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CHAPTER 1
Lyra
Two weeks of peace.
Two weeks. That’s all Alek and I earned for ourselves after fighting my mother, the Goddess of Light, and standing up against Marcus—Alek’s father.
Two weeks of getting to know Wrath, Alek’s older brother, who had been forced to dwell beyond the veil. He was now the king of Night Raven, put in charge of all demons in the city, taking Marcus’s place. The role suited him. He was noble and strong, and unlike Alek, he possessed the uncanny ability to control his temper.
That came in handy when you were the leader of Night Ravens in this city.
Natalie seemed to take up a special liking for him, which surprised no one. She had been a flirt our entire lives, always entertaining herself with the newest toy. I didn’t blame her for being interested in him, either. Wrath was powerful, but he was also kind and gentle, unlike a lot of the demons in this city. Besides, Natalie was just like me, the daughter of a goddess, trying to live a semi-normal life. Nat and I were closer than ever now that Theia was out of the picture.
Which I was grateful for, because I needed all the support in the world to deal with my father.
My father, the one who had stormed into Night Raven earlier with disheveled, messy hair and exhausted eyes, telling me I had to fix this.
This being the looming darkness that shook our entire world.
Now, Alek and I sat at one of the semi-circle back booths in the upstairs bar of Night Raven with Natalie, Wrath, Salem, and my father. All of us were trying to figure out what the hell was happening in this city.
“You opened the veil to bring back Wrath,” my father explained with a solemn look. “I got through, and there’s no telling who else slipped through that open gate, Lyra. We have to act fast.”
“Is the veil still open?” Alek asked. His arm around my shoulders tensed.
My father shrugged. “I have no idea, but we need to assume so for the time being.”
“I can’t believe this,” Wrath muttered from across the table. “We have to find Marcus. He might know—”
“No.” Alek immediately held his hand out, cutting his brother off. “He fucking killed me, Wrath. He didn’t hesitate, either. We’re not seeking him out for help. We can’t trust him.”
“You were only dead for a few minutes,” Wrath replied, tilting his head.
My father’s dark orange hair fell in messy curls as he snapped his attention to Wrath. “It’s the principle of the thing.”
The sound of Nat tapping her black fingernails against her glass lingered between us. Essentially, we were screwed. The ritual in Marcus’s basement had cracked open the veil to the dead demons. My blood had done that.
And now, my blood had to reverse the damage.
I took a deep breath before speaking. “My mother always said there was a delicate balance. Maybe there was a reason she kept me locked away so long. She knew the damage it would cause when the veil was opened.”
“Don’t talk like that. None of this is your fault, Lyra.” Natalie reached across the table and grabbed my hand, voice stern. “You had no way of knowing what would happen. You saved Alek’s life.”
“And mine,” Wrath added.
“And mine,” my father said, tone gruff.
I noticed the way he and Alek could barely look at each other. I tried to recall what Alek had told me about him. My mother explained that he was powerful, one of the most powerful demons to exist in years. That he threatened the order of the demons because he was so strong.
Yet here he was, barging into Night Raven like none of that happened at all.
I didn’t know what to think, wasn’t sure how to feel. A part of me iced over the second I saw his face walking through those doors.
He was supposed to be dead, not sitting at a table with us discussing our current problems.
“Sorry.” Salem cleared her throat from the other side of the table. “I’m still a bit confused here. You’re supposed to be dead because Alek killed you.” Alek stiffened beside me. “But you’re very much alive because Lyra—who happens to be your daughter—opened the veil. Instead of running off into the sunset or, I don’t know, getting revenge on the one who killed you, you came running back here. Why?”
My father’s eyes slid to me. “I won’t pretend to be ignorant of your mother’s way of keeping you hidden from the world, Lyra. You’re my daughter, and I should have never abandoned you like that. As for you…” His gaze turned to Alek. “I knew Marcus for longer than you’ve been alive. I was well aware he was making a move to take over the throne. I just didn’t expect him to dip so low as to have his own son make the kill.”
