sometimes being forced tighter.
“Arik’s soul,” Reseph bit out. “Release Arik’s soul and I’ll ditch the dagger.”
Pestilence must have refused. The dagger in her hand sliced forward, plunging deep into Reseph’s flesh.
“No!” She tried to pull Wormwood free, but Reseph was holding it steady. Sweat dampened his pale skin, and his teeth were clenched hard.
“Fuck you, Pestilence.” Reseph smiled down at Jillian, although it was really more of a grimace. “Another centimeter in and we’re both done. You know I’ll do it. Release Arik’s soul
Reseph’s body went slack, but only for a heartbeat. In another heartbeat, she was thrown clear of the vortex, landing hard on the sheet of ice that had formed in a thirty-yard circle around them. The demon army had long since disappeared, sucked away when the freaky tornado had taken form. Instead, Thanatos, Limos, Ares, Arik, Kynan, Tracker, and the two Watchers were standing nearby.
They ran toward her, but her focus was on Reseph, who was still inside the cyclone. Something seemed to be wrong, though… or maybe right?
He was twisting in what looked like agony, grabbing his head and tearing at his hair. He yanked Wormwood out of his chest with a bellow of victory, and then the dagger was spinning up into the sky. Shrill screeches, like a million crows cawing, erupted from deep below the ground.
Revenant laughed. “Satan’s forces are coming. The gate is open!”
“Reseph!” she screamed.
Reseph threw himself against the wall of the tornado, over and over, clutching his head as the noises grew louder.
“Please! You can do this.” Jillian’s voice was a sob now as despair squeezed her in its grip.
Throwing back his head, Reseph roared. The vortex wobbled, just a little. Another roar, and the wobble moved the entire thing several feet. Sections of it began to disintegrate, and the wobbling grew more violent.
Jillian shoved to her feet. “Reseph?”
He hurled himself out, landing in front of her, his body bruised and bloody. Groaning, he twisted around to look at her.
With Pestilence’s eyes.
Swallowing her fear, Jillian framed his face in her hands. “I love you. Come back to me.” Without thinking, she kissed him.
Startled, he pulled back, but she didn’t let him go. She kept her mouth on his, kissing him hard, kissing him in a frenzied, last-ditch effort to bring back the Horseman she loved.
For a beautiful moment, he kissed her back, his lips tender, his tongue a fleeting brush against hers. Elation warmed her, fed into her hope that this was it. This was Reseph winning—
Stinging pain seared her mouth. He’d bitten her lip. She tasted blood, felt her world crash down around her.
“
Reaching up, he gripped the two chains around his neck and yanked them hard enough to snap the links.
As if the air had been let out of a giant balloon, everything went still and eerily quiet. The tornado disappeared as if it had never been, the gate closed, and Reseph collapsed onto the ice.
“Reseph?” She brushed his hair away from his face, willing him to open his eyes. “Are you okay? Talk to me.”
When he didn’t move, she put her ear to his chest. What if Wormwood
He had a heartbeat. Thank God, he was alive, but why wasn’t he moving? “Reseph!” She shook his shoulders, and his eyes popped open.
An exhausted smile curved his lips. “Hey, babe.”
She threw herself at him. Covered his body with hers and just held on. “Please tell me it’s over. Please.”
His arms came around her. “It’s over,” he rasped. “I beat the bastard. It was like mental arm wrestling, but I did it.”
“Are you sure?” Thanatos crouched a few feet away, the broken chain belonging to the evil stone dangling from his hand. “Pestilence is contained?”
“Yeah. I repaired the vessel.”
Jillian’s breath trembled out of her. “Vessel?”
“Long story.” Reseph looked up at Jillian, his gaze so tender it brought tears to her eyes. “It was you, Jillian. I honestly don’t know if I’d have had the strength to overcome him, but I couldn’t let him hurt you. And I couldn’t let what he’d done keep haunting me and cracking the container.”
She buried her face in his neck, not caring about any strange container. What mattered was that he’d won. “I knew you could do it. I never doubted you.”
“Arik, you got your soul back.” Reseph smoothed his palm up and down her back. “I know it doesn’t make up for everything—”
“Hey.” Arik cut off Reseph. “I think it’s time we all start over.”
“I agree,” Jillian murmured. “I’m ready for a fresh start.” She pushed up and looked down at her blood- streaked skin and torn shirt. “And a shower.”
Reseph grinned. “I’m in.”
“Jesus,” Ares muttered. “A whopping two minutes have passed since you nearly started a war between Heaven and Sheoul and you’re already getting frisky?”
“It wasn’t me who nearly started the war,” Reseph said. “It was Pestilence.”
Jillian tightened her arms around him, relief settling over her in the first pure, warm peace she’d felt in a long time. This was truly the first time he’d acknowledged that Pestilence had been the source of evil in every event. Yes, she knew he’d always harbor guilt for everything that had happened, but the victory today had gone a long way toward healing a devastating wound.
“And,” Reseph continued, “Do you even know me? Hellooo… I’m naked, with a drop-dead gorgeous female lying on top of me. I’m not made of stone, you know.”
Jillian’s cheeks heated as a chorus of groans came from all sides.
“Yeah… that’s our cue to leave,” Limos said. She smiled down at Jillian and Reseph. “Thanks, Jillian. We all owe you. And Reseph? Good to have you back.”
They all offered some sort of thanks and acknowledgment that Reseph was back… except Revenant. He looked like he’d swallowed a rotten egg as he flashed away with a snarl.
Reaver went down on his heels, taking the
And then he was gone, flashing away in a burst of golden light.
“I hate it when he takes off like that,” Kynan muttered. He gestured toward Jillian’s house. “I’ll handle the Aegis situation and arrange for repairs to your house. You two… get a room for the night somewhere. You deserve it.”
He tucked Heofon in his coat pocket and strode away. Tracker inched closer, but kept his gaze averted. “Mistress, I can take care of the animals and bed down in the barn.”
“That’s not necessary—”
“Please.”
Reseph tapped on Jillian’s shoulder, and when she caught his eye, he nodded. She sighed. “Okay, Tracker. For tonight. Tomorrow we’ll work something else out.” Looking like she’d given him a reprieve from death, he took off at a run. “What was that about?”
“He doesn’t know anything else,” Reseph explained. “Slaves in Sheoul don’t know kindness. When they get it, it’s always followed by pain. He’s not used to being treated well, and it’s making him uncomfortable.”
“That’s horrible.” And familiar. She stared after the werewolf, thinking about how she’d been wary when men were charming and nice, because inevitably, she’d get hurt. It had taken Reseph to change that, and somehow, she’d show Tracker that kindness didn’t have to hurt.
