trouble, into this conference room. Finally, though, they managed to get where they were going, filing in and flopping into flimsy wheeled chairs while Uriel locked the door.
When he turned around, his handsome, polite veneer had been dropped. His eyes, his skin, his hair, everything glowed now, lit from within. This was a warrior angel, a scourge of evil, and Uriel looked every bit of that.
“Terra Noctem must be moved,” he said, his voice filling the room.
There was dead silence for a moment, and then Gadreel gave a mocking laugh. “Great. What do you want us to do, hitch ourselves in front of it and drag it away? Talk to Justin. This is his deal. We just live there.”
“What is it?” Phenex asked, ignoring the other Fallen. He had a strange, unsettled feeling deep in his gut that normally preceded bad things. Trouble. He always sensed it coming.
Uriel pinned him with his gaze. “Amphora’s barriers are being breached, one by one. It is no longer secure, so neither is Terra Noctem. Belial is lazy but clever. He’s turned vampires in positions of authority to help him, lured them to his side with promises. Soon, very soon, the city will be overrun.”
“How can it be?” Levi asked. “There are plenty of protective wards in place. The horde of lesser demons will be incinerated if they try to attack. Let them come. We’ll root out the traitors.”
“The traitors are the easy part.” Uriel shook his head. “Do you know how long Hell has been trying to find ways past those wards? Even centuries ago, in the days the lords of Hell were welcomed into Terra Noctem, they searched. Obviously, you lot were too occupied with your…pursuits…to notice.”
“I liked my pursuits,” Gadreel muttered.
“We had hoped that this was just another diversion for one of your bored former brethren, an outlet for Belial to try to take a little revenge for Terra Noctem’s harboring you seven. We thought it would take time for them to regroup after all that happened last year, when Raum killed Mammon and prevented the hordes from flooding into earth. But they’ve bounced back quickly, and Belial acts on Lucifer’s orders. They mean to destroy the vampire city. If the hordes overrun Terra Noctem, they’ll kill or enslave everyone in it. The loss of the night races will tip the Balance even further into darkness. The chaos would be unimaginable.”
“The demons will sense it when the spell is cast to relocate the city,” Levi said. “It was never a problem when Hell didn’t see Justin as an enemy, but now…they’re probably prepared to come running the second the movement begins. And the shift isn’t instant, from what I remember. It takes time. Half an hour? An hour? Something like that. Too long, if the demons think they can break through and stop it.”
Phenex shook his head, understanding why Uriel had put this to the Fallen first, even before Justin. “They’re getting ready to attack, right? This is imminent. This is now.”
“This weekend,” Uriel said. “Friday, most likely. The busiest night of the week, of course. Belial leads the charge, and he’ll take as many humans as he can, just because.” His piercing gaze settled on Phenex and seemed to arrow right through him, seeing into places that were best kept hidden. “You, especially, Phenex, should be careful. Don’t underestimate his rage at you. It has burned slow but fiercely.”
He felt his brothers’ eyes on him and fought the urge to hunch his shoulders. All of them knew what he had done, the moment of compassion that had sealed his fate. He didn’t want to know what they thought of it. He didn’t want to speak of it ever again, actually.
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Phenex said.
Uriel’s gaze lingered a moment longer, then moved on. “It’s Tuesday, and I expect the preparations to take time, so we must move quickly. Justin will be furious, but I’ll speak with him. He’ll see reason. Twenty years in one place, with the world as it is, is about all you could expect. There will be losses, but Amphora is lost already. Better to move on. Moving will allow time for the magic-wielders to create new wards, new safeguards. There’s no choice.”
“And we hold Hell at bay, again, while the vamps disappear and the angels sit around with their thumbs up their asses,” Murmur said. “Seems fair.”
Uriel looked at him sharply. “This falls under the blood oath you took when Justin agreed to let you