I was in front of the passage leading to Ash's room before I realized it. It was still dark outside, but sleep was no longer an option. My heart was pounding, and the air kept slipping away from my lungs, forcing me to breathe faster. I was about to knock on Ash's door when he opened it and pulled me into his chamber. I crossed the threshold and found myself in his embrace. He was wearing a loose shirt and sweatpants, but it did nothing to decrease his sexiness. His one hand stroked the back of my head while the other went to my back, pressing me against him."Your heart was pounding so fast. I was worried," he explained.My hands encircled his neck, needing to feel him close to me. "I had a vision... I saw someone making a deal with a demon named Belial," I breathed out shakily.Ash stepped back and examined my trembling body. I was barefoot and wearing nothing but a nightgown made of sheer fabric. I couldn't stop myself from shivering. The remains of the vision I had stayed in my mi

"Drystan Malachious?!" Abdiel yelled out. "This is impossible! It cannot be!"The black-haired man standing in front of Ash and resembling him smirked. "Tell them, brother. You know who I am. I want you to say it." His words were cold and soaked in hatred, but even more terrifying was the fact that I recognized that voice. It was the voice of the man I met in the garden—the one who told me about the spirits on Estelle Island.I could see Ash's throat move up and down, his jaw clenching, and his hands fisting on his sides. He stared into the eyes of that man, and the pain in his expression rose. Calvel stood one step behind him, his claws extending as he shifted into a fighting stance. Ash glanced over his shoulder, giving him a meaningful look. The tension was unbearable, and everyone knew a mere spark could lead to more bloodshed. I was certain that Ash tried to avoid escalation, and his right hand had to know that too. Finally, gritting his teeth, Calvel stepped back and hid his cla

I could barely move for the next three days. Ash stayed by my side whenever he could, but he was mostly too occupied with the war that was bound to begin. Nevertheless, I wasn't left alone, not even for a minute. Most of the time, it was Amanda who took care of me, but Hunter appeared often, asking if I needed company or any kind of assistance. They all turned out to be quite overprotective, sometimes treating me as if I had broken all the bones in my body and couldn't lift a finger. I cursed them a lot, but having too much of their attention was far better than being left alone.Once I could finally walk on my own, I could admire the beauty of Ash's secretly hidden grounds. The estate had been built high in the Spes Mountains and was surrounded by the Golden Forest. The name of the forest was quite literal since all the trees had shimmering yellow-golden leaves. Ash's property spread across several acres of land, including a large clearing in the middle of the forest—the place where

A few hours later, I was sitting in my chamber and combing my shower-damp hair in front of the mirror. Was I truly the only one able to stop Belial? But how was I supposed to do that? Should I attack the Drystan-Belial duo the way I attacked everyone in the auditorium? But the last time I used that power, it drained me, and even now, I didn't fully regain my strength. Perhaps I should concentrate the stream of power on Drystan and Belial without dispersing it, but what if that still was not enough? What then? As a descendant of an Archangel, I could only possess a mere percentage of his power. Could I truly be a match for the true fallen, even in his weak, spiritual form? I groaned in frustration, tossing my hairbrush on the table."You are worrying too much. It's overwhelming, isn't it?" Ash suddenly appeared in my mirror, and I almost screamed."Don't do that!" I frowned at him. "Make a sound at least!"He chuckled and stepped closer, taking a few strands of my hair between his fing

I opened my eyes and winced from the pain. Every part of my body hurt, and the fact that I was lying on the cold stone ground wearing nothing but a partially torn nightgown made the pain more vivid and overwhelming. My hands were shackled in chains so heavy that I barely mustered the strength to lift them. The chain was bolted to a large stone at the foot of some kind of sculpture. Struggling, I rose to a sitting position and focused my eyes on my dimly lit surroundings. The place where I was, resembled ruins. I could see broken columns and crushed rocks lying around a spacious, round hall with a dome-shaped ceiling.I turned around and took a close look at the sculpture next to me. It was at least seven feet tall and resembled a terrifying man-like creature with massive horns on its head. His huge arms were armed with stone-shaped claws, while his feet melted into the center of the podium. The stone where my chain was bolted was part of a ring, placed within a three-foot radius of th