Page 28 of Princess of Bael

He ignored me in favor of his drink, but the slight pinch in his brow told me he’d heard me just fine.

Deciding to play his silent game, I taste-tested the green goop and found it surprisingly fruity. “This isn’t green tea.”

“The base is green tea. I added nutrients.” His focus shifted to the night, his gaze drifting up to the moon and the stars. They provided most of our light, something I hadn’t really noticed until now.

Everything in this home held a natural appeal to it. Woods. Marbles. White paint. Minimal fluorescent lights.A lot of glassless windows.

I mused over it all while I sipped the drink, finding it oddly refreshing. When I was done, I found Ezra’s gaze on me again, his expression unreadable.

“What?” I demanded.

“It’s strange having you here.” His tone implied that he meantstrangein a negative way.

No surprise there. He’d been an ass when we’d first met, and an ass now.

“You’re just as charming as I remember,” I drawled, sliding off my stool to carry the cup to the sink. I mimicked his actions with the tray, setting the glass right beside it when done.

He followed suit, cleaning his own cup and the pitcher, while saying, “The locator spell was almost done when I checked. Kristina is in the human realm.”

That sounded about right. The shifting of the balance made the energy on Earth chaotic and unpredictable, which would allow someone to hide Kristina rather easily there.

However, rather than comment, I merely nodded. Because I didn’t want to hear another mocking “hmm” from Archangel Charming over here.

Ezra finished his kitchen task, then left without another word.

I took that as an invitation to follow and trailed after him to the study and the glorious view it presented of the landscape outside. If I owned a pair of wings, I would go exploring. Alas, my Archdemon feathers hadn’t sprouted yet. It remained unclear if they ever would.

A sigh at the view caught in my throat as I glanced at the desk. My gaze widened, the original parchment having multiplied into over a dozen maps during my nap.

The eleven realms of Hell glowed red, while the heavenly ones were decorated in soft gray, and Earth unraveled in strokes of black.

Wow.

There were various shades in the different regions as well, causing my lips to curl down. Because they vaguely matched the charts I’d drafted with Ashmedai last week.

I stepped forward to pick up one of the blank pieces of paper and grabbed a pen from Ezra’s desk.I wonder…I settled on the floor beside one of the fallen parchments and began to draw my own version of a map using the details from my discussion with Ashmedai.

It took several minutes, but the effort proved worth it in the end when I lined up the two maps.

The splotches of color on the parchment matched the power shifts we’d noted.

Narrowing my gaze, I grabbed another piece of blank paper and began drawing the next realm.

Exact match.

Shit.

I took a stack of paper from Ezra’s desk, snatched a pack of pens, and settled in among the parchments. I drew everything Ashmedai and I had discussed, including each Archdemon base and their powerful minions. Then I compared the drawings to the maps.

The regions and shades all matched.

But that wasn’t what made my stomach churn.

It was the size and colors of the parchment shades that twisted my insides into knots.

Because the parchment shades were just a hair wider than the power outlines Ashmedai and I had drawn last week.

It served as a visual demonstration of how the shift was growing.