“You both are infuriating.” He turns fully to face me, seething through his words. “Do I have my own selfish desires with Xeraphine? Yes. But, who doesn’t in this fucking story?!”
The involuntary twitch of my nose elicits a laugh from him. “If you wouldn’t be so fucking selfish?—”
“She has made it very clear what she wants,” I cut in. “Forcing her to carry for your needs is selfish. Plus…” A thunderous laugh built out of humor rolls straight from my chest. “It seems only an Incubus can get her pregnant. You are wasting her time, and weighing on my patience.”
He shakes his head. “We are cut from the same cloth.” That gives me pause. “What, don’t you know? Belial was a God. Cast out of the Vayl for, jeez, Gods only knows for what reason it’s been so fucking long. Belial became the first Fallen. Killed Hades and overthrew the Beyond.
“He raped a mortal, creating Proserpina, and the rest is history. Demons are just consequences of the Gods’ lack of control. So, no, Kairhyse, I’m not wasting my time.”
“What is the point here, Alaric?” I ask with conviction. “You aren’t going to touch her. End of discussion.”
He growls. “You’re both infuriating!” As he bares his teeth at me, I can’t help but actually laugh at his outburst.What a bitch. “I’m here to help, sofine, if you won’t let me have her, then I’ll just wait.”
“Wait until your cock is shriveled, it’ll never happen.”
“I—” He sucks in a sharp breath and closes his eyes. “I’m not going to try anything while you are in the picture. I’ve got some patience.”
This guy is fucking delusional.
“She’d only kill it. You and I would just fight, I’d accidently end your life, and then she’d damn me. And everything she’s gone through, will have been for naught.”
Truly delusional.
“Now… back to you and her acting like fucking children. Going out and making a godsdamn mess!” He advances on me, and I pop my neck, clenching my fists to prepare for his attack.
When his finger presses against the center of my chest, his face inches from mine, he grinds out, “Why? Why did you take her there?”
The corner of my lip pops up into a smile. “None of your fucking business,Fallen.”
His bright blue eyes shift between mine. “It is now. Belial is pissed!”
Shock slams right into me. “What?”
“Oh, now I have your attention, huh?” He leans back, but doesn’t remove himself from my space. “He thinks me incompetent, like I can’t keep her on a leash. She’s meant to do things the smart way. Find a way to stop the prophecy, AKA get rid of Tali! Not go off on a rampage!” He steps back. “Now… he wants to speak with her.”
My eyes round, and for once, I’m rendered silent.
“You think surface level, you both do. You see one thing, go for it, and think there are no fucking consequences.”
“It was made to draw Tali to Sidence, hoping she’d assume the attack was Xera. Then, we would know exactly where she was and start tracking her. We’ve not been able to find her, and not knowingherlocation is just as terrifying as her knowing ours!”
“Right… What if she had shown up? You think a few bodyguards at the entrance could keep that Succubus from telling them to rip their throats out so she could enter?!” He raises his voice through the end of his statement.
I grind my teeth. Kayn had his informants searching for Tali for a week, nothing. I’d made damn sure I wasn’t bringing her anywhere near that woman. However, I’m not going to sit here and debate that with this Fallen.
“Then you bring back someone as bait?! Bait for who… exactly? Lars? He won’t come alone. You’d be lucky if Tali herself doesn’t come to retrieve not only the girl, but Xeraphine.”
It’s why we hadn’t acted yet, we wanted to make certain that we did things right.
“What does Belial want with Xera?” I ask, completely ignoring his tantrum. He can drown in his frustration, I’d taken the precautions. Was Desiray an added bonus to everything, but also one I hadn’t worked out the kinks in? Yes. We didn’t have time to thoroughly think through it.
Again, it’s why we are being patient.
“To remind her of her place.” He shakes his head and sighs with frustration. “I don’t give a fuck how you feel about me, but I am trying to keep her from being used like damn cattle, tied up and bred. We gotluckyfinding her. Next time, Tali will keep Xera moving—fucking Beyond, she may take her to Old Hearth! Your kind barely survives in Demour, let alone on the diseased continent.”
I shake my head. “She wasnotin any danger. I will not continue to argue this point with you.”
He simply shakes his head. “She will always be in danger as long as her mother lives in the mortal world.” His fingers run up through his hair. “If Belial doesn’t feel I can get her under control… neither of us will get what we want.”
