Storm of Sin - Patricia D. Eddy Page 0,80
live, I know I never will again. Seconds in Hell feel like a century, and when I close my eyes, I relive every moment this demon spent feeding off of others’ fear.
“Zoe!”
“No,” I wail. “Do not torment me with thoughts of him! This...this is enough. I accept my guilt. My sentence. I cannot endure a memory of true happiness!”
Lucifer is an asshole. Why else would he send me a vision of Sin racing for me, love shining in his blue eyes.
“Zoe, take my hand,” the vision says, and oh, how I want to. But this is a trick. A way for the devil to make my endless torment so much worse. “Zoe, my precious pearl, please. We have little time. I can save you!”
Next to me, Thorn tries to push me under again, and this time, I don’t fight him. The crackling, flaming waters swallow me, and the agony increases a hundred fold. Until a hand plunges beneath the surface and grabs my arm, pulling me up so I’m face to face with the memory of my one true love.
“You have a gift, Zoe. One that lets you see the truth in a person’s eyes. Look into mine now. See me,” the vision of Sin begs.
I can’t help it. I want so much to see him again that I do as he asks. Oh, my God. He’s here. His soul is in Hell, half-submerged in the flaming waters with me. “Sin?”
“Yes, my love. My Zoe. Give me your hands. There is still time.”
I show him the fiery shackle that locks me to Thorn. “I can’t. There’s nothing that can free me, Sin. Even if there were, we can’t leave. You should know this better than anyone...”
Sin grabs our wrists and pulls, but that only tightens the flaming metal and draws a hoarse whimper from my throat.
Rage consumes my lover’s eyes, and a red ring surrounds the sapphire blue. He’s weakening. “If you have a way out, Sin, take it. Now. Before it’s too late.”
“Lucifer!” he shouts. “You know she does not deserve this! Do something! I have the angels on my side. The Almighty’s blessing. If you stand in my way...”
With a crack, the devil himself appears before me and hefts his pitchfork. “I am not a complete twat, Sinclair. But you cannot deny me a modicum of fun.” With a grin, he swings the weapon down, and the manacle around my wrist shatters into dust. The chains wrapped around my legs fall away, and I lunge for Sin, clinging to his neck.
“Thank you,” Sin says, and Lucifer nods.
“Go. I cannot hold him here for long without her. Close the portal before he can follow, burn his body in the earthen realm, and he will never be able to escape again.”
Sin reaches down and tugs on what looks for all the world like a glowing rope tied around his waist. We start to rise, slowly at first, but picking up speed with every passing second.
I can feel his pain along with my own. We’re still burning, still hearing the screams of the damned, but there’s a pinprick of light high above that’s getting brighter.
“How?” I whisper, holding on with all the strength I have left.
Sin presses a kiss to my blistered lips. “Love.”
I can see the earthen realm. Our lifeless bodies intertwined with Sin’s arms around me. But there’s more. Angels. Gabriel, Ariel, Cassiel, Raphael, Azrael, and even Michael. Standing together, hands clasped, wings like beacons in the night sky. And another. One who looks so much like Sin he can only be his brother.
As Sin grasps Gabriel’s hand, Thorn lets out a roar and wraps his arms around my legs. It’s so sudden, and we’re moving so fast, that I’m ripped away from Sin before I can scream.
“Zoe!” Sin dives down and grabs both of my hands. I’m being torn apart, my soul split between life and death, and I can do nothing but focus on the pure, raw grief in Sin’s eyes.
Until Gabriel lifts off from the ground in the earthen realm and flies through the portal. His wings start to burn, but he doesn’t seem to notice or care. When he reaches me, he hauls his fist back and slams it into Thorn's face. “They have paid their debt, you pathetic piece of shit. But you have not even started.”
The demon falls, and Gabriel wraps an arm around my waist and helps us back to the edge of the portal. “Do not fear,” he says quietly. “This