Chapter 11
Chapter Eleven
Roxy
In a way, Limbo was like a floating island.
The realm was connected to nothing because it was Death’s own creation, which meant you could open a gateway to other realms—if not directly, then pretty freaking close—rather than pass through a whole bunch of other territories to get to the one you wanted, which made things a lot easier and faster.
Well, it would be if Death allowed it. We got lucky, thanks to Zinnia.
He refused entrance to everyone else, which meant Beelzebub most likely had someone here in Limbo willing to help him.
Something I’m sure Death had considered.
I could guarantee he’d started hunting down the weak link before we’d even left.
“You didn’t ask for weapons?” I said to break the silence.
“He said knives, claws, and fangs were all we needed in the Savage Realm,” Lothar said, striding beside me. His shoulders were stiff, and he’d been distant, okay, straight-up pissed off, since we’d left the castle.
“I’ve journeyed through Ferine before. We’ll be fine,” I said, trying to get him to stop frowning.
He was in his head; I knew that look well.
But it wasn’t the talk of weapons making him tense.
No, he was still convinced I was keeping things from him, information that would help us find Beelzebub.
What I was hiding wouldn’t help our cause, if only I could convince him of that.
“So today you’ve decided to go with the old, upbeat Roxy, huh?” His gaze slid to me. “Why is that?”
I threw up my hands. “You wanted the old Roxy, so that’s what I’m giving you. Now that’s pissing you off as well?” Shut up. Do not goad him. “What the hell do you want from me, Lothar?”
He snorted like an enraged bull. “We’re about to enter a realm that is notoriously dangerous. We need to be on the same fucking page.”
“We are!”
“Bullshit.”
I drew in a sharp breath. “We’re going to need to have each other’s backs in there. Are you saying you don’t trust me to do that?”
“Honestly?” He glanced over at me. “No.”
Heat spread through me like wildfire. “No?” I fired back at him. “Are you freaking serious right now?”
“Deadly.” He kept his gaze straight ahead, as if he couldn’t bear the sight of me anymore. “You will always put Lucifer’s interests ahead of anyone and anything. I’m his loyal servant, and I have been for a thousand fucking years, but I would never shit on one of my brothers to please him—”
“You’re not one of my sisters, Lothar.”
“No shit, but I can’t do my job if you don’t trust me, and especially if you’re keeping important fucking information from me.”
“Not this again,” I said, even as my face heated.
“Yeah, this again. You’re keeping something from me, female. Something big. I can feel it, fucking smell it on you. Death saw it as well. Yet you continue to deny it. So no, I don’t trust you, not in this.”
My nails dug sharply into the flesh of my palms. We needed to work efficiently together.
This situation we found ourselves in was my fault.
I’d lost control of my emotions, I’d let them get the better of me, and he hadn’t missed it.
I had to fix this, or at least try. I had to tell him something, and I had to be honest, at least for some of it, so he’d sense that as well.
“Okay, fine.” I shook out my hands. “There are things I’m keeping from you—”
He cursed.
“Hold up, it’s not what you think. It’s nothing important to this mission, anyway. And FYI, it’s not a lie, it’s an omission. The two are completely different.”
He growled deeply. “What the fuck does that mean?”
“It means, you need to drop this. There are some things I have no intention of sharing with you. The fact that you can sense it can’t be helped, but you don’t need to know what those things are, they have nothing to do with finding Beelzebub.
” For both of our sakes, my secrets needed to stay that way.
“No matter how much you grumble, I’m not going to tell you, and you need to be all right with that, okay? ”
His frown stayed firmly in place. “No, not okay. I have no idea what the fuck you’re talking about.”
“And that’s totally fine. Like I said, it has nothing to do with finding B. It’s personal.”
“Female, you are talking in riddles.”
“My secret does not have anything to do with this mission, is that clear enough for you?” I was itching to strangle him.
“But it has something to do with me?”
I pushed a branch out of my way. “I never said that.”
“I fucking know it does.”
“I have no control over what you believe to be true, Lothar. Whether it does or doesn’t have anything to do with you is something you’re just going to have to learn to live with.”
He looked ready to self-combust. “How the fuck am I supposed to do that?”
“Easy. Stop talking about it. Better yet, stop thinking about it.”
“Roxy,” he growled.
“On the subject of hunting down B…” I quickly said to keep the conversation moving, but in a slightly different direction.
“There is one thing I have been considering, something I haven’t shared with you yet.
” My belly quivered and my heart felt like a frozen lump in my chest. As much as I didn’t want to mention this, I had no choice, because he was right, when it came to finding Beelzebub, or anyone else who could be involved, I had to be fully transparent.
I just hoped that Lucifer’s block was still unbreakably strong in Lothar’s mind, because once I said what I was about to say, and where it might lead us, I couldn’t take it back.
“I’m listening, Roxy,” he said when I didn’t immediately carry on.
I cleared my tight throat. “The weapons, the ones the wraiths attacked us with, I’m pretty sure I’ve seen something like it before.” Gods, my voice sounded strained.
“Pretty sure?”
Fuck. “I’m positive.”
His eyes flashed. “Where?”
I gripped the straps of my bag tighter. “Lucifer has a battle-axe made of the same steel that he keeps under lock and key. It was gifted to him before he fell...”
Lothar’s brows shot up. “You think angels are behind this?”
“Fallen angels, but yes, I think that’s a very real possibility.
” I swallowed thickly. “The wraiths had weapons made of the same steel, and like Death said, the power it would take to release them from their prison would have to be great…so yeah, I think we could be looking for one or more power-hungry fallen angels.”
He stopped suddenly, hands planted on his hips. “Why the fuck didn’t you tell me this before?”
“I didn’t know, not for sure. But when Death was talking about the wraiths, the idea wouldn’t leave me, and I guess it makes sense. When Poe and Tarrant were working for Beelzebub, trying to help him take over…the forgotten prophecy was mentioned.”
“Yeah, I remember.”
“It seemed impossible, something so out of reach it was ridiculous to even consider, but with angels involved?” I shook my head. “It’s not so ridiculous. I think they’re trying to change fate, setting us on a new path, one that would be devastating to all of us.”
He looked away, jaw tight, staring into the trees. “How easy would it be for a fallen to move between realms?”
My stomach knotted. “Fairly easy.”
“Fuck.”
“We’re going to have to be really careful, Loth.”
He stared down at me. “Who do you think’s behind it? You must know which of them has it out for Lucifer.”
I couldn’t say her name with him looking right into my eyes like that. I couldn’t do it.
He kind of leaned forward, getting more into my space. “You have an idea, I can see it on your face. Who?”
Could he sense the rising alarm inside me?
His frown was back. If I didn’t say it, he’d think I was hiding things from him again, but he was right, we needed to be able to trust each other.
I needed him to trust me, especially when we entered Ferine.
“Nathaniel has always been jealous of Lucifer’s power…
and ah…” I held his gaze, my mouth going bone dry.
“Seraphina.” There was no flinch, not even a twitch of recognition.
“In the past, she’s made no secret of how unhappy she is with the status quo.
” He hadn’t reacted to hearing her name, still, I felt the blood drain from my face and I broke out in a cold sweat.
“Okay.” He nodded. “That’s a good start. Do you think Silas could help? He might have an idea where they are?”
I felt like my ribs were playing air-hockey with my heart. I knew where Sera and Nathaniel should be, but Lucifer hadn’t texted me back confirming it yet. “It could be worth a try. I’ll text Urs and ask if Silas knows anything.”
“Sounds good,” he said, then started walking again.
My legs shook as the rush of adrenaline drained away. I blew a breath past my trembling lips.
Lothar stopped suddenly. “Seraphina?”
I stopped abruptly, and my adrenaline spiked back up again. “Mmm-hmm.” It was hard, but I kept my breathing even.
“Took me a minute, but yeah, I remember her.”
I swallowed thickly. “You do?”
He turned. “It’s been a long time, but I’ve met her more than once. Lucifer had me act as an envoy between him and her. Can’t remember what for though.” His brow scrunched as he tried to remember the details.
I quickly started walking again, and he did the same.
“I doubt she or Nathaniel will make an appearance, even if they are behind this. They have the wraiths to do their dirty work, and obviously B had gotten to a few demons when he was still in Hell. The ones who attacked me had to be doing it on his orders.” Although Sera would really love to see me dead, if only to hurt Lucifer, and if she’d broken free from her prison, I’d be at the top of her hit list. “So let’s just focus on Beelzebub for now. ”
He nodded, but it was slow, and that thoughtful look was still on his face, like he was searching the deep recesses of his mind.
I gripped the straps of my bag tighter and sent a prayer to all the gods I could think of.
Don’t let him remember what I did. Please, don’t let him remember.
Lothar