Chapter 9
Nine
I flickered the lights on in the prison, and the demons shrieked. Like all the other demons had done, the Envy dragged his feet across the concrete floor, his toenails scratching against it loudly.
“I could throw you into Tartarus instead, if you would like,” I said.
Immediately, he picked up his feet and allowed me to wrap a chain around his throat and lock him into the cage. He grabbed the bars, rattling the cage.
“Tell me what you know about them.”
He snarled, “Those bastards. I wasn’t doing it for them. I was doing it for myself.”
“I don’t care who you were doing it for. Tell me about them.”
“The Drestha Triad?” He shook his head. “I don’t wish for death.”
“Not even for a hundred of my joss?”
He gazed around at the other demons. Some were listening to us, their green eyes narrowing.
After stepping closer to the edge of the cage, he leaned into me. “They have demons everywhere.”
A demons a few cages above him hissed.
“Make that two hundred.”
He grabbed my collar and pulled me close. “Look, all I know is that they work for someone.”
“Who?”
He gazed around again, breath shaky. “The Two-Faced Prophet.”
I chuckled and pushed him back into the cage. “Fuck with me all you want, Spite.”
“It’s true,” he said.
I turned and walked through the archway of cages to the exit while he screamed my name, suddenly not caring that the Drestha Triad had people everywhere. I shut the lights off and blocked the shrieking out by shutting the doors.
The Two-Faced Prophet, huh? What a clever, made-up name.
When I made it back to my room, I collapsed onto my bed, closed my eyes, and finally fell to sleep.
Eros sits at the edge of the bed. The moonlight shines off of his bare back, highlighting his two scars. Every fallen angel has those same scars, but Eros’s are more prominent. Unlike the rest of the fallen, he hadn’t seared them off himself; Eros’s parents had.
He had always—always—loved his wings more than anything. They meant something more to him. When he followed me to Hell, he was good and only good. But Hell turned him bad. I had turned him bad.
I sit up and graze my fingers up his scars to the back of his neck.
He sighs and turns to me. His eyes are black and clearer than they had been earlier when I entranced him.
Slowly, he pushes me back onto the bed and crawls up to me.
He places his head on my stomach and curls an arm over my abdomen, pulling me closer.
I suck in a breath and draw my fingers through his hair, scratching his head lightly. I avoid his horns, knowing it would destroy the intimate moment between us. He would disappear again, and I don’t know when he would willingly possess my dreams again.
“I miss having you this close,” I say.
He doesn’t say anything, but I know he feels the same way. He wouldn’t be here if he didn’t.
I close my eyes, enjoying the moment a bit longer. I have always enjoyed us, even in Heaven.
I tug on the ends of his hair. “Talk to me, Eros.”
“What do you want me to say?”
“Say that you still want me.”
He tenses. “I’m not the same guy I was.” He shakes his head. “I love Dani.”
“But you’re here with me.”
He frowns. Suddenly, he pulls away from me and sits up.
I grab his hand, pulling him back down. “Just enjoy the moment, Eros.”
Before I can stop him, he shakes his head and disappears. The last thing I see is that expression on his face. It is one I had never seen before. Fear.
When I woke up, Eros was gone. His scent lingered in the air, and light-pink fingerprints were painted on my hip bone. I sat up and leaned against my headboard, taking a deep breath. I shook off the intimate moment. I would have him soon. I had almost broken him.
And after I took Eros, I would take Dani.
Someone knocked on my door. I groaned and rested my head against the headboard. If that was Everi …
The knock sounded again. I didn’t bother dressing, just stood and walked over to answer it.
Dani stood behind it, wiping her tired eyes with the back of her hand, dressed in a thin tank top that read Sin with Me and fuzzy white pajama pants.
“Have you seen Eros?” she asked. Her nipples poked through her shirt.
I paused for a moment. “No. Why?”
“I can’t fall asleep; it’s too damn cold here.” She crossed her arms over her chest, rubbing her hands against herself. “Eros said he missed the kingdom, so we decided to stay the night. He was supposed to meet me in one of the guest rooms, but he’s not there.”
I leaned against the doorframe. “I haven’t seen him. I’m sure he’s just reminiscing about his time here.”
“Probably.”
I lightly grasped her chin. “Why don’t you come in?”
She smiled softly. “Only until Eros comes back.”
“Only until Eros comes back.” I shut the door behind her.