I sucked in a breath at her words, her honesty. In her own way, she was admitting that she wanted us to do this together. All in, all out.
She turned to me. I nodded, confirming her request. “We go into the dark together, as a unit.”
“Always.” Cabe stepped forward.
She lifted her head to meet his eyes, giving him a knowing smile and stepping around Quint. Using her pointer finger, she beckoned Cabe closer. He went willingly, picking up her hand and inspecting the ring on her middle finger. She reached up and put a hand on his face. “I just wanted to say thank you.”
His brows pulled together. “For what?”
“For being the only person who never left me,” she replied. Her voice carried through the room with a warning attached. She was trusting us, but if we failed her, it would be the end of whatever we had going on here. She was commanding our group; she was commanding me. She was completely in charge with one simple statement.
Even after her display of dominance, the three of them formed a line facing me. Warriors awaiting their orders.
“We don’t know what this meeting is about,” I started, locking eyes with each of them. My chest squeezed with anxiety, knowing that Lucifer was setting us up, but not knowing a single thing about his reasoning. “But we know that whatever Lucifer tells us tonight, The Maker already knows. Lucifer has a secret, and he believes that Annalise is somehow involved. He knows something that we don’t, so we go in there alert, we go in there strong, we go in there ready for whatever he throws at us.”
Quint spoke up first. “I wish that I knew what this was about, but he has kept me in the dark since I came Topside. The first actual order he gave me was to find Annalise, but he is very powerful. He’s not above killing Nephilim, fuck, it’s what he does for fun. We can’t let him see weakness. I don’t know if he has any explanations or theories about the mating bonds or Anna’s powers, but I can tell you with certainty that he knows more than we do right now—you can count on that. We need to play it safe, but we can’t let him run us over. Show strength but only when absolutely necessary; it wouldn’t end well for us if we get him fired up.”
Annalise nodded, as did I.
She came to stand in front of me, giving me a moment with her as she did with my brothers. She smiled up at me, her hands fixing the black pocket square in my suit jacket. “Boss man, you good?”
I looked into her eyes, and my heart thrashed in my chest. Raw and aching emotions consumed me, letting me get a glimpse of all the things I would miss if I walked away. I had very little doubt in my mind that Cabe would find his way into Anna’s heart, and Quint couldn’t separate from her if he tried. She seemed to be his lifeline, his safe place.
While I would miss out on her love, her smiles, her peace.
You deserve it.
I swallowed and nodded. “I’m good, Vix.”
She smiled sadly, knowing my conflicted soul. “Then let’s go, the car is going to be here any minute.”
The four of us walked to the elevator, tense and aware. The guys looked dangerous as hell in their black tuxes and matching masks. The pattern was clearly chosen to coordinate with my dress, solidifying my assumption that the three of them were involved in whatever mess I’d found myself in.
I was starting to think that Lucifer knew we were bonded, that maybe he had them find me for that very reason. Between the guys all wearing matching tuxes and their masks matching my dress? Lucifer sent the outfits on purpose—I could feel it.
The thought sparked a question I had planned to ask. “What did you mean earlier about Lucifer knowing what The Maker knows? What does that have to do with tonight?”
Cabe was the one who spoke first. “The Maker is all-knowing. He is responsible for everything that exists in this world. He created the Humans in His image, and when Lucifer was still his most beloved Angel, he was privy to the same knowledge as The Maker. Who lives, who dies, the how and the why. Since the beginning of time, The Maker has set events in motion that affect the Humans and lead them to whatever he wants them to discover—destiny or fate, as you might know it—and sets them on a certain path. When Lucifer Fell, The Maker wasn’t able to turn off that link the two of them share. Ever since Lucifer Fell from The Kingdom…what The Maker thinks, Lucifer knows.” He paused while I absorbed the information before continuing, “Lucifer has tried—and failed—to stop The Maker’s plans, get in the way of His Will, every day since the two separated. It’s a game of sorts. Lucifer rarely wins, but he has yet to stop trying.”
I thought about that for a moment, letting it sink in. “And now, Hellfire exists, and Demons can run around Topside and mess with the Humans? All because of a deal the two of them made?”
“Correct,” Lanier replied as the doors opened, and we all stepped in. “The Humans are The Maker’s most beloved possessions, and when Lucifer gave Lilith control over Hellfire, it opened up the possibility of Lucifer messing with His plans and actually gave him a fair chance of winning. Life for the Humans was much simpler back in the day, but now the Demons bring temptation, sin, and fear with them everywhere they go. It’s infected the Humans, making life more difficult for them, but The Maker has yet to put a stop to it. This deal they made must have prevented him from interfering with the contract they signed way back when.”
“I never understood why The Maker did that,” Quint added, shifting the train of my dress to the side so that he could stand behind me. I felt the warmth of his chest against my back before he lifted both arms to casually hanging off my shoulders. “My father told me what life was like before Hellfire was created; the Humans were safe. Granted, my father was planning an all-out war at the time, but even still, it didn’t make much sense to me.”
“A war?” I asked, turning my head to look up at Quint. His eyes searched mine.
He nodded. “Yes, my father was going to train his Warlocks to harness enough dark magic to create portals into Human territory. He wanted war because he was bored and he knew that was the way to get it. Shortly after The Maker found out, he said that The Maker offered him a deal. Do Him a favor and in return, He’d create a realm where his Demons and Warlocks could go Topside but with a limit. I’m still not sure how many of us can be up here at once, but I don’t think it’s very many. Most of the creatures who live in Hellfire hate the restriction. There has been talk of finding a way around it.”
He took a breath when he finished talking, setting his chin on the top of my head. Thank god I hadn’t done anything special to my hair, or his heavy ass noggin would have fucked it up.
“So, either way,” I surmised, “The Kingdom faces a war. Back then with Lucifer, and now with the Demons who live in Hellfire and want to get out without the restriction.”
It was a lot for my brain to handle, but it was all important for me to know and understand. I didn’t want to be caught unaware in any situation we faced.
“Essentially, yes,” Lanier agreed, nodding. His hair was organized on the top of his head, the sides freshly shaved, the rest arranged perfectly with hair product. It was the cleanest look I’d ever seen on him, and it had me fucking distracted. He was beautiful, they all were.