Page 73 of Princess of Bael

When a Pestilence demon appeared next, my eyebrows rose. Because those fuckers belonged to Alastor. But I couldn’t sense his royal brand on this one at all.

He appeared to be…solitary.

What the fresh hell is this nonsense?I wondered. Demons were pack animals. They generally stayed within their realms and served their masters—otherwise known as Archdemons or Demonic Lords. But these underworld minions appeared to be operating on their own.

How? Why?

My shield ignited as the Pestilence demon attempted to hit me with a blade—one I had no doubt he’d coated in his own vile disease.

Alastor would be pissed if he saw this.

Which was why I had no problem setting this asshole on fire—Alastor would thank me later for it.

The Pestilence demon screamed, his humanoid form very mortal-like in appearance and sound. But the black sludge coming out of his eyes was starkly demon.

He began to melt beneath my fiery fury, and a Cyclops shoved him out of his way to reach me. Only, he couldn’t fit through the door to enter the kitchens.

His single eye also wasn’t on me but on Ezra.

I spun around to see my Archangel mate fighting for his life as almost all the demons around us focused on him—not me.

The Dargarians had only shifted focus to me for my fire.

The Pestilence demon had also appeared to be aiming for me, but maybe I’d misjudged his intentions.

Because all the demonic beings appeared to be trying to kill Ezra.

While leaving me to just… exist.

Which meant I could leave and let him die. Or stay and try to protect him.

It took me all of a second to decide to fight by his side. He was mine to kill, not theirs. And the balance needed him.

No. It neededus.

I could feel it wavering all around us, this attack on the Divinity’s domain tipping the scales in every direction. The heavens had to feel it. The Archdemons, too.

This is very bad, I decided, focusing yet again on the demons.I really need to find the portal.

There wasn’t time to explain my intentions to Ezra—I had to use the window of freedom to shut this shit down. He could handle himself with that sword.

With my hands lined in flames, I crept down the hall toward his study to escape through the back doors.

Only to find myself immediately surrounded by Slithers outside.

“Oh, fuck this,” I said, flaming their slimy asses before one could so much as spit.

Two went down with screams that touched my heart in the best way, just for a third to sneak up behind me like some sort of ninja snake. His fingers went for one of my horns, yanking me down, only for the hand to be severed at the wrist by a blade.

The Slither’s head fell to the ground in the next instant, that same blade having cut right through his elongated neck.

I startled, half expecting to find that Ezra had followed me.

Alas, no.

It was a different face that stared at me now—one I knew very well.

“Yaz?” I whispered, shocked to see the head of my Royal Guard standing only a few feet away.