growl leaves my chest at the same time the fight does. I’m not going to get anywhere with him, especially not by slinging retorts back and forth. He’s too set in his ways. “Regardless of what you think I’m worthy of, I gave my word that I would help these Guardians. That trumps any sense of misplaced duty you think I should have,” I say evenly, suddenly tired and completely over being here. I want to go home, curl up in the realm I know and love, and work through what all of this means for me and my future.
“Duty is important.”
“I agree,” I reply. “Which is why we need to leave and check on the Gate. So how do we get out of here?”
He doesn’t speak right away. He just watches me, unnervingly. I take a fortifying breath, forcing myself to say nothing. I don’t want to go another round with this demon, but he doesn’t seem like the type that’s down for a little agree to disagree truce.
We stare at each other, neither one of us sure what to make of things. I’m sure he’s trying to figure out a way to make me come to heel. I’m just trying to figure out why he thinks his vision for my life should trump my own. He doesn’t even know me.
Judging by his reaction in the dungeon, he doesn’t even want kids. So why can’t he just let this go, let me go? His gray-gold eyes flash with frustration, and my heart starts pumping faster, my nerves getting the better of me.
What if he won’t let us leave? What if he keeps us here just to spite me? A little loophole in Luce’s no punishing her rule. He could simply keep us all here, letting the Gate fall, and teaching me a lesson about obedience. My teeth grind together.
Would he do that? Would Lucifer let him?
He finally lets out a sigh and scrubs a hand over his suddenly weary face. “Fine. I’ll transport you back. For now,” he says firmly. “But I reserve the right to pop in whenever I feel like it, and when I summon you, you will answer and return immediately. Is that understood?”
I repeat his words in my mind, trying to see if there are any obvious tricks or loopholes that I should be concerned with. “I’ll answer when summoned, but the Gate is the priority, so if something is going on with the Hellgate, that supersedes your summons. Oh, and you can’t keep me in Nihil longer than I want to be,” I counter offer.
“Agreed,” he tells me a little too quickly. I suddenly wonder if I missed something. I review the wording again, but I’m just not seeing what it could be.
“Agreed,” I finally relent.
“Good.”
He flicks his hand, and then off to the side, a wall that looks similar to the veil of gooey metallic liquid like in the Vestibule appears out of thin air, like a doorway.
I stare at it in open-mouth shock. “You mean, we don’t have to go back to the Vestibule, up the stairs of doom and through the Hellgate to get out?”
“No. Luce’s inner circle can go where they please, when they please,” he states smugly, studying his nails, and implementing a hair flip that only his pompous ass could get away with.
I take in the portal, and relief floods me. I’m not ready to set foot back in the Vestibule. I don’t know if I ever will be.
“Thank you,” I tell Tazreel quietly, beyond grateful that he’s doing this, even though I can tell it’s the exact opposite of what he wants to do. Maybe he’s not as irredeemable as I thought.
Taz gives a curt nod and then casts one more warning glare at the guys before turning on his heel, the doors slamming behind him as he returns to the party.
All of us are quiet for a moment, reeling from the exchange. Crux is the first to break the ice. “So. He seems nice,” he says conversationally, the snark bringing a small smile from my lips. “You think he’ll give us his blessing if we ever want to get hitched?”
A bubbling laugh comes out of me as I turn to him. “Nope. Not in a million years.”
Crux grins. “Good thing we’re immortal, then.”
The smile leaves my face. “Wait...we’re immortal? As in, we don’t age?”
“Correct.”
I look at the four of them warily. “How old are you guys?”
“Old enough to know that we shouldn’t answer that question,” Echo