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Exhausted, I slid to the ground. Wolf-Dastien came to lay by my side and I leaned into him.
Everything was quiet. The demons were gone. Astaroth was gone.
We’d won. I didn’t care what Astaroth said about coming back. He wanted me to stay afraid, but I wasn’t. Because I’d won. The portal was sealed, and Astaroth? He was stuck in Hell where he belonged.
I closed my eyes, letting the relief sink in.
It was over. It had been the longest three days of my life, but now I could rest.
Something wet touched my cheek and I pushed Dastien away. “Gross.” He nuzzled me with his nose, making sure I was okay. When he got to my stomach I laughed and swatted him away. “Stop it.” Then he saw my wrist and started licking it. “That’s unsanitary.” I sat up with a groan, and Eli came to kneel in front of me.
“You did well.”
“Thanks.”
He nodded. “You’ve made a very powerful enemy.”
I sighed. “What are the chances he stays under there?”
One of his eyebrows quirked up.
Which meant that Astaroth had a plan B. “How do I kill him?”
“You can’t. He’s like me. Immortal.”
That’s not what I wanted to hear. Especially not right now. “Can he be contained?”
He raised an eyebrow. “Isn’t he contained now?”
If I had even a thimble full of energy left, I’d have punched him. Screw the consequences. “You just said he’d be back?”
“He will.”
“So he’s not contained.”
“Containment never lasts for long. Especially when dealing with someone with his power and resources. But don’t worry. I forged our tie, so I’ll be watching if he makes another play. I wouldn’t want to miss out on the fun.”
I blew out a breath. “No. We wouldn’t want that.” But with any luck we’d have a while before Astaroth showed up again. Cosette said time went differently in her Underhill. Maybe it did the same in Hell.
I stayed on the ground as Eli rose. The air whipped around me as he flew up in the air a few feet and then disappeared. I had no doubt I’d see Eli again soon, but I just hoped he gave me time to recover first.
My body was spent. I’d get up soon, but not yet. Dastien settled next to me and I nuzzled my face in his fur.
“I think we’re going to need another vacation.” My head bounced a bit as he huffed his wolfy laughs.
Okay, so maybe that was crazy. We’d just gotten back from six weeks of vacation. But I was exhausted.
I closed my eyes. “Wake me up when it’s time to move.” Dastien whined. “Don’t worry. I’m fine. Just resting my eyes.” I let the peaceful darkness take me away. No abyss. Just dreams. Just beautiful, happy dreams.
Twenty-Six
“We need a new name for whatever this Council is,” Chris said. “And the Avengers is already taken. So is Guardians. Mega overplayed. So, what’re we calling ourselves?”
I’d laid on the ground for a while, just breathing, but eventually I’d gotten up.
It’d been two hours since Astaroth had been sent back to Hell. All injuries had been taken care of, clean up was in progress out on the quad where a bonfire was burning the last of the demons—and everyone else was recovering. We’d already showered, changed, and come back to the cafeteria to stuff our faces, grateful that the cooking staff had been close enough to feed us. We’d stuffed our faces in the cafeteria and were now just hanging out.
We meaning the new group. Council. Whatever.
