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The pain grew in his chest and the roar that left his mouth sounded half angry, half miserable wail.Micha. He couldn’t have done that. He wouldn’t. There’s no way a crybaby like him would even have the spine to betray someone like Arden.
He’d told the angel that he loved him tonight, that he loved all of them. And now he was being slapped in the face. It felt as if right when he’d finally let his guard down, the world was ready to dump a heap of bullshit on his head.
“We’ll find him,” Bash said. “But you need to keep yourself under control, Arden. We’re right here with you no matter what’s going on.”
Arden grumbled, the sound emanating from his throat and working over his body. He couldn’t explain to Bash that there was no going back after tonight. The image of sweet, soft Micha now melted into one that was fully capable of wanting him dead. How could he reconcile those two pictures in his mind and be able to hold the angel ever again?
He wasn’t sure what hurt worse. The anger or the sorrow that threatened to make him drop out of the sky and disappear all over again.
“There,” Bash called as he pointed down to the far reaches of the garden. “I can see light down there, but there’s a lot of people, Arden. Are you sure we should go in alone? Maybe we should wait on the-”
Arden barreled toward the garden. Sharp claws sank into his flesh, but he ignored the white-hot pinpricks of pain. The ground came up to meet them rapidly and Bash yelled just as Arden sank claws into the dirt and pulled up short. Bash scrambled down his body and shifted back into a bear as Arden stormed up to Janek. In the man’s arms was none other than Micha.
Janek didn’t move an inch as Arden’s face moved inches from his and roared. The man stood there, his lips curling up into a grin. Micha shook in his arms, but he wouldn’t look at Arden. The dragon willed him to turn his head, but Micha lifted a wing and shielded himself.
“Ardoneous, it’s good to see you here. Want to shift so we can talk like gentlemen?”
A long tail whipped out and wrapped around Janek’s throat. But the man didn’t so much as flinch. Instead, he shot ice-cold spikes through Arden’s flesh and Arden stumbled back, releasing his hold as he shook the ice out.
“You always were so weak against my ice, even when we were kids. You know what I think? I believe that even back then the universe was setting us up for this moment, so I could take your head.”
“Janek, please,” Micha whispered. “I told you, he isn’t like-”
“Shut up,” Janek snapped. “You were all too happy to serve him up to me so don’t lose your nerve now.”
Arden shifted and growled at him. “Let him go.”
Janek chuckled. “Awww, do you still want to save him? You know he betrayed you, right?”
“I know everything,” Arden snapped. “But I’m not here to talk about him. I want to talk aboutyou.Why would you do this, Janek? You’ve gone through all this to what? Kill me? To be branded a traitor and spend the rest of your long life locked up in the dungeon? Because after you killed me, you understand that is what would happen, right?”
“Of course,” Janek said. “And every moment stuck in that gloomy, death-ridden bastille would be worth it as long as I got to see your head severed from your body. After all, you killed my daughter. I think you deserve whatever comes next.”
Arden stared at Janek, his jaw so tight it felt like his teeth would break.His daughter? What is he talking about?Janek had never been with anyone, never married, and he certainly didn’t have children, so what the hell was he talking about?
“You swayed him to your side with lies?” Arden growled. “Let me guess? The real reason you want me dead is so you can take over the throne? You must have known Justice was going to marry me and that would give you perfect access to weasel your way in and control the kingdom.”
Janek shrugged. “I won’t lie. When I found out about the betrothal, I knew it would work in my favor. Justice is weak and she’s always loved you more than her own flesh and blood,” he said as he pushed a hand against his chest. “It wouldn’t be a great loss to have her locked up or killed. Especially if I made all of this look like a rebellion.” He sneered. “I mean the long, lost little prince returning home and thinking he has the right to rule? Who could blame anyone for the people's uprising? And all I did was try to save a dear old friend.”
Arden’s chest tightened as he took a step forward. He could see nothing but red and his dragon was done listening. Arden ran forward and Janek thrust Micha in front of him. At the last minute, Arden saw big, pink eyes and he stopped himself. It was just enough of a stumble for Janek to stick a knife into his arm.
The wet, horrible sound of flesh rending from bone filled the silence of the garden. Janek yanked the blade free and blood sprayed, decorating Janek’s sleeves with Arden’s flecks of crimson. The man scoffed.
“Damn knives,” he grumbled. “But I can’t use too much of my ice or they’ll know it was me who killed you won’t they?”
“Fuck!” Arden cried out as pain consumed his arm and shot through it.
“You’ve gotten rusty.” Janek laughed. “Uh uh,” he snapped at Bash. “You stay right there or I’ll slit this skinny little bird’s neck.”
“Stop it,” Micha whispered, his voice trembling. “Janek, stop this!” He turned in the man’s arms. “Arden isn’t like that anymore. Whatever happened in the past, let it-”
Janek’s fist collided with Micha’s face. The nephilim stumbled back, holding his bleeding nose as he stared at the man with wide eyes. Janek grabbed a fistful of his hair and Micha screamed as he was yanked against the man’s body.
“Poor little Micha. You’re as stupid as I thought you were. Do you know how long it took me watching you, letting you get beaten and tossed to your ex’s friends like meat every single night before I barged into that dumpy little apartment and saved you? I saw the beat-down, weak, pathetic look of you and I just knew you were perfect for this job. You needed the praise, the manipulation, the threats. And you’ll always need that, Micha. Because you are nothing.”
“Let go of him,” Arden growled as he lunged toward them.
Janek shoved the knife against Micha’s throat. “One more step and he’ll just be another victim in the rebellion.”
