froze Arik to his very marrow. Pestilence had found him.
Six
Limos entered Underworld General’s emergency room, which was busier than shit. A golden-haired nurse, Vladlena according to her nametag, slowed as she wheeled a gurney containing a bleeding patient past.
“Eidolon is in surgery.” She pointed in the direction of the triage desk. “Shade is over there.”
“I’m not here for—”
Vladlena took off without listening, but Shade had caught sight of Limos. Great. Shade had been a major pain in the ass lately. He was mated to Arik’s sister, and though there didn’t seem to be any love lost between Arik and Shade, the demon was not happy to see his mate worried about her brother. And naturally, since Arik’s situation was Limos’s fault—indirectly, since Arik kissed her , not the other way around—Shade had been making life hell for Limos.
Shade tossed the clipboard he’d been holding onto the reception desk and stalked over. “You have news?”
“Nothing new,” she said. “I’m here to meet Kynan.”
“I just got off the phone with him. He’s on his way.”
“Thanks.”
“You can thank me by finding Arik.” He strode away before she could respond. Jackass.
She plunged her hand in her pocket and played with Arik’s dogtags as she observed the nonstop stream of patients coming through the ER. What was he doing right now? Was he screaming in agony? Was he huddled in the dark, cold and afraid? Was he thinking about her and cursing her name? She broke out in a sticky sweat that smelled like guilt. Putrid, thick, bitter guilt.
Desperate for a distraction, she grabbed Vladlena again. “Is it always so busy?”
“Lately,” she sighed. “It’s all the underworld turmoil. Those who want the Apocalypse to start are fighting those who don’t, and then the warg wars have started up again, and a new plague is affecting feline shifters, so we’re getting an influx of them.”
Limos had no doubt that Pestilence was behind the shifter plague, his way of sending a message. Namely, that once the Apocalypse started, shifters had better side with him, or he’d take them all out with a touch of a finger.
Vladlena took off just as Kynan stepped out of the gate, his denim blue eyes instantly zeroing in on Limos. “What’s this about?” he said by way of greeting.
“Nice to see you too,” she muttered. “Come on. I have something to show you. Something you might find helpful.” The lie stroked all her pleasure centers and made her a little dizzy.
Kynan cursed, but entered the Harrowgate with her. Since he had been charmed by angels, he had little to fear,but it didn’t surprise her that when the gate opened inside the tomb, he hesitated.
“If this is a trap—”
“It’s not.” But yeah, she could understand his concern. She’d brought him to a sealed tomb, and if she opened a gate and got out without him, he would be trapped until his friends found him… which could be a long, long time. “See that stone box? It’s an Aegis vault. I found it while I was searching for my agimortus .”
A shot of adrenaline streamed into her veins, and for a moment, she had to breathe through the lovely jolt. It had been so long since she’d told such a big lie, so long since she’d gotten a forbidden thrill from it, that she’d forgotten how great it felt.
The weigh scales on her shoulder blade made a substantial tip in favor of evil, reminding her of the gravity of what she’d just done. The farther the scales tipped and the longer they remained weighted toward evil, the poorer choices she made, the less she cared about anyone but herself. Worse, she’d enjoy others’ suffering. She’d start famines for fun, and all it would take was a touch. She could lay her finger on a single man, and it wouldn’t matter how much food he ate—he’d slowly starve, and everyone he came into contact with would suffer the same fate. All the while, she’d laugh. She’d make Pestilence look like a
Six
Limos entered Underworld General’s emergency room, which was busier than shit. A golden-haired nurse, Vladlena according to her nametag, slowed as she wheeled a gurney containing a bleeding patient past.
“Eidolon is in surgery.” She pointed in the direction of the triage desk. “Shade is over there.”
“I’m not here for—”
Vladlena took off without listening, but Shade had caught sight of Limos. Great. Shade had been a major pain in the ass lately. He was mated to Arik’s sister, and though there didn’t seem to be any love lost between Arik and Shade, the demon was not happy to see his mate worried about her brother. And naturally, since Arik’s situation was Limos’s fault—indirectly, since Arik kissed her , not the other way around—Shade had been making life hell for Limos.
Shade tossed the clipboard he’d been holding onto the reception desk and stalked over. “You have news?”
“Nothing new,” she said. “I’m here to meet Kynan.”
“I just got off the phone with him. He’s on his way.”
“Thanks.”
“You can thank me by finding Arik.” He strode away before she could respond. Jackass.
She plunged her hand in her pocket and played with Arik’s dogtags as she observed the nonstop stream of patients coming through the ER. What was he doing right now? Was he screaming in agony? Was he huddled in the dark, cold and afraid? Was he thinking about her and cursing her name? She broke out in a sticky sweat that smelled like guilt. Putrid, thick, bitter guilt.
Desperate for a distraction, she grabbed Vladlena again. “Is it always so busy?”
“Lately,” she sighed. “It’s all the underworld turmoil. Those who want the Apocalypse to start are fighting those who don’t, and then the warg wars have started up again, and a new plague is affecting feline shifters, so we’re getting an influx of them.”
Limos had no doubt that Pestilence was behind the shifter plague, his way of sending a message. Namely, that once the Apocalypse started, shifters had better side with him, or he’d take them all out with a touch of a finger.
Vladlena took off just as Kynan stepped out of the gate, his denim blue eyes instantly zeroing in on Limos. “What’s this about?” he said by way of greeting.
“Nice to see you too,” she muttered. “Come on. I have something to show you. Something you might find helpful.” The lie stroked all her pleasure centers and made her a little dizzy.
Kynan cursed, but entered the Harrowgate with her. Since he had been charmed by angels, he had little to fear,but it didn’t surprise her that when the gate opened inside the tomb, he hesitated.
“If this is a trap—”
“It’s not.” But yeah, she could understand his concern. She’d brought him to a sealed tomb, and if she opened a gate and got out without him, he would be trapped until his friends found him… which could be a long, long time. “See that stone box? It’s an Aegis vault. I found it while I was searching for my agimortus .”
A shot of adrenaline streamed into her veins, and for a moment, she had to breathe through the lovely jolt. It had been so long since she’d told such a big lie, so long since she’d gotten a forbidden thrill from it, that she’d forgotten how great it felt.
The weigh scales on her shoulder blade made a substantial tip in favor of evil, reminding her of the gravity of what she’d just done. The farther the scales tipped and the longer they remained weighted toward evil, the poorer choices she made, the less she cared about anyone but herself. Worse, she’d enjoy others’ suffering. She’d start famines for fun, and all it would take was a touch. She could lay her finger on a single man, and it wouldn’t matter how much food he ate—he’d slowly starve, and everyone he came into contact with would suffer the same fate. All the while, she’d laugh. She’d make Pestilence look like a
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