Page 4 of The Eternal Mirror (Lucifer’s Mirror #3)

Khaos

N o!

The word screams through my mind as she vanishes through the mirror. I take a step toward it, and Thanouq places a hand on my shoulder.

“You need to honor her wishes,” he says.

I growl and shake off his hand. But as I take another step, a shiver runs through the air, and the glass of the mirror shatters.

She’s made sure I can’t follow.

Deep in my mind, a part of me knows she’s right and understands why she had to go, and why I had to stay. But most of me refuses to accept that. The mating bond squeezes like barbed wire tight around my heart. And deep inside me, the dragon growls .

He’s not happy. In fact, he’s fucking angry. I think I shall call him Wrath—it fits.

Just a short while ago, I was euphoric; we’d done it, killed Lucifer, destroyed Hell, and survived. Now this. Amber is gone. It seems unreal; the shift in emotions too much, and I sway on my feet.

Closing my eyes for a few seconds, I try to ground myself, to stop the screaming in my head. I’m teetering on the edge of a precipice, and to fall would mean a return to the madness I’ve clawed my way out of.

For Amber.

Now she’s gone.

“Khaosti!” I open my eyes. Thanouq stands in front of me. “Get a fucking grip,” he snarls.

He’s right, and I struggle for control. Slowly, I draw back from the precipice. My head clears a little, and I give him a nod of acknowledgment. Only one thing is clear to me now: my father must die. And preferably at my hand, though maybe I’ll let Amber do it, if she asks nicely.

I take a deep breath and look around me.

The empty mirror frame. Thanouq frowning.

The body of the girl lying in a pool of blood, the coppery tang heavy in the air.

I never entirely trusted Winter; I have a suspicious nature, and in the end, she betrayed us.

But I can’t blame her. This is one more thing to lay at my father’s feet .

I throw back my head and roar. Then pull back my fist and punch the wall. The sudden pain brings me back to myself. It stops the screaming.

“Are you done?” Thanouq asks.

I grit my teeth and then give a curt nod.

Claws scrabble up my body. I glance down as Grimlet crawls up and onto my shoulder. I almost shake him off, but then I remember Amber’s words: to be his friend.

Not much bigger than my fist, his skin has the appearance of dark, weathered stone, and his eyes glow amber.

His bat-like wings are slightly too large for his body, and they droop despondently.

His face is sharp and angular, with a scowl, and small fangs peek from his mouth.

Curled horns sit atop his head, between long, pointed ears.

His whip-like tail curls around my neck.

The gargoyle had been Amber’s mother’s friend, her only companion for more than five thousand years of torture in Hell. He lost her—hard to believe it was only hours ago—and now he’s lost Amber as well. I can’t bring myself to push him aside. He settles on my shoulder; claws tangled in my hair.

Amber is gone. But she’s alive; I would feel it if she was dead.

I have to decide what to do next. How to bring her back to me.

She told me to be her hero, not a sacrifice. And she’s right. Likely, my father would have killed me without a second thought if I had gone with her. This way, there’s a chance.

But I hate it. I fucking hate it .

I need to find a way to get her back, and to kill Khronus. I need to find his weakness. Does he have any? He’s ruled for over five thousand years. You don’t hold power for that long if you’re weak.

Maybe arrogance. He believes he can’t be beaten.

Amber also told me to get help. To go to Earth. A place called Glenhaven Cross.

I need to move, to do something, anything...

I take a step and sway. I realize that it’s not only shock. I’m exhausted, and I haven’t eaten since before we went to Hell. My wounds were healed when I shifted, but that didn’t fill my belly. I need to be strong. If I am going to defeat my father, I cannot afford any weaknesses of my own.

Thanouq is still standing in front of me. “Tell me what happened,” he says. “Where have you been? The dragon…how?”

My gaze flickers to him. Of course, he doesn’t know what happened in Hell. We hardly had time to speak at all before everything went to crap.

“Not here,” I say. “Food. And I’ll tell you.”

He nods. He raises a hand, and a soldier appears. “Take her away.” The man crosses to where Winter lies on the flagstone floor of the corridor, then scoops her up in his arms and carries her limp body in the direction of the healers, though she is past any help they can give her.

Thanouq turns and walks away, and I follow him to the kitchen where we shared so many meals. There’s a weird sense of normalcy about this, when nothing at all is normal.

She’s gone .

I know where the food is and help myself to bread and cheese, cold meat. I fill a plate and take it to the table. Thanouq sits opposite me and pours both of us wine from a jug, pushing a glass across to me. He lets me eat for thirty seconds, then asks, “Where have you been?”

“We’ve been to Hell.”

His features tighten, and he slams his glass to the table, so the wine spills over, dark red against the scrubbed wood. “You should have told us what you planned. It was wrong of you both to risk her life. She’s the only thing that stands between us and Lucifer’s armies.”

What the fuck does he know? “Lucifer is gone. Destroyed. And Hell is no more.”

He goes still. “How?”

I shrug. Does it matter? It’s finished. Past. All that matters now is getting Amber back and destroying my father. But he’s not going to leave this alone until he gets an answer. “Amber fulfilled her destiny. Her father is dead.”

The tension goes out of him, and his shoulders slump. Thanouq is the heir to the throne of Valandria, but he swore he would not take the crown until his world was at peace. I don’t think he actually believed that would ever happen. He’s known nothing but war all his life. “It’s over?” he says.

Of course, it’s not fucking over. But Lucifer is out of the picture.

I’m sure my father will fill the space left by his absence.

He’s steered clear of Valandria for thousands of years because he was too scared to face Lucifer—the devil he created.

Now, I’m sure he’ll be back here, expecting the population’s adulation for his godlike status.

Asshole. I somehow can’t see Thanouq bowing down to my father.

“Hardly over,” I reply. “But you no longer have to worry about Lucifer.”

He thinks for a moment. “During the last battle, the shadowguard and all the shadow creatures disappeared.”

“They were destroyed along with Hell.”

“But how?”

“Amber used a spell to destroy Lucifer and all of Hell.” That’s an oversimplification, but I don’t feel like going into details right now.

Something like awe fills his expression. He’s always had a hankering for Amber. Well, he can keep his hands and every other bit of himself off her. Amber is mine. Given to me by Selene herself. Mine!

“She has that much power?” he asks.

I nod. So much power… But all it takes to bring her down is love. What will she do to keep her brothers alive? What will my father demand of her? I can feel my panic rising again. Sweat breaks out on my forehead. I take a gulp of wine and place the glass gently down.

I can see the dawning understanding in Thanouq’s eyes.

Everything has changed. This world has lived under the constant threat of Lucifer for thousands of years.

It must be hard to comprehend that, just like that, the threat is gone.

There will still be a lot to sort out. Many of the races of Valandria fought for Lucifer, and decisions must be made regarding how they are dealt with .

I spent years commanding my father’s army, dealing with insurrections and uprisings across Astrali. Usually ruthlessly and without question. And I realize that I can never go back to that life—that unquestioning loyalty, especially to a man I now know has no morals.

Grimlet crawls from my shoulder onto the table. He wraps his hands around my glass and tips it up, taking a drink. Then he sits on his haunches and stares at me. “We will get the pretty witch back?” he asks.

“Yes,” I growl. Because no alternative is acceptable.

Thanouq is studying Grimlet, a frown on his face. “What…who is this?”

Grimlet scowls.

“This is Grimlet,” I say. “He is my friend.”

“Then welcome to my home, Grimlet.”

Some of the tension goes out of the gargoyle. He takes another sip of wine.

“There’s something else,” Thanouq says. “Hecate is missing.”

I grit my teeth. I’m still seething from that betrayal. I know Amber has not forgiven Hecate, but she, at least, understands her actions, even if the betrayal nearly broke her. She loved her aunt. “The bitch is dead.”

Shock flashes across his face again. “Dead?”

“She betrayed us all. Lied to us all along. Told us she planned to destroy Lucifer when all along, she schemed to save him.”

“Save him from what? ”

I don’t want to delve into this right now, but maybe he needs an answer.

I try to sort it out in my head, to make sense of it all.

“Lucifer was once an Astrali, a powerful man.” A good man by all accounts, one who stood up to my father—a fact that no doubt sealed his fate.

“My father twisted dark magic and used it to turn Lucifer into the devil. Hecate had some misguided plan to reverse the spell.”

“Could it have been done?”

“No!” Grimlet and I speak at the same time.

“The devil was too steeped in darkness,” Grimlet says. “He would have been driven insane by the evil deeds he had committed. My lady understood that.”

“My Lady?” Thanouq asks.

“Amber’s mother. Grimlet was her companion in Hell. She created the spell that destroyed Lucifer but couldn’t bring herself to use it. She loved him.”

It seems to me that love has a lot to answer for.

I finish my food in silence, but I know he has more questions. I lean back and drain my glass. “You want to know about the dragon.”

“Hell, yes.”

I may as well take this opportunity to rid his mind of any notions that Amber will ever be his.

“I am Amber’s bonded mate.” His eyes narrow, and I continue, “We were brought together by the goddess, Selene. We are connected for eternity. Selene bestowed her powers on Amber, but she granted me powers from Vortex, including the ability to shift into a dragon. ”

So take that and shove it...

I rise to my feet. “I need to rest.” Actually, I think sleep will be impossible. But I’ve had enough of the company, and I need to plan. I grab a bottle of wine from the sideboard as I head out of the room.

“We will talk more tomorrow,” Thanouq calls out.

Not if I can help it.

The following morning, I am up before dawn. I didn’t sleep; I just stared at the ceiling above my bed. I’m heading to Earth and to the allies Amber suggested. I’ve always been a loner, at least since my brother Khendril left when I was eleven. Even as commander of the army, I felt alone.

But I’ve learned in these last months away from Astrali and my father’s influence that it’s a good thing to have people at your back—people you trust. Even Thanouq, who can’t seem to keep his hands off my mate, I would trust with my life.

Amber believed in these people on Earth, so I will follow her advice—for now.

Plus, I need to find a way to make contact with Astrali and discover what’s happening.

My best chance of that is Brown. Brown is the guardian of one of the safe houses on Earth; he protects and controls one of the mirrors between Earth and Astrali.

He doesn’t like me, but that may change a little when he learns that I plan to go up against my father.

He hates my father. I suspect most of the guardians feel the same way.

That’s why so many went over to Lucifer.

My father created an army of guardians, half-breed Astralis, to protect the worlds of Valandria and Earth from Lucifer’s onslaught.

My brother Khendril was a guardian. They have the ability to shift but were denied the immortality of the Astrali people.

Many were bitter about this, and when Lucifer offered them eternal life in exchange for their loyalty, they accepted.

I suspect most came to regret their decision.

They became the shadowguard, mere wraiths of their former selves.

The guardians who remain loyal to my father are given roles when they are too old to fight.

Some look after the safe houses on the different worlds—the houses where the mirrors are kept.

Brown is one such guardian; he maintains the safe house near where Amber lived on Earth.

Maybe he can get in contact with my cousin, Sheela and procure me news from Astrali.

I’ve dressed as closely as I can to Earth norms: black pants, a black shirt, and boots. No weapons: I can pick some up on Earth. Grimlet watches my movements carefully as I dress. I consider leaving him behind.

“Grimlet is coming,” he says, as though he can read my mind. And maybe he can. I know nothing of gargoyles. I don’t even know if there are any others, or if Grimlet is totally alone in the world.

I nod, and he leaps the distance between us, landing on my shoulder. I grab a jacket and head out the door. Minutes later, I stand before the mirror Amber created to take us to Earth and then to Hell.

I whisper the words of the spell and step through into another world.