Kade runs a hand down his face. I don’t know the human well, I only spent a few minutes with him before the demon attacked in front of the portal, but he looks tired. More than just sleep deprived. He looks like the weight of the world is on his shoulders and about to crush him.
I suppose being tasked with keeping the truth of the supernatural from humans while a demon goes on a media blitz will do that to a guy.
“I’m taking personal responsibility for Ares. So you don’t have to trust him. Trust me instead. He has information that may help us, and we need every advantage we can get right now, so I want you to at least hear him out.”
Becks’ shoulders rise and fall with a couple of breaths, like he’s doing deep breathing to keep his anger in check. Extinguishing his fire, he says, “Fine, I’ll hear him out, but I’m getting Haven out of here first.”
“No,” Ares calls out, surprising us.
My gaze flicks over to him to find he’s looking right at me.
“She needs to hear this,” he says. “It’s her life at stake.”
Becks peeks over his shoulder at me. A muscle in his jaw jumps, and I catch a flash of scales on his neck.
“It’s your call,” he says gruffly.
His need to protect me is strong. I know it’s hard for him not to whisk me right out of this room.
I crane my neck to look over at Ares. His eyes are sad. I glance back up at Becks, who’s waiting for my answer.
“I’ll hear him out.”
Another flash of teal scales, this time up the ridge of his nose, but he doesn’t try to talk me out of it. He just gives a curt nod and then, turning, offers me his hand, helping me up and into a seat. The one farthest from the fae.
Kade pulls out a chair in the middle of the table, and when we’re all settled, the room seems far too big for a gathering this small, but I wonder if Kade knew Becks would need space between him and the fae.
Kade starts by introducing me to Ares, telling me he used to be a vital member of the Order and has information about the demon, and the creatures working with it.
Next to me, Becks snorts and mumbles something under his breath that sounds like, “Because he was one of them.”
I’m not the only one who hears, because Ares’ gaze snaps to Becks. The sadness in his eyes turns hard. “I’m not going to sit here and tell you what I did was right, but they had my sister. You can’t tell me that if they had someone you love, you wouldn’t do whatever it took to get them back.”
Becks falls silent, and when I glance over at him, his mouth is pressed into a hard line, his nostrils flared. Then, to my surprise, his gaze softens a touch. “I’m sorry about Aribella.”
Ares swallows hard and gives a curt nod. A sheen glistens over his eyes that he blinks away, and it’s clear that whatever happened, it didn’t have a happy ending.
His voice turns fierce. “I know it may be hard to believe, but I want to get this demon and bring down that vampire clan just as much as you do, maybe more.”
“Maybe not so hard to believe,” Becks offers, crossing his arms over his chest. “Tell us what you know.”
“I can tell you when the end of the world begins.” Ares’ attention shifts and he pins me with a stare. “And I also know what you are and what you can do.”
Alarm bells start blaring inside my skull, and even though I try not to, I tense. Ares’ shrewd gaze catches the motion.
“What are you talking about?” Becks asks.
“That’s not my secret to reveal,” Ares says, and my heartbeat, which spiked a moment before, starts to calm.
I feel Becks’ gaze, but don’t turn to meet his eyes. I can’t. I’ve been hiding something from him. What felt like self-preservation before feels like deception now.
But it’s a secret I’ve held on to so long, I don’t know if I can reveal it. Even to Becks.
Next to me, Becks leans forward. “Okay, then, tell us: when is the apocalypse supposed to kick off?”
“During the eclipse tomorrow night. During the blood moon. That’s when the demon will strike.”
Kade and Becks exchange a look.
