Her head turned and her eyes met Red’s. With mirrored grim expressions, Ari gave him a small nod and then closed her eyes, thinking of the parlor in White’s palace where Lilif spent the most time. She heard the flickers of flame around her and then she was moving at the speed of light, her hair whipping around her until the hiss disappeared and her body stilled.
Her eyes flew open in time to watch Lilif fly across the room and smash against the back wall, a mirror shattering into pieces around her. She fell to the floor and raised a hand to slow the descent of glass raining upon her. As the shards descended, they melted into liquid, harmless.
Asmodeus was a blur of wind across the room and his fist came down into Lilif’s chest, reminding Ari of the time he’d ripped the Seal of out her. A horrific, squishing, crunching noise was abruptly interrupted by Lilif’s shriek of pain as she gripped Asmodeus’s wrist and gazed up at him in anguished betrayal.
“Brother?” she murmured.
Asmodeus froze, his expression tortured as he gazed down at her. “Lilif,” he whispered hoarsely.
“Don’t,” she begged.
Seeing his hesitancy, Ari rushed forward. “Kill her. Asmodeus, kill her!”
“Do not listen to her. If I die, you will not survive. I am yours and you are mine.”
“She tried to kill you!” Ari yelled the vital reminder. “Kill her!”
She watched the war in his eyes and felt the world tilt beneath her feet as his shoulder slumped and he hung his head. What he didn’t see was Lilif’s expression change, the brittle hardness settle on her features as she drew back her own fist.
Knowing exactly what Lilif intended, Ari didn’t have a second to think. Using her incredible Jinn speed, Ari crossed the room in her own multicolored blur and stood on Lilif’s arm before she could punch into Asmodeus’s chest.
It broke under her foot and Lilif screamed.
And then Ari was flying back, her head smacking against the wall with an eye-watering wince. She managed to find her feet, blinking away tears of pain so she could assess what the hell had just happened. To her surprise she found Asmodeus standing between her and Lilif.
“What are you doing?” she groaned, about to push herself off the wall when flames erupted behind him and Lilif disappeared into the Peripatos.
Despair washed over Ari and she let out a low moan.
Asmodeus glanced back at the empty space behind him and clenched his jaw before turning back to Ari.
“You let her go,” she growled, forgetting who she was talking to. “You had her and you let her go!”
That’s when the lieutenant attacked her.
His hands were bruising around her upper arms, his breath hot and angry in her face. The room spun as he crashed her against the opposite wall. Just as Ari was about to fight back, his grip loosened and he pressed her there, but the violence was leaking out of him.
She blinked, trying not to tremble as he glowered down into her face. “She is my other half,” he breathed raggedly.
“And you are asking me to destroy her. It would be like destroying myself. Do you have any idea what you are asking?” His voice cracked with emotion. Despite her fear and distrust of him, Ari felt his sincerity and pain and couldn’t help but offer comfort.
She wrapped her small hands around his wrists and leaned closer, speaking softly so as not to incite his rage again. “I do. I do know what I am asking. I wish that I weren’t, but there is no other way and I am so sorry for that. But we have to do this together, Asmodeus. If I could, I would do it alone. I would save you from this.” His jaw flexed and his eyes searched hers for sincerity. “I can try to save you from the worst of it. I can be the one to draw the sword upon her. I’ll spare you that.”
After a moment of quietly contemplating her face, Asmodeus’s features hardened and he leaned in so close their lips were almost touching. Ari sucked in her breath, her heart pounding with fear at his proximity. “It is your fault I have to do this in the first place. If not for your favor, Lilif would still be hidden.” He brushed his mouth gently over hers and she dug her nails into his wrist in an effort to warn him off, her head pressed against the wall. He smiled unhappily, wickedly, against her lips before peppering kisses along her jaw that made her shudder.
He stopped at her ear and whispered, “If you’re still alive when this is over, I’m going to make you feel the same pain I feel.”
Abruptly he let her go, stepping back and allowing her room to breathe. Ari fought to control the shaking throughout her body, her chin jutting up defiantly in an effort to assure him he didn’t frighten her. But he was Asmodeus. He knew. He smirked at her fear, knowing he’d won.
“Let’s get back to Azazil,” he murmured lazily.
Determined to at least win something, Ari shook her head. “I have a better plan.”
“So, this is weird, right?”
Charlie turned around from the sink where he’d been quietly doing the dishes, lost in thought. His mom and Mikey were upstairs taking another nap. There wasn’t a whole lot else to do. Fallon’s parents seemed cool, and they were chilling out in the sitting room with Michael’s brother Gerard and his wife Megan, watching some Scottish soap opera.
Charlie didn’t do soap operas, even if the accents were hilarious. Jai and Trey were in the study having what was obviously a private conversation, so Charlie offered to do the dishes, escaping into the kitchen for peace and quiet.
Ari had been gone for four days.
Jai had explained that time moved more quickly on Mount Qaf, so four days to them was only about ten hours to Ari. Still, despite not knowing her so well, Charlie found himself concerned for her. When delivering the scariest, craziest news of his life, she’d been kind, and she clearly cared for him and Mikey. It should be weird how much she cared, since he didn’t remember her, but somehow it wasn’t.
Okay, so it was definitely weird for his mom who was freaking out over the fact that no one was watering her plants, or doing her job, and that the neighbors would be so worried. Charlie didn’t care about plants, or his job, or his neighbors. He cared about keeping his family alive. In fact, he and Mikey had adjusted fairly well to the new situation. However, that didn’t mean he didn’t want it to be over.
His peace had been interrupted by Fallon and her question. “Very,” he answered honestly, watching her cross the room and take a seat at the table.
He understood immediately why alternate Charlie had hooked up with Fallon Roe. Despite her small stature, she had a great body and gorgeous eyes. She was graceful, but also kind of funny. However, the last few days had been uncomfortable for them both and they hadn’t spent any time alone until now.
“You must be wondering if you’re dreaming.”
Charlie smirked and dropped the dish towel as he settled into the seat across from her. “I just keep telling myself it’s not possible for me, my mom, and my brother to be sharing the same whacked-out dream.”
Her pretty mouth curled up in the corners and he studied her a moment, taking in all the necklaces and rings she wore. “You sure like your jewelry.”
“They’re talismans,” Fallon answered. “They fuel my power. Guild Hunters are mutts. We don’t have the same juice as Ari, Jai, and Trey who are full-blood Jinn, so we use talismans to help power our magic.”
Genuinely interested in how it worked, he leaned forward and touched the copper coin that hung around her neck. “Do each of them do different things?” When she didn’t answer, Charlie glanced up at her face and found her staring at him oddly. “What?”
“It’s déjà vu,” she murmured. “You did this before. I was there on some of your training when you were learning about talismans.”
The strangeness of it made him drop the coin and settle back. “This is incredibly bizarre for me. I can’t even imagine what it’s like for you.”
Fallon shrugged and gave him a sad smile. “It’s easier and it’s not. I don’t mean to be harsh, but you’re not Charlie. You’re not the guy I was seeing, so in a way, it’s not as horrible that you don’t remember me. But it’s more final that he’s gone.”
Charlie didn’t know what to say.
Eventually, he murmured, “I’m sorry.”
She made a face at him. “Look, your little bro is alive. I wouldn’t change that for the world.”
“It really messed me up, huh?”
Fallon’s eyes widened. “Uh, yeah.
You were a freakin’ time bomb. Don’t get me wrong—the broody, focused guy who got excited about magic was a total turn-on, but you, well, alternate you, couldn’t handle that magic. So if I can impart a little piece of advice?”
“Shoot.”
“Don’t touch my talismans, or anyone’s talismans. Don’t make deals with Jinn. Stay out of it.”
Normally it would piss him off to be bossed around by a girl half his size, but after everything Ari had told him, he was guessing Fallon was probably right. “I will definitely be following that advice,” he grinned at her. She blinked in surprise.
After a moment, she sighed. “Crap.
You’re still hot in this reality.”
A flush of pleasure washed over him and his grin turned flirtatious at her blunt honesty. He didn’t know a lot of girls who said it like it was. “I can see why alternate me had a thing for you.”
She twisted her mouth playfully and raised her eyebrows. “It was more than a thing. You couldn’t get enough of me.”
More heat hit him again, this time lower. “Is that right?” he murmured, his eyes dipping to her mouth.
Before either one of them could say anything else, a ruckus from the sitting room caught their attention. Fallon shot out of her chair and ran from the kitchen, Charlie close after, his heart thudding against his ribs. What now?
When he got there, he found Michael and the other Roes surrounding an exhausted-looking Ari. He was gently pushed aside as Jai strode into the room, followed by Trey. Jai immediately went to Ari, pulling her into his arms, his words to her too quiet for Charlie to hear.
He watched them together, saw their closeness, and felt a small spark of envy. Jai didn’t say a lot and was a pretty intimidating guy. He gave the impression that he could take care of absolutely anything, so Charlie could understand why Ari was attracted to him.
And okay, he wasn’t a woman, but even he could see the Ginnaye was pretty easy on the eyes. Still, he felt this odd discomfort at the seeing the two of them together. Charlie could only put it down to his attraction to Ari. The girl was out-of-this-world gorgeous. Not to mention kind, obviously loyal, and pretty tough. Jai was a lucky guy.
When her eyes lifted from Jai’s face to Charlie, he froze at the desperate expression within.
“What’s going on?” he asked uneasily.
Ari’s expression turned apologetic.
“I’m sorry, Charlie … but I need to ask your permission for something.”
Uh oh. Charlie did not like the sound of that. “Permission for … please say anything but shark chum.”
Her face fell. “Sorry.”
He wasn’t going to lie. The idea of being used as bait for this Lilif woman, who, by description, sounded like the apocalypse personified, didn’t fill him with confidence or courage. He fought his inner wuss and groaned, “Fine. Bait me up and show me the hook.”
18
Black Dust on an Indigo Sky
It was fair to say that Lilif was sulking. Sulking in that throwing furniture that didn’t belong to her around and singeing the eyebrows of anyone who got in her path kind of sulking.
They were in White’s mortal home in Saint Lucia since it was clear his palace was a no-go area at the moment. He gazed at the beautiful Caribbean waters as he waited for quiet to fall over the home.