I wasn’t sure if that pissed me off or turned me on.
Her mere presence deteriorated my every thought and instinct, my body craving a touch more than I desired to breathe. Ineededher, had spent four decades in agony without her, and she’d appeared like some sort of devilish gift dressed in all black and wearing a devious smirk filled with wicked intent.
I groaned inside, my world crumbling at my feet.
Not five minutes in her presence, and the Divinity was already at stake again. Something I’d known would happen if I ever saw her again. Yet I’d forgotten all my concerns, too thrilled to be in her company once more.
It was intoxicating and wrong and reminded me why I’d left her in Hell. Reminded me why I’d sacrificed my own body and heart to protect the balance.
Except I’d just fucked it all up.
Again.
Growling, I pushed all my thoughts aside and focused on the enchantment paralyzing my body. It reminded me of Slither poison. Which was ironic, considering the last one I’d run into had been in this area the night I’d met Kay.
Kay appeared in my periphery, strolling confidently around my paralyzed form. An insidious grin curled up one corner of her lips, and she began to twirl her knife, angling toward me with purpose. She looked like a predator with that new, dangerous look about her.
Great.I knew she hated me for what I’d done to her, and for the last forty-one Earth years, she’d likely carried a homicidal torch for me. Chances were she was a bit more deadly than she’d been during our first encounter.
If she wanted to kill me right now, she could. And I’d be powerless to stop her.
I gritted my teeth, trying to construct a mental wall to fight off whatever enchantment had been cast on me. Forty years ago, it wouldn’t have been a problem. My mental acuity against metaphysical attacks had been strong and capable. Then I’d bonded with Kayla and fucked up my skill set.
So much so that now Kristina was in trouble.
But instead of sinking her blade into my chest, Kayla glanced up at the sky, where the tear in the veil between realms still hadn’t been fully healed by the Divinity’s magic.
She sighed and shook her head, then slipped her knife into a holster beneath her jacket.
I fought harder against the enchantment, keeping one eye on Kayla in case she decided to slice and dice me. She turned her attention to the gold cuff on her wrist as though to casually check the time. Except she tapped one of the glowing runes.
The spell around me disappeared in a blink.
“Still fucking hate Slithers,” she muttered, causing me to frown.
A venom bomb?I idly wondered.Is that what caused time to slow?
Typically, Slither demons ejaculated venom from their mouths to paralyze their prey, similar to snakes. But demons could technically use that substance to create a weapon to freeze their victims.
“More!” Jo shouted, distracting me as a blast of power left her fingertips.
A curse left Lucía’s lips on my opposite side as she shot energy up into the air to pair with Jo’s, the two of them immediately falling back into the chant required to mend the sky.
Except they were weakened now by Kristina’s disappearance.
A disappearance I’d allowed, thanks to mymate’sunexpected arrival.
“What happened here?” I demanded, my focus on saidmate. “Who created the fracture in the veil?” Because that person likely had something to do with Kristina’s disappearance, and I intended to go have a stern word with them just as soon as we finished cleaning up this mess.
Kayla’s brow furrowed, her hesitant gaze on the sky as she completely ignored my question.
I opened my mouth to repeat myself, only for Jo to sway in my peripheral vision. My wings propelled me to her side, catching her before she could collapse, her brown skin taking on an eerie yellowish tone as the golden crescents on her arms dimmed in brightness.
The equilibrium around us began to shift, making me dizzy as I attempted to stand her upright.
Fuck.
It felt as though I’d just imbibed several dozen alcoholic drinks. My stomach rolled with the intensity, my mind whirling at the disruption to the scales.
