Dis was so huge that it was almost impossible to tell that the city’s edges curved, but the buildings finally fell away, and I could just make out the sharpened peaks of the mountains to the west.
The sands were empty, devoid of life, so when I finally caught sight of a familiar form, he practically sparkled like a beacon out in the wastes.
“There’s Belial!” I said, jumping from the horse’s back before Lucifer could say anything. I ran several feet before stopping and turning around, my heels sending up a spray of sand. “Stay here, please. I want to talk to him alone.”
Azazel nodded curtly, and Tascius raised his hand. “Give him our regards.”
I spread my wings and took flight, eating up the distance over the sand to the golden lion prowling over the empty dunes.
He tossed his mane when he caught sight of me, pausing at the top of a dune with his tail twitching.
I landed in front of him, my heart thumping in my throat.
“Belial… I have to leave the city for a while. We’ll only be gone for two weeks, but my side of the Circle is empty, and Vyra will be alone…”
The lion just gazed at me evenly. I dared to take a step closer, extending my hand.
After a long moment, he leaned forward, pressing the wide bridge of his nose against my palm.
I let my hand rest there for a second, but I didn’t want to go with just this tiny touch between us. I wrapped my arms around him, resting my head on his nose. He closed his eyes and made a rumble that was more of an earthquake than a purr.
“We know how to make the sword we need,” I whispered, stroking his soft fur. “We need ebonite. The oracles in the City of Sight will be able to tell us where to find it. Will you please watch over Vyra while we’re gone?”
There was an odd rippling sensation in the air, and a moment later I wasn’t holding a lion, but a man.
Belial’s tangled dark hair spilled around his shoulders, brushing my face as he shifted to wrap his arms around me, too. “I wouldn’t let anything happen to her.”
I couldn’t bring myself to let go of him. Releasing him after so long apart would’ve felt like tearing myself apart. “Would you come with us?”
Belial let out a rough laugh. “No. Your little expedition would fail, because I don’t think I’d be able to resist ripping off the Morningstar’s pretty head.”
I looked up at him, picking out the yellow stars in his eyes I’d desperately missed. “You have more self-control than that.”
“No, angel. Besides, I have a particular quest of my own.” His smile was cruel, but it wasn’t cruelty aimed at me. “I think you of all people will appreciate the results.”
I frowned. “What are you doing, Belial?”
He raised a hand, tracing the edge of my lips with his thumb. “I’m not going to ruin the surprise. Go fetch your ebonite, and when you bring it back…” His voice became the rough purr that sent pleasurable shivers down my spine. “You and I have many things we need to discuss.”
“Belial, I-”
He put a finger to my lips, cutting me off. “Let me make it clear. We’ll discuss these things in your bed. Until then, I don’t want to hear another word of apology. You did what you had to do, and I am doing what I need to do.”
His eyes were alight with a brilliant, manic light.
I swallowed back apologies and protests, my heart a painful thud against my ribs. “I’ll remember that when I’m back. You will be in my bed that night.”
“That’s a promise, angel.”
He leaned down and kissed me hard, his tongue sliding into my mouth. I would’ve melted right there on the hot sand if he wasn’t holding me up, one arm around my waist and the other hand tangled in my hair.
It felt like all the antagonism between us fell away, like it had never existed at all, and I was right back where I was supposed to be.
I poured all my regret into the kiss, hoping he knew how I felt, that when I came back I wanted him and his mark and would never leave without him again.
Belial bit my lip, his eyes glittering when he pulled back. “Go now, before I decide you need to stay here.”
I nodded, breathless and wordless, but traced the faint white lines over his chest like I could etch myself there all over again.
“Goodbye for now, my Prince,” I said, forcing myself to take a step back.
“Goodbye for now, my angry angel.” His teeth were already lengthening. “But not for long.”
My throat tightened and I took flight, blaming the tears in my eyes on the sun’s glare. One of my feathers broke loose and spiraled down, and I looked back in time to see the lion snatch at it, catching it in his teeth.
He prowled towards Dis, breaking into a long stride, and I flew back to my waiting men with at least one small part of my fractured heart healed again.
I silently settled back on my horse, looking over my shoulder at the lion and not turning forward again until his gleaming golden fur was gone from sight.
18
Tascius
The Styx stretched before us, a dark ribbon of still water winding across the landscape. On our side, the black dunes stretched back between cliffs in a passage that led to Dis.
On the other side of the river, the land was a blasted gray waste, dotted with the gnarled remains of dead trees. I nudged Titan, as I’d been thinking of the enormous water-horse, closer to Melisande’s little white mare.
My angel dismounted, striding through the mix of sand and dust to peer over a short drop at the river below.
All three of us followed her. I dropped from Titan’s back and looped his lead around an outcropping of
