Azrael's Light [Demon Runners of Unearth] (Siren Publishing Classic) (6 page)

Something big was in the works, and he suspected the brunette just discovered that as well.

And from watching her, it became clear to him she cared for Luc’s runaway. She hadn’t been just a bitchy bar owner defending her turf. She had been protecting someone that she cared deeply about. He didn’t think she was wholly human, but without a Light signature marking her as an immortal, she couldn’t have any measurable power. And she was standing tall against one of the fiercest breeds of demon. She loved Alia.

The demon should have been following Luc’s command, but he didn’t think for one moment the beast wanted to take the girl to her father for safe keeping. Had there been an attempted kidnapping? Was there an uprising in the works?

What a complete fucking mess.

The Rimmon snarled and puffed up like an enraged blowfish. He stepped forward and then stopped, sniffing the air. He’d wondered how long it would take the idiots to realize he watched them.

He finished emerging into the room, stepping between the demons and the brunette. The Rimmon paused, gave a weak snarl, and then faded away to nothing. The two Lilitu shuddered and followed. Their forms wavered, turned to shadow, and vanished, leaving him alone with the barmaid.

He turned to face her and wasn’t surprised to see her steady, stubborn expression firmly in place. Did anything shake her? Who was she?

* * * *

What the hell was Azrael doing here? Silly question. He was here for the same thing the demons were. Had someone put a price on her niece’s head? She’d obviously become a very hot commodity. But why?

“You. I already told you. I don’t know where your runaway is. So, you can just go on about your merry way. Now.” She was torn between anger that another uninvited immortal had appeared on her turf and relief that Azrael had frightened the demons away.

How screwed up had things become if finding a Soul Runner in her living room made her sigh in relief? If forced to defend herself against the Rimmon, she would have done so without hesitation. Though she wouldn’t have gone down without a fight, she wasn’t stupid. Without her powers, she wouldn’t stand a chance.

Intentional or more than likely not, Azrael had saved her ass. She owed him.

“Put your claws away, kitten. I know I’ve been left in the dark and I’m betting you have, too. Why don’t you tell me who this runaway is to you?”

What did it matter if he knew what Alia’s relationship to her was? He was already hunting her, and there was no stopping a Soul Runner once they were assigned a mission. And she knew in her heart she wouldn’t give Alia up, no matter what hell visited her.

Maybe there was a way she could use it to gain some information of her own from him. “She’s my niece, and if you think there is any chance I’ll help you find her, you’re wasting your time.” The revelation was worth it just to see the shock on his face. She suspected it was one he didn’t wear often.

“She’s your niece? You’re telling me that the devil’s daughter is your niece?”

“Yes. That’s what I said. Alia is my niece. What does it matter to you who she is related to? I didn’t think you had any say in whose soul you harvested and delivered.”

“I don’t, but that’s not why I’m looking for her. I’m off the Fates’ clock for this one. All I want to do is return her to her home realm and her parents before things deteriorate any further. I didn’t think Lucifer had any family other than his wife and daughter?”

“And his wife’s sister.”

A second wave of shock rolled through his features. “You’re Lilith’s sister? Since when does she have a sister?”

“Since the day she was born. We’re twins. She is the dark side of the moon, and I am supposed to be the light half.”

“Supposed to be? Where is your Light? Did you have your powers stripped?”

“No, and aren’t you nosy? I thought we were talking about why you’re looking for Alia. I doubt you have time to draw my family tree.”

“I don’t have many details to work with. I just know that both Lilith and Lucifer are worried about something and want her home yesterday. Who knows what kind of mess Lilith has made?”

“True.” It galled her to admit it to a virtual stranger, and one who might stand on the opposite side of this mess from her, but there was no denying her sister was more than likely at the heart of the matter. She lived in the eye of a chaos storm. “How did you get suckered into this?” Though she couldn’t argue that his story made perfect sense, she wasn’t willing to hold hands with him just yet.

Soul Runners lived and breathed by their code of honor, but with a mark as potentially controversial as the devil’s daughter, all rules might have been thrown out the window. There was too much she didn’t know or understand.

Was there anyone she could trust? She didn’t think so, and for the first time in three hundred years, she wondered if she made the right decision. But even knowing that now, she wouldn’t go back and change things. If she’d stayed in Unearth much longer, she would have gone mad.

He grumbled under his breath and then sighed. “I’m supposed to be on vacation. Before I could put my feet up, your pain-in-the-ass sister showed, dropped her ugly bomb, and begged me for help. I was as shocked over her begging as I was over the news that Lucifer could be on Earth searching for her. I was faced with giving up my vacation or letting the balance between Earth and Unearth crumble, causing who knows what kind of apocalyptic action. Believe me, I’d much rather be back on my boat.” He ran a hand through his waterfall of black hair and looked up at the ceiling. His broad shoulders stretched his leather coat tight as he released a weary-sounding breath. The red-tipped ends of his hair settled, as if waiting for something important.

Legends said that his hair used to be completely red, but as he spent more and more time traveling the dark places of Unearth, it darkened until only the last few inches remained the original color. It was often speculated that Soul Runners didn’t cut their hair because they didn’t want to lose the last part of their former selves.

He took a step towards her and looked her up and down, stopping at her face. At least she hoped he looked at her face and not her cleavage. She figured it was a tossup.

“So, Lilith’s sister, tell me your name.” Dark and heady, his command urged her to obey. His voice lowered a notch in both volume and pitch, sending ripples of hunger through her. How long had it been since she’d felt desire for something more than a piece of chocolate cake?

Should she tell him her name? It probably didn’t matter at this point, but something held her back. His dark, heated stare bore right through her, making her feel as if he could see her every secret and desire. Who knew what kind of dark magic Azrael was capable of? If keeping her name to herself was the only secret she’d been allowed, she would hold it close.

She looked up at him, through his burgundy irises, and into the depths of his pupils. She stayed silent, refusing his demand. Expecting to see frustration or anger over being ignored, she was surprised to see what looked like amusement. The dim light in his eyes brightened, and one corner of his gorgeous mouth quirked up. Was he laughing at her?

He stepped in once more and took a lock of her hair in his hand. Briefly he rubbed it between his fingers as if savoring the texture and then tucked it behind her ear, grazing the outer shell with a lingering sweep as he pulled his hand away.

“You really are a stubborn little thing, aren’t you? Beware, sweetness. That fight only makes you all the more tempting to someone like me. When your resistance finally falls, the victory is so much sweeter.”

His eyes pinning her in place and his voice compelling her to follow his lead became a lethal one-two punch, disarming her. Any intelligence and self-control she had flew right out the window. He was an incubus, luring her in with seductive words and dark promises. Her knees redoubled their efforts to stay upright.

She didn’t have time for this, and no way, no how could she make sexy eyes with a Soul Runner. What was she thinking? Every sane thought she had evaporated, and that was the problem.

She couldn’t let him get under her skin or her clothes.

“Look, Azrael, you can put away the smolder. You’re wasting it on me. While your story makes sense, I can’t accept anything at face value. I have to put Alia’s safety first. I will always put her first. So until I know for certain what’s going on, you won’t get any help from me. Sorry.”

“That’s a shame. I think working together could benefit us both. Maybe in more ways than one.

“Nope. Not happening. So, I’ll see you later, big guy.” He really needed to leave. Now. It was as if he knew her resolve weakened with each word he spoke in that low, sexy timbre of his. She wouldn’t be surprised to find out he used it intentionally.

Using the last of her will, she stomped her bare foot and pointed at the door. If she acted immature, it couldn’t be helped. She would do whatever it took to get him out of her home and on his way.

She needed time alone with her thoughts and needed to contact Alia. She hoped she appeared soon. She needed answers almost as badly as she needed to know her niece was all right.

Azrael tipped his head down as if letting her know she’d won this round, and then he was gone.

When would her mother learn? No matter how many times she’d warned her, she’d refused to listen. Though she was the child, parenting her mother was a task she was forced to take on from time to time. She loved her mother absolutely, but something had to give.

On top of her mother’s stupid stunt, she had other worries and they made her heart ache one hundred times more than the latest family squabble. Fights would come and go like the phases of the moon, but something had to have happened to her love. Something big and terrible. With nothing more than a lover’s trust and gut feelings to go on, she knew it sounded naïve, but in her heart, she knew it to be the truth. If he hadn’t come for her when he’d said, something devastating had happened. Nothing short of an apocalypse would have kept him from her. She knew it deep in her heart.

So where was he? And what had happened?

The boulder she sat on was cold and hard against the bare skin of her thighs. Her skirt offered no protection from the chill, but in truth, she enjoyed the bite of cold. Her boots sat empty on the gravel beside the boulder, and the icy chill of the lake’s waters numbed her feet, reminding her of home. The sickle moon hung low and bright over the lake, and the night’s silence calmed her, allowing her the peace she needed to think.

She missed the days when her father took her on his treks through his kingdom, showing her nearly every nook and cranny that comprised the circles of Hell.
Thanks for dreaming those horrors to life and sharing them with the world, Dante.
Her father forbid her from traveling one particular path and refused to tell her what waited at its end.

Overprotective much, Dad?

She didn’t understand why he wouldn’t show her this one last little circle when everyone knew her by sight and Light signature. They all feared her father. No one would dare sneeze in her direction, let alone take one step toward harming her. Even disguised, there was nowhere she could travel unrecognized and simply wait things out.

She didn’t have anywhere to go on Earth either. While she trusted most humans just fine and she knew her aunt would welcome her no matter what ugly baggage she brought with her, there were just too many unknowns. And one of those variables in particular didn’t care who or what got in his way. She had enough weight on her shoulders. Guilt over human casualties wasn’t something she wanted to add to her burden.

But this place? If her parents were upset because they thought she was on Earth alone? They would go right past ballistic and into deadly territory if they knew where she hid now. She would just have to keep her hiding place to herself.

The reason they feared it was what made it so safe for her. Many a foul beast had been banished here eons ago and had only grown in size and ferocity since. For most, there was only one way in and one way out. And very few knew its secrets lay within the freezing lake. In truth, the water was the realm and the surrounding shores were the barriers separating it from the others. The majority of the beasts swam within its depths, but with the right token, one would be left alone. Truly, she was safer here on the shores of Cocytus than she was at her father’s side. But he didn’t need to know that.

A gray shadow manifested to her left and grew into a towering form, hovering over her. She continued to stare at the purple moon’s reflection and ponder the mess her mother had gotten them into. She knowingly ignored one of only a few visitors who could enter the realm without swimming through the icy gate. A Runner.

“Go away, Cyril. If you can’t figure it out on your own, I’m hiding. I’m safe here, safer here than anywhere else.”

“Little Bit, what makes you think that I’m here for you? There are hundreds of monsters on my bounty list. In this place, in one day’s time, I could clear out a tenth of my list. Though, you never know, you might not look like a monster, but it’s possible you’re on the list somewhere. The damn thing’s nearly a hundred pages long now. It wouldn’t surprise me to find out the Fates have added every being that ever curled their lip over the mention of their name. Finding a half-demon, spoiled runaway on the books wouldn’t be a stretch.