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“Not so fast.” Noxx aimed the gun at the boy’s head. “You can’t beat a bullet. A trade, princess. The same as you’ve already made once so it shouldn’t be so hard. Bring me my child and I’ll give you yours.”
“No.” The word came so softly from Yulia. Pausing midflight, she beat her wings in a heartbreakingly unsteady beat. Her magic flickered. “Don’t do this.”
Noxx gripped the kid tighter. “The Maronov prince is dead. He can’t punish you.”
Joelle’s heart felt as heavy as stone, heat flooding her face and choking her. “He’s not. My mate’s still alive.”
Eddie rushed forward. “Give Joelle and the child to me.”
Yulia bobbled in flight, her wings seeming to stop for a precious second. “She’ll kill my baby. He’s all I have.”
Pushing the last child to Eddie, Joelle held fast to Yulia. “Alexei’s alive,” she whispered. “I know it.” If he could make the sacrifice to ensure the safety of those he loved, so could she. The monstrous creatures kept coming below. Her new family wouldn’t make it out of here unless she changed the odds. “We make the trade—me for Tai.”
“No.” Eddie reached for her, but she held up a hand.
“This is a command. The same as if your prince had given it. Let me handle Noxx. She’s always been mine to take revenge against.” How? She had no idea. But staring up into Noxx’s face, she knew the woman wouldn’t hesitate to kill a supernatural child simply to prove a point. If evil had a face, this sadist’s would be it. She met her guardian’s gaze. “Promise you’ll let me heal the boy and allow them to go if I come with you. Safe passage guaranteed. Swear it on your sister. Or I’ll track her down and bury her in so many pieces that you’ll never put her back together.”
“You mustn’t.” Yulia’s voice shook. “She broke a blood oath. You can’t trust her.”
Joelle ignored her. She would figure something out. “Do we have a deal?” she called up.
Noxx seemed to consider her as though seeing something new in her, something powerful. “I swear it. Your precious demons can even keep the orphaned brats as a gesture of goodwill. I’ve created enough disposable monsters from your kind to last a thousand battles.”
“We’ll fly up. I’ll stay, and you let the boy go with his mother. You call off your creations.”
“In exchange for you, my greatest creation, and your compliance? Agreed.”
Looking to Yulia, she said, “Let’s go get your son.”
“I can’t shield you with my magic. Not if I’m too far away, and I won’t leave you, not again. My son would never forgive me.Iwouldn’t forgive myself.” The woman’s words sounded convincing, yet her tone suggested she wanted nothing more than to yank Tai into her arms and fly far from here.
Needing to fight one battle at a time, Joelle countered quickly in a high-stakes bargain only demon hybrid politics would understand. “You will owe the Maronov dynasty a life debt as well as an alliance with your kingdom against the Order.”
Flicking one claw to its razor-sharp edge, the woman dragged it over her palm. “On my blood, I swear it.”
Swallowing the swarm of butterflies with hornet stingers that her nerves and fear had unleashed inside her, Joelle nodded. They flew upward at a dizzying speed, the shield around them reforming to a solid shimmer. She would do this for her new family, for Alexei. Her worst fears, her best chance at a future—all would be decided in the next few seconds.
She only hoped she wouldbecomeenough. Time to discover whether she truly had a star goddess within. Her stomach catapulted toward the ground even as they rose. She had to get this right, the timing perfect, in order to end this once and for all.
Endangering the lives of everyone she loved, of children, of Tai—none of it mattered to Noxx. Their lives held no meaning because they hadn’t been born human. As long as she lived, Noxx would remain a threat unless Joelle ended her.
The healer inside her revolted, yet she had no choice. Her life or Noxx’s.
One would continue. One must end.
Tonight.
She kept her focus on her guardian while Yulia maintained a hover.
“Welcome back.” Noxx’s cruel gaze made her mockery of the greeting more menacing. “I knew I would have you, and now your magic’s even stronger after mating with the Maronov prince.” She twisted the barrel of the gun against Tai’s temple. “Tragic your coupling had to end so quickly.” The way she uttered the words said she’d been happy to be the one to cause the tragedy.
“He’s not dead.” Joelle wouldn’t believe it.
“Oh, but he is.” The gleam in the woman’s eyes proved how heartless she truly could be.
Arguing wouldn’t help. Nor would wasting time while Tai suffered. She tipped her head to the top of the silo, and Yulia descended to a point a few feet from her son.
The moment she touched down, Joelle stepped away. “It’s done,” she said. “Release the boy.” She wouldn’t use his name, wouldn’t give her evil guardian additional leverage to use.
