Dance of Wings (Curse of the Guardians #7)

10. Scarlet

Chapter 10

Scarlet

S carlet couldn’t believe it when Lucifer pressed himself against her blade, essentially slitting his own throat. Forced to pull back, or end up accidentally killing him, she did with a frustrated exhale.

“Don’t worry, love,” he growled in a deep, raspy tone that had no right to sound so suggestive. “Next time, you’ll beg.”

Nope. No way would she ever beg to touch him .

Her hand itched to stab him again, but with her soul marked against his, she wasn’t sure what would happen. “We have to work together,” she said, her jaw aching with how hard she clenched.

The bastard smiled, his lips crooked as he looked down at her. His thick mane of dark hair had been tied up with a band, leaving a few strays framing his sharp jaw, harsh features, and unhinged eyes.

Blood had splattered across his skin, the blatant show of violence obscene. He’d enjoyed fighting in that cage, laughing the entire time like it was a game. Before her brother, she had never witnessed violence. Now it was an everyday occurrence.

“I don’t have to do anything,” he said, cocking his head. “Free will and all that.”

Dropping his hands from the wall, she hooked her arm in his and flipped them so it was he who was pressed against the brick, her wings spreading to help balance the weight.

There was a moment of stunned silence, as if he couldn’t believe she’d been able to move him before he burst into laughter, throwing his head back to reveal the slice she’d made. It seeped, but the skin had already partially healed despite only being made moments ago.

“The bargain was –”

His laugh stopped as quickly as it had started. “Don’t talk to me about bargains, love.” His expression hardened. “I agreed to mark your soul as mine until Gideon’s destroyed. I don’t have to do anything with you.”

“You agreed as partners.”

“Nothing was specified that I’d become your fucking puppet.” His smile, this time, was closer to that of a wolf. Dangerous, and it took everything in her not to step back. “I’ll share information with you regarding Gideon, as per the bargain, just enough to satisfy your cunt of an Archangel, but that doesn’t mean I have to work with you directly. You’ll only get in my way.”

He goes to move past her, but she stopped him with a hand to his chest. His heart beat beneath her palm, and she expected him to shove her away. Instead he stilled, brow cocked.

“Why are you here, Scar?”

She didn’t correct the shortened version of her name. It was better than angel, or even love.

“To help defeat Gideon,” she answered, her reply weak even to her own ears. She couldn’t give a shit about Gideon, but to get closer to Cassiel, she needed to do what he’d asked. If that meant she was stuck with a lunatic who thought very little of his own life, then so be it.

“And who exactly is Gideon?”

Scar pursed her lips, fighting the growing frustration. “A man with only a marginally bigger ego than yours.” At least, she assumed it was a man. She actually had no idea who Gideon was.

Lucifer’s chest rumbled beneath her palm, only just reminding her that she was still touching his bare skin. Pulling back as if he burned, she stood her ground. Which probably looked ridiculous with their height difference, so she lifted her wings higher.

“I never asked for this, remember.”

His eyes narrowed to slits. “And you think I did?”

“You chose me.”

“And what a beautiful sheep you are,” he whispered, her face heating at the comment. “Nothing but Cassiel’s little spy.”

Her hand prickled, wanting to stab him with her blade again. Except he seemed to like it.

“You don’t deny it?” he continued, and when she simply lifted her head he said, “First intelligent thing you’ve done.”

“Are you finished?”

“Baa.” Lucifer’s smile became crooked once more, the red in his eyes blazing at her scowl. “Gideon’s like me, but stronger. He recently acquired a chalice belonging to your people, and with it he’s been able to strengthen his soldiers.”

“Soldiers?”

“More like the walking dead, because once he’s transitioned them into Lessers, they’re nothing but empty puppets with the faces of skulls.” Lucifer stood with utter ease, as if she hadn’t just held him at knifepoint in a dark alley against a wall. “You’re out of your depth, love. I’d recommend going back to whatever comfy life you had before and leave the fighting to the big boys.”

Scar really wanted to stab him, and it was only down to her superior control that she didn’t. She’d have to settle for obscenities, instead. “Fuck you.”

Classic and to the point.

“I’ve told you already, you’re going to have to beg.” Lucifer pushed off from the wall, his skin giving off a strange heat.

This time she moved out of his way, watching how the muscles along his back bunched as he walked. His tattoos decorated almost the entirety of the skin there as well as his chest, the fine lines and soft curves creating an intricate design. But what was more fascinating, is there was no evidence of the wings she’d witnessed the other day. No slits along his spine, or bumps beneath his skin.

“Cassiel will just summon you again if you refuse,” she said, noting the tension growing at the word ‘summon.’ “It’ll be easier if we do as he asks, and work together.”

Cassiel wasn’t a man who traded in favours. He wanted something up front, and right then she had nothing to offer other than herself. Which meant she and Lucifer needed to work together. She wasn’t going to take no for an answer.

Lucifer spun so fast it was a blur. “If Cassiel really wanted to help, he would have sent out an entire division rather than just you.”

The flush on her cheeks burned hotter, and she chose to ignore it.

“The men you met back at the bar are Guardians. They’re trained from childhood to destroy Daemons, and even they can’t take out Gideon alone, but you think you’ll be able to help?”

“Is it because I’m female?”

Lucifer snorted. “I’ve met many female warriors more vicious than any male. It doesn’t matter what goes on between your legs.”

“So it’s just me you have an issue with then?”

Lucifer seemed to study her for a moment before that smile from earlier curved his lips. “Okay, fine. Let’s play a game.”

Scarlet took a moment to respond. “A game?”

“Don’t look so scared,” he laughed. “It’s not like you can lose your soul again, is it?”

Scarlet didn’t appreciate his sense of humour.

“Prove yourself.” He pointed to the other side of the street, and then to her bow. “Hit that lamppost over there, and I’ll stop fighting the partnership. If not, well, Cassiel isn’t my…”

Scarlet didn’t let him finish, drawing her bow and shattering the light with a single arrow. The silence between them stretched, the glass glittering as it fell to the pavement.

She’d been using a bow since before she could even fly, her father teaching her until her arms had ached and her fingers had bled. He’d always said that if she wanted to go hunting with the men, she needed to know how to shoot like one.

The first thing she’d been taught at the academy was that she was likely going to be smaller and weaker than her opponents. It was why she stayed just long enough to be efficient enough in hand to hand combat, and learn how to fight dirty. She’d scratch, claw and aim for the balls just to give her enough distance so she could grab her bow.

Because that was where she excelled.

“Impressive,” Lucifer said.

“I never miss.”

Lucifer’s eyes darkened a second before they strayed to the side, and before she could react he shoved her against the wall, his back pressed to her front. Dark flames burned both his palms seconds before he clasped them together to create a ball.

Scarlet heard it then, a slightly scratching noise like claws on the pavement, followed by a guttural, yet wet snarl.

She didn’t give herself a chance to panic, steeling her legs and straightening her spine. A creature stood on four legs, its paws huge as it cracked the pavement with its nails. Its head was canine, but lacked the usual fur she expected, and instead revealed more skull than could be healthy for something supposedly living. Its chest was bulbous, with patchy black fur, random scales, and pale ribs on the outside of its skin like an exoskeletal armour. Green spittle dripped from its too-long muzzle, the liquid sizzling on the pavement as if it was acid.

Mental note: Don’t touch the green stuff.

Then there were its eyes, as red as Lucifer’s but rolling freely in large hollows carved into the skull.

“Scar, get –”

Scarlet aimed and fired, the arrow soaring silently through the air to sink perfectly into the creature’s left eye socket. The creature screeched, the sound harrowing as it shook its head violently.

A hand on her arm, Lucifer yanking her back with hands absent of his previous arcane.

Scar shook her arm free while giving him a death glare. The creature howled, scratching at its face and tearing into its own skin and scales. It dislodged her arrow, and within a blink Lucifer appeared right in front of the creature with his ball of dark red flames.

Unclipping another of the arrows hidden within the grip, she aimed… and waited until the creature reared back with a snarl to reveal its throat. She released the string, her arrow crossing the distance and landing exactly where she wanted it to.

Lucifer jerked back, a flash of surprise in his expression when he looked back over his shoulder at her before returning his attention to the creature, and blasting more of his magic through the new hole she’s created.

The creature crashed to the floor with a dramatic crack that made her jump. Reaching down, Lucifer pulled out her arrow. The other broken.

When he remained crouched, she approached.

“What was that thing?” Scarlet eyed the creature, 99% confident it was dead and yet unwilling to get too close.

Lucifer clicked his neck, returning to his full height before facing her. “One of Gideon’s hounds.”

He held out her remaining arrow, and when she went to grab it, he used his strength to stagger her closer.

“Nice shot,” he commented, his head tilted slightly to the side.

Scarlet pulled at his grip, bracing herself when he finally released it.

He watched curiously as she hooked her bow back over her shoulder, purposely painted to blend in with her wings. It was designed with celestrials in mind, the bow compact so it wouldn’t get caught in her feathers. Tucked tight to her inner wing, it was almost impossible to see unless you were really looking for it.

“So, now that’s been dealt with. Want to tell me why?”

Scarlet blinked up at him. “Why?”

“Why are you really here, and don’t give me some bullshit about Cassiel paying you.”

Lucifer shook his head at her refusal to answer, the motion causing more hair to escape the elastic band.

“So, it was nice chatting with you, love.” With a shrug as if they hadn’t just been attacked, he turned towards the door with a spring in his step, and a fresh splatter of blood on his skin. “But I have shit to do, and Daemon’s to destroy.”

“Why are you making this harder than it needs to be?” Scar let out a sound of frustration. “You need my help, whether you want it or not isn’t up to you.”

Lucifer sniggered, both darkness and laughter lacing his tone. “You have no idea what you’ve blindly agreed to, do you?” He closed their space until her breasts almost touched his chest. “He gifted you to me, like some toy for me to play with and discard. He’s only interested in Gideon because of the chalice, and the possible threat to his position on the Council. He’d happily watch the world burn if it benefitted him. Which means you’re here for nothing other than his curious entertainment.”

A provocative smirk tugged at his lips, his eyes glinting with calculated amusement.

“So again, why are you really here?”

Scarlet swallowed the sudden nerves, Lucifer nothing short of a predator grinning at his prey. “Because just like you,” she said, proud her voice didn’t falter. “I don’t have a choice.”