her son’s intently.
He sighs. “Even if I gave it to you, what are you going to do with it? You don’t know what it opens.”
“No, but I know someone who does! Leviathan!”
Aleister lets out a strangled moan.
I give him a sad smile. “I wish that you’d told me about her.”
“We didn’t really have the time. I was going to when the time was right. Know that, Annabelle, please.”
“Fine,” I let out a breath. “I get it. I wouldn’t want to admit to being married to her either.”
He chuckles and comes to me. “Am I yours, Annabelle?” he asks with a smirk.
I lift my head up for a kiss. “Yes, of course. But back to Leviathan. I know she knows where…” Shit. I nearly blurted it out about Lucifer. I groan when I realize that Aleister would’ve heard every word Leviathan and I said about Lucifer. I give him an intense gaze, which he avoids.
Crap. I’m going to have to come clean.
“…Dad is,” I finish lamely.
“I agree,” Mother says, giving me a knowing look. “Shax, please, if you have the key, give it to your sister.”
“Oh, fine,” he sulks. He takes his knife and pulls the ornate handle off. He upends it and the key slips out onto his outstretched palm.
“Godammit!” Sid’s voice resounds around the room. He appears next to Shax, almost whole, and gives him a narrow-eyed glare.
We all gape at Sid for using that word in my presence.
“I knew it had to be somewhere magickly protected,” he carries on. “I knew the information was behind something.”
Shax looks from him to me, connecting the dots, the fury on his face making me flinch in my powerless body.
“You used him to get into my head?” he roars at me, taking a step closer. “You utter bitch, Annabelle! I am your brother.”
“I know,” I whisper. “I’m sorry. You wouldn’t give it to me, and I had to keep looking. You know I can’t sit on something. I have to act.”
“You know what,” he spits out at me. “You’ve just made what I have to tell you a fuck load easier. I’m leaving, Belle. I’m leaving you and Hell to go and live my own damned life.” He chucks the key at me, which I catch and grip tightly, staring at him in shock.
“You can’t leave me,” I state. “You belong here, with me, with us.” I gesture to Mom.
“Not anymore,” he growls and storms out.
“Shax, wait!” I lunge forward, but Mother holds me back.
“Let me,” she says quietly, her disappointment in me etched on her face.
“Fuck!” I roar as she disappears after Shax.
“Sorry,” Sid says, sheepishly. “I guess I messed that up.”
“You think?” Elijah snarls.
“No,” I say going to him, giving Elijah a death stare. I take Sid’s face in my hands. “This is all my fault. You didn’t want to do this, warned me it was asking for trouble. You did what I asked, that is all.”
He gives me a sad look, but nods anyway.
“What the fuck, Annabelle?” Drescal shouts. “Do you know what he is?”
I spin around furiously. “I know who he is, and you will leave him alone. All of you will.” I include the other men in my anger.
I get glowers back, but none of them defy me.
“I have to get back into my body and sort this shit out!” I shout suddenly as the residence shakes again under the force of the uprising going on downstairs.
Gregory comes to me and grips me by my elbows. “Take a deep breath. One, two, three and smile,” he murmurs.
I stare into his eyes and do as he says.
The next second, I’m falling back into my body and I wake up on the bed. I sit up, giving him a huge grin.
“You did it!” I exclaim.
“No, you did it,” he replies, coming over and taking my hand. I can see the questions in his eyes about everything that I said to my mother about us. I’ve swept the carpet out from under him, I can see that, but I want him. He gives the woman part of my essence what she needs.
“I promise we’ll discuss it all later,” I murmur to him. “Right now, I’ve gotta…” I point to the windows.
“Go and do your thing, sweetheart,” Drescal drawls, helping me up and leading me over to the windows and kissing my hand. “This, I gotta see.”
I giggle and catch Elijah’s eyes. He gives me a swift nod and hands me the key that I’d dropped when I re-entered my body.