Touch of the Angel (Demons of Infernum, #3) (14 page)

Chapter Twelve

Belpheg exited his ritual chamber, where he’d spent the past hour meditating. He emerged far less centered than he would’ve liked. His hands trembled when a stray current of energy zapped his system. The thought that his body wouldn’t be able to withstand the depth of his power would have been laughable a decade ago. Thankfully, he’d read the scrolls penned by his ancestors, the ones he’d managed to steal when the Council had decimated his entire clan. They warned of the instability that increased with age.

He’d painstakingly set his plan into motion, and he was so close to achieving victory, but Asmodeus was starting to trouble him. The incubus’s mental scars inhibited him. He was a potential liability.

If only Belpheg could rely on one of his other pawns to track down the brothers and absorb their energy. But he couldn’t. Asmodeus was the only one left who hadn’t obtained full power.

One way or another, the incubus had to take Mammon’s sons down. They were his surest bet to completing the circle. His well-being depended on it.

Belpheg did an about-face and reentered his ritual chamber. He would have to pay Asmodeus yet another astral visit, to impress upon him the importance of completing his task.

§

After a long night of blissful, dreamless sleep, Amara stretched and searched the room for Ronin. He was nowhere to be found, of course. He’d probably retreated to the living room sometime during the night. The memory of her time with him last night made her smile, but her joy was tinged with sadness.

She couldn’t stay here.

It had been nice to pretend for a short time that she had a different sort of life, but she couldn’t continue to do so any longer. Not when her happiness came at her mother’s expense. Hiding out here and praying that Ronin and his brothers would find a way to save Solara was no longer an option. Not when she could do something to resolve the situation.

And hadn’t she learned long ago not to rely on salvation that never came?

Last night, Maya and Brynn had helped her hang up the things they’d brought her in Ronin’s large closet. Part of her had found it secretly thrilling to have her clothing hanging right next to his. There was something so very domestic about it. For a short while, it had been easy to pretend this was another situation entirely. Like two lovers moving in together.

Such a dreamer, Amara.
She always had been.

Shaking off that bit of fantasy, Amara entered the walk-in closet and chose a pair of black wool leggings, an oversized cashmere sweater in a dusky pink that highlighted the natural burgundy highlights in her hair, and soft boots that zipped up to her calves. Tonight, she’d likely be forced back into her perpetual state of undress, but for now she would enjoy the freedom of getting to wear actual clothes. She had to admit, it was wonderful.

But like everything else that had been good in her life, it wouldn’t last.

After throwing the outfit on and running Ronin’s brush through her hair, she took a deep breath and headed out to the living room. Dagan sat on the couch, wearing boxers and a T-shirt that showed a hand with the middle three fingers up. Below the image were the words:
Read between the lines…

How charming.

Ronin wasn’t there. Amara ignored the pang of disappointment deep in her belly. How quickly she’d come to rely on his presence. She’d have to get over that. Besides, this would be easier without him around. “Keegan is your leader, correct?”

Dagan threw her a curious glance, picked up the remote to click the television off, and slid his feet off the coffee table. “He’s the oldest, so...yeah, I guess so. Why?”

“Take me to see him. Please.”

She expected him to barrage her with questions, but in the end he shrugged and rose. After throwing on a pair of jeans and his shoes, he escorted her to the elevator. To her surprise, rather than pressing the button for the lobby, he hit the one for the top floor.

“Keegan lives here, too?”

Dagan grinned without meeting her eyes. “We’re taking over this building.”

When Dagan led her into Keegan’s apartment, her jaw practically hit the floor. She’d thought Ronin’s place was impressive. This one was unbelievable. A spacious foyer led them to a living room which, like Ronin’s, had a wall of windows. But the view from this room soared above all the neighboring buildings, dwarfing them in comparison. A glass door led out to a huge terrace.

“Whoa,” she breathed.

“I know. The apartment used to be owned by the Council. Keegan’s wife Brynn negotiated for them to sign the deed over to her and Keegan.”

“She negotiated with the
Council
?” Amara had never heard of anyone doing that before, much less a human. Even obtaining a meeting with the mighty organization was said to be next to impossible.

Dagan arched his back into a stretch. “Long story.”

The soft padding of footsteps sounded behind them. She turned as Brynn appeared from the hallway.

“Amara.” Brynn’s face brightened and she approached, snatching her into a hug that momentarily paralyzed her with uncertainty. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been hugged by a woman, not even her own mother. Was she supposed to hug her back?

Brynn pulled away before she could figure it out and grabbed her hand. “I was about to have breakfast. Well, I guess it would be more like brunch, really. There’s more than enough for all of us.”

Amara didn’t bother to point out that, while she
could
eat, it was a waste of time since it provided her with no sustenance. “I actually wanted to speak with Keegan.”

“He’s already in the dining room. Come on.”

She didn’t have time to protest further before Brynn headed out of the room, dragging her behind her. When she cast a helpless glance back at Dagan, all he did was shrug and follow them. The aroma of fried bacon grew stronger as Brynn led her along. It smelled good, but that wasn’t what she was hungry for.

Brynn stopped at the entrance to a small dining room. A rectangular, wooden table that seated eight occupied most of the space. To Amara’s dismay, Keegan wasn’t alone. He sat on one side of the long table, Ronin next to him. Taeg and Maya were also there, sitting with their backs to the entranceway. The four of them discussed something in heated tones, though they spoke so low she could barely hear them. Keegan and Ronin saw her and fell silent.

“Good morning.” Ronin cleared his throat. “I thought you’d be sleeping for another few hours.”

She didn’t meet his gaze. Couldn’t. Not when she knew how much he would disapprove of what she was going to suggest to Keegan.

“Can I speak with you privately?” she asked Keegan.

Ronin uttered a clipped, “Why?”

Amara ignored him, keeping her eyes on Keegan. He regarded her for a long moment before saying, “We don’t keep any secrets in this family. What do you want to discuss?”

She thought he’d say that, and it wasn’t what she wanted to hear. She took a fortifying breath, tugged the overlong sleeves of her sweater into her clenched fists to stop them from shaking, and sat in the empty chair at the head of the table. “I can’t stay here. Not while Asmodeus has Solara under his control.”

“We’ve already discussed this,” Ronin said.

“And since we’ve established that I’m useless to you as is,” she continued, “I have a proposition to make.”

“Amara.” Ronin’s voice contained a note of warning. “There’s no way—”

Keegan held up a hand and Ronin silenced, though intense waves of unease poured off him.

“What do you propose?” Keegan asked.

“If I can convince him that I simply ran away and decided to come back, you can use me as a spy.”

“No,” Ronin shouted, rising to his feet.

Taeg set his fork down. “Why don’t you hear her out, bro?”

“Fuck you.”

Keegan half-rose from his spot. “Ronin!”

Her heart gave a pang when Ronin growled and marched off, pacing the few feet of available space in the room. The last thing she wanted was to cause him pain. But she couldn’t worry about him right now. She’d already made her decision. Her path had been set well before she’d met him, and she couldn’t stray from it now.

“Asmodeus will take me back. I’m useful to him. If we can find a way to communicate, I can try to gather more information on what he’s doing and get it to you.”

Ronin came to a stop at the other end of the table and leaned over it. “This is ridiculous.”

“I agree.” Brynn sat and glared at Keegan. “You don’t know what sorts of things he’s done to her.”

“Brynn!” Amara’s face grew hot with humiliation.

“Sorry, but I watch out for my friends, and I do
not
want you going back to that lunatic.”

A selfish rush of pleasure flowed through Amara at hearing Brynn call her a friend. As nice as that was, she couldn’t focus on it.

Keegan toyed with his fork. “Do you think you’d be able to get away long enough to pass us information?”

“He’s never kept tabs on me before. As long as I came back at the end of the night with my assignment complete, he was happy. I don’t see why that would have to change. Once I go back, I imagine he’ll assume that I’m done trying to escape.”

Especially once he’s done punishing me.
She couldn’t think about what that punishment would entail right now.

Keegan regarded her with speculation. “You’d agree to pass us information, knowing it would place you in danger?”

“I hate him,” she said simply. “I’d like nothing more than to see him rot in a Council prison. If I can help bring him down, all the better.”

Before she could even process it, Ronin’s fist slammed on the wooden table. A long crack snaked down the center. “I said no
fucking
way.”

Amara flinched. She glanced at Ronin for the first time since entering the room. The fury on his face was overwhelmingly intense, freezing her in place. Her throat constricted.

Brynn let out a little growl. “Damn it, Ronin. This is the third broken table in one year.”

Nobody else responded. It seemed like all eyes were on Amara and Ronin, as if everyone waited with bated breath to see how this would play out. She couldn’t blame them, since she wondered herself.

Now she didn’t dare point out the obvious—that going back to Asmodeus would solve another big problem. Her need to feed. Five days. That was all she had. She’d done a halfway-decent job of resisting the constant pull of her hunger, but she would continue to get more desperate. In her body’s mindless quest for sustenance, she might accidentally hurt Ronin. Might attack him or his brothers. Might kill one of them.

That was unacceptable.

Keegan broke the long silence. “We’re not going to do that.”

Amara blinked. “What?”

“Too dangerous, and the potential for success is too slim. If you haven’t learned anything about Asmodeus’s plan the whole time you’ve worked for him, why would that change now?”

“But...” The air escaped her lungs, leaving her slouched in her chair. She hadn’t expected Keegan to say no. She thought he’d jump at the chance.

“Besides, Ronin would never allow it, and with good reason,” Keegan continued gently.

When sudden, unexpected moisture stung her eyelids, she blinked it back. “What about Solara?”

With a muttered oath, Ronin maneuvered around the table. He stopped next to her and bent to press a kiss to her forehead, whispering, “We’ll get her out of there. I promise.”

Keegan cleared his throat. “We’ll try another stakeout tonight. And we’re still waiting to hear back from a lot of sources. If we can figure out Asmodeus’s game plan, then all we’ll need to do is a find a way around the shield surrounding his residence.”

“Piece of cake,” Dagan mumbled.

“We’ll find a way.” Ronin said the words with such certainty that, for a second, Amara almost believed him.

§

A few hours later, after everyone had eaten and they’d discussed the plan for tonight’s stakeout, Keegan stepped outside for a taste of brisk air while Brynn walked Amara and Ronin to the door. It appeared he, Taeg, and Dagan had come to an implicit agreement that they’d stay off Ronin’s ass from this point forward. Yes, Ronin clearly lost his ability to think straight around Amara, but he wasn’t dumb enough to get himself killed now that he knew what she was.

A succubus with a muted demon aura. What a perfect weapon.

The door to the terrace opened and Keegan turned to see Brynn stepping outside. Even after all these months, his heart still flopped in his chest every time he saw her. Now more than ever. She’d never been more beautiful than with her belly distended with child.
His
child. Their miracle.

He smiled and held his arms out, and she went to him with no hesitation. Hugging her close, he said, “It’s cold out here. You should put on a jacket.”

“We’ve had this discussion before.” Her voice was muffled against his chest. “I’m carrying a demon-dragon hybrid. There’s no way I’m freezing to death. So...what do you think?”

Keegan didn’t pretend not to know what she meant. “I think Ronin is falling in love.”

“How do you feel about that?”

How did he feel? A bittersweet cacophony of emotions hammered inside him. “I always feared some part of him was broken after Mammon took him. He was fine with me, Taeg, and Dagan, but with women, it was like he never let himself feel anything beyond the physical.”

“But with Amara?”

He sighed into her hair. “I don’t want him to get his heart broken again. What they feel for each other is impossible.”

“Why?” Brynn pulled back to meet his eyes. “If their feelings are so strong, why is it impossible?”

“Brynn...” Did he really have to point out the obvious?

She sliced a hand through the air. “Oh, I know. They can’t have sex. At least not for now. Cresso’s a smart guy, I imagine he’ll find a cure for that
someday.
But in the meantime, they can still make a go at it.”

His brows furrowed in disbelief. “You think he’ll be able to deal with knowing what she needs to do to survive? That she’ll have to get her sustenance from other men?”

“Oh, I’m not saying it’s all hunky-dory, but let me ask you something,” she said softly. “If you were him and I was Amara, would that alone be enough to make you walk away?”