“Get some sleep. We should leave in a few hours. It’s time to get this done.” Yanking the shirt over his head, he headed toward the door.
“It’s not safe. The wards—”
“I’ll be right outside the door. It’s fine.”
“I don’t think—”
“Sleep, Sunshine.” The door opened, his frame briefly silhouetted by the maroon glow of the sky outside. And then he stepped through and closed it behind him, and she was alone in the dark.
* * *
Raum saton the boulder beside the cave entrance and looked out over the barren valley. It was night in Hell, but since there was no sun or moon like on Earth, that meant only that the red sky had darkened to burgundy.
He wasn’t as mad at Sunshine as he probably should’ve been. In fact, he was more relieved than anything. Andthatwas why he was mad. Not at her, but at himself.
He was mad because she had him pegged—he didn’t act like a demon anymore, and he would do pretty much anything to protect his brothers. Hewasquiet and always frowning, just like she’d said. She’d known exactly how to manipulate him into doing what she needed him to do, and he had to respect her strategy.
Of course she wouldn’t hesitate to use him to get her promotion. They were enemies—all of creation was set up to pit them against each other. And she’d shown him mercy really. If the situations were reversed and Bel saw an angel breaking the rules that he could kill without consequence, best believe that sucker would fry.
The fact that Raum didn’t know anymore what he would do was what unsettled him. His brothers had teased him about working at a dog shelter, but they were right, weren’t they? He’d gone soft. Weak. And if he didn’t figure out a way to get his walls back up, he was going to get himself killed.
That wasn’t some grand overstatement. It was what happened to demons who were stupid and broke the rules.
He needed to harden himself against the irrational soft spot he had for Sunshine. She didn’t hesitate to do what needed doing, and neither should he. No matter what he did, he couldn’t stop thinking of her as this submissive, sweet thing who needed protection, but she wasn’t even close to that.
She was a motherfucking warrior angel. The idea of her as soft was laughable, yet the fantasy persisted in his head and made him continually lower his guard.
It wasn’t that he saw her as weak or helpless, it was more that he was obsessed with the idea of her needing him for something. Even just comfort or support. He wanted her to lean on him, to trust him, to surrender to him.
So. Fucking. Stupid.
Starting now, he was done. No more wanting what he couldn’t have, no more hallucinating an imaginary relationship dynamic, no more feeble hopes. He would get this job done and steal the book for Sunshine. She would get her promotion, and he’d return to Earth, and that would be the end of it.
He stood suddenly. Sunshine wasn’t sleeping and neither was he. They had the amulets from Naiamah—he’d left them on the table inside. There was no reason to wait. It was time to discuss strategy and make a plan.
He headed back toward the hideout, but a shiver crawling down his spine had him stopping and spinning around. He searched the gloom, seeing nothing. The feeling didn’t leave him, and he decided his best bet was to get back behind the ward. He started toward the door once more.
A shadowy shape appeared in front of him, like the hazy outline of a person. He froze mid step, trying to make sense of what he was seeing. The figure loomed, bobbing slightly as it floated, like…a ghost.
It clicked a second later. A second too late.
He spun around just in time to see a tall horned figure with a corpse-like complexion swinging a huge spiked club toward his head. He ducked, but he wasn’t fast enough. The weapon smacked him in the temple, the nails—or whatever the fuck was sticking out of it—tearing up his skin like tissue paper.
With a shout, he dropped. He rolled, clinging to consciousness through the blood soaking his eyes and the pain in his head. The club smacked the ground an inch from where he’d been, and the demon wielding it tsked impatiently.
Suddenly, icy hands were all over his body, pinning him down. He thrashed against them with all his strength, but even when he managed to free his arms, his fists passed right through his assailants. One couldn’t strike a foe that had no body.
“Oopsie,” Murmur said, standing over him.
Just as Raum was gathering his focus to shift, Murmur swung the bat at his skull again. This time, he didn’t miss.
15
No Rest For The Wicked
Sunshine didn’t even bother trying to sleep, though she did lay down again. She stared at the ceiling instead, wondering when things had become so incredibly complicated.
It didn’t take long for her to realize she was far too restless for sleep, and there was no longer any point trying. She sat up with a sigh, swinging her legs over the bed.
