“Ansley, you’re back,” Remy jumps up. “I thought you were staying up there all day.”
“No need,” she says. “I’ve made contact with them all. Every Scion on the planet.”
“Contact is one thing,” Storm says. “But they still have to show up.”
“Three days from now. Sunset,” Ansley says. “That’s when we strike.”
“You’ll need to stay here with the baby,” I try to make my words sound more like a command than begging. “But the rest of us will go. Go and pray that we’re not the only ones who show up to fight.”
“Daisy can take care of Joanna,” Ansley isn’t hearing me, apparently. Turning to her best friend, she says, “I know you’ll fight if we ask you to, even if you’re just trying to bite them in the leg, but I really need you to take care of my daughter.”
“I don’t like this. You’ll be in danger,” I argue.
“Neither do I,” Lucifer backs me up. “If the other Scions show up, great. If they don’t, then I’ll take as many Crimson Templars out as I can.”
“So will we,” Remy says, and the rest of us nod in agreement. “But you stay here, Ansley. Seriously. I’m glad you’re learning to use your power better, but if something happens to us, someone has to look after Joanna. You have to tell her how brave and handsome we were.” He’s trying to ease the sting of this with a feeble attempt at humor, but Ansley isn’t falling for it.
“I can’t ask every Scion on the planet to fight the Crimson Templars, then not show up myself,” Ansley says, shaking her head. “And if something happens to all of you, then what? I raise Joanna alone? I can’t teach her to be a she-wolf. Only her pack can do that!”
“But if you fall, daughter, then…” Lucifer’s voice chokes off.
“If you consider Gabriel family, then so do I,” Ansley pushes back. “Either we all go, or none of us do. I’ll tell the other Scions the plan is off.”
Lucifer leans forward and makes eye contact with each of us. A silent understanding passes between us. Ansley is determined, and if there’s ever going to be a chance to take the Crimson Templars down, this is it. It could be the onlyrealchance we ever have.
“We fight,” I growl. “All of us.”
“Except me,” Daisy chimes in. “I’ll just stay here being useless.”
“You’re not useless,” Ansley sighs, walking over to her best friend. “You’re the best godmother Joanna could ever hope for. And if for some reason, we don’t make it back, I know you’ll love her as much as we do.”
“I will,” Daisy says hesitantly. “But please don’t die and leave me to raise a baby on my own. I take birth control for a reason.”
“Then it’s settled,” Lucifer says. “In three days’ time, at sunset, we finish this. Once and for all. We rescue Gabriel. We kill every last Crimson Templar. We leave a crater where the Vatican currently stands.”
“A crater? Really? There’s so much nice artwork,” Daisy pouts. “Oh well, I’ll cross that one off my bucket list.”
“Who cares about history when it’s all wrong?” Wyatt rumbles. “Let’s burn it to the fucking ground.”
“Coming from you, that’s impressive,” Jaxton chuckles. “But I agree. The Crimson Templars are using it for their home base. They’ve got an angel imprisoned there. They get no quarter.”
The plan is in motion. I don’t fully agree with everything, but Ansley’s right. She’s the voice the other Scions heard. In some ways, she’s going to be the one they look to as a leader. UntilLucifer streaks across the sky. Then I have a feeling we’ll all be following him into battle.
Five Alpha Wolves, a Nephilim, an angel, and every Scion on Earth. If they show up, the odds might actually be in our favor for a change. No more hiding. No more running. The world could be what it used to be, before the Crimson Templars started killing our kind.
That’s something worth fighting for.
The next three days pass, filled with research, battle planning, training, preparation, and lots of worry. Ansley spends her time in the tower, still practicing, still reaffirming the plan for the other Scions.
Then Lucifer walks into the room where we are gathered, now in all his angelic glory with a halo floating above his head.
“It’s time,” he says calmly. “It’ll be sunset in Italy soon. I’ll have to make multiple trips to bring all of you there.”
“No, you won’t,” Ansley says as she walks in behind her father. “I arranged for a ride.”
“A ride? How?” Lucifer asks.
“The Fae. They can open rifts, and one should be opening right about…” Ansley pauses, then a seam of light appears in the middle of the living room. “Now!”
