Page 22

The demon growled, a sound that resonated in my bones.

He stepped closer, his massive form blocking out the light filtering through the trees.

Up close, the transformation was even more shocking, a little different than the last time I had seen him like this—his face was barely recognizable, his features sharpened and twisted into something inhuman, his mouth filled with razor-like teeth.

“Sweetheart,” I said, using the term of endearment he so often used for me. “Come back to me. The fight is over. We're safe now.”

Something flickered in those glowing eyes—a hint of recognition, quickly subsumed by the raging demon. He growled again, lower this time, and stepped closer. His clawed hand rose, poised to strike, and I braced myself for the blow.

But I didn't retreat. Didn't flinch. Just held his gaze steadily, letting him see that I wasn't afraid—not of him, never of him.

“I know you're in there,” I said softly. “I know you can hear me. Come back, Levi. Come back to me.”

His hand trembled, caught between striking and reaching out. The growl that rumbled from his chest sounded almost pained now, conflicted.

Slowly, carefully, I raised my own hand, palm up, offering it to him. “That's it,” I encouraged. “Focus on my voice. On us.”

His clawed fingers hovered over my palm, razor-sharp and capable of tearing through flesh with minimal effort. I waited, my heart hammering in my chest, but my hand remained steady.

“Please,” I whispered, looking directly into those burning eyes. “Come back.”

For a long, terrible moment, nothing happened. Then, with a shudder that seemed to pass through his entire massive frame, Levi's hand moved to touch mine. The contact was gentle, almost hesitant, his claws carefully curled away from my skin.

The change started slowly—the glow in his eyes dimming, the horns receding into his forehead, his wings folding and shrinking back to their normal size. His skin lightened, the molten veins fading, his features softening back into the familiar contours of his face.

Within moments, Levi stood before me, fully himself again, though his eyes remained haunted, filled with the horror of what he'd just done.

“Ariella,” he rasped, his voice hoarse as if he'd been screaming. “I?—”

“It's okay,” I said quickly, squeezing his hand. “You're back. That's all that matters.”

He pulled away, disgust twisting his features as he looked down at his blood-covered hands. “I lost control. I became that thing again.”

“You saved us,” I insisted, though I knew the cost of that salvation would weigh heavily on him. “We were outnumbered. They would have captured or killed us.”

“Portal's ready,” Aspen called, his voice tight with strain. Behind him, the swirling doorway of magic pulsed with unstable energy. “We need to go. Now.”

I looked back toward the battlefield, thinking of Ezekiel, of my mother and sister still trapped in Elysium. The urge to go after them, to storm the gates and demand their release, was almost overwhelming.

But I knew it would be suicide. We'd barely escaped this trap. Charging into Elysium now, without a plan, would only get us killed or captured—and then we'd be no help to anyone.

“Ariella,” Levi said softly, reading my thoughts in my expression. “We can't help them if we're dead.”

I nodded, the bitter taste of failure filling my mouth. “I know. Let's go.”

Together, we stepped through the portal, leaving behind the blood-soaked clearing and the echoes of Levi's rampage. The magic swirled around us, disorienting and cold, before depositing us back in the warehouse with a jarring sense of displacement.

Aspen stumbled as he emerged behind us, his face pale with exhaustion. Creating a portal under pressure, so close to Elysium's barriers, had clearly taken a toll on him.

“Are you both okay?” he asked, his eyes scanning us for injuries.

I nodded, though “okay” felt like a stretch. My side ached where the angel's blade had caught me, and my shoulder burned from the shallow cut I'd received earlier. But the physical pain was nothing compared to the knot of fear and guilt twisting in my chest.

“I should go,” Aspen said after a moment, his gaze lingering on Levi, who stood silently by the window, his back to us. “I need to alert the others about what happened. We'll need to regroup, come up with a new plan.”

“Thank you,” I said, meaning it. “For everything. I don't think we would have made it out without you.”

He offered a tired smile. “All part of the service.” His expression sobered. “I'm sorry about your family, Ariella. And about Ezekiel. We'll find a way to help them.”

I nodded, not trusting myself to speak. Aspen squeezed my shoulder briefly, then murmured the words for a new portal. A moment later, he was gone, leaving Levi and me alone in the suddenly too-quiet warehouse.

Without a word, Levi marched to the office and crossed the magical door into his apartment.

I followed him and moved directly to the kitchen, where I wetted a clean cloth with warm water. “Let me see your wound,” I said, approaching Levi cautiously.

“Don't,” he said, his voice flat. “Just don't.”

“Levi—”

“I killed them, Ariella.” He finally turned to face me, his eyes dark with self-loathing. “Not in battle, not in self-defense. I tore them apart like animals. And that version of me … I enjoyed it.”

I swallowed hard, remembering the savage glee I'd glimpsed in those glowing eyes as Levi had rampaged through the angels' ranks. “You weren't yourself.”

“Wasn't I?” He laughed, a harsh, bitter sound. “I’m not so sure anymore, sweetheart. I thought I was rid of that creature. That I would never transform into it again.” Neither did I. “Perhaps that’s what I am, what I've always been, underneath it all.”

“No,” I said firmly, setting the cloth aside and stepping closer to him. “That's not all you are. You're more than your demonic nature, Levi. Just like I'm more than my angelic one.”

He shook his head, backing away from my approach. “You don't understand. I could have hurt you. I almost did.”

“But you didn't,” I reminded him. “Just like before. When it mattered, when I called to you, you came back. You controlled it.”

“Barely,” he whispered. “And what about next time? What if I can't pull back? What if I hurt you, or Lacey, or anyone else I—” He stopped abruptly, turning away again.

I closed the distance between us, gently placing my hand on his arm. “Look at me, Levi.”

Reluctantly, he did, his eyes meeting mine with a vulnerability I'd rarely seen in him.

“I'm not afraid of you,” I said softly. “I never have been, not really. Even when you were at your most demonic, even when you were trying to intimidate me… I saw more in you. I still do.”

His expression cracked, the carefully maintained facade of control shattering to reveal the raw pain beneath.

“My father was like that,” he admitted, his voice barely audible.

“Molraz. In the end, the demon consumed everything else.

There was nothing left of whoever he'd been before. Just the monster.”

Understanding dawned. This wasn't just about what had happened in the clearing. This was about a fear Levi had carried for centuries—the fear of becoming like his father, of losing himself to the darkness within.

“You're not Molraz,” I said, sliding my hands up to frame his face, forcing him to maintain eye contact.

“You're Levi. You're stubborn, and sarcastic, and sometimes infuriating.

You're loyal to a fault, and braver than you'd ever admit.

You're the demon who risked everything to save his sister, who stayed with me even when I tried to push you away, who makes me feel safe in a world that's falling apart.”

Tears shimmered in his eyes, though he blinked them back before they could fall. “Ariella…”

“I'm not going anywhere,” I promised. “No matter what happened today, no matter what might happen tomorrow. We're in this together, remember? To the end.”

He closed his eyes, his breathing ragged, and for a moment I thought he might pull away again. But instead, he drew me into his arms, holding me with a desperate intensity that spoke volumes.

I held him just as tightly, ignoring the pain from my wounds, focusing only on the solid warmth of him against me.

We were both broken in our own ways, both scarred by pasts we couldn't escape.

But in this moment, holding each other in the quiet aftermath of violence and fear, we were exactly what the other needed.