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There was no way out, not unless he went through Balthazar or wanted to fight all of his demon kin, and only an idiot thought they’d stand a chance at that.
“Oh, what do you know? Hello, idiot,” Balthazar thought to himself, or had he spoken? Either way the enraged cry of a trapped beast came out of the demon suddenly charging toward him. Not quickly by any means. Balthazar’s powers slowed Hadden’s movements, and while he appreciated the other demons trying to sink their claws into him, this was his fish to gut. He could feel his anticipation reaching a crescendo in his blood. His smile had Hadden tripping over himself as he stumbled to a halt.
It was showtime, and goddammit, Balthazar had missed this. His divine purpose rushed through his blood. The set up and the fall. As the original Angel of Vengeance released the heat burning through his arm, out of his palm the flaming sword of justice exploded, lighting the darkness of the night that hung over this realm for more hours than not. Balthazar felt freer than he had in hundreds of years. Even though the shackles would be back tomorrow, tonight he could be himself again.
As he strode toward his victim, who was frozen in shock and fear, he thought of his plan to string the bastard up and cut out his tongue, to shred the flesh from his meager bones and leave his dripping carcass to his demon kin. His maniacal laughter echoed in the stagnant air that always seemed to hover in this place, the underlying smell of sulfur enough to warrant nose plugs. None of that even registered as his heart beat in time with Hadden’s, tracking his movements, anticipating his need to flee. Fuck, freedom felt damn good. Vengeance too.
Soon he’d get the vengeance he craved most. The vengeance he lived and breathed for. It wouldn’t fix what was broken and gone. He knew that on a soul deep level nothing ever would. But, he’d get the bastard responsible. It’s why he did what he did, after all.
Chapter 12
By the time they’d reentered the main conference room every bite of food had been eaten. Most of the males had undone the top button of their pants and were reclining in various gluttonous poses around the room. Lily and Perri almost looked like they wanted to throw up, and even Luc had an overfed glaze to his eyes that, along with the empty dishes and trays, showed how much they’d all consumed. Roth suspected it’d been a joint effort to purposely make every crumb disappear before he and Athon rejoined the group. For what purpose he wasn’t yet sure, but they definitely had one judging by the mirth filled twinkle in Dante’s eyes and the upward twitching of his lips.
He and Athon had obviously slept through lunch and dinner, if the fading light outside the full wall of windows was anything to go by. Had they stayed the entire time? Probably. The shitheads were obviously enjoying themselves immensely. What he couldn’t figure out was how much they knew of what had gone on behind the closed door where he and Athon had been sequestered. If they knew anything at all, that is. Shaking his head, he dislodged those wayward superfluous questions and focussed on the task at hand.
After they’d awoken he and Athon had discussed the situation somewhat. They knew they were connected to the woman in their shared dream. It was also likely that because Roth had been the one to come into physical contact with her, and Athon had not had that pleasure, he could be a link of some kind between them.
The question they couldn’t answer was whether it worked on just anyone, or was it unique to them? Lucifer’s reaction suggested otherwise. That he was already connected to her somehow. If this was the case, Lucifer had a previous claim, and they would not, could not begrudge him his happiness. He was their leader, but he was also their friend, their family. They had pledged themselves to not only the service the Almighty required of them, but also to Lucifer himself. They would ultimately sacrifice everything if he asked them to. That Lucifer had reacted to Roth’s words in the way he had, felt like a physical blow to Roth, the realms made less sense and the offense he had caused needed to be righted. Athon’s hand squeezed his shoulder, knowing what Roth planned next, offering comfort and support.
Lucifer seemed to notice in that moment the serious expression upon Roth’s face, and so he rose from his supine position with as much grace as his overindulgence allowed. Yep, Roth noted the unbuckled belt and unbuttoned trousers. His eyes flicked to Athon, and he saw his own inner amusement reflected in his lover’s eyes and the tilt of his lips, even as the weight of his unintentional misstep sullied his otherwise good mood.
Warily, Roth approached his General and lowered himself to one knee, head bent in supplication. An act of fealty and loyalty. One they’d each undertaken when they’d first come under his command. One Roth felt the need to renew, even as fear of rejection clogged his throat and brought the burn of unshed tears to his eyes.
“I, Azaroth, child of the Almighty, descendant of no one, offer the renewal of my oath. I pledge allegiance and service to the Almighty, and the destiny set before me. I offer my loyalty, my service, my respect, and my existence to Lucifer, General of the Shadow Hounds. In shadows bound we bind the evil of mankind. In friendship I renew my vow.”
As the last words left his lips he felt a tear slip free. The burning pain on his lower back had him arching on a silent scream, the brand of his designation, his preordained path, much as it had when it’d appeared upon his body the first time he’d made his promise to Lucifer and accepted his fate, pulsed with liquid fire. Lucifer’s face appeared before his and his arms came to land on his black, muscle T-shirt clad shoulders. Meaning Lucifer was on his knees before him. Something Lucifer rarely did. Fuck, this time hurt more than the first. Or maybe because millennia had passed he’d simply forgotten how bad it’d actually been.
The Almighty loved a good joke though, and being the all-knowing creator of the universe, as far as they knew, had already known what would come to pass, what things would be called and so on. Thus, each Shadow Hound’s brand blazed its way into and onto their skin in the exact same location. The slightly raised black tattoo was a bloody tramp stamp of all things. Fucking ass antlers. Right there on their lower backs, just above their ass cracks it sat as proud as punch. Luc assured them every time one of them realized what the placement meant in these modern times the Almighty would be laughing their fucking ass off. He was absolutely certain it was deliberate. But fuck, it was better than what Michael and those tighty whitey Blessed Reapers had ended up with, a freaking welcome mat.
The Hounds may have a sword pointing down to their asses, but at least they didn’t have a scythe, a fucking symbol of death, hovering over their privates. Thank fuck humans couldn’t see the damn things. Can you imagine the issues with getting laid back in the day if they could? They’d have been burned, or stoned, or some other ass backwards, idiotic shit.
All these thoughts ran through his head until the burning faded, and he fell forward. Only to be held up by Luc’s strong arms in a hold that spoke of friendship and felt almost fatherly.
“It is I who should be on my knees apologizing to you, my friend. You did nothing to deserve such a reaction. We will find her and together we’ll get to the bottom of whatever’s going on,” Luc’s voice was calm and laced with regret. Something Roth had not been expecting. As he looked up into his friend’s face he saw red swirling in the background, felt the tensed muscles as he struggled against his shadows, and was keenly aware of the conflict raging inside of him as only someone who’d waged that kind of war could be.
“You had me pissing my pants, dude. Obviously, since I passed the fuck out and all.”
“He had us all pissing our pants, dude,” Malech chimed in, causing them all to chuckle, and a rueful smile appeared on Luc’s face.
“I feel strangely at peace at the moment compared to earlier, when I wanted to rip your head from your spine. I cannot excuse my behavior, but I also know that in the same position again it would go the same way. My Caria was dead, I saw her lying there, and then she was gone, all traces of her had vanished, and I cannot explain it. The Praesidium said it was not in their purview, as no death had occurred. Yet still I could not find her . . . Until now, for a brief moment, and then she is once again gone. She was human, and if not one then close to it, at least I thought so, but obviously I was wrong.”
“Luc, you’re wafflin’ mate.” Andy had spent a fair bit of time on the coast of Australia catching waves and picked up some local phrases and a distinct accent.
“You need to tell us what the fuck has been going on with you the last seventy-odd years. We’ve tried to figure it out ourselves and come up with bupkis. We’ve compensated for your erratic, eccentric behavior. It was like you were shut off from reality. You might not have thought we needed to know before, but to figure whatever this is out, we need to know now. Trust us, as we trust you. You too, Roth. You seemed to be following Luc along that path for a bit there, my friend,” Marco tried to say it gently, but to anyone who didn’t know him well his raspy, gravelly bass would have sounded like an accusation.
“You’re right. We are family, you deserve to be in the loop,” Luc replied, as he looked at the floor beneath his knees, then stood and offered Roth his hand. Once standing he moved to the conference table again and took his seat indicating for them all to join him.
Mrs Briars entered, almost as if summoned by the rumbling of Roth’s stomach, and he saw Athon’s eyes widen as he took in the trolley of food she’d brought with her. He could almost see the drool running down his chin, and feel it on his own.
“You boys will eat, now, while the dumb one finally unburdens his soul.” The wonderful woman placed tray upon tray in front of two seats side by side and basically shoved him and Athon into them. She’d probably start feeding them too if they didn’t tuck in fast enough.
The others in the room covered their mouths to hide their smiles. It was a good thing Luc loved her like the mother he’d never had, because no one else would ever have gotten away with that.
“This lot sure can pack the food away when they want to. You boys pay them no mind, okay? Especially that one,” she said, pointing at Dante, who, in turn, looked at her with wide eyes and feigned innocence.
She gave them each a smile and bustled out of the room, but not before striding to Luc, placing her hand on his shoulder, and leaning in to whisper in his ear. Whatever she said had him gaping like a fish before nodding and thanking her.
“Did Mrs Briars dose you?” Lily gasped out, before she covered her mouth and shut her eyes.
