“Carnage. I like it,” Zephyr says from behind us, making me jump. I hadn’t heard the stealthy way my Power angel mentor had approached us. “When will you get here? I grow tired of waiting.” Zephyr asks as the light-brown feathers of his angel wings ruffle in the ocean breeze.
“Soon,” Brennus replies coolly to Zephyr, not taking his light green eyes from mine.
“Don’t do this. Please,” I whisper to Brennus.
Brennus’ image nears me and it feels just like he’s here. “Ye’re such pretty pain, Genevieve. Beautiful poison.” he says as his eyes fill with the bitterest regret.
“Then let me go,” I beg him as a pain in my chest begins to ache.
“Why would I do dat when I enjoy pain…all types of pain?” he asks as his eyebrow rises in question. “Ye’ll be my lover and ye’ll learn all about pain, I promise ye.”
Russell growls. “Look at the dead guy trippin’, Zee,” Russell says with an undercurrent of menace in his tone “He must not know that we have more game than Mattel.”
“I was going to crash your party as soon as I found you, Brennus. Consider yourself invited to ours, if it’s more convenient,” Reed says lightly. “Just make it soon.”
“I will, aingeal,” Brennus replies to Reed, trying to keep his cool.
Gazing at me, the light from the moon causes Brennus’ black hair to shine with a silvery glow. “Ye were right…ye did end up doing me wrong. I gave ye everyting. Ye’ll spend eternity making dis up ta me,” Brennus whispers in my ear with the harshness of betrayal.
Turning, Brennus’ image begins walking away, back over the sea and into the frightening, black-cloud horizon. As he retreats across the frozen waves, one thing is clear to me: I believe him. Touching the onyx locket hanging from my neck with trembling fingers, I whisper, “He’s coming. We have to leave.”
Reed’s gentle voice interrupts my panicked thoughts as he says softly, “I will never let him have you again.”
The murky clouds roil back, receding and uncovering the night sky speckled with pinpoints of fire. Russell and Zephyr come nearer to us, lending me their support with their presence. Shivering in Reed’s arms, I drop Russell’s hand and huddle nearer to Reed, while the moon casts its light upon us.
“Still…we should go,” I reply with my hands shaking.
“We expected him to find us,” Reed remarks softly, stroking my wings. “You have his knife—”
“You knew he’d find me!” I frown, pulling back from him so that I can see his eyes.
“Yes,” Reed answers honestly. “The only thing I regret is that he didn’t really come here tonight. I would’ve felt him if he had, but since I’m not affected by his magic, I did not sense his shadowy presence. We put Russell on point to detect Brennus’ magic.”
“I felt that cold freak all the way over on the other side of the island,” Russell says grimly.
“Why didn’t you tell me that his knife would lead him to me?” I ask Reed, feeling like I have just attended my own funeral.
Reed’s eyebrows draw together over his lovely green eyes. “I didn’t want to worry you, Evie,” Reed says with concern in his tone. “You have been through so much—”
“Yeah,” Russell chimes in. “We’ll take it from here.” He points his chin toward Reed and Zephyr.
“You don’t know Brennus, Russell,” I warn. “He’ll destroy himself to get me back.”
“Good!” Russell shoots back. “It’ll be his funeral—we’re ready for him and his army to come. I like the way you stood up to him, though, tellin’ him you weren’t goin’ with him. I thought maybe he still had you wrapped ‘round his finger—”
“I’m not his slave,” I interject defensively.
“The last few weeks you were with him, you acted like one of them,” Russell counters quietly. “I was afraid they might own you now.”
“I had to act like one of them,” I reply, truly beginning to shake now. The breeze is becoming gentle with only the scent of salt and tropical flowers woven within the balmy heat. “But I always wanted to come home.”
“Shh,” Reed hushes me in a soothing tone. “Of course you did,” he agrees as he shoots Russell a look full of censure.
“You have a plan and you haven’t told me about it?” I ask, before piercing each one of them with my narrowing eyes.
Zephyr’s light-brown wings twitch as he replies, “We were waiting until you fully recovered from your captivity.”
“When did you think that was going to happen?” I counter, annoyed that they’re keeping things from me again.
Zephyr’s eyebrow arches over his ice blue eye as he smiles, “I believe that you just proved that you are ready,” he replies.
“Okay,” I breathe, trying hard to slow the pounding of my heart. “So, what’s the plan?” I ask, needing something to concentrate on other than Brennus’ inevitable arrival here.
Reed’s shoulders cave in around me protectively. “Zephyr, would you please go and wake Buns and Brownie? We will meet at the big house to discuss the plan with Evie.” I look toward the huge, plantation-style house on the ridge above the beach. Zephyr and my Reaper angel friends, Buns and Brownie, have been staying in that house on and off for the past few months while they were trying to figure out where I was, and then how to free me from the Gancanagh.
Zephyr nods to Reed before he steps forward, placing a gentle kiss on the top of my head. “I am glad you are back,” he says, treating me like a little sister.
“Me, too,” I reply. Zephyr nods toward Russell before he leaves in the direction of the big house. Russell looks reluctant to leave me, knowing that I’m still scared. “I’m fine, Russell,” I assure him.
“Naw, you’re not,” he replies in a discerning way, “but you will be after we kill Brennus.” Russell can always read me like a book. He’s my soul mate and the sum of all our lifetimes together stretches back thousands of years. He remembers them all, but I can’t remember any of my past lifetimes as a human.
“Brennus is already dead, Russell,” I frown, thinking of Brennus’ beautiful, cold skin against mine. I shiver.
“Semantics, Red. He’s not dead if he’s walkin’ ‘round,” he replies.
“No, he’s undead with magical powers that can crush you and me,” I counter hollowly.
Reed smiles reassuringly. “His magic can’t hurt me, therefore, I’ll take down Brennus and his fake empire,” Reed says quietly. Gancanagh magic has no effect on angels, like Reed and Zephyr, but since Russell and I are human-angel hybrids, faerie magic can bury us. However, the toxic skin of the Gancanagh can enthrall angels like junkies to a powerful drug, whereas Russell and I are immune to the Gancanagh touch.
My heart beats harder in my chest at Reed’s words. My need to be with Reed is what gave me the strength to survive my captivity with the Gancanagh. Without that, I would have succumbed to the gnawing need to feed on Brennus’ blood after he had bitten me. I can’t lose him now, when I only just got him back.