Galen

Sons of the Fallen Book 1

Jaclyn Osborn
 Galen (Sons of the Fallen Book 1)
This is a work of fiction. All characters and events portrayed in this novel
are fictitious and are products of the author’s imagination and any
resemblance to actual events, or locales or persons, living or dead are
entirely coincidental.

Text Copyright ©2021

Published by Jaclyn Osborn

Edited by One Love Editing
Cover by Sleepy Fox Studio
Photography by CJC Photography
Model Quinn Biddle

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by
any means without the publisher/author’s written consent. The author
acknowledges all trademarks listed in this work.
Table of Contents

Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Other Works
 Prologue
Galen

Many Years Ago

The demons swarmed like a fire carried by a strong wind, scorching

everything in their path. Villages burned. People burned. Screams filled the
night as flesh melted from bone and lungs inhaled thick smoke. Only then,
when the flames had consumed them, did the screaming finally stop.
We were too late.
My brothers and I walked through the ashes of another destroyed
village. Another place where innocent lives had been lost. Taken. The scent
of burning flesh was one not easily described, for there was no comparison.
It filled the senses, smelling of rot and death. Men, women, children… all
slain.
“This must end,” Alastair growled. He knelt and retrieved a cloth doll
from the ruins, one now without a little girl to hold it tight. My brother
clenched it tightly in his fist before dropping it back to the ground. “It has
to end.”
Ever since Lucifer began his quest for power, this had become the
norm. Death and chaos, followed by even more death.
The flapping of wings filled the air as Lazarus arrived. His pure white
feathers were a stark contrast to the dark night and the surrounding burning
embers of the small village. Yet, his beauty had no effect on his ferocity. As
leader of the celestial army, he struck down anyone who dared challenge
him.
 “Preparations have been made,” Lazarus said, eyeing each of us. “We
must act now while we still can.”
Alastair bowed his head before releasing his wings, the feathers
midnight black, just like the rest of ours.
We were the sons of the first seven fallen angels who rebelled against
the celestial realm and joined forces with Lucifer. Angel blood ran through
our veins, but we were half human as well. Nephilim. Yet, we were also
cursed, bearing the sins of our fathers so that we’d never forget their crimes.
Each of us represented the seven vices of humanity, the evils that
tainted the soul. The reasons why our fathers abandoned their brothers in
the heavens and fell to earth.
I was Galen, avatar of Wrath. The anger coursing through me screamed
to be released. I wanted vengeance for all the lives lost since Lucifer
brought destruction to the earth.
As Lazarus flapped his wings and shot into the sky, the rest of us
followed.
The time had come to stop Lucifer once and for all.
 Chapter One
Galen
Present Day

Water crashed against the rocky shore as I stood on the beach. The
smell of rain lingered in the air, as if the dark gray clouds above me would
release a downpour at any moment. I closed my eyes, breathed it in. The air
felt electric, charged.
Storms had a way of calming the chaos inside my head.
“Careful,” a smooth voice said from behind me. “If you get struck by
lightning, Raiden might mistake you for a charred kabob. I’m sure he’d
slather you in barbeque sauce too.”
I turned to see Alastair. His pale blond hair looked almost silver
beneath the overcast sky, and his icy blue eyes reminded me of glaciers just
before they broke off into the cold sea. He was the holder of Pride and
possessed an unmatched arrogance.
Deep down, I saw his sadness though.
It was a sadness we all carried.
“Raiden would eat a mountain if it wouldn’t break off his teeth,” I said,
returning my gaze to the stormy waters.
Raiden was the avatar of Gluttony. Food, drink, he overindulged in it
all. Not that it showed. He was nothing but raw power and muscle.
“Daman and Castor disposed of a group of demons while they were
out,” Alastair said, joining me by the water’s edge. “Something’s drawing
them to this area. That’s the third group we’ve come across in the past
week.”
“A human summoned them, perhaps?”
It wouldn’t be the first time. Humans often involved themselves with
things they had no understanding of. Curiosity with Ouija boards, ancient
summoning rituals some dumbass posted online that mortals tried not
thinking it would work—over the years, we’d cleaned up countless of their
messes.
“No.” Alastair shook his head. “This feels different.”
“Has Lazarus said anything?” The angel oversaw us. Gave us orders.
And we followed them without question.
“He’ll come to me if he thinks it necessary,” Alastair said.
Lightning flashed in the sky, followed by rolling thunder. We turned
and walked toward the house as rain started to fall.
My six brothers and I shared a home. The three-story mansion had a
dozen bedrooms, along with a game room, a gym, home theater, massive
kitchen, and anything else we could want or need. A magical veil prevented
anyone from finding our mansion by the sea. Protective runes also
concealed us from demons.
It should’ve been a haven, but many days it felt more like a prison.
Spices and cooking meat reached my nose as I entered the kitchen.
Raiden stood over the stove, his wide, muscled chest on display as he
stirred whatever he was cooking in the skillet.
“Hungry?” he asked me, a grin upturning the edge of his mouth. He
always smiled when around food. His black hair was cropped in a military
style, and long dark lashes surrounded his blue-gray eyes. Standing at six
foot seven, he was the second tallest of us, being an inch shorter than me.
“Italian again?” I responded. “I’ll pass.”
 “You’re such a grump,” Bellamy said, entering the kitchen. “You need
to get laid.”
Bellamy was perhaps the most beautiful of us with golden, wavy hair,
hazel eyes that shifted color depending on who beheld him, and an aura that
screamed sex. Well, he was the personification of Lust, after all.
“Getting laid is your thing. Not mine.”
“Hey, sex is universal.” Bellamy smirked. “Have some rough sex.
Release some tension. You’ll feel better.”
“How about I just punch you instead? That’d make me feel loads
better.”
“You wouldn’t harm this pretty face.”
“Try me.”
“Enough,” Alastair said, silencing us instantly.
His father had been Azazel, Lucifer’s closest companion during the
Fall. We believed that was why he was given Pride, what many refer to as
the first deadly sin. All other sins derived from it. Thus, it was ingrained in
us to follow his command, like a pack of wolves followed their alpha.
“How ’bout we all sit down and eat?” Raiden said, grabbing plates
from the cabinet. “Nothing lifts the spirits like carbs.”
Biting back a snippy retort, I left the kitchen. I loved my brothers, but I
tended to lose my temper around them if I wasn’t careful. Just one of the
perks of being the avatar of Wrath. Any little thing could set me off.
I headed toward the gym at the end of the long hallway. Once inside, I
tugged off my shirt and bumped up the speed on the treadmill. Cardio
helped loosen me up, and then I focused all my pent-up aggression on the
punching bag, one specifically designed to withstand my powerful blows.
Throughout my lifetime, I’d seen civilizations rise and fall. I’d seen
war, famine, and the evils of man. I’d seen other things as well. Kindness,
humility, and love. I understood why the Supreme Being loved His mortal
creations so greatly. They were flawed, yet not without redemption. It was
our duty to protect them.
Lazarus had snatched us from our mother’s arms when we were
children and raised us to be fierce warriors so that we’d someday be strong
enough to defeat Lucifer and his army. And we had.
The night we defeated Lucifer was still fresh in my mind. We hadn’t
been able to kill him. He was too powerful. But we’d locked him away,
deep within the confines of the earth, so that he’d never see the light of day
again. The ritual had needed the blood of each of my brothers, the blood of
the cursed.
We were the warriors of earth, the heroes of old. Our sole purpose was
to protect humanity by crushing demonic threats whenever they arose.
After working out, I jumped in the shower to wash off, tilting my head
back as the water crashed down on my skin. Remembering Bellamy’s
suggestion for me to find someone to fuck made my cock twitch.
It had been a while since I’d sunk into a warm, inviting body. Since I’d
allowed anyone to touch me.
I tried to keep my interactions with humans to a bare minimum, but
there were moments when the temptation was too great. Times when the
need to fuck hard slammed into me. That’s when I headed to the club and
picked up the first interested male I came across. No names. Nothing but
rough sex to get my rocks off—his too because while I was an angry
bastard, I wasn’t selfish—and then I’d return home.
That was my life.
Rough sex, fighting demons, trying not to kill my brothers when they
pissed me off. Repeat.
 Once out of the shower, I threw on a pair of sweats and went into the
game room. Castor, holder of Greed, was always buying shit. Huge flat-
screen TVs, every game console in existence, and arcade games, like air
hockey and Pac-Man. We had a billiard table too where Castor liked to
gamble with us. He very rarely lost.
Just as I went to sit on the couch, the cushion moved. I jumped back to
my feet and flipped around to see Gray.
“You almost sat on me,” Gray said before stretching his arms above his
head and yawning. As Sloth, he had short bursts of energy, then promptly
fell asleep. A living, breathing couch potato. He was also the smallest of us,
standing at five foot nine with a small frame and big, innocent brown eyes.
His tousle of blond hair swept across his forehead and could never be
tamed.
“Sorry,” I said, sitting beside him.
“I forgive you.” Gray cuddled up to my side and closed his eyes, softly
snoring seconds later.
I ran my fingers through his hair and turned on the TV. Even though the
seven of us were close to the same age, we were extremely protective over
Gray. He looked no older than twenty, and his habit of falling asleep
anywhere at any time made him vulnerable to enemy attack. He was the
only one of my brothers who never triggered my anger.
Rain pelted against the floor-to-ceiling windows, and I found myself
watching the storm instead of the TV.
Lightning flashed, thunder rumbled, and my soul breathed a little
easier.

***
 Five demons scurried around the loading dock, their bodies appearing
as swirling black smoke and their faces drained of all color. Their eyes were
empty pits. We referred to them as shades. They only ever came out at
night, keeping to the shadows and avoiding direct light.
They were mindless creatures for the most part. All they knew how to
do was kill.
“Castor said the group he and Daman killed were over in this area too,”
Alastair said, his blue eyes pinned on the shades.
I studied the harbor. Boats were docked on one side, and a small cargo
ship was in the distance. A few of the surrounding buildings had the
windows knocked out and were marked with graffiti, though there were a
few nearby businesses that remained open.
“Not much here,” I said.
“Exactly.” Alastair furrowed his brow and watched as one of the shades
swatted at the other. Their animalistic behavior was fitting for their kind,
like feral dogs on the prowl. “I found out crates were unloaded recently.
Items that were purchased by an auction house.”
“You think it’s connected?”
“I don’t think it. I know it.”
I ground my teeth together, keeping myself from spouting off at him.
He couldn’t control his superiority complex, yet that didn’t make him any
less annoying.
“So we need to research what was sold at the auction.”
Alastair nodded. “They’re after something. Whatever it is, we’re sure
to find answers there.”
I returned my attention to the shades, who were creeping closer to the
abandoned warehouses beside the dock. “Can we kill them now?”
Alastair withdrew two daggers and smirked at me. “After you, Wrath.”
 I jumped down from the ledge, landing in front of them. One of them
snapped its head toward me, its unnaturally droopy mouth widening to
show rows of sharp teeth.
“Hey, ugly.”
When it leapt toward me, I grabbed it by the throat and slammed it to
the ground before plunging my dagger into its chest. The black smoke
swirling around its body blazed bright orange before disintegrating, leaving
behind nothing but ash.
Alastair landed beside me, slicing off one of their heads before
thrusting his dagger into the neck of another. Neither of us even broke a
sweat before all five were piles of ash at our feet. Not all demons were
disposed of so easily, but shades were the lowliest. Weakest.
It was the upper-level ones that gave us trouble.
“I’m considering stopping by the club before I head back,” I said,
wiping off my blade before holstering it. “Do you want to join me?”
A pained look gleamed in Alastair’s eyes. “No. I have other plans.”
“I figured as much.” I clapped a hand on his shoulder. “The offer stands
if you change your mind.”
“I won’t.”
I spread my wings and took off into the sky. The wind rustled through
my feathers, and I breathed a relieved sigh at the freedom of being high in
the air. The slight moment of joy faded as I recalled that sad look in my
brother’s eyes.
I knew exactly where he intended to go.
The club offered me a much-needed distraction and gave me an outlet
to release some sexual tension. I barely even remembered the man’s face
after I fucked him in the back room of the club and took off back into the
night.
 Faces didn’t matter anyway. It wasn’t like I planned to see any of the
men I fucked again. They were nothing but a way to pass the time. And as
an immortal, I had an infinite amount of time.
I passed through the magical barrier around our property, flew over
dark water, then dropped down on the steps of the front porch of the
mansion.
Raiden and Castor were playing pool in the game room. The sound of
the billiard balls clashing together startled Gray, who was napping on the
chaise lounge near the window. He sleepily mumbled at them before pulling
the blanket over his head and curling into a little ball.
“Alastair and I found more shades by the dock.”
“Close to where Daman and I found them earlier, then,” Castor said,
bending forward to line up a shot. His medium-length fire-engine-red hair
complemented his alabaster skin. Silver studs lined the curve of both his
ears, and his right nostril was pierced, along with his left eyebrow.
“Yes.” I leaned against the wall and crossed my arms as I watched them
play. “Alastair said crates for an auction house came in recently. He thinks
the shades are after something that was inside them.”
“Like what?” Raiden asked, chalking the top of his pool stick before
pocketing a stripe. A piece of beef jerky stuck from the corner of his mouth.
I shrugged. “Don’t know. Could be another cursed object like last
time.”
Several years ago, an amulet had been found at an archeology site. It
had been used in ancient times to spread fear and chaos instead of
protecting against it. Demons had been drawn to the negative energy and
swarmed to the area, feeding off people’s fears. We’d had to retrieve the
cursed object and destroy it.
 “Oh.” Castor perked up at that. “I bet an amulet would fetch a nice
penny.”
“You have enough money.”
“You can never have enough.” Castor winked at me.
Suppressing a sigh, I went over and picked up Gray from the couch,
cradling him in my arms. He linked his hands behind my neck and nuzzled
into my chest as I carried him to his bedroom on the second floor. Once he
was tucked into bed, I went to my room and stepped out onto the balcony.
The storm had cleared, taking all the clouds with it. I stared up at the
sea of glimmering stars, my mind far away. I remembered an orchard and
the small home that sat beside it. Remembered dark brown eyes and bronze
skin that warmed mine as our bodies entwined.
I chased the memory away.
The past was too painful.
Alastair didn’t return until the early hours of the morning. The sun had
already risen when I sensed him enter the veil around our land. He headed
straight for his bedroom and locked himself inside, saying not a word to
anyone.
That type of pain?
It was why I kept my distance from humans and only used them for
sex.
Anything more only brought sorrow.
 Chapter Two
Simon

This is why I hate dating, I thought as I sat across from Brandon, a guy
I met on a dating app.
In his profile, he said he wanted a “real connection” and someone he
could “laugh and be himself with.”
Well, as I caught him staring at the waiter’s ass for the sixth time in a
span of twenty minutes, I’d wager he was nothing but a pig in disguise. And
that “real connection” he supposedly wanted?
He could shove it up his ass.
“You okay?” Brandon asked, finally remembering that I—his date—
existed.
“Actually?” I pulled out my wallet and tossed enough bills on the table
to pay for my portion of the meal. “I think I’m getting a migraine. I’m
gonna head home.”
“Oh.” He didn’t sound too upset about it. His gaze was already trailing
back to the waiter’s bubble butt as he added, “I hope you feel better soon.”
“Thanks.” Asshole.
I shivered as I left the restaurant and walked toward my car in the
parking lot. The April night had a slight chill, making me regret not wearing
more than a light sweater. I couldn’t wait for summer.
Once in my car, I cranked up the heater and pulled out my phone,
blocking Brandon’s number. I ended up deleting the stupid dating app too.
There was no point in trying anymore.
Tonight was the seventh bad date I’d had in the past three months. And
that didn’t include the dozen or so other guys I’d talked to online and never
met. They all turned out to be jerks who only wanted a piece of ass. Any
attempt to have a deeper conversation only turned into them asking for a
dick pic.
Having barely eaten anything at the restaurant, I was starving. I’d been
on a diet over the past month in an attempt to drop a few pounds, but as I
left the parking lot, I said “fuck it” and stopped in to McDonald’s for salty
fries and a cheeseburger.
Bad dates called for me to eat my feelings. Completely justifiable. My
emergency tub of mint chocolate chip ice cream in my freezer was calling
my name too.
Timeless Antiques & Curiosities sat on the edge of town, the brick
building dating back to the early 1900s. Some say it was haunted. However,
the only thing haunting it was me. I owned the shop and lived in the loft
above it.
The antique store had been in my family for generations. At one time it
had been more of a curiosities shop with supposed cursed items and
anything strange or unusual. My grandfather switched gears, though, and
started collecting antique furniture and jewelry.
Once I took it over, I returned to our original roots, venturing back to
strange objects. I still sold higher-quality items, but “weird” was insanely
popular right now. It brought in younger crowds and kept the store going
strong.
I parked in the lot behind the shop and entered through the back door.
As I trudged up the stairs to my loft, I shoved a few fries into my mouth,
groaning at the crispy golden saltiness of them.
 Oh, carbs. How I’ve missed you.
My place wasn’t anything fancy, but it was home. The big open room
had high ceilings and windows lining one wall. The kitchen was to the left,
small but functional with a refrigerator and stove. Instead of a table, I had
an island with a barstool. My bed was on the far right with a curtain
separating it from the living room area. The only room with a door was the
bathroom.
I kicked off my shoes on my way to the couch and ate while watching a
documentary on the History Channel about angels and demons. I zoned out
after a while, my brain replaying the details of my stupid date.
Why couldn’t Brandon give me half the attention he gave the waiter?
I might not have had a perfectly toned body, but I was a decent-looking
guy. My smile was my best feature, then my hazel eyes. And while I was a
bit introverted when first meeting someone, I had a good personality once I
got comfortable.
But guys like Brandon didn’t give two shits about personality.
I fell asleep around ten, then woke up hours later with a crick in my
neck. An episode of Ancient Aliens was on now. I left the TV on for
background noise before crawling into bed and passing out again.
My alarm went off at six thirty the next morning, and I quickly
showered and brushed my teeth before going downstairs to sign for a
shipment of inventory. The delivery guy helped me carry the crates to the
storage room in the back, and I started going through them after he left.
When I purchased them from the auction, I pretty much went in blind,
receiving only a little information before bids were placed. They had come
from a huge-ass mansion a few miles outside of town. All of the high-dollar
items had already been auctioned off, and the crates were all lumped
together in an “everything must go” type deal.
 Each crate came with an inventory list and a basic description. I pulled
out a lamp, a collection of depression glass bowls, and a nineteenth-century
oval mirror that looked creepy as hell. It fit the spooky atmosphere of my
shop. I had no doubts it would sell quickly.
“Anything good?”
I whirled around to see Kyo. A red beanie was pulled over his black
hair, and he wore pale blue contacts. Black liner surrounded his eyes, and a
part of his tattoo could be seen jutting from the collar of his shirt, curving
around the base of his neck. I’d never seen the whole tattoo, but it looked
like a tree of some kind.
“Eh. This is cool.” I held up the creepy mirror before carefully leaning
it against the wall. “Still going through the rest.”
“I’m sure you’ll find good stuff in there,” Kyo said, eyeing the
gargoyle figurine I pulled from the crate. “It all came from Ravenwood
Mansion. Rumors say the old lady was a witch or something. You want me
to help you go through it?”
“Nah, I got it for now. But you can help me log it all later.”
“Oh, fun.”
I smiled and tossed him the keys. “Go open up shop and take care of
the front while I finish back here.”
“Cool. If you need any help, just let me know.”
“Will do.”
Kyo was my only employee and came in five days a week. We were
closed on Sundays, and he had Mondays off. Even though he was young, he
had been a huge asset to the shop. He was always bringing in new
customers and had designed my website. He ran it too, dealing with online
buyers and keeping up the shop’s social media presence. On top of all of
that, he was also kind of my best friend. One of my only friends, really.
 I’d be lost without him.
Moving on to the second crate, I found an eighteenth-century iron
lantern, a wall clock that I debated on keeping for myself, and a terrifying
clown cloth doll that I hoped and prayed would sell because I didn’t want
the thing near me.
Then, I came across a small wooden box.
Symbols were etched into the sides, and as I turned it over in my hands,
a weird sensation landed in the pit of my stomach. Holding it up to my ear, I
shook the box and heard a faint thud from the inside. Something was
definitely in there. I jiggled the lock on the outside before searching for a
key. If there was one, they didn’t include it.
I checked the inventory sheet and found it at the bottom listed as
“mahogany box.” No other details.
“Dammit.” I placed the box down and stood up, stretching my arms
out. I’d been hunched over for a while and needed a break. I gave the
mysterious box one last glare before leaving the storage room.
Kyo was speaking to an older woman about a Victorian chair near the
window, telling her how old it was and where we purchased it. I walked to
the small break room at the back of the store where I kept snacks and drinks
stocked and grabbed a bottle of water from the minifridge.
I could break the lock on the box. Or smash the whole damn thing if
that didn’t work. The box itself didn’t seem to be that valuable. But what
the hell was inside it? And what was with those strange symbols?
When I returned to the storage room, I went over to the box with bolt
cutters and nearly pissed myself.
The lock was open.
“Fuck no,” I said, shoving away from the box. “I’ve seen this movie. I
know what happens. You little demonic box can just go right back to hell
where you belong.”
“Hey, Si?”
I squeaked and flung around.
Kyo released a surprised laugh. “Um. You okay?”
“Y-Yeah. What’s up?”
“The lady up front offered me two seventy-five for the chair. The tag
says three hundred. What do you want me to tell her?”
“Make the deal,” I said, my heart still hammering in my chest. “That
chair’s been sitting at the front for over a year.”
“Awesome.” Kyo went to leave, then stepped back into the room. “Are
you sure you’re okay? You’re kind of pale.”
“I’m fine.” I think.
Kyo looked me up and down. “Mmkay. If you say so.”
I placed the box on a shelf against the wall, putting it out of mind for
now. I finished sorting through the rest of the inventory, logged some of it
into the computer, then joined Kyo at the front counter.
As the day went on, I began to feel silly for how I’d acted. It was an
old lock. Maybe it had been loosened when I jiggled it, and then it popped
open because the internal mechanism was broken. Yeah. That had to be it.
Ghosts, demons, magic, none of that was real.
My overactive imagination though? Now that was real.
Sometime after lunch, Kyo and I were placing some of the new items
on the display shelves when the bell above the door dinged.
“Holy shit,” Kyo muttered from beside me, his eyes going wide.
I turned around to see what he was gawking at and nearly snapped my
neck to do a double take. The man was a giant. He was so tall that he had to
duck his head to get through the doorway. And fuck, he was sexy. Short
dark brown hair that was longer on top, muscles I wanted to trace with my
tongue, and legs for days. He stepped farther into the store and glanced
around.
I quietly cleared my throat and stepped toward him. “Uh, good
afternoon. Can I help you find anything?”
His light gray eyes moved to me. “Perhaps.”
Shit. His voice was just as hot as the rest of him. Deep and a little
gravelly.
“Well, you can find a little bit of everything in here,” I said, chuckling
like I always did when I was nervous. I heard Kyo lightly snicker from
behind me, and I had to force myself not to elbow him. “What are you
looking for?”
The man came closer, and I had to crane my neck to look up at him.
“There was an auction last week from the Ravenwood Mansion,” he
said, not taking his eyes off me. I was both slightly unsettled and turned the
hell on. “I was curious if you bought anything from it.”
“Y-Yes.” I motioned to the shelves. “We were just stocking some of the
new items.”
The mansion must’ve been more popular than I thought if it was
already bringing people to my shop.
The man briefly looked at the shelf before shifting those gray eyes back
to me. “Is this all of it?”
“No. There’s still some in the back I haven’t logged yet.”
“Can you show me?”
“I usually don’t allow customers in the storage room.” I averted my
eyes to the rug beneath me, staring at a fray at the edge. “There’s a process,
you see.”
“A process.”
 “Mhm.” I chanced a peek up at him. His gaze was still pinned to me,
kicking my heart rate up a notch. “Sorry.”
He smiled. “Could you make an exception just this one time?” Tingles
traveled along my skin as he took another step forward, bringing the heat of
his large body inches from mine. “I promise I won’t tell anyone.”
My mind went blank, and I forgot how to speak. Forgot how to do
anything but stand there and stare at this giant of a man who was too hot to
be real. Probably because all the blood rushed straight to my dick.
“I can’t. I’m sorry,” I finally answered. “But if you come back on
Monday, I should have everything sorted.”
His jaw tightened, and anger sparked in his eyes. The flirty smile from
earlier was definitely gone now. “I must insist that it be today.”
“And I must insist that you wait.” My voice came out steadier than I
thought it would. “If you leave your name and number at the front, I can
call you when—”
The man turned and exited the shop, slamming the door behind him.
I blew out a breath. “That was… interesting.”
“He could be an art thief or a member of some secret crime
organization,” Kyo said, walking over to the door and peeking through the
glass. “Maybe he’s searching for some invaluable artifact the lady who died
had in her possession.”
“You watch too many movies. There’s no way that’s true.”
“Sure. Okay.” Kyo stepped away from the door and shot me a look.
“Can you explain it, then? That guy was like seven feet tall and wearing
combat boots. He’s not your average joe looking for an antique table to
complete his living room set.”
“You don’t know that. Just because he looked like a guy who snaps
people’s necks in his free time doesn’t mean he can’t enjoy a nice piece of
furniture. Maybe a lamp to go with it.”
Kyo threw his head back with a laugh and went over to answer the
phone.
I returned to the storage room, only half paying attention to what I was
doing. I couldn’t get that guy out of my head. How his gray eyes watched
me. How pissed he got when I said he couldn’t go in the back room. I got
the feeling he wasn’t used to people telling him no.
What was he after?
My gaze landed on the box.
Curiosity got the better of me, and I grabbed it off the shelf. With my
hand shaking a bit, I took off the lock and touched the lid. But I hesitated.
“Just do it,” I told myself. “It’s only a stupid box.”
When I opened the lid, my heart thudded hard against my ribs. My hair
ruffled a bit, probably the heater kicking on. I peered into the box and saw a
red satin cloth covering something.
I didn’t know what I expected to find inside. A demonic imp that
would jump out and eat me, something gross like a dead rat, or maybe one
of those shrunken heads.
I lifted the cloth.
“A ring?”
It looked pretty damn ordinary too. Well, ordinary in an antique way.
The gold band had faint etching on the sides, and a dark green stone sat in
the center with smaller red stones around it.
I whistled under my breath as I studied it. The thing looked expensive.
I’d have to check to make sure it was real gold before putting it out for sale.
And to figure out what kind of stones were used. They looked like crystals
of some kind.
 “This is some Lord of the Rings shit,” I mumbled as I examined the
markings along the band. It looked like words, but not in any language I’d
ever seen before.
As I stared into the green stone, it almost looked like something moved
inside it. Like swirling smoke. I blinked and held it closer to my face.
Waiting. Then I softly laughed at myself for being so ridiculous.
I placed the ring back in the box and closed the lid.
I’d deal with it later.
 Chapter Three
Galen

“Easy, brother,” Castor said as we stood across the street from the
antique store. “I can sense your anger.”
“Of course I’m angry.” I gritted my teeth. “He told me no.”
Castor knew better than to laugh, though his lips twitched with a smile
anyway.
“I should bust in there right now, take what I want, and leave. What’s a
puny human going to do to stop me?”
“Lazarus wouldn’t be pleased,” he said, all traces of humor gone. The
sun came through the branches of the tree we stood under, shining on his
red hair. “He demands that we not draw unnecessary attention to ourselves.”
“Fuck Lazarus.”
“Galen.” Castor grabbed my arm as I started to step forward. “Don’t
make me call the others to drag your ass back home.”
“Whatever the demons are after is in that shop,” I growled, jerking my
arm out of his hold and staring at the building. “I felt something powerful,
Cas. Something dark. I can’t leave here without it. If I sensed it, I know the
demons will too. They’ll swarm this place come nightfall.”
I pictured the man I’d met. Young, probably late twenties. Sandy-
brown hair, hazel eyes, and black-framed glasses. He had an average build,
not much muscle. He wouldn’t be able to fend off demons. They would rip
him apart.
 “We’ll wait here, then,” Castor said. “Keep watch until the sun sets,
then break in through the back once the store closes.”
“I’ll let Alastair know.”
I closed my eyes and searched for his mind. As Nephilim, we didn’t
have full angelic powers, but we were able to communicate with each other
telepathically.
“The item has been found,” I told him. “We’re waiting for nightfall to
retrieve it.”
“Did you see what it was?” Alastair asked.
“No, but I felt its power.”
“What aren’t you telling me, Wrath?”
I deeply inhaled and faced the shop. A group of teenagers walked in
just as two older women exited. Humans went on with their ordinary lives,
ignorant of the threat surrounding them.
“Galen. Tell me.”
Not surprising that Alastair sensed my unease. He knew me better than
anyone.
“The power was dark. Familiar.”
“Familiar how?”
“I haven’t felt anything like it since Lucifer.”
Silence.
I had to be wrong. Lucifer was locked away, shackled beneath the earth
where no one could find him. Darkness was his only companion. It was
impossible for him to rise again.
“I’ll wait to speak with Lazarus until we know more,” Alastair finally
said.
Wise decision.
 Lazarus had trained us since we were young, but he had no love for any
of us. He never failed to remind us that the only reason he allowed us to live
was because we were useful to him. Take that usefulness away and we were
done. One wrong move and he’d take off our heads. Better to figure out
what we were dealing with first before bothering him. Because if it turned
out to be nothing, he might very well make good on that threat.
“So.” Castor leaned against the tree trunk, arms crossing. “Did you see
anything good in there?”
“In the antique shop?”
“No.” He rolled his eyes. “In Alastair’s ass when you were kissing it.”
I shoved him. “Don’t make me hurt you, Greed.”
“Oh yeah. Hit me harder, Daddy.”
“You’re not my type.” I dropped my hand from his chest.
Castor grinned and flicked his lip ring with his tongue. “Since when?”
I called him and the others my brothers, but we weren’t related by
blood. Our fathers were created, not born. Once upon a time, Castor and I
had fucked. I liked it rough, and he liked getting it rough. Perfect match.
But not really. We butted heads too much. It had only lasted for a few
weeks before we nearly killed each other. Literally.
Ignoring him, I returned my attention to the antique shop. The sun
would set in another hour or so.
“I was serious about the shop,” Castor said. He wiggled his pinky
finger. “I could use another ring. Something unique and shiny. Expensive.”
The seven of us did our best to fight the worst of our sins’ urges. Me
with my vengeful anger. Castor with his pursuit of material goods. Bellamy
with his insatiable sexual appetite. But those sins were part of us and could
never be fully overcome.
“I didn’t see anything you’d like,” I told him.
 “I’ll be the judge of that.”
“Just don’t forget why we’re here. The item is priority.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
At nightfall, the Asian male who’d been working left the shop. He put
on a neon green bike helmet before jumping on a crotch rocket and driving
toward the cluster of buildings downtown.
“Nice bike,” Castor said. “A Kawasaki Ninja H2R. That shit isn’t street
legal. Naughty little boy. How did you get your hands on that?”
“Focus, Cas.”
The shop owner locked the front door, then shut off the light.
“We’ll wait a little longer,” I said. “I’d rather the human be gone when
we break in.”
I tuned in to my surroundings, searching for a demonic presence. I
caught a faint stench of a shade, but it seemed to be farther away, perhaps
down by the docks again. Raiden and Bellamy were patrolling other areas
of town and would dispose of it soon.
“A light just turned on upstairs,” Castor said.
Following his gaze, I saw light coming through the upstairs windows
and a shadow pass across. Blue flickered across the glass next, like a TV
had been turned on.
“Looks like he lives up there.”
“Thank you for stating the obvious.”
Castor smirked. “You’re welcome.”
When a car pulled up to the curb minutes later, Castor and I concealed
ourselves more in the shadows. A woman got out carrying a bag with the
name of a nearby Chinese restaurant slapped across it. She walked around
to the side entrance. A human wouldn’t have been able to see from this
distance, but all of my senses were enhanced. I saw the man from earlier
open the door, take the bag, hand her some cash, then disappear back inside.
“Chinese food sounds good,” Castor mumbled. “We missed dinner
being out here.”
“Okay, Raiden.”
He chuckled. “Hey, just because we’re immortal doesn’t mean we can’t
enjoy food. Some sweet-and-sour chicken sounds so damn good right now.”
“You can get some later.”
The woman got back into her car and put it in reverse. As headlights
flashed across the tree we stood under, we crouched down, then stood back
up once she was gone. The streetlight beside the building flickered on and
off before going dark.
Scurrying sounded from the left as the scent of burning flesh and ash
filled the air.
Shades.
I withdrew my daggers as one sprung toward me. I drove the blade into
its neck, and as it disintegrated, I killed another. Castor sliced one in half
before throwing his golden dagger and hitting another in the chest. Smoke
swirled around their bodies, but a thin layer of charred flesh lay beneath it.
“We have to get in that shop,” I said, taking down two more. Shades
often traveled in packs of five, but there was more this time. It proved that
the item they were after was of great importance.
Someone wanted it badly.
“Go,” Castor said as a shade leapt onto his back. He rolled forward to
loosen its hold before body slamming it to the grass and jabbing it in the
throat. The smoke blazed bright orange before the creature turned to ash. “I
have things covered out here.”
 I took off across the street, keeping to the shadows. The side entrance
door had an alarm system that I easily disarmed, and then I softly closed the
door behind me before creeping forward in the dark hallway.
Murmuring came from the TV upstairs. I glanced up the stairwell to
see a closed door. The entrance to his loft. Quietly, I continued down the
corridor, looking in each room I passed. One had a minifridge and a small
table; another was a bathroom.
I kept going, following the trail of power in the air. Being as old as I
was, very few things managed to unsettle me, but the darkness I felt twisted
and knotted in my gut.
The room was dark when I entered, but my eyes adjusted. It didn’t take
long for me to find it. A container about the size of a small cigar box sat
atop a shelf, surrounded by old books and random figurines.
Symbols warding against demons covered the outside of the box,
meaning they wouldn’t be able to open it. Whoever owned the box must’ve
been powerful themselves. That type of warding took precision and a vast
knowledge of spell work. The lock had been removed, and the lid was open.
So much for keeping demons out now.
Right as I peered into the box, a creak sounded from behind me, and
the air stirred at my back. I ducked as a metal bat was swung at my head.
“Get out of my shop!” the man yelled. “I’ve already called the police!”
I spun around and caught the bat in my hand as he swung again.
“Enough.”
His eyes widened before he thrust out his other arm and punched my
chest. I grabbed him by the wrist and held him still as he thrashed around,
trying to kick me.
I sighed. “Stop. You look ridiculous.”
 “I’m supposed to just stand by and do nothing?” He brought up a knee,
intent on kicking me in the crotch.
I deflected the kick and pressed him against the wall, still with both his
arms pinned. His heart thrashed wildly as he started to panic.
“Calm down, goddammit,” I growled.
“Wait.” He peered up at me. “You’re the guy from earlier.”
“Aren’t you perceptive?” I snatched the bat from his grip and tossed it
aside, the metal clanking against the hardwood floor. He flinched at the
sound. I released the hold on his wrist. “I’m not here to hurt you.”
“To rob me, then?” He flipped on the light and glared at me as he
rubbed at his wrist. Beneath the attitude, I could tell he was scared. Who
wouldn’t be? “Like that’s so much better.”
“Just to take this,” I said, closing the lid on the box and grabbing it off
the shelf. With the lid closed, the dark power was contained inside. I didn’t
feel nearly as uneasy.
“The ring? Why?”
It was a ring? Interesting.
“A family heirloom,” I lied. “It’s very sentimental to me.”
“Why is it in a creepy box?” he asked, narrowing his hazel eyes. They
appeared more green right then with bursts of orange around the pupils. My
gaze trailed to his slightly stubbled jaw and his full bottom lip. The top one
was thinner. His nose had a rounded tip which I found endearing for some
reason.
“I wasn’t aware it was creepy.”
“If it’s so special to you, why didn’t you tell me about it when you
came in earlier?” The man stepped toward me, which, admittedly, surprised
me a bit. I towered over him by at least seven inches. He had to tilt his head
nearly all the way to hold eye contact with me. “And heirloom or not, it
doesn’t excuse the fact that you’re breaking and entering.”
“I didn’t break anything. It’s not my fault your alarm is a piece of shit.”
“Wow. So you’re a criminal and an asshole. Good to know.”
“I killed all of the shades,” Castor said to me, linking his mind with
mine. “But I sense more coming. A lot more. You need to hurry.”
“As enthralling as this conversation is, I’m afraid I must be going.”
“Not so fast.” He slapped a hand to my chest as I tried to pass him. The
warmth of his palm seeped through the material of my shirt. I tried to ignore
how much I liked it. “I can’t let you steal from me. I’m not an idiot. That’s
not a family heirloom.”
“Fine. Name your price.”
“Huh?” He walked after me as I left the storage room. “What kind of
thief are you?”
“I’m not a thief.” I headed down the hall toward the exit.
“Says the man who’s thieving.”
“Would you rather me not pay you?”
“No.” He grabbed my arm, then quickly let go when I whirled around
to face him. “I didn’t get the chance to fully examine it. I don’t know what
it’s worth.”
“Galen. Hurry.”
“Will five grand work?” I asked, losing patience.
“Five thousand dollars?” The man gaped. “Um. Isn’t that a bit… I
don’t know… much?”
“Look, I don’t have time for this.” The back of my neck prickled with
the oncoming horde of shades. They were scurrying through town, heading
right for us.
I ran for the door.
 “Wait!” he called after me. I spun on my heels and saw him several feet
away, his eyes wide with alarm. Humans were so fragile. Weak. If the
shades swarmed his shop, he’d be torn to shreds in minutes. I needed to get
this box as far away from him as possible. “I didn’t get your name.”
“You don’t need it.”
And then I left, securing the door behind me.

***

“Castor, I swear to god I will chop off your hand if you even think
about stealing it,” I said, seeing him creep toward the box out of the corner
of my eye.
“You said there was a ring inside?”
“That’s what the human said.”
“I want to try opening the lid again.”
“No.”
After leaving the antique shop, Castor and I had led the shades toward
the harbor where we met up with Raiden and Bellamy. The four of us killed
the demons before scouting the shop to make sure no more showed up.
Once I’d known the human male was safe, we had returned home.
But we couldn’t open the box.
Along with anti-demon warding, there were symbols blocking angels
too. If I would’ve noticed them, I wouldn’t have closed the goddamn lid in
the first place.
Silence filled our kitchen as we stared at it, each of us feeling the
power it contained. Though dulled with the lid closed, it could still be felt.
“I tried contacting Lazarus, but he hasn’t answered me,” Alastair said,
displeased.
 That was nothing new. Sometimes days would pass before Lazarus
finally responded to one of us. Communication happened very much on his
terms. And it wasn’t like we could travel to the celestial realm to see him.
Because of our fathers’ betrayal, we weren’t allowed to step foot in the
heavens.
“Why is there warding against angels?” I asked. “Demons, I
understand.”
Alastair glared at the box. “The bigger question for me is how someone
even knew the warding to block us. That’s old magic.”
Gray shuffled into the room, wearing a light blue zip-up hoodie with
cat ears on the hood and a pink shirt underneath that said “Naps R Fun.” He
wore silky boxers and knee-high blue socks. He grabbed a can of Pepsi
from the fridge and came over to curl up beside me on the barstool.
“I don’t like that box being here,” he said before yawning and popping
open the can to take a drink.
“None of us do,” Castor said, flicking the cat ear on Gray’s hood. “But
it’s better for it to be here than out there among mortals.”
“What happened with the human who owns the shop?” Alastair asked
me.
“We owe him five grand.”
Castor grumbled. “What? Why?”
He had no trouble spending money on himself, but he hated when any
of us spent any. It didn’t matter that we pretty much had an unlimited
balance.
“For the box. He walked in on me taking it and attacked me with a
baseball bat. It’s what took me so long. I took care of it,” I added, catching
Alastair about to bitch at me.
“Did you hurt him?”
 “Of course not,” I growled. “He’s innocent in all of this.”
I remembered the feel of his hand on my chest and the frightened look
in his eyes. The soft curve of his lips.
“I’ll have Daman transfer the money as soon as possible,” Alastair
said. Being around for thousands of years, Daman was one hell of a hacker.
He could easily find the store owner’s information to wire the money into
his account.
Alastair pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes. He looked
tired. The kind of tired that burrowed deep in one’s soul. He straightened up
and walked toward the patio doors. “I’m going to step out for a bit. Don’t
do anything stupid while I’m gone.”
“He looks like shit,” Raiden said around a mouth full of chips.
I saw Alastair through the glass door. He stared up at the stars,
expressionless. I felt his pain though. We all did.
“He’s spent nearly every night for the past month in the hospital,” I
said. “His human won’t make it much longer.”
A somber silence stretched between us. Falling in love with a human.
Inevitably losing them. It was something we’d all experienced at least once.
I had sworn off love long ago. Alastair had too. For a while, at least.
And then he’d met Joseph.
Alastair unbuttoned his shirt and slid it off his shoulders before tucking
it against his arm. He unfurled his wings, the six-foot wingspan casting
shadows behind him on the grass. The black feathers shone under the silver
light of the moon as he flapped them once, then shot up into the night sky.
“I’m going to follow him,” I said, gently moving Gray aside. He
latched on to Castor, who stood beside him. Gray was so much like the
animal named after his sin, a little sloth who clung to anyone close enough.
 Once outside, I removed my T-shirt and spread my wings. Sometimes I
forgot to undress first, especially if I was in a hurry. I had destroyed
countless shirts over the years because of it. I took off into the air, keeping a
small distance behind Alastair. I was certain he sensed me, but he didn’t say
anything.
Minutes later, I dropped down in the grass at the edge of the hospital
and tugged my shirt back on.
“Why did you come?” Alastair asked, staring at the entrance where a
middle-aged woman was outside the doors talking on the phone. She
laughed about something. “I can do this alone.”
“I know you can.” I placed a hand on his shoulder. His hard exterior
cracked a little beneath my touch, and he trembled. He was barely holding
himself together. “But you don’t have to.”
He nodded and stepped from the shadows toward the door.
The woman blabbing on the phone gawked at us as we walked past her
into the hospital. With me being six foot eight and Alastair at six five, we
tended to turn heads when we were among humans.
Alastair and I took the elevator up to the hospice floor. He stared
ahead, blue eyes unfocused, then stepped out when the doors opened. The
nurse smiled at him, recognizing him from his frequent visits. He had said
he was Joseph’s grandson in order to get in and see him so much. Fubbing
any necessary paperwork was easy too.
“Perfect timing,” she said. “He just woke up. Go right on in.”
“Thank you.”
I followed Alastair down the hall, seeing the tension build higher in his
body. Joseph had weeks to live. Maybe a few months if he was lucky. The
cancer had spread through his entire body. Dementia also had hold of him.
Some days he knew who we were. Other days… not so much.
 Alastair stopped outside the door and took a deep breath.
“I can save him, Galen,” he whispered, hand on the closed door. “I will
save him.”
We both knew he couldn’t, but his pride wouldn’t let him admit it. To
me or to himself.
Machines beeping reached my ears as we stepped into the spacious
room. Alastair had paid for everything, making sure Joseph had the best
room with the most beautiful view. The large window allowed him to watch
the sunsets he loved so much.
Joseph lay in the hospital bed, his once red hair now snow white. An
IV was in one arm, and he was hooked up to monitors. At seventy-two, he
had lived a good life. But short, just like every other mortal. Seeing
Alastair, he held out a shaking hand, reaching for him.
“I’m here,” Alastair said, taking his hand and sitting beside the bed.
I stayed near the wall, giving them space.
“Blond hair so pale it looks white,” Joseph said, brushing his fingers
across Alastair’s bangs. “When I was your age, I fell in love once. He had
hair just like yours. He was an angel, you know.” Joseph looked toward the
window. “He had the most beautiful wings. Like raven’s feathers.”
Alastair softly smiled and kissed Joseph’s knuckles.
A single tear rolled down his cheek.
 Chapter Four
Simon

“Oh, honey, look,” a woman said to her husband, holding up the clown
doll that came from the Ravenwood Mansion. “Jasmine would love this.”
God. Please buy it. Get that evil thing out of my store.
“How much?” the man grumbled.
She checked the tag. “Forty dollars.”
“A bit much for a doll.”
“I can give it to you for twenty,” I said. “It’s been sitting on that shelf
for a while collecting dust. I’d like to see it go to someone who’d appreciate
it.”
Buttering up customers and making them think I was doing them a
favor worked like a charm when I wanted to get rid of something. The man
nodded and said they’d buy it. Whoever Jasmine was, I was thankful for her
love of creepy dolls. I liked strange and unusual, but I drew the line at
clowns.
After the couple paid for the doll and left, I walked around the shop,
dusting some shelves and repositioning items to highlight new arrivals.
Mondays were always kind of slow, so it gave me a lot of downtime.
My thoughts returned to the mountain of a man who’d broken in
Saturday night. I liked to think I would’ve put up a good fight if he’d meant
to hurt me, but the fact was, he could’ve easily crushed me like a bug. The
ease with which he snatched the bat away from me and pinned me against
the wall said as much.
Shit. Even as scared as I’d been, being pressed against the wall with the
full force of his gray eyes on me, feeling his large warm body against
mine… well, let’s just say I thought about that moment a lot before bed last
night.
As for paying me five grand? I nearly passed the hell out when I
checked my bank account the day before and saw the transaction. I never
gave him my name or my account information. But the money appeared
anyway.
Who was he?
Was Kyo right? Was the guy part of some crime ring that procured
unique items for wealthy clients? If he was a criminal, he seemed to be a
decent one at least. He could’ve taken the ring and left without paying me a
dime.
What’s even crazier? I didn’t report him to the police. When they
showed up Saturday night, I apologized for “being mistaken” about the
burglary and sent them on their way. Why did I do that? Because the guy
was hot?
I must be out of my mind.
Then again, it had been months since I’d been laid. It was hard not to
think with my dick, especially around a man who practically screamed
rough, forget-my-damn-name, amazing sex.
“Good afternoon,” I said, hearing the bell above the door jingle. I
turned to see an auburn-haired man wearing a plain white tee with a black
jacket on over it. What was it with attractive men suddenly finding my shop
interesting? This guy was a damn knockout too. “Can I help you find
anything?”
 “You can, actually,” he said in a smooth, rich tone. When he came
closer, a weird chill passed through me. I couldn’t explain why, but I
wanted to run away from him. “I’m looking for an old, wooden box. It has
symbols etched into the sides.”
My unease intensified.
“And a ring inside it?”
“Bingo.” His deep brown eyes appeared to darken even more. As he
stopped a foot in front of me, a faint trace of woodsmoke reached my nose.
“So I came to the right place.”
“Well.” I scratched at the back of my hair, feeling uneasy around him.
“I did have the box. I don’t anymore.”
His smile fell. “You sold it?”
With my heart thrashing around, I tried to form a response but
struggled. I recalled the man who’d taken the box. Comparing him to the
man in front of me, they both exuded strength and badassery. Were they
rival thieves? Bad guys who wanted to kill each other?
“Stolen,” I said, doing my best to keep the fear from my voice. I failed,
by the way. “Someone broke in Saturday night and raided my storage
room.”
“Did you see what they looked like?” he asked, coming closer.
“N-No.” My back bumped the shelf behind me as I stepped backward.
For some reason, I didn’t want to tell this guy about the handsome thief. “I
heard noise and called the cops. By the time they arrived, the person was
gone. They took the box and a few other things. Probably a kid trying to
make a quick buck.”
“You know…” The man put a hand on my shoulder and leaned down,
his face inches from mine. “Liars always have a certain stench to them.” He
brought his mouth close to my ear. “And you reek.”
 My breath stuttered. “I… I don’t—”
“Tell me who took it.” He grabbed a tight fistful of my shirt and shoved
me harder against the wall, hard enough to make my teeth rattle. His eyes
looked pitch-black now. “Don’t play games with me, Simon Parks. You
don’t want to make this harder on yourself. I have ways of making people
talk that you’ll find highly unpleasant.”
“Are you going to go all Hulk on me?” I asked, turning to my smart-ass
defense. I couldn’t help it. “Will I not like you when you’re angry?”
When the man smiled, chills shot down my spine. “Keep testing me
and find out.”
“I don’t know anything. Okay? Now get the hell out of my store before
I call the cops on you.”
“Such brave words coming from someone who’s moments away from
falling to his knees like a coward.” A strange look then crossed his face,
and he leaned in closer, smelling me. “Interesting.”
“What is?”
Customers entered the shop, the ringing of the bell above the door
causing the man to release his grip on me. With a sinister smirk in place, he
took a step back, then another.
“I’ll be in touch,” he said before walking toward the door.
As he left, I expelled a breath and felt like I was going to crumble to
the floor. Just like he said, dammit. I greeted the customers, then headed
toward the back room. With each step down the hall, breathing became
difficult. It felt like my throat was closing up, blocking my airway. My
lungs burned.
I slid to the floor once in the break room and listened to the faint
rumble of the minifridge, trying to focus on anything except for the fear in
my gut.
 He knew my name. Threatened me.
And all over that stupid box.
What the hell have I gotten myself into?
I was nervous for the rest of the day. All night too. I lay in bed, blinds
closed on all the windows and the bedside lamp turned on. Each time I
heard a sound, I expected the auburn-haired man to bust down my door and
take my ass out. And not in the fun way.
Too nervous to sleep, I broke into my emergency stash of ice cream and
sat at the island in the kitchen as I stuffed my face. It was almost midnight.
Eating so late was awful for the diet. I debated the pros and cons of weight
loss as I ate another spoonful of mint chocolate chip deliciousness.
Right now, ice cream was winning.
A car alarm went off outside.
I jumped at the sudden sound and crept over to the window that faced
the street. Lights flashed on a small white car parked by the curb as the
alarm wailed. A bar wasn’t far from my building, and sometimes people
stashed their cars on my street if they couldn’t find a place closer to park.
The horn honked once before the alarm shut off. A guy appeared seconds
later with his arm thrown around a girl. They got into the car and left.
A dark shape darted across the sidewalk and into the bushes below my
window. I ducked out of sight, my heart pounding.
Probably just a stray dog. Nothing to worry about.
I chuckled at myself as I walked over and put the lid on the near-empty
ice cream container. A few days ago, I had freaked out over that damn box,
and now I nearly lost my shit over a dog scampering around outside. The
confrontation with the guy earlier had made me paranoid. Add that to being
overworked and stressed, and me being so on edge made sense. Maybe I
needed to take Kyo’s advice and go away for a week. Somewhere nice and
relaxing.
I couldn’t remember the last time I’d taken a vacation.
Thud.
I snapped my head toward the window before walking across the room
and peeking out. My trash can was knocked over. Just as I was searching
the dark for what could’ve done it, another thud sounded… That time at the
back door.
“Yeah, I don’t like this.” I grabbed the baseball bat propped against the
wall and went over to the front door. Listening.
The staircase leading up to my loft was right beside the side entrance
door, so if anyone came in, I’d hear them. The alarm would also go off.
Well, it hadn’t the night the sexy-as-hell thief broke in, but he was on a
different level than everyone else.
Maybe it was the auburn-haired psycho?
I gripped the bat tighter and waited.
And kept waiting.
After five minutes passed, I relaxed a little. I needed sleep. My
paranoia had gotten out of control. I placed the bat against the wall and sat
on the edge of my bed, rubbing at the back of my neck.
The crash came from the window beside me.
Glass shattered inward, bringing in a gust of cold air. I shielded my
face on reflex and jumped up from the bed. It took my brain a moment to
process what had happened. The bedside lamp fell to the floor, the lightbulb
smashing into pieces and sending the room into darkness.
At first, I thought a storm had come through. We were expecting some
rain, and the wind gusts could get crazy sometimes. Not completely
impossible for a branch from the tree beside my building to crash through
the window.
But that didn’t explain the lamp.
Or the hoarse breathing sounds I heard in the dark room.
“H-Hello?” I asked. Yeah, that’s what morons did in scary movies, but
all reason kind of left my brain.
Something scurried across the floor to the left of me. I whipped my
head that way, squinting through the dark. My eyes were adjusting a bit, but
all I saw were dark shapes. More scampering. It sounded like sharp nails on
the hardwood floor. A cat maybe?
Oh god. Please let it be a cat.
“What the hell?” I crinkled my nose. It smelled like bad barbeque, like
when you left the meat on the grill for way too long and it burnt to a crisp.
A shadow dashed in front of me, and I jumped backward, my legs
knocking into the bed and sending me off-balance. My ass hit the floor as
the stench of something burning grew stronger.
And then I felt it—hot breath on my cheek.
Shivers ran down my spine, and I couldn’t move for a second. I was
too paralyzed with fear. However, an inner strength flared up inside me. I
refused to sit there and do nothing.
I rolled to the side and jumped to my feet. Sharp nails clicked on the
floor behind me as I ran. I lunged for the baseball bat. Right as I grabbed it,
my pursuer barreled into me and knocked the bat from my hand. My body
slammed against the wall before something sharp sunk into my calf and
threw me into the air. I hit the ground hard enough to knock the breath from
my lungs and to silence the scream tearing through my throat.
When I was finally able to suck in a deep breath, I started gagging.
Along with the charred scent, I also got a whiff of rot. I’d never smelled
anything so horrible in all my life. Smoke swirled around me, and my eyes
stung.
Was something on fire? It had to be.
I pushed to my feet and unlocked the dead bolt on the door before
yanking it open. I limped down the stairs, gritting my teeth against the sting
in my leg. Blood streamed from the wound and dripped on the steps. The
thing followed me. I could hear its hoarse breathing.
Reaching the bottom landing, I hobbled toward the exit door. If I
opened it, the alarm would go off. Help would arrive shortly.
I never got the chance.
Teeth sunk into my injured leg and brought me down. Tears pooled in
my eyes, both from fear and from the stench of rot and smoke. I stared up at
the door. It wasn’t even two feet away. Claws dug into my sides, and I was
flipped to my back.
Pressure landed on my chest, and I cried out as sharp nails slashed at
my shirt. I couldn’t see anything but darkness above me. I swung out my
arm to knock the thing off me, but another set of teeth clamped down on my
bicep. I didn’t know what the hell they were, but there were at least two of
them. With my shirt hanging in tatters now, sharp claws dug into my skin
and sliced my chest open.
I screamed before inhaling the smoke and coughing.
They were going to rip me apart. And there was nothing I could do to
stop them. I couldn’t even see them.
People said your life flashed before your eyes before you died, but I
didn’t see beloved childhood memories playing on a loop in my head. I only
saw darkness. I didn’t feel anything but pain and crippling fear.
“Galen! He’s down here!”
Whose voice was that?
 The creatures attacking me suddenly disappeared. Grunts sounded from
a few feet away, then a high-pitched screech followed by crackling, like
flames dying in a pit. The burning stench lessened. I tried to keep my eyes
open, but it didn’t do any good. I was losing consciousness.
“Fuck,” the man said, his voice closer now. “He doesn’t look good.
What should we do? Drop him off at the hospital?”
“No. He won’t survive that long.” A gentle pressure touched my cheek.
There was something comforting about it. “We’ll take him with us.”
His voice. I knew it from somewhere.
The center of my chest began to warm, and the intense pain subsided a
bit.
“Alastair will be pissed,” the other guy said.
“Let him.” Arms slipped under me, and I was lifted from the floor.
Something brushed across my forehead. “I’ve got you.”
I probably should’ve cared that a complete stranger was carrying me.
But he’d saved me from being eaten alive by those damn creatures. And he
was so warm. Familiar. I pressed my face to his bare shoulder, breathing in
his scent. Sandalwood with a subtle hint of citrus.
The slight rocking of his body as he walked relaxed me even more.
Cold air touched my face, and he held me closer to his chest. He must’ve
gone outside. The alarm didn’t go off when he opened the door. Did he
disarm it? Stupid how I thought of random crap at a moment like that.
I managed to open my eyes, if for only a moment, and saw the night
sky, the stars shining bright. Stars that seemed closer than usual.
I could’ve sworn we were flying.

***
 The soft bed beneath me was the first thing I noticed when waking up.
Right away I knew I wasn’t in my loft. My firm, lumpy mattress definitely
wasn’t that comfortable.
I opened my eyes to a moonlit room. It was blurry without my glasses
though. I squinted and looked around, seeing them on the nightstand. After
putting them on, I studied the room. The wide, open space had a door to the
left and another beside it. Both closed. A short hall seemed to lead
somewhere else. To a bathroom, maybe? A closet?
The wall in front of me was nothing but glass, showing a cliff in the
distance, as well as dark water.
I was near the sea. Maybe in one of the fancy houses along the coast?
The ones I used to look up at while driving through town and wishing I
could afford? Whoever lived there had money and a lot of it.
The memory of charred meat and rot slammed into me.
Gasping, I clutched my chest, finding a bandage there. Another was on
my left bicep. I raised the blanket to see that my right leg was wrapped too.
I ached a little but not much.
Where were my clothes? I had on sweats with the right pants leg rolled
up because of my wound, and I was shirtless. The pants weren’t mine. They
were way too long and baggy.
Footsteps drew my attention to the door.
“You shouldn’t have brought him here,” a stern voice said from outside
the room. Light came in through the crack at the bottom, and I noticed a
shadow, as if someone was standing in front of the door. “You know better,
Galen.”
“Shades attacked him, Alastair. What was I supposed to do?”
Now that voice I recognized. It belonged to the man who had cradled
me gently in his arms. The same man who had broken into my shop days
before, pressed me against the wall, and stolen that creepy box with the
fancy ring.
Oh, shit. Was I in their secret hideout?
“Take him to the hospital and leave him there,” the other man said. “It’s
dangerous for him to be here. For him and us.”
“He needed our help. Isn’t that our purpose? To help people?”
“Our purpose is to kill demons, not nurse humans back to health.”
Demons?
“He would’ve died before human doctors could help him, Alastair.”
“Not our problem.”
“And I believe it is our problem. The shades targeted him specifically.”
“Demons attack humans all the time. He’s nothing special. What
happens when he wakes up and starts asking questions? No one can know
our location, especially not a simple-minded human. You’ve just put all of
us—”
“Enough! What’s done is done. I will not hear another word of it.”
“You dare give me orders, Wrath? You forget your place.”
Silence followed.
I had no idea what to think. My brain felt like it was going to short-
circuit as I replayed their conversation in my head. Killing demons?
Referring to me as a human? And a simple-minded one at that. Who the hell
were they?
The doorknob turned, and the sound pulled me from my thoughts. A
large figure stood in the doorway, the light from the hall filtering into the
room. My breaths halted in my chest, and my hands couldn’t stop shaking.
“You’re awake.”
I sat up higher in the bed, then winced when I moved too quickly.
 “Easy,” he said, walking farther into the room. He left the door open.
To make me feel less trapped? He flipped a switch, and lights flickered on.
The room remained dim in some places though, keeping a calming
atmosphere. “I healed the worst of your injuries and patched up the rest, but
you need to rest for a while.”
Dressed in combat boots, black pants, and a simple black tee, he
reminded me of a military operative. Or a ring-stealing assassin. Someone
dangerous.
“Who are you?”
His gray eyes watched me just like they had the first day I met him.
“My name is Galen.”
“Where am I?”
“My home.”
“Why?”
A tic started in his jaw. “Because.”
“Because?” I asked with a scoff. “Thanks for the elaboration. That
makes things crystal clear.”
He stared at me, said nothing.
“I’m going home,” I said, trying to find the will to move. I felt like I’d
been run over by a car. My muscles ached and weighed heavily.
“No, you’re not.”
“I don’t know what the hell you dragged me into, but it stops now. I
want no part of whatever illegal thing you have going on here.”
“It’s too late for that, I’m afraid.” Galen stepped closer toward the bed.
“You’re safe here. I promise.”
“Your promises mean nothing. I don’t know you from Adam, and I
definitely don’t trust the word of a criminal.” Even if he was incredibly hot.
“Now take me home.”
 “No.”
“You can’t keep me here.”
Definitely the wrong thing to say.
A challenge sparked in his eyes. “I’d like to see you try to leave.”
“God.” I squeezed my eyes shut and took a deep breath. “You’re going
to kill me, aren’t you?”
“If I planned to kill you, I would’ve let you bleed to death instead of
helping you.”
“Fair enough. So, what happened at my shop? What attacked me? It
seemed like some kind of animal.”
“It wasn’t an animal.”
“Then what was it?”
“It’s a lot for me to explain.”
“Try,” I said as a ball of worry knotted in my gut. “Because I’m kinda
going out of my mind here.”
“Very well.” Galen came over to sit on the bed. “If you really want to
know. They were shades.”
“Shades?”
“Low-level demons.”
“Demons? You have to be joking.”
“Do I look like I’m joking?” he asked with a straight face.
“Uh.” I cleared my throat. “Not really.”
Galen’s eyes narrowed. “You find this funny?”
“Definitely not,” I answered with a short laugh. “Quite the opposite,
actually. I find this insane. Demons aren’t real.”
“Those bite marks say otherwise.” He tipped his head to my bandaged
arm.
Yeah, the pain of being bitten felt real.
 “Why were they after me?”
“I don’t know for certain, but I believe the box has something to do
with it. I’ll keep you safe while you’re here. You have my word.”
Maybe I was an idiot, but I believed him. “Why were you at my shop?
You showed up at the perfect time.”
“We were hunting the shades and tracked them to your loft.”
“You hunt them?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
He sighed and hung his head forward, rubbing the back of his neck.
Was I stressing him out? “Because killing demons is what we do. End of
story.”
“The end? Oh no. I have many more questions. This is just the
beginning of the story.” His words from earlier registered. “Wait. You said
earlier that you healed my injuries? You mean doctored them, right?”
“No. Healed them. Mostly, anyway.” Galen looked down at his hand,
frowning. “The one on your chest gave me trouble. It was deep. Too deep. I
stopped the bleeding when I first found you, but my brothers had to help me
close the wound.”
I touched the wrapping over my chest and shakily inhaled. Other than
an uncomfortable ache and pressure, I felt fine considering something had
tried ripping me apart. I was lucky to be alive. The details of the attack were
a bit fuzzy, but I remembered lying on the floor at the foot of the staircase
as something tore open my chest, its hot breath on my skin. There had been
so much blood.
“T-Thank you,” I said through the sudden tightness in my throat. “For
saving my life.”
 His expression softened. “So many things you could say. Questions you
could ask. And you thank me instead.”
“Oh, the questions will come later. You can count on it. I’m just in
shock right now, I think. Being attacked by those shade demon things and
hearing you say you healed me like you’re some kind of magical sexy elf or
something. It’s a lot to process.”
Galen’s jaw clenched. “I’m not an elf. I’m a Nephilim.”
“A what?”
“Nephilim,” he repeated. “My father was an angel. My mother was
human.”
I stared at him. Studied the size of his muscled arms, his wide chest,
and broad shoulders. He was wearing a shirt now, but I vaguely
remembered being pressed against his bare torso, one with rippling abs.
With a sharp jawline and a hard set to his brow, he radiated raw masculinity,
though there was a softness to the curve of his lips.
“You’re… an angel?”
“You seem more shocked by that than when I told you about demons.”
“Well, when I picture angels, I don’t exactly imagine—” I waved a
hand up and down his large, muscled body. “—this.”
“Let me guess, you thought angels were cute little things that wore
diapers and played harps?”
I breathed out a laugh. “Yeah? Kind of.”
“There are different classes of angels,” Galen explained. “Joy bringers
are whimsical and spread happiness. But they wear a chiton instead of a
diaper.” I smiled at that and listened as he kept going. All of this was crazy
anyway. I was probably dreaming. Or dead. This could be my weird
afterlife. “I belong to the warrior class. I fight demons. Protect the earth.
However, as I said, I’m only half angel.”
 “So what does being half an angel entail? Can you fly?”
“Yes.”
“Really?” I cocked my head. “You don’t have wings.”
“I have them,” he said. “They’re just hidden at the moment.”
“Can I see them?”
“No.”
They needed to create a new class of angelic being. The killjoy angel.
He’d be their leader.
“Why are you smiling?”
“No reason.” I pressed my lips into a line. “If angels and demons are
real, I guess Heaven and Hell are too?”
Galen nodded. “Though, they’re not what you probably think. Most
religions have their own version of the two places, but the reality is
different. For the underworld anyway. I’ve never been to the celestial
realm.”
“Celestial realm?”
“The home to angels. It’s what you think of as Heaven.”
“Why haven’t you been there?”
“I’m not allowed. None of my brothers are.”
“Why?”
Galen exhaled and rubbed at his temple. “That’s enough questions for
now.”
“Just one more,” I said. “Please? You owe me that much. This whole
thing is nuts.”
Light gray eyes shifted to me. Waiting.
“Why tell me all of this?”
“Because whether you like it or not, you’re involved now,” he
answered in an irritated tone. Was he annoyed by me, though, or by the
situation? Probably both. “The box I took from you? The demons are after
it. I thought once I got it away from your shop, they would leave you alone.
I was wrong. My mistake nearly cost you your life. Consider this me
rectifying that mistake.”
I recalled the conversation I’d heard before he came into the room. The
other man was pissed about me being there. He said something about their
location needing to stay secret.
“Am I really your prisoner now?” I asked, putting the pieces together.
“That’s another question.” His lips twitched. “No. You’re not my
prisoner. But you can’t leave.”
“That’s literally the definition of prisoner.”
“Think of it more like protective custody.” Galen stood from the bed
and glanced back at me. “It could be worse. You could go back home and
be eaten by shades. Staying here, protected, sounds much better, don’t you
agree?”
“What about my business?” I asked, trying to slide out of bed and
wincing. Galen gently pushed me back down on the pillow. “I have to go to
work. I have bills to pay. Employees too. Kyo relies on me.”
“Tell him you’re closing the shop for the rest of the week,” Galen said.
“A paid vacation. I’ll make sure he’s compensated for it. Now stop stressing
and get some rest.”
How could I rest when I’d been smacked with so much craziness at
once? Sleeping was the furthest thing from my mind.
“Why do this for me? Why go through all this trouble for someone you
don’t know?”
“Simon. If you ask me one more question, I may be forced to smother
you with a pillow.”
 It was the first time he’d ever said my name. And damn if I didn’t like
the way it rolled off his tongue.
Galen hovered over me, fingers skating across my jaw.
My heart pounded as I stared up at him, but not from fear. I considered
myself relatively tame when it came to sex. I was no virgin, but I didn’t
sleep around a lot either, especially with guys I didn’t know well. However,
being around Galen amped up my desire to fuck him nine ways to Sunday.
In every position possible.
I also felt something else. A pull toward him.
“Sleep,” he whispered, smoothing his fingertips along my temple.
Drowsiness hit me full force, and I struggled to stay alert. He took off
my glasses and placed them on the nightstand as I lost the battle to keep my
eyes open.
I was asleep in seconds.
 Chapter Five
Galen

I watched Simon as he slept. Sandy-brown bangs fell across his brow,

and I fought the urge to brush them aside. To touch him.
I couldn’t explain why, but I was drawn to him. I had been since the
day I walked into his shop and saw his big hazel eyes staring up at me.
He was an ordinary human. Average. His wardrobe seemed to mostly
consist of cardigan sweaters and vests, mainly gray and navy blue with a
few green ones thrown in. He had little to no muscle, and his body was soft.
Not the body of someone who could fight off a pair of shades.
The memory of him lying in a pool of his own blood with his chest
slashed to hell was one I wouldn’t soon forget.
Throughout my life, I’d seen countless humans die at the hands of
demons. We had saved many of them, but the ones we’d lost, though
disappointing, hadn’t affected me quite as much as seeing Simon that way
had, him barely clinging to consciousness as he bled out on the floor of his
shop. A protective instinct had kicked in.
Letting him die was out of the question.
So was letting him out of my sight.
Did it make sense? No. All I knew about him was his name. Yet, being
in his presence calmed me. My wrathful urges dissipated. I was used to
being angry all the time, but not when around him.
 Perhaps that’s what drew me to him, that sense of peace he instilled in
my mind.
Simon stirred in his sleep, making the softest of sounds. I found myself
leaning closer, the pull to him unstoppable. I ghosted my fingers over his
jaw, then down the side of his neck.
He smelled like rain.
Guilt clung to my insides as I looked at the bandages around his arm
and chest. I should’ve known the scent of the box was still at the shop.
Shades might’ve been dumb as doornails, but they were incredible trackers.
Killers. If they were ordered to retrieve something, they killed anything in
their way.
Knowing he’d be asleep for a while, I left the room and softly closed
the door behind me.
“How’s the human?” Castor asked, leaning against the wall.
“Have you been standing there this entire time?”
“No.” He pushed from the wall and kept pace beside me as I walked
toward the entertainment room. “Long enough to see your little internal
dilemma though.”
“What are you talking about?”
“He means something to you.”
“No, he doesn’t. He’s only here because he has a target on his back.
Leaving him somewhere to die goes against everything we stand for.”
Castor smirked. “So why is he in your bed?”
“Because I don’t trust any of you assholes.” I shoved him away as he
started to laugh. “Get that dumbass look off your face. The human means
nothing to me.”
“Maybe. But you totally want to fuck him.”
 I glared over at Castor. He wiggled his pierced eyebrows up and down,
and that stupid grin returned. I wanted to punch him.
When we entered the entertainment room, Raiden looked up from
where he was leaning over the pool table. He shot the stripe into the upper-
left pocket before coming over to us. His bare chest had claw marks from
where a shade had attacked him. The wound had been deep and gushing
blood an hour ago but appeared as faint scratches now thanks to our quick
healing abilities.
“Where is he?” Raiden asked.
“Sleeping,” I answered.
Gray sat up on the couch, his hair messy from sleep. “I want to meet
the human.”
“Me too,” Bellamy said, entering the room. His golden hair hung in
waves to the middle of his ears, and his eyes flashed to brown, then to
hazel. “He smells divine. Like a spring morning before it rains.”
I squeezed my hand into a fist. “Lay a finger on him and I’ll chop off
the part of your body you love the most.”
“Now that’s just cruel.” Bellamy tipped back his glass of wine infused
with ambrosia. “What did my cock ever do to you?”
“I know you, Lust,” I growled, taking a step forward. “Keep. Your.
Hands. Off. Him.”
“Fine, fine. I’ll keep my hands off him.” Bellamy smiled. “But what
about other parts of me?”
I left the room before I could rip his head off.
I had too much on my mind, which didn’t help my sour mood. Being
around my brothers at the moment would only fuel my anger. They had a
way of making it worse with their smart-ass comments and pestering
personalities.
 “Galen.”
I stopped in the hall and turned toward the open door to Alastair’s
study. Stepping through the doorway, I saw him sitting in a high-back red
chair, a book on his lap and a cup of hot tea beside him.
“Come in,” he said, his expression neutral.
“You want to bitch at me some more?”
He pressed his lips together. “Not exactly.”
Bracing myself for a lecture, I walked inside and sat in the chair beside
him. Wood crackled in the fireplace in front of us, the warmth of it
soothing.
Shelves lined the walls, filled with his favorite novels, a majority of
them first editions. He’d known many of the authors. Slept with several of
them too. The floor-to-ceiling windows showed trees and a rock garden,
along with a bench for him to sit outside on nice days and read. His study
was his sanctuary, the place he went when he needed to think or to get away
from us for a while.
“Lazarus still hasn’t answered me,” Alastair said, staring at the
crackling fire. “He must be dealing with problems elsewhere. Last we
spoke, he said Phoenix and Belphegor were in Paris meeting with a
powerful witch. The angels are keeping tabs on them in hopes of learning
their plan. There’ve been demon attacks all over the world, more so than
usual.”
Belphegor was a general of the underworld, and Phoenix was his newly
appointed lieutenant. They were two of the most powerful beings in the
underworld. They passed down orders and sent shades to do their dirty
work. Belphegor was also Gray’s father. The rest of our fathers had been
killed when Lucifer was defeated and locked away.
 “They must be after the box,” I said, glancing over at the safe in which
Alastair had placed it. Warding against demons marked the outside of the
safe. Just as an extra precaution. “Why else would the shades be searching
for it?”
“I’ve come to the same conclusion. Which brings me to my next point.
The human.”
Here we go.
“We have these rules in place for a reason,” he continued. “Humans are
not allowed here. Period. I never even brought Joseph here.”
“I know.”
“So tell me again why you felt it necessary to bring this human into our
home.” Unlike earlier, he didn’t sound angry. He was truly perplexed by my
actions.
Well, that made two of us. I told myself it had nothing to do with the
way I felt when around Simon and everything to do with our duty as
warriors.
“We’ve never dealt with anything like this before,” I responded. “The
demons want whatever’s in that box. And Simon is caught in the middle.
It’s our duty to protect humans from dark forces, and that’s exactly what
I’m doing. The box left some kind of trace on him, I believe. It’s why the
shades still think he has it, or at least, why they think he knows where it is.
He’ll be safe here, at least until we can figure everything out.”
“What about after?” Alastair sipped his tea, then set it back on the
table. “You told him about us. He won’t ever be able to go back to the real
world now. Not with his memory intact anyway. He knows too much. It’s
too dangerous.”
“Joseph knew about us too.” Referring to him in the past tense while he
still lived made Alastair flinch a little. I couldn’t find the will to care right
then though. I was too irritated.
“That was different. I didn’t tell him for months, not until I knew I
could trust him.” Alastair’s pale blue eyes narrowed. “We know close to
nothing about this Simon Parks. Humans are easily corrupted by demons.
He could betray us the moment he leaves. That doesn’t include the trouble
he can cause while he’s here.”
“I’ll take full responsibility for anything that happens.”
“Damn right you will. You’ll stay by his side and watch him the entire
time he’s with us. Make sure he doesn’t sneak off and meddle in things he
shouldn’t. Am I clear?”
“Yes.”
“Though as displeased with you as I am… your decision might not
have been totally foolish.” Alastair tapped a finger on the arm of his chair.
“None of us can open the box. But the human can.”
“You wish to use him?”
“He’s here. He might as well be useful to us.”
The idea made sense. I nodded before standing and walking toward the
door.
“And Galen?”
I glanced back at Alastair.
“If I believe for even a moment that this human plans to betray us in
any way… I won’t hesitate in killing him.”
I exited the study, my hands fisted at my sides. He was right, of course.
If Simon became a threat to us, we’d have to dispose of him. Human or not.
So why did the thought of it cause a knotting in the pit of my stomach?
I pictured how peaceful Simon looked as he slept, his lips slightly
parted and his chest softly rising and falling. The memory of his scent
tickled my nose, how he smelled of rain showers and earth.
 The urge to protect him strengthened.
“Well, aren’t you acting out of character,” a voice said from the
shadows. Daman stepped out from his place against the wall, his long,
slender body decked out in leather pants and a crop top that showed his
toned belly. The back of the shirt was open so he could spread his wings
without having to undress.
Envy.
Out of the seven of us, he tended to keep to himself the most.
“How so?” I asked.
“Bringing the human home instead of letting him die.” Daman tilted his
head at me, expression puzzled. Medium-length brown hair fell a bit into
his face, and his bangs swooped over his emerald-green eyes. “I wonder
why.”
“I’m getting really sick of all of you asking me that.”
“Can you blame us?” The small silver crosses on his bracelets jingled
as he stepped over to the window and peered out into the night. The moon
reflected off the sea. “The last time any of us allowed a human into our
home was in the Renaissance era. And you remember how that turned out.”
We’d lived in Italy at the time—we changed location at least once
every century, moving across the globe.
Raiden had met an artist in Florence, taken him as a lover, and invited
him to stay with us for a few nights. That’s all it had taken for the demons
to zero in on him. The man had been captured after leaving our home one
day and tortured by demons until he told them our location.
Belphegor sent demons to attack in the dead of night, taking us by
surprise. Daman and Castor had nearly been killed.
As Nephilim, we could heal from almost every injury, but we weren’t
indestructible. A specific kind of weapon—a celestial blade—could be used
to weaken our healing abilities. When used, it injured us as if we were
human. Castor’s neck had been sliced so deep it took him weeks to heal.
Daman had taken a dagger to the heart and barely survived.
“That won’t happen again,” I said.
“If you say so.” Daman looked at me. Sadness radiated off him. Part of
the sin he held. “Any blood spilled is on your hands.”
 Chapter Six
Simon

“He’s waking up.”

“Don’t sit so close to him, Gray,” another voice said, both of them
unfamiliar. “You’ll scare him.”
“You think he’s hungry?” a deeper voice chimed in. “I can make
pancakes.”
Cracking open my eyelids, I came face-to-face with a guy with wild
blond curls and a silly little grin on his cute face. My vision was a little
blurry, but he looked like a teenager.
“Hi,” he whispered.
I jerked away from him and fumbled for my glasses on the nightstand.
The kid grabbed them for me, and I put them on, focusing on him. “Who
are you?”
“My name’s Gray.” He sat up beside me on the bed. A panda bear was
on his shirt, and his pajama bottoms were blue with stars on them.
Sunlight streamed in through the windows. I’d slept through the whole
night.
“Are you an angel too?” I asked.
“Ah, so Galen’s told you about that, huh? Cool. Yeah. I mean, kinda.
We’re Nephilim. Half angels. But close enough. How are you feeling? You
were in bad shape earlier.”
 I’d known Gray for five seconds and could already tell he was a
blabbermouth. An adorable one though. His big brown eyes reminded me of
an anime character.
“I feel okay,” I answered, glancing from Gray and to the two men
standing behind him. One had vibrant red hair and piercings, while the
other had cropped black hair and muscles even bigger than Galen’s. Both
stood well over six feet. “Um. What time is it?”
“Almost three,” Red-Haired Dude said.
“Three? In the afternoon?”
“Yeah, you’ve been sleeping all day,” Gray said, checking the bandage
on my chest. Seeming satisfied, he nodded and withdrew his hand. “Your
body needed time to heal.”
I was an early riser, never sleeping past eight o’clock every morning.
Sleeping the day away felt strange.
“So, you’re all brothers?” I glanced between the three of them.
“Not blood related,” Gray said, hopping off the bed. “More like
brothers by choice. We’re bonded together. All seven of us.”
“Seven?”
“Yep. Did Galen tell you about our curse?” Gray bounced over to the
dark-haired giant and hung on to his arm. Their size difference was almost
comical. “Well, I guess it’s not actually a curse. Curses can be broken. Ours
can’t.”
A curse? What kind?
“What are you doing in here?” Galen asked, walking into the room. He
was the tallest of them, and his presence demanded attention.
“Talking to your human,” Gray answered. “He’s really cute. I think
he’s in shock though. He keeps looking at me like this.” He widened his
eyes, exaggerating the action.
 There was a hint of a smile on Galen’s lips as he stared at the younger
man. Then, he looked at me. “How are you?”
“Fine.” I pulled the cover up a little higher to cover my torso. I didn’t
like having my shirt off in front of people. The bandage covered most of my
chest, but a bit of my belly had been visible. It made me self-conscious.
“What did he mean by you guys being cursed?”
“It doesn’t matter.” Galen arched a brow at Gray before moving those
intense gray eyes back to me. “You don’t need to know.”
“He already knows about us being Nephilim, thanks to you,” the red-
haired one said. “What’s the harm in telling him the rest?”
“Do you think he can handle it?” the muscled giant with dark hair
asked. “Aren’t human minds kinda… you know… simple? It might be too
much for him to process.”
“Not everyone is like you, Raiden,” Galen said. “Some people actually
have a brain.”
Gray laughed, then pressed his lips together when Raiden shot him a
look.
They seemed so… human. It was hard to believe they were Nephilim
or whatever. Non-humans. Other than being insanely tall and muscled—
with the exception of Gray, who was shorter than me—they could’ve been
just regular guys. Not angelic warriors who kicked demon ass.
Allegedly. I still wasn’t sure I believed it.
“Do I get a say in this?” I asked. “Because I’d really like to know.”
“Later,” Galen answered. “You should probably eat something first.”
His gaze dropped to my chest. “And get dressed.”
“How much do you wanna bet Bellamy’s gonna hit on him?” Red
asked.
 “He better not if he knows what’s good for him,” Galen growled in
response before ushering the three of them out of the room and closing the
door behind them. He turned to me. “I texted your employee from your
phone early this morning and told him not to come in to work.”
“My phone?” I looked around for it.
“It was in your pocket when I found you.”
“Oh. Right.” I blew out a breath. “I forgot about that. Thank you for
texting him for me.”
“You’ve dealt with a lot in a short amount of time. I’m sure this is a lot
to take in.”
“Yeah. It’s a bit overwhelming.” I moved my gaze to the wall of
windows, absorbing everything I’d heard and seen over the past twenty-four
hours. “Yesterday, I was just a normal guy running an antique shop. And
now I’m in a seaside mansion with seven, allegedly cursed, warriors,
thrown into the middle of some war between angels and demons over a
stupid ring I found in a creepy box.”
“One hell of a week. And it’s only Tuesday.”
I smiled despite the whirlwind of insanity and confusion in my head.
“Can’t say it hasn’t been eventful. Crazy is more like it.” Shock hit my
system then, and I started rambling like I did when I freaked out. “What the
hell is going on, Galen? You say you’re angels or whatever who fight
demons. Gray says you’re cursed. What does that mean?”
Galen came over to sit on the bed. The sun hit his brown hair, bringing
out amber highlights I didn’t notice before. “I’d rather spare you the details,
but if you really want to hear it, I’ll tell you. It’s the only way for you to
truly understand who we are.”
I nodded.
 “Our fathers were fallen angels,” he explained. “When Lucifer rebelled
against the Supreme Being, they followed him to Earth and became his
generals. A betrayal of that degree caused a curse to be placed upon their
bloodline. As punishment for their crimes, their firstborn sons became the
personification of their depravities.”
“How so?”
“Have you ever heard of the seven deadly sins?”
“Yeah.” I studied his hard expression. Though intense, his gray eyes
held a touch of softness. “What about them?”
“They’re us.”
“Wait.” I held a hand up. “What? You’re telling me you guys are the
literal seven deadly sins?”
“Yes.” He stood and approached the glass wall, resting his arm on it as
he fixated on something outside. Daylight spilled across the mountains and
shone on the sea. Diamonds danced on the water’s surface. “We refer to it
as a curse, but as Gray said, it can’t be broken. Not that we know of
anyway. We are the true embodiment of the sin. It is just as much a part of
us as anything else.”
“I don’t think I’m following.”
“We aren’t merely cursed. We are the sin, Simon.”
“Why?”
“I told you why. Because of our fathers.”
“Yeah, but why punish you? None of you did anything wrong. You
were just innocent babies. That seems pretty fucked-up if you ask me. Why
would God, or the Supreme Being or whatever you called him, let that
happen?”
“Anger,” Galen responded. “That’s what I believe, anyway. His
children abandoned Him. So He punished theirs in response. The other
angels, the ones who didn’t fall, wanted to kill us. We were abominations to
them. Instead, we were torn from our mother’s arms and trained as warriors.
Our blood is powerful, you see. Rare. And it makes us strong.”
Sadness gripped my heart. “I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“It sounds like you’ve had a shitty life.”
Galen held my gaze. Said nothing. I wondered if I was the first person
to ever say such a thing to him before.
I pondered his words. Nothing had ever sounded crazier. Angels? The
seven deadly sins? I feared I was losing touch with reality, that this was
some carefully orchestrated prank. I touched my chest, felt the ache of the
wound. That was definitely real. So was the honesty shining in Galen’s
eyes.
“What sin are you?” I asked, deciding to put my faith in everything he
told me. I didn’t really have any other choice at the moment.
“Wrath.”
“Somehow that doesn’t surprise me.”
Galen laughed before walking across the room and opening a door. He
flipped on the light and revealed a huge walk-in closet. “My clothes will be
too big for you, but they’ll do for now. One of us will stop by your loft this
evening and grab clothes and anything else you need.”
The change of subject was probably a good thing. I didn’t know how
much more I could absorb before my brain exploded.
“What about the broken window?” I asked, remembering how the
shades broke into my loft. “I need to get it fixed, otherwise all my stuff will
be ruined.”
“I’ll take care of it,” he said from inside the closet. He exited holding a
black T-shirt and tossed it to me. “Put this on.”
 Careful not to irritate any of my injuries, I slid out of bed and stood on
shaky legs.
“Will you be able to walk?” he asked, concerned.
“I think so,” I answered, putting weight on my uninjured leg. Whatever
magic they used to heal me must’ve been powerful. There wasn’t much
pain at all. My chest was the worst of the three wounds, but even it didn’t
hurt as bad as it should’ve given the severity of the injury. I slid the shirt
over my head and tugged it down. The thing was so long it brushed the top
of my knees. “What now?”
“Now?” Galen placed a hand at my lower back and guided me toward
the door. “You meet my brothers.”

***

Galen led me down a hallway and to a winding staircase. Light filtered

into the mansion from the many windows, and it took all my willpower not
to stop on the steps and gawk at the beauty of the place.
“You’ll have plenty of time to admire everything later.” Galen smirked
at me. “But I can hear your stomach growling from here. Food first.”
Heat crept to my cheeks, and I averted my eyes. How could he read me
so easily?
We reached the ground floor, and my mouth watered at the smell of
bacon. And yeah, he was right. My stomach grumbled.
Voices drifted from the other room, followed by a few chuckles and the
sizzle of cooking meat.
“I should warn you,” Galen said. “Things can get… rowdy. And loud.
Too goddamn loud.”
“I went to a ton of frat parties in college. I can handle it.”
 “Yeah, well, they’re like frat boys on steroids.” He glanced at the open
archway. “If they annoy you too much, let me know and I’ll strangle them.”
I laughed, then stopped when I saw his serious expression. “You’re not
joking.”
Humor sparked in his eyes. Whether he’d strangle them or not, I had no
idea. Probably best for them not to test him though.
Entering the kitchen, I saw four men. Three I recognized because
they’d been in my room when I woke up. The other man was fucking
beautiful. He had a head of wavy blond hair and a perfect balance of
masculine and feminine features: a strong jaw, pouted lips, long lashes,
bedroom eyes, and high cheekbones.
He smiled at me, and I looked away, my face heating.
Gray sat on a barstool, legs crisscross on the seat and head resting on
the counter. He looked sleepy, all the energy he’d had earlier gone. He
opened his eyes long enough to give me a tired smile, and then he closed
them again.
“Can’t believe you let a shade make you its bitch last night, Raiden,”
the guy with vibrant red hair said to the man at the stove. “I thought those
claw marks were because you got kinky. Not because you got your ass
kicked.”
“Shut your ugly face, Cas, or you won’t get any of my food,” Raiden
said, scoffing. He noticed me standing by the archway. “Hey, mortal. You
hungry?”
“I never say no to bacon,” I said, hating the shake in my voice. Being
nervous was normal, right? Anyone would be freaked out in my situation.
Considering everything, I was holding myself together pretty well.
“Me either.” Raiden winked, then turned back to the stove.
 “He’s Gluttony,” Galen told me. “He eats to excess and drinks all the
time.”
“But he’s so…” I trailed my gaze up and down Raiden’s muscular
form. “In shape.”
“Working out obsessively is part of his sin too,” Galen explained. “He
can never have enough. Food, drink, muscles, sex. He overindulges in it
all.”
“Speaking of sex,” the guy I didn’t know said, grabbing my hand and
kissing the top of it in a total Prince Charming style. His hazel eyes shifted
to light gray. “I’m Bellamy.”
“Your eyes changed color,” I pointed out, shocked.
“He’s Lust.” Galen’s voice was more gravelly than normal. He shoved
Bellamy’s hand away from mine. “His eyes change depending on who
looks at him, becoming the color the viewer finds most attractive.”
“Interesting that yours is gray,” Bellamy said with a smile, looking
from me to Galen. “The same shade as yours. Imagine that.”
Okay. Now I wanted to crawl under a rock and die.
“I’m Castor,” the red-haired one said. Both ears were pierced with
silver studs, and he also had a nose ring and eyebrow piercing. “Greed
personified. Bow down to your new master and don’t forget to give me
offerings of gold. Or anything shiny and expensive, really.”
“Um.” I looked at Galen.
Galen rolled his eyes at Castor. “Ignore him. The only thing he’s a
master of is being a pain in all our asses.”
“Don’t forget you used to like me being a pain in your ass.” Castor
stuck his tongue between his teeth and suggestively wiggled his eyebrows.
“I sure liked you being a pain in mine.”
 As his meaning became clear, a weird ache pierced the center of my
chest, one that had nothing to do with my wound. I was jealous. Which was
stupid as hell. I didn’t even know Galen. How could I be jealous?
“That was centuries ago,” Galen said. “Biggest mistake of my life.”
The silver lining in this slightly uncomfortable conversation? I now
knew for certain Galen liked men. Not that someone like me would ever
have a chance with him. He was too far out of my league.
I couldn’t even get Brandon, a dickwad with incredibly low standards,
to stop eye-fucking our waiter long enough to say two words to me. My
chance of being with someone as hot as Galen was like negative thousand
percent.
Also, my life had just been turned upside down. The last thing I needed
was to lust after the six-foot-eight Nephilim who’d basically kidnapped me.
A loud snort snapped me out of my head. Gray flung upward, shocked
awake by the sound of his own snore.
Galen lightly chuckled. “Gray is Sloth. He has small bursts of energy,
followed by drowsy spells and utter laziness.”
“Why does he look so much younger than the rest of you?” I asked.
“And he’s so short.” I’d say he was five foot eight, maybe five nine tops.
“Just how he is.” Raiden piled scrambled eggs and bacon onto his plate
and sat at the table. “We like to joke and say he was too lazy to keep
growing, so he stopped.”
I laughed at that.
Gray cracked a smile too before sliding off the barstool and stealing a
sliver of bacon off the plate on the counter.
“What about the other two?” I asked, noticing only five of them were
in the kitchen. I ticked off the list of sins, counting them on my fingers.
“Pride and Envy.”
 “Daman, holder of Envy, keeps to himself,” Galen explained, resting
his hand at the small of my back and leading me toward the table. I kind of
liked him touching me. “Alastair should be down soon.”
“They’re not as fun as us,” Castor said. “Al is like the grandpa of the
group, and Daman is the emo kid who hates everyone.”
“Who are you calling a grandpa?” a silky voice asked before a man
with pale blond hair walked into the kitchen. He was stunning. Though not
as muscled as Galen or Raiden, he exuded authority and a cool confidence
not easily matched. His icy blue eyes landed on me. “Simon. Good to see
you upright. I knew you’d get back on your feet quickly.”
“That’s Alastair,” Galen told me. “Pride.”
“Nice to meet you,” I said. Knowing he wasn’t happy about me being
there made me feel awkward. Like a trespasser. But it wasn’t like I forced
myself on them. None of it was my fault.
“I’m sure it is,” Alastair responded before grabbing a kettle from the
bottom cabinet and filling it with water.
Arrogant son of a bitch.
Then again, he was Pride.
“No offense,” I said, glancing between all six of them. “But I don’t
know if I actually believe any of this. I can’t explain what attacked me in
my shop or how quickly I healed from said attack. But demons? The seven
deadly sins? It’s crazy talk.”
“Your belief doesn’t matter,” Alastair said. “The truth is there
regardless if you believe it or not. So. You can be a whiny little mortal and
waste all of our time as you try to wrap your head around all of this, or you
can just accept it.”
“Damn, Al.” Castor shook his head. “That’s a little harsh. The guy got
attacked by shades and woke up surrounded by all of us. Give him some
time to process things.”
“We haven’t the time,” Alastair snapped. “We need him to open the
box so we can figure out what the hell we’re dealing with.”
Open the box?
“Yeah, but—”
“That’s enough,” Galen said, his gruff tone cutting through the noise.
He looked at me. “Eat. Rebuild your strength. We’ll talk more later.”
The kettle whistled on the stove, and I jumped at the sound. Alastair
removed it from the burner and dropped tea bags inside a teapot before
pouring the hot water inside it. He was clearly the head of the household—
their leader—but he didn’t argue with Galen. I wouldn’t have either.
Alastair placed the teapot, a mug, and cream on a tray before leaving
the kitchen.
“See?” Castor told me. “He’s like a grandpa with his little tea set. Just
as grouchy as one too. Don’t let him get to you.”
I tried to smile but found it too hard. I felt like I was seconds away
from having a severe mental breakdown.
The meal was awkward and quiet at first, but then Raiden and Castor
started talking about a new action movie they’d just watched and how
“unrealistic” the fight scenes were. I relaxed a bit and ate my eggs and
bacon as I listened to them. Afterward, I rinsed off my plate and set it in the
sink.
When I turned around, Galen was right in front of me.
“Jesus,” I said, my ass bumping the counter as I jumped back.
“Walk with me.”
He didn’t give me a chance to respond before he turned toward the
archway. Thinking it unwise to argue, I followed him out of the kitchen. He
slowed his pace so I could catch up, and then we walked side by side down
the hall.
The bite in my leg hurt a little, so I limped when I walked. Nothing too
bad though. He slowed the pace even more, as if noticing my discomfort.
“You can rest more if you want,” Galen said as we walked past rows of
windows, his body passing through sunbeams. It’s one thing I noticed about
the mansion. Windows were everywhere, making the place feel open and
bright. Welcoming.
“I’m okay. I’ll go crazy if I stay in bed.” I considered my situation.
“Well, crazier. Because this is probably all in my head. Who knows. Maybe
I’m actually lying in a hospital right now in a coma, and this is a dream or
something.”
“It’s not a dream.”
“How can I know for sure?”
Galen backed me up against the wall. He placed one hand beside my
head and gripped my waist with the other. “Does this feel like a dream?”
I… forgot how to talk. I forgot everything as I stared into his stormy
gray eyes and felt the heat coming off his body. It was a lot like the night he
broke into my shop and pushed me against the wall. When he was close to
me, my brain stopped working.
“Simon?”
“Um.” I swallowed the thickness in my throat. “What was the
question?”
Galen leaned in closer, his breath tickling my lips. My heart hammered
against my ribs, and heat scorched the center of my chest. Was he seriously
about to kiss me? Bite me, maybe?
He’s an angel, not a vampire, I reminded myself.
“What are you thinking?” he asked, his body pressed to mine.
 “I don’t know. I think I’m about to pass out, actually.”
With a light laugh, Galen pulled away from me. “Come on. I’ll show
you the house.”
I stared after him before pushing off the wall and following, trying to
gather my thoughts. “Why bother showing me around? I don’t plan on
staying here long.”
“You don’t have a say in the matter.”
I stopped beside an open doorway and frowned. “Excuse me?”
“Protective custody, remember?” Galen crossed his arms, emphasizing
his strong arms. “Until I know you’re safe, you won’t be returning to your
loft.”
“Then give me my phone.” I held out my hand. “You said you texted
Kyo from it. Hand it over.”
“No.” His frown deepened.
“Why the hell not?”
“Because I don’t know if I can trust you yet,” Galen said. “What’s
stopping you from telling someone you’re being held against your will?”
“You mean, tell them the truth? Because that’s exactly what you’re
doing.”
“As I said before…” He strode forward, causing me to tilt my head to
hold his gaze. I refused to be intimidated by him. I didn’t care if he was a
damn giant. “Shades have your scent. The moment you go home, they’ll
find you. They’ll tear off your head and drink your blood while bathing in
it.”
I curled my nose. “That was… graphic.”
“You’re safe here, Simon. So stop arguing, and fucking follow me.”
“Why do you care so much? You don’t even know me.”
 A tic started in his jaw. “I don’t care about you. It’s nothing personal.
It’s my job. Normally I wouldn’t bother dealing with you pesky humans,
but this is a rare case. You can be of use to us, so we need to keep you safe
for the time being.”
Now that I believed.
I recalled the way Brandon had easily dismissed me at the restaurant. I
remembered all the men before him who’d screwed me over, made me feel
insignificant. I was stupid for thinking, even for a moment, that I was
special in some way.
“Okay,” I said, dropping my gaze to my bare feet. The hardwood floor
was cold beneath them. I would’ve killed for my comfy slippers.
“You’re sad.”
“Huh?” I glanced up to find Galen closer than before. “No, I’m not.”
“Liar.”
“Are you going to show me the rest of the house?” I asked, waving a
hand around. “Or are we gonna stand here all day?”
He cut his eyes at me. “Now you’re angry.”
“You’re so perceptive,” I dryly said.
“I don’t appreciate the attitude, human.”
“And I don’t appreciate yours, Nephilim. You can’t just expect me to
be okay with all of this.”
“You don’t have a choice in the matter.”
I glared. “You could be nicer to me.”
“It’s not my job to baby you.”
Galen’s nostrils flared as we stared each other down.
“Hey!” Gray poked his head through the open doorway to my right.
“What are you guys doing?”
 “Show Simon around the place,” Galen said, turning away from me. “I
have other matters to attend to.”
He left without another word, his heavy boots clicking on the floor as
he went down the hall.
“Don’t mind him,” Gray said, looping his arm with mine. He seemed
overly affectionate and clingy. Kind of like… well, a real sloth. “He’s like
that with everyone. Since you’ve been around, he’s actually been nicer. If
you can believe it.” He led me into the room he’d just come out of. “This is
one of my favorite places in the mansion. It has the comfiest couch ever.”
One side of the room had a TV and shelves of gaming consoles. Even
retro systems. I was impressed. Not as impressed as I was when I saw the
arcade. A glass wall separated the two rooms, with a door to pass between
them. I glided a hand across the pinball machine in awe. I felt like a little
kid again.
“You can play if you want.” Gray jumped on the couch and grinned as
he curled up on the cushion. “I’m just gonna lie here for a bit.”
He napped while I played Pac-Man. After a while, I left the arcade and
passed through the door where the couches and TV were. Raiden came in
and chuckled at Gray.
“Sorry about him.”
“It’s fine,” I said. “If you guys really are the deadly sins, he can’t help
it.”
“I’m glad your mind hasn’t snapped yet.” Raiden plopped down beside
Gray and turned on the TV. A bag of chips was under his arm, which he
wasted no time tearing into.
“Uh. Yeah. Me too.”
I stood and walked over to the window. The sun was sinking low in the
sky, taking the light with it. Was I really stuck there at the mansion? For
how long? I might not have had an overly exciting life, but it was mine.
And I wanted to go back to it.
“Hey.” Raiden came to stand beside me. “Keep your chin up, little
human. Things could be worse.”
“I keep hearing that,” I said, focusing on a lone cloud. “But it doesn’t
mean things aren’t shitty right now.”
After Gray napped, we left the entertainment room, and he showed me
the indoor pool. Windows surrounded it, letting in the sun. A rock waterfall
was at one end, creating a soothing sound.
“Nice, right?” Gray stuck his foot in the pool. “Always at a good
temperature too. Oh, and if you want more privacy, you can do this.” He
bounced over to the wall and turned a knob. Shutters closed over the
windows. “The roof opens up too. At night, you can look up at the stars if
you want. I don’t swim too much though. It makes me sleepy.”
I got the feeling everything made him sleepy.
I swept a gaze throughout the room, noticing beach chairs along one
wall and a door beside them. A door that led outside. My heart picked up
speed, and I stepped to the left, pretending to look at a marble statue in the
corner—probably Castor’s doing since it looked expensive. I eyed the door
and took another step toward it.
Where I’d run? I had no idea. I didn’t even know where I was, other
than a fancy-ass mansion. If I could find a road, I could run until I found
someone to help. Part of me thought I was being ridiculous. Regardless if I
believed Galen’s story about them being demon-fighting half angels, I knew
the attack had been real. Something had nearly torn me apart in my shop.
But I couldn’t shake the unease of being trapped in a mansion with strange
men.
I inched closer to the door.
 “Do you not like me?”
I looked at Gray. He stood beside me, his brown eyes big and sad.
“Huh?”
“You’re trying to leave,” he said, glancing at the door. “Am I making
you uncomfortable? Being annoying? I can try not talking so much.”
And just like that, the urge to leave fled.
“I just wanted some fresh air,” I lied. “I enjoy your company, Gray.”
He beamed at me. “Oh, okay. If you want to step outside, we can.”
And we did. I didn’t try running either. Not that there was anywhere to
run. The sea was in front of the mansion, and a mountain rose behind it. I
saw a narrow road, but we were literally in the middle of nowhere.
Gray took me to the gym once we went back inside. It was equipped
with everything you could ever need—treadmills, ellipticals, weights of all
sizes, punching bags, a bike machine, and even a small basketball court off
to the side.
“Working out makes me sleepy too. But Galen and Raiden love this
room.”
Made sense. They were the most muscled out of the group. I
remembered the fullness of Galen’s biceps as he crossed his arms over his
wide chest. What I wouldn’t give to be the shirt on his back. He might’ve
been a jerk, but he was a hot one.
“For the last stop on the tour, your bedroom,” Gray said, entering a
room and throwing himself on the bed. “I hope you like it.”
“Oh.” A very small part of me was disappointed I wouldn’t be staying
in Galen’s room again. Which was dumb. Galen had made it all too clear
what he thought of me. I was nothing more than a job to him.
“Don’t worry,” Gray said, misreading my mood. “The sheets are clean.
Alastair had Bellamy set everything up for you while I was showing you the
house.” At my confused look, he added, “We can communicate through our
thoughts. He told me about it after I woke up from my nap.”
Telepathic abilities. Just another strange thing to add to the ever-
growing list of crazy shit I’d experienced lately.
The room had a queen-sized bed, a closet, a flat-screen TV mounted on
the wall, and a connecting bathroom. A large window looked out over the
sea, and I leaned against the frame, admiring the view. Closing my eyes, I
heard the waves crash against the bottom of the rocky cliff.
I also heard something else. Small intakes of air. I looked over my
shoulder, seeing Gray asleep on my bed.
I smiled and turned back to the window.
If this was a dream, it was the most vivid one I’d ever had.
 Chapter Seven
Galen

Ravenwood Mansion sat on a hill beside the sea, the stone turrets rising
high into the night sky.
Alastair and I landed on the roof, our wings ruffling in the wind before
folding back into our bodies. We thought it best to visit the place the box
had come from to see if we could find answers as to its purpose.
“Do you feel that?” Alastair asked, placing his hand on the rooftop.
“Powerful warding protects the home. We can’t get inside.”
“You think the woman was a witch?” I asked, dropping down from the
roof to a balcony that overlooked the water. I approached the glass door and
was repelled. My body wouldn’t allow me any closer, as if a force field
were blocking me.
“A powerful one.” Alastair came to stand beside me. “Witches have
allied with demons in the past, so I fail to understand why this one warded
them off. Us too, for that matter. She wanted to keep all of us away. We
need to know what’s inside that box.”
“I’ll ask Simon to open it for us in the morning,” I said.
When I had finally gone to see him again earlier, he’d been asleep.
Gray had been sprawled on the bed beside him, on top of the covers. I had
picked Gray up and carried him to his own bed, deciding to let Simon rest.
He was still healing and needed to take it easy. Plus, I hadn’t been ready to
speak to him yet.
 Our argument had irritated me, and the last thing I wanted to do was
snap at him when he was confused and scared.
“Perhaps we can bring Simon here too.” Alastair glared at the balcony
door we couldn’t touch. “Not everything in the house was sold. I’m sure
there’s something inside that will give us answers.”
“You want him to break in? No. He’s going through too much already.
We can’t ask him to add burglary on top of that.”
“Why not? What’s the point of keeping him around if he can’t help
us?” Alastair cursed under his breath and turned toward the sea. Moonlight
caught the pale blond strands of his hair. “You need to cast aside whatever
weakness you have for this human.”
“I have no weakness for him.”
“Do not lie to me, Wrath.” Icy blue eyes regarded me. “I see the way
you are with him. Fucking humans is one thing. Falling for them is
another.”
“Says the one who is currently in love with one.”
“And look where it’s gotten me,” he said, his voice rougher than before
as emotion seeped through. “Joseph is dying, and there’s not a damn thing I
can do to stop it.” He averted his gaze to the railing beneath his hands. His
knuckles turned white as he gripped it tighter. “I forgot how painful it is,
watching part of your heart wither away.”
Alastair had witnessed too many lovers die.
Long ago, I vowed to never fall in love again. The few years with them
by my side wasn’t worth the soul-shattering pain of losing them. Better to
avoid attachment altogether.
I moved my gaze to the sea, staring at the lighthouse in the distance.
The light beamed bright before fading, shining elsewhere. Alastair was
mistaken. Other than a physical attraction, I felt nothing for Simon. How
could I? I had barely spoken to him. Not to mention he was stubborn as hell
and asked too many questions.
Did I want to protect him? Yes. But only because I felt responsible for
him nearly dying.
Fucking him wasn’t entirely out of the question though. Simon had an
amazing body. Soft and warm. I wanted to bury myself in him, lick him all
over, inhale his intoxicating scent and listen to his moans as I filled his ass.
“Don’t make me puke,” Alastair said.
“Get out of my head, then.”
“You damn well know we can’t control it sometimes,” he countered.
“Especially with you standing so close.”
It happened a lot with the two of us. I shared a close bond with all my
brothers; however, the bond between Alastair and me went even deeper. We
butted heads a lot, but I would lay down my life for his without a second
thought.
“Lovely night, isn’t it?” someone said from behind us.
I flung around to see an auburn-haired demon flashing a wicked smile.
“Phoenix,” I growled, reaching for my dagger.
“None of that now,” he said, wagging a finger at me. “I only came to
chat, so do try to be civil.”
With his porcelain skin, dark brown eyes, and stylish way of dress, he
could almost pass for being human. His stench gave him away though.
“We have nothing to talk about,” I stepped forward.
“Easy, brother.” Alastair placed a hand on my chest, keeping his eyes
on Phoenix. “What do you want, demon?”
“You have something of mine,” Phoenix said. The infuriating curve of
his lips made me want to drive my dagger into his throat even more than I
already did. “A box that came from this mansion. Hand it over and I’ll call
off my beasties. You wouldn’t want another precious human to be harmed,
would you?”
He’s referring to Simon. That meant it wasn’t a random attack. He
ordered the shades to kill him.
I saw red. “Fuck you, you goddamn—”
“How about you call them off anyway?” Alastair said, talking over me.
“And we might let you live.”
Out of the two of us, he was better at keeping a level head.
“How arrogant you are. Thinking you can defeat me.” Phoenix bared
his teeth. At least his stupid smirk was gone. “I’m doing you a favor, you
Nephilim swine. You have no idea what power you’re dealing with here.”
He took a step closer. “You think you’re safe in your little haven behind the
veil? Cute.”
“Is that a threat?” I asked, shoving past Alastair and approaching the
demon.
Phoenix glanced around me to Alastair. “Call off your angry mutt
before I put a muzzle on him.”
I lurched toward him, and he vanished. My dagger sliced nothing but
air. He reappeared on the railing at the opposite end of the balcony, leaning
against a column.
Goddamn demons. I hated their ability to do that shit.
“Alastair,” Phoenix said, leg propped behind him. “Think on my offer.
The item in that box is of no use to you. Allow me to take it off your hands,
and you have my word that I’ll back off. The humans will be spared, blah,
blah. But if you refuse me…” That wicked grin from earlier returned, and
red flashed in his eyes. “I’ll order my beautiful little pets to attack this
entire godforsaken town, killing every human they come across. The streets
will run red with their blood, and it’ll be all your fault.”
 “How about you go fuck yourself?” I said, tightening the grip on my
dagger and wondering if I could throw it quickly enough to lodge it in his
chest before he vanished.
“You should really do something about that filthy mouth of yours,”
Phoenix told me. “By the way, say hello to sweet Simon for me. When I
paid him a visit, he refused to tell me who took the box. But I smelled your
filth all over him. I smelled something else too. It piqued my interest more
than anything else.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Oh, nothing for you to concern yourself with.” Phoenix smirked
again. “Why was he protecting you, I wonder? I fully intended to torture
him until he spilled his guts… quite literally… but I showed him mercy and
sent my pets to teach him a lesson instead. They were only supposed to hurt
him a little and drag him to me, but you know how beasts are. They got
carried away.”
Rage bubbled in my veins.
“Come near him again, and I’ll rip out your throat.”
“Don’t tease me with a good time,” Phoenix responded. “Or I might be
forced to actually like you. Such a pity that would be.” He cocked his head
at Alastair. “I’ll give you one day to think things over. And then I’m
bringing the fires of hell to your doorstep.”
He blinked out of sight.
Alastair faced the sea again, his expression deadly. “The box is even
more important to them than we thought.”
“What makes you say that?”
“Since when does Phoenix offer us a deal?” Alastair stepped up to the
railing and unfurled his wings. “He reeked of desperation.”
 “And his threat to unleash shades upon the humans here?” I asked,
expanding my wings as well.
“A bluff,” Alastair answered. “Belphegor calls all the shots. Not
Phoenix. But if it’s a war he wants, that’s exactly what he’ll get.”
Alastair leapt from the balcony before shooting up into the night sky. I
flew behind him.
When we returned to the mansion, I quietly opened the door to Simon’s
room and placed two bags on the floor. I had stopped by his loft after
leaving Ravenwood and grabbed some of his clothes and personal items.
“Galen?” he asked in a croaky, sleep-heavy voice.
“I didn’t mean to wake you. Go back to sleep.”
Simon cuddled back into his pillow, and soft snores left him moments
later. I walked over to the bed and gently tucked the blanket in around him.
The thought of Phoenix being so close to him filled me with a deep rage.
The demon could’ve easily killed him.
Something else then crossed my mind. Simon had protected me. Why?
Not that it really mattered. Phoenix hadn’t been fooled. But Simon hadn’t
known that. Prior to being attacked in his loft, he thought demons and
angels weren’t real. He had thought I was just a common thief.
“You’re such a mystery, Simon Parks,” I whispered, resting my hand
on top of the blanket. The warmth of his body seeped through it, and I
fought the urge to crawl into bed with him and burrow into that delicious
heat.
Maybe I should’ve visited the club before coming home to release
some of this sexual tension on a random man I’d never see again. Because
watching Simon sleep right now? Being so close to his intoxicating scent of
rain and earth?
I felt myself creeping into dangerous territory.
 I left his room and went to mine, taking off my clothes before falling
into bed. Gray and Bellamy were patrolling tonight, so I could rest for once.
A familiar smell drifted to my nose.
For fuck’s sake.
Simon’s scent lingered on my pillow, and I turned my face into it. My
arousal heightened, and I growled as I shoved my hand down my body and
gripped my thick base, giving myself a slow pull. I breathed in his earthy
scent as I stroked my hard cock and pictured his sweet lips and hazel eyes,
imagined him clawing my back as I fucked him into the mattress.
I clenched my teeth together when I came to keep from groaning out
loud. Not as if my brothers didn’t know what I was doing, especially if they
were nearby. Just one of the annoying things about our bond.
Once my cock was sated, I got out of bed and walked into the
connecting bathroom to wash off.
“Why use your hand when there’s a perfectly good human in the other
room?” Castor’s voice filled my head.
“Because I don’t want him.”
“Bullshit.”
“Fuck off.”
I turned on the shower and stepped inside, letting the water wash away
the signs of my release. If only it could wash away the reason for me
jerking off in the first place. My attraction to Simon pissed me off. I didn’t
want to want him.
“If you don’t want him, does that mean I can have him?” Castor asked.
I snarled. “Not unless you want to die.”
“Just fuck him already, Galen. You’ll feel better. I promise. It’s just
sex.”
“Worry about your own sex life and stay the hell out of mine.”
 I shut off the water and grabbed a towel, running it over my body
harder than necessary. The bubbling anger in my veins refused to die down.
That anger was part of me. I couldn’t escape it.
Earlier on in my life, it had been a lot harder to control. I would meet
someone, see into their soul and know how horrible of a person they were,
and the wrath inside me would lash out at them. Wrath was like a beast
inside me, always hungry. Always lurking, searching for a way out.
Lazarus nearly killed me because of it once, thinking I was a lost cause.
Sometimes I felt like he was right.

***

Simon sat in Alastair’s study, hands wringing in his lap. Anxiety

radiated off him, but so did curiosity.
When I used my power to see his soul, I saw nothing but kindness.
Perhaps a little snark too, of course, but nothing bad. The only person he’d
ever harmed was himself—emotionally, anyway. I couldn’t read his mind
with my power. I could only judge his character. But he clearly didn’t see
himself the way I did.
Not that I saw him in any special way. Not at all.
I’m so fucked.
Alastair had tried contacting Lazarus again about the run-in with
Phoenix but received no response. First things first, we needed to know
what we were dealing with.
The box was the answer. Everything that had happened lately revolved
around it.
Alastair opened the safe in the wall and grabbed the box tucked inside.
“So I just need to open it?” Simon asked. “That’s all?”
 “Yes,” I answered, standing beside his chair.
“Why can’t you?”
“The warding against angels prevents us from doing so,” Alastair said,
walking over. “We’re only half angel, but the warding is strong.”
“Why would someone block angels from opening it?” Simon asked
with a shake in his voice. “It’s just a ring.”
“That’s what I’ll find out.” Alastair placed the box on his desk. “Come
here.”
Simon’s wide, nervous eyes flashed to me.
The fact that he looked to me for reassurance caused warmth to trickle
through my chest. I wasn’t used to being a safe place for anyone. I was used
to people fearing me and being intimidated in my presence. But Simon,
even though we argued the last we spoke, trusted me for whatever reason.
I nodded to him. “It’s okay.”
He stood and walked over to the desk. Noise from the hall drew my
attention, and I looked over to see Castor and Raiden standing in the
doorway. Gray was beside them, his brown eyes peeking around Castor’s
arm.
Alastair brought a hand up to rest near his mouth, his expression
pensive. “Open it.”
With a trembling hand, Simon undid the latch and opened the lid. Right
away, I felt the power contained inside. Alastair felt it too. He seemed to
lose his balance a little before resting his hands on the desk. His pale eyes
shifted to me. What I saw left me cold. He rarely showed such worry. His
arrogance and prideful nature kept him cool in tense situations. But now?
Fear.
A whimper sounded behind me. Gray had jumped behind Castor and
pressed his face into the larger male’s back.
 “What in the shit is that?” Raiden asked, muscles tensing. “It feels
so…”
“Dark,” Castor said.
“Powerful,” Alastair added. “Too powerful.”
“I don’t feel anything,” Simon said, glancing at all of us. “Should I take
it out of the box?”
“I will now that it’s open,” Alastair said, moving aside the red cloth
and pulling out a ring. As it touched his skin, he lost a bit of his strength
and had to rest his hip against the side of the desk.
It had a gold band and a large green stone in the center surrounded by
what looked like rubies.
“Is that writing?” I asked, noticing an engraving along the band. Chills
spread along my arms as I stepped closer, but I ignored the feeling.
Alastair’s brow furrowed as he concentrated. “The language is
demonic. It’s a type of binding spell.”
“Binding for what?” I asked.
“I don’t know.” And Alastair hated not knowing. It was a shot to his
ego. He turned the ring between his fingers, studying the engraving.
A flap of wings sounded as Lazarus landed in the garden outside the
window.
Simon screamed and flung backward into the wall. “He… he just
appeared. Out of nowhere.” He blinked a few times before focusing on me.
“Did that really just happen?”
Lazarus opened the glass door of the patio that led into the study and
walked inside. Simon continued staring at him, his complexion paling.
“I have to be seeing things,” Simon said. “He has wings. Real wings.
This can’t be real.”
 “Enough of your noise, human,” Lazarus said to Simon before turning
his back to him. He strode toward Alastair, his white wings tucking to his
sides. “What have you found?”
“This.” He handed over the ring before motioning to the box. “It has
demon and angel warding. The home it came from is warded as well.”
Lazarus grabbed the ring and examined it. His hair matched the shade
of his pure white wings, and his blue eyes had flecks of gold. He looked no
older than thirty, even though he’d been around since the dawn of time.
“Where did you find this?” Lazarus asked, unable to hide the unease in
his voice.
“The human,” Alastair answered.
Simon’s eyes widened when Lazarus faced him. I stepped closer to his
side, and he pressed against me.
“You.” Lazarus walked toward him, holding the ring up. “Speak.
Where did you find this?”
“In a box,” Simon answered. “I mean, it came from a crate with a
bunch of other stuff. I bought it at an auction from the Ravenwood
Mansion.”
“Do you know what it is?” I asked the angel.
“A binding ring,” Lazarus answered. “The power inside is strong. And
impossible.”
“What do you mean by impossible?” Alastair asked. “What is it?”
“I need to speak with Uriel.” Lazarus left the study and walked back
into the garden before spreading his wings.
Simon gasped again as the angel flew out of sight. “I… that…” He
blinked and slumped forward a little. “I…”
And then he collapsed.
 I caught him before he hit the floor and cradled his head, fear gripping
my chest. What was wrong with him? My worry turned to amusement when
I realized he’d only fainted. I had wondered when things would become too
much for him to absorb. Apparently seeing a man with wings was the straw
that broke the camel’s back.
“Lazarus took the ring,” Alastair said, moving his gaze to the window.
“I’m glad,” Gray said, still clinging on to Castor. “I don’t like how it
made me feel.”
Alastair looked calm. Indifferent, even. But his hands balled into fists
at his sides. He’d been calling Lazarus for days, and when the angel finally
answered, he took the ring and left without any sort of explanation.
“Phoenix is expecting an answer today,” I said, rising to my feet with
Simon nestled in my arms.
“We can’t give him the ring if we don’t have it,” Alastair responded.
He tore his gaze from the window. “All of us need to patrol tonight. If he
does set any more shades loose, we need to be ready for them. Now all of
you… leave my study.”
I exited the room, and the others followed me. The door closed behind
us. Castor and Gray walked outside, while Raiden veered toward the
kitchen. None of them spoke. We were all processing what just happened.
Who did the ring belong to? Why had Lazarus, a being who rarely
showed any kind of emotion, appeared so freaked-out by it? The confusion
quickly shifted to anger, as it so often did. Lazarus kept us in the dark on
many things, but this felt too important for him not to tell us. Especially
since we were right in the center of it all.
On the walk to Simon’s room, he stirred and opened his eyes. “Galen?”
“I’ve got you,” I said. “You’re safe. You just fainted.”
“That man… he had wings.”
 I couldn’t help but chuckle. “Yes. He did. He’s an angel.”
Even if he behaved like an asshole.
“It’s all real,” Simon said in shock. “I can’t believe it. His wings just
appeared. And so did he. He flew high into the air.” He pushed his face
against my chest. “I think I’m losing my mind. That’s the only
explanation.”
“You’re not losing your mind.” I refrained from pressing my face into
his hair. Why did he have to smell so good?
“How do I know for sure? You could be a figment of my imagination
too.” Simon lightly snorted. “I always said I liked tall men. Leave it to me
to fantasize about a sexy one like you who’s taller than a house.”
“I wouldn’t go that far. Maybe a small shed. But not a house.” His
words wrapped around my heart. And knowing he shared a mutual
attraction to me definitely got the attention of another part of me as well.
After entering his room, I placed him on the bed and forced myself to
let him go.
“I don’t want to sleep,” he whined. “I just woke up like two hours ago.”
“You’re in shock,” I said, sitting beside him. “You need to rest your
mind. I’ll bring you some water.”
“I’m not thirsty.” He tried sitting up, and I gently pushed him back
down.
I touched his temple, sending a rush of calm into his body and putting
him to sleep. Another power we had. The irony didn’t go unnoticed by me
either, how someone like me could ever bring anyone a sense of calm. If
only I could turn it on myself.
Simon slumped on the pillow, and I removed his glasses. I hated having
to put him to sleep, but he really did need to rest. His body—and mind—
had been through a lot over the past several days.
 And humans were fragile.
I left the room and closed the door, releasing a sharp breath. In Simon’s
presence, my anger had been tamed. Still present, but controlled. But with
each step I took away from him, it grew stronger inside me.
I needed to kill something.
A few dozen shades would do just fine.
 Chapter Eight
Simon

The sea at sunset was breathtaking.

Shadows slowly crept in over the mountain, a sharp contrast to the
golden light touching the top of the peak and shining on areas of the deep
blue water. I stood on the shore and breathed in the crisp spring air, closing
my eyes as a breeze ruffled my hair, carrying with it a scent of the sea.
“Not planning to run away, are you?” a deep voice asked from behind
me.
I turned to see Galen. As usual, he was decked out in all black: shirt,
pants, and boots. Even the dagger on his hip had a black hilt.
“Still debating,” I answered, cuddling more into my cardigan as
another cool breeze swept around me. “After seeing that angel, I’m
convinced you told me the truth about everything. But it’s still hard to wrap
my head around. Things like this just don’t exist in my world.”
“They exist. They’ve always existed. Humans rarely see the magic
around them though.” Galen came to stand beside me, his gray-eyed gaze
fixed on the water. “I like to come here to think. There’s something calming
about the sea.”
“My dad used to tell me that when I needed to speak, the sea would
listen.” I watched as more shadows washed away the sunlight. “We used to
go out on his boat every weekend when the weather was nice and fish. He
never had the heart to keep anything we caught though. He’d toss it back
into the water, and then we’d sit and watch the sunset.”
My chest ached at the memory. It was one of those things I didn’t fully
appreciate at the time. But looking back now, I’d give anything to sit on his
boat with him again.
“My mom was a marine biologist and loved the ocean,” I continued.
“She died when I was twelve. Car accident. Dad was the kind of man who
had trouble expressing his emotions. After she died, he went to the harbor
and looked out over the sea. Sometimes for hours. He’d talk to her. So now
when I’m struggling or need to sort things out, I come to the sea too.” I
weakly smiled at Galen. “Sorry. That was a lot.”
“Water is made up of countless memories,” Galen said. “It travels from
place to place, absorbing knowledge and emotions. Your father was right
when he said the sea listens. And then it keeps your secrets safe.” A pause.
“When did he die?”
“Four years ago. He had a heart attack.” My stomach tightened. “He
was so young too and in good health. It just… it took me by surprise. He
died, and then I was in charge of the shop. I’ve worked there since I was
young, so I knew the ins and outs. But it was a lot to deal with all at once.”
Realizing I’d been talking his ear off and getting way too freaking personal,
I released a short laugh. “Um. Sorry. I don’t know why I’m telling you all
of this.”
“Stop apologizing,” he said, looking down at me. “You’re twenty-nine,
correct?”
“Y-Yeah.”
“So young.” Galen turned away from the water and faced the mansion.
“We’ve lived here for sixty years. Before this, it was Paris. Scotland before
that. Also, Japan. There’s not a place on this earth we haven’t visited.”
 Was this his way of opening up to me? I didn’t know Galen well, but I
got the impression he wasn’t much of a talker. Pretty much the complete
opposite of Gray, who only stopped talking when he was asleep.
“That’s hard for me to think about,” I said. “Living so long. Watching
the world around you change while you stay the same. It seems so lonely.”
Galen cocked his head at me, a crease forming between his eyes. “Such
a strange human.”
My face heated. “How am I strange?”
“Most humans would be seduced by the idea of eternal life. But not
you. You see it for the burden it truly is.”
“Probably because I’m a pessimist.” My cheeks got even hotter. His
unwavering gaze amped up my self-consciousness. “Seeing the negative in
everything is kinda ingrained in me.”
Galen’s hard expression faltered a bit, and I could’ve sworn there was a
slight curve to his lips. “We have that in common, then.”
“Can I ask a question?”
The corner of his mouth twitched. “Go on.”
“Are there others like you? Nephilim.”
“Yes.”
“Are they cursed too?”
“That’s two questions,” Galen said.
I cracked a smile. “Sue me. Now answer it.”
“I don’t take kindly to being bossed around.” His light gray eyes held
my gaze for so long that I had to look away. He definitely won that staring
contest. “But if you must know… no, they aren’t cursed. Over two hundred
angels followed Lucifer when he fell, but only the first seven had the curse
placed upon their bloodline.”
“Why only seven?”
 “Because they were Lucifer’s generals,” Galen answered. “And the
very first ones to follow him to Earth.”
“Did you know your father?”
“Not well,” Galen answered, surprising me. I thought he’d get irritated
by another question. “I heard stories of him though. He killed an angel
before the Fall. The angel tried to stop him, and my father drove a blade
through his heart. He slaughtered many humans after that, letting his rage
consume him. I was conceived through violence. He took my mother by
force. She could barely even look at me when I was a boy. The day Lazarus
took me away, she cried. But not because of sorrow. She was relieved to see
me go.”
My heart broke for him, and I stepped closer to his side, wanting to
comfort him but not sure if he’d allow me to do so.
“I believe that’s why I’m the holder of Wrath,” he continued. “How
could I not be? Anger, violence… it runs through my veins because of his
actions.”
“No matter what kind of person your father was, you aren’t him,
Galen.”
He looked to the sea. “I’m more like him than you know.” He took a
breath before nodding toward the house. “Come on. It’s getting chilly.”
I wanted to tell him to stop treating me like a delicate little flower, but
then again, it was kind of chilly. Damn him.
I followed him into the mansion, noting our vast height difference as
we walked. My blood raced quicker through my veins as I stared at his
broad shoulders and imagined gripping them as he pounded into me.
Would he be gentle when he fucked me? Or would he bang me so hard
the bed broke?
 “Someone’s feeling excited,” a honey-rich voice said before Bellamy
walked around the corner. His gray eyes flickered to me, gleaming with a
smile.
“Huh?” I asked.
Galen stopped and turned to him, eyes narrowed.
“Oh. Nothing.” Bellamy smirked at me before continuing down the
hall.
I knew they could speak to each other telepathically and had healing
powers. But did they have other powers as well? Since he was the holder of
Lust, could Bellamy sense when someone was aroused? Or was I just
paranoid and overthinking everything?
Those light gray eyes I couldn’t get out of my head then moved to me.
“If he ever touches you, I don’t care if it’s just a finger, you let me know.”
“I can take care of myself,” I said. Then, I didn’t know what possessed
me to do it, but I added, “And maybe I want him to touch me. It’s been a
while since a man that hot gave me the time of day. He could show me a
good night.”
Galen growled and pushed me against the wall in the hallway. Heat
rolled off his body, matching the fire in my veins. “If you want to be
fucked, human, I’ll gladly take you to my bed. But he’s not allowed to have
you.”
My throat got suddenly dry, and my breaths quickened. I stared up into
his eyes, then looked at his lips. Warmth gathered low in my belly. “Will
you really?”
“Will I what?” he asked, still with a snarl in his voice.
“Fuck me.”
What was wrong with me? True, it had been months since I’d been
good and fucked. I didn’t need flowers and fancy dinners or even a
relationship in order to roll around in bed with someone. But it was unlike
me to be so forward with a man I barely knew.
“Galen,” Alastair said, appearing at the end of the hall. “We need to
leave.”
Galen didn’t look at him. Didn’t react to his words. He kept his eyes on
me, his body so close but not close enough. “We’ll continue this discussion
later.”
He stepped away from me and walked toward Alastair. Before he
turned the corner though, he glanced back at me. “Behave while I’m gone.”
“I’m not a child.”
Once he was out of sight, I slumped against the wall, trying to calm my
racing heart. Galen might’ve been Wrath, yet he awoke a desire in me that
was pure lust.
The mansion was still sort of a maze for me, but I was beginning to
learn my way around. Feeling a little hungry, I walked toward the kitchen,
noticing the house was quieter than normal.
“Where is everyone?” I asked Raiden as I opened the refrigerator.
“Patrolling,” he answered before shoving an entire donut into his
mouth. “You’ll be stuck with me for the night. Hope that’s okay.”
“Did they make you stay behind to watch over me?” The thought
irritated me. I hated being treated like a kid.
“Get that sour look off your face, little mortal.” Raiden held the bakery
box toward me. “Have a donut. You could use some more meat on your
bones.”
“Oh, I have enough already.” But still, I grabbed a glazed donut
anyway. I sucked at fighting temptation, especially when it came to food.
“Out of the seven deadly sins, I think I’m more of a glutton.”
 Raiden grinned, and I realized he wasn’t nearly as scary as I first
thought. Sure, he looked like a damn mountain and seemed as strong as one
too, but there was something boyish about the way he smiled. Innocent,
even.
“You doin’ okay?” Raiden asked. “You freaked when seeing Lazarus
earlier.”
“I’m fine.” And I was. For the most part. “I’m still struggling to accept
everything, but I’m getting there. Good news is I no longer think you’re all
kidnapping me.”
He chuckled. “That’s good to know. We don’t want you bein’ afraid.
We just want to protect you.”
“So what happened with the ring? Did the angel—er, Lazarus, tell you
anything?”
“Nope.” Raiden grabbed a beer and raised a brow. “Want one?”
“No, thanks.”
He shrugged and twisted the cap off before taking a swig. “Lazarus
doesn’t tell us much. Irritating as fuck, but it’s how it’s always been.”
“What about Ravenwood?” I asked. “Alastair said something about not
being able to get in because of the warding?”
“Yeah. We were tryin’ to find answers. The ring is powerful, but we
don’t know anything about it or where it came from. We thought there
might be some kind of clue in the mansion.”
“Is there anything I can do to help?” Excitement swirled in my chest. “I
do this for a living. I’ve tracked down countless items over the years.
Knowing an object’s backstory and origin can make it more valuable, so it’s
kind of my thing.”
“Galen won’t like you getting more involved than you already are.”
“Well, Galen isn’t the boss of me.”
 “Easy there,” Raiden said, amused. That smile fell a bit. “You don’t
want to piss him off. Believe me.”
“Why? Will he turn into the Hulk?”
“Something like that. When Galen gets pissed, like really pissed, he’s
like four Hulks. Anger takes him over, and he’s damn strong. Stronger than
all of us combined. And calming him back down…” Raiden shook his head.
“Let’s just say, the last time he lost control like that, Lazarus threw him in a
cage and almost killed him.”
My gut coiled. “Why would he kill him?”
“Because Galen’s mind was taken over by rage.” Raiden swept a hand
over his cropped black hair. Reliving the memory visibly upset him. “When
he gets like that, he’s like a beast. The longer he lets the rage consume him,
the harder it is to bring him back. He’s better about controlling it now. But
that wrathful anger is still inside him. Always will be.”
I tried to picture the Galen he described. Tried to imagine him
overtaken by a ruthless anger, his mind little more than a beast.
“I’m more like him than you know.” Was that what Galen meant? That
he was like his father because of his rage?
But then I remembered how gently Galen had held me in his arms the
night I almost died. I remembered the care with which he checked my
bandages. The gentleness in his voice after I passed out earlier and he
carried me to bed.
No. He wasn’t heartless. Or cruel. Wrath might be part of him. But
kindness was too.
“Do you wanna watch a movie?” Raiden asked. “I can make some
popcorn.”
“Sure.”
 Again, I was hit by how human he seemed. There I was in a mansion, a
home to immortal angelic warriors, and I was about to watch a movie with
one of them like we were just two normal guys hanging out. I didn’t know
what I expected, but that certainly wasn’t it.
Raiden popped three bags of popcorn and dumped most of them into
one massive bowl. He poured the rest into a smaller bowl before handing
that one to me. He grabbed two more beers, I poured a glass of iced water,
and then we left the kitchen.
“We’re not going to the entertainment room?” I asked, confused as we
walked right past it.
“Did Gray not tell you we had a movie theater?”
“What? No fucking way.”
“Yes way.” He flashed that boyish smile again and continued down the
hall.
He took me down another corridor and opened a door on the left. I
stared in awed silence as I entered the room. The screen was huge, just like
the ones at real theaters, and the seats were plushy recliners. Enough for all
seven of them.
“Bet you’re glad you didn’t run away now, huh?” Raiden plopped
down in the recliner in the middle of the row.
I grinned and took the one beside him. “Yeah. Kind of.”
We watched a psychological thriller about detectives hunting for a
notorious serial killer, then switched to a rom-com once it ended. His taste
was eclectic. I supposed when you lived for as long as he did, you learned
to appreciate all genres.
Around 1:00 a.m., I was lying in bed, tossing and turning, when I heard
steps outside my room. The door creaked open and light spilled in from the
hall. I closed my eyes and pretended to be asleep as I sensed someone
approach me. They brought the blanket up farther on my chest and tucked it
in around me before lightly caressing my jaw.
“I know you’re faking.”
I broke into a smile and opened my eyes. “What gave me away?”
“Your horrible acting.” Galen turned on the bedside lamp. “You also
snore in your sleep, and you were way too quiet.”
“I don’t snore.”
He arched a brow as he sat beside me, his heavy body causing the
mattress to dip a little. “Did you enjoy your time with Raiden?”
I nodded. “We watched movies.”
“Good.” His tone was soft, yet his expression remained hard.
“Is that blood?” I asked, alarmed. Red was smeared on the side of his
neck, and I sat up to look closer.
Galen wiped at it and shrugged. “It’s nothing. Just a bite. The wound is
already healing.”
“Were there many shades out tonight?” Still crazy to me how he fought
them. The thought of ever being close to one again made me feel sick.
“More so than usual, yes.” Galen exhaled. “Phoenix is pissed that we
didn’t hand over the ring.”
“Who’s Phoenix?”
“You’ve met him,” he said. “Auburn-haired demon. Smells like ass.”
I laughed. “He smelled more like woodsmoke to me.” I recalled the day
the man came into my shop. “I knew there was something off about that
guy. He made me uncomfortable. Reminded me of a comic book villain.
He’s really a demon?”
“An upper-level one at that.” Galen rubbed at the back of his neck, and
I noticed more blood on the inside of his bicep. Another bite mark. But he
was right. The wound had closed and looked like he’d had it for a week
rather than hours. He noticed the blood and lifted his shirt to wipe it off.
The peek of his abs made my blood heat. “You can thank him for sending
those shades after you.”
I shuddered at the memory of their hot, putrid breath on my skin and
their revolting odor of burning flesh. “I’d rather not think about that,
thanks.”
“Speaking of which…” Galen touched the bandage on my chest. “This
should be able to come off now.”
Like the other times when his focus landed so intently on me, I became
awkward. Nervous. I shifted on the mattress and released a shaky breath.
“I’ll, uh, remove it in the morning.”
“Allow me.” He leaned forward and slipped his arms around me.
Heat slammed into the center of my chest at his close proximity. I tried
to tell him it was okay and I’d do it myself, but the words wouldn’t come
out. His eyes didn’t leave mine as he unfastened the wrapping and started to
remove it.
My attention was momentarily diverted from him when the bandage
came off and exposed the pink, scarred skin beneath it. I felt like
Frankenstein’s monster with how big and jagged the scars were.
Galen’s brow pulled together. “Considering the damage done, I’d say a
scar is a small price to pay.”
“Great. Just another thing to be self-conscious about.” As if my body
didn’t give me enough insecurity as it was.
“Why are you self-conscious?” Galen asked.
“Well.” I averted my gaze. Being insecure about my body wasn’t
something I wanted to talk to him about. Too embarrassing. “I don’t know.”
“Tell me.”
 “I’m just…” I waved a hand down my torso. “I’m not exactly a
swimsuit model like you and everyone else here. I go to the gym when I
can, but it doesn’t seem to do much good because I’m an emotional eater
and end up downing a tub of ice cream anytime my feelings get hurt.”
“Who hurt your feelings?” Galen glared. “I’ll kill them.”
“No need for that,” I said, my voice going up in pitch. By the
murderous gleam in his eyes, I believed he’d do it. “I’ve just been on a few
bad dates lately. Normal dating stuff. The last guy was more interested in
our waiter than he was in me. The one before him made a stupid comment
about how he usually only dates guys who are fit. I know I’m not the best-
looking guy in the world, but I—”
A low growl formed in Galen’s throat as he hovered over me. He
braced his arms on each side of my head. The intensity in his eyes made me
look away.
“Look at me,” he said. With my heart pounding against my ribs and my
cheeks on fire, I peered up at him. His gray eyes looked darker in the dim
light. “I never want to hear you talk bad about yourself again. Do you
understand me? You’re so damn beautiful, Simon.” He gripped the side of
my neck before leaning in closer, his mouth at my ear. “The only thing I
want to hear is you screaming my name as I fuck you. Over and over
again.”
It was hard to breathe. My brain misfired, jumbling up my thoughts and
taking away my ability to form any kind of coherent response. Tingles
spread throughout my body, and my temperature skyrocketed. Something
he said stuck out to me though.
“You called me beautiful,” I managed to say, my voice shaking. I got
the impression he didn’t use that word often. So it felt special coming from
him. Sincere. “No one’s ever said that before.”
 “Then they’re all goddamn idiots.”
And then Galen kissed me.
The scent of sandalwood and citrus wrapped around me as he pushed
me to my back, his lips moving on mine. My heart thrashed in my chest as I
parted my lips, letting his tongue slip inside my mouth. Fuck. I felt a little
light-headed as our tongues swirled together. His taste was intoxicating. I’d
never been kissed like that.
Galen’s gravelly voice, his scent, and the feel of his hard body on mine
—I was consumed by it all. By him. I didn’t care that I hardly knew him. I
didn’t care that it was probably a onetime fuck, solely driven by the mutual
need to get off. I didn’t need a promise of forever. No. All I needed right
then was a hard fucking I’d never forget.
And I knew he’d give it to me.
I needed him to.
The blanket separated us, and he sat back a little to tug it down. Right
away, insecurity slammed into me. The bedside lamp was on, and I was
shirtless. Definitely no way to hide the parts of myself I didn’t like. I
wouldn’t call myself chubby. Just… a bit too flabby and soft for my liking.
But before I could get carried away with that line of thinking, Galen’s
mouth was on mine again.
We broke apart long enough for him to tug his shirt over his head and
toss it aside, and then we came back together in a heated kiss. The hard
ridges of his abdomen slid against my bare stomach, causing my blood to
heat even more.
God, I wanted him so much.
He settled between my legs, the hard ridge of his cock straining against
his pants. My ass ached at the thought of him filling me.
 Would I be able to walk tomorrow? Probably not. But I didn’t give a
damn.
“Are you sure you want this?” Galen asked between kisses, his hand
cupping my side while the other rested at my neck. His hands were big, just
like the rest of him. I wanted them all over me.
I nodded, my brain too fogged with lust for me to speak.
“Fair warning, human.” He dipped his head and nipped at my throat. “I
fuck hard. I don’t do gentle.”
Yep. Rest in peace to my ass.
I was so fucking ready to be destroyed.
“Fine with me,” I panted, gripping his lower back.
Galen kissed down to my collarbone, then licked a trail to my nipple
before suckling it. The hot wetness of his mouth was a shock to the senses. I
gasped and took hold of his head, keeping it in place. I felt him smile before
flicking his tongue against it.
“You like that, do you?” he asked in a husky tone.
“Mhm.”
He sucked it again and tweaked my other nipple between two fingers. I
hardened even more, my cock tenting the front of my pajama bottoms.
Another growl rumbled in his chest as his fingers dipped below the
waistband of my pants and tugged them down. He continued his descent
down my body, kissing my ribs and then nibbling at my belly button. When
he reached my cock, he wasted no time before taking me all the way to the
back of his throat.
I shakily exhaled and slid my fingers through his short hair, my head
falling back on the pillow.
Galen stroked my tip as he lowered his face to my balls and sucked one
into his mouth. Sweat beaded on my chest, and it felt like I’d just been
thrown into a furnace.
Foreplay had been pretty nonexistent for me in the past. I normally
sucked the guy’s dick, he fingered my ass just enough to open me, and then
he climbed on top of me and fucked me until he nutted. I wasn’t used to
this. Galen was taking his time. Making it last.
Suddenly, he stopped. I glanced down to see him staring at the door.
Then, he shook his head with a soft laugh.
“What?” I asked.
“Bellamy,” he said, returning his eyes to me. “Check the nightstand
drawer. He just told me he put something in there for us.”
“He told you? Oh, right. The telepathy thing.” I opened the drawer to
find a bottle of lube.
“You’re blushing.”
“No, I’m not.” I grabbed the lube and placed it beside me on the bed.
“When did he sneak that in here?”
“When he set up your room.” Galen tilted his head. “Still blushing.”
“It’s just my face,” I lied, feeling my cheeks heat even more. I didn’t
know why seeing the lube embarrassed me. Especially since my dick was
bobbing next to his mouth right that freaking moment. “Do you fuck all
humans you bring home? Is that why he assumed we’d hook up?”
That jealous feeling gnawed at my chest again. I hated it.
“You’re the first human I’ve ever brought here. It’s why Alastair was
so angry. Now you’re smiling.”
“Stop.” I covered my face with both hands. “I’m turning off the light.”
“No. I want to see you.”
I peeked at him between my fingers. “I want to see you too.”
“Then stop hiding from me and let’s continue.”
 “You can’t just boss me around,” I said, dropping my hands back to the
bed. “Just because—fuck!”
He deep-throated me. I shuddered and gripped the strands of his hair,
watching as I sunk in and out of his mouth. Those gray eyes flickered to me
as he swirled his tongue across my slit.
“Ready for more?” he asked in that sexy-as-hell husky voice.
He coated his fingers in lube before teasing my hole with one of them.
As he wrapped his lips around my dick again, he slid the tip of a finger
inside me. I sucked in a breath and tipped my head back as he pushed it
knuckle-deep, moving it in slow circles.
Galen said he fucked hard. Yet, he prepped me with care. It made me
think of the kindness I knew existed within him.
“I thought you said you don’t do gentle.”
He peered up at me with a wickedly hot gleam in his eyes. “Be patient.
I might like to fuck rough, but I’m not an asshole. I don’t want to hurt you.”
The sound of a zipper snagged my attention. Galen shoved down his
pants, and I softly groaned as his hard cock sprung free.
“What about condoms?” I asked.
“Don’t need them.” He kissed up my body before softly biting at my
bottom lip. “Diseases don’t affect us. We can’t spread them either.”
“What about pregnancy?”
“I don’t think you have to worry about that.”
I chuckled, feeling a blush spread to my cheeks. “No. I mean. If you
wanted to have kids, could you have them?”
“Yes.” He glided the back of his knuckles along my jaw. “But a
majority of us only bed men.”
“So you’re all gay?”
 “All except for Bellamy and Alastair. Bell is pansexual, and Al is bi.”
Galen buried his face in the crook between my neck and shoulder. “I’d
rather not talk about my brothers right now. They’re too much of a hard-on
killer.”
I snorted. And then the more I tried not to laugh, the more I did. Was I
giggling because I was nervous? Probably.
Galen grabbed my chin. “Fuck. You’re adorable.”
His mouth crashed against mine in a bruising kiss. I sensed the gentle
part of this night was almost over. I glided my hands along the cords of
muscle in his arms, totally feeling him up. He brushed his tongue against
the seam of my mouth, a teasing lick, before reaching for the lube.
The pop of the cap opening sent a rush of heat straight to my dick. He
settled back between my legs and slicked his shaft. Anticipation had me
wiggling a little beneath him. Fuck. I prepared myself for what I hoped to
be one hell of an orgasm. God knew I needed it.
When Galen positioned the thick head of his cock at my opening and
pushed forward, I sucked in a breath. He was definitely the biggest I’d ever
had. The thorough prep helped though. He stopped his advance and softly
kissed me before easing in a little more. The sting eased as my body drew
him in deeper.
“That’s it,” he said as a small moan escaped my lips. He lowered his
head and grazed his teeth along my neck, drawing his hips back before
snapping them forward. “You feel me stretching you wider?”
“Mhm.” I dug my fingertips into his lower back.
Galen rocked into me, slow at first. He lifted my ass off the mattress
and braced a hand on the wall behind my head. He held my weight like it
was nothing. Which… yeah, was a massive turn-on. I emitted another
moan, then pressed my lips together to try and suppress them.
 “Simon?” He thrust into me a little harder. “Don’t hold back your
moans. I want to hear them.”
“Only if I can hear yours too,” I said, breathless. I hated when guys
were quiet during sex. I wanted them loud and expressive. I wanted to know
they were enjoying it.
A smile tugged at his lips.
The sound of our bodies slapping together filled the room as he
increased his tempo. Even if I wanted to hold back my moans, I wouldn’t
have been able to. Grunts left his lips as he took me hard. I was glad the bed
didn’t have a headboard. Otherwise, it might’ve put a hole in the wall.
“Galen,” I whimpered, arching my back.
He dropped his face to my chest and secured an arm behind me to hold
me up. I slid my hands down his upper back, then paused when I felt…
something. Slits in his shoulder blades, one on each side. Curious, I traced
the edge before smoothing my finger inside.
Galen gasped as his body jerked.
“Is that…?”
“Where my wings are,” he said, trembling as he parted his lips. “Fuck.
Touch me again.”
Was it an erogenous zone?
I dipped my finger back into the slit, and he groaned deep in his throat,
his hips snapping faster. I then did the same with the other shoulder blade.
The sounds leaving him… god. My arousal shot to another level. Precum
beaded at my tip, and I ground up against his rock-hard abs as he continued
pounding my ass.
The added friction brought me closer to release. My pulse quickened,
and it felt like my heart would explode from my chest.
 “Your ass is so fucking perfect,” Galen growled. My fingertips brushed
against the feathers of his hidden wings, and his eyes rolled back. “More.”
When he nudged my prostate, I shuddered and pressed my face against
his neck. I wasn’t going to last much longer. And judging by the intensity of
his groans as I finger-fucked the insides of the slits in his shoulders, I
doubted he would either.
My orgasm built and gathered in my base, encouraged by his thick
cock hitting my sweet spot over and over again.
Galen growled and thrust faster, and then I was coming apart beneath
him. He joined me seconds later, his cock pulsing inside me as he came. His
teeth clamped down on my neck, and I arched up into him with a gasp. It
triggered a second orgasm, and I whimpered uncontrollably in his arms.
Afterward, I slumped to the mattress and tried to catch my breath.
Galen nuzzled my chest before pulling out and getting off the bed.
“Where are you going?” I asked.
“To shower. Then to bed.” He never fully removed his pants before we
fucked, only shoved them down low enough to release his cock. He tucked
himself back inside them before grabbing his shirt off the floor.
“Oh.” My brains had pretty much been fucked to smithereens, so it was
taking me a moment to process everything. “You can stay for a while if you
want.”
“I never stay after sex.”
“Oh,” I repeated, unsure what else to say.
He smoothed down his shirt before regarding me. “I told you. I don’t
do gentle. Or romance. I fuck and I leave.”
“I didn’t say I wanted romance.” I pulled the sheet up over my waist,
feeling suddenly exposed. “I just didn’t think you’d take off so fast after
blowing your load.”
 “Pillow talk isn’t my thing,” he said before stepping toward the door.
“Good night, Simon.”
I watched him leave my room, confused by the strange feeling swirling
in my chest. I’d known it was only sex. A mutual onetime hookup.
So why did the sight of him leaving upset me?
“Stop being an idiot,” I told myself before sliding out of bed and going
into the connecting bathroom to wash off. My reflection in the mirror
caught my attention.
He’d left a bite mark on my neck.
I traced it with my fingertips, my stomach fluttering at the memory of
when he bit me. That combination of pain and pleasure… damn, I’d never
experienced something so intense. I tore my gaze from the mirror and
approached the shower.
When I slid back into bed later, Galen’s sandalwood scent lingered on
the sheets. I snuggled into them and closed my eyes, trying to ignore the
stupid ache in my chest.
 Chapter Nine
Galen

After leaving Simon’s room, I paced in the hall outside his door,
fighting the urge to go back inside. I heard the shower turn on and inwardly
groaned at the mental image of him standing beneath the stream, water
running down his naked body.
I’d just had him and already wanted him again.
Fuck this.
Needing to put distance between us, I stormed outside and spread my
wings, my shirt ripping off with the action. I took off into the clear night
sky, deeply inhaling the crisp air as I flew higher. I landed on the cliff
beside the mansion and looked out over the dark sea.
Sex meant nothing to me. It was only a means to an end. A quick
release. Over the years, I’d bedded too many men to count. Emotions never
played a part in any of the encounters.
Yet, sex with Simon had been different. I had faced him, for one. I
normally fucked the men from behind, hardly ever even kissing them. But
his lips had tempted me, and I’d needed to taste them. Needed to feel his
breaths on my skin and see pleasure spark in his eyes as I took him hard.
And when he touched the slits in my shoulder blades, I’d lost control.
No other human had ever touched me there.
I’d never allowed it.
 “Goddammit,” I growled, kicking at a rock. It flew off the cliff and
landed in the water below.
“What did that poor rock ever do to you?” Castor asked, landing beside
me. His black wings had gold undertones, the color associated with his sin.
All of us had black wings. The only difference was the underlying shade.
Mine was a deep red.
“Keep talking and I’ll kick you off the cliff too.”
“Harsh.” Castor relaxed his wings but kept them visible. He peered up
at the moon. “You marked him.”
Another growl formed in my throat. “It was an accident.”
I bit Simon. Marked him as mine. Now, any supernatural creature he
came across would smell my scent on him and know to stay away. If they
knew what was good for them anyway.
Shit. There I go again with the possessive crap.
“If you grind your teeth any harder, they’ll crack.” Castor turned to me.
“Ever since the day you met Simon, I’ve noticed a change in you. We all
have. Why not embrace your feelings instead of running from them?”
“You know why,” I snarled. “Need I remind you what happened last
time I fell for someone?”
Castor frowned.
“And just look at Alastair,” I continued. “When Joseph finally passes, it
will crush his spirit. Again. Why would I wish that upon myself?”
“I don’t know.” A sad smile touched his lips before he returned his
gaze to the sky. “Sometimes I think it’s worth it though. The pain. All the
men I’ve loved have touched my life in ways I’ll never forget. I think of one
man each time I look at the moon. Another one when I hear his favorite
song. Losing them hurt, but loving them? It brought light to my dark world,
if only for a moment.”
 “I will never love Simon,” I said. I wouldn’t let myself. “He’s no
different than any other human I’ve fucked. This discussion is pointless.”
“Right. Because you mark all of the men you screw in the club too.
Totally normal.”
“I’m not in the mood for your smart-ass comments, Greed.”
Castor smirked. “You know, I always wondered why we were given the
ability to mark our mates. It seems rather beastlike.”
“Because we are beasts.”
At least, I felt like one. A memory began to surface, and I tried to
shove it back behind the wall I’d erected in my mind. A wall that kept back
all the shit I wanted to forget. A piece of it slipped through the cracks
anyway.
I remembered beating against the bars of a cage, tasting blood as I
roared and shouted obscenities.
“The world will burn!” I screamed. “I’ll kill them all!”
My six brothers stood on the other side of the bars, their eyes glistening
as they stared at me.
“I have no choice but to kill him,” Lazarus said, stepping toward the
cage, a sword of fire appearing in his hand.
“No!” Alastair grabbed the angel. “Don’t do this. I beg of you.”
“What choice have I?” Lazarus jerked free of my brother’s hold. “His
mind is gone. He’s nothing more than a blood-hungry beast.”
“Galen,” Alastair said, rushing toward me. Tears wet his pale cheeks.
“This isn’t you. Snap out of it.”
I slammed my body against the bars in front of him, snarling.
“Galen?” Castor touched my arm.
I looked down at his hand, confused for a moment. The metallic taste
of blood faded away, as did the red spots in my vision. The echoes of my
screams silenced. It was only a memory. Yet, the feelings it stirred up felt so
real.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“I…” I glanced around, feeling an icy sensation fill my chest.
And then I jumped off the cliff, free falling before letting my wings
catch on the breeze. My chest brushed the water’s surface before I shot up
higher into the air.
Castor didn’t come after me, but I sensed him poking around in my
head as he tried to get a read on my thoughts. I flew faster. The more
distance I put between us, the harder it would be for him to get inside my
mind unless I spoke directly to him.
I just wanted to be alone.
Without intending to, I ended up going to Simon’s antique shop. I
perched on the rooftop and listened to the sounds of the city. Sirens, car
doors slamming, humans leaving bars as last call came. I leaned over the
edge of the roof and opened the window before climbing inside Simon’s
loft. Castor and I had fixed the broken window, and we’d cleaned the trail
of blood leading from his living quarters down the stairs.
The memory of Simon so close to death would always be seared into
my head. When I’d picked him up and he’d nuzzled my chest, a soft whine
coming from his throat, my heart had cracked wide open.
I should’ve known right then to keep my distance from Simon. Even
without knowing a thing about him, I’d been drawn to him. Connected on a
level I didn’t understand.
“What are you doing to me, Simon Parks?” I walked through his loft
and sat on the edge of his bed, gliding a hand across his pillow. “You’re
nothing but a weak human.”
A human I’d marked as mine.
 By the time I returned to the mansion, it was almost 4:00 a.m. And god
help me, I went to Simon’s room. He slept in his bed, lightly snoring. His
sandy-brown hair fell into his eyes, and I moved it aside before leaning
down and softly kissing him on the forehead.
As the scent of rain and earth surrounded me, I closed my eyes and
rested my head on the side of his. My protective urge over him increased, as
did a strong possessiveness. That feeling bounced around in my chest and
only settled when I pressed my face into his soft hair.
Nearly every supernatural species—vampires, werewolves, even
certain types of demons—all had a version of mates. Nephilim were no
exception. When the one destined to be your mate crossed your path, a
connection was formed, one not easily broken. But in the eons I had lived,
I’d never experienced that possessive need to make someone mine.
Until now.

***

Saturday evening, I sat on the back porch watching the sunset. Shades
would descend upon the city, just as they had for the past several nights,
once the light of day finally faded. Until then, I took a moment to breathe.
To gather my thoughts.
I had steered clear of Simon all day in the hopes that my feelings
toward him would change. The mark I’d given him would fade over time. It
didn’t mean he was my mate. To fully make him my mate required much
more than a bite. But marking was usually a prelude to mating.
Like hell I’ll ever let that happen.
The door behind me opened, and the scent of rain touched my nose.
“Hey, Galen?”
 “What?”
Simon sat beside me on the steps. His dark green sweater brought out
the same shade in his hazel eyes. He pushed his glasses farther up his nose
and focused on the setting sun. I tried not to stare at him, but his proximity
caused the feelings I’d worked so hard to ignore all damn day to come
rushing back.
“Look,” he said, wringing his hands in his lap before relaxing them. “I
know it was just sex between us. I get it. But I can’t help but think you’ve
been intentionally avoiding me.”
“I haven’t,” I lied.
“Bullshit.”
I tore my gaze from his face and watched as the sun finally sank below
the mountain. My chest ached as I sensed the sadness coming off him.
Instead of addressing it, I stood up and turned toward the door. “I need to
get ready to patrol.”
“Wait,” Simon said. “That’s not what I wanted to talk to you about. Not
really.”
I looked back at him. “I’m listening.”
“I want to help.” He stood from the step and walked closer. “Raiden
told me that angel guy won’t give you any answers about that ring. You
can’t go inside Ravenwood because of the warding. But I can.”
“No.” I shook my head, irritation prickling under my skin. “You’re not
getting involved in this.”
“Raiden said you’d say that.” A breeze swept around us, and Simon
crossed his arms. “You can’t expect me to stay in this mansion forever or
I’ll go crazy. Let me help you.”
“No.”
“You didn’t even think about it.”
 “I don’t need to think about it. The answer is no.”
“God, you’re so stubborn.” He furrowed his brow, and I had to force
myself not to smile. He just looked too adorable when he was frustrated. “I
have a life to get back to, you know. I miss my shop and the people I work
with.”
“You only have one employee.”
“Well, I miss Kyo,” Simon said in an annoyed tone. “He’s a really good
friend. Closing the shop for a week is one thing, but he’ll get suspicious
after a while.”
I clenched my jaw.
I knew he was right. I couldn’t keep Simon at the mansion forever.
Then it really would be kidnapping. Or… human napping. Whatever. I felt
stuck between a rock and a hard place. By letting Simon leave, I’d be
putting him in danger. But by forcing him to stay, I’d be robbing him of his
life. Mortal lives were too short as it was. He’d miss so much if kept him
within the safety of these walls.
But at least he’d have a life.
“And the shades?” I asked. “What about when they come sniffing
around your shop in the middle of the night? They have your scent, Simon.
They won’t stop hunting you.”
“I know.” He chewed his bottom lip, gaze dropping to his feet. “I just
miss my life, Galen.”
I couldn’t stop myself. I had to touch him.
I cupped the side of his face, hating how much I loved the warmth of
his skin beneath my palm. His hazel eyes flickered back to mine. Shock
swirled in them, but so did something else. A hunger I knew all too well.
Was he remembering last night?
“I’ll think it over,” I said.
 Hope filled his eyes. “Thank you.”
I dropped my hand from his cheek and went inside the mansion without
another word to him. Bellamy met me in the entryway, sliding his daggers
into place on his belt. He and I were teamed up for the night, while Raiden
and Gray took the other side of town. Alastair and Castor were going to
travel to the next town over and keep watch, as there had been reports of
attacks the night before.
Phoenix hadn’t been bluffing when he said he’d set his pets on the
humans. I was exhausted from the amount we’d had to kill over the past
few nights. Those bastards never seemed to stop. One died and more
appeared.
“Leaving me to babysit the human?” Daman asked, sitting in the nook
of the large bay window in the living room. He often sat there to draw.
“Be nice,” Bellamy told him. “Simon’s a sweetheart. He has a nice ass
too.” He said the last part while winking at me.
I snarled under my breath. Dammit. That possessiveness continued to
linger.
“Like I give two shits what his ass looks like.” Daman rolled his eyes.
“Humans are disgusting.”
“Oh yeah,” Bellamy said. “I forgot you prefer to bang monsters.”
“Fuck off, pretty boy.”
Bellamy put his hands up. “Hey, I’m not judging. I fucked a cecaelia
once who did things with his tentacles I still have wet dreams about.” He
tapped his chin. “Actually, I should probably track him down again.”
“Come on,” I said, opening the door. “The shades will start hunting
soon.” I turned back to Daman. “Try not to be a dickwad to Simon. Got it?”
“Bite me,” Daman said, eyes narrowed. “Oh, that’s right. You’ve
already bitten someone recently.”
 For fuck’s sake. It sucked not being able to keep a goddamn secret
around them.
Once outside, Bellamy spread his wings. The feathers had royal blue
undertones, almost like raven feathers when in the sun. He flapped them
once, then lifted off the ground as I unfurled mine and did the same.
“You can compromise with him, you know,” Bellamy said as we left
the veil and flew toward town. “Simon isn’t a bird you can keep locked in a
cage. He has a life.”
“Even if I release him, Alastair won’t ever let him be truly free,” I said,
remembering what he’d told me that day in his study. “Simon knows too
much.”
“His memory can be erased. Alastair’s done it before—”
“No,” I snapped, my sternum aching at the thought of Simon not
knowing me.
“Calm yourself, brother.” Bellamy offered me an apologetic smile. “It
was only a suggestion.”
“Let’s stop speaking of this.”
He nodded and said nothing more.
My thoughts confused me. I wanted to distance myself from Simon
because the idea of falling for him scared the hell out of me. But on the
other hand, I never wanted to let him go.
Would it be for the best if his memory was erased?
The back of my neck tingled as I sensed a group of shades moving
through the shadows not far from the Saturday night crowd in the
downtown district. Bars, shops, restaurants—every person would be
targeted. And by the size of the group, I knew it would be bloody. Brutal.
The biggest attack so far.
 “Bellamy!” I told him through our mind link since he was too far for
me to say it aloud.
“I sense them too!” He dove toward the ground with me close behind.
We landed in an alleyway tucked between two abandoned buildings
and drew our weapons. A shade lurched toward me, its gaping mouth filled
with rows of razor-sharp teeth. I sliced my blade across its throat. Two more
jumped at me after that. I barely had time to cut one down before more
were on me.
Shades might’ve been simplistic beasts who weren’t hard to kill, but
when they outnumbered us by so many, fighting them off became more
difficult. I couldn’t let my guard down, so I pushed Simon to the back of
my mind for now.
I had demons to slay.
 Chapter Ten
Simon

I sat on the porch for a while after Galen left, lost in thought.
Demons wanted me dead. Nephilim warriors who protected mankind
thought it was too dangerous for me to return home. I kind of, most
definitely, had a crush on one of them.
What would happen to me? To my business? I missed my dusty shelves
and the odd knickknacks that covered them. I missed that stupid old desk in
the corner of the shop that no one wanted. I even missed the annoying
cuckoo clock that scared the crap out of me when it went off.
When the chill in the air became too much, I walked back into the
mansion. The ache in my ass reminded me of a certain grumpy someone. I
smiled, then shook my head.
Falling for someone like Galen would only hurt me in the end. Better to
accept that now before I let my heart get carried away. Even if he did want
more than sex, how could it ever work between us? He was immortal. We
belonged in two different worlds.
“So you’re the human I’ve heard so much about.”
I glanced around the living room before seeing a man tucked into a
corner nook.
He stood from the window bench and walked over to me, his
movements fluid. Graceful. Brown hair fell to the middle of his ears, and
his slender build had subtle muscle tones. His loose-fitting tank top hung
off his thin frame, showing his shoulders and the tanned skin on his sides,
and his frayed skinny jeans emphasized his long legs. He looked to be an
inch or two taller than me.
And Jesus. He was beautiful. Maybe even more so than Bellamy, which
was saying a lot.
“H-Hi,” I stammered. “I’m Simon.”
“I’m well aware who you are.” His emerald-green eyes studied me.
They were surrounded by impossibly long, dark lashes. His ethnic features
kind of turned my brain to goo.
“You’re Envy, right?” I asked.
“Daman,” he corrected, eyes narrowing. “I thought you’d be more
impressive, but you’re average at best. What a disappointment.”
“Um. Sorry? I guess?”
“I wonder what Galen sees in you,” he said, though unlike before, his
tone wasn’t bitter. He seemed genuinely curious. “He hasn’t wasted this
much time with a human in centuries. Yet here you are, invading our private
space.”
“He’s only keeping me here until it’s safe for me to leave.”
“That’s where you’re wrong, mortal.” Daman leaned toward me. “His
scent is all over you. He wouldn’t have marked you if he planned on letting
you go.”
“Marked me? What does that mean?”
“Ask him.” He cast me one final look before walking to his perch near
the window, plopping back down on the cushion and focusing on his tablet.
“Stop staring at me. It makes me uncomfortable.”
I averted my gaze from him. Castor was right. Daman had a major
attitude problem. Was it because of his sin? An envious person wouldn’t
exactly be a ray of fucking sunshine. Maybe he had no control over it.
 Once in my room, I changed into shorts and a plain T-shirt before
walking back downstairs and heading toward the pool area. The hot tub
sounded like a great way to help me relax.
Lights illuminated the pool, and the reflection of the water bounced off
the surrounding windows. I grabbed a towel from the rack before going
over to the hot tub and stepping out of my shoes. Chills spread along my
skin as I stuck one foot in, then the other, and slowly sunk chest-deep into
the hot water. I tilted my head back and closed my eyes, feeling my tight
muscles begin to unwind.
What did Daman mean when he said Galen had marked me?
I touched the bite mark on my neck, one that remained tender beneath
my fingertips. I’d thought he was just being a little kinky when he bit me,
but did it mean more than that? Was it some kind of weird possession thing?
I thought of all the wolf shifter books I’d read—a wonderfully smutty
guilty pleasure of mine—and how they’d do shit like that to mark their
mates. Vampires did it too. But Galen was a Nephilim. I’d never read any
kind of mythology on them.
An hour or so later, I returned to my room and took a quick shower
before sitting by the window and peering out across the sea. I hadn’t
realized how much I relied on my phone until I was forced to go almost a
week without it. No checking social media, no reading ebooks, no playing
that jewel-crushing game I was embarrassingly addicted to. No pulling up
Google to research Nephilim.
All that aside, it was actually nice to unplug from the world for a while.
And if I had to unplug, where better to do it than a fancy mansion by the sea
surrounded by beautiful men?
I slid into bed around midnight, putting my glasses on the nightstand,
and turned on the TV for background noise. As the narrator of Ancient
Aliens talked about stone ruins found in the middle of nowhere, I shut my
eyes, comforted by the familiarity of it. I could almost pretend I was in my
loft.
I woke sometime later to the scent of sandalwood and something warm
pressing to my temple. I cracked open my lids and saw Galen. The light
from the TV lit up one side of his face. He looked exhausted even with my
blurry vision.
“I apologize for waking you,” he whispered, moving away. “Go back to
sleep.”
“Wait.” I reached out and grabbed his arm. “Don’t go.”
He stared at my hand before looking at me. “I shouldn’t have come in
here.”
“Why did you?” I asked, my voice croaky from sleep. I became a little
more alert and remembered the sensation of something warm on my temple,
like soft lips. “You kissed me.”
“No, I didn’t.” His expression hardened. “You must’ve been
dreaming.”
“You’re a horrible liar, Galen.”
A light huff escaped his lips before he put even more distance between
us, stepping toward the door. “Go to sleep, Simon.”
“Did you mark me?”
His shoulders tensed, and he glared at me. “What?”
“Daman said you marked me. What does that mean?”
“I’m going to kill him,” he said in a deep voice. “It means nothing.”
“Am I going to turn into some kind of angel-human hybrid now? Like
when a vampire bites someone? Do you have venom? Will I grow wings?”
Galen sharply exhaled and strode back over to the bed, the mattress
dipping as he sat down. “No. You’re not going to turn into anything. You’ll
stay human.”
“What does the mark mean then? What does it do?”
“I’m tired, Simon.” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “Can we talk
about this in the morning?”
Before I could respond, he stretched out beside me and kicked off his
shoes into the floor. I scooted over to give him more room, and he turned to
his side and threw an arm across my stomach, closing his eyes. The tension
left his body as minutes ticked by, and his breathing started to slow.
I settled in closer to him, pressing my face against the front of his shirt.
Why did he have to smell so damn good? His arm tightened around me, and
he nuzzled the top of my head before stilling again. He was asleep moments
later, his soft breaths tickling my cheek.
Given how quickly he’d left my room last night after we fucked, I
suspected he preferred to sleep alone. He must’ve been more tired than I
thought.
Fine with me.
I breathed him in and relaxed on the exhale. A night in his arms didn’t
sound so bad.

***

Something tickled the tip of my nose, and I jerked awake. Gray sat
beside me on the bed, sunlight coming in through the window behind him.
“Morning,” he whispered, handing me my glasses.
I put them on and blinked a few times. Crusties were in the corners of
my eyes. I’d slept hard. “What time is it?”
“Almost eleven,” Gray answered. “Raiden made waffles. I like mine
with strawberries and whipped cream. A little chocolate syrup never hurt
anyone either. Are you hungry?”
“Stop talking,” a cranky voice said at my nape.
Galen was spooning me with one arm around my stomach and the other
under my head. He’d slept with me the entire night. My heart fluttered at
the realization.
“There’s enough food for you too, grumpy pants,” Gray said, reaching
over to poke Galen’s arm. He hopped off the bed—literally—and pranced
across the room toward the door. “Better hurry before breakfast gets cold.
Or before Raiden eats it all.”
“I’ll strangle him one day,” Galen mumbled once Gray left.
“No, you won’t.” I turned to face him, smiling when his eyes opened.
“You adore him.”
“Maybe.” The sun caught his gray eyes, making them even paler in the
morning light. “I didn’t mean to sleep in here.”
“I didn’t mind. I’ve had worse cuddle buddies.”
Galen scoffed and sat up, rubbing at the back of his neck. “I don’t want
to hear about your past bed partners.”
“I said cuddling. I didn’t say anything about sex.”
He arched a brow at me. “The two usually go hand in hand.”
“Not with you, apparently. Mr. Fuck and Leave.” I got out of bed and
hunted for a clean shirt.
Arms came around me from behind. “Don’t make me spank you,
human.”
God. He was so much taller than me that he had to lean down to
whisper in my ear. My skin tingled, and I pressed my ass back against him.
“Hate to break it to you, but I’m not into spanking. Biting, on the other
hand…”
 He growled and spun me around to face him. “You won’t let that go,
will you?”
“Nope. You said we’d talk about it in the morning. And it’s morning.”
Galen took a deep breath, his eyes not leaving mine. “Very well. The
mark was me staking a claim over you.”
“Like putting your scent on me or something?”
“Yes.”
“I’m not a piece of property, you know.” I crossed my arms over my
chest, trying to ignore the part of me that liked that he’d claimed me. “And
why would you want to mark me? You said you only fuck, then move on.”
“It was an accident, I assure you.”
“An accident?”
“I got too caught up in the moment, and it just happened.” Galen
moved toward the door. “End of conversation.”
“Will the mark stay forever?” I asked, trailing after him as he left the
room.
“I don’t think so.”
“You don’t know for sure?”
He pressed me against the wall, slapping one arm on each side of my
head. We’d been in that same position several times now. And damn if it
didn’t always send a rush of excitement through my veins.
“I’ve never marked anyone before,” he said with a sexy growl in his
voice.
“Never?” That pleased me much more than it probably should have.
He’d lived for thousands of years. None of the people he’d been with had
ever carried the mark I had on my neck. I got a weird satisfaction from that.
“As I said. It was an accident. So, will the mark go away? I think so,
but I don’t know for certain. Can we go eat breakfast now? Or would you
like to ask a million other questions first?”
“You’re really hot when you’re irritated.”
A tic started in his jaw, and his nostrils flared. But then his gaze fell to
my lips. He lined his body with mine before grabbing my chin and forcing
my face up higher. Heat moved along my skin as he captured my mouth in a
rough kiss.
I rose up on my tiptoes and wound my arms around his neck, sighing
against his lips. A deep rumble sounded in his chest as he moved his hands
to my hips and slid his fingers beneath the hem of my shirt. He tore from
my mouth and kissed my jaw, then down the side of my neck. Reaching the
mark at the base of my throat, he growled again, this one deeper.
And then he jerked away from me, his hands trembling. He had a wild,
hungry look in his eyes.
“Galen?”
“I… we can’t…” He continued toward the staircase and took the steps
down two at a time.
I walked behind him, my mind whirling as I tried to figure out what
just happened. Questions buzzed in my head, but I bit them back. He was
clearly in no mood to answer them.
The kitchen was alive with activity when we arrived.
The warriors grabbed plates, piled them high with waffles and
scrambled eggs, poured coffee, and sat down, their scattered conversations
filling the air. Castor laughed at something Gray said, and Raiden stole a
strawberry off Bellamy’s plate while Alastair shook his head at them. Even
Daman was present, softly smiling at his brothers before quickly reverting
to an indifferent expression when he caught me looking at him.
Having such a boisterous household was nice. Living alone for so long
could feel… well, lonely. I’d said that I missed my shop, Kyo, my loft, and
all of my things. And I did. But as Galen and I made our plates and joined
the others at the table, I realized I’d miss this too. The warriors had really
grown on me over the past week.
“Have some fruit,” Gray said, sprinkling blueberries on my plate.
“Don’t touch other people’s food without their permission,” Alastair
told him. “It’s rude. Maybe Simon hates blueberries.”
Gray regarded me with big, brown eyes. “I’m sorry.”
Fuck. He could get away with murder with those eyes.
“It’s okay,” I said, smiling. “I love them.”
Gray beamed at me, then stuck his tongue out at Alastair, who sighed
and drank more coffee. Each of them had such different personalities. There
was definitely never a dull moment when they were around.
“I have news for you,” Alastair said, his icy blue eyes finding me.
Everyone except for Raiden had finished eating. “I know you wish to leave
the mansion.”
“Huh?” Raiden asked, then swallowed his bite of waffle. He was on his
third plate. “You’re leaving? No. Who will be my movie buddy?”
“Who will I cuddle with when I nap?” Gray asked before yawning. He
reminded me of a cat sometimes.
Galen sat beside me, his gaze on the table. He’d barely said a word all
through breakfast. Was he upset because I wanted to leave? Honestly, I was
upset by the thought too. Which didn’t make a lick of sense.
“You know too much about our lives,” Alastair said. “Yet, I feel you
can be trusted. And I’m rarely wrong.”
“I’d never hurt any of you,” I said, meaning the words to my very core.
I’d only known them for about a week—with the exception of Daman, who
I’d met for the first time last night—but they had become friends. Raiden.
Gray. Castor. Bellamy too, even though he got way too much enjoyment out
of making me blush.
I looked at Galen. He kept his eyes downcast, saying nothing.
Alastair continued. “We’ve monitored the shades’ movements recently,
and none have come anywhere near your shop. That isn’t to say they won’t
come after you the moment you leave the protection of this mansion, but
I’ll leave it up to you to decide what you want to do.” He moved his gaze to
Galen yet still addressed me. “It is not our place to hold you against your
will. If you wish to leave, you may.”
“Alastair,” Galen growled, the hand beside his empty plate balling into
a fist. “You have no right t—”
“My decision stands,” Alastair cut him off. “Simon has our protection
here if he wants it, but we will not force him to stay. Is that understood?”
Galen pushed back from the table before standing and storming out of
the kitchen. The front door slammed moments later.
“Best to give him some space for now,” Castor said as I started to get
up.
I sat back in my seat, putting my hands in my lap. My heart ached as I
weighed my options. On one hand, I wanted to return to my life. On the
other…
I looked between all six of their faces. Daman seemed uninterested, but
the rest of them watched me, waiting for my answer. I had no idea what to
do.
“You can have the day to think it over,” Alastair said, before standing
from the table and carrying his plate to the sink.
“Does he have to choose?” Gray asked, rubbing at his eyes. I wagered
he had maybe five minutes before he was curled up somewhere snoring.
“Why can’t he go to work during the day, then come home at night?”
 Home. He’d said it so effortlessly too, as if he thought I belonged with
them.
“That can be dangerous, Gray,” Raiden said, his usual goofy smile
turning sad. “You remember what happened the last time a human lived
with us. Demons tortured him for information, and Daman and Castor
nearly died because of it.” He looked down at the half-eaten waffle on his
plate, then pushed it away. “It was all my fault too.”
Alastair peered out the window over the sink. “That was prior to the
protections we have in place now. We learned from that mistake.” He turned
to me. “But still. Raiden’s correct. Phoenix knows what you mean to Galen.
He suspects anyway. If he learns you’re still living here, there’s a possibility
he’ll track you down once you’re outside of our protection and use you to
get to us. Either you leave and we cut off all ties to you, or you stay here
behind the protection of the veil. There’s no in-between.”
“That’s not fair,” Gray whined, resting his head on the table.
It was hard to breathe all of a sudden. Of course I wanted to return to
my shop, to my life. But if it meant never seeing Galen again? Tears stung
the backs of my eyes.
“What if I stay by his side?”
I flipped around to see Galen standing beneath the archway, his abs on
full display and his skin glistening a bit. What happened to his shirt?
“As in, you’ll act as his bodyguard when he’s outside the veil?”
Alastair asked. “I’m not completely opposed to the idea. You’d be putting
yourself at risk though.”
“Demons rarely attack in the daylight,” Galen said. “Including
Phoenix. I can stay with Simon while he’s at his shop, then escort him back
here before nightfall.”
 “Wait, wait.” I waved a hand around. Galen’s gray eyes moved to me.
“You really don’t have to do that. You’ll be bored out of your mind. Plus,
you patrol at night. If you watch me all day, you’ll never get any rest.”
“And what other choice do I have?” he growled, coming closer. My
gaze landed on his rippling abs, and I swallowed the sudden tightness in my
throat. I stood from my chair, and he slid a hand to the side of my neck.
“Watch you leave and never get to see you again? Or watch you stay here
and wither away within these walls?”
“You guys, I’m melting over here,” Bellamy said, resting his chin on
his hand. “Go fuck and make up now. Even better if I can watch.”
Galen glared at him.
“Simon?” Alastair asked. “Under normal circumstances, I’d erase your
memory, send you on your way, and be done with it. But you’re a special
case. Galen has marked you, which tells me how strongly he feels for you.
Which is the only reason I’m even considering this alternative. The choice
is yours.”
“I…” I returned my gaze to Galen. The hard lines around his eyes
smoothed as he stared down at me. “I don’t want to say goodbye to you. To
any of you.”
“It’s decided, then,” Alastair said. “You’ll continue staying here for the
time being.” Then, he left the kitchen.
“Lovely,” Daman said, standing from the table and taking his mug of
coffee with him. “We have a new member of the family.”
“Don’t be a sourpuss,” Raiden said, throwing an arm around Daman’s
shoulders.
“Get off me, you big ape.” Daman shrugged out of Raiden’s hold and
walked away.
 “I need a moment to process things,” I said, bracing a hand on the table
for support. “I can really go back to work?”
Galen nodded. “With me, yes. And you’ll live here at least until it’s
safe for you to be outside these walls at night.”
So, a temporary living arrangement. I could handle that. Better than my
other choices. It was too dangerous for me to be away from the mansion at
night, not unless I wanted to be ripped apart by shades. Again.
“Where’s Gray?” I asked, not seeing him at the table. He’d been sitting
there not even ten seconds ago.
Castor looked around before grinning. “Over here.” He bent down and
came back up with a sleeping Gray nestled in his arms. “He was curled up
on the floor like a little kitten.”
Could he be any cuter?
“Go to your room and get dressed,” Galen said.
I cocked my head at him. “Why?”
“You want to go to your shop, don’t you?”
Excitement buzzed in my veins. “Yeah.”
“Then stop blabbing and go upstairs.”
I sort of loved when he got all bossy. Not exactly sure what that said
about me, but whatever.
I left the kitchen and jogged up the stairs in my eagerness, and then
regretted the jogging because I was nearly dead by the time I reached the
second floor. Galen chuckled behind me.
“No one asked you,” I said, continuing to my room.
“I didn’t say a word.”
“The laugh said it all.”
“I could always carry you,” he said with amusement ringing in his tone.
 “I already feel like a damsel,” I told him, entering the room and
walking over to the closet. “Let me keep some dignity.”
After I changed into my favorite navy blue cardigan sweater, a pair of
jeans, and put on my shoes, we walked back down the stairs and went
outside. The sun felt amazing, and I breathed in the spring day. Something
occurred to me.
“Are we going to fly there?” I asked, both excited and terrified by the
idea. I’d flown with him once before, but I’d kind of been dying at the time
and hardly remembered it, so it didn’t count.
“Not this time,” Galen said, leading me toward a huge building that set
to the side of the mansion. “We fly at night, but it’s harder to go unseen
during the day.”
“Do you not have magical cloaking abilities?”
“To a degree we do,” he answered. “But the sky’s too clear today. We
need the shadows of night to help conceal ourselves.”
“Really?” I asked, taken aback. “I was only joking. You seriously have
camouflage powers too?”
Galen smirked before opening the door, showing rows of sports cars, as
well as classic ones. My jaw dropped as we stepped farther into the garage.
There had to be at least twenty cars.
“You’ve got to be shitting me.” I ghosted a hand over the front of a
Lamborghini, not touching it though.
“Castor has a car obsession,” Galen said, a subtle smile in place as he
walked beside me. “He recently downsized, but only because Alastair made
him.”
“Alastair is… what? Like your boss or something? You all seem to take
his word as law.”
 “Because he’s our leader,” Galan explained. “Azazel, his father, was
Lucifer’s second-in-command. The two of them were inseparable. Many
claim they were lovers, but that’s beside the point. Pride is said to be the
first deadly sin, the one all other sins are born from. It’s in our blood to
obey him.” He tilted his head at me. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I’m just stuck on the whole Lucifer thing.”
“I suppose it’s a lot for you to wrap your head around.” Galen
approached a black Mercedes Benz. “This one’s mine.”
He opened the door and slid into the driver’s seat. I walked around to
the passenger side and got in. I smoothed a hand along the leather
upholstery and took in the luxury of the dark and sleek interior. I’d never
been a “car guy,” but I could appreciate the artistry that went into the
design.
The engine rumbled to life, and I buckled my seat belt as he left the
garage. Just when I thought I was grasping this crazy world I’d been sucked
into, I was gobsmacked by something else. The existence of Lucifer, for one
thing. Galen had spoken of him before, but it didn’t register until now that
he was actually real.
Was he red-skinned with horns and hooves like art portrayed him? Or
was he devastatingly handsome like the stories said? Well, and like that one
TV series.
My gaze trailed to the mountain of a man beside me. He had one hand
on the wheel, while the other rested between us on the seat. He glanced
over at me, a smile in his eyes, before returning his gaze to the narrow dirt
road. The sea stretched on one side of us, the sun shining off the water.
One thing I knew for certain?
Galen looked damn sexy behind the wheel of his car.
 Chapter Eleven
Galen

Simon stared at the floor in front of the staircase, his hand lifting to his
chest. We’d arrived at his antique store a few minutes ago, and he’d trailed
off midsentence as soon as we’d come through the side entrance.
I wanted to protect him from those bad memories, but he needed to
face them.
“I’m sorry you had to clean up the blood,” he said, tearing his eyes
away from the spot and continuing down the hall, flipping on the lights as
he went. “You must think I’m an idiot for coming back here.”
“No.” I followed him into the main part of his shop and watched as he
opened the blinds, letting in the sun. “I think you’re brave.”
He scoffed. “Me? Brave? Tell that to all the screaming I did that night.”
“Anyone would’ve screamed while being attacked by something they
couldn’t see.” I stepped closer to him, aching to pull him into my arms. I
kept them at my sides though. Better to keep space between us.
That morning when I kissed that mark on his neck, something inside
me shifted. Came alive. Almost as though my soul was desperately reaching
out for him. That possessive feeling had roared to life again, and I’d nearly
ripped his clothes off and fucked him right there in the hall. Whatever
connection I had toward Simon was only growing stronger.
And when I thought I might lose him earlier? When Alastair said he’d
erase his memory if he chose to leave? I’d had to get out of the room as fast
as possible, otherwise I would’ve lashed out at Alastair.
“I think I saw the shades when they attacked me. A little bit anyway.”
Simon grabbed a duster and flicked it over a shelf with glass figurines.
“They blended in with the darkness, but they looked like swirling black
smoke. Smelled like smoke too.”
“That’s what they’re made of.” I watched him move to another shelf.
“They have a thin layer of charred flesh beneath the smoke that constantly
burns.”
“So that explains the putrid burning smell.” Simon crinkled his nose. “I
know how much you love my questions. But can I ask one?”
“Sure.” I walked over and snatched the duster from him before running
it over the clocks above his head.
“Thanks.” He smiled at me. “I guess there’s a benefit to having a tall
guy around.”
“The only benefit?”
Simon blushed and averted his eyes. “Anyway. About the marking
thing. I know you said it’s you staking a claim over me or whatever, but
why?”
“One usually does it when they find their mate. It’s to let other males—
and females—know that you’re taken. My scent is all over you. Any being
who lays a hand on you knows they do so with the threat of my wrath.” I
was shocked to see him smiling. “This pleases you?”
“What?” His smile fell, and he cleared his throat. “No. Not at all.”
“And you called me a horrible liar.”
“Shut up,” Simon said, his blush deepening.
“That’s not a very nice thing to say.”
His hazel eyes flashed to me. Although he visibly tried to fight it, the
edge of his mouth curved up. “Whatever.” He walked over to the front
counter and started wiping it down. “Does this mean I’m your mate now?”
Not if I can help it.
“No. It only means I’ve claimed you as mine. The ritual for mating
involves much more.”
“There’s a ritual for it?” Simon’s glasses slipped a bit as he glanced
down, and he used his index finger to push them back up. “How does it
work?”
My blood heated at the thought of pushing inside Simon, my teeth at
his throat, his fingertips digging into my skin as lust consumed us both. Soft
words spoken, vows whispered in the heat of passion. And then…
No. Don’t even consider it.
“Enough questions.”
“Fine.” He sighed and moved his gaze to the hallway. The sudden fear
in his eyes caused my sternum to ache. Seeing the bottom of the stairs
where he’d been attacked was hard on him. “I should probably grab a few
things from my loft while I’m here.”
I weaved our fingers together. “I’ll go with you.”
He gently squeezed my hand and offered me a tight smile. We went
down the hall and to the stairs. He took deep breaths as he walked up the
steps, and his grip tightened on my hand. Blood had trailed all down those
stairs the night I’d found him.
I seethed with anger. At myself, mostly. I should’ve been there to
protect him.
But I’m here now. No one would hurt him again. Not while I still
breathed.
When he reached the door at the top of the landing, he released a shaky
breath before pushing it open. The window had been replaced, and Castor
and I had cleaned up all the shattered glass. The hole in his wall from where
he was slammed against it remained, though the smears of blood had been
cleaned. It was me who held his hand tighter right then.
“I’m okay,” Simon whispered, staring at the same wall as me. He
swallowed and stepped farther into the room.
Dust particles floated in the air as the sunlight spilling in through the
windows hit them. He released my hand and walked over to the island in
the kitchen, curling his nose at the dark brown bananas sitting in a bowl in
the center.
“That’s why I hate buying fruit. My house is where they go to die.”
I smiled. Even when reliving a traumatic moment, he found ways to
lighten the mood. It was one thing I adored about him. His inner light
touched the shadows inside me.
We didn’t stay in his loft for long. He packed more clothes, a laptop,
and some books into a bag before walking toward the door. He didn’t look
back as he left. Once back downstairs, he placed the bag in a small room
that had an ancient mini-refrigerator and a table, then returned to the main
part of the store.
“I have something for you.” I reached into my back pocket and handed
over his phone.
“You trust me now?” Simon asked, taking it. He held down the power
button to turn it back on. I had shut it off after texting Kyo that the shop
would be closed all week.
“If I didn’t trust you, you’d still be in that mansion.”
A strange expression crossed his face as he checked his phone. He
tapped the screen a few times before setting it aside.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“Simon…”
 “Just a stupid message.” He shook his head and walked out from
behind the counter. Sadness rolled off him as he touched an old radio on the
shelf. “I went on a date before meeting you that sucked, and I blocked his
number afterward. He found me on Facebook and sent me a pissy
message.”
“What did he say?” I asked, a snarl in my voice.
“It doesn’t matter.”
“It matters to me.” With a few strides, I was beside him. I grabbed his
arm and gently turned him to face me. Tears shone in his eyes.
“Goddammit. Tell me.”
“He realized I blocked him. So, he resorted to social media to track me
down just to tell me that I was a ‘fucking pig.’ Insulting me makes him feel
better, I guess.”
“Give me his name.”
Simon blinked at me. “No. The guy is an asshole, but he doesn’t
deserve to have his head ripped off.”
“I just want to talk to him,” I said, anger boiling in my veins. “That’s
all.”
“Galen?” Simon patted my chest. “Remember what we said about
lying. Apparently we’re both awful at it. Calm down. He’s not worth your
time.” He took off his glasses to wipe his eyes. “Not worth my time either.
Come on. I could use your help in the storage room.”
I snatched hold of his arm as he went to walk away and spun him back
to me. I cupped the side of his neck before bending to kiss him. The
sweetest of sounds left him as he returned the kiss, his arms winding around
me.
“You’re beautiful,” I murmured against his lips. “I want to devour
every inch of you.”
 “No devouring necessary,” Simon said with a nervous laugh. “I’m not
one for cannibalism.”
I couldn’t help but laugh.
“I still have a ways to go, but I’m learning to love my body,” he
continued. “Mean words still hurt though. That was exactly his intention
too. I was dumb and told him I was a bit insecure, so he used that against
me.”
I smoothed my hands down his sides. “You sure you don’t want me to
talk to him? I’ll be nice, I promise.”
Simon cut his eyes at me. “Somehow I don’t believe you.”
After reaching the storage room, I helped Simon log the rest of the
items that had come from Ravenwood, ones he never had the chance to
finish going through.
“Oh. What do you think about this?” he asked, holding up a necklace.
“Think it’s anything demonic?”
“No. I feel no energy coming from it.”
He nodded, marked something on his paper, then rifled through another
box of things. I paid close attention to the objects and searched for any
clues that could help us learn more about the ring, but everything appeared
to be useless junk.
It wasn’t junk to him though. His eyes lit up as he examined them. We
price-marked the items, and I helped him carry them to the main part of the
shop. There wasn’t enough room for him to place everything on display, but
we grabbed what he thought would attract the most attention and stored the
rest in the back.
I enjoyed watching him work. He had a sharp eye and vast knowledge
of nearly every object he picked up, telling me random facts. His
excitement over it all was what I enjoyed most.
 “I’m boring you, huh?” he asked after telling me about an antique
sewing machine that was used to make costumes in a traveling circus and
said to be haunted.
“Not at all.”
I could listen to him talk all day.
“Thank you for helping me,” Simon said later that evening as we left
the shop and walked toward my car. We had another thirty or so minutes
before sunset.
“You’re welcome.” I unlocked the car and placed his bag in the trunk.
“It was nice to get out of the house for a while.” He slid into the
passenger’s seat. “If it weren’t for the fact shades still have me on their
dinner menu, I’d say we could go out to eat.”
“Like a date?”
A blush crept up his neck, and he shifted his gaze to the window.
“The last time I went on an actual date, gladiators were still fighting in
arenas.”
Simon flipped around to me, eyes wide. “Seriously? I don’t know
what’s more interesting. Your huge gap in dates or how you were actually
around during gladiator days. Okay, the gladiators win. What was that even
like?”
His excitement brought a smile to my face.
“Bloody,” I answered. “Definitely not for the faint of heart.”
“Why haven’t you dated since then?”
I started the car and pulled out of the lot behind his shop, turning onto
the street. “There’s no point in it.”
“Why not? Don’t you get lonely?”
“I fuck when the urge strikes. That’s all I need. Anything more creates
too many complications.”
 “Is that how you see me, then?” Simon asked, his voice softer than
before. “As a complication?”
Why did that make my chest hurt so much?
Not knowing how to respond, I said nothing. The purring of the engine
was the only sound as I drove us home. When we returned to the mansion,
Gray pounced on Simon as soon as he got out of the car.
“How was work?” he asked, looping their arms together. “Did you sell
a lot of stuff?”
“The store’s closed on Sundays, but it was a good day.” Simon smiled
at the shorter male. “Galen helped me a lot.”
When Gray looked at me, a mischievous little grin on his face, I rolled
my eyes and kept walking.
“Come to my room,” Alastair told me telepathically.
We entered the mansion, and I turned toward the stairs. Simon looked
back at me as Gray led him down the hall. I nodded to him before
continuing to Alastair’s room on the second floor, knocking once I was
outside his door.
“Come in.”
When I walked inside, Alastair was standing in front of his vanity
wearing a silky purple robe. Glass made up two of the four walls, and the
bed was fit for a king. Which was exactly how he saw himself.
“I take it all went well today?” Alastair asked, running his fingers
through his hair as he stared at his reflection in the mirror. “No signs of
Phoenix?”
“None.”
“Good.”
I stood in the middle of his bedroom as he stepped away from his
vanity and slid off his robe, exposing his porcelain skin and toned physique.
He was unashamed of his nakedness as he walked across the room to his
closet. I moved my gaze to the window where the last light of day was
fading.
“Were you really going to erase his memory?” I found myself asking. It
had been on my mind since that morning. He was the only one of us who
had the power to erase someone’s memory, probably because his father had
been so powerful.
“Yes,” Alastair answered from inside the walk-in closet. “You know
how Belphegor is with his mind tricks. How he tortures you to see inside
your head, to find your secrets. With his memory gone, Simon would have
no secrets to tell.”
I clenched my fists. “You could’ve spoken to me first.”
“Why? It would’ve served no purpose. You would’ve become angry,
and my mind wouldn’t have changed.” The rustle of clothes reached my
ears. “There’s no sense in speaking of it now. A third option presented
itself. Your human keeps his memories, and you get to keep him. For now.”
Even though anger trickled through me, I couldn’t fight him on the
matter. Because he was right. I was given the chance to hold on to Simon, if
only for a little longer.
“Are you going to visit Joseph tonight?”
Alastair exited the closet wearing skintight black pants and a shirt that
fell open in the front. His brow furrowed as he returned to the mirror and
buttoned the shirt, his thin fingers precise in their movements. “There’s no
time for a visit. Not while shades are plaguing the city.” His hands dropped
back to his sides. “The nurse said he has a month at most.”
“I’m sorry, brother.”
When he looked at me, his guard was up. He tended to lock away his
pain. To hide it. He and I were alike in that way.
 “No need to be sorry,” he said before studying his reflection again. “I
knew this day would come eventually. Human lives are fleeting.
Temporary.” He could hide behind a mask of stoicism, yet he couldn’t hide
the slight shake in his hand as he swept it through his pale hair. “It’s a thing
you must remember if you plan to go down this same path with Simon. His
day will come too.”
I gritted my teeth as an ache pierced the center of my chest. “I enjoy
Simon’s company, but it’s nothing more than sex.”
Alastair sighed. “Of course it isn’t. Who could ever touch your heart?
Sometimes I think it’s even colder than mine.” He turned from the mirror
and faced me. “Are you good to patrol tonight?”
“Yes.”
“Then, let’s go.”

***

The King Opera house stood in the center of downtown, the building
towering over all others. People exited through the front entrance, their
voices mingling together as they discussed the performance they’d just
seen.
I landed on the rooftop and tucked my wings back, closing my eyes.
Searching. Darkness shrouded me from the humans below, yet the shadows
also hid the ravenous shades.
I sensed nothing.
Opening my eyes, I studied the street below. People got into their cars
and pulled away from the curb. Others walked down the sidewalk,
intending to pop into one of the restaurants for a late dinner.
 Alastair stepped up beside me. “This is strange. The beasts are
normally skulking through alleyways by now.”
“Castor,” I said, mind linking with him. “Are you sensing any shades
near your location?”
“No,” he responded. “I’m heading closer to the harbor to see if I can
pick up anything there.”
“If you’re waiting for my pets, you won’t find them tonight.”
I flipped around to see Phoenix. He wore faded jeans and a slim-fitted
tee, looking more like a college fuck boy than a lieutenant of the
underworld. I grabbed my dagger and charged at him.
Phoenix faded from sight and reappeared several feet away. “Still all
brawn and no brains, I see.” He stuck a hand in his pocket, casual in his
stance. “Alastair? Control your beast. We wouldn’t want him losing control.
Again, anyway. I heard you had to lock him in a cage like some out-of-
control animal once before. Fitting for him, I suppose.”
Kill, Wrath said from inside me.
Red spots danced in my vision, and I lurched toward him again, blade
drawn. He wasn’t quick enough this time. I managed to slice his muscled
bicep before he could dodge the blow completely.
“Fuck off, demon,” I spat, my body shaking with barely suppressed
rage.
Alastair placed a hand on my shoulder and leaned in to whisper in my
ear, “Breathe.”
Phoenix wiped at the blood trickling down his arm and glared at me.
“You should be thanking me, you Nephilim filth.”
“Why?” Alastair asked, his tone calm. He kept a hand on my shoulder.
The demon held out his arms, motioning to everything around him.
“The shades have been called off. There will be no attacks tonight.”
 “What are you playing at?” I asked through gritted teeth. “I know you
didn’t do it out of the kindness of your cold, dead heart.”
“Perhaps I’m sick of you and your group of winged abominations
killing them all.” He cocked his head to the side. “Or perhaps not.”
“Enough with the mind games,” Alastair said, losing patience. “You
have an infinite number of warped souls to torture and command to do your
bidding. The ones we’ve killed mean nothing to you. So why stop the
attacks?”
“How prideful you are to think yourself so important.” Phoenix stepped
closer, though he was sure to keep distance from me. “You all are nothing
but small blips on his radar.”
“His radar?” I asked. “You mean Belphegor?”
The demon’s eyes flashed red before returning to their normal shade of
dark brown.
“Something has you rattled,” Alastair said, his demeanor turning cocky.
“Is that it, then? Your boss is displeased with you and ordered you to back
off?”
“You smile now, Nephilim, but you won’t be for long.”
I rolled my eyes. “You sound like a cheesy superhero villain. At least
be original in your threats.”
And then I smiled because it reminded me of what Simon said about
him.
“You’ve wasted enough of my time already, demon,” Alastair snarled.
“Now tell me why you called off your shades.”
Phoenix lifted a finger to his lips, a smirk uplifting the edge of his
mouth. “That’s a secret.”
Then, he blinked out of sight.
 “Fuck!” I squeezed the hilt of my dagger. “I won’t rest until I can drive
this blade through his throat.”
Alastair closed his eyes for a moment, then looked at me. “I told the
others what happened. They’re heading back to the mansion. What do you
think? Do you believe Phoenix speaks the truth?”
“You’re asking my opinion, Pride? And here I thought you had all the
answers.”
“This is not the time for jabs, Galen.”
“I’m well aware.”
“Then answer the question.”
“Yes,” I said. “Phoenix wouldn’t risk showing his ugly mug around me
unless it was for good reason.”
Alastair regarded me in silence before nodding. “We should head
back.”
I unfurled my wings and lifted off the rooftop. The wind nipped at my
bare chest as I rose higher into the air. Alastair flew beside me, and I caught
him glancing in the direction of the hospital.
“Go to him,” I said.
“I can’t.” He faced ahead, brows pulling together. “We have things to
discuss. And I need to contact Lazarus.”
“He still hasn’t answered you from when he left with the ring. Do you
expect him to answer you now? Joseph might not last—”
“Enough, Galen.” Alastair’s voice was laced with venom, though
something else lingered there too. Heartache. “I’m not going to the hospital.
Do not mention it again.”
“Very well.”
Castor and Raiden arrived as soon as we did. The four of us landed in
the grass outside the mansion, retracted our wings, and walked inside.
Bellamy and Daman came in seconds later. Gray had stayed home with
Simon.
“You’re back soon,” Gray said from his spot on the couch. He was
curled up next to Simon, head on his lap.
“Everything okay?” Simon asked.
“We need to speak,” Alastair said to Gray.
Understanding dawned on Simon, and he gently moved Gray aside
before standing from the couch. “I’ll go to my room.”
I touched his arm as he passed me. It was becoming harder to keep my
hands off him. That soul-deep connection continued to swirl in my chest
each time our eyes met.
Simon placed his hand over mine before pulling away and leaving the
room. The calming effect he had on me faded as he left.
“What do you think the demons are planning?” Castor asked, leaning
against the wall and crossing his arms.
I recalled the sly grin on Phoenix’s face. “That’s a secret.”
“Whatever it is, we’ll be ready for it,” Alastair said.
“How?” Daman asked. “We know nothing. Lazarus won’t tell us a
goddamn thing about the ring. A ring Phoenix threatened to wage war over.
And now the demons back off? Are you all too blind to see it?”
“See what?” Raiden asked.
“Maybe the demons found a way to get the ring,” Daman answered.
“Impossible.” Alastair shook his head. “Lazarus took it to the celestial
realm. No demon, no matter how powerful, can step foot there. The more
likely reason is Phoenix acted on his own and Belphegor got pissed that he
was drawing attention to whatever they have planned. You know how
Belphegor is. He hates big shows of power and prefers a more subtle
approach.”
 Gray’s mouth downturned at the edges at the mention of his father. He
wrapped his blanket around his shoulders and waddled from the couch and
over to me. Knowing he sought comfort, I slipped an arm around him.
The demons had schemed, wreaked havoc, and given us a major
headache many times over the years, but it felt different this time. Whatever
Phoenix and Belphegor were planning felt much bigger than anything we’d
seen from them before.
“That’s all for now,” Alastair said, dismissing us. He then left the room.
The front door opened and softly shut moments later.
It seemed he’d decided to visit Joseph after all.
I carried Gray to his room and placed him in bed. His room fit his
personality perfectly. It was filled with cute things like stuffed animals and
colorful posters. The light-blue-and-cream color scheme projected a
relaxing atmosphere, and the ceiling above his bed lit up with fake stars.
“I like Simon,” he said, cuddling into his pillow and closing his eyes.
The center of my chest warmed. “Me too.”
Much more than I should.
Once Gray fell asleep, I turned on the moon lamp beside his bed, then
exited the room. Simon nearly bumped into me in the hallway as I shut the
door.
“Sorry,” he said, face reddening. “You’re really gentle with him. It’s
sweet.”
“I’m many things, human, but sweet isn’t one of them.”
He softly smiled. “Don’t worry. Your secret is safe with me.”
I huffed and stepped around him, trying to ignore the way my body
hummed in his presence.
I didn’t understand it. No one else had ever affected me so strongly
before. Maybe I needed a release. The run-in with Phoenix had left me
irritable and tense. When I felt like this, I either hit the gym and beat the
shit out of a punching bag, or I fucked.
“I know it’s not my place to ask,” Simon said, walking beside me down
the hall, “but did something happen with the demons—”
I grabbed his face with both hands and pushed him against the wall,
crushing my lips to his. He grunted in surprise before returning the kiss. I
breathed in his sweet scent and dipped my tongue into his mouth to taste
him. When he linked his wrists behind my neck, I picked him up off the
floor and carried him to my room.
Fucking it is, then.
He released an adorable little yelp as I tossed him on the bed and
crawled on top of him. I nuzzled his neck and slid my hand down his
stomach and popped the button on his jeans.
“Is this okay?”
“Um.” Simon noisily swallowed and arched his back as my fingers
dipped into his boxers. “What did you say?”
I chuckled before brushing my lips across the base of his throat. “Sex,
Simon. Do you want it?”
“You really have to ask?” he panted, glasses askew on his nose.
“Of course I do.” I moved his glasses back into place. “I’d never take
you against your will.”
A knot formed in the pit of my stomach at the thought alone. I
might’ve gotten many of my father’s unfavorable traits, yet that was one
thing I’d never do. To Simon or to anyone.
His expression softened. “See? You’re a good guy.” He hooked a leg
around my thigh and rolled his hips up. “Is this enough of an answer for
you?”
 I growled before slamming our mouths back together. He rubbed my
bare chest as I yanked down his jeans, taking his boxers with them, and
then I sat back to pull them down his legs. I grazed my fingertips down his
calves—one with a jagged scar from where he was bitten—and he blushed
as my eyes locked on his.
“Don’t be shy.”
“I’m not,” he said, averting his gaze. “I’ve just never had someone look
at me like that before.”
“Like what?” I kissed his scarred calf.
His blush deepened. “Like you want to eat me.”
I smirked. “Well, I did mention earlier I wanted to devour you.”
“You cannibal.”
I snarled and playfully bit at his leg. And when he giggled so hard he
snorted, my soul fucking soared. I didn’t stop to think about why. I kissed
back up his body before rejoining our lips.
I had taken my time with Simon the first time we’d fucked, but I was
too impatient right then. I needed a release too much. Needed him.
As our mouths slid together, he worked the zipper on my jeans and
pushed them down my ass. His touches were more confident than before, as
though he was more comfortable with me now. I hoped so.
“Shit,” he panted as my cock sprung free and pressed to his. “You’re
already so hard.”
I took hold of his jaw and forced his eyes to mine. “You made me this
way. What do you plan on doing about it?”
Simon bit his bottom lip and wrapped his hand around my shaft, giving
me a slow tug. I hung my head and gently nipped at his shoulder. He
stroked me a few times before I replaced his hand with mine and jerked
both of our cocks. His head fell back on the pillow, and he stared up at me
through hooded eyes.
“Galen,” he moaned, lips parting.
“Tell me what you want.” I twisted my wrist on the upstroke, and he
shuddered. I reveled in the silky-smooth feel of his cock moving against the
underside of mine.
“You,” he said. “Inside me. Now.”
“You’re not ready for me yet.” I lightly grazed my teeth along his chest
and licked each of his nipples before continuing down his body. The salty
taste of his skin combined with his scent of rain and earth had all my blood
rushing south.
He overwhelmed all my senses. Consumed me.
After grabbing the bottle of lube from my bedside drawer, I coated my
fingers and teased him a little, smoothing the pad of my thumb around his
entrance. He relaxed against my touch and softly moaned when I pushed a
finger in knuckle-deep.
Once he was stretched enough, I licked a trail up his belly and used
more lube to slick my cock. Simon grabbed a fistful of my hair and brought
our lips together, whimpering against them as I slowly pushed inside his
ass.
I broke away from his mouth and peered down at him as I went deeper.
As his hazel eyes lifted to mine, my heart knocked around in my chest.
This feeling… it meant more than sex.
He meant more.
I rocked into him, slow but deep, and kissed him again. His hands slid
up my arms and across the tops of my shoulders. I tore from his mouth with
a low hiss when his fingers sunk into the slits in my back. A tingling
warmth spread down my spine to my balls, heightening my arousal. I
faltered in my rhythm before finding it again.
“I love that so much,” Simon said, dipping his fingers inside before
gliding them around the edges. “The way you moan when I do this.”
I didn’t tell him, but it had made me self-conscious the first time he
noticed my reaction to him touching me there. It’s not every day you could
get a guy off by fingering slits in his back. Some would probably find it
weird. But not Simon.
He nibbled my ear and groaned when I snapped my hips forward. I
increased my pace inside him. Fucked him harder, faster, as emotions I
couldn’t explain welled up inside my chest.
“Right there, Galen.” Simon tipped his head back, exposing his Adam’s
apple. I nipped at it as I locked my hips in place, hitting his prostate with
every quick thrust. “Oh my god. Fuck. I’m coming.”
His ass clamped down around my cock as his orgasm slammed into
him. As he rode the waves of it, I kissed his neck. Warmth gathered at the
base of my spine before my own pleasure took me over.
“Let me hear you,” Simon said, running the tip of his nose up the side
of my neck, his fingers probing the openings in my shoulder blades.
I wouldn’t have been able to hold back my grunts even if I’d tried. I
slammed into him once, twice more, and then stilled as my body spasmed,
my cock pulsing inside him. He held me through my release and smiled
against my throat as one final moan escaped me. When the sensitivity
became too much, I pulled out of him. But instead of getting out of bed like
I usually did right after sex, I rolled to my side and tugged him to my chest.
Having him right up against me, his breaths on my skin as he came
down from his high? There wasn’t another feeling like it. I held him even
closer.
 “Uh, Galen?” Simon said, his voice a bit muffled on my collarbone.
“You’re gonna break my glasses.”
“Oh.” I pulled back to see his glasses smushed against his face. I took
them off and set them on the nightstand.
“Do you want me to go to my room?” he asked, his voice a little sad.
“If you do, I’ll just drag your ass right back.”
Simon snorted a laugh and settled against me. I pressed my face into
his soft hair, breathing him in. We should’ve probably cleaned up first, but
the late nights were getting to me, and my eyes closed of their own accord.
He felt too amazing against me. I didn’t want to move.
“Hey, Galen?”
“Hmm?”
“Thank you.”
I cracked open one eye and looked down at him. “What for?”
“For watching over me.” His voice grew softer as he started to fall
asleep. “And for… making me feel so special.”
I remembered the message he’d gotten from that asshole guy. The
mean words that had hurt him. Was he not used to men treating him well? I
had the sudden urge to track down every single one of them and tear their
heads from their shoulders.
You are special, I wanted to tell him. Yet, the words wouldn’t form.
The stubborn side of me vowed not to fall any harder for Simon.
But the realistic side knew it was already too late.
 Chapter Twelve
Simon

“Holy shit, you’re actually alive,” Kyo said first thing Tuesday
morning. “Did you have a nice vacation?”
I thought of the week at the mansion. Even though I’d been freaked the
hell out for the first few days, the atmosphere and time away from
everything had been relaxing.
“Yeah.” I flipped the sign outside the shop door to Open. “It’s good to
be back though.”
“Ah, did you miss me?” Kyo tossed me a smirk.
“Not even a little bit.”
“Uh-huh.” He sipped the iced latte he’d brought, then set it down when
the phone rang. He answered it, “Timeless Antiques & Curiosities.” A
pause. “Hmm. Let me check.” He typed something into the computer. “Yep.
We have two vintage sewing machines. One is said to have a spirit attached
to it if you’re into that kind of stuff…”
As he helped the customer over the phone, I walked toward the back
room where Galen waited. I’d told him to stay out of sight for now. Kyo
was going to have a million questions when he noticed Galen hanging
around the shop, and I wasn’t sure what to tell him yet. So for the time
being, Galen was banished to the break room.
“This is ridiculous,” Galen said, arms crossed over his wide chest. “Just
tell him I’m your boyfriend.”
 “My boyfriend?” The word made my stomach flutter, even though I
knew it was only for show. I was nothing but a complication to him anyway.
He only stayed by my side because he felt guilty for the shades nearly
killing me.
“Would you rather tell him I’m a demon-fighting Nephilim charged
with protecting you?”
I hesitated. “No.”
“Why did you hesitate?”
“I didn’t.”
“Yes, you did.”
“Fine. I was just thinking that the demon-fighting thing is something
Kyo would believe way faster than you being my boyfriend.”
Galen rolled his eyes. “If it stresses you out this much, I can stay in
your loft where he won’t notice me.”
“No.” I heaved a sigh. “You don’t have to do that.”
“Then it’s settled. I’m your boyfriend.” He tried to step around me, and
I stepped in his way. “Simon, I swear to god.”
“Everything okay back there?” Kyo asked.
“Yep!” I called back. “Just talking to myself.”
“Oh, so a typical Tuesday. Got it.”
Galen smirked at that, and I swatted at his chest. He gripped my wrist
and lifted my hand to his mouth, brushing his lips across my knuckles. In
moments like that, I could almost believe he really cared about me. But then
I remembered what he said about only wanting sex. He didn’t do anything
more.
A few nights ago, I’d told him that he made me feel special. And he
did. Which was why I dreaded the moment he walked away from me for
good. My heart might not survive it.
 “Follow my lead,” Galen said, smirking as he stepped out into the hall.
His gray eyes didn’t leave my face as he took a step toward the back door.
“Wait for me by the counter.”
“Galen!” I said in a harsh whisper.
He quietly snuck out the door, that smirk still in place. What the hell
was he doing? His playful attitude gave me butterflies though. I was used to
grumpy and brooding Galen. Not whatever this was.
Confused, I walked back to the front counter and grabbed the extra iced
coffee Kyo had brought for me. I barely tasted it as I took a drink. My mind
was elsewhere.
“A customer’s coming in later to buy the circus sewing machine,” Kyo
said as he scrolled through his phone. “I told them about the alleged
haunting attached to it, and they wanted it even more.”
“That’s nice.” I took another drink, watching as people passed by on
the sidewalk.
“I also told them I would put on a leather Speedo and spank them too.
Free of charge.”
“Cool.” I blinked and turned to him. “Wait. What?”
Kyo laughed, exposing a dimple in his cheek. “Where is your head
today? Still on vacation?”
“Seems like it. Sorry.”
The bell above the entrance dinged as Galen walked inside, ducking his
head to get through the door. I was mid-sip as he strolled toward me, a
cocky little grin curving the edge of his mouth.
“Hey, babe,” he said.
I choked on my coffee.
“Babe?” Kyo asked, glancing between the two of us.
 I was still trying not to die and coughed, wiping at my mouth. Galen
smiled as he reached forward and placed his hand on my forearm.
“You okay?” he asked. “I can give you mouth to mouth if I need to.”
I cut my eyes at him. “That won’t be necessary.”
Galen turned his attention to Kyo and held out a hand. “I’m Galen.
Simon’s boyfriend.”
“Hey.” Kyo shook his hand, still taken aback. I didn’t blame him. Yeah,
he probably would’ve believed the angels and demons thing way easier.
“Wait. You’re that guy who showed up last weekend.”
“Funny how fate works, right?” Galen casually rested against the
counter. “I came in looking for something and found him instead.”
Kyo’s gaze moved to me. “Why didn’t you tell me you started dating
someone?”
“It’s recent,” I answered, doing my best to smile. It felt super strained.
“Very recent.”
An older man entered the store and walked over to check out the wall
of clocks. Kyo slapped on his best customer service smile and approached
him.
“Ah, you’re a collector,” Kyo said after speaking to the man a moment.
“Well, I can tell you right now that some of these clocks are one of a kind.
This one here belonged to…”
I looked at Galen. “Quite the show you put on.”
He leaned toward me, a sexy gleam in his eyes. “Who said it was a
show? I did come in here to find something. The ring. I just didn’t know I’d
also find you.”
“Stop.” I looked down at the counter and traced a crack in the wood.
“This is why I didn’t want to do this.”
“Do what?”
 “Pretend that you’re my boyfriend.” The tips of my ears heated, and
my throat got a little tight. “It puts stupid thoughts in my head. Makes me
want things I can’t actually have.”
His smile finally slipped. “You want more with me?”
I nodded. My voice would crack if I tried to talk.
“I can’t give that to you,” he softly said.
“Yeah.” My voice cracked like I thought it would. “Which is why this
hurts so much.”
“Hurting you is not my intention.”
“I know.” I pushed away from the counter as tears started to sting my
eyes. “It is what it is. If Kyo asks, tell him I’m in the storage room.”
Maybe I was being overly dramatic and sensitive, but I really liked
Galen. I felt different around him. My heart fluttered, my breaths
quickened, and warmth filled my chest. My palms sweat. And when he
touched me, it was like something inside me awoke.
I had a million reasons why I shouldn’t fall for him… and I had ignored
them all.
I’m such an idiot.
Once in the storage room, I let a few tears slip free before wiping at my
face and taking deep breaths. When I walked back to the counter, Galen was
gone. I looked around, confused, before spotting him outside the shop,
standing in front of the window.
“Looks like he’s guarding the place,” Kyo said.
Because he is.
“Did that man buy a clock?” I asked to change the subject.
“Yep,” he answered. “Not to brag, but I’m the best employee you
have.”
“That’s because you’re the only one.”
 Kyo grinned. “So. Hey. What’s really going on between you and big
guy out there?”
“We’re dating.”
“I know you, Simon.” Kyo arched a brow at me. “You’re a shitty liar.”
He cocked his head at Galen. “The dude’s like your bodyguard. A very sexy
one with BDE.”
“BDE?” I asked.
“Big dick energy.”
“Oh.” Just like all the other times when I got flustered, my cheeks
heated.
“That’s beside the point though. The dude comes in last weekend, then
you spontaneously disappear for a week? You’re the least spontaneous
person I know, Simon. Did he drag you into trouble? Is that it?” Kyo’s
concern reflected in his eyes. “You’re more than just my boss. You’re my
friend. If this guy has involved you in—”
“As I said, we’re dating.” I forced a smile. “I should probably be
offended that you don’t believe me. You think I can’t get someone that
hot?”
Kyo frowned. “That’s not what I meant at all.” His gaze returned to
Galen. “Something about him just feels off. Promise me that whatever’s
going on you’ll be safe, okay?”
He was more perceptive than I’d given him credit for.
“Sure.” I patted him on the shoulder as I walked past him. “Thanks for
looking out for me.”
“Anytime.” He smiled at me before checking his phone.
I glanced out the window and saw Galen watching me. He quickly
shifted his gaze to the street in front of him. Did he want more with me too?
It doesn’t matter either way.
 We were too different.

***

The month of May arrived in the blink of an eye. The chill in the air
began to fade, if only a little, and the days grew longer. More sunlight
meant Galen and the other warriors had more time in the evening before
having to patrol.
Shades had started attacking humans again. Not many, but enough for
the warriors to return to their nightly hunts. As far as I knew, Phoenix
hadn’t visited again. Neither had the angel Lazarus. But it wasn’t like Galen
told me much. No, our conversations had mostly revolved around a few
short sentences.
“Fuck me harder.”
“Right there.”
And, “Fuck. I’m coming.”
Over the past few weeks, we’d fucked a lot. And if my ass was too
sore, Galen would suck me off or throw me on the bed for some hot frotting
action.
Knowing his stance on relationships, I had tossed aside all hope of this
thing between us leading to anything more. Recently, he’d started standing
outside more when he came with me to work or going up to my loft until I
closed the shop. Like maybe it was upsetting him too.
Our desire for each other couldn’t be ignored though. Each night,
Galen came to my bed. And each morning, he left before I woke.
Although I’d accepted the fact I couldn’t have anything serious with
him, my heart hadn’t gotten the memo. With each kiss and soft caress, I fell
harder for him.
 Friday evening, I left the mansion and approached the water’s edge.
The sea greeted me like an old friend. The scent of salt water filled my
nose, and I breathed it in, remembering what my dad used to always say
about how the sea listened.
I didn’t want to say anything though. The way I felt about Galen? It
was something I kept close to my chest. Kept locked away in my heart.
“Simon!” Gray pounced on me, wrapping his arms around my waist
and smiling up at me. “I’m about to leave and wanted to say bye.”
“Be safe,” I responded. I knew how strong they were, but the thought
of Gray fighting shades caused my chest to tighten anyway. He was just so
little and too damn sweet.
“I will.” He stepped back and spread his wings. The black feathers had
traces of light blue. “I’m paired with Bell tonight. He won’t let anything
bad happen.”
“Good.”
In the time I’d lived at the mansion, I’d seen a few of the warriors’
wings. Mainly Gray’s because he sometimes unfurled them if he got too
excited or hyped up on sugar—thanks to Raiden.
However, I still hadn’t seen Galen’s wings. I had touched the tops of
them when we had sex, feeling the silky softness of the feathers beneath my
fingertips as I brought him to orgasm. But whenever he left to patrol, he’d
always walk away from me before flying off. I wanted to see him that way,
standing tall with black wings fanning outward.
I bet no one would be more beautiful. More devastating.
Gray lifted off the ground and joined Bellamy in the air before the two
of them flew away. I watched after them, still amazed by the sight. I’d
probably never get used to it.
 I turned my attention back to the ocean. A light breeze came off the
water, and I closed my eyes as it ruffled my hair.
“Telling the sea your secrets?”
His voice never failed to send my heart racing.
“No.” I looked at Galen as he came to stand at my side. He wore no
shirt, and I followed the lines of his abdominal muscles down to where they
disappeared into his jeans. I had traced those same muscles with my tongue
last night before taking him into my mouth. The memory caused my pants
to feel a bit more snug. “I’m just thinking.”
“I came here to think too,” Galen said, his gaze fixed on me. “I wonder
if the same thing troubles us both.”
There it was again, that softness in his eyes. I’d seen it many times over
the past few weeks. Conflicting emotions jumbled inside my chest. It was
hard to read Galen sometimes.
“I guess only the sea knows,” I said, trying to ignore the ache in my
chest. “Are you about to leave for patrol?”
“No. Alastair told me to stay here tonight.”
“Oh.”
Silence passed between us, and with each second, my heart ached
more.
“Simon…” Galen turned to me.
“You don’t have to say anything.” I tilted my head up to meet his gaze.
I didn’t want to hear him apologize for the millionth time for not returning
my feelings.
“I loathe that sadness on your face.” He slid a hand to the side of my
neck.
Stars began to appear in the darkening sky above us, and I stared at
them a moment. Silent.
 “It’s not the first time I’ve fallen for a guy who can’t return my
feelings.” I gently pushed his hand aside. “I’m only here until you guys
think it’s safe for me to go home, whether that’s a week, a month, or a year
from now. My memory will be erased when that happens, right?”
He clenched his jaw. “Alastair thinks you’d be a liability. But I don’t
want him to take your memory of me.”
“Why?” I asked, too emotionally beat down to hold it in. “It would be
easier for me not to remember you.”
Galen flinched, and I instantly regretted my words.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I didn’t mean that I—”
“No. You’re right.” Galen dropped his gaze to the sand beneath his
boots. “Once you leave this place, all ties will be cut with you. It would be
cruel of me to let you live with your heartache.”
“What about yours?”
His gray eyes moved to me. “My heartache?”
I nodded. “You act like you don’t feel anything for me, but I see it in
your eyes, Galen. I feel it in your touch.”
“It doesn’t matter what I feel. Nothing more can hap—”
“Why?” I asked, my voice rising. “Why can’t anything happen?
Because you’re not fully human? I don’t care about that.”
“Simon—”
“No. You listen to me for once.” I poked his chest. He glanced down at
my hand, a weird expression crossing his face. It appeared to be a
combination of shock and amusement. “I know I’m an idiot, okay? I tried
so damn hard not to fall for you, but I fell anyway, you big asshole. These
weeks with you have been the best of my life. Strange and downright crazy.
But amazing.”
“Did you just call me an asshole?”
 “Sure did.”
Humor danced in his eyes. “Such an odd human. You do know I could
tear you apart with my bare hands, right?”
I stepped closer. “Your hands have done many things, Galen. But
hurting me isn’t one of them.”
The softness in his expression made my stomach flutter. He brought me
against his chest. “You haven’t seen the real me, Simon. The real me is
ugly. Angry.” A distant gleam surfaced in his eyes. “A monster.”
I recalled Raiden’s story of how Galen nearly let Wrath consume him at
one time. Was that what he was referring to? What had happened to make
him that way?
“That’s not the real you,” I said, resting my head on his chest. His skin
was so warm. I took comfort in his sandalwood scent. “You’re kind and
gentle despite what you say. You’re a protector. You fight against the anger
inside you instead of unleashing it. A monster wouldn’t do that. But a good
man would.”
Galen stared down at me, his mouth set in a hard line. His eyes gave
him away though. “You have too much faith in me.”
“No. You just don’t have nearly enough faith in yourself.” I locked my
hands behind his neck. I felt a shift between us. This conversation would
change everything, whether it be for good or worse. “Tell me you don’t
want me and I’ll walk away right now.”
“It’s not that simple.” His Adam’s apple bobbed in his throat as he
swallowed. “Where would you even go? You’re stuck here until I know
Phoenix won’t pursue you.”
I breathed out a short laugh. “I’m being serious.”
“So am I.” Galen bent and pressed his face into the top of my hair. “Of
course I want you, you ridiculous human. How could I not? But wanting
you isn’t enough. You have no future with me. Not a happy one anyway.”
“Let me be the judge of that.”
“Loving me is dangerous. I can’t give you more than my body, Simon.”
Tears stung my eyes. “But you marked me. Doesn’t that mean
something to you?”
The bite mark he’d given me a month ago had faded. The first time I’d
looked in the mirror and noticed it was gone, lead had dropped into my gut.
I had liked belonging to him, liked being the only one to ever wear his
mark.
“It does mean something,” he whispered, looking toward the sea. “Yet,
it changes nothing. The last time I gave my heart to someone, I nearly
destroyed everything I hold dear. Every single second of every day, I battle
against the beast inside me. And at one time, I became so blinded by rage
that I couldn’t control that beast anymore.”
The pain in his voice clawed at my heart. I wanted to take that pain
away from him.
“Will you tell me what happened?” I asked.
I expected him to ignore me or change the subject like usual.
Galen exhaled before holding me a little tighter. “It’s not a happy
story.”
“Tell me anyway.”
“Very well. His name was Marcus,” Galen said, his tone distant just
like the look in his eyes. “I first met him when I attended a gladiator match.
I thought the games to be barbaric, though I took a sick satisfaction from
them. It made me feel better about my own depravity. Humans could be
such dreadful and cruel creatures. If the Creator still loved them despite that
wickedness, it gave me hope that perhaps one day I’d be loved by Him as
well.” He glanced over at me. “I was silly back then.”
 “I don’t think it’s silly. So you met Marcus while watching the games?”
“Yes,” Galen answered. “He was the one in the arena.”
I gaped. “He was a gladiator?”
“A famous one, at that. The crowd cheered his name as he stood
covered in blood, raising his sword as dead men lay at his feet.” Galen
smiled, and that nagging jealous sensation returned to my chest. I’d wanted
to know though. Needed to. “I was intrigued by him and met with him after
the match. We…” He looked away from me. “Well, you don’t need all the
details. After weeks of us… seeing each other… I purchased him.”
“You purchased him?” I asked, appalled.
“Many gladiators at the time chose to fight for honor and glory, but
some were forced to because they were slaves,” Galen answered. “I paid off
his debt to release him from his former master. Even after I freed him,
Marcus chose to stay by my side. We built a home together. A life.”
“What about your brothers? You didn’t live with them?”
He shook his head. “Back then, we had our own lives. We still kept in
touch but lived separately. Marcus and I were happy. For a short time, at
least. And then that happiness was ripped away.” Galen moved his gaze to
the sky, his shoulders tensing. “After we defeated Lucifer and most of his
generals, my father included, the rest of his dark army fled. The demons
were confined to the underworld. When I met Marcus, we hadn’t come
across any demon activity in years. It was a rare time of peace for us. And
like a fool, I let my guard down.”
My stomach knotted up as I suspected what happened.
He continued. “What we didn’t know? In those years of supposed
peace, Belphegor was gaining power and building an army of his own.
When he finally attacked, we were taken by surprise. I came home one
evening to find Marcus outside. He’d just checked on the animals because
rain was expected. For having been a ferocious gladiator, he had such a
kindness to him. I remember him turning to smile at me. That’s when the
demon appeared.” Galen’s hand tightened into a fist. “His throat was sliced
so deep it nearly decapitated him. I caught him as he fell and screamed as
his blood puddled around us both. I tried to heal him, but our powers have
limits. He was already dead. I had never felt such pain before. Or such
rage.”
It made sense now. The man Galen loved had been killed right in front
of him. His anger had then consumed him.
“What happened after that is somewhat of a blur,” Galen said. “I
remember fighting demons with my brothers, my anger only intensifying
with each one I killed. Lazarus appeared with an army of angels, and
Belphegor fled, taking his demons with him. But even after the fighting was
done, I couldn’t calm down. The bloodlust took me over, and I started
attacking innocent people. Lazarus locked me away in a cell outside of the
celestial realm. It was the only thing strong enough to hold me. My mind
was gone, Simon. All I knew was anger. I wanted everyone to suffer.”
“How did you come back?”
“Gray,” he answered. “Alastair begged Lazarus not to kill me before
approaching my cage. I slammed against the bars, grinding my teeth so hard
I tasted blood. And then I heard a small voice say my name. I looked down
to see Gray with huge tears in his eyes. He reached through the bars and
grabbed my hand. It brought some sanity back to me. The rage then turned
to grief as I fell to my knees and cried for what felt like hours. I swore to
myself that I’d never fall in love again. It’s too dangerous.”
“I can’t really argue with your decision now,” I said, my heart sinking.
“God. I feel so selfish.”
 “You’re not selfish for wanting love, Simon. That’s only human. I’m
the selfish one. I brought you here and let myself get close to you despite all
the reasons why I shouldn’t. I apologize for that.”
My heart weighed heavily and ached as I absorbed everything he’d
said. I wanted to slap him for walking into my life. I wanted to call him an
asshole and shove him away from me. But I also wanted to hold on to him
and never let go.
“You’re such a jerk,” I said, pressing myself closer to him. “I should
punch you.”
Galen’s body shook with a light laugh. There was something sad about
it. “I’d let you. I deserve far worse.”
“No, you don’t. You told me from the start that it was just sex. It’s my
fault for getting attached.”
“I never marked Marcus, you know,” Galen said. “He never touched
my shoulder blades either.”
I peered up at him. “He didn’t?”
“I always took him from behind so his hands never wandered. He
didn’t even know I was a Nephilim.” Galen lifted a hand to my cheek,
wiping away a stray tear that escaped. “I was so desperate to live a normal
life back then that I kept secrets from him. You’re smiling.”
“No, I’m not.”
“It pleases you to know you’re the only one.” He lowered his face to
my neck and gently bit me right above my collarbone. I moaned and tilted
my head back to give him better access. He grazed his teeth back up my
throat before placing his mouth beside my ear. “This is why being with you
scares me, Simon. My body aches for yours. My lips yearn to taste you. My
hands long to touch your soft skin. You calm the anger inside my veins.”
“I do?”
 “Mhm.” He kissed my earlobe, and shivers moved along my skin. In a
low, husky voice, he then said, “When I’m with you, I can breathe so much
easier. My soul feels lighter. I say I can let you go, that I can keep you at a
distance, but the truth is, I crave you like I’ve never craved anyone else.
And the thought of you leaving pains me. It’s why, deep down, I know I’m
fucked.”
The rasp in his voice so close to my ear, the warmth of his body as he
pressed against me, and the words he spoke—all I could think about was
dragging him to my room and fucking him senseless.
“I’m sorry,” I managed to say.
He surprised me by laughing. “You should be sorry. For close to a
thousand years, I’ve kept the promise I made to myself, never getting close
to anyone. Then you come along with your nerdy wardrobe, quirky
personality, and hazel eyes I get lost in, and all reason goes out the
window.”
“My clothes aren’t nerdy. They’re—”
Galen tipped my chin up and kissed me. It only lasted a moment, but it
was enough to make me weak in the knees.
“So what does this mean?” I asked, searching his face for answers.
“I’m not sure. I still don’t think it’s a good idea for us to be together.
But I’m tired of seeing that sad look on your face, Simon. I’m tired of lying
to myself.”
It wasn’t the answer I’d hoped for, but it was the only one he could
give at the moment. Emotions hardly ever made sense. They were
complicated. Sometimes messy.
“Come on.” He linked our fingers and led me away from the water’s
edge. “I want to show you something.”
 “It better be somewhere I haven’t seen yet,” I mumbled. “If it’s your
bed, I’m going to throttle you. And then fuck you. But throttle you first.”
When he laughed again, it sounded so… carefree. Light. The heaviness
in the air leftover from his story drifted away. Galen turned to face me, a
smile hitching up one side of his mouth.
And then he spread his wings.
I stumbled from the shock of it, and his arms were around me in
seconds, keeping me from falling.
“Easy, little human,” he said, still with that smile. “Your life span is
already depressingly short. Don’t make it shorter by tripping over your own
two feet.”
I couldn’t even bitch at him for the jab at my lack of gracefulness. I
was too stunned.
“Your wings…” They appeared to be the biggest of all the brothers.
The black feathers reminded me of midnight, and when he fanned them out
wider, I saw shimmers of deep red. “You’re beautiful, Galen.”
If I wasn’t mistaken, he seemed to blush at that. He held out a hand.
“Do you trust me?”
“What is this, Aladdin?” But I placed my hand in his anyway.
“Well, I don’t have a magic carpet.” He pulled me flush against his
chest. “But if you rub my magic lamp, white stuff comes out.”
I swatted at his shoulder, and he laughed.
“Turn around,” he said, nuzzling my cheek.
Confused, I turned my back to him and stared at the sea in front of me.
His arms wrapped around my waist from behind. Understanding slammed
into me.
“Galen. No.” I tried to flee.
“Hold still.” He brought me back to him.
 “Promise you won’t drop me?”
Another chuckle rumbled in his chest. “I swear it.”
His arms came around me again, and I gripped them. Perhaps too
tightly, but whatever. His wings flapped once, then a second time, before
we started to lift from the ground. As my feet hovered over the sand with
nothing but air beneath them, it felt like my stomach dropped out of me.
“I guess this is a bad time to tell you I’m afraid of heights.”
“I won’t let any harm come to you.” Galen rested his chin on the top of
my shoulder. “Now look ahead. Don’t close your eyes.”
“What about puking? Because I might.”
“I’ll go slow.” He took us higher into the air. His arms remained
secured around my waist as I watched the ground stretch farther and farther
below us. As nervous as I was, I trusted him. He wouldn’t let me fall.
Once we were higher in the air, he bent his body slightly forward to fly
straight. The view was incredible. Even though the sun had set, I could see
the ocean below us, and when I looked around me, stars twinkled in the
infinite night sky.
“You can let go if you want,” he whispered in my ear. “Hold out your
arms and feel the air against your skin.”
I gripped his forearms tighter. “No, thanks. I’m good.”
He laughed again before dipping low, then shooting higher. My
stomach flipped like I was on a roller coaster. I saw his wings from my
peripherals, the feathers gleaming in the night as they glided on the breeze.
He nuzzled the back of my neck, and I smiled, feeling warmth spread
through my veins.
“Have you had enough?” he asked.
“No. Not yet.” Slowly, I lifted one hand off him and held my arm out to
my side, wiggling my fingers as air pushed against them. I then let go with
the other, battling a wave of nerves. I nearly grabbed onto him again, but I
took a deep breath and spread both arms out. Putting my trust in him.
“See?” he whispered in my ear. “I’ve got you.”
Why did that make my heart beat like crazy?
Galen soared through the air for a while longer before taking us to the
top of a cliff. Once my feet were back on solid ground, he released me and
tucked in his wings. I sat down, listening as the sea crashed against the
rocks below.
“It’s so beautiful,” I said, staring up at the moon and all the stars
around it. The night held a chill, and I burrowed more into my sweatshirt.
“Come here.” Galen sat beside me and pulled me against him. The
warmth of his body instantly chased away my chill bumps. I snuggled in
closer.
“Can I ask a question?”
“What would you do if I said no?”
I smiled over at him. “Probably ask it anyway.”
The edge of his mouth curved up.
“Are you the only one who’s sworn off relationships?” I asked,
thinking of the other warriors.
“In a way.” His hand caressed my arm as he stared at the stars. “The
rest of them vary. Daman hates humans and only dates supernatural beings.
Bellamy doesn’t do relationships because he loves the variety of sleeping
around. Castor and Raiden will occasionally meet a human they care for,
but they tend to stay away from mortals as much as they can.”
“Why?”
“Because humans grow old.” Galen’s forehead creased as he frowned.
His hold on me tightened a bit too. “Vampires never age. Neither do most
other non-humans. The ones who do age do so at a very slow rate. It’s too
painful to fall for your kind.”
“Yeah, that would suck. You’d think there would be some type of
magic or something to either make a human immortal or to at least stop the
aging process.”
“There is.”
I snapped my head toward him. “Really? Then what’s the big deal?”
“Because it’s a binding magic,” Galen answered. “Two life forces are
bound as one.”
I failed to see the problem. “So?”
“So. If one dies, so will the other.” He looked down at me, gaze hard.
“The human won’t age or get sick, but they can still be killed. A knife to the
heart. Drowning. Tripping over their own two feet and cracking their head
open.” His eyes softened as he said the last part. “For me and the others,
that’s a risk we can’t take. We’re all that stands between mankind and the
dark forces that wish to destroy it. By binding our life force with someone
else, we weaken ourselves in the process.”
“Oh.”
“You asked about the mating ritual once before. That’s what it is. The
joining of souls.”
“I see.” That explained why none of them had ever taken mates before.
“There used to be eight of us.”
“Huh? I thought there were only seven deadly sins.”
“The eighth one is less known,” Galen said. “His name was Kallias,
and he was the avatar of Melancholy.”
“What happened to him?”
Galen took a breath, held it, then blew it out. “He died long ago, before
we defeated Lucifer and locked him away. Kallias fell in love with a mortal
man named Elasus, a warrior from Laconia.”
I ran the name over in my head. “Sparta?”
He nodded. “Kallias met him on the battlefield. Demons were
possessing humans and starting wars. We went to strike down the general
leading the attack, which just so happened to be the army opposing the
Spartans. I think it was love at first sight for them both. Their souls just
connected. After a year together, Kallias performed the binding ritual, so
that his Spartan would never grow old.”
“But then Elasus was killed?”
“A demon took off his head,” Galen said, his fist clenching. “Kallias
dropped to his knees and screamed for his lover. We were all standing
around him, feeling his heart break. And then he died too. The life left his
eyes, and I felt a pain deep in my core, like something being ripped from
me. I still feel that pain sometimes.”
“That’s horrible.” I pressed closer to him, wishing I could help take
some of that pain away. “So after Kallias died, the rest of you decided to
never bind your life forces with anyone?”
“Yes. Alastair nearly broke that vow once though,” Galen continued,
his voice soft. “He fell in love with a man named Joseph.”
“What happened?”
When he looked at me, it was with sad eyes. “Joseph is currently in the
hospital. Hospice care. He’s dying of cancer. Alastair visits him when he
can, but it’s becoming too painful for him the more Joseph fades away.”
“Can Alastair not heal him?” I asked, putting a hand on my chest where
I carried a gruesome scar. “You healed me.”
“I barely healed you,” he said. “If not for my brothers adding their
powers as well, you would’ve died. Our powers have limits. We can’t bring
anyone back from the dead, cure cancer, or heal most life-threatening
wounds. Angels can. But not us. And believe me, we tried. When Joseph
got his diagnosis, all seven of us tried to heal him to no avail.”
“That must’ve been a hard decision for Alastair to make,” I said. My
view toward the blond warrior softened a bit. “Not performing the binding
ritual on Joseph.”
“Our duty must always come first.” Galen returned his gaze to the sky.
“Kallias’ death taught us that.”
“Has Phoenix or any of the other demons ever gone after Joseph?”
“A few times,” Galen answered. “But Joseph could more than take care
of himself. Alastair taught him how to fight them off. It helped that he had
combat training from his time as a Marine.”
“What about now?”
“Alastair placed anti-demon warding outside Joseph’s hospital room so
they can’t find him. Phoenix isn’t interested in Joseph though. He despises
us, but chasing down every human we’ve fucked or spent time with is a
waste of time to him.”
I chewed my bottom lip. “Then why is he so set on me?”
“I don’t know. But don’t worry. You’ll go back to your life someday. I
swear it.”
As we sat on the cliff overlooking the long stretch of ocean, my head
on Galen’s shoulder and his comforting scent surrounding me, I tried to
imagine going back to my old life. A life without him in it.
I couldn’t go back.
I didn’t want to.
 Chapter Thirteen
Galen

I stared at the back of Simon’s head as he slept nestled in my arms. The

early morning light came through the windows, though dark clouds
gathered in the distance. A promise of the storm to come. The forecast said
it was supposed to rain for the next three days.
The scent of rain already had hold of me though.
I buried my face in Simon’s soft hair, breathing him in. He calmed me,
soothed the anger that always had me in its grip. And yet, I continued to
fight my feelings for him.
I had to.
Losing Marcus, watching him die, had thrown me over the edge. I
nearly hadn’t come back from it. However, what I felt for Simon went
beyond that. I had never felt such a strong urge to protect someone… to
love them. If I allowed him into my heart, there would be no coming back if
I lost him. Which was why I needed to let him go.
The problem with that?
I didn’t think I could. Not anymore. I was already in too deep.
Goddammit.
The alarm on Simon’s phone went off, and he jolted from sleep before
reaching over to silence it. He rubbed at his eyes before putting on his
glasses and turning over to face me.
“Morning,” he croaked in an adorable voice.
 “Good morning.”
“You coming in to work with me today?”
“Like you even need to ask.” I rolled him to his back and dropped a
kiss to his collarbone. “I enjoyed flying with you in my arms last night.”
“Me too,” Simon responded, resting a hand on my side. “Once I
stopped screaming anyway.”
I glided my lips up his neck and nibbled at his jaw. “The only
screaming you did last night was when I took you to my bed.”
Simon trembled beneath me. “Don’t do that.”
“Do what?” I slid a hand down his ribs.
“Get me all worked up,” he said, his voice shaking. “I need to be at my
store by eight thirty to open.”
I glanced at the time. “We have an hour.”
“Galen…” He cracked a smile as I kissed down his body. “God. You’re
insatiable.”
“Can you blame me?” I gripped his base and brushed my lips over his
cock head, loving the way he sucked in a breath. “Every inch of you is
delectable. I could suck your cock every morning and night and still not
have enough.”
“Well, I’m totally okay with you testing that theory.”
I grinned up at him before taking his length to the back of my throat.
His fingers knotted in my hair, and his head tipped back. Fuck, he was
beautiful.
In that moment, I didn’t care about my own pleasure. I just wanted to
please him, to hear his moans as I brought him to orgasm.
Simon panted as his stomach muscles tensed, and then he was shooting
down my throat, his fingers tightening in my hair. A swell of pride filled my
chest, as did that familiar urge to make him mine in all ways possible. The
latter one I did my best to ignore.
I placed a single kiss to his inner thigh as his cock began to soften, and
then I moved back up his body. He hooked an arm around my neck and
pressed our foreheads together. He was still trying to catch his breath.
“Thanks for that,” he said.
“You’re welcome.” I pulled away to get out of bed.
He grabbed my wrist. “I didn’t say you could leave just yet. I’m not
done with you.”
I arched a brow at him. “Is that so?”
When he yanked me back down, I didn’t fight him. He kissed me
before licking down my neck and tweaking both of my nipples. His hand
came around my shaft, and he teased my tip with his tongue.
I enjoyed seeing him blossom like this. When we’d first had sex, he’d
been so self-conscious. Timid. But he’d really come into his own over the
past month, not only gaining confidence in bed but also out of it. He
backtalked me a lot more now. The pesky little human.
It didn’t take long before tingles shot down my spine. A grunt left me
as my cock jerked, and I came. He swallowed every drop before wiping his
mouth with the back of his hand and giving me a slightly bashful smile.
I scooped him up out of bed and threw him over my shoulder. His soft
laughs as I carried him to the bathroom warmed me from the inside out.
We showered together before dressing for the day. By the time we were
finished, it was almost eight o’clock. We rushed out the door, saying
goodbye to a sleepy Gray on our way out. He stood in the doorway, rubbing
his eyes as we hurried to the garage and got in my car.
“Sorry we didn’t have time for breakfast,” I said once we were on the
road, heading toward his store. The sound of the windshield wipers filled
the cab, as did heavy drops of rain hitting the roof.
“Worth it.” Simon smiled. “I had something a lot better.”
My cock twitched at the memory of his lips stretched around it, and I
shifted in my seat. After we got to his store, I helped him open up the shop
before walking to the café a block away and grabbing coffees to go and a
breakfast croissant for him.
Kyo was there when I returned. In the beginning, I could tell he hadn’t
trusted me as far as he could throw me. As the weeks passed, he’d eased up
though. A little anyway.
“Morning,” Kyo said as I walked through the front door.
“Good morning.” I gave Simon the bag with the croissant and placed
his coffee in front of him before handing a coffee to Kyo. “Got one for you
too.”
“Damn, Si,” Kyo said, glancing at Simon before smiling at me. “I think
your boyfriend is winning me over more and more each day.”
Guilt gripped my heart, but I faked a smile.
When the day came for Simon’s memory to be erased, Kyo’s would
need to as well. All traces of me would be wiped from their lives.
I looked toward the door as soon as it opened. My senses picked up a
hint of magic. Whoever entered the store wasn’t an ordinary human. She
appeared to be in her late twenties with long blonde hair braided down one
side and dressed in a colorful pullover, white shirt tucked into the front of
her high-waisted skinny jeans, and Gladiator-style sandals.
A witch.
“Welcome to Timeless Antiques & Curiosities,” Simon greeted her.
“Can I help you find anything this morning?”
“Yes, actually.” She approached him at the counter, and I stepped
closer. Witches often worked with demons. Phoenix could’ve sent her to
hurt Simon or put some type of tracing magic on him. “I’m Clara Locksley.
My grandmother owned Ravenwood Mansion, and I was told that you
received some of her belongings?”
She was connected to Ravenwood?
“Uh, yes.” Simon adjusted his glasses. “I bought some crates from the
auction house. There were a few dolls, glass figurines, a typewriter, lamps,
and some pictures.”
“What about a small wooden box?” she asked, then made a shape with
her hands. “It was about this big and locked. Symbols were burned into the
outside of it.”
I moved to Simon’s side. “Why do you ask?”
Simon peered up at me before looking at her.
Clara studied me with a narrowed brow. Could she sense that I wasn’t
human? I felt the magic flowing through her veins. Her power was strong.
“A family heirloom,” she answered, distrust ringing in her tone.
Simon quietly coughed. I knew he must’ve been thinking about the
night I broke into his storage room and gave the same excuse. In Clara’s
case, it might’ve been true though.
“I hate to disappoint you, but the box was stolen,” Simon said. “I only
had it for a day before someone broke in.”
“Shit,” Clara cursed under her breath. “This isn’t good.”
“Why?” I asked. I attempted to use my power on her to see if she had
ill will toward us, but her magic blocked me. Typical witch.
“Because that box has been in my family for many years,” Clara
responded. “Passed down from generation to generation.”
“If it’s so important, then why was it sold in the first place?” Kyo asked
before taking a bite of Simon’s croissant.
 “I’ve been living in London for the past year,” Clara answered. “When
I learned of my grandmother’s passing, I came as soon as I could. By the
time I arrived, my father had already sold a majority of her things despite
her leaving the box to me in her will. I’ve spent the past few weeks tracking
where everything was sold. This shop was my last hope.”
“You make it sound like life or death,” Kyo said.
“For some, it very well might be.” Clara took a deep, calming breath.
Anger rolled off her. Aimed toward her father, perhaps? “Is there anything
you can tell me that might help me track it down? Do you know who took
it? What they looked like? This is of grave importance. The smallest detail
could help.”
“Kyo?” Simon turned to him. “Can you watch the store for a bit?”
“Of course.”
Simon then looked at Clara. “There’s a break room in the back. If you
have the time, I can make us some coffee and tell you all I know.”
Relief flooded her face. “That would be great.” Her gaze shifted to me.
“I take it you’ll be coming too?”
I only stared at her.
Simon lightly nudged my ribs and whispered, “Be nice.”
“I am being nice. This is my nice face.”
He rolled his eyes before stepping out from behind the counter and
ushering Clara down the hall. I followed behind them, eyes not leaving the
witch. One wrong move and I’d have my blade at her throat.
“Have a seat,” Simon told her once we were in the room, motioning to
the table. He filled the coffee machine with water, added scoops of coffee,
then hit brew.
There were only two chairs, so I stood against the wall, arms crossed
and gaze still on her.
 Her eyes were on me too. They narrowed as she looked me up and
down. “You a demon?”
Simon plopped down in the chair across from her, surprise written all
over his face. The way she’d mentioned it so casually took him off guard.
“No,” I said, tone flat. “Quite the opposite.”
“Angel, then.” Clara folded her hands in front of her. “They can be just
as bad.”
“Any being is capable of wickedness,” I said, my suspicion of her
growing. “Angels are no exception. Though, I’m curious how you knew
that.”
“Let’s just say you’re not the first supernatural being I’ve met. I know
all about angels, demons, vampires, reapers, all of it.” She focused on
Simon. “At least you’re human.”
“Last I checked,” he said. I pressed my lips into a line to keep from
smiling. His brow dipped in the center as he rested his arms on the table,
becoming serious. “What can you tell us about the ring?”
“The ring.” Clara tilted her head. “So you opened the box.”
“Um.” Simon gave her a sheepish grin. “Well, it was kind of an
accident. The lock popped open on its own.”
“Because the power contained inside wanted to be released. And it
sensed your ignorance.” She rubbed at her temple, squeezing her eyes shut
before opening them again. “When you opened the lid on that box, it was
like a beacon for the creatures who seek it. No wonder it was stolen.”
I would wait to tell her that I was the one who stole it. I wanted
information first.
“What is the ring’s purpose?” I asked.
“I don’t know for sure,” she answered. “All I know is something dark
is attached to it. A power that was bound to it long ago. My grandmother
warned me to never open the box.”
“Why was there warding against angels and demons?” I asked,
stepping closer.
“And why should I tell you anything?” Clara cut her eyes at me. “You
could be one of the monsters my grandmother warned me about.”
“Don’t test me, witch.” Anger flared in my veins, and a low growl
rumbled in my chest. “Now answer the question.”
“Easy, big guy,” Simon said, placing his hand on my arm. Instantly, the
anger subsided. He looked at Clara. “We’re just trying to understand. We
know demons are after the ring, but we don’t know why.”
“How do I know I can trust you?” she asked.
“You can’t know for sure,” Simon responded. “But I hope that you do.
I get the feeling we’re on the same side here.”
Her gaze moved to me again. “Demons are your enemy?”
I nodded.
Distrust shone in her eyes. Simon offered her a kind smile before
standing and going over to the coffee machine. He rinsed out three mugs
before filling them with coffee, adding cream and sugar to his before asking
Clara how she liked hers prepared.
“Black is fine,” she answered, relaxing a little more.
Did Simon have the same effect on her that he did on me? He seemed
to calm those around him. Probably his kind nature.
Simon placed a cup in front of her before handing me mine. I thanked
him and pressed my face against the side of his head, the tightness in my
chest dissolving at the smell of rain in his sandy-brown hair.
Clara regarded us, touching the place over her heart. “I feel your
connection. It’s strong.”
“Our connection?” Simon asked.
 “Two souls who belong together,” she said. “Sorry if that sounds weird.
I’ve always been attuned to those around me and can pick up on things like
that.”
Simon sat back down at the table, smiling up at me. There was sadness
in his eyes though. Our conversation last night put a lot into perspective for
him, for both of us. He understood why I didn’t want a relationship. Why it
was dangerous for me to have one.
“Okay.” Clara blew out a breath and sat forward in her chair. “I still
don’t know if I can trust you, but I don’t have another choice right now. As
I said earlier, the box has been passed down in my family for generations.”
“Why?” I asked.
“To keep it safe. More specifically, to keep it hidden.” She wrapped
both hands around her mug of coffee and stared at the table. “My
grandmother put up warding all around her mansion too as extra defense. I
never saw the ring inside, but she told me about it. Centuries ago, probably
longer, one of my ancestors was asked to create the ring.”
“For who?” I leaned against the small counter.
Clara nibbled her lip. “A group of demons led by a fallen angel.”
Belphegor.
“I never learned why the angel wanted the ring, but supposedly, it was
meant for someone powerful,” she continued. “My ancestor realized she’d
made a mistake by helping them create the ring, so in an effort to atone, she
vowed to spend the rest of her life keeping it far away from them. Demons
have been after my family ever since.”
Someone powerful. Unease trickled through me.
“Why did your father sell it?” Simon asked.
She scowled. “My father isn’t a witch, and he’s always been cynical
about it all. He fought with my grandmother all the time, saying she was a
silly, superstitious old woman. Now all of her things are sold. Priceless
items I’ll never get back. I should’ve never left home.”
“What happens if the demons get a hold of the ring?” Simon asked.
“Other than the end of the world as we know it?” Clara released a
humorless laugh. “I guarantee demons stole the box from you. And now
they—”
“The demons didn’t steal it,” I interjected. “I did.”
She narrowed her green eyes at me. “You stole it?”
“It’s kind of how we first met,” Simon said, his cheeks darkening. “I
attacked him with a baseball bat.”
“You tried to attack me. But the fight left you when I pinned you to the
wall.”
His blush deepened.
“Look, guys. I don’t want to hear about your kinky bedroom fun.
Where’s the box? If you took it, I need it back.”
“I can assure you it’s safe.” I took a sip of my coffee before placing it
down. “That’s all you need to know.”
“Like hell it is.” Clara stood from her chair. “The ring is my
responsibility. Not yours. It’s my duty to protect it.”
“And it’s my duty to protect mankind. So you see how we’re at an
impasse here. The ring is somewhere no demon or fallen angel can reach it.
Consider the burden of it lifted off your shoulders.”
“That’s not for you to decide.”
“Too bad. You should be thanking me for taking it. Otherwise, it would
be in demon hands by now.”
Simon glanced between the two of us as Clara and I glared at each
other. Well, she did the glaring. For a five-foot-nothing female, she was
feisty and could definitely hold her own.
 “How about I give you my number?” Simon said, cutting through the
tension in the room. “That way we can stay in contact should anything
happen. Sound good?”
Clara’s hard expression lost some of its edge as she looked at him. “I’m
not happy about this. At all. But I feel your honesty. Even if he’s an ass”—
she glanced at me—“I can tell both of you are at least on my side.”
Simon exchanged numbers with her, and she cast me another “go to
hell” glare before she left the shop.
“She’s nice,” he said, then poked me in the side. “Unlike someone else
I know.”
I scoffed. “No blood was shed. I’d say I behaved quite well.”
After Simon returned to the front counter, I stayed in the back room
and tapped into Alastair’s thoughts.
“I have information on the ring.”
“Tell me,” Alastair responded.
I told him about Clara and everything I learned.
“So it was created by a witch for someone powerful,” he said once I
finished. “Only one being comes to mind.”
“The Morningstar.”
I felt Alastair’s fear through our mind link. I was certain he felt mine
too.
“He’s locked away for good,” Alastair said. “Even if the ring is meant
for him, it makes no difference.”
I hoped he was right. Yet, I couldn’t forget the shock on Lazarus’ face
when he saw the ring. He’d said its existence was impossible.
When I walked back to the front of the store, Simon was speaking with
two older women about a lamp. They seemed way more interested in him.
 “He has no idea they’re flirting with him,” Kyo said, chin resting on his
hand as he leaned on the counter. His black hair swept across his brow and
flipped out a bit on the sides.
I smiled as Simon continued describing when the lamp was made and
why it was so special. Meanwhile, the two women were looking at him like
he was a snack they wanted to put in their oversized purse and take home.
“He doesn’t see how amazing he is.”
Kyo looked at me. “You really care for him, don’t you?”
“Yes,” I said with no hesitation. I was tired of denying it.
“Not to be that guy, but…” Kyo straightened his stance and turned to
me. “If you hurt him, I swear to god I’ll kick your ass. I don’t care how big
you are.”
“Noted,” I said, fighting a smile.
I liked that Simon had such a good friend. There was also something
about Kyo I couldn’t quite put my finger on. I sensed no magic coming
from him, so I was fairly sure he was human. But sometimes I’d catch a
look in his eyes that seemed much too old for an early twenty-something
kid.
Rain came down all day, sometimes transitioning from a hard
downpour to a light sprinkle but never stopping completely. I watched the
droplets hit the sidewalk as I stood by the cash register.
Simon walked to the storage room, taking Kyo with him. A shipment
was set to arrive early the next morning, so they needed to rearrange things
to make space for the new inventory.
“Want me to help?” I asked.
“No, it’s okay,” Simon called from the hallway. “Can you watch the
front for me though?”
“Sure.”
 I people-watched for a while. A couple walked past the shop, taking
cover under the same umbrella. Cars drove by, their wheels kicking up
water onto the curb. The hair on my nape stood on end, and I turned around
right as a smug-faced demon appeared on the other side of the counter.
“You must have a death wish,” I said, reaching for the dagger I kept
hidden in my boot.
Phoenix rolled his eyes. “Stop.”
“Why are you here, demon?”
“To send you a message.” He glided the tip of his finger across the
books sitting on a shelf along the wall. “A warning, really.” His dark brown
eyes shifted back to me. “The war I spoke of is only just begun. And it’s a
war you cannot win, Wrath.”
“You think you and Belphegor can defeat us?” I stepped toward him,
my blood starting to simmer in my veins.
“A time will come… soon, I might add… where you and your
Nephilim brethren will be given a choice. Kneel or die.” Phoenix shrugged.
“Now, I can’t tell you what to do. But I highly suggest you kneel like the
good little mutt you are.”
“Kneel?” I grabbed him by the front of his suit jacket. “To who?”
He grinned. “To your new king. The world will bow to him.”
And then he disappeared.

***

“He said we’d be given a choice?” Alastair asked, setting his cup of hot
tea on the side table. The fireplace was lit, the wood crackling. The only
other light came from the tall lamp in the corner.
 “To kneel or die before the new king,” I said, placing a hand on the
mantel above the fireplace. “He left without saying to who.”
A picture of Joseph was framed on the wall in front of me. Other
pictures sat beside it, ranging from colored portraits to black and white. All
men Alastair had loved at one time. I knew a part of him still did, each love
lost creating another hole in his already withered heart. I wondered how
much would remain once Joseph died.
“We will kneel to no one.” Alastair stood and walked over to the
window, gazing out into the night. “Sounds to me like Belphegor plans to
become the new king of the underworld. To take Lucifer’s place at last.”
“Most demons didn’t bow down to him last time,” I said, remembering
the battle so many years ago when Belphegor attacked with his army—
when I lost Marcus. “Many demons feared us back then and refused to
follow him. It would take someone even more powerful than him to gain
their loyalty.”
“Unless he got his hands on a certain ring that could give him that
power.” Alastair looked back at me. “After you told me about your talk with
the witch, I contacted Lazarus. He responded for once.”
“What did he say?”
Alastair gritted his teeth. “He said we needed to ‘stay out of affairs that
don’t concern us.’ I reminded him that we were the ones who located the
ring and deserved to know more. He then reminded me that we are nothing
but soldiers who have no business interfering with angel matters.”
My hands formed into fists at my sides. Lazarus knew how to get under
my skin, treating us like mindless killing machines.
Alastair’s phone lit up on his desk. When he grabbed it and glanced at
the screen, his face paled a shade. “Hello?” A pause. “This is him.” As the
person on the other end talked, his expression became more and more
grave. “I see. I’ll be there shortly.”
He disconnected the call and turned away from me, his body tensing. A
dull ache spread through me, an echo of his own aching heart which I felt as
if it were mine.
“Alastair?”
“I… I need to go to the hospital. That was the nurse. She said Joseph
won’t make it through the night and that I should come and say my final
goodbyes.” He stepped away from the window and walked toward the door.
I grabbed his arm before he could pass me. “Do you need me there
with you?”
His eyes lifted to mine. The sorrow in them struck the center of my
chest. “No. I’ll be fine.” He moved his gaze to the doorway. “How many
more times will I have to say goodbye to someone I love, Galen? I
should’ve learned my lesson by now.”
I thought of Simon then, of how hard I fought not to fall for him.
“Sometimes love sneaks up on you,” I said. “You have no control over
it.”
Alastair gave a sad nod before exiting his study. He took his car instead
of flying, and I watched as he drove down the road leaving the mansion, the
headlights disappearing as he rounded the corner.
Hearing voices come from the arcade, I walked that way. All of my
brothers had gathered there, including Daman which was surprising. Raiden
and Castor played pool—with Cas insisting that they play for money.
Bellamy smirked at his phone, and when walking past him, I saw a shirtless
guy on the screen. He sent the guy a message. Probably an offer for them to
meet up later and fuck.
 “Help,” Simon said from his place on the couch beside the billiard
table. “I’ve been attacked and can’t move.”
Gray giggled and cuddled closer against him, flashing me a
mischievous little grin. “He’s my human now.”
Funny how Gray was the one person I didn’t mind touching Simon.
Mainly because I knew it was harmless. Gray just loved affection.
“I suppose I can share him just this once.” I sat on the other side of
Simon and put an arm on the back of the couch, behind his head. He
nuzzled against my side while Gray sprawled out in his lap.
Daman held his tablet, drawing some kind of dragon with a stylus.
Bellamy peeked over his shoulder and was promptly swatted away.
“Knock it off, pretty boy.”
“What? I was just admiring your talent.” Bellamy wiggled his
eyebrows. “That dragon is hot as fuck.”
“Are dragons real too?” Simon asked me.
“Yes,” I answered. “There are five dragon clans. Wind, ice, fire, earth,
and water. Each clan has their own king and way of life.”
“And Bellamy’s fucked a few dozen dragons from each clan,” Daman
said in a bored tone.
“Damn right I have.” Bellamy plopped down on the other couch, one
leg on the floor and the other propped up on the cushion. “Well. Almost all.
I never did get the chance to fuck a water dragon.”
“Why not?” Simon asked.
“The water dragons are thought to be extinct,” I said, amused by his
curious nature. “None have been seen for two hundred years.”
“Why?”
“Many of the stories revolving around sea monsters are actually
referencing water dragons. Humans hunted them.”
 “Stupid humans,” Gray said with a yawn. Then he glanced up at
Simon. “Not you though.”
Simon petted Gray’s hair and smiled.
“There was also a war between the ice and water clans,” Daman said.
“A ton of dragons died during it. Ryūjin, the water king, was killed and his
people went into hiding.”
Simon frowned. “That’s sad.”
“You know what isn’t sad?” Raiden said. “Cheeseburgers.”
The mood changed within an hour.
We all felt it the moment Alastair learned Joseph had passed. It was a
searing ache that hit each of us hard.
Gray wrapped his arms around his knees, tears pooling in his eyes.
Raiden stood beside the pool table, the stick cracking in his tight grip.
Daman sat near the window and turned his face toward the glass, his
reflection showing the trembling of his chin.
As I felt Alastair’s heart break, I placed a hand over my own.
“What’s wrong?” Simon asked, glancing from me and to the others
who had suddenly gone quiet.
I tugged him against me and buried my face in his hair, letting his scent
soothe the pain in my heart. His arms came around me, hesitant at first. I
picked him up from the couch, and he wrapped his legs around my waist.
He kissed the area beneath my jaw as I carried him upstairs and to my
room.
“Galen?” he asked as I placed him on the bed. “What’s—”
I cut him off with a light kiss and guided him to his back. He slipped
his hand up under my shirt before pulling it over my head and throwing it
aside. I tugged down his sweatpants while he unzipped my jeans. I shoved
them down my hips as I met his lips again. He arched into my touch as I
took both of our stiffening cocks in my hand.
The sex was more tender than usual. When I joined our bodies, I took
my time with Simon, reveled in his every soft sigh and breathy moan. More
than the release, I needed the feel of his skin on mine, needed his breath on
my lips and his arms around me.
Because I was breaking apart.
Not just because my brother was hurting, a pain I felt due to the
connection we all shared. But also because I knew it was a future that
waited for me too. No matter how hard I had fought against my feelings for
Simon, how much I’d blocked him from getting too close, he had managed
to slip through the cracks.
Simon dug his fingertips into my sides as I thrust deeper, a slow in-and-
out glide. My soul fucking purred. In that moment, I knew there would be
no walking away from him.
I’d been a fool to ever think I could.
 Chapter Fourteen
Simon

Galen had never taken me so slowly. So tenderly. Normally, I would’ve

loved the change, but something felt off about him. Shadows clouded in his
gray eyes, and when he kissed me, his lips quivered against mine. It caused
a crack in my chest.
“Talk to me,” I said, running my hands along the muscles in his thick
arms. “What’s wrong?”
He pressed his mouth to mine instead and rocked his hips forward. I
tore from his lips with a soft moan. Fine. We’d talk later. For now? He
needed an escape from whatever was on his mind, and I’d give it to him.
“Simon,” he whispered, pushing his face in the crease between my
neck and shoulder.
He’d never said my name during sex before. And the crack in his voice
when he said it? I slid my arms around him and kissed the side of his head.
This is so different. It no longer felt like fucking. We were way beyond
that now. This thing between us was so much more than anything I’d ever
experienced with another man.
Galen skimmed his lips across my throat as his thick cock filled me.
Then, he growled a word that had my heart racing faster. “Mine.”
“Yours,” I said, smoothing my hands across the indentions in his
shoulders.
 “And I’m yours.” His massive body shook a bit as he crushed our lips
together.
Clara had said Galen and I had a strong connection, that we were two
souls meant for each other. I felt the truth in those words as my grumpy,
sometimes sweet Nephilim kissed me.
Something came over me, and I pushed against his chest to move him
to his back. He stared up at me with an awed gleam in his gray eyes as I
straddled his hips and took him back inside me. I rolled my hips, gliding up
and down his rock-hard shaft.
“So beautiful,” he murmured, skating his fingertips down my ribs. His
hand came around my bobbing erection and gave me a slow pull. The
slightly calloused texture of his warm palm ushered from me another moan,
which he then captured with another kiss as he sat up.
My hands traveled to his back, to the slits that drove him wild. He bit
my collarbone as my fingers slid inside the openings. The skin there was
soft, as was the silkiness of the tops of his wings.
He grunted against my skin as I finger-fucked him just the way he
liked.
“I love that so much,” I said, pressing my face into his short dark hair.
Sandalwood and citrus wrapped around me, amplifying my arousal. I was
consumed by all things Galen: his gruff voice, the graze of his teeth on my
neck, his scent, and the way he shuddered at my touch.
I loved him.
A month was too soon to feel that way, but the truth of it was present in
every kiss, every smile, and in every eye roll when he was unnecessarily
cranky or stubborn. I think I’d loved him since the first morning I woke
with him in bed beside me.
 “Take what you want,” he murmured against my throat as I rode him.
“Make me yours.”
A familiar tingle moved down my spine as his cock nudged my sweet
spot. I increased my pace, riding him faster. Skin slapping skin filled the
room, mixed with his encouraging groans as he squeezed my ass cheeks.
I didn’t expect what happened next.
He released his wings. In seconds, we were shrouded by silky black
feathers as he wrapped them around us both. Like a cocoon where only he
and I existed.
“Galen,” I whimpered against his lips. I was shaking. From the
pleasure coursing through me. From the weird ache in my chest as his arms
and wings enveloped me.
“Come for me.” He thrust up into me and took my cock in his big hand.
And then I was coming undone. My orgasm hit me so hard I was left
breathless as I reeled from the force of it. Galen’s fingertips dug into the
globes of my ass as he fucked up into me faster, and then he softly grunted
as he came too.
Neither of us moved for a while. I slumped against him and nuzzled his
neck as he continued holding me.
“I feel so safe,” I whispered.
“Because you are. I won’t let any harm come to you.”
For now, I nearly said.
Tears stung my eyes. “I don’t want to forget you, Galen. Even when I
can go back to my old life for good… when we go our separate ways… I
never want to forget this moment right now. Being in your arms. Feeling
your wings around me. Even if it hurts, I want to remember.”
Galen held me a little tighter. “Simon…”
 “I know you don’t want me like I want you,” I said as a lump formed in
my throat. “And I know that I’m a human who will—”
He kissed me. As his mouth moved softly against mine, my heart
cracked more and more. It was perfect and painful at the same time.
“Stop,” I said, breaking from the kiss. “I can’t do this anymore, Galen.”
“Do what?”
“This.” I moved a hand between us. “You and me. I really thought I
could keep my stupid emotions out of it, but I can’t. What we just did
proves it. I’m falling in love with you, goddammit. I think I need to walk
away from this.”
“Walk away from me, you mean.”
I tried to get off him, but his wings held me closer. “Galen. Let me go.”
“I can’t.” He pressed our foreheads together. “Not now. Not tomorrow.
Or the day after.”
My heart thumped heavier, the beats reverberating all throughout my
body. My flushed skin was from the afterglow of sex, but it also heated as I
struggled to process his words.
“I swore I’d never let myself feel this way again,” he said, pulling back
just enough to grab hold of my chin and meet my gaze. “But I’m tired of
fighting it, Simon. Tired of denying that I feel anything for you. If you want
to leave me when all of this is over, I won’t stop you.” He leaned in closer,
his breath tickling my lips. “But if you want to stay… all you need to do is
say the words and I’m yours.”
The vulnerability in his gray eyes took me by surprise. But not as much
as the words he’d spoken.
“Even though I’m human?” Hope tried to blossom in my chest, and I
shoved it back down. “I’ll get sick. Grow old. Knowing my luck, I might
even trip and fall off a cliff or something. Why put yourself through that?”
 Galen lowered his wings, concealing them back into his shoulder
blades. Their absence made me feel cold all of a sudden. He glided his hand
down my side, a faraway look in his eyes.
“I shouldn’t put myself through it. Not after what happened last time.”
He gripped the side of my neck. “Yet, now that I know what it’s like to have
you in my arms, I never want to know a day without you here beside me. I
crave not only your body, but everything about you. Your smile. Your scent.
Even your smart-ass mouth.”
I smiled at that.
“Even if I forced you to leave right now, it’d be too late.” He dropped a
light kiss to my collarbone. “It was too late for me the moment I walked
into your shop and first saw you. A connection was formed, and it’s only
grown stronger. My soul knows yours, Simon.”
“What does that mean?” I asked, my voice hoarse as emotion tightened
in my throat.
“It means…” Galen hooked his arms around my waist and rolled me to
my back on the bed. He hovered over me, the softest of smiles uplifting the
corner of his mouth. I sensed sadness behind it. “I will protect you even if it
costs me my own life. I will stay by your side just as I hope you’ll stay by
mine. My body is yours. Only yours. No more of this memory erasing
bullshit. Even after this threat passes, I ask that you continue living here. I
want you, Simon Parks. For as long as I can have you. Human or not.”
They were the words I’d wanted to hear. Proof that he felt the same as I
did. “Hmm. I don’t know.”
He frowned. “Explain.”
“That sounded an awful lot like a marriage proposal or something, and
I’m not sure I’m ready for such a commitment.” I feigned a sigh.
Galen’s cheek twitched. “Is that so?”
 I fought a grin and nodded. “Mhm. I’m still so young, you know? What
if some hot stud comes along and sweeps me off my feet?”
“If you wish to be swept off your feet, I can always throw your ass over
my shoulder and fly away.”
Finally, I caved, and my smile surfaced. “At least let me put on some
pants first.”
Galen got between my legs and pinned me to the mattress, holding my
arms down. “But I like you so much better this way. Easier access.”
And then he pushed inside me.
I gasped as his thick cock stretched me in all the best ways. He had
incredible recovery time. As I stared up into his face, seeing the softness in
his gray eyes, I smiled. He held down my arms as he fucked me, but I knew
if I really wanted to break free, he’d let me.
But I didn’t want to.
While I enjoyed gentle, tender sex, I also liked being dominated by
Galen. He nipped at my collarbone and thrust into me harder, deeper. His
cock glided in and out of me, eliciting a string of breathy moans to fall from
my lips.
Galen was claiming me body and soul.
My sternum ached as I felt the intensity of his feelings, expressed in his
every thrust, in his every nibble of my skin. His mouth closed around my
nipple, and I arched upward with another gasp. He flicked his tongue
against the tight bud as his body moved inside mine.
Beneath his sexual hunger, I felt something else too. Desperation.
Heartache. Whatever had been troubling him earlier still had a hold on him.
“Galen.” I gently bumped our noses together. “Where’s your mind?”
“With you,” he responded in a thick tone, his lids heavy as he looked
down at me. “Nowhere else.”
 “Let me touch you.”
His hold on my wrists instantly loosened. I slid my hands up his arms,
then across his back, finding those two spots that turned him to putty in my
arms. As my fingers dipped into the slits, he melted. With a raspy grunt, he
quickened his thrusts, grazing his teeth up my neck and along my jaw. That
familiar tingle gathered in my belly, then lower, and my muscles began to
tense.
My orgasm was explosive as his teeth clamped down on my throat. His
hips snapped forward several more times, and then he was coming too.
Afterward, Galen pulled me against his chest, our bodies sweaty and
sticking together. He pressed a kiss into my hair and kept his face there. The
quick beating of his heart matched the rhythm of mine.
He might’ve been half angel, but he was part human too. It was easy to
forget that. He just seemed bigger than life, like a dream. A hero pulled
from the pages of one of the paranormal romances I enjoyed reading.
“What are you thinking about?” he asked.
“How you don’t seem real sometimes. Even after a month of being
here, there are times when I still expect to wake up in my loft.”
“Would that make you happy?” Galen stilled as he asked the question.
“To wake up and all of this having been a dream?”
“No.” I nuzzled his chest. “That would be depressing as fuck, actually.
I don’t want my old life back. Being here with you and your brothers? I feel
like I’ve come home.”
I felt him smile into my hair. But then he exhaled. “You asked what
was wrong with me earlier. Well, you know how my brothers and I can
speak to each other through our minds? We can also feel when the other is
in pain. Physical pain, but also emotional. The day I lost Marcus, they all
felt my heart break. The same was felt tonight.”
 I pulled back to look up at him, confused.
“Joseph died, and we all felt Alastair’s grief.” Galen skimmed his
fingers up and down my arm. “It’s what finally broke me. Why I stopped
fighting my feelings for you. It should’ve done the opposite and made me
push you farther away, but I needed you too much. Your presence calms the
beast inside my veins. You make me feel more alive than I’ve ever felt. And
I realized that I’d rather spend eighty years beside you than none at all, even
if my heart shatters in the process.”
“What about…” My face heated as I trailed off.
“Wrath?” Galen asked, finishing what I couldn’t say.
I nodded. “What if that happens again? I don’t think I’m worth that
risk.”
He took hold of my chin and forced my eyes back to him. “You
wouldn’t be in my arms right now if I thought you weren’t worth it.” His
face inched closer, and his lips ghosted over mine. “Let’s not discuss this
anymore tonight.”
I put my arms around his neck and kissed him, running my fingers
through the back of his hair.
Demons were still after me—that I knew of—and it might not ever be
safe for me to leave the mansion without Galen by my side. The man I was
quickly falling for wasn’t even fully human. If we did stay together, I would
age. He wouldn’t. But none of that mattered as I lost myself in his kiss.
Everything else faded away.

***

On the outskirts of the city, hidden amongst abandoned warehouses and

an old run-down factory, was a nightclub for the damned.
 “It’s a safe place for paranormal beings,” Bellamy said, fixing his hair
in the back seat of Galen’s car. “So we can let loose without fear of
discovery. Vampires bring their human pets, wolves fuck like… well,
wolves. There are reapers, shapeshifters, and fae. But you don’t want to
mess with them.”
“Why?” I asked, turning in my seat to look back at him. “Aren’t faeries
good?”
“Faeries are mischievous creatures,” he responded. “They switch from
good to bad in the blink of an eye. You never know whose side they’re
really on. Whichever side serves them better at the time, usually.” He
flashed a charming smile. “But you have nothing to worry about. They
might be troublesome little pricks, but they’re not dumb enough to mess
with Galen.”
Galen smirked and kept his eyes on the road.
A week had passed since the night we made things official between us.
When he came with me to work, there was no more pretending in front of
Kyo. However, I got the feeling he hadn’t been pretending any of the other
times either. Every sweet gesture, kind word, playful jab, and protective
instinct had been what he’d truly felt.
I knew that now.
I reached over and grabbed his hand. He linked our fingers and softly
smiled.
“You two are seriously too sweet,” Bellamy said with a sigh. “Tell me
again why you’re coming with me to the club? Shouldn’t you be doing
lovey-dovey shit like fucking each other’s brains out on a bed covered in
rose petals or something?”
I snorted. “We’ve never done that.”
 Bellamy tossed me a grin. “It’s not typically my thing, but if Galen
isn’t meeting your needs, little human, I can fuck you on some rose petals.
Just say the word.”
“Bell…” Galen said, a warning ringing in his voice.
“I’m kidding,” Bellamy said, rolling his eyes. “He reeks of your scent.
Anyone within a mile radius knows who he belongs to.”
My chest fluttered, and I turned my face toward the window to hide my
smile.
After over a month of nightly patrols and all the craziness over the ring,
the brothers needed a night out. Even Nephilim warriors needed time to
unwind every now and then. The nightclub for supernatural beings would
give them the escape they needed.
There was also a “no fighting” rule once you stepped through the
doors. Any beings caught in a tussle would be kicked off the premises, and
according to Galen, sometimes without their heads, depending on the
severity of the fight.
“Who owns the club?” I asked as we neared the warehouse.
“A vamp named Konnar,” Galen answered. “He’s one of the oldest
vampires around.”
“Do you guys not kill vampires? If you’re charged with protecting
humans, shouldn’t you hate them?”
“It’s a weird relationship. I’ll give you that,” Bellamy said. “Our main
priority is demon hunting, though sometimes we butcher vamps if they go
rogue and start killing in excess.”
“So you’re like executioners,” I said.
“I guess you could say that.” Galen gently squeezed my fingers before
releasing my hand. He turned down a narrow side street.
 “Konnar usually handles that though,” Bellamy added. “They’re his
people, so he’s the one who passes down punishment when necessary. Same
for Bane. He’s the alpha of the local wolf pack. If one of his wolves step out
of line, he puts them in their place. We’re only called in for extreme cases.
It keeps harmony among our kinds.”
I let everything mull around in my head. A spike of nerves shot through
me suddenly. I’d be surrounded by vampires, wolves, and god only knew
what else.
“Are you sure it’s okay that I go with you to the club?”
“Of course,” Galen said. “I’ll keep you safe. You have nothing to fear.”
“Humans go there all the time,” Bellamy said. “Some are with vamps,
others with shapeshifters. Konnar hires some of them to be waiters. You’ll
be fine, I promise.”
Relieved, I nodded. Beneath the nerves, I was excited. I would finally
get to meet other paranormal creatures. Were vampires like the ones I read
about in books? What did werewolves really look like? Were faeries little
blinking lights like from Peter Pan?
“You’re smiling,” Galen said, pulling into a lot with other cars.
“Good.”
I had been surprised when Galen asked me to go with him tonight. He
didn’t seem like the partying type. The long nights and constant shit with
the demons must’ve been getting to him more than I thought.
“We beat you, suckers,” Raiden said, hopping out of a sleek black
Lykan Hypersport. My jaw had dropped when I’d first seen the car. I didn’t
need to be a “car guy” to know the thing was a work of art. Apparently,
only seven of them had ever been made.
“I didn’t know it was a competition,” Galen said, unamused.
 Castor got out of the driver’s side, a smirk in place. “Everything’s a
competition, baby. And your grumpy ass just lost.”
“Call me baby again and I’ll take a bat to that pretty car of yours.”
“Ouch.” Castor put a hand over his heart. “You always know where to
strike to hurt me most.”
The back door opened, and Gray stepped out of the car, rubbing at his
eyes. I would’ve bet money that he’d fallen asleep on the drive over. He
was wearing a blue tank, skinny jeans, and pink Converse. Not exactly
nightclub attire, but he looked adorable as hell.
“Daman’s already inside,” Bellamy said, tipping his head toward the
entrance.
“What about Alastair?” I asked, moving closer to Galen’s side as we
walked.
Galen rested a hand on my lower back. “Not tonight.”
Ever since the night Joseph died, Alastair had barely left his room. The
brothers had all agreed to switch around their patrol schedules to make it to
where he wouldn’t have to do anything. Not that he could’ve even if he’d
wanted to. The few times I’d seen him, he had looked like an empty shell.
Eyes lifeless. I didn’t have a Nephilim-type connection to him and I still felt
his grief. It was palpable.
“Brace yourself, little human,” Bellamy said, putting a hand on my
shoulder. He ran his teeth over his bottom lip and faced the door we were
about to pass through. Music thumped from inside. “You’re about to enter a
whole new world.”
The door swung open, and Galen guided me forward. The bass of the
song hit me first, the sound of it rattling in my rib cage. Green, blue, and
purple lights flitted over moving bodies on the dance floor, and I caught the
scent of something sweet and smoky, like an incense burning.
 At first glance, it seemed like any other nightclub. Music, dancing, bar
stations along the walls, and people lost in conversation, drinks, and each
other. But when I looked closer, I realized it wasn’t the same at all.
On a couch to the right, a woman exposed her slender neck. A man
sunk his teeth into her throat, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
Another man kissed her shoulder before biting the opposite side of her
neck. Her blissed-out expression told me she enjoyed it.
Two men fucked in the corner, and when one slapped his hand on the
wall, I saw clawlike fingernails protruding from his skin.
A woman flitted around the room at an impossible speed, and when she
stopped for a moment to speak with a group of people, I noticed small
translucent wings on her back. They glimmered under the neon lights and
looked to have some kind of glittery substance around the edges.
“Are you all right?” Galen whispered, his mouth at my ear.
Too stunned to say anything, I could only nod.
He lightly chuckled and wrapped both arms around me from behind,
resting his cheek on the side of my head.
“There’s my favorite angel,” a woman said, approaching Bellamy. She
wore a black leather top that left very little to the imagination, and her
skintight pants hung low on her hips.
“Evelyn,” Bellamy said, his smile growing. “Last time I saw you, you
were riding a lucky male’s cock in the back room. I’m offended you didn’t
ask me to join.”
She threw back her head with a laugh and grabbed him by the front of
his shirt, dragging him away. He looked back at us with a smirk before
picking her up and throwing her over his shoulder. A blond man followed
after them, and before they disappeared around the corner, I saw him plant a
kiss on Bellamy’s lips.
 Galen led me farther into the club, and my bewilderment continued to
soar. There were beings with blue skin, some with green. Some had small
horns jutting from their heads while others had tails.
My eyes widened when I spotted a human man leaning against a pole,
pants down, while a man with horns jerked the guy’s cock with his tail. A
third man dropped down to his knees in front of the human and stretched
his lips around his cock head while the one with the tail continued stroking
the man’s shaft.
Men danced on raised platforms, each of them in various stages of
undress. One of them I recognized.
“Is that Daman?” I asked in shock.
“Yep,” Galen answered. “This place is a second home to him.”
Lights danced along Daman’s beautiful bronze skin as he moved his
hips, enticing the men who watched him. He turned his back to them before
releasing his wings. Shades of green mixed with his black feathers.
One man stepped up onto the platform and slid his arms around
Daman’s slender waist. Daman leaned his head back and smiled as the man
nipped at his throat.
“Galen,” a friendly voice said from beside us. The man appeared to be
around my age and had blond hair and vibrant purple eyes.
“Konnar,” Galen said, clasping the man’s forearm before pulling away.
He brought me closer to his side. “This is Simon.”
“Your mate, I take it?” Konnar asked, offering me a kind smile before
looking back at Galen. “Every being in here can smell you all over him.”
Galen’s mouth hitched upward. “We belong to each other, yes. Though
we’re not full mates as of yet.”
Yeah, my heart fucking melted at that. I loved being claimed by Galen,
but knowing that I’d claimed him too? It gave me butterflies.
 Konnar’s purple eyes flashed to me. “You seem surprised.”
“Well, I…” My cheeks got hot. “Galen talked about you on the way
here. He said you were one of the oldest vampires around. I guess I
imagined you a little differently.”
“Like a decrepit old man?” Konnar asked with an amused tone. “I’m
sorry to disappoint you, my dear.” He motioned to the right side of the
room. “Please, help yourself to anything at the bar. It’s on the house
tonight.”
“That’s gracious of you, but it won’t be necessary,” Galen told him.
“You will do as I say and like it,” Konnar said, a playful gleam in his
eyes. “This is the first time you’ve ever brought a date to my club. Allow
me to treat you. I won’t accept anything less.”
“Thank you.” Galen bowed his head.
“I like him,” I said once Konnar walked away. “He’s nice.”
“Indeed. He’s nice to those he considers friends anyway. His enemies
will strongly disagree with you.” Galen peered down at me. “You seem
awfully smug about something.”
“Me? Smug? Never.”
He arched a brow.
“Fine,” I said, knowing he wouldn’t let it rest until I told him the truth.
“I like how I’m the first person you’ve brought here.”
Galen pulled me to his chest and kissed my forehead. He didn’t need to
say anything. Sometimes actions said more than words ever could. And as
he held me in the middle of the bustling nightclub, I felt all the things he
kept inside.
“Drink up, bitches,” Raiden said, appearing beside us holding a tray
with shot glasses filled with a bright green liquid. He then gave me a
sheepish grin. “Well, not for you. This shit will knock you on your ass.
Humans can’t handle it.”
“I’ll drink his,” Castor said, grabbing two shots off the tray. He clinked
the glass with Raiden’s before they threw them back.
“I’ll get you a beer,” Galen said, nuzzling the top of my head before
pulling away.
I smiled after him as he walked toward the bar. Raiden and Castor
stayed by my side, moving a bit closer to me than what was normal. Galen
looked at us over his shoulder and subtly nodded before speaking to the
bartender.
Ah. He probably used telepathy to tell them to stay close to me.
My big protective marshmallow.
Castor threw his arm around my shoulders. “I gotta thank you, Simon.”
“For what?”
His gaze moved to Galen. “For making him happy. He’s been alone for
so long.”
“He makes me happy too.” My belly fluttered.
“Ah, you guys.” Raiden put his arms around us both. “Are we having a
moment?”
“A moment you just ruined,” Castor said, shrugging him off. He tossed
back another shot. “I bet I could drink you under the table.”
The challenge sparked in Raiden’s blue-gray eyes. “You forget who
you’re speaking to, Greed. I can never get enough.”
“We’ll see about that.” Castor wiggled his pierced eyebrows.
Once Galen returned with my beer, the two of them took off to buy
more shots.
“Can you guys even get drunk?” I asked before taking a swig of my
beer.
 “Off human alcohol? Not really.” Galen had bought a drink for himself
and poured a small tube of something red into the glass before taking a
drink. Honestly, it looked like blood. “Adding ambrosia or pure absinth
fused with magic can totally fuck us up.”
“Is that what you just added?” I eyed his drink. He caught me looking
and moved it farther away from me.
“Maybe.” He smirked. “And no, you can’t try it.”
I shook my head. “I wasn’t going to ask.”
“Mhm.” He gently bumped my side. “Liar.”
His playfulness warmed my heart. I liked seeing Galen that way, his
guard down and with a carefree attitude. From what he’d told me, he’d
never had the chance to be a kid. Lazarus took him away when he was just a
boy and trained him to be a warrior. That was the only life he’d ever known.
Violence and bloodshed.
“You’re frowning,” Galen said, touching my jaw. “Do you want to
leave?”
“No.” I pressed my cheek against his hand, feeling my chest swell with
my affection for him. “I’m having fun.”
He lightly kissed me before grabbing my hand and leading me to a
couch along the wall. We sat down, and I cuddled up next to him. Galen
clearly wasn’t a dancer. He preferred to observe. And I loved that because I
was the same way. I’d trip over my own two feet anyway if I tried to dance.
A tall, redheaded man walked past the couch with a familiar bundle in
his arms. Gray laid his head on the guy’s shoulder and cracked a sleepy
smile at me.
“So you’re not the only one who carries His Highness around when he
gets sleepy,” I said, laughing.
 A chuckle rumbled in Galen’s chest. Low and sexy. “Nearly every male
in this room worships the ground Gray walks on. He has that effect on
people.”
I could definitely see why. The boy was too precious for words.
Galen’s lips found mine soon after that. His hand slipped under my
shirt as we made out, and my fingers weaved through his short hair. Sex
hummed in the air as people around us fucked and rutted together, and I
couldn’t stop myself from straddling Galen’s lap and grinding on his
hardening cock.
“Easy,” he rasped against my lips. “It’s taking all my willpower not to
fuck you right here on this couch.”
“Oh yeah?” I gently bit his bottom lip and rolled my hips before getting
off his lap. “Guess I’ll stop, then.”
Galen growled before gathering me in his arms. I laughed as he picked
me up off the couch and carried me outside, the thumping of the music
fading as we exited the club. He laid me down in the back seat of his car
and captured my mouth in a heated kiss.
“I’ve never fucked in a car before,” I panted between hard kisses.
He smiled against my lips and pulled at my clothes.
The car shook as he pounded into me. I didn’t care that anyone walking
by would know what we were doing in there. I wanted them to know. I
wanted them to know Galen was mine and I was his.
“Simon,” he said, tucking his face in the crook of my neck while he
buried his cock in my ass.
My name on his lips had never sounded sweeter. I slipped my hands up
the back of his shirt and touched the wing slits that never failed to push him
over the edge. He reached between us and jerked my cock in sync with his
quick thrusts.
 My damn eyes rolled back in my head as my orgasm built, then hit me
full force.
“That’s it,” he said, pressing his head to mine as my body shuddered
beneath him. “Come for me. Only me.”
“Only you,” I whimpered.
No one else would ever compare to him for as long as I lived.
 Chapter Fifteen
Galen

Alastair sat in his study, watching the flames consume the logs in the
fireplace. June had brought warmer weather, though our home by the sea
always kept a slight chill no matter the time of year.
The sun was setting outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, the dark
orange glow of fading daylight highlighting the cherrywood desk covered
in scattered papers. As the avatar of Pride, he kept a pristine workspace. His
study was always clean. Organized.
But not anymore.
The room reflected the chaos of his mood. The once uniform framed
photos on the wall hung crooked, and some lay broken on the floor. Books
had been knocked off the shelves. The tea set he adored had been smashed,
the shards of broken china littering the rug now stained with Earl Grey tea.
As for Alastair, he hardly looked like himself. He hadn’t shaved in over
a week, his pale blond hair was unkempt, and his shirt was wrinkled.
Joseph’s death had hit him harder than any other, and I feared he wouldn’t
be able to pull himself out of his grief.
“You can’t keep living like this, brother,” I said from the doorway.
“Living?” Alastair’s icy blue eyes shifted to me. “Is that what I’m
doing? I feel like I’m merely existing. Holding on by a single thread that’s
fraying more and more as days pass.” He returned his gaze to the fire. “I
wonder what will happen once that thread finally snaps.”
 “It won’t.” I stepped into the study and sat in the cushioned chair
beside him. “Because you’re too strong to be broken, Pride. Don’t forget
who you are.”
“Who I am…” He laughed dryly. “And who is that, Galen? I used to
feel so powerful. But where was my power when Joseph needed me? I
couldn’t heal him.” His chin trembled. “I couldn’t save him.”
“You can’t save everyone,” I said, my voice softer than usual. I had
never seen Alastair so fragile, like he would shatter into pieces like the
broken tea set on the rug. “And the fact that you think you can is your Pride
talking.”
“Part of me regrets not performing the binding ritual on him all those
years ago,” Alastair said. “If I had, he would’ve never gotten sick. He
would still be beside me.”
“Or he could’ve been killed by any number of things, killing you in the
process.”
He looked at me. “Maybe it would’ve been for the best. At least then I
wouldn’t have had to know what it’s like to live without him.”
“Don’t say that.”
“It’s true. Remember our fallen brother? I can still see the pain in
Kallias’ eyes as he looked at Elasus’ body. But then his eyes closed, and a
soft smile touched his lips moments before he, too, died. Do you
remember?”
I nodded.
“He was relieved,” Alastair said, voice cracking. “Better to join his
lover in death than know a day without him.”
“Joseph wouldn’t want you to die. He’d want you to keep fighting.”
“He didn’t know me,” Alastair whispered. “I held his hand in that
hospital room, and he stared at me like I was a stranger. He started having
trouble breathing, and the nurses rushed in. It all happened so damn fast. I
felt his soul leave, Galen. I felt him leave me.”
I nearly said that Joseph had left him long ago. He hadn’t been himself
in years. But my words would be like salt on an open wound. There was no
need to hurt him more than he already was.
“Interesting what you’ve done with the place,” I said, glancing at the
room he’d destroyed in his heartache.
Alastair released a chuckle, albeit small and ringing with sadness, and
scrubbed his hands over his face. “I’m a mess. I know.”
I stood from the chair and walked over to him, placing a hand on his
shoulder. “Come on. You need to leave this room. Take a long, hot bath, and
then join us for dinner. Raiden’s making chicken stir-fry.”
“I’m not hungry.”
“Too bad,” I snapped, losing some of my patience. “You can either sit
in this room and mope for all eternity, or you can pick your ass up and
begin to move on. You have people who care about you. People who rely on
you. I’m not saying you can’t mourn your loss, but you can’t let it drown
you.”
“Is that what you’ll do when Simon dies one day?” Alastair asked,
rising to his feet. “Go on living like usual? I know I’ve kept to myself, but
I’m not a fool. You and the human have grown closer. He wears your mark
again.”
Trying to ignore the sudden twinge in my heart, I turned away from
him and walked toward the doorway. “I expect you to be at the dinner table
at six. If you’re still in this room, I swear I’ll drag your ass out of it.”
“You can’t give me orders, Wrath.” Alastair’s tone, although angry,
held more life than I’d heard since the night Joseph died. If it meant making
him angry for him to wake his ass up, so be it.
 “Then step up and be our leader,” I said, my angry tone matching his.
“Because in case you’ve forgotten, a war is on the horizon, and we’re the
only ones standing between demons and the humans they will destroy.”
Alastair squared his jaw, flames in his blue eyes. But then he gave a
short nod. “Understood.”
When six o’clock rolled around, Simon helped Raiden set the table as
my boisterous brothers piled into the dining room. Castor carried Gray on
his back, the smaller male snapping awake when Castor bounced him up
and down. A sluggish smile spread across his face before he wrapped his
arms around Castor’s neck.
Bellamy and Daman walked in midargument. Apparently, Bell had
fucked some guy Daman wanted at the club when they’d gone again the
night before.
“Join us next time,” Bellamy said with a flirty smile. “You can ride him
while I fuck him. A win for both of us.”
“You’re disgusting.” Daman glared at him.
Bellamy caressed Daman’s cheek. “Such a hateful tone for such a
pretty face.”
Daman swatted at him, and Bellamy snickered as he dodged it. They
bickered all the time, but just like how I was closest to Alastair, they were
close as well.
“Enough arguing,” Raiden said, his voice rising above theirs. He placed
a pan of stir-fry in the center of the table. “Time to eat.”
Simon sat beside me while the others took their seats. I glanced at the
empty chair at the head of the table.
“Room for one more?” Alastair stood beneath the archway, his jaw
freshly shaved, hair fixed, and clothes wrinkle-free. Though his eyes still
had that sorrowful gleam in them, he seemed more like himself.
 “Hell yeah.” Raiden scooped some food onto another plate and set it in
front of the vacant chair. “There’s plenty.”
Alastair took his seat and nodded to Raiden. “Thank you.” His
attention then moved to me.
“Thank you too,” he told me through our mind link. “But remind me to
punish you later for giving me orders.”
I smirked. “Welcome back, brother.”
His expression softened before he looked at his food. It would take
more time for him to heal, but it was a start.
Halfway through the meal, we got an unexpected visitor. Gray was in
the middle of telling a story about the time he fell asleep in a department
store while on a shopping trip with Bellamy, when Lazarus appeared on the
patio outside the dining room.
The angel tucked in his white wings before letting himself in through
the door and studying us at the table.
“You hungry?” Raiden asked with his mouth full, motioning to the
food.
Disgust clouded Lazarus’ face. “No.”
“Suit yourself.” Raiden piled the rest of the stir-fry on his plate.
Alastair wiped at his mouth before standing and bowing his head in
respect. “What can we do for you?”
“I received word that demons are gathering in the underworld,”
Lazarus said. “I thought it was something you should know.”
Simon furrowed his brow. “Isn’t that normal though?”
The angel scowled at him. “Speak when spoken to, human. But to
answer your question, no. Demons live in the underworld, yet many are
gathering in the same place. As if they’re waiting for something.”
 “Or waiting for someone,” I said, as everything clicked in my head.
“Phoenix said a time will come when we’ll be given a choice to kneel or
die. Perhaps the time is nearly upon us.”
“The demons must be gathering to welcome their new king,” Alastair
said. “But who? Belphegor?”
Lazarus shook his head. “Belphegor has always been a follower, even
before the Fall. He commands legions of demons right now, but he could
never rule.”
“The ring.” Alastair looked at the angel. “You said the power inside
was impossible. What did you mean?”
“I sensed the essence of the Morningstar,” Lazarus answered.
My blood turned cold. It was exactly as I’d feared. That unsettling
power was too strong not to have come from Lucifer.
“We locked him away,” Alastair said with a snarl.
“Which is why I said it was impossible.” Lazarus stepped over to the
window and peered outside. “Though… maybe not entirely impossible. He
could’ve transferred some of his power into the ring before we reached him
that night.”
“What would be the purpose of that?” Castor asked.
“To pass down his power to someone else,” Lazarus answered. “Or so
someone could use it to trace his location and free him. There are a few
possibilities.”
Alastair shook his head. “Lucifer would never give his power to
someone else. His pride wouldn’t let him.”
“The ring needs to be destroyed,” I said.
“I wish it were that easy.” Lazarus focused on me. “I tried destroying it.
Uriel tried. We blasted it with all the holy fire we could conjure, and it
didn’t even put a scratch on the damned thing. Which is a testament to the
power contained inside. The best we can do is keep it hidden away in the
celestial realm where no demon or fallen angel can find it.”
Simon raised his hand.
I couldn’t stop myself from laughing.
He shot me a peeved look. “What? He said I couldn’t talk, but I have a
question.”
“What is it, human?” Lazarus asked, his tone veering on irritated.
“Now, I don’t know all the details because I wasn’t there when you
locked up Lucifer. Obviously.” Simon peered over at me as I coughed to
cover another laugh. “But what’s the likelihood that Lucifer could’ve had a
child? Someone who might have a similar power? I’m a bit rusty on my
angels and demons mythology, but isn’t there something about a son of
Lucifer rising, enslaving humanity, blah blah? He’s supposed to be really
powerful.”
Lazarus pressed his lips together, and I sensed guilt coming off him.
Part of my power was knowing when someone held regret in their heart,
and I could’ve filled an ocean with his.
“Lucifer had three sons,” he said at last. “And I killed them all the
night we locked him away.”
Simon gaped at Lazarus. Hell, all of us did. We’d never been told that
before.
“Why?” Bellamy asked.
“We were at war.” Lazarus steeled himself against whatever guilt had
hold of him. “Those boys had Lucifer’s blood running through their veins.
His power. So I did what needed to be done. I tracked them all down and
gave them a quick death. Prevented a future war by killing them while we
still could.”
 “But they were like us. Nephilim,” Gray said, his big eyes watering. “It
wasn’t their fault who their father was.”
“Their blood was tainted by his wickedness,” Lazarus said.
“And what about our blood?” Gray asked, voice shaking. “Our fathers
betrayed you. Rebelled against the Creator. My father still lives and
continues to wreak havoc on the earth.”
Lazarus squared his jaw. “Which is why I keep a close eye on all of
you. If the day ever comes when I no longer believe you serve the greater
good, you’ll be disposed of.”
“How can you be so heartless?” Simon asked.
I placed my hand on his thigh and squeezed. A warning not to say any
more.
“Pardon me?” Lazarus looked at him.
“Gray is the sweetest person I know,” Simon said, his voice steady and
his gaze hard. I’d never seen him with such seriousness. Such anger.
“Raiden loves people. He loves cooking because it brings us all together.
Bellamy is passionate and kindhearted. Castor loves to make people laugh.
Daman is protective, though he pretends not to care. Alastair, though quiet,
looks after all of us. Keeps us safe. And Galen would lay down his life for
anyone in this room.”
Simon stood from his chair, trembling in his anger. “And what have
you done, angel? Tore them from their mothers’ arms when they were boys.
Forced them to be warriors and fight in your war. Treated them like shit
when all they’ve ever done is obey your command. So how can you stand
there, all high-and-mighty, and look down on any of them? They are better
men than you will ever be.”
Silence followed his words.
 I stood and put an arm around Simon. I didn’t know what Lazarus
would do, but he’d have to go through me first if he even tried to harm a
hair on my human’s head.
“Interesting,” Lazarus said, not taking his eyes off Simon. “For a mere
mortal to defend them so strongly… I’m enthralled. Annoyed, but
fascinated. Despite their flaws and depravity, you care deeply for them.”
“I do,” Simon said, raising his chin. My defiant little human. “They
could’ve let me die the night I was attacked. Instead, they welcomed me
into their home. Protected me.”
Lazarus stepped closer, and my arm tightened around Simon. The
angel’s eyes moved to me. “I have no intention of hurting him, Wrath.” He
approached us and studied Simon’s face. “You’ve come a long way from
the human who fainted the first time he saw me.”
“Not my proudest moment,” Simon said.
“Keep this strength, Simon Parks. Something tells me you’ll need it in
the days to come.” Lazarus headed for the patio door. “We’ll be in touch.
Remember what I said about the demons.”
And then he took off into the sky.
“You’re such a silly human!” Gray exclaimed, throwing his arms
around Simon’s waist. “What were you thinking speaking to Lazarus like
that?”
Simon hugged Gray and rested his cheek on his wild blond hair. “I
couldn’t do nothing while he threatened you. You’re my…” He shook his
head. “Never mind.”
“We’re you’re what?” Bellamy asked, smiling.
“Friends,” Simon said, his face reddening. “My family.”
Daman got up from the table and walked toward the archway leading
out of the dining room, but before he passed beneath it, I saw a soft smile
on his lips. Raiden jumped up and wrapped his arms around both Simon
and Gray, lifting them off the floor in a big hug.
It wasn’t just me who cared for Simon.
All seven of us had been touched by his light.

***

“Quit glaring at me, angel boy, before I put a hex on you,” Clara said,
flicking her hand at me.
My scowl deepened.
Simon looped his arm through mine and kissed my bicep. “Be nice.”
“I don’t trust witches,” I said, trying to stay annoyed, but his kiss
melted my icy demeanor a bit. “Why is she here?”
My morning had been going well too. Simon and I had woken up in
each other’s arms, and then I’d fucked him nice and slow before we’d
showered, eaten breakfast, and come to his antique shop.
Clara put a hand on her hip. “Look. I know some witches have given us
a bad rap, but not all of us become demon brides, slaves of darkness, or
whatever shit you think we do. Some of us only practice light magic. I
specialize in the art of healing. Tonics, salves, elixirs. They’re infused with
magic to heal people. I don’t hurt them.”
“You don’t hurt people? You just threatened to hex me.”
“Okay. I don’t hurt human people. Better?”
Simon snickered, then snapped his mouth shut when I raised an
eyebrow at him.
“You expect me to take a witch’s word?” I asked. “Usually, I can see
into a person’s heart. To see what harm they’ve done. But yours is guarded.
Care to explain why?”
 “Maybe you’re not as powerful as you think.”
“Or maybe you’re hiding something, witch.”
“Okay,” Simon said, looking between the two of us. “Enough of that.
Kyo will be here any minute, and he doesn’t know about all this
supernatural stuff. Last thing I want is him to walk in while you two are
fighting about witches and demons.”
“Sorry,” Clara said.
“You should be,” I added.
Simon shoulder-checked me. “Be. Nice.”
They had developed a friendship over the past few weeks, much to my
annoyance. Only through text message though, because Clara had returned
to London and just recently came back.
The door opened, and Kyo entered the store. His black hair stuck up at
the front, and he’d worn purple contacts that day instead of his usual blue.
He looked at the three of us, puzzled.
“Why are you all staring at me?”
Clara averted her gaze while I turned to adjust something on a shelf.
“Good morning,” Simon told him.
“Morning.” Kyo dropped his bag behind the counter. Sometimes he
brought his laptop so he could make graphics and promotional posters for
the shop that he posted on social media. He also took photos of the items
and posted them for potential online buyers. “You know that feeling when
you walk into a room and everyone gets quiet?”
“It wasn’t on purpose,” Simon said, the coloring of his cheeks giving
away his fib.
“I just came to tell you guys that I’m moving into Ravenwood
Mansion,” Clara said without missing a beat. “A majority of my
grandmother’s things were sold, but if there’s anything else I find that I
think you’d like, I’ll let you know.”
“Oh.” Kyo smiled. “Cool.”
Simon already knew. She had told him through text when she’d made
the decision.
“What about London?” Kyo asked. “Didn’t you say you lived there?”
“I lived there with my girlfriend,” Clara answered, then made a face.
“Well. Ex-girlfriend now. Turns out she was sleeping with everyone but me.
Who knew. I’ve been planning on moving back here anyway, and she just
kind of pushed things along. But anyway. I spent the past few weeks
shipping my things over and getting paperwork and all that jazz sorted. I’m
just glad I got here before my dumbass dad could sell the house too.”
“So this means we’ll be seeing more of you?” I asked.
“If you’re lucky,” she responded with a honeyed smile.
“Lovely.”
Simon snorted a laugh before pressing his lips together. Kyo regarded
him curiously, as if he was trying to figure something out. Then his eyes
moved to me. For a moment, I could’ve sworn I saw… something in his
gaze. An understanding of some kind. But then it was gone.
“Who wants coffee?” Kyo asked, clapping his hands together once.
“This rainy weather makes me want to curl up and take a nap.”
“That would be great,” Simon said. “I just bought some new creamer
too. Hazelnut and a caramel macchiato one. They’re in the minifridge.”
“Sweet.” Kyo walked down the hall toward the break room.
“Once I get settled into the mansion, you should come see me,” Clara
told Simon. Her green eyes shifted to me. “I’d say you could come too, but
there’s no way in hell I’m removing the warding to let you in.”
 “He won’t be going anywhere without me,” I said. “Not until I know
it’s safe.”
“Then you can drop him off and fly away or something. I don’t know.”
Something piqued her interest though, and she tilted her head at Simon.
“Are the demons still after you? Is that why it’s not safe?”
Simon nodded. “Since the ring was in my shop, I guess they associate
my scent with it.”
Clara poked my chest. “Keep him safe, then, angel boy.”
“Why do you care, witch?” I glared down at her hand as she dropped it
back to her side.
She ignored me and turned to Simon. “Your spiritual energy is calming.
It’s like a breath of fresh air. Very few people have such a pure aura.”
I understood exactly what she meant, for he had the same effect on me.
The praise triggered Simon’s awkwardness, and he blushed, which I
found too fucking precious. “Uh, thanks. I guess?”
“You’re welcome.” Clara slung the strap of her purse across her chest.
“Have a good day, boys.”
“You really need to be nicer to her,” Simon said, bumping my arm with
his. “It’s not fair to judge her when you don’t even know her.”
Deep down, I knew he had a point. But I’d seen too much bad in the
world to ever trust anyone so easily. Especially a witch who may or may not
be working with demons.
“I haven’t stayed alive this long by trusting every witch I come across.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Simon smiled over at me. “Is it weird that I’m kind of
happy? I mean, yeah, there’s the whole demons after me, possible end of
the world thing. But…” He moved his gaze throughout his store. “I’m
happy. More than I ever thought I could be.”
 Warmth swirled in the center of my chest as I tugged him close.
“You’re so strange, Simon Parks.”
As I held him in my arms, the scent of rain lingering in his sandy-
brown hair, I realized I was happy too. And it fucking terrified me.
I recalled what Alastair had said about hanging on by a single, frayed
thread. Maybe that thread had hold of me too. I just didn’t know it yet.
 Chapter Sixteen
Simon

I knew I was dreaming.

My body felt weightless as I walked through my antique shop. Dark
clouds showed through the open windows before the curtains shut, sending
the room into darkness. Everything appeared a bit warped, like my brain
hadn’t pieced the scene together fully. I went down the hall and turned into
the storage room.
Then I saw it. The box.
The lock popped open just like it had the first day I found it, and the lid
lifted with an ominous creak. My blood turned electric as it shot through
my veins. I reached into the box and grabbed the ring.
A dark shape flitted across my peripheral vision, and I looked that way.
Black smoke swirled and consumed all the space around it, filling gaps and
taking over everything. Chills spread over my skin, and I tried to move, but
my legs wouldn’t budge. My feet were cemented to the floor.
Within the shadows, a figure cloaked in black arose and drifted closer.
Red eyes appeared right in front of me.
I woke with a start, my skin damp with sweat.
“Simon?” Galen stirred beside me.
“I’m fine,” I said, breathing hard. “Just a weird dream.”
“Come here.” He pulled me against him. “Do you want to talk about
it?”
 I kissed his collarbone and let his sandalwood scent envelop me. “I’d
rather get lost in you for a while.”
He grabbed my jaw and closed the gap between our lips. As we kissed,
he pushed me to my back and slid between my legs, the sheet moving low
on his naked hips. The weight of him on top of me made me feel safe, and
the tremors in my body leftover from my dream finally faded.
My ass was still a little tender from fucking Galen the night before, but
it was an ache I couldn’t get enough of. I wanted to feel him inside me
again, to have him fill every inch of me.
To claim me over and over.
I heard the soft snap of the lube cap before he squeezed some into his
palm. He exhaled against my parted lips as he coated his cock. I captured
his mouth in another hot kiss as he eased into me, my ass stretching around
his thickness.
“I love being inside you,” Galen murmured, pushing deeper.
I gripped his sides and angled my head back, meeting him for another
kiss. My heart thumped hard in my chest, banging against my rib cage as he
took me faster. I was high on pleasure. High on the warm spicy scent of him
all around me. High on my love for the amazing man in my arms. I hadn’t
said I loved him yet, but I felt the truth of those words all throughout my
body.
He made my soul soar.
The quick morning fuck was exactly what I needed. After blowing my
load and touching Galen just the way he liked as he blew his, I lay in his
arms, my limbs heavy and my body sated.
“Feel better?” he asked, his gravelly tone a little breathy.
“Yep. You’re a miracle worker.” I dropped a kiss to his chest before
grabbing my glasses off the nightstand.
 His arms came around me from behind, and he nipped at my shoulder
blade. I smiled and relaxed against him.
“Is this what you truly want?” he asked, his breath tickling my skin. “A
life with me?”
I turned to face him, surprised by his grave expression. His light gray
eyes shone with an unspoken worry. It was one I felt too—that this
happiness wouldn’t last.
“Yes,” I rasped. Emotion lodged in my throat.
“I want you to really think about what that means, Simon.” Galen
smoothed his fingers down my arm, a faraway look in his eyes. “You
already have to lie to Kyo. If you truly want a relationship with me, you’ll
have to keep lying. To him. To anyone else you meet. My life is bloody.
Violent. Demons, their minions, powerful beings that are on their side… all
of them will have your scent. Being with me will put you in constant
danger.”
“Teach me how to defend myself, then,” I said, refusing to let him
scare me away. Because that’s exactly what he was trying to do.
Galen kissed my fingertips. “I dread the thought of these gentle hands
holding a weapon.”
“Do you not want this?” I asked, my voice breaking. “Is that why
you’re trying to get me to leave you?”
Finally, life returned to his eyes. He gripped the side of my neck and
pressed his forehead to mine. “That’s not why. I’ve already told you that I
can’t push you away. Yet, I feel selfish for saying such a thing. If something
ever happened to you because I couldn’t protect you, I don’t know what—”
“Stop,” I said, placing my hand over his. “This is my choice, Galen.
You’re not making me do anything. I can’t walk away from you any more
than you can walk away from me. I…” The words caught in my throat.
 “You what?”
I stared at his long dark lashes and how they cast shadows on the tops
of his cheeks. I traced the curve of his strong jaw and then touched his full
bottom lip. He was devastating in his beauty, an ancient warrior who’d seen
civilizations rise and fall. The son of a fallen angel who only wanted to
prove—to himself and others—that he was different than the cruel male
who’d fathered him. He was protective and kind. He made me feel warm
and safe. Cherished.
“I love you,” I whispered, blinking away tears. Weight lifted off my
shoulders as I said the words. I’d been holding them back for ages. “So you
see? I can’t leave you. I don’t want to. What I want is this moment right
here.” I pressed closer to him. “Waking up with you beside me. Feeling
your heart beat against mine.”
“Simon…”
“You don’t have to say it back,” I said in a rush as nerves jumbled in
my stomach. “I know it’s too soon for me to feel that way, and—”
“Simon,” he said again, this time firmer. When he took hold of my chin
and forced my gaze up to him, I saw a trace of a smile in his eyes. He
smoothed the pad of his thumb across my bottom lip. “Take a breath.”
I inhaled, then released it.
His lips twitched. “Better?”
“Yes.” A pause. “No. I don’t know.”
I tried to pull away. But he brought me right back.
“You can’t run away that easy, little human,” he said, face in the crease
of my neck. “Not when you just said those words to me.”
“What words? I’ve said a lot in the past minute.”
He lifted his head and cut his eyes at me.
 I smiled against my will. I couldn’t fight it. Was this what love was
supposed to feel like? Scary, confusing, exhilarating, and warm all at once?
I had thought I’d loved a few past boyfriends before, but it hadn’t felt
anything like this.
No, this was incomparable.
The tenderness in Galen’s eyes made me believe that he felt the same
about me, even if he couldn’t say it yet.
With one small push forward of my head, our lips met. His fingers
threaded through my hair as mine danced along his back. He released his
wings and draped them over us, the soft feathers caressing my skin as he
settled between my legs.
Two months ago, I would’ve never dreamed I’d be naked in bed with a
winged sex god of a man on top of me, his lips pressing to mine as our hard
cocks slid together. My eyes had been opened to a whole new world, one
with magic, found family, and love.
I should’ve known it wouldn’t last.
Galen suddenly froze.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“It’s Castor,” he said, his fingers digging into his temple. “He’s…” He
broke off and groaned, as if in pain. “Something’s wrong.”
Galen hurried out of bed and tugged on a pair of jeans. He’d just
zipped them when there was a banging on the door.
“Galen!” Gray said, his voice cracking. “Cas is hurt!”
Galen opened the door, and my heart ripped wide open at seeing the
tears streaking down Gray’s cheeks. As quickly as I could, I pulled on the
jeans Galen had torn off me last night and tugged on a sweater.
“Stay here,” Galen told me. He had completely changed in mere
seconds. The seductive, gentle male I’d been in bed with just moments ago
had been replaced by the warrior he was raised to be. Authority radiated
from him.
“Let me help.” I wasn’t sure what I could do, but Galen wasn’t the only
person in the mansion I cared about. I cared for all seven of them. If Castor
was hurt, I refused to stand there doing nothing.
“You’ll do as I say,” Galen growled, guiding a frantic Gray out of the
room. Beneath the harsh tone, I sensed his fear. “Don’t leave this room. Do
you understand?”
My pulse thrummed through my veins, and I felt a bit light-headed. An
argument was on the tip of my tongue, but the hard look in his eyes stopped
me from voicing it. “Okay.”
The door slammed as he exited the room.
I rushed over to it and put my ear against the wood, hearing heavy
footsteps in the hall and indistinct voices before everything got quiet. Tires
squealed not long afterward, followed by the sound of an engine getting up
to speed. Another car followed. Since it was broad daylight, they drove
instead of flew.
Was I alone at the mansion now?
Was Castor okay?
A thud on the balcony made me snap my head around. My heart was in
my throat, and fear gripped me. But then I saw a familiar set of white wings
on the patio.
I ran over and flung open the door. “Lazarus?”
Blood pooled from a wound on his head, coloring sections of his
blond-white hair red. Deep gashes were on his arms and chest, and when he
tried to stand, he slumped back to the balcony floor. A part of his left wing
had been torn, staining the once pure white feathers in blood.
“What happened?” I dropped to my knees beside him.
 “An attack,” he answered with a gasp. “In the celestial realm. Why did
he do this? Why would he betray us this way?”
“Who?”
“Ramiel,” Lazarus said, clutching at the wound on his side. It looked
deep. The angel’s gold-flecked blue eyes landed on me. He grabbed my
hand and placed something on my palm. “Please. Take this. Guard it with
your life.”
The ring.
My dream came flooding back to me. The shadows. That unsettling
feeling that I wasn’t alone. The red eyes.
“I don’t understand,” I said, my voice rising in pitch like it did every
time I freaked the fuck out. “I thought the ring was safe in the celestial
realm.”
“It was. But Ramiel betrayed us. He and a group of angels stormed the
vaults and tried to take it. They’ve been Belphegor’s eyes and ears this
entire time.” Lazarus stared off into the distance, blood smeared on his
cheek. “It explains why we could never get ahead of their plans. Why
Belphegor always seemed to evade us. It explains everything.”
“What am I supposed to do with this?” Panic filled my chest. “If it
wasn’t safe up there, what makes you think it will be safe with me?”
“I have no other choice,” he responded, trying to stand again. I jumped
to my feet and helped steady him. “I’m too weak to keep running from
them. They shouldn’t be able to reach you here though.”
“Why not? You’re able to get inside the veil.”
“I placed protections up long ago,” Lazarus said, wincing as he put
weight on his injured leg. “The other angels think the Nephilim are
monstrous abominations and wish to destroy them. They’ve wanted to since
the day the boys were born. So I blocked them from knowing this location.”
He gazed up at the sky. “I need to leave. Time is running out. They’ll still
be able to track me, and if they do and I’m still here, I’m afraid no amount
of protection can keep any of you safe.”
He took off into the sky after that, his bloody wing faltering a bit before
gaining strength. The heavy flaps of his wings faded the higher he soared,
and then he was out of sight.
My mind whirled. First something bad happened to Castor. Then
Lazarus showed up bloody and saying angels had betrayed him. What the
actual fuck was going on?
Trembles attacked my whole body as I walked back inside Galen’s
room and sat on the edge of the bed. I didn’t consider myself an overly
anxious person, but my nerves were fried. The smallest noise had me
jumping. When my palm tingled, I glanced down at the ring still clutched in
my fist. I opened my hand and examined it.
The gold band had smears of blood, and the large green stone in the
center appeared to faintly glow. I leaned in closer. My hair ruffled a bit right
before a deep chill settled in my bones. And then I heard it… whispering. A
deep voice spoke in a language I didn’t understand. The hair on my nape
stood on end.
I tossed the ring on the bedside table and wrapped my arms around my
knees, doing my best to hold myself together. Tears slipped from my eyes
as I remembered Gray’s voice cracking as he banged on the door. Shit was
overwhelming right now, and I felt like my mind was about to snap. I
hugged my arms tighter around myself, wishing Galen was with me.
How had such an amazing morning turned out like this?

***
 A grim silence hung over us later that evening. They never found
Castor. Each of them had looked for hours, but the trail ran cold. As the sun
set, the six of them made their way back home, worry written all over their
faces. Anger too.
“What was he doing away from the mansion so early?” Galen growled,
knuckles cracking as he squeezed his hands into tight fists. He stood beside
the window in the entertainment room as rain pelted against the glass.
“We went to the club together last night,” Raiden said, gaze on the
carpet. His voice shook. “Cas met some guy and went to the back room to
fuck. Before I left, I asked through our mind link where he was, and he told
me to go home. That he was okay.”
“You dumbass,” Daman said. “You shouldn’t have left him alone.
Maybe if you would use your brain as much as your muscles, you wouldn’t
have been so stupid.”
Raiden snarled and jumped up off the couch.
“Enough,” Alastair said from his spot against the wall. Raiden’s
nostrils flared as he sat back down. “We’re all hurting right now and
worried about our brother, but attacking each other is the last thing we
should be doing. Castor needs us to keep a level head.” His pale eyes
focused on me. “With the attack in the celestial realm happening at the
same time as Castor’s disappearance… the two have to be related
somehow.”
I hated to even ask it, but the question haunted me. “How do you know
he’s even still alive?”
“We would feel it if he died,” Galen answered. “I sense his life force.
He’s in pain, but he’s alive.”
Gray whimpered and shoved his face in the crook of my neck. I held
him closer, an ache spreading through my chest.
 “Lazarus isn’t responding to me,” Alastair said.
“He was in bad shape when I saw him.” I stared down at my lap. “I
wish I could’ve helped.”
“There was nothing you could’ve done.” Galen’s voice was gentle.
“Will he die from his wounds?” I asked. “I thought you guys healed
super fast.”
“We do.” Alastair took a steadying breath. “But we’re not
indestructible by any means. Full-blooded angels like Lazarus can only be
killed by a celestial blade, which is what Ramiel must’ve used to wound
him. The weapon can kill us too of course. It slows our healing.” His brow
dipped in the center. “Mainly, it’s used to torture us.”
Hot tears fell on my chest as Gray snuggled in closer.
“Why would anyone want to torture any of you?”
“You’re full of many questions tonight, mortal.” Alastair glowered at
me. “This business doesn’t concern you. You—”
“It does concern me,” I snapped, fed up with his attitude. “Lazarus
gave me the ring and told me to keep it safe. So stop treating me like an
outsider. Castor is my friend, and I want to help you guys find him.”
“There’s only one reason why they’d want to torture him,” Galen said,
moving his gaze back to the rain hitting the window. “For information.
Specifically, our location.”
“Doesn’t the warding prevent them from reaching us?” I asked.
“The veil isn’t impenetrable.” Alastair pushed away from the wall. “It’s
strong, yes, but there are ways they can get inside. If Ramiel is working
with Belphegor, he would’ve told him that Lazarus fled the celestial realm
with the ring. It’s obvious where he would’ve stashed it. The one place none
of them can easily breach.”
 “So they took Castor to find a way inside,” I said as the pieces slid into
place.
“Yes.” A tic started in Alastair’s jaw. “They were one step ahead of us.
Predicting our movements and acting accordingly.”
“So what do we do now?” Bellamy asked.
“They took our brother,” Galen growled, turning away from the
window. His light gray eyes darkened. “I won’t rest until I see them all
burn.”
At the same time, the six of them flinched. Gray brought his arms up to
cover his head, his small body shaking. Galen clutched at his chest, his eyes
wide. Alastair slumped forward, having to catch himself on the edge of the
couch.
“Poor Cas,” Gray said, his voice as small as he was. “They’re hurting
him so much. I feel his pain.”
“Castor is strong,” Alastair said, though the shake in his voice gave
way to his worry. His gaze moved to me. “Where’s the ring?”
“In Galen’s room,” I answered. After hearing the low whispers coming
from it—or thinking I’d heard them anyway—I hadn’t wanted the damn
thing near me.
“Bring it here.”
I nodded and gently moved Gray off my lap. He peered up at me with
tears sticking to his long lashes, his bottom lip quivering. Raiden plopped
down on the cushion and tugged the smaller male against him. Like a little
sloth, Gray clung onto Raiden’s side, closing his eyes.
The looming threat really hit me then. The men I’d come to think of as
my family were all in danger. Castor was being tortured at that very
moment. Powerful beings—angels and demons alike—were after the ring.
A ring I was charged with protecting.
 The six remaining warriors stared in opposite directions, grim-faced
and silent.
I recalled the day we’d sat at the table eating chicken stir-fry. Laughter
and playful taunts had filled the room. Raiden had stolen food off Castor’s
plate, and Gray had nearly fallen face-first into his plate as he fought to stay
awake—which had caused another string of laughs.
Would we get the chance to do that again? All of us together. Happy.
Galen met me beneath the archway leading out of the room and walked
by my side down the hall toward the stairs. His silence caused more
nervous flutters in my gut. His barely repressed rage could be seen in his
hard gaze and the slight tremble in his hand. A hand that probably wanted
to punch something.
It was moments like that when I could truly see Wrath. Not only see,
but I felt it, that dark, violent side of him. But the hand that tightened in his
anger was the same hand that had lovingly caressed my cheek, the same one
that had slid through my hair as he’d kissed me.
I saw the darkness inside Galen. And I loved him anyway.
When we reached his room, I grabbed the ring off the bedside table.
That tingling warmth from earlier returned as it made contact with my skin.
I fought the urge to throw it out the window. Instead, I shoved it into my
pocket.
“You’re quiet,” he said.
I faced him, surprised by how close he was. For someone so big, his
steps could be so light sometimes. “You’re quiet too.”
“Yeah, but it’s common for me. You, on the other hand…” Galen
closed the distance between our bodies and put his arms around me. “With
everything going on, I expected you to be asking a million and one
questions.”
 “I can shut up when I need to.”
That made him smile, if only a little. It fell though. “This is exactly
what I was talking about earlier. My life is too dangerous for you, Simon. If
the demons find a way inside the veil—”
“Then we will face them together.” I grabbed hold of his shirt. “I know
I’m not much of a fighter, but I played Little League baseball for, like, two
years.”
Galen’s smile surfaced again. “Is that so?”
“Mhm. I couldn’t throw the ball for shit, but I could swing a bat like
nobody’s business.”
“A bat, huh?” Humor danced in his eyes. “I vaguely remember you
threatening me with one.”
“Oh, you just vaguely remember it? You know for damn sure that’s the
moment you fell for me.”
“I can’t argue with you there.”
I rose up on my tiptoes and kissed his neck. “I can’t say everything will
be fine. I’m no psychic. But dangerous or not, I’m not going anywhere.
We’re in this together, big guy.”
Galen released a shaky breath. The hard exterior he kept around
everyone else crumbled a little around me. His hand slid to my nape, and he
buried his fingers in the back of my hair, tilting my head back to look up at
him.
“Promise me you won’t do anything reckless,” he said. “We’re safe
here for now, but I feel Castor’s resolve slipping.” Pain laced in his voice as
he said the last part. “I fear he won’t last much longer. And we need to be
prepared for what happens after.”
My eyes watered. “Will they kill him?”
 The same pain in his voice reflected in his eyes. He didn’t need to
answer for me to know the truth. “Just promise me, Simon. If I tell you to
run, you do so without question.”
“Where would I go?” I asked, hating the idea.
“To Clara,” he answered before reaching into his back pocket and
placing keys in my hand. “If I give the order, you take my car and drive like
hell. The warding around Ravenwood should protect you, at least until we
can fight them off. I would tell you to go now, but it’s too late. I feel them
sniffing around the edge of the barrier, trying to find a way in.”
“I won’t leave you,” I said, my chest tight and my eyes stinging with
unshed tears. I was scared. For me. For him. For all the people I cared
about.
“You must,” he growled. “Promise me.”
I gripped the keys tighter in my fist. “I promise.”
Galen crushed me to his chest and pressed his face into my hair.
Unease went through me, twisting my sternum and making it hard to
breathe.
This felt too much like a goodbye.
“I love you,” I said, closing my eyes and breathing him in.
He leaned down and kissed me. I tried not to put too much thought into
how his mouth quivered a bit. Like maybe he thought it felt like a goodbye
too. When he pulled back, he cupped my cheek. His gray eyes softened as
he stared at me. “I—”
But before he could say more, he hunched over and gasped, hand going
to his temple. A sharp wind crashed against the patio door, forcing it open.
And then I heard a sound that made every hair on my body stand up—a
distant screech.
 “Shades,” Galen said, the blood draining from his face. His gaze
moved to me. “They got through.”
More distant screeching followed his words, and my skin crawled as
the sounds grew louder. Closer. Galen threw me over his shoulder like I
weighed nothing and fled the room, taking the stairs down to the main floor.
He moved so fast that I had to close my eyes to keep from getting too
disoriented.
“The barrier is down,” Alastair said, meeting us in the hall outside the
entertainment room. The other warriors were to their feet, weapons drawn.
He looked at Galen, then at me. “We need to lock him in a room and place
warding on the door. It won’t last forever, but it will give us more time.”
“I’m afraid we’re out of time,” Bellamy said, gaze on the window.
Dark shapes moved on the other side of the glass. “They’re here.”
The window shattered as a figure made of black swirling smoke burst
through it. As the stench of rot and burning flesh hit my nose, my stomach
turned. Bellamy sliced the thing’s neck, and its body lit up bright orange
before dissolving to ash. But more were close behind. I heard them moving
through the grass. Screeching. Growling.
“Galen!” I turned to him. “The box! Is it still in Alastair’s study?”
As if understanding my intention, Galen darted down the hall.
Commotion sounded behind us as the brothers fought off the shades, hoarse
breathing sounds mixed with pained yelps and more screeching. Once in the
study, Galen slammed the door and set me down.
I wavered in place a moment. Fear had me shaking like a leaf, but I
couldn’t surrender to it. I met his gaze and took a deep breath. I need to be
brave.
“If I lock the ring inside the box, they won’t be able to open it, right?”
 “They could open it eventually, but it would delay them at least.” Galen
tore through the study until he found the box. “Here.”
I grabbed it from him and reached into my pocket for the ring. I hated
the way it felt against my skin. The green stone glowed, faintly at first, then
brighter. It was as if it sensed the demons outside the door and called out to
them.
Galen studied the ring before lifting his gaze back to mine. Pounding
sounded on the door. I knew what he was about to say, and I braced myself
for it.
“Take the box and leave,” he said. “Go through the garden and turn
right. My car is in the driveway. Drive straight to Clara. Stop nowhere
else.” He looked toward the door and pulled two blades from his belt, one
in each hand. “I’ll hold them off.”
“Galen—”
“You made a promise to me, Simon Parks. Don’t break it.” The door
smashed open, splinters flying everywhere. “Go. Now!”
I rushed toward the glass door that led from the study and into the
garden, opening the lid on the box as I did. I needed to lock the ring inside.
So even if the demons managed to take it from me, they wouldn’t be able to
do anything with it for a while.
But something happened.
Right as I tried to put the ring inside, I was knocked backward by a
powerful blast. I crashed into the desk, the breath leaving my lungs.
“Simon?”
“No,” a deep voice whispered, filling my head. It sounded like the
same one that spoke to me earlier.
The ring grew hotter in my hand, as if the flames of hell were searing
into my flesh. I gritted my teeth against it and tried to shove it inside the
box again, but the box flew from my grip and smashed against the wall,
shattering into pieces.
“Simon! What’s wrong?”
“I don’t know,” I said, wheezing for a breath. “It’s like something’s
preventing me from putting the ring away. The box just flew out of my hand
and broke, Galen.”
“You need to leave,” Galen yelled over the guttural growls as shades
piled into the room. “There’s too many.”
I pulled myself up off the floor and looked back to see him fighting
four at once. More appeared in the doorway, and bile rose in my throat
when I finally got a good look at them. Beneath the swirling smoke of their
heads were pale white faces with gaping mouths and sharp teeth. I stepped
toward the door again, only to be halted in place by an unseen force.
“Stop fighting me,” the voice said. “Obey.”
Obey what?
A shooting pain consumed my entire body, and I cried out, falling
forward and catching myself on the corner of the desk. It felt like a
lightning bolt struck me dead center, the electricity shooting to the tips of
my fingers. The ring burned hotter in my grip, and my hands moved on
their own.
I slid the ring onto my index finger.
My legs gave out, and I collapsed to the floor. The fire from the ring
seeped into me, traveling through my veins. I gasped for air as it felt like
claws dug into me from the inside. I felt wrong. Ringing in my ears muffled
the noise around me. I heard Galen screaming for me, but he sounded so far
away.
I squeezed my eyes shut, and in the back of my mind, two red eyes
appeared. Just like from my dream. I was on fire. Being torn apart from the
inside out.
“Galen!” I cried, trying to stand back up.
When I fell back to the floor, I didn’t move again.
 Chapter Seventeen
Galen

“Simon?” I thrust my dagger into the neck of another shade before

going to his side. He lay still. Too still. I smoothed the hair off his brow, my
hands shaking, both from adrenaline and fear. “Baby, open your eyes.”
Another shade lunged at me, and I ripped its head clean off his
shoulders, roaring as I tossed the body aside. Pain slashed through me, a
sign that one of my brothers was injured. The quick following of another
sharp pain, then another, had me shaking. More than one of them was hurt.
Everyone close to me was falling. We were losing the fight.
I gathered Simon in my arms and cupped his cheek in my palm. Why
wasn’t he moving?
“Well, isn’t this an interesting turn of events.”
I looked up at the demon who’d just appeared in the doorway. The
shades had backed off and stood behind him, baring their sharp teeth at me.
“Phoenix,” I spat.
He casually strode forward, his gaze lowering from me to Simon.
“Such a pity, really. This wasn’t meant to happen. I suspected it might
though.”
“Tell me what’s happening to him,” I growled, then ground my teeth
against the anger boiling in my blood. It was taking all my strength not to
jump up and rip him to shreds. I wanted answers first.
“In simple terms? He’s dying.”
 My heart dropped into my stomach. “What?”
“I’m surprised you didn’t sense it,” Phoenix said, eyes narrowing as he
studied me. “So much for you and your band of fools being the most
powerful beings on earth.”
“Sense what?”
“His blood.” Phoenix stopped beside Alastair’s favorite chair and
rested a hand on the back of it. “You see, there’s a certain sweetness to it.
One that matches someone else’s.”
“Whose?”
“The one meant to wear that ring.” He pointed to Simon’s hand. “The
power must’ve recognized his blood and latched onto him because of it.
Can’t blame it, really. It’s been trapped inside that damned box for ages.
With the threat of being shoved back inside and freedom so close, I’d be
clawing to get out too.”
I lifted Simon’s hand and tried to slide the ring off his finger. It
wouldn’t budge.
“Yeah, that won’t work.” Phoenix came a little closer. “The power is
already moving inside him. Attaching itself. And a mortal body is much too
weak to hold it for long. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but your little
human is going to wither away, piece by piece, as the power consumes him
like a blazing fire tearing through a field of wheat.”
“No.” I shook my head and tried harder to pry the cursed ring off. “He
won’t die. I won’t let him.”
“Galen,” Alastair said through our link. “Where are you?”
“In your study.”
“It’s bad. We couldn’t stop them.”
“Oh yeah,” Phoenix said. “I forgot to tell you that all of your brothers
are kind of restrained at the moment. Some are hurt too. Badly. So if it’s
okay with you, I’ll be taking the human and going on my way.”
“Like hell you’re taking him.” I held Simon closer. My chest ached
when he whimpered and pushed his face against me.
“Galen?” he croaked, opening his eyes. The lenses of his glasses were
cracked.
“I’m here,” I said.
Other demons materialized in the room. Upper-level ones that were a
lot stronger than the shades I’d been killing. They had human appearances,
with the exception of the horns on their heads and their glowing eyes. All of
them held daggers.
I brushed my lips against Simon’s forehead before gently setting him
aside and pushing to my feet. If they wanted him, they’d have to go through
me first. I’d fight until I couldn’t anymore.
“Damn this weak body,” a scratchy and deep voice said.
I flipped around to see Simon sitting up, his eyes glowing red. He rose
to his feet and stepped toward me, a smile stretching his lips. But it wasn’t
my Simon. It was whatever dark power had hold of him. The shock of it
made me hesitate, and the surrounding demons took advantage of that fact.
A sharp pain pierced my side, sending me to my knees. The demon
who’d stabbed me then held the blade to my throat while the others grabbed
each of my arms to hold me in place.
“Don’t kill him,” Simon said in a bored tone. His voice was all wrong;
so was the dead look in his eyes. He took off his glasses and frowned at
them before throwing them to the floor and stepping on them. “The human
is screaming inside my head, and I want him to shut the fuck up. Plus, I
think it’s more fun for the Nephilim to live with the pain we’ll cause by
taking his sweet little mate away. Now take me to my true body. I hate this
frail one.”
 “Yes, Your Majesty,” Phoenix said, bowing his head.
Your Majesty?
Phoenix approached Simon and offered his hand, which Simon took.
The two of them disappeared.
“Simon!” I yelled after them. Panic took root inside my chest.
“I wish I could slit your throat,” the demon holding me growled in my
ear. “But orders are orders.” He pushed me away as the rest of them faded
from sight.
I stood on shaky legs, applying pressure to the wound on my side. The
injury would heal in time. They hadn’t used a celestial blade. But even if I’d
been sliced open from ear to ear and stabbed a thousand times, nothing
would’ve hurt more than the pain I felt as I stared at Simon’s broken glasses
on the floor.
“I love you too,” I said, my vision blurring.
I never got to tell him.
The words had been right there on my lips, but fear had held me back.
I’d thought by telling him, I’d be jinxing myself. That I’d only end up
losing him.
And now I’ve lost him anyway.
The demons had gotten exactly what they’d wanted, and I’d been
powerless to stop it. In the process, I had lost Simon too.
Marcus appeared in my mind. He smiled at me with so much love in
his brown eyes. His dark skin glistened from sweat after a long day of
tending to the land and working in the garden he’d loved so much. Because
after years of killing and bloodshed in the arena, all he’d wanted was a
beautiful place to watch life flourish. Then I remembered the blade sliding
across his throat, a red line trailing behind it. I could still remember the
shock in his eyes as he fell, dead before he even hit the grass.
 Simon had been taken from me too. I recalled the fear in his voice right
before the ring possessed him.
“Your little human is going to wither away, piece by piece, as the
power consumes him.”
It happened then, the beginning signs of the rage I’d experienced once
before, one that had completely consumed me. The sensation spread
through my body, turning my blood to liquid fire. My heartache fueled that
fire, made the flames rage higher. Being angry was easier than letting
myself feel the pain of not being able to save him.
Kill, Wrath growled from inside me. Maim them. Punish.
My control started to slip…
“Look at me.”
I focused on Alastair. Blood clumped in his hair, and cuts covered his
arms. His hands were stained red too, though it didn’t look to be his.
“We’ll get him back,” he said, grabbing my shoulders. “But we can’t
do that if you let Wrath take over. Pull yourself together so we can figure
out what to do next. Am I clear?”
The authority in his tone jolted something inside me, pulling me back
from that edge. He was right. Simon wasn’t lost to me yet. I could still save
him.
I nodded. “Yes, sir.”
“Everyone’s accounted for except for Gray.” Alastair shakily inhaled
and turned toward the door. “We… we need to find him.”
I followed him out of the room and down the hall. Raiden sat on the
floor with his back against the wall, wrapping his bloody bicep. Bellamy
kneeled in front of Daman and doctored a deep cut on his leg. Daman wiped
away a streak of blood running down Bellamy’s cheek.
“Gray?” Alastair called out.
 “Gray?” I asked, trying to reach him telepathically just in case he was
too far away to hear us.
No response.
I closed my eyes and searched for his life force. I envisioned the
connection I felt with my brothers like lines of different colored threads.
Alastair’s was purple. Raiden’s was orange. Years ago when Kallias died,
his black thread had faded and snapped. I refused to lose another brother.
I searched for a light blue one: Gray’s. It only worked if we were in
close proximity, which was why I hadn’t been able to locate Castor earlier.
Though faint, I felt a slight tug on the light blue thread and opened my
eyes. I headed toward the left corridor, my heart sinking when I saw streaks
of blood on the floor.
“Galen?” a small voice croaked.
At the foot of the stairs, propped against the steps, was Gray. He’d been
stabbed in the chest, but it was another injury that concerned me. Blood
oozed from his throat. He had placed his hand over the wound, and red
seeped from between his fingers.
I ran to his side and put my hand on his neck, fear gripping my heart as
I used my power to close the wound. Alastair did the same on his other side,
both of us putting all we had into healing him.
“I… tried to stop… them,” Gray whispered.
“Shh.” Alastair petted the top of Gray’s blond hair, his voice shaking.
“Don’t speak, little one. Save your strength.”
“Alastair,” I said, my chest constricting. “Why isn’t it healing?”
“Come quickly,” Alastair told the others. “We’re by the staircase. Gray
is hurt.”
Raiden came down the hall first with the other two close behind him.
The three of them rushed toward us and dropped down on the steps beside
our wounded brother. They added their hands to ours as all five of us used
our healing power on him.
“It’s not working,” Bellamy said, eyes shining as they welled with
tears.
“The bastards used a celestial blade on him,” I growled, feeling that
stirring of rage again. “Our powers are useless against it.”
“W-Where’s Simon?” Gray asked.
Another punch to my gut. Simon had been taken. Gray was gravely
injured.
“Don’t worry about that right now,” Alastair told him before looking at
Bellamy. “Get me something to place over the wound. Now.”
Bellamy jumped up and ran down the hall, returning moments later
with a towel. Alastair held it over Gray’s neck and applied pressure.
An idea struck me, and I bolted up the stairs toward my room. My
bloody hands left smears on Simon’s phone as I snatched it up and called
the one person that might be able to help. If our angelic powers were no use
against the celestial blade, what about other magic?
“Hey, Simon,” Clara answered.
“Clara.”
A pause. “Angel boy?”
“I need your help.”

***

Clara exited Gray’s bedroom, wiping her red-stained hands on a rag. A

smear of blood was on her cheek, but she smiled when she saw us in the
hall.
“The five of you are a crazy sight,” she said. “Like giants.”
 “How is he?” Raiden asked, stepping forward.
“Stable.” Clara softly shut the door behind her. “The elixir stopped the
bleeding, and the salve will help the stitches knit the wound closed. I’m
glad you called me when you did. Any longer and I wouldn’t have been
able to help him.”
“Thank you,” Alastair told her, bowing his head.
Her green eyes studied each of us. “Mind telling me what’s going on?
Why didn’t your healing powers work on him?”
“The demons used a celestial blade,” I answered. “It counteracts our
healing abilities. Higher-level angels use them to punish those beneath them
who disobey orders.”
“How did the demons have one, then?” she asked.
“Belphegor, as well as other fallen angels in the demonic ranks, took
them from the celestial realm during the Fall. More angels joined those
ranks recently. I’m sure they have a whole goddamn arsenal of them now.”
“Why are we telling her all of this?” Daman glared at Clara. “She’s a
filthy witch.”
“A filthy witch who just saved your brother’s life,” she snapped.
“I trust her,” I said. Surprise flickered across her face. I was a bit
surprised at myself too. But Simon trusted her. He considered her a friend.
It was why I’d thought to call her. And thank god I did.
“You trust her.” Daman scoffed. “We can’t afford to trust outsiders,
Galen, especially witches.”
“We’ll need more allies if we hope to win this fight,” I said.
“Galen’s right,” Alastair said before looking at Clara. “We’re in your
debt, Ms. Locksley.”
“Oh god. Don’t call me that. You can call me Clara.” She draped the
bloody rag over her shoulder. “Those demon bastards not only took the
ring, but they took Simon too. Tell me what I need to do to help you get him
back.”
Rescuing Simon and Castor was the one thing holding me together. I
envisioned Castor’s life force. The yellow thread flickered when I focused
on it, which meant he was too far for me to get a proper read on. But at least
he was alive. It gave me hope that Simon was alive too.
He had to be.
“Can we see him?” Raiden asked, gaze on Gray’s bedroom door.
Clara nodded and stepped aside. “Just don’t overwhelm him. He needs
to rest.”
Raiden visited Gray first, then Bellamy. As Alastair and Daman went in
together, I stood outside in the hall with Clara. She asked for more details
about what happened earlier that night, and I told her.
“The ring possessed him?” She frowned.
“The entity said something about wanting its true body,” I added.
“Phoenix told me the power would tear Simon’s mortal body apart.”
“Makes sense. I’ve heard of lower-level demons possessing humans,
but the power in that ring was more powerful than anything I’ve ever
known. No human could withstand it for long.” Clara cursed under her
breath. “This is all my fault. If I would’ve been here when my grandmother
passed, I could’ve ensured the ring stayed hidden. Simon would’ve never
had the thing come through his shop, and he wouldn’t have been kidnapped
and god knows what else.”
If the ring would’ve never left Ravenwood Mansion, shades wouldn’t
have been ordered to search the town for it. I would’ve never been drawn to
Simon’s shop, would’ve never seen that adorable blush in his cheeks as he
looked up at me.
I wouldn’t have met him at all.
 Maybe it would’ve been for the best. He could’ve lived an ordinary life
and fallen in love with a human who wouldn’t have put him in constant
danger.
“Don’t blame yourself,” I said. “It won’t change anything. Better to put
our energy into saving him.”
Alastair and Daman exited Gray’s room.
“He’s asking for you,” Alastair told me.
I nodded and stepped through the doorway. The moon lamp on the
nightstand glowed purple, then changed to blue. Gray loved the lamp
because even though he was thousands of years old, he was still afraid of
the dark. It helped him feel safe.
“Galen.” Gray lay in bed, a bandage around his neck. He used
telepathy to keep from using his voice.
I sat on the edge of the bed and smiled when his hand slipped into
mine. Typical Sloth. He always had to be clinging to someone.
“Al told me what happened,” he said, a frown tugging at his lips. “We
have to find Castor and Simon.”
“You won’t be doing anything but staying in this bed. The others and I
will find them.”
“But I want to help. I love them too.”
More of my anger faded away. “I know you do. But you’re no good to
anyone in this state. You can help by resting and getting better.” Gray’s
eyelids closed before quickly opening again. They weighed heavier now.
“Go to sleep.”
“Don’t wanna sleep. Too worried.”
However, his eyes closed anyway. I stayed by his side until he started
snoring. I tucked the blanket in more around him, then stood and left the
room, closing the door.
 I looked at Clara. “I have no right to ask any more of you than I already
have, but will you stay and watch over him tonight?”
“Of course.” She sadly smiled. “Unlike you, he’s not a grumpy ass.”
“Remind me to give some smart-ass response to that later.” The weight
of my worry crashed down on me. I didn’t crumple beneath that weight
though. I strengthened myself against it; used it to fuel my rage. That’s how
I’d save Simon and Castor. Not by surrendering to my grief.
“You’ve had one hell of a day, angel boy. It’s understandable that
you’re off your game.”
“I apologize for how I treated you. You’ve been a good friend to
Simon, and—”
“Stop.” She waved her hand. “You had every right to be suspicious.
But I’m glad you know better now.”
“Me too. You saved Gray’s life.”
Alastair told us to join him outside. Clara came too. I could tell my
brothers still didn’t fully trust her—much like I’d been in the beginning—
but I knew with time, they’d come to do so. It was in our nature not to trust
anyone outside of each other.
“I just heard from Lazarus,” Alastair said. “Uriel is shielding him for
now. It’s chaos up there. Ramiel and the other rebels killed many angels
before fleeing the celestial realm.”
“Fortunate that Lazarus is alive,” I said. “Simon said he was badly
injured.”
The mention of my human caused another ache to shoot through my
heart. Please be okay.
“I called Konnar,” Raiden said. “It’s too much of a coincidence that
Cas was attacked by demons not long after going off with some dude he
met in the club. Kon said he’s looking into it and will call when he has
something for us.”
“Good.” Alastair nodded. “I have an idea of where they took Simon.
Castor’s probably there too.”
“Do you mind enlightening us, then?” Bellamy asked.
“It should be obvious. A child could figure it out,” Alastair responded.
“Remember what Lazarus told us? Demons are gathering in the underworld.
If Phoenix called the entity possessing Simon ‘Your Majesty’ that can only
mean one thing.” His pale blue eyes flickered to each of our faces. “The
new king has arisen. I say we go and greet him.”
“Get ready, boys,” Raiden said, a wicked smile spreading across his
face. “We’re going to the underworld.”
“Are you crazy?” Clara asked. “You just said demons are swarming
there. What makes you think the five of you can waltz in there, grab Simon
and your brother, and leave in one piece? It’s a suicide mission.”
“And if we don’t go, they die,” Alastair said, tone hard. “We have no
other choice.”
“In a one-on-one fight, we’re stronger than any of them,” I said,
looking up as the moon came out from behind a cloud. It reminded me of
the night I took Simon flying. He’d been so warm in my arms. They ached
to hold him again. “Even outnumbered, the five of us will put up a good
fight. But Clara’s right. If we go in as we are, some of us may not come out
again.”
“Are you questioning my orders?” Alastair asked.
“No. I will always fight by your side, no matter the danger.” I looked at
him, the weight of the decision I was about to make pressing down on my
lungs and making it hard to breathe. “We’ve been outnumbered before
when Belphegor brought an army to Rome. And we won.”
 A knowing look glinted in Alastair’s eyes. “Galen. No. I won’t allow
it.”
“You’re not considering what I think you are…” Bellamy glared at me.
Worry shone through them.
“Wrath tore through Belphegor’s army in the past,” I said, feeling a
tugging on my insides as my sin awoke further. It was as if he sensed my
willingness to set him free. “So much so that hundreds of them turned and
fled at the mere sight of me.”
“No,” Alastair said again, grabbing my arm. “You nearly didn’t come
back last time. We almost lost you. I won’t risk it.”
“It’s my decision,” I gently told him. “And I’ve made it.”
If it was the only way to save Simon… I’d do it.
No matter the cost.
 Chapter Eighteen
Simon

My head felt like it had been struck by a hammer.

I cracked open my eyelids and winced at the sharp pain in my skull.
Nausea bubbled in my gut, and my whole body ached. The air smelled
musky but also damp. Almost like I was in some kind of cave. There was
another smell too, though faint. Something burned nearby.
The floor beneath me was cool. Any other time it might’ve been
miserable, but it actually felt nice against my heated skin.
“Hey, little mortal,” a scratchy voice said.
“Castor?” I fought the pain in my temple and focused on the figure to
my left. Sconces were lit on the walls, giving off just enough light to see.
Without my glasses, everything looked a little blurry though.
He was slumped against the wall, blood streaking down his arms, bare
chest, and from a wound in his head. Dark patches of dried blood matted in
his vibrant red hair. More blood streamed down his face. It looked like all
his piercings had been ripped out: eyebrows, nose, and lip.
“What happened to you?” I asked, trying to go over to him. My leg
tugged as it caught on something.
“Bastards chained us up,” Castor said, the chain around his ankle
clanking as he moved his leg. “Fuck. I’m glad you’re not dead. They
brought you in hours ago, and you were so still. Pale too. I couldn’t reach
you.”
 “I think they broke my glasses,” I said, reaching up to touch where they
should’ve been.
“Looks like they broke something else too.”
My left hand throbbed, and I glanced down to see it wrapped. Sloppily
wrapped anyway. Like whoever did it cared very little. Red bled through
the bandage, and I stared at it, confused. I didn’t remember injuring myself.
The last thing I recalled was being in Alastair’s study as Galen fought off
shades. There had been a deep voice that spoke to me.
Wait.
The ring. I had put it on. Did I still wear it? I carefully undid some of
the wrapping and peeled it back. What I saw made bile rise in my throat,
and I lurched to the side to puke, no longer able to fight the nausea churning
inside me.
My index finger had been chopped off. All that remained was a bloody
stump.
“Simon?” The chain clanked again as Castor tried to come closer.
“Hey. Talk to me.”
“They cut off my finger!” My hand throbbed again, and I dry heaved
on the floor as there was nothing else in my stomach to puke up. God, I was
a mess. “Why would they do that? Where the hell are we?” I glanced
around the room through my fuzzy vision. There was one door. Our one
escape route. I frantically yanked at the chain on my leg, my throat feeling
like it was closing up. “We have to get out of here!”
“Take deep breaths, okay?” Castor’s voice remained calm. “I think
you’re having a panic attack.”
“Of course I’m panicked! They chopped off my goddamn finger.
You’re covered in blood. We’re chained to a wall. Oh my god, we’re going
to die.” Tears burned behind my eyes as the fight left me, and I brought my
knees up, wrapping my arms around them. “The demons broke through the
barrier. Galen and everyone else was fighting them. I don’t know if they’re
okay.”
“I’d know if one of them died,” Castor said, touching the center of his
chest.
“They said the same about you.”
“It’s our connection. We’re linked together by invisible threads. When
one of us dies, that thread snaps.” He rested his head back against the wall,
hands balling into fists. “I hate myself for not being stronger. I tried to fight
it, but I couldn’t anymore. Belphegor got what he wanted. All this happened
because I was stupid. I let my guard down. And all because a hot piece of
ass begged me to stay the night with him.”
“The guy from the club?” I asked. “Raiden told us you met someone.
He blames himself.”
“It wasn’t Raiden’s fault. I told him to leave.” Castor breathed out a
sigh. “The guy was a vamp. Hot as fuck too. I should’ve just fucked him
and left. But then he wanted to go back to his place for round two. Next
thing I knew, I woke up to a cold blade pressed to my throat and five
demons surrounding me. The vamp sold me out to them.”
“How did the demons break through the veil?”
“Belphegor can get inside people’s heads,” Castor answered. “I tried to
block him, but he has a way of getting what he wants. Basically
psychological torture. He puts images into your mind. Makes you see
horrible things. Some things that have happened and some that are your
deepest fears. He does this until you break.” He hung his head forward.
“And I broke. Once he got the location, he needed my blood for some kind
of spell that would temporarily weaken the veil long enough for them to get
inside. I’m so sorry, Simon.”
 “It’s not your fault. It was only a matter of time before they found a
way to get the ring.” I moved my bandaged hand out of sight, otherwise I’d
probably dry heave again. “Bits and pieces are coming back to me.
Something forced me to put on the ring. I think I passed out after that. But I
remember Galen holding me. Another man was in the room too. He said
something about me sharing blood with the one meant to wear the ring,
which is why it latched on to me.”
Castor frowned. “Like you’re related? But you’re human.”
“I know. It doesn’t make any sense.”
A clink sounded at the large door across the room before it swung
open, creaking as it did. The auburn-haired demon walked inside. His shirt
was open in the front, showing his muscled chest. Unlike when I saw him
other times, two small horns protruded from his head.
“Good to see you both awake,” he said, his gait casual as he strode to
the center of the room. The door was left open behind him. Had he
intentionally done it to taunt us?
“Fuck you.” Castor flipped him off.
“No need to be rude, Greed. Belphegor wanted to kill you, but I
convinced him otherwise. You should be thanking me.”
Castor spat at him instead.
“You Nephilim have the worst manners.” Phoenix snarled down at
Castor. “Wrath lunges at me like a mindless beast every time I visit him,
and now you reward me with your bodily fluids. I’d much prefer a different
kind, if you catch my meaning. Not with you though. You’re not my type.”
“Do you ever shut the fuck up?” Castor asked. “I swear. Your voice
could be used for psychological warfare. Just an endless track of you
blabbing like the goddammed cocky sonofabitch you are.”
 “Interesting idea to keep in mind for the next time we need to torture
you,” Phoenix responded. “All it took this time was showing you the things
you fear most, and you broke.”
“Stop,” Castor said, pained.
“Hard to face the truth, huh?” Phoenix’s smile lacked all humor. It was
cold. Calculating. “Your worst fear is seeing your brothers die. I think what
broke you the most was seeing poor little Sloth torn apart, his small body
bloody and broken. You failed him, you know. You failed them all the
moment you gave up their location.”
Shadows swam in Castor’s eyes. Was he remembering the disturbing
visions Belphegor made him see?
“Shut up,” I said to the demon. “And wipe that stupid smirk off your
face while you’re at it.”
Phoenix stepped toward me. “Can you even see my smirk without your
glasses?”
“Enough to know it’s stupid.”
Castor snorted.
“How’s the hand?” Phoenix asked. “Chopping off your finger wasn’t
ideal, but I was too impatient.”
A dry laugh came from Castor. “You really shouldn’t have done that.
Galen is going to rip you to shreds.”
For the first time, the demon’s confidence slipped. He actually looked a
little scared. But then he recovered. “If you think this story ends happily,
you’re sadly mistaken. Hordes of demons wait outside these walls. Do you
think your comrades will be able to kill them all? I think not. You both will
rot down here before they ever reach you.”
Chills spread down my spine as a loud, booming roar shook the walls.
 A man burst through the open doorway, black wings protruding from
his shoulders. He was huge, probably Galen’s height or an inch taller. He
had a head of golden hair and light brown eyes that glared daggers at the
demon in front of him.
“Belphegor,” Phoenix said, eyes widening. “What are you—”
“My son was harmed tonight!” Belphegor bellowed, grabbing Phoenix
by the front of his shirt. “One of your men sliced his throat with a celestial
blade. I ordered you not to hurt him, did I not?”
“Y-Yes, sir,” Phoenix stammered. “But I wasn’t the one who sliced his
throat.”
“Your men. Your responsibility. Any commander knows that.”
“Your son attacked my men. Were they supposed to just let him kill
them?”
“Gray?” Castor asked, thrashing against his chains. “What happened?”
My stomach was in knots. Not Gray. I didn’t want any of the warriors
hurt, but him especially. I remembered how he liked to cling to my arm and
lie in my lap. That sleepy little smile he always gave me before closing his
eyes.
Belphegor ignored Castor. “If the king didn’t want you for his personal
plaything, I would rip out your guts and hang you with them.”
“Personal plaything? That’s a bit of a stretch. He wants me as his
adviser. You’d do well to remember that.”
The fallen angel pushed Phoenix away from him before storming out of
the room.
“And they say demons are bad,” Phoenix said, adjusting his now
wrinkled shirt. “He has such a nasty temper.”
One thing stood out to me. The few times I’d heard Belphegor
mentioned at the mansion, the brothers had spoken of him like he was this
horribly wicked being. But the concern for his son was real. Even though
they fought on opposite sides, the fallen angel cared for Gray.
“Where’s this king of yours?” Castor asked.
“You’ll meet him soon enough.” Phoenix’s dark eyes moved to me.
“He’s especially interested in you.”
“Because we share a bloodline?”
“Clever,” the demon said. “But only on his maternal side. She was
human, you see. No one of significance, other than the fact she was a virgin
when Lucifer bedded her. She went on to have more children from a
different man. Boringly human, I might add. That’s where you come from.
The bloodline has been weakened over the millennia but never erased.”
“And that’s why the ring was able to possess me?”
Phoenix nodded. “You’re lucky to be alive. Maybe it was because of
your weak blood, but the power didn’t fully take root in you. If it did, you
would’ve burned from the inside out.”
I recalled the sensation of fire in my veins and shuddered.
“You mentioned Lucifer,” Castor said, his voice shaking. “Your king
can’t be…”
“His son?” Phoenix smiled. “You’ll just have to wait and see, won’t
you? If he is, I doubt he’ll be too happy to see you, Nephilim, given the fact
that you helped lock his father away. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have
preparations to make.”
“Wait,” I said.
He turned. “What?
“Where are we?”
“And here I thought you were a clever little human.” Phoenix tsked.
“Where do you think you are? Disneyland? You’re in the underworld. The
only way you’re getting out is in pieces, so I’d start getting used to it.”
 Phoenix left, closing and locking the door behind him.
“The underworld?” I whispered in shock. “I’m in Hell.”
“Hell doesn’t exist,” Castor said. “Not in the way you’ve been told it
does anyway. The underworld, or netherworld as it’s sometimes referred to,
is the home for the undead. That mainly includes demons, but there are
other beings as well. So Hell? Fire and brimstone and eternal suffering of
the soul? Yeah, no. It’s not like that at all.”
“Well, that’s… reassuring.”
“Humans still aren’t safe here though,” Castor said. “It might not be
like you’ve been told, but it’s still dangerous.”
“Where do human souls go when people die?”
“Good souls go to Elysium, or Paradise as some call it. For bad ones?
The common name is Sheol. It’s a section of the underworld specifically for
souls. And believe me, you don’t want to go there.”
I almost asked why but thought better of it. I was too freaked-out as it
was. I didn’t need to add to it. “Do you really think the new king is a son of
Lucifer? Lazarus said he killed all of Lucifer’s sons.”
“When Alastair first examined the ring, he said the engraving along the
band was some type of binding spell.” Castor clutched at a wound on his
side as he shifted position. “Maybe someone transferred the son’s power
into that ring so Lazarus couldn’t trace him.”
“And then when Clara’s ancestor had a change of heart and hid the
ring, it prevented them from ever giving it back to him.”
Castor nodded. “Just a theory.”
“We’ll find out soon, I guess.”
Leaning my head back on the cave wall, I closed my eyes and thought
of Galen. I was sure he was pissed. And worried. I just hoped he kept his
anger in check. No matter what happened to me, I didn’t want him losing
himself to Wrath.
Would I ever see him again?
“Hey, Castor?”
“Yeah?” He sounded so tired. Drained.
“If I die down here…” I blinked away tears and cleared my throat. “I
just want you to know that I don’t regret any of it. Meeting you and your
brothers is the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
“You’re not too bad. For a human.” Castor cracked a smile. “I’ll be
damned if I let you die, Simon. I really don’t want to hear Galen bitch about
it for all eternity. He’s enough of a pain. Without you, he’ll be unbearable.”
I heard what Castor didn’t say. That he cared about me too.
Exhaustion took me over, and my eyes closed again. I couldn’t fight it
anymore.
I dreamed of a brilliant night sky shining with countless stars. Galen’s
arms were snug around me as we soared, and his lips brushed my nape.
Higher and higher he took us, but I wasn’t afraid.
In his arms, nothing else could touch me.
I was safe.

***

Four demons dragged me and Castor from our cell and guided us down
a winding corridor. We reached a set of stairs and climbed them. We went
up a spiral staircase before reaching another corridor. Running water
sounded from nearby, and the damp muskiness in the air shifted to an earthy
one, like when rain soaks the grass and sinks into the soil.
And then, a breeze.
 We turned a corner, and I gaped. I had assumed the underworld would
be deep beneath the earth’s surface with pools of lava and smoke rising into
the air. Instead, I found myself staring at the night sky.
Moonlight spilled into the outdoor walkway, shining between the tall
columns. As I looked closer, I noticed it wasn’t the same moon I was used
to. There were two of them, one bigger with a faint blue hue, while the
smaller one had a ring of red around it.
“Is it just my wonky vision, or are there really two moons?”
Castor chuckled under his breath. “You’re seeing it right.”
Colorful trees lined a courtyard, the branches adorned with soft pink
petals. Similar to cherry blossoms but slightly different. These flowers
glowed.
“Wow,” I said. “I didn’t expect it to be so beautiful.”
“Many don’t,” Castor responded. “They forget that darkness is
supposed to tempt you. Much like how some depictions of Lucifer make
him out to be this red-skinned beast with hooves and claws. When really?
He’s more beautiful than anyone you’ll ever see. Both men and women
alike fell to their knees in his presence, too taken by his beauty.”
“Enough chatting,” one demon said, pushing Castor forward. Tall horns
jutted from his shaggy brown hair, and he had a thin black tail, but he
otherwise looked human.
“Nice tail,” Castor retorted before being shoved again. “No need to get
pissy. It’s a cute little tail. Hey! Not so hard.”
I shot him a look over my shoulder, and he smirked. His philosophy
was that if we were going to die, he wouldn’t be some subdued prisoner.
He’d bless them with his smart-ass mouth for as long as possible.
Castor’s hands and feet were chained, and the cuffs shimmered with
dark purple runes. Magic chains? Probably to weaken him. Only my leg
was chained. Clearly, I was no threat to any of them.
The walkway led to what looked like a small medieval fortress. Stone
walls, turrets, and steps that led up to a set of two large wooden doors. The
demons dragged us inside, and once again, I was struck by the beauty of it.
The entrance hall was a wide, open space with intricately carved pillars and
marble floors swirled with deep red.
The gothic-styled interior reminded me of Dracula’s castle. I kept that
comment to myself though.
“Move,” the demon behind me said, pushing me as I stopped to gawk.
“The king is waiting.”
As we were led down a narrow passage, then down another, Castor’s
mischievous smirk faded. I recognized the unease in his eyes. It was the
same look that touched each of the warriors’ faces the first time they felt the
power of the ring that day in Alastair’s study.
Reaching a closed door, one of the demons knocked twice. The door
opened from the other side, and both Castor and I were shoved inside the
room.
Open windows showed the night sky and the two moons beyond them.
There was no glass in them, more like open gaps in the wall. A balcony
jutted outward, separated from the room by thin columns, no door.
Candelabras were placed throughout, the candles lit, and a large fireplace
sat centered on one wall, the flames crackling in the pit.
The demons who had led us to the castle closed the door and stood
against it.
“Welcome,” a man said. His voice was pleasant to the ears. Smooth. He
stepped out from behind a column. Black wings flecked with red and silver
curved behind him, and his skin glimmered in the pale light of the moon.
Long black hair fell to his chest, part of it tied back with a red strip.
 Castor dropped to his knees, his body shaking. “Lucifer,” he
whimpered, gaze cast downward. It was as if every muscle in his body
bowed to the will of the man before him.
“I’ve been told I resemble him a great deal,” the man responded,
stepping closer. His black pants hung low on his hips. “My name is Asa,
firstborn son of the Morningstar. And you are…” He cocked his head. “One
of the Nephilim warriors who defeated him. I sense a darkness in you, a
trace of your sin. Greed?”
Castor didn’t move.
“Answer me.”
“Yes,” he gasped, as if the word had been forced out of his mouth.
“Strange. You don’t seem all that powerful to me.” When Asa came
closer, the shade of his eyes caught my attention. They were a deep
crimson. Those eyes then shifted to me. “Simon. Nice to officially meet
you. The time in your body doesn’t exactly count.”
“Well, that doesn’t sound creepy at all,” I muttered. “I’d say it’s nice to
meet you too, but I’m a horrible liar from what I’ve been told.”
“Easy, boy. Don’t test me.” Asa’s eyes flashed a brighter shade of red
before he slumped forward a bit, catching himself on the corner of the
armchair in front of the blazing fire.
“My lord,” one of the demons said, rushing to his side.
Castor rose from the floor and stood on shaky legs, whatever hold Asa
had on him lifted.
The demon guided Asa to sit down before going over to the table and
filling a clear goblet with a dark red liquid. Wine, maybe? Asa took a drink
and relaxed more into the chair, a tremble in his hand.
“You’re weak,” I said.
 Asa looked over at me. “Such an observant little human you are. You
try being trapped inside a piece of jewelry for thousands of years and see if
you aren’t a bit out of sorts when you first awaken too.”
“Why were you trapped?”
“Because we were at war, and my father realized he was losing.” Asa
took another drink before slowly turning his goblet, the dark liquid swirling
inside it. “The head of the angelic army had already butchered my brothers.
Before he could set his eyes on me, my father ordered Belphegor to track
down a witch who could transfer my essence temporarily. The Nephilim
locked my father away soon after. Then, the witch betrayed us. And thus, I
was locked away too.”
“Where was your body during this time? In a glass coffin somewhere?”
Definitely a Snow White reference, but it was all I could think of. Or
maybe like Sleeping Beauty. I imagined him asleep at the top of a tall tower
waiting for his true love to come and kiss him.
“You ask many questions.”
“I’ve heard that before.”
Asa sighed and stood from the chair, his strength having returned a
little. “I didn’t bring you here to talk about myself.”
“Then why did you bring us here?” Castor asked.
When Asa smiled, nerves tangled in my belly. There was nothing kind
about it. “For the celebration, of course. Demons await to welcome their
new king. One of you will be the entertainment for the event, and the other
will be a dish for the main feast. I’ll let you guess which is which.”
“You’re going to eat me?” I exclaimed in horror, damn well knowing
which one he intended for me.
“Human flesh is a delicacy,” Asa answered, his voice ringing with
amusement.
 “But I’m like your distantly related nephew or something,” I said,
grasping at straws. It was true though.
“Then I suppose you’ll be even more of a delicacy.” He shrugged, then
flicked his hand, as if bored. “Take them away. The human needs to go to
the kitchens to be prepared. The Nephilim goes back to his cell.”
Prepared? As in skinned and cooked? Roasted over a fire and then
placed in the center of the feast table with an apple in my mouth? Oh god.
A hand clamped around my bicep, and I jerked out of the hold. The
demon growled and hit me in the back of my head so hard that I fell to the
floor, my vision going wonky for a second.
“Keep your hands off him!” Castor roared, charging toward the demon
before the chains around him caught and held him in place.
“There’s your fighting spirit,” Asa told him. “You’ll need it for the pit.
Demons will be chomping at the bit to get a piece of you.”
“Cas!” I yelled as two demons yanked me to my feet and dragged me
from the room. My heart pounded so hard and fast it was a miracle it didn’t
shoot out of my chest. Tears filled my eyes as fear gripped tightly around
my throat. I was going to puke again.
“Goddammit, let me go!” Castor said, his yells growing distant the
farther I was taken down the hall. “Don’t hurt him! Please!”
“Hear how he begs for you,” the demon to my left said with a deep
chuckle. “Pathetic. He should be begging mercy for himself.”
“What’s the pit?” I asked, mainly to distract myself from the fact that
I’d be some demon’s dinner before the night was over.
“Exactly what the name implies,” the other one holding me answered.
“It’s a fighting pit. A fight to the death gladiator style.”
“If he wins, will he be set free?”
 “Humans are such silly creatures.” His violet eyes flickered down to
me as he smiled, flashing pointed teeth. “If the abomination wins the first
fight, he’ll face someone else. Then another. No breaks in between. By fight
three, four if he’s lucky, he’ll be too exhausted and his movements will get
sloppy. His severed head will decorate the king’s hall by the end of the
celebration.”
That did it.
I lunged forward and dry heaved, tears streaming down my cheeks.
The demons laughed and jerked me with them as they continued
walking. I stumbled behind them and tried to think of an escape plan. But
I’d always been horrible at strategy games. I could try hitting them and
running off, but the chain around my ankle would prevent me from going
far. They were obviously a lot stronger—and bigger—than me. Screaming
wouldn’t do anything.
I tried to fight them anyway.
I slammed my fist into the back of one of their necks before dashing
toward the right. The chain jerked back, sweeping my leg out from under
me. I hit the hard floor, the breath rushing from my lungs. I gasped for air
and looked up at the two—now very pissed off—demons.
“You’ll pay for that,” the demon I hit said, rubbing at his nape. “I’ll
make sure you’re still alive when they flay the flesh from your bones.”
Castor yelled again from down the corridor, but he was too far for me
to hear what he said.
The demons yanked me back to my feet and shoved me through an
arched doorway and down a set of stone steps.
Dead man walking went through my head, like I was leaving my cell
and heading toward the electric chair. As panic began to rise in my chest, I
took a deep breath and focused on an image of Galen in my mind.
 Light gray eyes crinkled around the edges as he smiled at me. If I
focused hard enough, I could even smell his sandalwood scent. That’s what
I would hold on to.
Until the very end.
 Chapter Nineteen
Galen

The five of us stood outside the entrance to the underworld, shrouded

in the darkness of the forest on the outskirts of the sleepy seaside town.
There were very few ways to enter the realm of the undying without being
noticed, but Lazarus had found a crack in the defenses that would allow us
to discreetly slip inside.
I hadn’t set Wrath free yet, but I felt him slithering through my veins.
Waiting. Sometimes I felt like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. When Wrath took
over, I wasn’t me anymore. Not really.
“You don’t have to do this, Galen,” Alastair said, the worry in his tone
tangible.
“We’ve already discussed this.”
“And what about when the fight is over?” he asked. “Lazarus was
forced to throw you into a cage last time and almost killed you. I refuse to
watch you die.”
The hurt lacing his voice caused a dull ache over my heart, but my
decision was made. “Then look away.”
I held on to hope that I’d be able to take back control when the time
came. Once Simon was safe and back in my arms, I believed Wrath would
soothe, just like he did every time my human was nearby.
Was it a gamble? Definitely. But the frustrating truth was Wrath made
me stronger. And I’d go to any length to save my destined mate.
 “Kon will be here soon,” Bellamy said.
The vampire appeared moments later, stepping into the small clearing.
His purple eyes faintly glowed in the dark night. “Sorry I’m late. I needed
to think.”
“About what?” I asked.
“Well, if I come with you, it will be an act of war between my kind and
the demons. You all know I care for you. But I think it’s best that I remain
neutral in this fight. I can’t risk the safety of my people.”
I gritted my teeth. “It was one of your kind who sold out my brother to
the demons. Is that not taking sides?”
“The vampire in question has been dealt with, I assure you,” Konnar
said. “I pride myself in being a safe haven for all beings. My club is open to
everyone. Demons included.”
“I thought you were our friend. But you—”
“He’s right,” Alastair said, placing a hand on my arm just as I stepped
toward the vampire. “This isn’t his fight. We can’t ask such a thing of him.”
“Why did you come, then?” Daman asked in a venomous tone.
“To give you some information,” Konnar answered. “I questioned the
vamp who betrayed your brother. ‘Questioned’ being a kind way to explain
what I did to him. He told me the demons offered him certain assurances if
he helped capture one of you.”
“What kind of assurances?” Alastair asked.
“That when the demons rise and take over the world, vampires will
have free rein of the humans they will enslave.” Konnar shook his head.
“You see, I like things the way they are. Demons ruling the earth, humans
being conquered and treated like cattle… I don’t want that. So this is me
indirectly interfering with your war to say you better stop it. And one other
thing… I was told a ceremony is being held tonight to welcome the new
king. It will take place outside the palace.” The center of his brow dipped.
“Their defenses will be strong.”
“Yet, they’ll also be distracted,” Raiden said with a grin. “We’ll take
’em by surprise.”
“Good luck,” Konnar said before walking back toward the trees. He
looked over his shoulder at us before he reached them. “I know I’m
supposed to be neutral in this. But kick their asses, okay? Don’t get
yourselves killed.”
“At least we know now where we need to go,” Bellamy said once
Konnar was gone.
“Yes, because breaking into the heavily guarded fortress is a piece of
cake.” Daman rolled his eyes.
We approached the rune-engraved stone hidden in the trees. It acted as
a portal between realms. A onetime trip there and back. Before we placed
our hands upon it, Raiden jerked upward.
“Wait,” he said, turning his head to the left. “I heard something.”
The leaves rustled, and I reached for my dagger. Alastair drew his
sword, the fire inside the steel flickering as he took a defensive stance.
More blades were hidden in his boots and another in his belt.
“Think Kon’s coming back?” Bellamy whispered.
“I don’t think so,” I said, then attuned to my surroundings. Sight.
Sound. Smell. The latter piqued my interest. I knew that scent and stepped
toward the shrubs.
Kyo stumbled out of them, then straightened up when he saw me. “Oh.
Hey.”
“What are you doing here?” I growled, lowering my dagger.
“I kind of followed you.”
 I took a calming breath—as calm as I could get anyway—and pointed
toward the trees he’d come stumbling out of. “Go back. Now.”
“I can help you.”
“Help us how? You don’t even know what we’re doing.”
“Don’t I?” A strange gleam appeared in Kyo’s eyes, one that made him
seem older somehow. “Simon is in danger, and I want to help you save
him.”
“How do you know that?” Alastair asked, aiming the tip of his sword at
Kyo’s throat. “What are you, boy?”
I waited for him to answer. We were fully armed with glowing blades,
sneaking around the forest late at night, and he wasn’t shocked at all. A
normal human would’ve at least been unsettled by it.
“That’s kind of a secret,” Kyo answered, putting his hands up as he
eyed the tip of the sword. “Mind lowering that thing?”
Alastair brought it closer to his neck. “What. Are. You.”
“All you need to know is I can help.” Kyo looked at me. “Please,
Galen. I know you love Simon. I do too. Not in the same way, of course, but
he’s my friend. Let me go with you.”
“We don’t have time for this,” Alastair snapped, lowering his sword
and turning toward the stone. “Each second we waste standing here is more
time for the demons to do god knows what to our family. Be on your way,
boy. This is no place for you.”
Our family. My simmering anger soothed a little at that. For as much as
Alastair pretended not to care for Simon, the truth always had a way of
showing itself. Eventually.
“Woah,” Raiden said, eyes widening at Kyo. “What the hell are you
doin’, kid?”
 “First of all, I’m not a kid,” Kyo said, stripping off his shirt and tossing
it to the grass. His chest was covered in tattoos. The branches of the cherry
blossom tree on the side of his ribs stretched up his chest, and a crashing
wave was on the other side with a dragon in the water. “I really shouldn’t do
this, but here I go…”
He took out his contacts before facing us again. Bright orange irises
with dark slits in the center stared back at me. And then his skin began to
ripple, as if something were moving beneath it. When scales started
appearing, I heard Alastair’s sharp intake of air.
“Impossible,” he whispered.
Kyo kept a human form, but green and blue scales covered his skin.
His reptilian eyes flamed orange with sparks of red, like a roaring fire, and
his nails sharpened into short claws. He reached behind him and appeared
to pull a sword from his spine. Waves seemed to ripple inside the forged
blade of the battle katana.
“Yeah, that’s why I said it was a secret,” Kyo said in a slightly gruffer
voice. His s sound dragged out a bit. Probably because of the forked tongue
I caught a glimpse of as it quickly flicked out of his mouth, then went back
in.
“Ryūjin,” I said, shocked. Ryūjin was the king of the water dragon clan
and had been killed long ago.
“His son, actually,” Kyo said. “One of them anyway.”
Dragons had the ability to pose as humans and had two different
dragon forms: a hybrid form like Kyo had now, and they could also turn
into full-sized dragons if strong enough.
As for their power? They were ancient beings that had been around
since the dawn of time. Some dragons were even older than the Nephilim.
 “So can I go with you guys?” Kyo asked. “Or are you just going to
stand here and gawk at me all night?”
There would be plenty of time for questions later. But right now?
Simon and Castor needed our help. Even with a dragon’s power on our side,
it wouldn’t be enough of an advantage against the hordes of demons we’d
face once entering the underworld.
My plan to set Wrath free remained.
“Konnar said everyone’s gathered outside the palace,” Alastair said.
“When we get there, we’ll come from the east. The woods on that side will
conceal us until we’re ready to attack. The first thing we need to do is find
out where Castor and Simon are being held. The cells are near the south
entrance, but they won’t be there. It’s too obvious.”
Daman nodded. “I’ll find them.”
Each of us had strengths when it came to battle and strategy. Daman’s
was stealth. His lean, lithe body could move without detection. Mine was
brute strength.
Bellamy winked at Kyo as we stepped up to the stone. “When all this is
over, we should definitely fuck. I’m curious what that tongue can do.”
“Focus, Lust,” Alastair said.
“Oh. I am focusing.”
Daman shoved Bellamy’s shoulder. “Stop thinking with your cock for
once.”
Kyo only smirked before readying his sword.
Wrath stirred beneath my skin as we used the portal to transport to the
other realm. I ground my teeth to hold him back. Because the longer he had
control, the harder it would be to take it back from him.
We walked through the eternal dark skies of the underworld, the two
moons illuminating the shadows. The sun never shone there. We entered the
enclosure of the forest to the east of the palace. Our steps were light.
Soundless. A short hike later, we knelt in the coverage of trees as we
spotted demons gathered up ahead.
Laughter rang out, as did the sound of metal clashing against metal.
Fights were common among any demon celebration as they fought to prove
who was toughest. They also considered it a form of entertainment. Not too
different from humans, I supposed.
Smoke rose from fire pits, and music sounded in the distance, the bang
of drums and the jingle of bells as female dancers performed. Although the
years had changed the human realm, bringing in technological advances and
cutting the need for such medieval practices, demons had held on to those
older ways of life, at least while in the underworld. The manner of
celebration reflected that.
“I’ll let you know what I find,” Daman told us telepathically before
crouching low and leaving the forest. He was out of sight in seconds.
Simon was so close to me. He had to be scared. If he’s even still alive.
Phoenix had said the ring’s power would kill him.
Nerves took root as I imagined worst-case scenarios. A human among
so many demons? My hand squeezed into a fist, my knuckles creaking.
Only twenty or so minutes passed as we waited for Daman to report back,
but it felt like an eternity.
“Castor is in the fighting pit,” Daman’s voice filled our heads. “He’s
holding his own for now, but we need to act quickly.”
“Where’s Simon?” I asked.
“Galen…”
“Tell me!”
“I can’t find him,” Daman answered. A prickling of fear spread
through my chest, an echo of whatever my brother was feeling. “But I
heard a group of demons laughing about how they dragged a scared human
to the kitchens earlier.”
The kitchens.
I lost my balance and fell forward in the grass, the trees around me
blurring as I struggled to focus. I tried to drag in a breath, but my lungs had
turned to stone. Just stopped working.
“Galen,” Alastair whispered, touching my arm.
I shoved him away from me and jumped to my feet, seething.
Trembling. That single thread Alastair mentioned once before? One that
frayed more and more each day?
It finally snapped.
Kill. Punish.
Wrath roared inside of me as searing hot anger spread through my
chest. Through my heart. I focused on the demons across the small field,
my vision going red… and then I set him free.
 Chapter Twenty
Simon

“You are not putting me in that pot,” I said, staring at the massive pot
of boiling water over the fire. “I don’t care if it is human-sized.”
The demon chef chortled, which had a creepy raspy edge. “Human will
boil tonight.”
“No. Human will not.”
Laughing again, he stirred whatever was inside said pot. He seemed to
be a different species of demon. Shorter than me with pointed ears and two
pupils in each eye like some kind of weird insect. His skin had a yellow-
green pigmentation, and don’t get me started on his teeth. Even without my
glasses, I saw how sharp they were.
The kitchen reminded me of the ones from medieval shows. I felt like
I’d been transported to a different time as well as to a different realm. Did
they not have electricity in the underworld? Toilets that flushed?
The maniacal chef held up a knife and waved it around to get my
attention. “Flayed human?”
“Um.” I scooted closer to the wall I was shackled to and swept a glance
around me, searching the counters for something—anything—I could use to
defend myself. I squinted at a handle poking out from a wooden container. I
leapt forward and snatched it up.
What amazing weapon did I find?
A spatula.
 The demon cocked his head. “What will human snack do with that?”
“Did you really just call me human snack?”
“Sven!” a female demon yelled, barging into the kitchen. Her long
black hair had streaks of green, and her nails matched. “Quit playing with
the king’s dinner. He’s expecting roasted human tonight.”
“Roasted human,” the demon chef said, nodding as he looked at me.
I groaned and held the spatula in a firmer grip. If I was going down, I
was going down swinging.
“He’s an interesting one. I’ll give him that.” She came closer to me,
eyeing the spatula in my hand as I swatted at her. “Too bad we have to kill
him.”
“You really don’t have to,” I said. “I wouldn’t taste good anyway.”
The female demon sniffed the air before smiling. “You smell delicious
to me. I’d love to sink my teeth into you. The thought alone is orgasmic.”
“Well, that’s the first time a woman has ever used the word orgasmic in
reference to me. Men, on the other hand…”
She laughed. “I like you, human.”
“Do you like me enough to let me go?”
“No.”
Shouts came from outside, the sound traveling in through the two open
windows. Sven hopped up on the table along the far wall and peered
through them. That’s when I noticed his antennas. They wiggled as he
checked for the cause of the shouts, and then he jumped back down.
“Too dark,” he said before walking over to a cutting board and
chopping weird vegetables I’d never seen before. They gave off a sweet
aroma when cut.
“Must be part of the entertainment,” the female demon said before
unhooking my chain from the wall and tugging me forward. “I heard your
companion is fighting in the pit. By the time he falls dead, you should be
nice and roasted.” She looked at Sven. “Should we add potatoes?”
“No potato. Onion better.” Sven chopped a purple vegetable before
grabbing a white onion. “It good with human. Enhances flavor of juicy
meat.”
Commotion sounded from the corridor behind me, and the female
demon turned to look. I didn’t know what came over me. I wasn’t usually
impulsive or quick on my feet, but I took advantage of the distraction and
pushed her away from me, grabbing the end of my chain as her hold
loosened.
And then I ran.
“Hey! Get back here!”
“Human snack! You forgot spatula.”
The shackle around one ankle made me feel a little off-balance, and the
metal cuff cut into my skin, but it was better than being flayed. Or roasted
alive. I ran faster. The passageway curved to the right, and then I reached a
set of stairs, which my clumsy ass tripped on going up. Thankfully, I
regained my footing fairly quick and burst through the door at the top of the
landing, finding myself outside in the night air.
More screams reached my ears. Amidst the smoke rising from the
various fire pits, I saw absolute chaos.
Was this part of the celebration? It looked like a battlefield, fire burning
high, bodies unmoving in the grass, and bloodcurdling cries piercing the air.
Demons ran past me, some missing limbs. They didn’t pay me any
attention. They were too focused on fleeing whatever had torn them apart.
I would be torn apart if I didn’t move—roasted over an open fire with
onions to make me taste better. Knowing the female demon was hot on my
heels, I dashed to the left and ran toward the trees on the other side of the
castle. Just until I could figure out what to do.
How did someone escape the underworld? I couldn’t exactly walk out.
The fighting pit! Castor would be there. I needed to find him. Then,
hopefully he knew a way to go back home, otherwise we were royally
screwed.
I fought to catch my breath as I hid in the trees. The darkness made my
blurry vision even worse, and I strained to see what was going on in the
distance.
Something with large wings rose into the air. And then I saw a flash of
silvery-white hair. It stood out in the darkness. Another shape lifted into the
air and lunged toward the other winged figure.
“Simon?”
I screeched before squinting at the person in front of me. They stepped
closer, allowing me to see them clearer. Short black hair and a body stacked
with rippling muscles. Black wings with orange glimmering in his feathers.
“Raiden?” I asked, unsure I was seeing things correctly.
“Yeah, it’s me. We’ve been—”
I dove toward him and buried my face in his chest. Tears burned in my
eyes before slipping free. If he was really here, that meant Galen and the
others were too. Raiden returned my hold and tried to soothe me, but it only
made me cry harder.
“I was so scared,” I said, clinging on to him.
“We’re not out of the woods yet,” he responded and then paused before
chuckling a bit. “Literally. We’re in the woods.”
I pulled away from him and wiped at my eyes. “Where’s Galen?”
Just then, a booming roar filled the air, followed by men screaming.
“Right there,” Raiden said. “He’s, uh…”
 “Wrath,” I said, my heart sinking into my gut.
Raiden nodded. “He did it so he’d be strong enough to save you.” He
turned to look at the swarm of demons. “Daman was fighting Phoenix last I
saw. Al is fighting Belphegor.”
I looked closer at the winged figures sword fighting in the air. “That’s
Alastair?”
“Yeah. I need you to stay here, okay? Don’t move from this spot. You
should be safe until we can grab Castor and get the fuck out of here. We’re
holding our own, but more will come soon, and we won’t be able to hold
them all—”
Before he finished his sentence, three demons charged us.
Raiden decapitated one with a sword, then thrust a dagger into the
chest of another. The third one was more of a challenge. The red-skinned
demon had to be at least eight feet tall and carried a sword with a massive
blade that looked like it could easily chop a man in two. He dodged
Raiden’s first attack before swinging his wide sword, the whoosh as the
heavy blade cut through the air in front of me damn near making me piss
myself.
I stumbled backward in shock. Raiden jumped into the air, his wings
flapping once, and then he brought his sword down on the giant demon’s
head, the blade going right through the thing’s skull. Its body jerked before
collapsing.
“Scratch that,” Raiden said, pulling his sword free from the demon’s
head with a sickening wet sound. “You won’t be safe here either. These
bastards are everywhere.”
“So what do we do?”
He offered me his sword. “You ever use one of these before?”
“Do video games count?” My hand shook as I grabbed it.
 “About as much as watching cooking shows makes you a chef,” Raiden
responded, watching me as I tested the weight of the sword.
“It’s heavier than it looks.”
“I don’t expect you to fight, but you need something to defend yourself
with.” He pulled a second dagger from his boot, holding two of them as he
turned to face the fighting up ahead. “Stay behind me, okay?”
I tightened my grip on the hilt and made a weird sound that should’ve
been an “okay” but came out more like a squeak.
“Hold on,” Raiden said, putting an arm around me.
As I started to ask what he meant, he shot us into the air. I squeaked
again as my stomach dropped, and I tried not to look at how far the ground
was beneath us. The silver lining? At least the demons were down there.
“Goddammit,” Raiden hissed as a dark shape attacked from the right.
So much for them being on the ground.
Why did I jinx everything?
He fought the thing off with his free arm before diving back toward the
ground. If I would’ve had anything in my stomach, I would’ve just emptied
it all over everyone below me. Once my feet were back on solid ground, I
stumbled a little before finding my balance. Not even three seconds passed
before demons spotted us and sprang into action, some attacking with
swords while a few charged toward us with only their long, sharp claws.
“Get back!” Raiden told me before a wave of them reached us.
My ass hit the grass with a thud as he pushed me farther away from
him. I rolled to the side before standing again.
The sword felt awkward in my hand, and my arm was too weak to lift it
too high. I had to use both hands to swing at a small demon that lurched at
me. The wrapping on my left hand—and the loss of my fucking index
finger—made the grip even more awkward. Blood seeped through the cloth,
but my adrenaline was too high for me to feel the pain of the wound.
I stepped back when two more demons spotted me and sprung forward.
The back of my shoe slid a bit, and my insides coiled when I turned to see
the large black pit behind me. Growling and grunting sounded from inside,
as did the sound of metal hitting metal.
A flash of vibrant red hair caught my eye.
“Castor!”
He held a battle axe and hacked away at a demon twice his size before
glancing up at me. “Simon?” Hope filled his voice.
He sliced the head off another demon before flying up out of the pit.
Cuffs were still around both his ankles, but the chains had been cut loose.
He threw his arms around me, and the stench of blood and dirt hit my nose.
I didn’t care though. I was just so damn happy he wasn’t dead.
“Si?”
Only one person called me that. The voice sounded all wrong though.
Not to mention, the person in question had no business being in the
underworld.
I pulled away from Castor, my heart beating ninety to nothing as I
came face-to-face with what looked to be some kind of reptilian creature.
He had the form of a man, but blue-green scales covered his skin, and his
eyes glowed burnt orange. Horns curved back from his black hair, and his
nails were formed into sharp points, like claws. Blood dripped from them,
like he’d been using them to slice people open.
I lifted my sword, unsure if he intended to slice me with those claws
too.
“Hey! Wait,” the reptile said, holding his hands up. “It’s me. Kyo.”
 “Kyo?” I blinked at him, then squinted, trying to get a closer look at his
face. “Look, I know I don’t have my glasses on, but the Kyo I know doesn’t
look like baby Godzilla, okay?”
“I do not look like Godzilla. You take that back.”
“You two can argue that later,” Castor said, facing the quickly
approaching demons. “We have company.”
I’d like to say that I was brave and stood beside the three of them as we
fought off demons like total badasses. When really, I held my sword in a
death grip and screamed as I swatted at the air like a madman each time
something came even remotely close to me.
Alastair dropped down beside us, clutching his bloody left arm. His
wings were cut in places, the feathers matted and shedding.
“You couldn’t defeat me a thousand years ago, and you can’t defeat me
now,” Belphegor said, landing in front of him. He was bloody too, but not
nearly as beaten up.
“Then why did you run away like a dog with its tail between its legs
back then?” Alastair straightened his stance and readied his sword.
“If not for that out-of-control beast of yours, I would’ve won,”
Belphegor growled before swinging his sword at Alastair’s head.
Alastair brought his weapon up just in time, blocking the blow. As they
fought, more demons gathered around us. Big, muscled demons. The
smaller ones had either retreated or lay dead in the grass. For some reason, I
thought of demon chef Sven with his little wiggling antennas.
Was he still in the kitchen chopping vegetables and trying to decide
which way he wanted to cook me?
Raiden and Castor both paused, as if listening to something. Were the
warriors speaking to each other telepathically? I didn’t like the way their
expressions hardened. Then they turned toward me and Kyo—who I still
struggled believing was actually Kyo.
“We need to get you to the portal,” Raiden said before kicking a demon
in the chest. Something had clearly unsettled him.
“Why?” I asked. “What just happened?”
Raiden hooked an arm around my waist.
“I’m not leaving without Galen!” I pushed against Raiden’s chest as
panic took me over.
Daman broke through the wave of demons, bleeding from several
wounds all over his torso and arms. He was holding up Bellamy, who
appeared to be in even worse condition as he fought to stay conscious.
“Take him and go!” Alastair told Raiden before clashing again with the
fallen angel. “That’s an order.”
“No one will be leaving,” a smooth voice said. He didn’t yell, but his
words rang clearly over the noise.
The fighting stopped, and a chilling silence fell over everyone.
The warriors all looked up as Asa hovered above us, his black wings
creating a large shadow in the rising smoke behind him. Castor—who had
already met Asa—glared, while the other Nephilim gaped.
“It can’t be,” Raiden whispered, his arms shaking as they held me. He
looked like he’d seen a ghost. They all had.
Bellamy, who seemed more alert now, trembled as Asa landed in front
of him. “L-Lucifer.”
“Aren’t you a beauty?” Asa said, caressing Bellamy’s cheek. His touch
sent Bellamy to his knees. Asa then slid his fingers through the warrior’s
blood-streaked golden hair. “I might have to keep you alive. I haven’t
fucked someone as pretty as you in much too long.”
 “Get your hands off him!” Daman said, lunging toward Asa with his
dagger drawn.
With a simple flick of his hand, Asa sent Daman flying backward. He
didn’t even have to touch him. However, just like when Castor and I first
met him, Asa seemed to lose some of his strength.
“My king?” Belphegor rushed to his side.
“I’m fine,” Asa said, trying to keep his authoritative demeanor. The
power that had sparked in the air around him had diminished though.
I searched the crowd for Galen. He was the only one missing—other
than Gray. Where was he?
“Pride, correct?” Asa asked, stepping toward Alastair. “Our fathers
were close companions.”
Blood filled the cracks between Alastair’s teeth as his lips pulled back
in a snarl. “And what? You think you and I will be the same?”
“That’s the hope, yes.”
“After you threw my brother into a pit?” Alastair spat blood at him.
“You can go fuck yourself. We defeated your father and will do the same to
you.”
Asa held his arms out, motioning to the demons around him. “In case
your Pride has blinded you, you’re outnumbered. So how is it you’ll defeat
me? You can barely stand, let alone fight your way out of here.”
A guttural roar sounded.
Belphegor’s eyes widened.
Phoenix burst through the line of demons. “Your Majesty! You need to
—” His words cut off into a scream as he was thrown high into the air,
blood squirting from a fresh wound.
Demons leapt out of the way as something large came barreling toward
us. I saw it then. Beautiful black wings with traces of red in the feathers.
My heart leapt into my throat, and my eyes stung as relief slammed into me.
Galen. He was here. He was unharmed. As I stepped forward, intent on
running straight into his arms, Raiden jerked me back.
“That’s not the Galen you know, little human,” he rasped in my ear.
“He will tear you apart with no hesitation.”
“No, he won’t!” I tried to weasel out of Raiden’s hold to no avail.
“The beast you spoke of?” Asa asked Belphegor.
The fallen angel nodded, then took a defensive stance.
Demons surrounded Asa as Galen charged toward him, but none of
them stood a chance. I watched in horror as he grabbed one demon and
ripped its body in two with his bare hands. Three more jumped in his way,
and he killed them just as easily. I couldn’t tell for sure, but it looked like
Galen’s eyes were black; not even the whites of them showed.
Asa flicked his hand like he’d done earlier, but it barely moved Galen
as he tore through the demons blocking his way. The king’s eyes reflected
his sudden unease.
“You’re not powerful enough to fight him yet,” Belphegor said,
grabbing Asa’s hand. “We need to leave.”
“How dare you say those words to me.” Asa’s nostrils flared as he
yanked his hand away. “Do you think me a coward? I fear no one.”
Phoenix materialized beside Asa, his body swaying a bit. “Please… my
king.”
More demons began to flee, some vanishing into thin air while others
ran in the opposite direction. Galen terrified them. It was hard to wrap my
head around it. The Galen I had kissed, laughed with, was not the same man
in front of me.
“Every single second of every day, I battle against the beast inside
me.”
 My eyes watered as I recalled Galen’s words. This was what he’d
meant.
“Holy fucking shit,” Maybe-Kyo said from beside me. “Is that really
Galen?”
“No,” Alastair answered, breathing heavy. He looked like he was about
to collapse. “That’s Wrath.”
Raiden tightened his hold on me as I tried stepping forward again.
Castor came to stand in front of me, and Daman stood beside him. Bellamy
joined them next, then Kyo. They were creating a protective wall. The
fighting pit was behind us, so enemies only came from one direction.
Did they consider Galen an enemy now too?
“This isn’t over,” Asa said, glaring over at us. His strength had visibly
weakened even more. “We’ll meet again soon.”
Phoenix put one hand on Belphegor and the other on the new king
before the three of them disappeared. The rest of the demons fled too until it
was only us in the field. We had won.
Too bad it didn’t feel like it.
“Get to the portal,” Alastair told Raiden.
“What about Galen?” I asked, thrashing around as I tried to break
Raiden’s hold on me. “We’re not leaving him behind.”
“I don’t intend to,” he responded. “I’m going to do all I can to reach
him.”
“And if you can’t?” I asked. The sadness in Alastair’s eyes stopped me
cold. My already blurry vision blurred even more as tears welled in my
eyes. “Answer me!”
When Galen reached the warriors in front of me, he stopped his charge,
but his fists didn’t unclench. His head twitched, as did his massive body. It
looked like he was fighting with himself. But the anger won that fight. He
threw Castor aside and then roared as Bellamy and Daman jumped on top
of him, trying to hold him down. That only riled him up even more.
It was as though he didn’t realize who they were. His instinct was to
fight. To kill.
“Take him away, Raiden,” Alastair calmly said before turning to face
Galen, drawing his sword with a shaking hand.
He was going to kill Galen if he couldn’t bring him back.
“No!” I slapped at Raiden’s beefy arm as we started to lift into the air.
“Galen! Snap out of it! You’re stronger than Wrath. I know you are!”
At my voice, Galen glanced up.
“Your presence calms the beast inside my veins,” he had once told me.
“Let me down.”
“No,” Raiden answered.
“Please,” I begged, not taking my eyes off Galen. He hadn’t taken his
off me either.
Alastair frowned at Galen, then peered up at us hovering in the air. “Do
as he says.”
“What?” Raiden asked. “You’re joking.” But he lowered us back to the
ground.
Galen snarled as he shoved against Bellamy and Daman, his gaze still
on me.
“It’s okay,” I said, tapping Raiden’s arm. “Let me go.”
Though reluctantly, Raiden stepped away from me. I returned his
sword to him before walking forward, passing Reptile Kyo and a solemn
Alastair. All eyes were glued to me. Maybe I wasn’t brave or strong when it
came to fighting demons. But if I could save Galen, that’s all that mattered.
Please let me save him.
 Galen threw the two warriors off him before striding toward me, his
eyes pitch-black and his teeth bared.
Was a part of me scared out of my wits? Fuck yeah. However, a bigger
part knew he wouldn’t hurt me.
I stopped about a foot in front of him, but he kept walking. He grabbed
my arm and yanked me closer. From the corner of my eye, I saw Castor
move toward me. Galen growled at him and gripped me tighter, his
fingertips digging into my bicep.
“Stay back, Cas,” I said, keeping my voice steady.
When I spoke, Galen stopped growling and cocked his head at me. His
hand slid from my bicep and up the side of my neck while the other moved
to my waist.
“Hey, you,” I said, placing my hand on his chest. Sweat, blood, and dirt
coated his bare upper torso, but he didn’t look to be hurt at all. His heart
beat quicker beneath my palm. “The fight’s over now, big guy. The demons
are gone.”
A low whine sounded in his throat as his black eyes studied my face.
“Do you remember the night you first took me flying?” I asked. “I was
scared shitless, but you wrapped me in your arms and never let me go.” I
slid my arms around him, my heart clenching as the scent of sandalwood
and citrus enveloped me. “And I’m not letting you go now.”
His wings came around me, and he nuzzled the side of my head,
another whine reaching my ears. I focused on the softness of his feathers as
they brushed against my skin. It was dark in the cocoon he’d created with
his wings, but I could faintly see his face. Black eyes held my gaze as I
touched the edge of his mouth. Blood dripped from his lips. Like he’d bitten
someone. Or torn them apart.
 I loved Galen. When he was grumpy and stubborn. When he was
playful. When he made love to me hard, when he took me slow. I loved
every part of him. And that included Wrath.
“Let’s go home,” I whispered.
 Chapter Twenty-One
Galen

Kill.
That one word had echoed through my head for what felt like hours.
Killing was all I knew. All I craved. Screams of terror. The metallic taste of
blood as I ripped an enemy’s throat out with my teeth. The erratic
thrumming of a pulse beneath my fingertips as I squeezed the life out of
someone.
But then I’d heard a voice that jolted something inside of me, and
another word filled my head: mine.
“Let’s go home.”
I stared into the sweetest face I’d ever seen. His sandy-brown hair was
disheveled, and blood was speckled on his cheeks. His sweater was torn and
covered in filth. And then… the scent of rain.
“Simon,” I murmured, lightly touching his jaw, unsure if he was real or
not. My voice was raspy. Deep.
He beamed with a smile as his hazel eyes filled with tears. “Yeah. It’s
me.”
I crushed him to my chest and softly whimpered as his warmth seeped
into me. I’d been cold for so long. Numb. But he brought life back into me.
With my arms snug around him, I spread my wings and lifted us into the air.
Other sets of wings followed behind us, but I paid them no mind.
I didn’t focus on anything but the beautiful male in my arms.
 My male.
My memory was fuzzy. Where we were, what we were doing, all of
that was a mystery. But my body moved on its own, guiding me toward the
trees on the other side of the castle.
“The portal will close soon,” a familiar voice said as I dropped down in
the forest beside a faintly shimmering stone. “Once it does, we’ll be stuck
here. We need to hurry.”
I looked to see Pride. Envy, Greed, Lust, and Gluttony appeared at his
side. My brothers. Another being approached too. A water dragon. A
protective instinct came over me, and a growl worked its way up my throat
as I held my human closer to my chest.
“Easy, big guy.” Simon kissed the base of my neck.
Instantly, I relaxed.
The portal transported us to another wooded area. Moments after we
arrived, the stone that had brought us there cracked down the middle. The
glowing runes faded as the magic left. My head cleared a bit more as I
focused on the beings around me—males who stared with a combination of
curiosity and apprehension.
“You good, Wrath?” Pride asked.
I nodded. The urge to kill and maim was gone. The anger that boiled
inside me earlier was too. As we made our way through the trees, a memory
slammed into me. A ring. Everything came flooding back to me then.
My brothers and I had journeyed to the underworld to save Castor and
Simon. The dragon, Kyo, had come with us. I had let my anger consume me
because it had been the only way any of us would get out of there with our
heads still intact. I thought Simon had been killed, which had sent me even
further over the edge.
 I dropped to my knees in the forest and placed my hands on the ground
as Wrath finally let go.
“Galen?” Simon knelt in front of me, holding my face with his right
hand. He kept the other one at his side and moved it out of my sight when I
tried to look closer at it. It looked to be wrapped. Had he gotten hurt? “Hey.
Eyes back on me.”
I obeyed him. He smiled as our gazes met.
“There’s those gray eyes I can’t live without,” he whispered before
kissing my brow. “Welcome back.”
“Your glasses,” I said, my sternum aching at the memory of them
broken on the floor.
“I have a spare pair in my loft.” Simon took my hand. “Come on.”
We made it out of the woods just before sunrise. The dark sky began to
lighten, but the shadows would still hide us until we were able to make it
home.
“Thanks for letting me tag along,” Kyo said, no longer covered in
scales. He appeared fully human now, with the exception of his orange
eyes. He wiped the blood off his katana before holstering it behind him.
Without a shirt, I saw the tattoo of the sword down his spine.
“I still can’t believe this.” Simon shook his head. “You’re a lizard.”
“Dragon,” Kyo corrected before holding up a finger. “And if you ever
call me baby Godzilla again, I will throw you into the sea.”
“Good thing I know how to swim.” Simon threw his arms around his
friend. “Thank you.”
Kyo softly smiled and rubbed Simon’s back. “No problem. You’re the
best boss I’ve ever had. It would suck to have some demon bastards eat
you. Then what would I do?”
 “I don’t know.” Simon squeezed him tighter before letting go. “Don’t
come into work later. I plan to wash all this gunk off me and then sleep for a
million years.”
Kyo grinned. “Sure thing, boss.”
“Oh, and we’re definitely not done talking about this.” Simon motioned
up and down his body. “If I would’ve known you were a dragon, things
would’ve been so much easier.”
“Sorry.” Kyo offered a tight smile. “Sworn to secrecy and all that. But
you’re worth it, Si. Now go to bed. You can barely keep your eyes open.”
Kyo headed for his bike while the rest of us took to the sky. I flew
Simon to his loft so he could get his extra pair of glasses, and then I took us
home. We entered through the veil just as the sun broke across the horizon.
“Will we be safe here?” Simon asked as we landed in the grass behind
the mansion. A breeze swept through his hair as he faced the sea. The
morning air seemed to have woken him up a bit. “The demons know where
we are now.”
“The spell they used will only work once,” I responded. “But you’re
right. They know our location. And there are other ways they can reach us
again.”
“Oh.” Simon stared at the water. “Will we have to move?”
The “we” in his statement pleased me. Because I’d be damned if I
accepted anything other than that. He was mine, and I was his. Forever.
“Maybe eventually.” I slipped my arm around him and turned him back
toward the mansion. “Don’t worry about it right now. We’ve had a long
night. Let’s wash up and go to bed.”
Clara was in the kitchen when we entered through the back patio. Her
blonde hair was piled on top of her head in a messy bun, and she looked
like she’d been up all night worrying. “Simon!”
 “Clara?” he asked in shock, looking from her to me. “What are you
doing here?”
I hadn’t had the chance to explain it to him yet.
“To help,” she said, going over to him. Her gaze moved to me. “Gray is
fine, by the way. Fast asleep.”
“So he’s okay?” Simon asked. “Belphegor was pissed when he heard
Gray was hurt. No one told us what happened though.”
Belphegor was angry about it? Perhaps a part of him still cared about
his son, but it didn’t change the fact that he was our enemy.
Clara touched Simon’s shoulder. “I’m so glad you’re okay. You are
okay, right?” She looked him over before grabbing his left hand. “What’s
this?”
“Nothing.” He moved it away from her before glancing over at me.
Well, that’s not suspicious at all…
“Simon…” I spoke.
He winced when Clara took hold of it again. Blood stained the cloth,
and fresh anger stirred inside me as Simon whimpered in pain.
“I didn’t want you to know,” Simon told me, perspiration beading on
his brow. Was he clammy? Paler than usual, maybe? “Not until I knew you
had a better control over Wrath.”
Clara sucked in a breath as she drew back the last layer of wrapping.
Red spots danced at the corners of my vision as I stepped closer and saw his
hand—and what was left of his index finger.
“Who did it?” I growled. “I will fucking tear them to pieces.”
“See?” Simon frowned. “You’re getting angry again.”
“How could I not be? Look at you!” My voice boomed around the
kitchen.
 “It was either this or have me explode like a Simon grenade. What
would you prefer?”
“The fuckers didn’t even bother stitching you up.” Clara shook her
head. “You need to go to the hospital. The wound needs to be cleaned and
closed before rot sets in.”
Simon curled his lip at that and paled even more. That’s when it hit me
that he’d been in pain this whole time. But he’d kept it from me.
“Stop that,” Simon said, reaching over with his right hand and linking
our fingers. “Soldiers get wounded in battle all the time. They lose entire
hands, arms, and legs. I only lost a finger. I’ll live.”
He was right. It could’ve been worse. So much worse. What would I
have done if Simon had been killed? The answer was obvious. I would’ve
never made it out of the underworld. Wrath would’ve had to be put down
and me with him.
“My brave little soldier,” I said, bringing our joined hands up to place a
kiss on his knuckles. I then grabbed his injured hand and clasped it in mine.
“A hospital won’t be necessary.”
Light burst from the gaps in our fingers as I used my healing power on
him. The skin knitted itself back together, and the puffy redness eased.
When I pulled away, it looked as if he’d gotten the injury weeks ago rather
than hours.
“Nice,” Clara said with an appreciative nod.
“I can’t make your finger grow back, I’m afraid. But it shouldn’t hurt
anymore.”
Simon rested his head on my shoulder. “Just another scar to go with the
others.”
I ran him a hot bath and carried him to the tub. After stripping off his
clothes and setting him down into the water, I removed his glasses and
grabbed a clean rag to wash him.
“Join me,” Simon murmured, tugging on my arm. “Please.”
“How can I refuse when you ask me so sweetly?” I kicked off my boots
and took off my pants before stepping into the tub and sinking down behind
him. My cock sat rigid against the curve of his ass, but I curbed my desire.
Having him in my arms right then was all I needed.
“I think we’re both too filthy to take a bath,” Simon whispered, lying
back against my chest. “The water will be all murky and gross soon. Like
pond water.”
“Would you rather take a shower?”
“No.” He relaxed even more, eyes closing. “I just want to sit here with
you.”
I wanted the same. In the hours I’d spent worrying about whether he
was okay, I realized how much I truly cared about him. How much I needed
him beside me.
I glided my fingers through his hair before washing it for him. He fell
asleep sometime during it, and I smiled when I heard him snoring. I
finished washing the blood and dirt off us before wrapping him in a towel
and carrying him to my bed. He snuggled into the pillows before settling
once more.
I slid in beside him and rested my cheek on his hair. When I closed my
eyes, I saw Simon in front of me, face dirty and eyes filled with tears.
“Let’s go home.”
As the scent of rain hit me, my body relaxed and sleep took hold. My
home was with him.

***
 “This place is a goddamn mess,” Alastair said, straightening an
upturned side table in his study. “And I just cleaned it too.”
I picked up a broken lamp and tossed it into a trash bag. “So the ring
belonged to the son of Lucifer?”
Since I was consumed by Wrath at the time, the details of the night
were fuzzy.
“Yes. And fuck, Galen. He looks just like Lucifer. I thought it was him
at first.”
“But he’s weak right now?”
Alastair nodded. “For now.” He grabbed the broken box the ring had
been in before shoving it into the trash. “Lazarus isn’t pleased by the turn of
events. He risked his life to keep the ring from Ramiel and the others.”
“We risked ours too. Shit happens. We lost the battle, but the war is far
from over.”
“I wouldn’t say we lost. Not really. They got the ring and awoke the
son of Lucifer, which isn’t ideal, I admit. But we dealt major damage and
made them retreat. That sounds like a win to me.”
“Or maybe Pride just won’t let you accept otherwise.”
“Maybe.”
I helped him clean shards of glass from the busted windows and the
puddle of blood from where I’d been stabbed—a wound that had healed not
long after it was made. Even in the silence, I felt him poking at my mind.
“If you want to know something, just ask.”
Alastair sighed and slumped against his desk. “How did he do it? I saw
how strongly Wrath had a hold of you, Galen. Stronger than the last time in
Rome. I was determined to save you… but I had my sword drawn. Just in
case. Then Simon approached you. At first I thought you were going to kill
him. Castor thought so too. But Simon told him to stay back.”
 I had a vague recollection from when Wrath had control, broken
fragments of memory.
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Alastair continued. “When Gray
brought you back last time, your eyes instantly changed back to normal. But
not last night. Wrath still had a hold of you when you took Simon to the
portal, and even for a while after. Your eyes were pitch-black, and I sensed
your animosity. But instead of impulsively attacking everyone, you cradled
him to your chest.”
“Wrath loves him,” I said, my heart aching from the truth of it. “And so
do I.”
Alastair fixed the crooked photos on the wall beside the fireplace, his
blue eyes fixated on one picture in particular. “What do you plan on doing
about it?”
“About what?”
“Your love for Simon. I won’t tell you what to do, but I can offer you a
word of advice.” He turned to me. “Don’t make the same mistake I did,
Galen. Because a day will come, much sooner than you think it will, when
you’ll realize the one you love is long past saving. And as you watch him
die, you’ll wish more than anything that you could follow him.”
As his meaning became clear, I dropped down in one of the cushioned
armchairs. Of course I wanted to fully make Simon mine. To bind our life
forces so I’d never have to know a day without him. He would never grow
old. Never get sick. But…
“We’re too important,” I said, my voice thick with emotion. “If I bind
his soul to mine and he dies, I’ll die too. Just like Kallias died. The world
needs us. It’s our duty to protect it.”
“I think the world has taken enough from us, brother.” Alastair turned
back to the framed photo of Joseph. “It’s time you took something for
yourself. We didn’t choose the life of a warrior. It was forced upon us. Be
selfish for once. Fuck knows you’ve earned it.”
After the study was as clean as it was going to get, I walked down the
hall toward the kitchen, surprised to see it empty. Voices trailed in from the
other room, and I followed.
Raiden, Bellamy, and Daman were cleaning the mess in the
entertainment room, complaining about the vast number of bloodstains.
Castor helped them some, but he was still weakened from the torture and
collapsed on the couch, the cushions cut open and losing stuffing. They had
used celestial blades on him, so his wounds were taking longer to heal.
“How’s the human?” Castor asked, spotting me in the doorway.
“A little shaken up but okay. He’s still sleeping.”
Guilt shone in Castor’s green eyes. “I’m sorry I didn’t protect him.”
“There wasn’t much you could do. You were a prisoner right along
with him.” I glanced at the three other males cleaning. “This shit will still
be here later. We’ve had one hell of a night. Take a break for now.”
“I could use a burger. Or ten.” Raiden lifted the bottom of his shirt to
wipe his face. “Twenty.”
“How long do you think it’d take you to eat twenty burgers?” Castor
asked, wincing a bit as he stood from the falling-apart couch.
Raiden scrunched up his face. “Taking my time? I don’t know. Fifteen
minutes maybe.”
As Castor struck a bet on how fast Raiden could eat, I left the room and
went up the stairs. Storm clouds showed through the windows, and the light
patter of rain on the glass calmed some of my budding anxiety.
What if Simon didn’t want to be my bonded mate?
Never growing old would mean he’d have to watch the people around
him change, die, while he stayed the same. Not everyone wanted to live
forever.
“Galen?” Gray’s voice filled my head as I reached the second floor.
“Is that you?”
I cracked open his door and stepped inside his room. “You should be
sleeping.”
“I’ve slept all night.” Gray’s big brown eyes peeked up at me from his
bed. He was using telepathy because it still hurt him to use his actual voice.
A blade across the throat would do that. “Everyone’s safe?”
“Yep.” I sat beside him and checked his neck. Clara had changed the
wrapping about an hour ago.
“When can I see Simon? I miss him.”
I smiled down at him. “It hasn’t even been twenty-four hours.”
Gray pushed his bottom lip out. “It feels like forever.”
“I’ll bring him to see you once he wakes up.” I tucked the blanket
around him.
“I felt it when Wrath took control of you.” Gray grabbed my hand. “It
scared me. I didn’t know if I’d see you again.”
“I think Wrath and I have come to an understanding now.” At my
words, I felt Wrath moving through my bloodstream. No longer fighting me
though. “Now go to sleep.”
“Can you turn on the TV for me?”
I grabbed the remote and scrolled to the Netflix app. I put on the first
season of The Disastrous Life of Saiki K, his favorite show at the moment.
He cracked a tired smile as I got up and left his room.
Simon was still asleep when I returned to bed, but he woke as I sat
beside him.
“Hey, you,” he croaked in a sleep-heavy voice.
I smoothed back his bangs. “How do you feel?”
 “Tired. Sore.” He grabbed my hand and kissed my fingertips, one by
one. “But happy.”
I stared at his lips before leaning down and capturing them. He softly
moaned and cradled the back of my head, deepening the kiss. I never
thought I could feel like this.
Ever since the day Lazarus had taken me from my mother and put a
sword in my hand, my life was no longer mine. I existed to serve humanity.
I existed to fight the dark forces that threatened that humanity. But I had
never lived. Truly lived.
“Be selfish for once.”
Alastair’s words settled deep in my heart. And I knew I’d made my
choice.
“I love you, Simon,” I whispered against his lips. “I fucking love you.”
He traced the line of my jaw, smiling. “I know.”
“You do?”
“You’ve always said more with actions than words. I learned to read
you. Even though you didn’t say it back when I said I loved you, I saw the
truth in your eyes. Felt it in your kiss.” Simon pushed his forehead to mine.
“It’s still amazing to hear you say it though. Say it again?”
I’d say it as many times as he wanted. “I love you.”
“I love you too, you big grumpy marshmallow.”
“Grumpy marshmallow?” I caught his chin and forced his eyes up to
me. He fought a smile as his lips twitched. “Only with you.”
“Only with me,” he said. That smile finally surfaced, full and bright.
My heart fucking melted.
I’d wait to ask him about the binding ritual. For now, I just wanted to
get lost in him for a while.
 Chapter Twenty-Two
Simon

“I’m still me,” Kyo said as he caught me looking at him for the
thousandth time. He placed a collection of weirdly shaped jars on a shelf. “I
just happen to also be a dragon.”
“A rare dragon,” I added, going over to help him with the new
inventory. “I heard water dragons were almost extinct or something.”
“Yeah, it was bad for a while.” Kyo swept a hand through his black
hair, and I inwardly chided myself for looking—again—for signs of claws.
“My father challenged the ice king, and a huge war broke out. Our clan was
hunted even after he was killed because all water dragons were seen as
traitors. Those of us left learned to hide ourselves.”
“How many are left?”
Galen made a sound behind me, and I turned to him. He arched a brow
but kept his trap shut. I knew he wanted to spout off about me asking a
million questions. The jerk.
“Our numbers have definitely gone up over the years,” Kyo answered.
“But my brother, who is the king of our clan, ordered us to keep a low
profile.”
“Why did you want to work at an antique shop?” I asked.
“Because this is cool shit.” Kyo touched a crystal ball that had come
with the same shipment of items from the circus. I didn’t know if the
fortune teller’s all-seeing crystal ball was actually magic or not, but it was
over a hundred years old and looked awesome. He turned to me. “I’m sorry
I didn’t know those demons were after you. I could’ve protected you that
night.”
“You went to the underworld for me. Pretty sure that makes up for it.”
“I’d do it again too.”
The weirdness of the past few days since returning from the
underworld had brought Kyo and me even closer as friends. Maybe because
I didn’t have to hide shit from him anymore.
“So. Um.” Kyo chewed the corner of his lip. “How’s Red doing?”
“Red? Oh. Castor. He’s okay. Still healing.”
Kyo nodded.
“Why?” I asked, suddenly suspicious.
“Just a question. I was the one who first found him in the fighting pit
that night. He was in bad shape.”
Conversation halted when customers came into the shop. I greeted
them before going back to the storage room to open another box. Kyo
watched the front for me.
“Don’t push yourself too hard,” Galen said, slipping his arms around
me from behind. “If you need to take a break, do it. I’ll unload the boxes.”
“I like unloading them.” I turned in his arms. “It’s like opening up
presents on Christmas morning. Sometimes I know what’s in the box. Other
times it’s a mystery.”
“You can be just as amazed sitting beside me as I unload them.”
“Nope.” I rose up on my tiptoes and nuzzled his neck.
His hold changed. Became a bit tighter. “Have you given any thought
to what I asked you last night?”
My stomach dipped at the reminder. The question had come as we lay
in bed, our bodies sated from hours of foreplay and sex. Galen had cupped
my cheek, foreheads touching, and asked me to spend eternity with him. I’d
said nothing at first, too shocked to speak. Because even though he loved
me, I never thought he’d want to do the binding ritual.
Too much was at stake.
I had told him I needed time to think about it. It was too important of a
decision. Options needed to be carefully weighed. He had kissed my temple
and pulled me to his chest, letting the subject drop.
Now he wanted an answer.
“Aren’t you worried?” I asked, staring up into his light gray eyes. “All
it would take is me falling and cracking my head open or something for you
to die.”
“You’re clumsy, Simon, but not that clumsy.” His humored tone didn’t
touch the unease in his eyes though. “I want you. Forever. And if you die
one day, whether it’s hundreds of years from now or a thousand, from
demons or a freak accident, I’ll follow you into the next life. That brings
my soul peace.”
“You’re too important,” I whispered. “I’ll only make you weak.”
Galen’s big hand moved to the side of my neck. “I’ve spent two
thousand years obeying orders and protecting the world. And now I’ve
found someone I refuse to let go of. I want to be selfish for once. What
good is living forever if I can’t do so with the man I love by my side?” His
brow creased with a frown. “But if you don’t want this… if you don’t want
me—”
“I’m in love with you, Galen. Don’t ever think I don’t want you.”
“Then why won’t you give me an answer?” he asked, his voice
cracking.
He had it all wrong. He thought I hesitated because I didn’t want to
spend forever with him. When really, I’d been thinking of how it would
affect him.
My heart ached at the emotion in his voice. He had misunderstood. “If
you’re sure you want to be stuck with me that long, then yes.”
Galen blinked. “Yes?”
“Yes,” I repeated, looping my arms around his neck. “I want to be
yours. Forever. So no other dude can have you. I guess I want to be a little
selfish too.”
A smile broke across his handsome face. The sight of it left me
breathless. It was rare for him to smile without reserve.
“I want no one else.” He lifted me off the floor and kissed me, his joy
hitting the center of my chest and spreading through me too.
“So. Um.” I kissed him once more before he placed me back on the
floor. “What does this ritual consist of?”
“It’s not too complicated,” Galen answered, keeping his arms around
me. “There’s a small ceremony.”
“Like a wedding?”
He nodded. “Sort of. We’ll exchange vows in front of witnesses—my
brothers—and drink from the same goblet.”
“What’s in the goblet? Oh lord. Don’t tell me it’s blood.”
“A special wine,” he said, amused. “Infused with binding magic. And
then we have sex.”
“Have sex… like in front of your brothers?”
“Fuck no.” Galen held me closer, a growl making its way up his throat.
“I’ll kill them before I ever let them see you naked.”
I rolled my eyes.
“That part will be private,” Galen said, cupping my cheek. “There’s
something else too. Remember how I bit you to mark you? Well, to fully
become mated, I’ll need to bite you again… and drink a little of your
blood.”
“What?” I squeaked.
Kyo, as well as any customers in the store, had probably heard me.
Galen pressed two fingers to my lips, his amusement growing.
“Like a vampire?” I asked in a harsh whisper against his fingers. “But
you’re an angel.”
“Half angel. More than that, I’m the son of a fallen angel.”
“Wait. So fallen angels drink blood?”
Galen nodded. “Some myths refer to the Fallen as blood drinkers. Also,
flesh eaters. Their betrayal cursed them. Blood drinking is a sign of the
damned. They have to drink blood to survive, much like a vampire.”
I gaped at him. “Do you have to drink blood?”
“Would you be disgusted if I said yes?”
“No. Just surprised.”
“Don’t worry,” he said with a tight smile. “While we do enjoy the taste
of blood, we don’t have to drink it to survive. Our human halves cancel that
out. It’s more like an indulgence we can choose to partake in. Though, it
can make us stronger too.”
I scrutinized him. “That night at the club, you poured a vial of
something red into your drink. Was that blood?”
“Yes. I usually only drink it when we go to Konnar’s club though.”
I thought back to my time in the underworld when Asa had become
weak and that demon brought him a goblet filled with what I assumed had
been wine. Had it been blood instead?
“I probably should’ve told you sooner. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay.” I smiled up at him. “There’s so much I still need to learn
about you and your life.”
 “Our life,” he said, threading his fingers through my hair. “And I
promise to tell you everything.”
“I can’t wait.”
When we returned to the mansion that evening, the brothers already
seemed to know our news. Probably because of their mind-reading abilities.
“Congrats!” Castor pulled me in for a big hug. “You’ll officially be part
of our family.”
“When Galen drives you crazy after a hundred or so years, you can
always come stay in my bed,” Bellamy said with a wink.
Galen snarled at him.
Everyone seemed to be in better spirits. New furniture had been
ordered to replace the torn-up, bloodstained couches from the fight.
Stronger warding had been placed on the outside of the veil too. It wouldn’t
keep the demons out for forever, but it would do for now.
According to Alastair, the demons were lying low. He hadn’t heard any
news of Belphegor, Phoenix, or Asa since our return from the underworld.
Lazarus had come to visit us once. He only stayed long enough to
inform the brothers that Ramiel and the other traitorous angels had all been
banished from the celestial realm and hidden themselves. It wouldn’t be
long before they reunited with Belphegor and joined forces with the
demons. If they hadn’t already.
But that was a threat for another day.
“Gray wants to see us,” Galen told me, touching my lower back.
We went up the stairs and turned toward Gray’s room. Right when I
walked through the door, he beamed up at me. In the days since his attack—
mostly thanks to Clara’s healing practices—he was doing a lot better.
“Simon,” he rasped.
 “Don’t talk,” I said, lying beside him in bed. He instantly curled up
next to me, head on my chest. “I don’t want you hurting yourself.”
Galen sat in the chair beside the bed, his hand finding mine. Gray fell
asleep within minutes, his soft snores puffing against my neck.
I wasn’t only choosing a life with Galen by agreeing to be his bonded
mate. I was choosing a life with all of them. And I was eager to see what
that life had in store for us.

***

The ceremony was held beside the sea. The sun broke across the water,
making it shine.
I wore a white tux with a dark red bow tie, matching the same shade in
Galen’s wings. He wore all black. His tux had to be specially tailored to fit
his massive body. It was very much like a wedding.
I never thought I’d get married.
“Are you okay?” Galen asked as we stood in front of his brothers, who
were all dressed for the occasion too.
“Yeah.” Tears stung my eyes. “I just wish my dad was here to see this.”
Galen looked at the sea. “I think he’s watching.”
Clara and Kyo were present, the only other people in my life I was
close to beside the warriors. When considering an immortal life, I knew
certain sacrifices would have to be made. After a few decades, I might have
to change my name. Perhaps disappear for a while. Otherwise, it would
draw too much attention. The good news though? Kyo was immortal too, so
I wouldn’t have to worry about him aging.
Only Clara would grow old. Which made me sad. She’d become a
good friend.
 That’s something to worry about later.
Castor carried Gray from the mansion and sat him down in a chair.
Gray no longer had his neck wrapped. The wound looked like a scar now,
the skin completely closed, but the brothers continued to pamper him. He
waved at me and smiled.
Alastair led the ceremony. Fitting for Pride. He wouldn’t have accepted
anyone else doing it. Rings weren’t usually part of the ceremony, but Galen
had requested that we have them. I believed he liked having a symbol of our
love. I liked it too.
As Galen slid the ring on my finger, my heart nearly burst. I put his
ring on him too and stared up at him, my throat tight.
“Don’t cry,” he said.
“I won’t.”
He wiped a tear that slipped from the corner of my eye. “Liar.”
Alastair brought forward a silver goblet and filled it with a deep red
wine—not blood, Galen assured me—and spoke in Ancient Greek. I didn’t
understand the words, but Galen translated for me under his breath. It
sounded like a type of spell, words to bind two souls.
“After today, your souls will be merged and your life forces joined as
one.” Alastair looked at Galen, then at me. “If this is what you both truly
desire, say your vows. Speak from the heart.” He handed the goblet to me.
“And drink.”
“I, Simon Parks, vow to love Galen… um…”
Galen’s lips twitched. “I was never given a surname.”
“Oh.”
A laugh came from the small audience. Castor’s cheeks were pink as
Gray slapped at his shoulder. I read his lips, Be nice. But then Raiden
started grinning too.
 “I will strangle you all,” Galen said with no bite in his tone.
I managed to continue my vows despite the chuckles from the peanut
gallery. I vowed to love Galen until the end of my days, and he vowed to do
the same. And then we each took a drink from the goblet. The wine was
sweet with a slight tartness, and warmth radiated all through my body after
I swallowed. As if the magic was already flowing through my bloodstream.
“Kiss to seal your vows,” Alastair said.
Galen softly brought our lips together. I couldn’t explain it, but I felt
different. Like I’d been going through life riddled with holes, and with the
pressing of his mouth, those empty places inside of me filled.
“Can we have cake now?” Raiden asked after Galen and I kissed.
“There is cake, right?”
“I baked lemon bars,” Clara said.
“Hell yeah.” Raiden spun her around, and she yelled to be put back
down.
Galen pulled me against him and whispered in my ear, “We can
celebrate with them after. The ceremony isn’t over for us yet.”
A tingling heat spread through me as he picked me up and carried me
toward the mansion. Castor and Raiden called out to us before laughing. No
matter how old, they acted like perverted teenaged boys.
“Remind me to kill them later,” Galen said, walking toward the stairs
with me in his strong arms. His smile never faltered.
Once in his room, he placed me on the bed. I sat up and started
undressing him. My hands trembled as I slid his suit jacket off his broad
shoulders, then focused on the buttons of his vest. We’d had sex countless
times over the past few months, but this time was different. Special. It
meant more than any of the others.
“You’re shaking.” Galen lifted my hand to his lips.
 “So are you.”
And he was, like he felt the same intensity I did. Neither of us would
be the same after this.
The air felt charged around us, electrified, as we kissed. He stripped me
out of my tux, and though my movements were a lot sloppier than his, I
managed to do the same to him. Galen grazed his teeth down my chest and
nipped at the sensitive skin of my belly before taking my cock into his
mouth.
I shuddered at the explosion of wet heat and watched myself sink
deeper.
“You taste so damn good,” he said before dipping his tongue into my
slit and lapping up a bead of precum.
My fucking eyes rolled back in my head. He opened me with one
finger, then two, three, as he sucked me within an inch of my life. Pretty
sure I felt my soul try to leave my body at one point.
“Do you feel it?” he asked, lips gliding along the crease of my upper
thigh.
“Sexually frustrated?”
A low laugh left him. “I’ll make that up to you soon. I’m talking about
the warmth coursing through your bloodstream. A flickering flame just
waiting for the fuel to make it blaze higher.” He moved back up my body
and gripped the back of my hair, angling my face up to his. “Our souls are
reaching out to each other. Waiting to be made whole.”
Our cocks rubbed together as he ground his hips forward and claimed
my mouth like he’d soon claim my body. He was right. I felt that warmth,
the flame yearning to be set free.
Galen slicked his cock and pushed inside me. I loved the fullness of
him as he stretched me. The sting only lasted a moment. He pulled almost
all the way out and then slammed forward all the way, his balls slapping my
ass cheeks. He alternated between slow and quick thrusts, as if he wasn’t
sure whether to fuck my brains out or tenderly make love.
“My body is yours,” Galen said, holding my face with one hand as he
rocked his hips into me, slower now. “My soul. My heart. Everything I am.
All belong to you, Simon. Today, tomorrow, for as long as there’s breath in
my lungs, I am yours and only yours.”
A tear slipped from the corner of my eye. “And I am yours.”
He snapped his hips forward, then again, his face buried against my
neck. I crept closer to the precipice, just moments away from shattering.
“Galen,” I groaned, sliding my hands to his back.
He grunted as my fingers probed at his wing slits. I wouldn’t last much
longer. My cock was wedged between our bodies, the friction as he moved
on me so fucking delicious.
“Oh my god,” I whimpered. My stomach muscles tightened and my
balls drew up. “I’m gonna come.”
And then his teeth clamped down on my throat.
I gasped, my body shuddering beneath him as my orgasm crashed into
me like a tidal wave. Pleasure unlike any I’d experienced before consumed
me. I barely recognized the sounds I made. Gasps. Whimpers. Deep, drawn-
out moans that made my voice crack. I was drunk on love and lust, my soul
tangling with his, our hearts melding.
His body shook as he came too. As his cock pulsed, he drank deeper
from my neck, my blood flowing into him as he filled me with cum.
It was mind-blowing. Perfect.
When Galen finally pulled back from my neck, red dripped from the
corner of his mouth. I stared up at him, a goddamn wreck as I fought to
catch my breath. I felt like I could sleep for days. Weeks. I had never felt
happier.
Galen licked at my neck before rolling off me and gathering me in his
arms. He looked just as exhausted as I felt. The binding magic had taken a
lot out of both of us.
“Are we fully bonded now?” I asked.
“Yes.” He nuzzled the side of my head.
“Did my blood taste good?”
His raspy laugh settled over my heart. “Yes. The best I’ve had.”
“Good,” I said, smug.
Galen kissed the knuckles of my left hand, lingering on the scar now in
place of my index finger. It didn’t hurt anymore. His healing magic had
eased the pain. It would take some getting used to though. I hadn’t realized
how much I used that finger until it was gone.
“Do you think Raiden will leave any of Clara’s lemon bars for us?” I
asked, unmoving beside him as the sun came in through the wall of
windows.
“Probably not.” His fingers lazily combed through my hair.
With my head on his chest, I heard the beating of his heart. Heard his
soft intakes of air. I heard something else too.
“Are you purring?” I asked in shock.
“It’s Wrath.” Galen skimmed his thumb along my cheek. “He loves
you.”
I recalled the pitch-black eyes I’d stared into while in the underworld.
Remembered the low whine he’d emitted as his wings enveloped me.
“I love him too,” I said, warmth pooling into my belly at the revelation.
I once cursed the day that creepy box came into my store. It had been
the catalyst that led to everything—my attack, being human-napped by a
six-foot-eight Nephilim with the sexiest voice I’d ever heard and the softest
touch, falling in love with him. That damn box had thrown me into a whole
new world. While this new world was terrifying at times, it had led me to
Galen. He was grumpy and beautiful and all mine.
If I could go back, I wouldn’t change a thing.
I would choose Galen over and over again.
“What do we do now?” I asked.
“We live.”
Galen’s lips slanted over mine, and we kissed. It was gentle. Unrushed.
We had eternity, after all.

The End
 The series will continue with
Castor (Sons of the Fallen Book 2)

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 Other Works
Standalone
Brighter Shades of Light
Tangled Up In You
Cheater and the Saint
Frost
Perfectly Us

Historical
Axios: A Spartan Tale
Eryx: A Spartan Tale

A Blue Harbor Romance Series

Topping the Jock (Book 1)
Dating the Boss (Book 2)

Unexpected Love Series

His Temptation (Book 1)
His Surrender (Book 2)
His Courage (Book 3)

Tales of Fate Series

Found at Sea (Book 1)
The Nymph Prince (Book 2)
A Warrior’s Heart (Book 3)
Ivy Grove Series
The Ghost of Ellwood (Book 1)
The Curse of Redwood (Book 2)

Christmas Books
Hensley Manor
A Gift of Time

The Awakening Series

-Michael’s Awakening (Book 1)
-Zack’s Awakening (Book 2)
-Benji’s Awakening (A Companion Novella)
-Kane’s Awakening (Book 3)

Port Haven Series (Young Adult lgbtq+)

Noah’s Song (Book 1)
Reaching Avery (Book 2)

Love in Addersfield Series

Declan (Book 1)
Royal (Book 2)