Page 161 of Princess of Bael

“Something like that,” I replied, releasing Kayla’s silky wing.

“What the fuck happened?”

“Kayla happened.” I couldn’t fight the urge to smile, nor did I even try. “She was magnificent.”

“Of course she was,” a deep voice replied as Bael appeared with Johanna. “She’s my daughter.”

Ezra

Johanna glanced around the forest,her lips curling down. “The Divinity feels strong here.”

“It’s Kayla,” I replied, standing again.

“Did she absorb Kristina’s power?”

I shook my head. Then nodded. Then shook my head again. “It’s not that simple. She… sheisthe Divinity now.” Or that was how it felt, anyway.

Because I could no longer sense any divine power in Johanna. There’d always been a draw there to protect her and the others—my soul’s sole purpose in life designed to guard the Divinity—but now all my focus fully revolved around Kayla.

It was something I hadn’t fully grasped until this moment—until I saw Johanna.

“Do you feel any different?” I asked Johanna, my gaze running over her lengthy form. She wore a robe similar to Bael’s, the ruby-red color popping against her tan skin.

It hadn’t been long since I’d last seen her, but it felt like centuries ago. Perhaps because it had been that long for her in Hell.

However, she possessed a healthy glow that suggested she was thriving there.

And I hadn’t sensed any problems radiating from her or Lucía.

Of course, my attention had been utterly consumed by Kayla and the fluctuating balance.

Johanna shared a glance with Bael, then cleared her throat. “My powers have been changing since moving to the underworld. The same is happening with Lucía. We’ve been…evolving.”

That seemed to be a good word for it, as it felt like all of us wereevolvingin some way.

Is this part of the change Ashmedai noted? The blending of the realms? The sharing of power among the different beings of this universe?

“Yes. Evolving in preparation for the new Divinity to rise,” Mietek said as he appeared.

He caught Scion by the elbow, pulling him up off the ground as though he’d flown in just to assist the other Archangel to his feet.

Maybe he had.

He was the Archangel of Destiny’s mate, after all.

“We have some cleanup to do here, I see,” Mietek added conversationally, his dark gaze falling to where Azrael, Zerak, and Raziel were all still unconscious on the ground.

Scion grunted. “An understatement.” He glanced around, his expression hardening. “Where are the other demons and Morax?”

“Ashmedai sent them back before taking Morax.” The abrupt summary came out through my teeth, my irritation with the Archdemon still lingering.

Scion’s gaze narrowed. “I see. Nice of him to stop by and help.”

I nearly snorted. “It’s Ashmedai.” I didn’t need to elaborate on that. The Archdemon did whatever the fuck he wanted and often engaged in games for his own personal amusement. This was likely no different for him.

Although, his demonstration of power had felt purposeful.

As had his comments about Trudy.