Angel Of Fate (Fate Series Book 3)

by Kentowski, L. J.

  “If I wanted you to stay, I would have simply asked you to. I didn’t. As I told you before, I agreed with your conclusion. Caleb didn’t seem to want the bait we’d set.” His gaze fell on me. “No longer a need for you to remain.”

  “Who was on duty?” Hunter asked.

  “Jeremy, a very trusted and capable Sanctuary angel.”

  “What did he say happened?”

  “Nothing. We’re still looking for him, as well.”

  “Was there damage to the cell door?”

  “No. It was unlocked.”

  “So, Jeremy could be a mole,” Hunter pressed.

  Hadraniel’s jaw ticked a couple times. “Maybe you didn’t hear the part when I said he was very trusted and capable.”

  Hunter chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. “Forgive me if I don’t trust your judgment of those qualities. Your track record hasn’t been too good in that regard. I could loan you a couple demons to show you what to look for if you’d like.”

  “Do you think this might have been Caleb’s doing?” I asked. They were wasting time. Pissing on each other’s boots wasn’t going to get us anywhere.

  “It’s possible,” Hunter said.

  “So, he could be here?” I almost hoped this was the case. If it was, we had a chance of capturing him and being done with this whole mess.

  “Highly unlikely,” Hadraniel answered. “There’s no way he could have gotten down to the holding areas without us knowing.”

  “I don’t know if you’re just getting old or you’ve always been this naive,” Hunter said. “Caleb always has a plan. He plotted to kill the most powerful force of the Underworld, something you couldn’t do for centuries. He’s not some special ops demon who hangs out in the shadows and waits for the guards to piss or sneak a smoke break. He’s a smart, cunning, black-souled fiend. He looks for weak links and smashes his way through. It’s obvious your army is riddled with those. You need to round up every angel who had knowledge of the demon in that cell and find out what they might know. If it wasn’t your trusted, capable Jeremy that freed the demon, then someone else did.”

  Hadraniel’s lips pressed together as he narrowed his eyes at Hunter. “It’s already being done. We’re assembling them all in the dining room.”

  “Good. I’ll be there in ten minutes to question them myself.”

  Hadraniel was being dismissed and from the death stare he was giving Hunter, he knew it. Surprisingly, without a word, he turned and left.

  Hunter and I stared at the closed door after Hadraniel left, both wrapped up in our own thoughts over what this turn of events might mean.

  Finally, I broke the silence and voiced the inevitable. “So, I guess this means we’re not leaving today.”

  I looked over at Hunter and watched his jaw tighten as if he wanted to say something, but didn’t trust himself to open his mouth yet.

  He turned to face me and put his hands on my arms. “We will, baby. I promise.” He slid his palms up and down my arms. “I’m going to take you far away from this place. The only difference is it won’t be today. I’ve got to question the angels because I don’t trust Hadraniel to be unbiased enough to see if one of them is lying.”

  “You’re going to try and make me stay here while you do that, aren’t you?”

  He smiled as if he were amused at my question. “Something tells me that wouldn’t be an option anyway, but no, I was not. In fact, until we figure out what is going on, I’m not letting you out of my sight.” He leaned down and sealed his promise with a gentle brush of his lips on mine. “Now go shower, so we can get this over with. I still want to get the hell out of here as soon as possible.”

  “Yes, sir,” I said, smiling at him and raising a hand in a mock salute. Shocked, but relieved I was actually being included on something useful to our mission, I went straight into the bathroom, stripping my clothes off along the way. “I won’t be long.”

  Hunter groaned. “You better lock that door, Cassandra, or neither of us will be leaving this room anytime soon.”

  With a laugh, I closed the door behind me and clicked the lock into place. It was just for show. A lock would never keep Hunter from anything he wanted. That’s how I knew we’d get to the bottom of the demon’s disappearance, one way or another.

  ***

  The dining room wasn’t nearly as crowded as I thought it would be. Hadraniel obviously felt the need to keep the imprisonment of a demon as discreet as possible, whether out of fear for his angels or of what they’d do about it. Whatever his motives, it would definitely benefit us now with so few to question.

  With only fifteen or so angels and about half that many demons in the room, I doubted any of them had anything to do with the disappearance of their kind. Hadraniel and the angels weren’t so assured. It was only fair everyone with knowledge of the demon should be questioned equally. I wondered if we weren’t wasting our time outright with all of them.

  “We’ll start with your demons,” Hadraniel stated when he met us at the door.

  “It’s a waste of time,” Hunter said, sounding bored, “but if it’ll make you feel better to throw your weight around before you find out another of your noble angels has turned traitor, then by all means.”

  “You know, demon, I find it amusing that someone who used to send the souls of innocents to eternal slavery in Hell should speak of his own kind as if the blood of angels ran through them.”

  Without another word, Hadraniel turned and approached a couple of demons, who were leaning against the far wall, deep in conversation.

  “We better get over there,” Hunter said, his gaze on Hadraniel’s back. “I have a feeling if we’re not there to supervise, King Halo will find some reason to lock every one of my men up.”

  I nodded and with Hunter’s hand at my back, we approached the small group.

  We’d almost reached Hadraniel when I caught a glimpse of Nora standing amongst some angels. I hadn’t been seen her from our vantage point before, especially with the way the angels towered over her, but I did now. And as our gazes locked, I knew she saw me too.

  I stopped and caught Hunter’s attention. “Why don’t you go ahead? I trust the demons. I don’t need to see their reactions when you question them. Nora’s here. I’d like to talk to her since I didn’t get the chance last night.”

  “Of course. This shouldn’t take long anyway. Join me when you’re done.”

  After a chaste kiss on my cheek, he left me to join Hadraniel by the demons.

  I had to walk the length of the table to round it and get to Nora on the other side, and as I did, I saw her glance over at me before she excused herself from the group of angels. At first, I thought she was coming to meet me, but then she started walking fast in the opposite direction, toward the door.

  Her action froze me in place, open-mouthed. Without so much as another nod my direction, she left the room.

  I wanted to yell to her. I wanted to yell at her. Did she hate me that much now she’d blatantly turn her back on me? If she hadn’t seen me coming, her leaving would have been innocent enough, but she looked me dead in the eyes before she’d gone. There was no question, she’d pretty much just given me a big fuck off.

  “What’s up with you and Nora?”

  I closed my eyes after hearing Braydon’s voice behind me. Could this day get any better? Maybe, if I were lucky, I’d get to see another testosterone-filled brawl.

  I turned to face him. “Nothing.”

  “Is that nothing, as in… it’s just a tiff that will blow over too soon to talk about… or it’s none of your business, Braydon.”

  “It’s none of your business, Braydon.”

  He wanted to say something more about it but studied me with curiosity instead.

  “I didn’t think I’d see you again after last night.”

  Jesus, he had no sense of discretion. I glanced behind me to make sure Hunter hadn’t caught our conversation, or the attempt at a conversation I was about to kill. Anyone in th
e room had the ability to listen in if they wanted. That was part of the problem of hanging with a bunch of super-sensory angels and demons. Good thing was, most of them tuned out everything but what was pertinent to them in order to keep their sanity. Lucky for me, and even more so, Braydon, Hunter didn’t deem my conversations pertinent at the moment.

  “Yeah, well, we didn’t expect to be here either.”

  “I won’t say I’m sorry.”

  “I didn’t ask you to.”

  An awkward silence ensued until I could no longer take Braydon’s intense gaze.

  “So, did you know this Jeremy guy?” I asked, trying to veer the situation somewhere that felt less… personal. I figured I might as well try to get some information out of him.

  “We worked together a few times.”

  “Did he seem like the type to turn traitor?”

  “No.”

  I waited for him to elaborate, but after a few moments of silence, it was clear he wasn’t going to.

  “Okay. What about him makes you say that?”

  “Because he was just like the rest of us—the angels, the demons, you, me, even your precious Hunter. Watch any one of us and you see someone fighting for something. But that isn’t always representative of what’s inside, what they truly believe in. You, of all people, know this, Cassie. The truth of a person’s essence lies deep within and can only be seen if they want it to be.”

  While his words may have applied to Jeremy, he was talking about me. The aimed look he gave me as he said it, put weight into every word as they fell on me.

  “So, what you’re saying is any one of us could be a traitor.”

  He didn’t miss a beat. “For the right reasons.”

  Oh, no. Could it have been Braydon who set the demon free? Would keeping me here be reason enough for him? I hadn’t even considered it.

  “I can tell what you’re thinking, Cassie. It wasn’t me.”

  “Why should I believe you?”

  “Because I wouldn’t want you to stay for any other reason than to be with me. I wouldn’t trick you into it. I want you, not your obligations.”

  “Dammit, Braydon,” I whispered, as I glanced over at Hunter again. He was talking with some of the other demons and still didn’t seem to catch our conversation, thank God. My luck wasn’t going to last much longer, however. “You’ve got to stop saying things like that,” I said through clenched teeth.

  He glimpsed over my shoulder at Hunter and then rolled his eyes before smirking back at me. “I’m just being honest.”

  “Well, sto—”

  Angered shouts near the door cut me off. An angel and demon were exchanging accusations and insults that were quickly escalating. The tension was thick all the way across the room. When the angel managed to sucker punch the demon, Hadraniel and Hunter descended on them to break it up.

  “Seems the natives are getting restless,” Braydon said.

  I shook my head as I watched Hadraniel and Hunter reprimanding the two brawlers. “They can’t even be in the same room for more than fifteen minutes without wanting to tear each other apart.”

  “It’s a natural instinct.”

  I turned to look at him. His gaze was set on Hunter.

  “Is it?” I asked.

  His eyes met mine, and I could tell the moment he knew why I was asking, but I made my point anyway. “Maybe I shouldn’t let my guard down around you.”

  As soon as his mouth opened in response, I walked away before he had the chance to get it out.

  Hunter was headed my way. I rounded the table to meet him, thankful I’d gotten away from Braydon before he’d decided to join me.

  “What’s going on?” I asked.

  “They’re all getting restless. Hadraniel is having some food and drinks brought in to give them something to occupy their time while they wait. I’m all finished up with the demons so things should settle down in here anyway.”

  “Did you get anything from them?”

  “No. Ceril was the last to see the demon. He went down on a round right after dinner and said he looked in on the demon while Jeremy was on duty. Nothing seemed out of place.”

  “Did he actually see the demon in the cell?”

  “Yes, said he even razzed him a bit through the door. The demon was smug but not more than usual.”

  “Okay, so that leaves Jeremy the last to be around him then.”

  “So far.”

  “Who’s next?”

  “I think we’ll start with Chris once the food comes,” Hunter said, motioning with a nod toward the angel they had restrained moments ago. “He seems the most tense, which may mean he has something to hide.”

  No sooner had he mentioned food, than a few servants appeared with platters, setting them out on the table. The aroma of steaming meats and ripe fruit filled the room. It looked and smelled wonderful as if it had come from the roaster or was freshly picked from the vine. How did they manage to have so much ready on such short notice?

  The angels migrated to the table and began to fill their plates. Most remained seated there to dine, but a few took their plates and lounged against the walls together to eat as they chatted. Hadraniel’s plan to ease the angels’ anxiety with food seemed to be working. The air around us was definitely more breathable now.

  Apparently, my stomach also wanted in on the scheme because it released a loud enough rumble to gain Hunter’s attention.

  “Sit. Eat,” he said, pulling out the chair in front of us.

  “Shall I roll over and beg too?”

  I didn’t catch the duplicity of my words until a roguish smirk appeared on Hunter’s face. “Ask me later.”

  Unable to help thinking I just might do as he asked, in private, I laughed. Reaching across the table, I picked pieces from several platters to fill my plate. Hunter added to it from those I couldn’t reach before he sat down next to me.

  “You’re not going to have anything?” I asked, noting the empty table in front of him.

  “You know I’m never hungry for food,” he said, stealing a slice of ham from my plate and plopping it into his own mouth.

  “Hey.”

  I made a fist to give him a playful punch while he laughed at me, but I ended up bumping Hadraniel’s arms as he reached between us to set two glasses on the table. Liquid sloshed over the rims, splashing both Hunter’s lap and mine.

  “I guess I should have announced myself,” Hadraniel said, handing us each a small cloth to clean ourselves up while he did the same. “And here I was trying to be a gracious host for once by bringing you a drink.”

  I couldn’t discern whether it was a grunt or growl that came from Hunter, but it was something low and gritty, definitely not complimentary.

  “Well, it wasn’t a total loss,” I said, picking up the glass nearest me. It contained more than half the original liquid in it. I took a sniff. “White wine?”

  “Yes. I’d heard that’s what you preferred.”

  I nodded as I took a sip. A perfect blend of fruit, but not too sweet.

  “Why are you so hospitable now?” Hunter asked eyes narrowed up at Hadraniel.

  “Oh, I have my reasons.”

  The words had barely left his lips when the room started to spin and my lids felt like lead sheets over my eyes. They closed of their own accord, and the muscles in my arms and legs seemed to disappear.

  “Rest, Cassandra,” I heard Hadraniel say. A hand was at my back, urging me forward until my head rested on the table.

  “You son of a bitch,” Hunter shouted.

  Grunts and scraping furniture sounded all around me, but I couldn’t process what it meant. What was happening? What was wrong with me?

  “Hunter?” I called out, my tongue so thick it garbled his name.

  Somehow I managed to lift one of those heavy lids enough to see Hunter surrounded by angels. He was gagged and being restrained.

  I opened my mouth, willing a scream to come out, but everything went black before I could catch my breath.


  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  My skin trembled, but I was burning on the inside. A draft flowed over me, a cold and wet one, like a thick fog leaving a chilling mist behind. But I couldn’t raise my hands to wipe it off. I was powerless to lift anything, not even my eyelids. They were too heavy.

  Sounds surrounded me. Echoing sounds, like voices in a distant tunnel. I couldn’t make out what they were saying because the fog seemed to have entered my brain, and when I willed myself to shake my head to clear it. Nothing.

  What had happened to me?

  Even my thoughts seemed lost. Fleeting impressions inundated me, but I couldn’t grasp them. I was at home with Nora. I was in the park with Hunter. No, I was in Hell. Had the darkness overtaken me for good? Oh no, I was with the angels. I was safe with them. Hunter was here. Or was it Braydon. Was I dreaming?

  The voices grew louder. I tried to call out to them, but my lips failed me.

  My body seemed anchored or tethered, but to what I didn’t know. I just wanted to move to know I… existed, to know I was somewhere… any place real.

  A deep, muted voice was suddenly so near me I might have jumped if I’d had any control over my body. Then something whispered over my cheek, like a feather brushing against it.

  I flinched from the contact, and it was the most welcomed awareness. In fact, I did exist.

  My body started to wake. Blood flowed within, leaving needle like sensations along its path.

  Then, without assistance from me, my head began to clear, and along with it, the voices.

  No, it was only one voice, and that familiar voice froze my blood once again.

  “Wake up, sleepyhead,” he said in a lover’s croon. “I’ve missed you.”

  I wasn’t in Hell. I was somewhere much worse.

  Caleb.

  I wanted to slip back into that nothingness. Feel nothing, be nothing. The unknown was better than hearing that voice in my ear again.

  “Come, my queen. I have so much to show you.”