Chapter 15 #2
He turned to leave, then paused at the doorway. "Oh, and do get dressed. There's going to be quite a spectacle in the courtyard at dawn. I love a good public humiliation. Wouldn't want you to miss it."
The door closed behind Asrael, leaving me alone in a room that still smelled of Jasper and now reeked of my failure. I stood frozen for several heartbeats, my mind racing through possibilities, contingencies, escape routes.
I had to move. Had to act. Now.
Grabbing my clothes, I dressed with mechanical precision, my hands trembling with rage and fear. Jasper—gods, Jasper. I needed to warn the others. We still had time.
Just as I reached for the door, it burst open. Six of Asrael's elite guards poured into the room, their weapons trained on me with lethal precision.
"Asrael decided not to leave you on your own, after all," the captain said, his face an expressionless mask.
My demon surged forward, eyes flashing as power gathered in my hands. I wouldn't go easily. The first guard who approached caught my fist in his face, bone crunching beneath my knuckles. The second took a blast of telekinetic energy that slammed him into the wall.
But they were prepared for me. The third and fourth guards flanked me, providing a distraction so that another could inject me with something that depleted my strength, and the effect was immediate—my power snuffed out like a candle, leaving me hollow and vulnerable.
"Did you really think he'd leave you free to interfere?" the captain asked, wiping blood from his split lip. "He's been planning this for weeks."
Weeks. The word echoed in my mind as they dragged me through the palace corridors. Had Asrael known about us that long? Had he been watching, waiting for the perfect moment to spring his trap?
They threw me into a cell in the western dungeon, my body hitting the cold stone floor with bruising force. As the door slammed shut, I heard a familiar voice from the adjacent cell.
"Rhodes? Is that you?"
I scrambled to the shared wall, pressing my palm against the rough stone. "Jasper! Are you hurt?"
He released a soft laugh, though it held no humor. "Not yet. Though I suspect that's coming."
I closed my eyes, forehead resting against the wall that separated us. So close, yet completely unreachable. "I'm going to get us out of here. The others—they'll realize something's wrong when we don't return. Can you reach Talon and Felix?" I asked, my voice lower now. "Through your bond?"
The silence that followed made my heart sink.
"It's blocked," he growled, frustration clawing at my throat. "I just tried again, but I've been trying since I got down here. Asrael must've done something to block it."
"Of course he did," I sighed. "He wouldn't leave anything to chance."
I paced the small cell, my mind working frantically and coming up fucking empty. My fist slammed into the wall, pain shooting up my arm. "Damn it! There has to be a way. We can't just—"
"Rhodes," Jasper interrupted, his tone gentler now. "You know what's going to happen, don't you?"
I froze, unwilling to acknowledge the dread pooling in my stomach. "He said punishment. Public humiliation. That doesn't mean—"
"It's Asrael," Jasper said simply. "And I've been his favorite toy for too long. He doesn't share what he considers his property, and he certainly doesn't tolerate betrayal."
"Don't," I growled, panic rising in my chest. "Don't talk like that. We're going to figure this out."
Through the small gap near the floor, Jasper's fingers appeared, reaching across the narrow divide between our cells. I dropped to my knees, extending my hand until our fingertips barely touched.
"You know he's probably going to kill me," Jasper said, and the calm acceptance in his voice broke something inside me. "I need you to promise me something."
"No," I rasped, gripping his fingers tighter. "No last requests. We're both getting out of here."
I felt rather than saw his sad smile. "My time as Asrael's plaything was nothing but darkness. You were the best part of my days and nights, Rhodes. I don't regret a single moment."
Tears burned behind my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. "I should have been more careful. Should have protected you better. I should've let you go."
"But then we wouldn't have had any of this, and that would be the true tragedy."
We sat in silence for several minutes, holding onto each other through that small opening, memorizing the feeling of skin against skin.
"Promise me you won't blame yourself," Jasper finally whispered. "Whatever happens tomorrow, know that loving you gave me more life in these past months than I'd experienced in centuries before."
"I can't lose you," I admitted, the words scraping my throat raw. "I don't know how to exist in a world where you're not."
His fingers tightened around mine. "Listen to me carefully, Rhodes. Even if Asrael takes my life tomorrow, I will not be gone. Not really. I vow to you, on everything we've shared, that I will find a way back to you and my brothers. Death itself won't keep me from watching over you."
I wanted to believe him. Wanted desperately to hold onto that promise. But I'd seen too much, lost too much to trust in happy endings.
"Just stay alive," I begged. "Whatever he does to you, just keep breathing. I'll find a way to—"
The sound of approaching footsteps cut me off. Jasper's fingers withdrew from mine, leaving me clutching at empty air.
"Remember my vow," he whispered urgently. "I will always be with you, Rhodes. Always."
The door to my cell swung open, and Asrael himself stood framed in the doorway, a cruel smile playing at his lips.
"It's time for your special preparation," he said, gesturing to the guards behind him. "Can't have you interfering with tomorrow's entertainment."
As they dragged me to my feet, I caught one last glimpse of Jasper's fingers through the gap—reaching out, but finding nothing to hold onto.
The guards dragged me down winding corridors, my muscles still leaden from whatever they'd injected me with. My mind raced, frantically searching for escape routes, weapons, anything that might save us. But the drug they'd pumped into my system made even walking a struggle, let alone fighting.
They tossed me into another cell, this one smaller than the last, with no adjoining wall to Jasper. The isolation was deliberate—Asrael ensuring we couldn't communicate anymore.
I slumped against the cold stone, my demon thrashing beneath my skin but unable to break through the chemical restraints. Fucking coward. Even with all his power, Asrael couldn't face me without drugging me first.
The door swung open after what might have been minutes or hours—time had lost all meaning. Asrael glided in, his pristine white robes a stark contrast to the filth of the dungeon.
"Comfortable?" he asked, his smile not reaching his eyes.
I spat at his feet, gratified when a speck landed on his immaculate boots.
He sighed, as if dealing with a petulant child. "Always so spirited, Rhodes. It's what I've always admired about you and your brothers."
"Touch any of them and I'll—"
"You'll what?" Asrael crouched down, bringing his face level with mine. "You're in no position to make threats."
I strained against my invisible bonds, wanting nothing more than to wrap my hands around his throat and squeeze until the light left those smug eyes.
"I want you to be perfectly clear on something," Asrael said, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper as he met my gaze. "This is happening because you dared to touch what's mine. But your brothers? They don't need to know that particular detail."
A chill ran down my spine. "What are you—"
Before I could finish, Asrael placed his hands on either side of my head, his fingers digging into my temples.
White-hot pain seared through my skull, spreading like liquid fire through every nerve.
I screamed, the sound tearing from my throat as Asrael's magic worked its way into my mind, not removing memories but binding them with a powerful compulsion.
"You will not speak of your relationship with Jasper," Asrael commanded, his voice echoing inside my head as his magic burned the order into my very being. "Not to your brothers, not to anyone. That part of the story dies with him."
I fought against the magical restraints, mentally clawing at the barriers he was erecting around my memories. But it was like trying to hold smoke—the more I grasped, the more it slipped through my fingers.
"Stop fighting," Asrael murmured, almost gently. "It will only make it worse."
"Fuck you," I managed through gritted teeth.
He laughed, the sound bouncing off the stone walls. "That's the spirit. Keep that anger, Rhodes. Channel it. Just remember—it wasn't love. It was never love. There," Asrael said, finally releasing me. I slumped forward, gasping for air. "The show begins at dawn. See you soon."
"Rhodes?" Talon's hand landed on my shoulder, and I nearly jumped out of my skin. "You're bleeding."
I looked down to find my nails had pierced my palms, crimson droplets falling to the stone floor. Wonderful. More blood on my hands.
"It's nothing," I muttered, wiping them on my pants. "Let's just get this over with."
Palmer stopped suddenly, her head tilted as if listening. The temperature dropped several degrees, and I knew. I fucking knew he was right there.
"He wants me to tell you something," she said softly.
"Don't." My voice cracked. "Whatever it is, I don't want to hear it."
But Palmer, stubborn as ever, continued. "He says it wasn't your fault. He told you that. That you need to stop—"
The tunnel exploded with telekinetic energy as my control finally snapped. Stones cracked, dust rained down, and everyone stumbled back—everyone except Palmer, who stood her ground with tears in her eyes that weren't just hers.
"We have a job to do," I snarled, reining in my power before I brought the whole passage down around us. "So either lead the way or get the fuck out of mine."