I couldn’t stop myself from grinning at him. I felt like a childish idiot for soaking up his words in this way, but no one, outside the jinn, had ever shown any faith in me, and most of the jinn saw me as nothing more than a child. Magnus saw me as more, and he wanted the others to see it too.
“Then we shall see what happens,” Raphael murmured.
“Yes, we will. According to the scrolls, the fae did breed with some other demons, mostly the tree nymphs, before they were eradicated,” Magnus said. “Hence, the tree nymphs’ powerful call toward nature and their more kindhearted temperament, but I’ve never seen a nymph with your eyes. That’s what threw me off so much in the beginning. I recalled reading about a demon with shifting eyes before, but I couldn’t remember where or what they were, and I would never have guessed the jinn and fae line crossed at one time.”
“That’s like mating a lamb with a lion,” Corson said.
I released my arms to spread my hands before me. “You can’t pick your Chosen, and the line continues, so the pairing was a strong one.”
“Yes,” Magnus agreed. “Do all the Faulted have the fae eyes like you?”
“No. Few of the Faulted have had the fae eyes over the thousands upon thousands of years since the fae and jinn bred. I’m the only Faulted with them now.”
“And you are an empath like the fae were.”
I couldn’t tell if this was a statement from Caim or a question, but when he stared at me and the silence stretched on, I answered him. “Ah, yes, I am.”
And from what the other Faulted told me, my empath ability would amp up once I came into my immortality. I was looking forward to finally being immortal, but I dreaded the increase of my empath ability. My ability was already stronger than what the other Faulted possessed. The idea of it becoming worse frightened me, but I would cope with it; I had no other choice.
“Are all the Faulted empaths?” Magnus asked.
I contemplated how to answer this. I had to protect my kind and keep them safe, but I could feel their growing trust in me and their lessening hostility. “To some degree,” I said. “Do you plan to harm the jinn?”
“I plan to do whatever is necessary to save my friends,” Magnus replied honestly. “I will destroy anyone who stands in the way of that.”
My parents were involved in this, and so was my uncle, but I’d dug myself into this mess when I took Magnus into the Abyss; I couldn’t distance myself from it now. If I did, then a lot of those here could die, along with many other future innocents.
Looking around the cave, I gazed at the numerous faces trapped in the Abyss. There had to be something I could do to help them while making sure none of the jinn were hurt. We couldn’t save Mara, but there might be others we could rescue, and I refused to walk away from that.
Plus, if I remained involved in this, maybe there was a chance I could talk the jinn into freeing their captives. At the very least, I should be able to ease some of the hostility between the two sides. The jinn were devious, but we were loyal to each other, and though they still saw me as the baby, they might listen to me.
“The jinn have also chosen to side with and follow the horsemen and Astaroth. The craetons can’t be allowed to win this,” Corson said. “We’ll all be dead then.”
“We have leaders amongst us, but the jinn don’t do well with following others or orders from anyone outside of the jinn. They may have aligned with the craetons, but they aren’t following them,” I replied. “If it suits the jinn, they will break the alliance.”
“And do you think you can get them to break it?” Magnus asked.
“No,” I answered honestly. “They see me as the baby and as someone who doesn’t understand the way things work with them, but I might be able to get them to listen to me about who they have trapped in there now. No matter what happens in the Abyss though, you must remember the Faulted only seek to live in peace.”
“And they will be allowed to continue doing so while they remain peaceful,” Corson said, and I believed him.
Besides, the Faulted were extremely well protected where they resided. Anyone who tried to attack them would regret it.
“The scrolls detailed demon history for over fifty thousand years, I didn’t get the chance to read them all, but I never saw any mention of a fae and jinn who were Chosen,” Magnus said.
“Some say the pairing happened a hundred thousand years ago; others say it was a couple hundred thousand years ago,” I said. “But no matter how long ago it was, it did occur, and the jinn line has had Faulted in it ever since. Some of the jinn call us the Fae-aulted.”
“Fae-aulted,” Erin murmured as her gaze ran inquisitively over me. “Amazing.”
“The Faulted often remained in the shadows of the jinn; far preferring to allow their brethren to do what they must rather than get involved. Since being freed, and I’m sure before they were locked away, most of the jinn see the Faulted as weaker and needing protection. But the Faulted don’t want to be protected, and we’re not weaker. However, the jinn aren’t complete monsters, we are all very close. The jinn are not the horsemen or the fallen—”
“Careful, you’re about to make the mistake of lumping all fallen angels together,” Caim said and grinned at me as he ruffled his wings. “Some of us are different.”
“You are different,” Raphael said. “The others are too far gone in their madness to see beyond their mission to destroy us all and enslave the human race.”
Caim lifted his hand to admire his nails. “Perhaps, one day, some of our siblings will come around.”
“They are not our siblings, not anymore, and I would not hold out hope for that.”
Caim blew on his nails and buffed them on his shirt. “I think there is much hope to be found in this world.”
Raphael frowned at him while confusion and disbelief drifted from the others. I was struck with the impulse to hug the fallen angel. I didn’t get a sense of much emotion from Caim, but something about his words rang true.
“Okay, so the jinn can ensnare people,” Erin said. “Some jinn are Faulted and empaths, and you can fly—”
“I can’t fly,” I interrupted, “and neither can my fellow jinn.”
“But I was there. I saw you all float out of the gateway,” she said.
“We can levitate.” Placing my hands at my sides, I held my palms over the floor and pictured my feet rising off the stone. A small wave of power issued from my palms and my feet lifted a few inches off the ground. “I can do this, and continue to go upward, but I’m not like an angel, I can’t soar over treetops or navigate. I can float over short distances, but most of the time, because of my fae blood, it’s faster for me to run. To escape Hell, it was fastest for us to float out as it was the most direct route, and we avoided much of the chaos raining down.”
Erin’s eyes were huge as she watched me settle back on the cave floor. “But seeing you do that makes me understand where humans got the idea of a jinni being able to fly,” Erin murmured. “What about the magic lamp?”
“What magic lamp?” I asked.
“In some legends of the jinn, they’re stuck in magic lamps, and when someone rubs the lamp, a jinni emerges. The jinni then has to grant whoever set them free three wishes,” Erin said.
“Well, that’s just… ridiculous,” I replied. “And untrue. Why would someone make that up?”
Erin laughed as she ran a hand through her hair. “For fun, I guess.”
“It must have been someone with a big imagination,” Magnus said. “It’s time for us to get back to the Abyss.”
I focused on Corson again. “We’ll try to find Wren.”
“I’ll come with you,” Corson said. “If seeing Magnus helped to jar Erin out of the Abyss, then seeing me will help Wren.”
CHAPTER 14
Magnus
“No. You have to stay and continue to make sure everyone is guarded,” I said. “I’ll weave an illusion over the entrance of the cave to make it appear as if it’s solid ro
ck, but everyone here is too vulnerable to take away any of their protection. When we find Wren, if it’s necessary, we will come back for you.”
I didn’t dare risk taking Corson into the Abyss; he was too unstable. He’d take off in search of Wren, and though it was important we find her, there were others in there who also needed help. We couldn’t risk losing Corson in there because of his focus on Wren.
Corson opened his mouth to protest when a human lying against the back wall sat up like a ventriloquist dummy whose strings had been pulled. Caim squawked and danced away from the man so fast black feathers broke free from his wings and floated lazily in the air.
When the man’s head turned stiffly toward us, I recognized him as Chet, before he rose in a fluid motion that should have been impossible for a human. He walked woodenly across the cave and toward the entrance.
“What is going on?” Corson murmured. He took a step after Chet before edging back toward Wren. His talons slid free.
“I’ll be back,” I said and raced after Chet when he walked toward the front of the cave. Everything about him, from his unbending legs to his unblinking gaze, reminded me of a puppet. But who is pulling his strings?
Amalia’s soft step alerted me that she was following us as we approached the entrance. Caim strolled behind her with his hands clasped behind his back, and Raphael remained stone-faced while he walked behind him.
When Chet went to step outside the cave, I slipped past to block him. I was curious to see where he intended to go, but we couldn’t risk something seeing him leaving here. Chet continued his wooden walking, but it got him nowhere as he continuously bumped into me.
“What is he doing?” Amalia murmured, her voice laced with horror.
I clasped Chet’s shoulder and held him a little to the side of me to avoid his ceaseless legs. A Wilder, Chet was one of Wren’s followers and often dispersed the meals to the humans. He’d always been friendly enough, and we’d spoken a few times, but there was no spark of recognition in his glazed-over eyes.
“Chet,” I said.
He didn’t blink, but his legs continued to rise and fall. When I eased my grip on his shoulder, he started walking in a circle beneath my hand. In the cramped space, his movements were awkward, and his feet continuously connected with the rock walls, but he didn’t stop.
When he was done turning, he started toward the front of the cave again, but I blocked him once more. Placing myself firmly in front of him, I gripped his shoulders.
“Chet!” I gave him a rough shake that did nothing to make him respond. Blink! “Chet!”
Nothing.
Chet’s head swiveled toward me; his gaze remained deadened and his eyes unblinking while his legs continued to rise and fall.
It repulsed me to continue holding him, but I couldn’t let him leave here.
“Do you think you could wake him?” I asked Raphael.
“No.”
“Maybe if we let him go, he’ll wake up,” Amalia suggested.
“And if there’s something out there hunting for us?” I asked.
“There was nothing out there when we came in.”
“I’ll go make sure it’s clear.” Caim shifted into raven form and took flight from the cave.
“Let’s hope no one saw him,” I muttered.
A few minutes later, in which Chet continued his awkward stepping, Caim returned to the entrance of the cave and shifted out of his raven form. “It’s all clear for at least a mile radius around here; if Chet goes any further, I will search again.”
Amalia’s appalled gaze met mine when I released Chet and he goose-stepped out of the cave. Taking her elbow, I kept her against my side as we traversed through the trees while staying parallel with Chet. Amalia’s scent tickled my nose as her supple flesh warmed my palm. I’d destroy anything that came near her.
I searched for a threat moving into our area, but all I detected were the birds watching us from their perches. The subtle trickle of water flowing over rocks penetrated the air as we approached a stream in the trees. Sparkling blue water came into view, and then Chet stopped at the edge of the stream.
Amalia’s hair tickled my arm when she leaned forward to study him. I searched the other side of the stream but saw only the shifting shadows of the swaying trees as they danced across the leaf-strewn ground.
Raphael and Caim spread out to stand on either side of us as Chet remained unmoving. His gaze was fixed across the stream, but he didn’t seem to see anything over there. The birds stopped singing as even they appeared to wait to see what he would do now.
“Stay here,” I whispered to Amalia.
Releasing her arm, I pushed aside the branches of a tree and walked toward him. I was almost to his side when his head tipped back and a gurgling sound issued from his throat.
“What the fuck?” I murmured as he started swaying back and forth while making that awful sound.
Then, his body jerked as if a hundred rounds of gunfire were hitting it. Lunging forward, I grabbed his shoulders before he could hurt himself, but the spasms jolted his slender body beneath my grasp. His eyes rolled back, and when blood sprayed from his mouth, I realized that’s what was clogging his throat.
I shook him roughly, but it was already too late to wake him as his eyes rolled back in his head and his body became a dead weight in my grasp. When I released him, he hit the ground.
I stood and gazed down at him as the blood oozing from his mouth seeped into the water, turning it pink before being washed away. Then, the birds started singing again.
Bending, I scooped up some water and used it to wash Chet’s blood from my face and hair before rising.
“Why?” Amalia moaned.
She clasped her head with her hands as anguish shook her slender frame. Consumed by the urge to protect her, I strode over and swept her into my arms. She didn’t fight me as she curled up against my chest and buried her face in my neck.
I ignored the allure of her breasts pressing against my chest as I turned to the angels. Raphael’s face remained impassive, but sadness shone in his violet eyes. Caim’s attention was riveted on Chet’s body; his face mirrored the confusion in his eyes.
“What do they do to them in the Abyss?” Caim murmured.
“Nothing good,” I said. “Gather his body. We can’t leave him here.”
Caim didn’t tear his gaze away from Chet’s body as he spoke. “Why did he walk around before dying while the others die in their sleep, or whatever state they’re in?”
“I think the jinn gave him control of his body,” Amalia whispered, “to unnerve you and keep you on your toes.”
“They’re playing with us,” Raphael stated.
Amalia bowed her head. I didn’t wait to hear any more before I turned and started back to the cave with Amalia nestled safely in my arms.
• • •
Magnus
When we returned to the cave, I stood at the front of it while I weaved the illusion of a wall over the entrance. No one passing by here would ever know the entry existed.
When the last rock settled into place, I turned to find Amalia watching me. Her eyes were such a sad shade of orange I wondered if she could return to the Abyss. Knowing what I did about her, this constant sway of different emotions must be battering her. The empath ability was a powerful tool as well as a highly destructive one to whoever possessed it.
“How did you do that?” she inquired.
“I am the last demon of illusions.”
A vibrant smile lit her face, and her eyes became a joyful yellow color I vowed to see as often as I could from here on out.
“You told me,” she breathed.
Self-hatred swamped me for the way I treated her in the beginning. She had the tenderest heart I’d ever encountered, and I’d treated her like shit.
“I’m sorry for the way I treated you when we first met,” I apologized.
“Thank you, but an apology isn’t necessary.”
“Yes, it is.”
“No, but I suspect the jinn are responsible for keeping the Faulted line a secret. If they are as protective of each other as you say, they wouldn’t want other demons to know some jinn aren’t as ruthless. Most demons steer clear of the jinn, but if they saw a chance to exploit some of the jinn, they would take it.”
“Or, perhaps the jinn kept the Faulted a secret because they see us as the weak link and were ashamed,” she said what I wouldn’t say to her.
“If they were, then they were idiots.”
She smiled again, but this time her amusement didn’t reach her multi-hued eyes. “Come now, Magnus, admit it, you see me as weaker than the non-Faulted jinn.”
“No,” I said honestly. “It takes more strength to open yourself to others, suffer hurt and degradation, and continue, than it does to hide yourself away or be cruel to others. Once free of the seal, you could have retreated with the Faulted or stayed the course of never going against the jinn, yet here you are.”
“I didn’t have the strength to leave my parents and go with the other Faulted.”
“Yet you have the strength to make a stand against what they do. The other Faulted wouldn’t interfere and try to help an innocent.”
Her mouth parted and the vermillion hue I recognized as passion crept into her eyes. Seeing that color caused blood to flood into my groin as my body instinctively responded to her. Before I could go to her, a sound drew our attention to Erin as she emerged from the shadows.
“We’re all set back there,” Erin said.
“Then, it’s time for us to return to the Abyss.” Walking forward, I claimed Amalia’s hand and led her through the shadows toward the others.
CHAPTER 15
Amalia
I hated the Abyss more when the second we returned to it, another bolt of lightning pierced the sky and hit the monstrous monolith. A wave of lost life washed over me, leaving me feeling filthy again.
Into the Abyss Page 9
