Immediately, I felt her defenses go up.
“We were thinking we were doing this alone!” she shouted back. “But you three and Rune had to spoil that.”
“Spoil that?Excuse me,Princess.One challenge must’ve gone to your head if you think you can just go portaling into the Seven Circles of Hell by yourself and survive!” Alexei gestured toward me. “Tell them, Ronen.”
I wanted to. I wanted to rage at her just as Alexei was. This place—what I was now certain was the Immolation Circle, based on the sweltering heat—was the most dangerous circle of them all. Every instinct I had set my shadows slithering across both our bodies, alert and ready.
But as I stared into her double-ringed eyes, seeing and feeling her resolve, I knew my words would be as useless as Alexei’s. She planned to come here and save the pet, and nothing would sway her. She believed a Hell Rune controlled him, and that Lilith had my feather.
Could it be possible?
Lucifer had told me he checked for my feather in their kingdom ages ago, that I never needed to search there. Did Lilith hide it that well? Or did she not have it then? Regardless, if she had it, I needed to steal it back. And I supposed… the pet too.
Additionally, Lucille held the key to Portal Lake. I didn’t know how or why, but she was our only way out. We either complied, or she would leave us here. And there was no way in this circle or the next I’d let that happen. Which meant Alexei, MJ, and I better get filled in.
“Tell us your plan—and how we can help.”
She scrunched her face, and I regretted the doubt I sensed in her. I’d put that there. I’d forced her away, and now she didn’t trust my intentions. But why would she? I knew what she wanted. She planned to rescue the pet, and she knew I hated him. Still, that didn’t change the fact that I’d rather be by her side, making sure she was protected, than have her go it alone.
I should’ve figured that out sooner, along with her plan. But never in my imaginings did I believe someone could escape Hell.
“You said you wouldn’thelp?—”
I stepped into her space, cutting her off. “I will help you rescue Aspen if you tell us your plan and allow us to adjust it so we can make sure everyone escapes unscathed. Okay?”
She searched my face, lips parted slightly. I wanted to kiss her. Or at least allow her to feel the tingles vibrating at my fingertips, the ones I continued to block from her senses. As much as I wanted to tell her, to let her feel what was between us, now wasn’t the time. If we were to succeed, she needed to stay focused, not thrown off balance by a secret I’d kept for two months.
“Thank you,” she breathed. Her eyes glistened with relief, and I had to step away before I really did kiss her.
Alexei gaped at me. Anyone else, and I’d probably force them to take us back. But she wasn’t just anyone, and I wasn’t sure Icouldforce her to do anything. MJ didn’t look surprised. If anything, she surveyed the landscape with eager eyes. Oliver grinned. Rune sat beside him, her shadow fur whipping chaotically. She didn’t like it here. This sweltering circle was her birthplace.
Which meant we also had to watch out for Hellfire and Hellhounds.
Lucille turned, pausing as she took in the Hellfire fields. “I believe we need to go through that, get to the base of those cliffs, and find a cave with a portal that’ll take us to the Tenebrous Kingdom.”
Alexei stretched his sagging wings in an attempt to dry them. “There’s no portal to the Tenebrous Kingdom here, beautiful.”
“Yes, there is.”
I internally cringed as I expanded my own wings, muscles straining under the weight. “The only portal that leads to Elora is Hell’s gates.”
“Trust me. There’s one here.”
Shebelievedthat. I could feel it. “Where did you get your information?”
“Aspen.”
Alexei’s wings dropped. “That piece of shit prince?” He grabbed her shoulders. “You can’t trust a word he says. How has he even contacted you?”
I glanced at MJ, surprised she wasn’t chiming in, only to find her scrutinizing me. I could see the gears turning, piecing things together—my silence, what I’d told her earlier about Lucile loving another. She shook her head, lips tight with disapproval. Not for the pet. For me.
“It doesn’t matter. But Oliver and I are rescuing him.”
“The prince can’t be saved. He’s a lost cause. If anything, we should drag him here and leave him to burn.”
A strange pulse of energy flowed through Lucille, muddying her other emotions. She whipped out a knife and leveled it beneath Alexei’s chin. “I’d refrain from saying things like that. If you don’t want to come, then stay. We only need Ronen to remove the Hell Runes.”
Alexei slowly released her and turned toward me. “What the fuck is going on, Ronen?”
