Dusk, thankfully, snatches my wrist, physically preventing me from walking any closer, and it seems to snap me out of whatever daze just came over me. Partially, at least.
Something still feels very, very wrong.
Judging by the look on Dusk’s face, he senses it, too. He’s glaring at Abaddon, muttering something to himself that I can’t quite hear, but it almost sounds like, “What the fuck is he trying to do to her?”
Abaddon’s eyes snap to Dusk, and I’m momentarily grateful his attention isn’t on me anymore. However, he doesn’t stop advancing towards us, quickly making his way down the long, shallow stairs carved into the earth. Finally, a mere ten yards away, he slows.
“Thank you, Messenger.” He lets the callous and dismissive nature of his tone sink in before stepping towards me. “I will take it from here. You are dismissed.”
Dusk’s grasp around my wrist immediately tightens. He moves forward, holding me behind him, as if to shield me from the King with his body. One of his wings, likewise, seems to pull closer to me.
“Destroyer,” he remarks in an equally cold voice—one that I’ve never heard from him before. “Is that any way to greet an old colleague?”
I watch as the King’s eyes drift from my wrist to the wing curled around my back, but his deadpan expression doesn’t change.
“By delivering the human directly to me,” Abaddon remarks, “you have more than completed the requirements of your mission. You are to return to Elohim now to debrief with the Council.”
Dusk doesn’t budge an inch. “You speak ofthe humanas if she’s a mere object. When was the last time you left the Abyss? Three centuries ago?” He scoffs, indignant. “No, I’m not inclined to leave her alone with the likes of you.”
There’s a slight pause, and the tension becomes nearly palpable until— “The key’s purpose is much greater than the single human life who carries it.”
“The key has no purpose withoutherexistence,” Dusk grits back, not skipping a beat. “You understand nothing of what a human needs to survive.”
“Food, water, shelter, healthcare.” Abaddon tilts his head to the side. “You insult me by insinuating I am incapable of providing for such needs. You forget your place, Malak.”
Dusk suddenly lets go of my wrist to take several steps forward,blocking me with his body and his furled wings.
“My place is crystal clear—and it does not include taking orders from outside of my chain of command. Including yours.” His tone turns both scathing and mocking. “The great Angel of the Abyss. You hide here for hundreds of years at a time, surrounded by your sycophantic, unfeeling soldiers. You don’t even visit Elohim anymore, let alone Earth. How could you possibly understand how nuanced human life is? She needs much more than the bare necessitiesto survive.”
I peer around the mass of feathers, just enough to see Abaddon looking down his nose at Dusk before he rattles off, “The Creator’s plan is not for us to lay judgment on. If she dies, the key will simply pass on to a different host, and all will be as it was intended?—”
“That’s not going to happen.” Dusk’s voice drops to a low, feral sound, seething with pure venom. And he speaks with complete confidence, too. If I weren’t still scared shitless, I might be genuinely touched by his devotion to protecting me.
“Perhaps you should worry less about how long I’ve been here, and more about how long you’ve walked with humanity.” The King maintains his cold, judgmental demeanor with unwavering dedication. Even his voice is devoid of any inflection. But his eyes… they flick to me, almost in a pointed gesture. “You wouldn’t want to disappoint the Council again, would you?”
For a moment, Dusk seems to be caught off guard.
But then his fury comes back tenfold. “Stay thefuckout of my business, or I’ll give the Council something to beespeciallydisappointed in.”
My body turns downright cold.
I’m getting the sense that Abaddon is not someone to make an enemy of. Dusk is going to get himself killed, or whatever happens to angels when their bodies are blasted to bits, if he keeps mouthing off threats.
After a moment too long, Abaddon’s eyes narrow, the first indication of his emotional state. He takes a step closer to Dusk, encroaching on his personal space. “You’re too attached, Messenger. We’re not meant tomeddle in human affairs. Be gone, and I’ll ensure the girl fulfills her purpose without you.”
They stand nearly chest-to-chest. But even if the dark angel is significantly bulkier and taller than him, Dusk doesn’t back down.
“You have no idea what the Hell you’re talking about. You’re toodetached. Things have changed. We’re very much involved in humanity?—”
“What have you done to the girl?” Abaddon doesn’t wait for an answer. His straight face splinters even further, a deep scowl settling on him. “Have you already defiled her?”
My face burns with ignominy—with the humiliation of having my private life pried open for judgment and reproach—and Dusk’s fury reaches a breaking point. His magnificent wings shoot out in a bold outcry to the King, like a dazzling beacon against the oblivion and darkness of the Abyss.
“What haveIdone?” He hisses, his voice rising. “Isearched through every single human on the planet for her. Iprotected her from the moment I found her, and I willcontinueto protect her until the day we perish. But you? You forfeited your right to have an opinion when you didn’t lift a finger to find her!”
Abaddon unfurls his draconian wings in response, stretching even wider than Dusk’s. “You did as you were assigned by the Council, which you willcontinueto do, indefinitely, unless you’d like to suffer the consequences of disobedience.” His voice drops so low that it’s absolutely sinister. “This is your last warning, Messenger. Hand over the girl and leave my realm immediately, or I will summon your superiors here to deal with you.”
“You’re going to threaten me with the Council?” Dusk laughs, dry and full of hatred. “No, I won’t be waiting around for them to do your dirty work. You either let me come with her right now, or you can keep your pit shut for as long as I live. Because I’ll be damned if I leave her with a psychopath who thinks of humans as animals.”
