Chapter 3 Ember
EMBER
With the containment spell activated and the wards set, I stumbled backward and sat on the edge of Ash’s desk. Chaos leaned against the door, resting his hand against it, no doubt sending as much calming energy into my sister as he could.
“How could you do this to me?” Her voice was shrill, and she banged against the door, calling me a string of names I don’t dare repeat. “You can’t bind the magic I just developed. You’re worse than mom. You’re a monster!”
Bang, bang, bang.
“C’mon, Em.” She softened her voice. “Let me out. I promise I’ll behave.”
“I can’t do that, Ash.”
Bang, bang, thud. “You bitch!”
My chest pinched, and my stomach soured at her tirade. Truthfully, I hadn’t bound her magic. I’d only created a ward, so whatever fire she shot or spell she tried to cast wouldn’t make it past the closet door. The fact still didn’t ease my guilt.
“You are doing the right thing.” Mayhem took my hand, sandwiching it between both of his. “Chaos will steady her while we summon Discord. It will all be over soon.”
My heart tumbled into my churning stomach. He was right. It would all be over soon…including my relationship with my soulmate.
I swallowed hard and nodded, refusing to allow the tears that threatened to gather in my eyes. “Yeah. I know. I guess we should get started.”
“Miles planned to bring Shade here when Patrice finished her healing session,” Chaos said. “They should be arriving soon.”
“Okay.” I rose to my feet and led Mayhem into the studio where the circle waited, primed and ready for the last demon I would ever summon.
I took in the table, the grimoires, Ash’s tattoo equipment…
everything that would still be here when things went back to normal…
and all of my energy drained out with my heavy sigh.
“I love you, Ember.” Mayhem swept me into his arms as if reading my mind. “No matter the outcome, I will love you with every breath I take for the rest of my existence.”
I smiled sadly. “You’re always so good with words.”
“My actions are even better.” He crushed his mouth to mine with a passion that said he knew this could be our final kiss.
I opened to him, tangling my tongue with his as I melted into his embrace one last time. Sadness and longing tightened my chest, and tears stung my eyes, duty warring with desire in my soul.
I loved him.
Hecate knew how, but this difficult, obstinate, infuriating man had broken down my heart walls and made me feel things I never knew I was capable of feeling. True, romantic, unconditional love.
And I was about to lose him forever.
I knew this would happen. I had known since day one that he would return to Hell, and I would have to stay here…
yet I’d allowed myself to fall for him anyway.
I was an idiot, and now, I was about to pay the price for my folly.
Hopefully, I would survive the aftermath, but at this point… I wasn’t sure I wanted to.
A knock sounded on the open door, and Miles cleared his throat. “Sorry to interrupt.”
“It’s okay.” I wiped beneath my eyes and stepped from Mayhem’s embrace.
Shade stood next to Miles, what was left of his shirt hanging in charred scraps, his skin pink but otherwise unscarred. “What can we do?”
“You can rest.” I pointed at him and then at Miles. “You can help me summon the final demon.”
“Not a chance,” Shade said. “I’m in this until the end.”
“Suit yourself.” I sighed again, too tired to argue. “But if you pass out in the middle of the incantation, I’m leaving you on the floor.”
“Deal.” He leaned against the table, wincing slightly from his healing burns.
“Right.” I stepped up to the edge of the salt ring. “Let’s get this over with.”
I raised my hands, ready to link with the guys, when three heavy, rhythmic thuds echoed from the back of the house. This was no polite knock either. It was a demand, shaking the doorframe with enough force to rattle the windows.
“Ignore it,” I said, not breaking my focus. “Probably just some drunk tourists getting a jump start on Halloween.”
“It sounds persistent,” Miles said, glancing toward the hallway.
“We’re in the middle of saving the world,” I said. “Unless they’re selling Girl Scout cookies, they can wait.”
I took a deep breath, centering myself and preparing to recite the incantation.
THUD. THUD. THUD. The banging grew louder, more frantic, like someone trying to put their fist through the wood.
Mayhem growled, his eyes flashing purple. “Shall I remove the nuisance?”
“No,” I said, my patience snapping like a dry twig. “You stay by the circle. We need your energy anchored here.”
THUD. THUD. THUD.
“Oh, for the love of Hecate!” I dropped my hands and spun on my heel. “I swear, if that’s a delivery driver who can’t read a ‘Closed’ sign, I’m going to feed him to a troll.”
“Ember, wait.” Shade pushed from the table.
“Stay put,” I ordered over my shoulder. “I’ll get rid of them.”
I stomped out of the studio and through the library, the relentless pounding grating on my last nerve. Whoever was on the other side of that door had a death wish, and I was currently in the mood to grant it.
I reached the back door and threw the deadbolt, yanking it open with enough force to startle anyone standing there.
“We’re closed!” I shouted. “What do you—”
The words died in my throat.
Adrian stood on the porch, his normally pristine suit rumpled and stained with soot, his face a mask of desperate malice. But it wasn’t the sight of the High Priest of Boston that froze the blood in my veins.
It was Patrice.
She hovered a few inches off the ground in front of him, her feet kicking uselessly at the air.
An invisible band of wind—Adrian’s signature magic—wrapped around her throat, choking off her air.
Her face was a terrifying shade of gray, her eyes wide and pleading as she clawed at the nothingness constricting her windpipe.
“I have something of yours,” Adrian said, his voice tight with strain. He squeezed his fist, and Patrice let out a strangled gurgle. “And you have something of mine.”
I clutched the dagger at my thigh, but I didn’t draw it. If I moved, he’d snap her neck before I could take a step.
Mayhem appeared at my shoulder, a low, lethal growl vibrating in his chest. “Let her go.”
Adrian’s gaze flicked to the demon, fear warring with greed in his eyes. He took a step back, using Patrice as a human shield.
“I know you have it,” Adrian said. “The amulet. I felt the surge of power when you put it back together. Hand it over, or your healer dies right here on your doorstep.”
“Adrian, don’t be stupid,” I said, keeping my voice steady despite the panic fluttering in my chest. “You can’t use it. It’s not meant for you.”
“Of course I can. It’s pure, primal power!” he screamed, the wind around him whipping into a frenzy, tearing leaves from the nearby bushes. “And I need it to protect my coven from the monsters you unleashed. Give it to me.”
He squeezed his fist again. Patrice’s eyes rolled back in her head, her struggles weakening.
“Okay!” I shouted, holding up my hands. “Okay. Just…loosen your grip. She can’t breathe.”
“That’s the point,” he hissed. “The amulet, Ember. Now. Or I start breaking bones.”