Whirling around, Luke’s face was nothing but a mask of rage and accusation. “You! This is your fault! You could have controlled Anna! None of this would have happened if you had done your job!” He tore across the balcony at Nathaniel.
Michael staggered as Luke battled Nathaniel with violent ferocity. Nate could fall to Luke. If so, he would then try to finish what he had started—going after Lily. His eyes fell to Julian. The fallen angel cradled Lily to him, but she was reaching out toward them—toward Luke. Tears were streaming down her battered face. The pain in her eyes was more than just physical. She’d trusted Luke, loved him, and he had done that to her.
Something in Michael came to life. Burning through his veins like white lightning, snapping fire through every vein and cell. A rushing filled his ears. His legs moved without him realizing. A bright white light radiated from within, spreading over his chest and down his limbs. The blade burned in his grasp, felt heavy like a sword.
Luke turned around slowly, his eyes widening as he stared at him. “The Sword of Michael.” He tipped his head, backing up. “It can’t be. Abaddon…”
The light from Michael reached out, surrounding all of them. It was Nathaniel who ordered the blow, but it was Michael’s blade that drove through tissue and muscle, piercing Luke’s heart.
Luke looked down at his chest. Shock, and somewhere in the array of emotions that flickered across his face, there was relief. He seemed to gaze up—searching for something. As the light receded, Michael realized who he was looking for.
Falling to his knees, Luke dropped his blade and reached out, his arm extending toward Lily. The distance was too great, and Luke fell forward, unmoving and silent.
Michael stepped around Luke’s body, his hands trembling as he reached Julian and Lily. His body felt ungodly hot, but the moment he got a close-up view of Lily, he wasn’t thinking about himself anymore.
Nothing could’ve prepared him for how bad she looked. There was almost nowhere on her body that wasn’t damaged. The bones in the left side of her face were shattered, as was her left arm. These things would heal, but it was the gaping wound that stole Michael’s breath.
“Oh God,” Michael whispered. “Can…anyone fix this?”
“I will die trying.” Julian bent his head, brushing his lips over Lily’s forehead. “I’m sorry, Lily. This will hurt, love.” He placed his other hand over the side of Lily’s face. The same light that had radiated from Michael now radiated from Julian’s hands.
The first scream cut through Michael, but the second scream brought a cry of pain to Julian’s lips.
Michael fell to his knees beside Lily, exhausted and dazed. He grasped her outstretched hand, holding it tightly in his. He looked up at the fallen angel. “Will she live?”
Julian winced at the shrill cry that racked her body. Her leg came up, tense and bent at the knee as she writhed. “You need to go. You need to go now. The Fallen are coming for you. I’ll be too weak to defend any of you.”
Nathaniel stood behind Michael while Adrian came over the banister, looking like he wanted to fight some more.
Julian stared down at Lily. “Let go, Lily. Let it go,” he ordered softly. “Let it go. Let me take away the pain.”
Michael watched her eyes drift shut. The tension that coiled her body as tight as a bow snapped. Her hand went limp in his. “What did you do?”
Julian’s cold stare met Michael’s. “You need to leave now, or all of this would have been for naught.”
Nathaniel placed his hand on Michael’s shoulder. “We need to go. There are many coming. He’s right.” He looked at Julian as Adrian joined them. “But you’re not taking Lily.”
Julian gathered her close to him. His eyes turned to ice as he lifted them to meet Nathaniel’s. “I fell from grace because I spared your life, but I will not spare your life for a second time. You try to stop me, and I will kill you as I was ordered to do the day you were born.”
Nathaniel’s eyes narrowed as he pulled himself upright, coming to his full height. “You hurt her, Julian, and I will kill you.” He turned to Adrian. “Get Michael out of here now. I’ll throw off the Fallen.”
Adrian looked like he wanted nothing more than to go after Julian, but he grasped Michael by the shoulders, pulling him away. “Come on, we’ve got to hit the road.”
Michael struggled against him, but before he could do anything, Julian turned with Lily in his arms and disappeared over the banister.
“What the hell was that back there?” Adrian asked as he propelled Michael out the doors. “The Sword of Michael?”
Michael gave a weary shake of his head. “I don’t know.”
Chapter Thirty
The first thought Lily had upon waking was Luke. The sorrow and anguish that settled over her was the worst thing she had ever felt. A part of her went forever cold, forever gone with the end of her friend.
Tender flesh pulled as she turned slightly. Julian lay beside her, eyes closed and lips parted. Dark shadows bloomed under his eyes. All she remembered was his hands and bright light that seemed to sear the skin right off her bones. He’d healed her…again. But to reverse the damage the blade had done must have been exhausting. She hadn’t known it could be possible.
Her body ached, and her face felt like it had been pummeled with a sledgehammer. There wasn’t a part of her that didn’t throb. She cautiously raised her arm, surprised to find the flesh bruised but manageable. He had healed the bones there as he had in her face. However, the emotional anguish was something even his angelic power couldn’t heal.
Lily squeezed her eyes shut, though it hurt to do so. All she could think of was Luke. She should’ve seen what his love for Anna had done to him. This whole time she’d believed it was Micah, believed there was some grand purpose behind betraying the Sanctuary. Instead, it had been a potent mixture of love and hate that had driven Luke to do all that he had. The moment he’d killed Anna, something in him had warped, turning everything good about him into something twisted. And all his hate had centered on Nathaniel and the Sanctuary.
Never would she understand how she hadn’t seen this coming. Looking back, there’d been so many warnings. The things Luke had said to her about Anna, about her own relationship with Julian. Sorrow cut through her as sharply as any Sanctuary blade. She inhaled but the breath seemed to get stuck.
“Lily?” Julian rose onto one arm, his voice soft. “Are you in pain?”
She opened her eyes. Strands of sandy-colored hair fell over half of his face. “I’m okay,” she said. “Are you? You look…off.”
He ran a hand down the side of her face that wasn’t currently chopped liver. “I’ll be fine.” His sapphire eyes searched hers intently. “Lily, I’m so sorry for what has happened. If I could take that pain from you, I would. I would take it all away.”
She blinked back tears, telling herself Luke didn’t deserve them. Not after everything he’d done. “It was… Luke.”
Pain flickered over his face. “I know, love. I know how much he meant to you.”
She closed her eyes again. “I should…have seen it.”
“No.” He came to his knees, leaning over her. “There was nothing you could have done, Lily. It wasn’t him anymore.”
She grasped his arm, needing to feel something solid. “I want to hate him. What he did to Anna and to Micah.” She paused, swallowing thickly. “He tried to bring down the Sanctuary, Julian. And he was like a brother to me. I loved him. I would’ve done anything for him.”
“I know.” He eased down beside her, finding her hand and threading his fingers through hers. He then brought her hand to his mouth, kissing her palm. “You can’t forget him, love. Remember him for who he was to you for all those years. Keep those memories of who Luke was close to you. It’s okay to hate him. And it’s okay to not hate him.”
Unshed tears filled her eyes as he placed her hand above his heart. “Julian, I’m sorry…I didn’t give you a chance.”
