Page 197 of Wicked Believer

Just as Michael manages to land an uppercut on my jaw and wriggles himself out from under me. He moves to blast some of his blinding light toward Charlotte.

Lucifer isn’t the only one of his angelic siblings who has light-wielding abilities. He was just the first who was smart enough to figure out how to wieldotherkinds of light. Hence, Lightbringer. Plus, the whole spreading knowledge to Eve and humanity is its ownkind of enlightenment. No more shadows-on-the-walls-of-Plato’s-cave sort of thing.

Even if I willneveradmit to him that I thought the whole thing was fucking brilliant.

“Charlotte!” I shout, drawing her attention just in time for her to dive out of the way and roll.

I growl in approval.

Clever girl.

I fucking told her those practice falls would come in handy.

Lilith breaks out of her feeding frenzy then as she lets out a furious shriek. “Absolutelynot, Michael! You will not ruin my one chance of your brother finally giving me grandbabies.” She rounds upon Michael, stepping in between him and Charlotte with the furious look only a mother can give, and Michael shrinks back like the celestial child he’s always been.

“Mom, be reasonable.” Michael lifts his hands in surrender, backing away as Lilith advances on him. “I just want the blade, that’s all.”

I take that as my cue and evaporate as I make my way toward Charlotte’s friend.

Charlotte’s now covered in blood, mostly from the guy whose soul I still need to reap.

Though some of the blood may actually be hers thanks to the shards of that fucking glass dress she’s wearing.

As her trainer, we’re going to have a long discussion about choosing fashion over function. Glass clothing isnotpractical for battle.

Charlotte picks up the Holy Lance, clutching it tight with the correct grip just like I taught her.

Good girl.

Something dormant inside me stirs.

Lucifer isn’t the only one of us who has dominant tendencies.

Another reason why he and I didn’t exactly work out.

“He aimed to kill me,” Charlotte says, egging Lilith on. Despite how she just witnessed Lilith completely eviscerate the guy who wasabout to hurt her friend, for some reason she trusts her future Mother-in-Law not to turn on her.

Whatisit with this goddamn family?

I can’t begin to make heads or tails of it.

“Did you?” Lilith’s head snakes back toward Michael, and the edges of her naked body flicker like static on an old television screen. The Goddess of Creation is considering becoming three again, instead of one.

Michael shakes his head. “It wasn’t like that, Ma. I wasn’t trying to kill her, just stop her. I want toconverther.”

“To help in your effort to get your Father to return?” Lilith sneers. Now Michael hasmajorlypissed her off.

Nothing like divorce drama between the two creators of everything.

Michael looks to Charlotte. “Come to my side, and there doesn’t have to be any more fighting. Mother’s just going to borrow your little Seer here, and then—”

“Oh, shut up, Michael,” Lilith snarls. She snaps her fingers, and Michael suddenly doesn’t have any lips, his mouth no longer even there. He paws at his face, desperately trying to shout but sounding like Charlotte’s friend did before she passed out.

Lilith turns her attention to Charlotte.

I take that as my cue.

“What do you want with her?” Charlotte asks, inching slightly closer toward her friend.