“In other words, he tells people what they want to hear to manipulate them into doing his bidding.”
“Yes. How did he crop up in your conversation with the halo-bearer who tried to kill you? On a side note, I’m surprised only one came for you.”
“He had some friends with him. Several went after my anchor.”
There was a stunned pause. “They what?”
“Yes, it confused me as well. Heaven’s higher-ups surely wouldn’t sanction dragging non-descendant lairs into this situation.”
“No, they wouldn’t. Not when it would risk starting a war.”
“Which made me wonder if someone was acting alone. Someone who wanted to fill the position that the seventh archangel left open when he fell.”
“One of the Seven fell? Interesting.”
Ignoring Viper’s attempt to play dumb, Maddox went on, “I wondered if said ‘someone’ sought to ensure he stood out from the rest by coming after my kind. So I had a chat with one of the halo-bearers sent to decimate my lair, and he admitted as much.”
Viper hummed. “It’s no secret that Castiel wants to be one of the Seven—many do. He’ll never get the position. He’s high up in the heavenly host, but he doesn’t have enough experience to be even considered a potential candidate.”
“So he cooked up a plan that would make him be considered.”
“It might have worked. No one upstairs would have shed a tear over the extinction of your kind. But they won’t be happy if they find out he stepped on the toes of other breeds.”
“How do I get to him?”
“You don’t. He’s an archangel, completely out of your reach. You need him to come to you.”
Maddox figured he’d say that. “Is there a way to get a message to him?”
“Are any of the halo-bearers he sent after you still alive?”
“No.”
“Then no.”
Maddox couldn’t say he regretted killing Castiel’s devout follower, but maybe he’d been a little hasty. Still, it wasn’t a lost cause, because … “Castiel will send more. He’s killed enough descendants via his minions to feel that his plan does have the potential to be a success.”
“Castiel isn’t an archangel who would call it quits easily—it’s an ego thing,” said Viper. “Is your anchor all right?”
“She’s fine. But Castiel will still pay. It was allegedly his idea to use her as bait. He gave the order to lure me into a trap and then kill her before her lair could realize that angels were behind her death.” Which was why Maddox’s demon had spent the past ten minutes dreaming up ways to make the archangel suffer.
“I’ll bet her Prime wants blood. Jolene Wallis’s lair might not be high in number, but I wouldn’t want it chasing my ass. Castiel seriously fucked up. If he’d just stuck to picking off your kind, it’s doubtful that anyone would have questioned who was actually giving the orders.” Viper paused. “I remember overhearing something he once did.”
“What?”
“His father planned to fall once upon a time. He’d lost his woman and couldn’t bear the pain anymore, so he confided in his sons that he would fall after he’d put his affairs in order. Castiel went to the higher-ups and told them. His father was taken and punished horrifically before being killed. Castiel was rewarded with a promotion. That’s the kind of person you’re dealing with, Maddox. He’ll do anything to get ahead. Anything. And he won’t care who gets hurt in the process. So don’t underestimate him. People like Castiel? There are no limits as to what shit they’ll do to get what they want.”
Then it seemed that he and Maddox had something in common.
The next morning, Raini stood in front of the penthouse’s floor-to-ceiling window, taking in the view of the Underground, while drinking coffee. People walked along the sidewalks of the busy strip. Cart vendors set up their mobile stalls. Street sweepers cleaned up the empty bottles, cigarette butts, and other litter. A busker was singing his heart out and, if the reactions of the passers-by were any indication, he wasn’t all that good at it.
Open 24/7, the Underground was always a hub of activity, no matter the hour. So it was no surprise that a number of the pedestrians were staggering, swaying, and heckling people, clearly plastered. Some also began a singalong with the busker, who appeared to be thoroughly enjoying it.
Maddox’s mind brushed against hers. How did you sleep? he asked, and damn if that quintessentially male voice didn’t get her hormones all wound up.
I wasn’t tired, so I just lay in bed and binge-watched a TV series, she replied, sipping her coffee. What about you?
I didn’t sleep either.
Demons didn’t need to sleep as often as humans. They could go days without doing so. Although Raini had been psychically tired after the scuffle with the halo-bearers, she’d been too wired to settle. Maddox’s kind had pretty much been marked for extermination. He and Raini might not be as close as most psi-mates were, but he was still her anchor, and she still worried about him. How did your talk with the angel go? Did you learn anything new?