Th-Thump, th-thump, th-th-thump.
Noel was also stronger than Jai sometimes gave him credit for, and he proved it once again as he straightened and blinked away his moment of weakness. Within seconds, all traces of panic vanished, replaced by a cold determination. “I know we will. But in what condition?”
There was no answer. Jai didn’t offer one. He wanted to alleviate Noel’s fears, but Purgatory was probably the worst place for Riley to be. He’d only been gone a few hours, but in Purgatory it had already been a day. Maybe two?
But it wasn’t confirmed. Riley could have been anywhere in the cursed realm. Maybe even the mortal one, though that was less likely. The Fallen would want him on their turf where they were strongest. Angels didn’t go to the underworld unless they absolutely had to, and the Fallen knew that. Riley had to be in the cursed realm. The only question that remained was what sector.
“Jai. Noel,” Gideon called to them from across the meeting room currently being used as their tactical headquarters.
Maps and schematics were spread over numerous tables. Computer screens lined one wall, manned by Archangels and Cherubs alike. Too many bodies filled the space, prattling into phones, typing on keyboards, whispering amongst themselves. They’d gotten organized quickly, but little good it had done so far. They were no closer to finding Riley.
When Gideon waved them over, Jai and Noel broke their little huddle. Jai trailed after his Other, rubbing his chest again. The ache was deepening, burrowing into his bones and arteries. It was only concern for Riley; it was just anxiety.
Oh, how that felt like a lie.
As they serpentined through the work stations, Jai scrutinized the room and its inhabitants. Friends and allies worked tirelessly to aid in the search, but it was easy to wonder how many enemies hid within the throng. They’d been betrayed—Riley had been betrayed—and they had yet to undoubtedly find the traitor.
Beau was an easy accusation, of course. Too easy. Jai wanted to blame him, but the evidence and conjecture were a little too perfect. If anything, Beau was a simple scapegoat. Though catching him breaking into the councilmen’s offices didn’t help his case.
Only time would tell who was truly on their side, but they didn’t have time to spare.
When Jai finished his perusal of the room, no one stuck out from the crowd. Noel and Jai barely garnered attention as they winded through the sea of angels. But that didn’t mean they weren’t being watched.
Mossy green eyes met his, and Jai curled his lips back from his teeth and nearly growled. Malachi rolled his eyes and looked away, tracking Noel instead. That was far from an improvement, but thankfully, Noel didn’t notice the attention. If Jai had his way, he would gouge out Malachi’s eyes so he could never look at his Other again. But he rarely got his way. Unfortunately.
When they came to a stop at the table where the Archangels were gathered, he manhandled Noel to his other side to put as much distance between his Other and the psychotic dickhole who still watched him like he had a claim to the body he saw.
Jai had never trusted the male, even before he hit Noel for the first time. And his mistrust never wavered. Malachi was cruel and arrogant, aggressive and short-tempered. All the traits Jai hated about himself were glorified in Malachi’s eyes. The two males were similar in more ways than Jai wanted to admit. Maybe that was why he hated Malachi so much... Because Jai could have been him.
Given the right—better yet, wrong—circumstances, Jai could have been just like him. Without Noel as his anchor, without Gideon’s guiding hand, without the light Riley brought to his heart, he would have been Malachi. And that scared him more than anything.
Malachi’s attention drifted to his pocket, where he retrieved a phone. A smile tipped his lips as he read something on his screen before he returned the phone to his pocket. Their eyes met once more, and the smile deepened into something dark and cruel. Unable to resist, Jai flipped him his middle finger, and Malachi snorted, amused at his hatred.
“Jai, focus.” Noel’s hand landed on Jai’s, where his knuckles whitened from his death grip on the table. Malachi zeroed in on the touch, and his amusement evaporated instantly. It was Jai’s turn to flash him a smug grin, and the Archangel scowled.
“We have reports pouring in,” Raphael said, interrupting Jai and Malachi’s loathing glare-off. “But they’re doing more harm than good. At this point, we have sightings of the Seven in almost every sector of the underworld. Which means—”
“We have nothing,” Jai finished the sentence, and the wood beneath his grasp creaked.
“They can’t be everywhere at once,” Michael said. “We’ll need to search the realm systematically, sector by sector—”
Noel interrupted, “But that will take too long! Weeks, months even. Riley doesn’t have that kind of time.”
“They’re not going to kill him.” Gabriel crossed his arms over his chest, his blue eyes scrutinizing the map spread across the table. “They didn’t go through all this trouble to get him—no thanks to you lot—if they planned on killing him right away. Believe it or not, time is on our side, not theirs.”
“How do you figure?” Gideon asked, tone tight.
Uriel answered before Gabriel had a chance to puff. “They want to use him, not destroy him. And they can’t use him if he’s dead. They’ll want to manipulate him, coax him to join their cause. They always wanted willing followers, even the first time.”
“Yeah, until that didn’t work and they resorted to torture, rape, and murder.” Jai tugged on his hair until his scalp prickled. “They will hurt him.”
“They are hurting him,” Noel seethed.
To his credit, Uriel winced. “Yes, you’re probably right. But Riley’s strong.”
“He is, but that doesn’t mean we waste our time on futile endeavors,” Gideon interjected, and Michael raised his hand to quiet the table.
“Enough. We are not here to discuss what Riley may or may not experience at the hands of the Fallen. We are here to create a plan that brings him back as quickly as possible.”
“Why can’t we just flood the underworld with angels? Burn everything. Smoke them out.” Jai’s heart tripped over itself, and the trunk of the tree tattooed on his back twisted. Sweat trickled down his temple as he shook off the pain. “They can’t hide him if there’s nothing but ash for cover.”
“We simply do not have the resources for a full scale invasion. And as much as we want to rescue Riley, we will not jeopardize the other realms or the safety of their inhabitants by pulling every angel in existence to aid in a battle we will lose.” Michael’s hands spread over the table, and the wood groaned as he leaned his massive weight over the top. “The cursed realm is their turf. It would be a massacre of epic proportions.”
Gideon glared at the wall as Noel tugged on his messy braid in frustration. Jai stewed, grinding his teeth.
“We have a better chance of searching covertly and then attacking a solitary target once he’s found.” Raphael placed a hand on Gideon’s shoulder. “We’re not giving up on him, nor will we stop searching until we find him. But there is only so much that can be done for one singular life. We must think of the greater good.”