“He kidnapped her,” Talon growled. “Logan tried to reach you for months, and you never showed up.”
He shrugged. “I’m not a dog. I don’t have to answer when called.” His eyes darkened to two bottomless pits of black as they focused on my bodyguard. “Who are you anyway?”
Talon threw his shoulders back and his chest inflated, making him look even bigger than I thought possible. “Talon Firestarter. I’m the head of your granddaughter’s security detail.”
“Oh, you’re the one…” He steepled his fingers and crossed his long legs, sinking further into the chair. “Well, then, it seems you’re the fellow to blame for her disappearance, not me.”
A low growl echoed in Talon’s throat as his jaw tightened, his teeth grinding. I jumped in before my crazy bodyguard did something stupid.
“Luci, why didn’t you tell me Thax was my cousin?”
Logan had prepped me for this meeting with my grandfather since he couldn’t attend, and he’d specifically requested I bring that up.
The devil waved a nonchalant hand. “Oh dear, Azara, do you realize how many children and grandchildren I have floating around the two realms? I can hardly keep track of them all.”
“But you specifically mentioned him when you came to help her with Delacroix,” Talon added. Apparently, Logan must have prepped him too. “You practically brought him into this story.”
I finally caught on to where Talon was going with this, and a burst of anger lit up my insides. “Gramps, did you know Thax was looking for me? That he was the one that had me imprisoned? Did you know about the prophecy?”
His lips thinned, the snide grin melting away. “Azara, there are a lot of things I know. Some I can share and others I cannot. Prophecies are fickle beasts, but sometimes it’s best to let them play out. Sometimes, there is a greater good that will come from the events they foretell.”
“You knew all along…” His betrayal was like a knife in the gut, and I found myself gasping for air. Hot tears burned my eyes, but I blinked them back, refusing to cry in front of the Prince of Hell. “Thax tortured me for months, he let my demon run wild, he stole my memories and gods’ knows what else. How could you?”
Talon moved closer, his arm brushing mine. Anger, almost as intense as my own, radiated off the dragon in suffocating waves.
Luci sat straighter, moving to the edge of his makeshift throne. “Because I had to, Azara. And soon, you’ll understand why.”
“Soon? That’s effing B.S., Luci. Tell me what the prophecy says.” My demon surged inside me, struggling to make her presence known. Darkness seeped into my vision, but I fought her back.
“I truly am sorry, my dear, but I cannot.”
“You won’t even help her find Thax?” Talon snarled.
Lucifer lifted a finger and shot me a beaming smile. “That I can do.” He snapped his fingers, and a map appeared in his palm. “Azara, I take it despite your missing memories, your warlock abilities are still intact?”
What the hades? How did he know about that?
“Sort of—” I mumbled.
“They’re working fine,” Talon interjected.
“Perfect.” He floated the map over to me, and I grabbed it before it fell to the wet snow. “Thax has another underground castle. It’s located in the human world, just below Vatican City, adjacent to the catacombs. Ironic, right?” He smirked. “It’s heavily warded as you can imagine, but if you escaped his compound once, I don’t doubt you can bypass his mystical alarm system again.”
I gulped. I still had no idea how I’d done that.
He slowly rose, buttoning his coat. “Now that my job is done, I must run.” He held his arms open and threw me a heart-stopping smile. “How about a hug for your old gramps?”
I wasn’t sure if I wanted to hug him for providing the directions to Thax’s new subterranean hiding spot or strangle him for keeping the truth from me.
“Thanks,” I muttered, digging my heels into the soft snow.
His smile dissipated, and a flash of regret darkened his impossibly obsidian eyes. “It’ll all work out in the end as it should. You’ll see. Then you’ll truly thank me.”
I opened my mouth to argue, but the dark cloud of smoke reappeared. It crawled up his long legs and enveloped his torso. As quickly as it had come, both the magical fog and my devilish grandfather disappeared.
Talon and I remained silent for a few moments. I was trying to wrap my head around what Luci’s veiled comments could possibly mean, and I had no idea what was swirling around the dragon’s mind but whatever it was had his tendon twerking double-time.
Finally, Talon cleared his throat. I glanced over to find his gaze locked on the mountaintops. The sun had begun to set turning the snow-covered peaks a brilliant orange. Vibrant pinks and purples illuminated the darkening sky. It was magnificent. I didn’t say a word, I barely breathed, too scared to ruin the peaceful, ethereal moment.
For a brief time, I stared at the brilliant colors dancing across the horizon and allowed its beauty to wash over me. Talon must have moved closer at some point as the heat of his body began to warm my chilly one. His arm was only a few inches from mine, his shoulder towering over me.
I shifted my weight toward him, and my arm brushed against his. Even through the fabric of our jumpsuits, his warmth seeped through to my skin. Every nerve ending flared to life at the casual touch. My heartrate skyrocketed, and it was all I could do to keep my hands from touching him. “I’m so sorry, Talon,” I murmured. “I’ll do whatever I have to do to make it up to you.”
He didn’t say a word, didn’t spare me a glance. He only nodded.
When I shifted my weight another inch so my shoulder leaned against his bicep, he didn’t move. We stayed like that for a while, in a comfortable silence, watching the radiant sun dip behind the towering peaks.
And that was progress.
Chapter Twenty
It was D-Day—or maybe more accurate, A-Day. The day before open season on Azara. I eyed the passing inmates around my bodyguard’s bulky form as we marched back to our cell.
After an all-night planning sesh with Logan and the guys, we’d come to the only logical conclusion. We had to make a move on Thax’s underground castle tonight. Time had run out and it was our only option, despite how risky Talon kept reminding everyone it would be.
We crossed the atrium, and a familiar dark form appeared from the crowd. Delacroix raised a clawed paw and ticked his head down one of the corridors.
“I think he wants us to follow him,” I whispered to Talon.
He grunted. “We don’t always get what we want.”
I shot him a sidelong glare.
“Sorry.” He huffed out a breath and followed my gaze to the hellus demon.
This time, Delacroix pointed in the direction of the mess hall. Talon must have understood what he was insinuating because he nodded and followed the demon mob boss down the passageway, tucking me behind him.
We turned the corner, and Delacroix had vanished. “Where’d he go?” I scanned the empty hall.
“This way.” Talon motioned to a door marked Janitor and something flickered across my mind.