did, snuffing them out in a heartbeat.

Zera steadied herself, her gaze darting over my shoulder. Before I could turn, searing pain suddenly lanced my back. A scream ripped from me as I staggered forward, the fire faltering for a single second. Gasping, I twisted to find Tavira behind me, her beasts prowling at her sides. Blood stained her lion’s claws, his eyes glinting with hunger as he licked his lips in anticipation.

The creatures pressed in, tightening their circle, shadowed forms flickering in the inferno’s glow. Their energy pulsed, dark and threatening, ready to strike at the first sign of weakness. But I refused to give them that satisfaction. Not now. Not ever.

Fury blazed through me, fueling my flames until they swelled into a roaring tempest. With a guttural cry, I thrust my hands forward, unleashing hellfire that exploded outward like an unleashed storm.

The flames crashed into Tavira’s beasts, and their shrieks filled the air as the fire consumed them. The shapes writhed in agony, and in seconds, they were nothing—reduced to little more than smoke and ash, snuffed out as though they’d never existed.

Tavira dodged the surge of flames, her face twisting with disdain. She sneered, her lip curling. “Lucifer’s daughter, finally showing her true nature,” she taunted. “Perhaps you’re more like him than anyone realized.”

“Do not compare me to that sadistic piece of shit,” I snarled back. “I am nothing like him.”

She scoffed, but before she could respond, a deafening crack split the air above us. My head snapped up, and through the smoky haze, a figure descended like a falling star.

Rathiel landed beside me with a force that cracked the cement, his wings snapping out in a single, powerful motion.

Oh, thank goodness. Backup had arrived.

My flames raged around us, but with a flick of my wrist, I redirected them, pushing them away from him.

Our eyes met and an unspoken understanding passed between us. Then, with a sharp nod, we turned back to the fight, a seamless unit. Rathiel moved like lightning, his blade flashing dangerously as he lunged at Tavira. Meanwhile, I turned my full attention on Zera. I wanted her head, and I was more than happy to take it myself.

Zera’s grip tightened around her sword’s hilt, her eyes darting around for any remnants of her shadows—but they had all but abandoned her, shrivelled to nothing under the force of my hellfire. Now, it was just her and me, my daggers gleaming in my hands, flames still dancing at my fingertips.

“Just you and me now,” I said, a hate-filled grin stretching across my face as I advanced. “And I don’t love your odds.”

I surged forward, fire crackling at my back. Zera swung, the blade cutting the air in a vicious arc, but I ducked low, narrowly avoiding the strike. I gripped my dagger and stabbed it straight at her exposed side.

Metal clashed against metal, sparks flying as her sword met my dagger. Zera gritted her teeth, forcing me back, but I pushed harder. The heat of my fire swirled around us, suffocating, relentless. Her sword trembled in her grip as I grabbed a second dagger and unleashed all my fury on her. My strikes came faster and harder, driving her toward the alley wall.

My blade grazed her arm, tearing through the flesh. Blood spattered across the scorched ground, but Zera only hissed, her grip tightening on the sword. Desperation flared in her eyes, and she swung wildly, the sword missing me by inches.

I was relentless. I moved with purpose, each step driving her further back, each strike of my dagger chipping away at her defenses. She swung again, but her movements were slower, clumsier, exhaustion written in every motion.

Rathiel had drilled sword training into me every day of my miserable existence in Hell, whereas the other fallen angels all relied on their powers. They weren’t as skilled in swordplay as he and I were—and it showed.

With a swift lunge, I slid under her next strike, spinning on my heel and catching her across the back of her right leg. She cried out, stumbling forward, and I didn’t wait. I followed her, my fire blazing at my fingertips as I hurled a burst of flames at her feet. The blast sent her crashing to the ground, her sword skidding across the alley.

Zera struggled to rise, blood dripping from her wounds, her chest heaving with effort. “You think this ends with me?” she spat, voice shaking. “You’ll never be free. You’ll die, just like your friend did.”

The mention of Jack sent a fresh wave of fury coursing through me. My vision narrowed on her as I stalked forward, flames crackling along my fingertips. “I’ve never liked you,” I bit out. “But I never thought you were this stupid. You’re on the ground, bleeding, I’m about to kill you, and you antagonize me further?”

Zera’s eyes widened in panic as I raised my hands, the fire surging in response. She scrambled to her feet, grabbing the sword with trembling hands, but it was too late. I hurled the fire forward with all the rage and grief in my heart, the flames engulfing her in an instant.

Her scream ripped through the alley as she crashed into the wall, the fire eating away at her flesh, her sword falling uselessly from her hands. She clawed at the air, her face contorted in agony as the flames consumed her.

But I wasn’t finished. I wanted Zera to feel everything she’d inflicted on Jack—and more. Before this week, I’d never burned someone to death before. Now, I’d burned two. One would think this would horrify me. But it didn’t. Maybe I was more like my father than I’d thought. I couldn’t worry about that right now.

I stepped forward, the fire blazing hotter, brighter, until Zera’s movements slowed. She tried to lift her sword again, but her strength faltered. I wrenched the weapon from her grip, her eyes widening in shock. Without hesitation, I raised her own sword above my head, and with a swift, decisive stroke, brought it down on her neck. Her head dropped to the ground with a sickening thud, her lifeless body following suit.

Chest heaving, my gaze locked on her severed form. Satisfaction didn’t come. Instead, a dark, hollow weight settled in my chest. But before I could fully absorb what I’d done, a sharp scream pierced the air behind me.

I spun around just in time to catch Rathiel’s blade carving into Tavira’s side. Her eyes widened in shock, fury and pain twisting her features as she staggered back, clutching the deep wound. Blood seeped between her fingers, staining her clothes. She looked to Zera’s corpse, her detached head surrounded by a smouldering ring of hellfire. The flames had already begun consuming her body, erasing any trace of her existence. Tavira’s eyes darted back to me, then to Rathiel, her breaths labored.

Her expression faltered as fear flickered in her eyes. Her wings twitched, and desperation shadowed her face as she took a shaky step back. She was calculating her escape, weighing her odds.

Rathiel lunged, but Tavira was faster. With a frustrated snarl, she unfurled her wings and leapt into the air, propelling herself upward. But Rathiel wasn’t about to let her go.

He lifted a hand, and the blood pooling around us on the cement rose at his command. It surged upward, twisting and stretching until it coiled into a whip-like lasso. The crimson rope snagged Tavira’s ankle and yanked her back down. She dropped with a scream, her wings flailing as she fought against Rathiel’s hold.

The impact rattled the ground as she slammed into the pavement. Rathiel didn’t hesitate. He closed the distance in a blur, his blade arcing through the air. Tavira barely had time to raise her hands in a futile attempt to block him before the blade sliced clean through her neck.

Her head hit the ground with a dull thud, her body going limp. Rathiel stood over her lifeless form, his blade dripping with blood. The blood lasso unraveled, collapsing into a dark pool at his feet.

Rathiel turned toward me, his eyes sweeping over my body, assessing for injuries. In an instant, he closed the distance between us, his movements swift and purposeful. His hand brushed my shoulder before carefully sliding over my back. I winced as his fingers grazed the wounds, the pain sharp and immediate. The lion’s claws had torn deep, and now that the fight had ended, the reality of the injury set in. My breath hitched at the sting, the adrenaline no longer numbing the pain.

His jaw tightened as he noted the blood, his fingers hesitating over the torn fabric of my shirt. “You’re bleeding,” he muttered, more to himself than to me. His touch was surprisingly gentle, but I could see the concern tightening his expression.

I winced again, shaking my head, my voice coming out hoarse. “It’s nothing,” I insisted, though another wave of agony rushed through me. I tried to shake it off, but now that the battle was over, the pain pulsed deep and sharp with every breath. “It’ll heal.”

Rathiel’s gaze flicked back to my face, clearly wanting to argue, but the distant wail of sirens interrupted us. They were growing louder, cutting through the crackling of the dying flames and the heavy tension between us. His expression hardened again, his worry masked beneath urgency.

“Can you move?” he asked.

I nodded, though my legs felt weak beneath me. But as I started to step forward, my gaze drifted back to the alleyway entrance, and the world around me seemed to slow. Jack’s body. It lay there, broken and still, crumpled against the cold cement, his life stolen from him in an instant.

The flames that had raged inside me flickered and died. The heat, the fury, all of it drained away, leaving only a hollow ache. My chest tightened, and the air felt too thick to breathe. Jack…was dead. Because of me. He had no part in this war, and yet, he’d paid the price for it.

I couldn’t tear my eyes away from Jack. My feet were heavy and rooted to the spot, my mind a storm of disbelief and horror. This wasn’t supposed to happen. I’d broken up with him for exactly this reason—to keep him alive . And I’d failed.

I didn’t realize how long I’d been staring until Rathiel’s voice cut through the fog. “Lily,” he said, more insistent now. “We have to leave. Now.”

I nodded slowly, my throat tightening as I tore my eyes away from Jack. “What about him?” My voice barely escaped as a whisper. I could burn him until nothing remained, like I had Zera, but the thought nauseated me. If I did that, his family and friends would never know what happened to him. My thoughts went to his five siblings, and tears rose to my eyes.

“He’s human. We’ll let the human authorities handle this,” Rathiel replied, his tone firm but not unkind. He bent down, scooping up my charred winter jacket, likely to keep the police from finding it.

The sirens were closer now, echoing off the alley walls, a reminder that time was running out. Rathiel’s arms slid around me, pulling me against his chest. His wings flared wide, and with a powerful beat, he launched us into the air. The ground dropped away beneath us, the city blurring into a haze of distant lights as we soared higher into the sky, away from the alley, from Jack’s lifeless body.

I clung to him, the wind whipping through my hair as the reality of everything sank in. Jack was gone. I had failed to protect him, and no amount of fire or fury would change that.