the power in the court.
And for the first time in ten years, he regretted his decision to leave, to chase after vengeance. In leaving, he’d abandoned Red Manor, his home, his people. A snake like Luxen becoming High Lord? That fuckup was on him.
He’d be lucky to survive whatever judgment happened next.
Lux bared his sharp teeth. “You kneel there, as angel, in this court and have the balls to plead not guilty?”
“It is not what it seems.” Severn raised his voice, unable to stop the tremors every demon here must have heard. “This illusion is fixed. I cannot—”
“We’re aware. Jeseph has been attempting to have it removed, but you insist on clinging to it. Why is that?” Lux asked, like any of this was Severn’s choice.
“No. I’m not—that’s not… If I could get rid of it, I would.”
“Is that really the truth?” Lux’s brow lifted, clearly disbelieving.
“Why would I stay as angel among you, my kin? I sacrificed my life, my title, to defeat Mikhail. I almost succeeded, but Argothun acted too soon. We had an agreement. He was to wait for my signal, but he blustered in. What happened after…” Severn wet his dry lips. The allyanse had happened after. Mikhail had saved Severn and bonded with him, and no doubt, every demon here knew it. The thought of it sickened him again, like it had when he’d first learned of it, because he knew all those here would see him and his love as monstrous.
“Argothun and his manor suffered for your mistake,” Lux declared. “Demons have died for your mistakes, Konstantin. You killed demons in battle, alongside Mikhail. You went to him willingly. What defense can you possibly have?”
He glanced at his sister. Her brow was pinched, but not by much. Would she stay silent, or had she already spoken up? They’d always disagreed as pups, but she didn’t hate him. Severn had only tried to hurt her—kill her—to protect the outcome of his relationship with Mikhail, to protect the change he could have implemented. It would have been worth it, but, of course, she wouldn’t see it that way. Had she spoken, she’d have told them all how he tried to kill her on the banks of the Thames.
“I made mistakes,” he admitted, setting off another round of dissent from the crowd. But he stared at Lux, at the demon’s proud face and striking, curved horns, at the way his wings arched behind him, their tips reaching higher than any other demon’s here. “I can stop him. Stop all of this. He trusted me. I was getting through to him. I can end his relentless attacks. You all think it’s over, but it’s not. I’m not finished. It’s why I’m like I am.” He slowly straightened, still having to look up at Lux, but at least he was on his feet. “Never in our entire history has a demon gotten so close to an angel. Years of work, a decade devoted to bringing him down—”
“But you failed.”
“It wasn’t done. We have an opportunity here to change things forever. We have to take it. Or the war will go on, and eventually, Mikhail or another guardian like him will wipe us out. Our numbers are too few. Despite Djall’s attack, they will rally, and as we’ve seen— thanks to that very attack—they no longer care for the Law. Djall opened the way for dissent, and the angels have embraced it. They were deadly before, but now they’ll stop at nothing. There are no laws, no rules. If I do not finish what I began, we will all die.”
His last words rang through the silence. He let them hang there, let everyone hear them over and over, because it was the truth. “Put me on trial afterward, if there is an after. But let me finish what I started now. I stand before you as an angel because I’m the only weapon demonkind has left.”
The mood among the crowd quickly shifted, signaling a change. His words were getting through. Lux heard it too. His dark eyes skimmed the demon masses until finally resting again on Severn. His lips ticked, and, almost lazily, he said so only Severn could hear, “You always did have their hearts.”
Lifting his hand, the crowd fell silent, and he backed up to his place among the lords. “Unlike angels, we are reasonable. We have heard Konstantin’s words. Lords, it is time to decide Konstantin’s fate. Do we acquit, or do we condemn?”
Severn’s heart beat in