Cipher (Demonica Underworld #8) - Larissa Ione Page 0,6
animal and set him down in the kitchen of the luxury apartment she shared with her mate, Eidolon. She nudged its dish with her foot and turned to the guys at the table. “Anyone want a beer while I’m up?”
There were three “no’s” and a silent “yes” from Journey.
Arik Wagner, husband of Limos, the Horseman of the Apocalypse known as Famine, emphasized his “no” with a shake of his head as he tapped on his phone. “Did I tell you guys that Reaver came by the house last week?”
Declan gave a low whistle. He’d only been introduced to the supernatural world recently, and the newness of it still left him awestruck at times. “Must be weird to have a Radiant as a father-in-law.”
“You know what’s weird?” Tayla asked. “I knew Reaver back when he was a powerless Unfallen angel working at Underworld General Hospital. Now he and his brother are the most powerful angels in the universe.”
Even weirder, Reaver’s brother, Revenant, ruled Hell even though he wasn’t technically a fallen angel.
Arik gave Declan a sideways glance. “My father-in-law might be an angel, but yours is the Grim Reaper. Not sure you want to be calling my situation weird.”
Declan laughed. “Yeah, but my father-in-law is relegated to his realm and can’t drop in anytime he wants.”
“Good point,” Arik conceded as he looked back down at his phone. “But Reaver’s a great source of intel. When he was at the house he said he’d heard that some fallen angel named Bael is gathering Unfallens.”
The very name made Journey bristle. Hawkyn suspected that Bael was behind Cipher’s abduction, but they hadn’t gathered any proof so far. And the bitch who’d deceived them all in order to gain their trust and get inside Sheoul-gra had disappeared without a trace and with Cipher’s laptop.
“Bael?” Kynan Morgan’s battle-ravaged voice dipped even lower and rougher. “That’s not good.”
Arik frowned. “I didn’t get a chance to ask Reaver about the guy. Who is he?”
“Bael was one of Satan’s most trusted generals.” Tayla sank into her seat and wiped her finger over her iPad a few times before spinning it around to Arik. “This is a sketch of him. He and his brother Moloc fell from Heaven and remained loyal to Satan until Revenant and Reaver locked him away. Together, Moloc and Bael control about a quarter of Sheoul.”
They also controlled a lot of souls, and Azagoth didn’t take kindly to those who denied what rightfully belonged to him. The cold war between Azagoth and the brothers had gone on for over a century, with both sides stepping up their aggressions recently.
“Are they working for Revenant now?” Declan asked. His gaze skipped over to Journey, and Journey swore the guy looked right at him before turning his attention back to Tayla.
“Unknown,” Kynan said. “My intel indicates that they’ve agreed to recognize him as the rightful ruler of Sheoul, so if Bael is gathering Unfallens, he’s doing it against Revenant’s edict.”
Journey had only seen Revenant once, but it had been enough to know that he would be very careful about going against anything the guy said. As a Shadow Angel who had been tutored by Satan literally since birth, he was at the top of the food chain. His power eclipsed even Azagoth’s. Only a dipshit who wanted a scythe up the ass would cross him.
“Oh,” Arik said as he glanced over at Declan. “Reaver also said something about Bael nabbing an Unfallen who worked inside Sheoul-gra. Thought you might want to tell Suzanne. Sounds like info Azagoth would want to know.”
Journey’s pulse did an excited little kick. Arik had to be talking about Cipher. Had to be.
Finally, a break.
Declan leaned back in his chair and stretched his long legs out in front of him. “I just hope it’s news Azagoth wants to hear. He only yesterday reopened his realm to Memitim and a few Unfallen and fallen angels he trusts, and Suzanne said he’s still in a temper over the death of one of his young children inside his realm.”
“I can’t believe anyone was stupid enough to infiltrate Sheoul-gra and kill a kid right under his nose,” Tayla said. “When he finds out who did it...” She let out a low whistle.
Yeah, the general consensus was that Azagoth was going to go supernova on the bastard. All Memitim would. It was just last week that someone had snuck inside Sheoul-gra and slit the throat of a boy who hadn’t even grown into his powers yet. He’d been taken from