destiny changed. When the time comes, and it will come, which Court will you stand with?”
“The Court of Sunder. I am yours.”
Raphael slammed a hand on the table. His violet eyes lit up, and the air became stuffy, difficult to breathe. “Then stand with me.”
“Standing with you doesn’t mean standing against the commander. Standing with you means he stands with us. Why have you two forgotten that? What have you done?”
“You grew up in the former South African territory, now the Court of Virtue. Your mother was an American who died from birth complications, but not before naming you Nevaeh. Heaven spelled backward. Your father, a prominent South African politician, raised you alone. When he was assassinated for his progressive ideology and alliance with the West, you were left at nineteen with no parents.
“In the spirit of his ideology and loyalty to his party, you married his closest ally and friend, but the man was not kind to you. He enjoyed whores, cocaine, and beating you when you asked where he was at night. One night, he beat you so hard, you miscarried his child. When you returned from the hospital, you set out to leave him. He wouldn’t let you go. He would rather you died. While he was strangling you, you jabbed a pair of scissors into his throat.”
My dream unfurled in my mind: memories of the country he spoke of, my father’s smiling face as he entered our home after a long day at work, the two maids raising me in his absence, the news of his death, the marriage, the miscarriage, and finally, my husband’s body on the floor, twitching as blood pooled on the marble.
Raphael continued, “You and women like you who fought against the odds went to the Court of Command to train and hone that survival instinct.”
I shook my head. “You’re lying.” He wasn’t.
“Jasmine, the woman you think is your mother, never had children.”
I wiped away my tears. “She adopted me?”
“No, my sweet mortal. Your entire life is the product of an altered reality, and I want you to remember so that you understand Michael lied. He lied, and he will keep lying. I lied, and I will keep lying, because it’s the only way the realm can survive Lucifer. Everything you’ve ever known to be true is a lie. Including Uriel.”
I kept shaking my head. “No, no, no.”
“Those who remember must die,” he said.
“What?”
“Those who remember must die.”
“I don’t know what that means.”
“The Marked remember the Before, and Lucifer can have them. You met Uriel right before you met me. You hadn’t known him all your life.”
Another tear slid, and another. I jolted to my feet, ready to leave.
Raphael stood with me. “I’m not asking for forgiveness. Nor do I make excuses for what I did to Uriel. Well aware of what I can do, he flew over my skies.” Raphael spread his magnificent, terrifying wings, blocking the moonlight and casting a shadow. “The Court of Sunder will never surrender or accept another’s rule. Not Michael’s, not Lucifer’s or another’s for as long as I live, and how long is that?”
“Forever and ever,” his males shouted.
I turned to leave.
“I’m not finished,” he said.
“I am.”
“Return.”
“Make me.” I marched toward the House, wishing I had a place of my own to go to. But I didn’t, and he didn’t make me return. He followed behind me all the way to the House and parted the waterfall so I could pass.
I stopped at the bath. “I would appreciate some time alone.”
He walked into his chambers, and the waterfall closed. “I cannot leave you.”
“Why not?”
“Because you are mine.” He took a step toward me and spread his arms, though this time in invitation. There was comfort to be found there, but instead, I stepped back, took out my machete, and flung it against the wall. Tears clouded my vision. “You wanted to turn Uriel into one of your undead.”
“Yes,” he admitted.
“Why?”
“Revenge. Michael would have hated me having Uriel in my service.”
“Is that why you told me about my Before? Revenge? You want to hurt all who came from the Court of Command?”
“I told you because it needed to be said. I told you because his soul’s mate, Julia, remembers.” He advanced, and I stepped back. “Julia is immortal,” he continued. “Her body underwent a transformation, and I want the same for you. I cannot control the souls, nor do I wish to, but if I can find a way to make yours immortal, I will. Approach.