Page 45 of Wings of Darkness (Daughter of the Seven Circles #2)
Chapter
Twenty-Eight
RONEN
M y Dreads and I trudged through the slush of Hoar Hollow and split up into pairs, knocking on residents’ doors.
We entered the homes of blood-banded and souls, searching through every room for a portal, a runed doorway, any kind of evidence to show us where the demons were coming from.
The majority obliged without issue, but some put up a fight despite Lucifer’s orders.
After the first line of homes, we regrouped, and all my Dreads reported the same thing—nothing.
I sighed. “Break up and continue searching. We’ll meet back here in two hours.”
My Dreads dispersed, leaving me with my second and third.
“Well, this would be a bust if that gorgeous female hadn’t asked for a date,” Alexei commented with a smirk .
“You know, Lex, with how much you get around, I’m surprised any ladies want to date you,” MJ countered.
“Let’s go. Today isn’t over yet,” I said, leading them out of the Upper City and toward the edge of the Lower City.
“Ronen.” Alexei nodded ahead.
“I see it.”
We stopped in front of an unremarkable corner house—same shingles, shutters, muted colors, snow-covered roof. Even the light post matched the ones lining the street behind us. But unlike the others, this one was lit.
It didn’t seem significant—not at first. Hell’s skies were always weary and gray, the sun hiding like it knew the sinful here didn’t deserve its warmth.
But in the Lower City, where souls outnumbered the blood-banded, lamplight was a luxury.
They had to pay to keep them burning, and even then, it typically only lasted through the night.
I walked up the stone steps and knocked on the door.
No answer.
I knocked again, refraining from pounding in case I alerted them.
Nothing.
I tried the doorknob. Locked.
“MJ,” I said, nodding her over.
She slid next to me, grabbing the knob. Red and orange flames swarmed her hand, heating the metal.
Slowly, after a few minutes, the knob melted, oozing down the wood and letting us in.
I eased the door open, staring into a long, dim hallway.
I silently signaled them to assume formation, search, and follow.
Alexei positioned himself at my back, and MJ almost entered first, but I gripped her shoulder, forcing her behind me.
We crept past an empty living room and down a hallway of closed doors. A sickly, rotten scent crawled into my nose and mouth. Death resided here. I turned around, motioning for them to stay alert. They nodded.
I sent out my shadows. They slithered through the door cracks and searched ahead for heat signatures. There were none on the first floor. I was about to send them upstairs when the smell became cloying.
Stopping, I surveyed the door to my left.
The only thing out of place was the blood leaking beneath it.
I motioned for MJ to open it, knowing nothing living was on the other side.
She twisted the handle, and the door creaked as she pushed it.
Decay shoved into my lungs, begging me to cover my nose, and we laid eyes on four dead blood-banded.
Each body showed different states of the demon infection. A couple had razor teeth, and one had horns. But what they all had in common were the black veins and chunks of skin sliding off their bodies in a slurry of red and black blood.
“Did the infection kill them?” Alexei whispered.
“Yes. Just like it did Bonny,” I answered.
“So blood-banded don’t survive the infection.”
MJ wasn’t asking a question. I nodded anyway, eyes still on the corpses. But why? What did souls have that blood-banded didn’t?
Footsteps creaked overhead. We readied our weapons and followed my shadows upstairs. As we reached the landing, they registered a heat signature right as the humming began. That eerie song drifted through the corridor, leading us to the end of the hall.
We fanned out and burst through the door, surrounding an infected female.
She sat patiently on a bed, meeting our eyes with an expectant, lipless smile.
Hairless, with black veins threading through burns that likely extended beneath her thick dress, she was clearly from the Immolation Circle—like the rest we’d found.
Her humming paused, and she tilted her head, never dropping her smile. “Did you find my mess?”
“Yes,” I replied, leveling a Soul Sword at her neck.
“Pity my followers didn’t survive.” She frowned, then perked up again. “But we have others.”
“Where? And who’s we ? Lilith?” I demanded.
She tilted her head the other way, revealing an oozing soul wound that sliced up her neck and head. “Maybe. Maybe not, Ronen.”
My shadows attacked the black gunk, and I braced to ingest the disgusting substance.
“You’ll find nothing in my mind. Haven’t you been listening to us, General? We were prepared for you.”
“Who?”
She hummed her song, swaying on the bed in answer.
“What do you want?” Alexei snapped.
She paused. “We seek the depths of torture and the heights of light, and all the lies between.” Her perky grin changed, and a taunting evil curled her lip. “But we’ll start with Lucille first.”
My grip tightened on my Soul Swords.
“Why do you want Lucille?” I demanded .
The female stuck out her tongue and chomped through it. The small, black muscle dropped to the floor, and she smiled with ichor coating her razor teeth.
She was done answering questions—and I was done holding back the cold rage tightening my body. I swung without hesitation, crossing my Soul Swords. The moment her head separated from her spinal column, her soul dissolved to ash and sifted into my blades to live in torment forever.
“Lucille? The recruit who was placed with the Tormentors? Why would they want her?” MJ asked. “Because she’s servicing the king?”
“Watch your words,” I warned.
“Strategically, it’s a good plan.”
I didn’t know whether Alexei meant gaining the king’s favor through sex or using Lucille to get to the king, but I had a feeling it was the latter.
“You’re saying the rumors aren’t true? You would know,” MJ said, fishing for information.
I wiped my blades on the white coverlet, clenching my jaw.
Of course everyone thought the hellion fucked the king to obtain her place.
They even whispered rumors about us—only they made sure to do it behind my back.
If I caught the words coming from their mouths, I’d consider taking their lives, or just demoting them to the Bowels.
But I never corrected Alexei or MJ’s assumptions, knowing that if I did, there would be more questions.
I left the room without a word, descended the stairs, and entered the room of death and gore.
I wish I could have MJ burn them to recycle, but we didn’t know enough about the demon infection.
We couldn’t risk that they’d recycle as a demon soul, or something worse.
After sliding my swords against their necks, I had MJ scorch the floor, burning away the blood.
We met up with the rest of my Dreads. Xavier and Alessandro reported interrogating an infected before killing it, but they gathered no intel.
I nodded. “Continue searching and report back to MJ.”
They dipped their heads and left.
“And what will you and Alexei be doing?” MJ inquired, crossing her arms.
Alexei raised a brow, as curious as MJ.
Lucille would need extra protection. And if Ni’s attack hadn’t proved that, this Damned sure did.
I summoned my wings and nodded at Alexei. “We’re training the hellion.”