Infernal Games by Jenna Wolfhart
22
We met Lucifer on the roof of Az’s building. Wind whipped around us, rustling the hair around my shoulders. On the horizon, the distant glow of the sunrise peeked over the skyline. It had been a very long night. Weariness tugged at my bones. But the time for sleep was a long while away.
Lucifer had Az’s Legion.
I’d never seen anything more horrifying than the look on his face when he’d heard those words. The heartbreak in his eyes had nearly crushed me.
Lucifer thundered to the concrete in a crouch, his wings flared wide behind him. He slowly stood, towering over the both of us, but Az didn’t even flinch. Shadows of rage pulsed from his skin. Daggers shot from his eyes. He would make Lucifer pay for this.
He held his sword in one hand and my fingers in his other. We would face this one side-by-side.
“Well, don’t you two look happily reunited?” Lucifer regarded us both with deep-seated disdain as his wings folded into his back. “It’s sickening.”
“Where are they Lucifer?” Az asked in a low growl. “What have you done with my Legion?”
“You should really start addressing me as Your Highness.” He tsked, the wind tousling his silver hair. “I loosened my grip on you far too much over the years. Let you do whatever you wanted. Look at where it’s gotten me.”
“Where. Are. They?” Az tightened his grip on his sword and stalked toward his King, releasing his hold on my hand.
Lucifer arched his brows and held up his hands. “Stand down, Abaddon. If you slice off my head, you’ll never find them. I’m the only one in the world who knows where they are.”
The sword sizzled with heat.
Az lowered Abaddon to the ground. “You’ve made a massive mistake targeting my Legion. I’ve never been more determined to rip out your heart.”
Lucifer laughed. “Based on your reaction, it’s the best decision I’ve ever made. I have your attention now. And you’ll do exactly as I say unless you want them to end up exactly like Morax. Hidden forever.”
Az’s entire body began to shudder. Heart breaking for him, I wrapped my hand around his and pulled him back. His shadows whipped around him, desperate to attack. Lucifer had stabbed him right where it hurt, and he knew it. If only I had some actual useful magic, I would smack that smug smile right off his face.
“You’ve made your point,” I said to him, throwing my arm out in front of Az. He was barely holding on to his anger. “Now, tell us what the hell it is you want.”
Lucifer’s eyes bored into me. “I separated you once, and I’ll do everything in my power to separate you again. It seems you won’t do it willingly, so it’s time I intervened. Go your separate ways, Mia. Permanently. Never see each other again. Do this, and I’ll let the Legion live.”
My heart slammed my ribs as I stared at him. I blinked, trying to make sense of it. That was what this was all about? All the plotting, all the scheming...it was just this? He didn’t want us to be together. That was...all.
“So, you don’t want me to be your bride?” I asked slowly.
He snorted. “Marrying you meant he could never claim you. So, yes. That was my first choice. Then I met you and realized being bound to you for eternity would be a nightmare.”
“Fine with me,” I snapped. “Feeling’s mutual.”
“That means no Hell for you either,” Lucifer said, lifting his eyes above my head to smile at Az. “She can go free, Asmodeus. No harm will come her way. But you must part. Permanently.”
Heart hammering, I twisted toward Az. I could already see in his eyes that he was going to agree to this. He would do anything to save his Legion. And he’d do anything to save me.
I grabbed his arms and tried to catch his gaze. “We don’t have to do this, Az. There has to be another way. We can fight this.”
“I’ll give you two days to make your choice.” Lucifer’s wings rippled behind him as he pushed up toward the sky. “Expect some instructions shortly.”
