I rushed forward and belted out a command. "Stop! That's my son!"
"He's a traitor," Theo said, narrowing his eyes at Belial. "He's a threat."
"He's not a threat to me." I waved them off, and the gargoyles reluctantly lowered their weapons and backed away. I moved closer to my son and took him in. "What are you doing here? Where have you been?"
"You're looking good, Mother," Belial said, his eyes dropping briefly to my stomach. Then he looked at me again with a challenge in his gaze. “I heard you're going to Faerie. I'm coming too."
"How did you hear that?" I bristled, wondering if we had a spy in our midst. Belial clearly had been keeping tabs on me since he didn't seem surprised by my pregnancy, and he knew to be here at exactly the time of our departure. Who was it—Samael? Einial? Definitely not Azazel, she hated him...
He gave a small shrug. "I have my ways."
Stubborn child. I bet it was Kassiel. They were brothers, after all.
I sighed and crossed my arms. "Why do you even want to come? How do we know we can trust you?"
Belial's jaw clenched. "It's because of me that Pestilence is freed, and I planned to make it right by becoming War and taking Adam down. Father ruined that, and now he needs saving too. If you're going to use Famine to fight him, I want to be there."
"What of Nemesis and Fenrir?"
"I'm not working with them anymore."
His words rang with truth, and I checked his aura and saw no other hidden lies or deceptions there. I nodded slowly, knowing the others wouldn't like it, but unable to deny how relieved I was to see my son again. He’d made a mistake—okay, a hell of a lot of mistakes. But he was still my son and I would always give him another chance.
I was about to tell him he could come with us, when Azazel rounded the corner with Callan and Kassiel. They were dressed for battle, and Zel let out a shout and rushed forward at the sight of Belial, daggers in hand. Callan growled and charged too, and this time Belial began reaching for Morningstar. Only Kassiel's quick movements blocked them before a fight broke out, his body moving to shield his brother from harm.
"What is he doing here?" Zel asked, her dark eyes flashing with anger.
I stood beside Kassiel in front of Belial. "He's coming with us."
Callan shook his head. "No way."
“I have to agree, my queen," Theo said. "My official position is also no.”
"We should give him a chance," Kassiel said, his voice still calm and steady. Yes, it was definitely him who'd brought Belial here. They'd probably been talking for months, and though I was annoyed that Kassiel hadn't told me, I had to respect his loyalty to his brother.
"How can we trust him?" Callan asked.
"He spoke the truth when I questioned him." I cast a firm look at everyone standing before me, and channeled my authority as queen into my voice. "Belial's coming. That's my final decision."
Theo stiffly bowed, Callan scowled but nodded, and Zel regarded me with a stony expression, but in the end even she inclined her head. Belial just stood there with his arms crossed like he didn't give a damn about what was going on. A lie, of course. Though he might fool others with his uncaring facade, I knew his heart was in the right place and that he actually cared more than he would ever say.
As they all put their weapons away, Einial entered the garden with a woman with burnt orange streaks in her black hair, which was tied back to show off her pointed ears.
"This is Mirabella," Einial said. "One of our messengers to Faerie. She's half-Fallen, half-fae of the Autumn Court."
Mirabella dropped to a deep curtsy before me. "My queen, I'll be opening the portal to Faerie."
"Thank you," I told her. "Can you do it from here?"
She straightened up and nodded. "Time and space are different in that realm, so you don’t need to go to a particular place before you cross over—all I have to do is focus on the destination, and the portal will take us there."
"Convenient," I said.
"I'll take you as close to High King Oberon's palace as I can. Are you ready, or do you need more time?"
I glanced at my companions briefly, but none of them had any protests. We were all here, and there was no reason to delay. "We're ready."
She nodded and removed a small gemstone from her pocket. It was similar to the one I'd used to open Heaven, but this one swirled with a rainbow of colors, all constantly shifting and changing in a pattern that was mesmerizing. She held it out before her and the colors shot out in a beam and formed a glowing portal, large enough for all of us to pass through. Einial stepped back, since she would be staying behind, while Theo and some of his soldiers went through first to ensure it was safe.
Once they'd determined there was no threat, I walked through the portal, discovering another world, one of nature and color and the heady perfume of flowers. A light spring rain fell upon us, and if I remembered correctly, that meant it was morning here also. Faerie was unique in that it went through every season over a twenty-four hour period, from blazing hot summer days to bitter cold winter nights.
We stood in the middle of a courtyard surrounded by white pillars wrapped in dark green ivy, and I looked up at the sky, so blue it almost sparkled like the ocean. To my surprise, Faerie felt like home, just like Heaven had. I breathed in the scents that drifted tantalizingly from the oversized blooms that
