"No!" Stephanie sobbed. "You said we could never be together… immortals do not mate. I simply—"
Cassius held up his hand. It shook in the air, and pieces of frost fell from his fingertips. "You would betray a defenseless human — one for whom we have been waiting for over a hundred years — because you think yourself in love with me?"
The room began to freeze; pieces of ice formed along Cassius's face, shattering into the air the minute he opened his mouth to speak. "Dark Ones do not love."
A tear slid down Stephanie's cheek, freezing against her porcelain skin. "But we've spent nearly every night together."
"And every morning I spend with someone else," Cassius said in a flat voice. "I didn't think you were becoming so attached as to sell your soul to an archangel in order to align your destiny with mine."
"But—"
"Enough," Alex barked. "Stephanie, stop… you're making it worse."
Cassius hung his head. "You can track her blood?"
"Yes," I hissed. "But going up against Sariel…"
"He's old," Cassius stated in a bland voice. "Older than me."
"Not hard," Mason grumbled.
Cassius snapped his teeth together. "The only way to rescue her, to pull her away from the archangel's scent, would be…" He looked up, his eyes flashing once again. "…to mix the blood."
"Yes." My voice shook. "She needs angel blood."
"She won't take it." Cassius shook his head. "Believe me."
"She has no choice!" I yelled, pain searing my limbs, making them feel heavy. "She either drinks from you and makes the choice to leave, or he'll keep her forever. You know he will."
"He does like his toys." Cassius swore. "Unless he truly believes she's the human we've been waiting for, and then things are about to get a lot worse."
Alex pushed Stephanie into a chair and crossed his arms. "How can it get worse?"
"Death," I whispered. "We can distract him long enough to grab her, shield her from his scent. But if he truly believes what we do — then blood will be spilled."
"For balance to be restored." Cassius sighed. "Blood always needs to be spilled."
"Does it matter who?" Alex asked. "Because I vote Stephanie."
Her soft sobs were grating on my nerves. I should have watched her closer — should have seen the signs of her infatuation. Dark Ones did not mate for a reason. They were too addicted to those who fell for them, destroying the other half that should help make a whole.
"Track her," Cassius finally said. "We'll go when he's at his weakest."
Night.
Sariel taught the stars how to shine. At night his resources were depleted on account that his power was shared with the sky.
"Alex…" I nodded toward the siren. "Keep her locked up until we return. And Mason?"
He stood. "Let me go with you."
"You're not strong enough." I hated saying it, almost as much as I hated that I was right.
Mason let out a growl.
"Wolf…" Cassius put his hand on Mason's shoulder. "Your diet makes you weak. Therefore, it makes us vulnerable. You stay."
I knew it hurt Mason's pride.
His eyes went completely black as he slowly sank into the chair, his face completely tight with outrage. Berries and cones didn't make a werewolf strong — he knew that as much as we did.
"Ten miles away." I sniffed the air for traces of the woman I loved — the woman who was taken from me. Anger overtook all good reason as I started moving toward the door.
"Level head, Ethan." Cassius's cold grip stopped my blood from boiling over. "She'll need you at your strongest."
"I know."
"Drink."
I had to have heard him wrong.
"Drink." His teeth snapped. "Before I change my mind." He lifted his hand to my lips.
With a sneer, I pushed him away.
He slammed me against the wall. "You want to save your love? Stop being so damn prideful and drink."
With a hiss, I bit into his arm and sucked deep. His blood was like ice, cooling my veins, making my body so calm I was finally able to think clearly. I took a step back, the blue tint of his blood dripping from my fangs. "I won't thank you."
"And I won't expect it." He moved his fingers along the small indents. The skin slowly closed back together.
"If she touches you—" I whispered.
"When she touches me," he clarified, "you will finally see it."
"That you were right all along?" I growled.
"That you should have trusted her to begin with."
Genesis
Aziel sat with me for what felt like hours. Sometimes he spoke, but mostly he rocked back and forth. It didn't make me feel better.
When I tried to get up and grab something to eat, he told me that the food was poisoned.
I didn't know if I should believe him or not.
I got up anyway because I couldn't handle just sitting and staring out the window, even though that seemed to be his own specialty.