Tangling her fingers in his hair, she pulled him down. His scent filled her nostrils, and her core went molten. A masculine purr erupted from him, and she knew he’d felt it, too.

She dragged her tongue along his jugular, once, twice, three times, because she would never tire of tasting him and she wanted this to last. Wanted to remember everything about him. His taste, his scent, even the way he breathed.

“Jesus, Idess. I could come from that.”

“Mmm.” She licked him again, smiling at the way he sucked a breath between his teeth. “Can’t have that.” Mouth watering, she sank her fangs into him.

Her mouth filled with his silky, dark essence, and her body filled with power. The weird sensation she’d felt before, the one that felt as if someone was drawing his dermoire pattern on her skin with a pen, started up again. And every emotion he had punched into her… love, joy, despair. But mostly lust, and her body answered.

Between her legs, an erotic storm gathered, building like thunderheads in the spring. Lore’s body seemed to have a mind of its own as long as her teeth were in him, as if he felt her need and could only respond to it. Relieve it.

“Ah, yes… Idess… I… can’t… stop…”

As if she wanted him to! She wanted more. Harder. Faster. She wanted to be sore and aching, so that every step she took on the Other Side would remind her of him.

Bond with me.

He’d mentioned wanting to do that before they’d gone to battle with Rami.

Bond with me.

Oh, she wanted that. But when the Memitim Council destroyed her, he’d know when he felt the bond break.

“Bond with me!”

With a start, she realized he was speaking out loud. His words weren’t in her head. Lightning from the strengthening tempest ripped through her, turning her blood to fuel and setting her body on fire. She was drunk with Lore’s very essence, and his command to bond became a compulsion she couldn’t fight.

“Your blood,” he panted. “Give it to me.”

Disengaging her fangs, she sealed the wound with her tongue. High on the overload of physical and emotional sensation, she bit into her wrist and pressed it to his mouth. Greedily, he latched on as he tightened the knot of his right hand and her left.

Burning, pulsing energy washed over her. The sharp blast of her orgasm shattered her. And her soul crashed into his, twisting and spinning until there was only ecstasy.

When it was over, he collapsed on top of her, though he braced his upper body on his elbows to keep from completely crushing her.

For a long time, they just lay there, panting and sweating. She barely had the strength to lift her wrist to her mouth to seal the punctures she’d made. Tingles ran up her other arm. Frowning, she rolled her head to the side.

“Lore?”

“Mmm?”

“My arm.”

He lifted his head from where he’d buried his face in the crook of her shoulder. “Shit,” he breathed. “We really did it. My dermoire is setting into your skin.”

“How did you know what to do?”

“Dunno.” His fingers trailed over the shadowy pattern that pulsed just beneath her skin, and she sucked air. Wow. Erogenous zone. Big-time. “Instinct, I guess. It just… took over.” He went taut, and she felt his fear right in her heart. “We shouldn’t have done it. What if your angel buddies see it? Being bonded to a demon has to be some sort of disqualifier for the job.”

No, breaking her vow of chastity with a demon had already done that. “It’s fine.” She smiled reassuringly, because the doubt in his eyes said he wasn’t buying it. “But I should go.”

“No.” He shook his head. “Just a little longer.”

She touched his face, committing every angle, every curve, every pore to memory. “It’s time.”
* * *

More than three dozen spirits waited for Idess at the emergency room doors. They rushed her, but she did her best to ignore them as she walked hand in hand with Lore, who had been silent since they left the room. His eyes were swollen with unshed tears, and his jaw was tight, as though he was afraid to open his mouth, lest sobs fall out.

She knew exactly how he felt, and not just because of the bond.

Her steps were leaden as they walked through the parking lot, the herd of ghosts on their tail. When they reached the far wall, he finally spoke.

“What’s going to happen?”

“I need the gate to open.”

He nodded and shouted at the medic who had accompanied them to Shade’s cave. “Yo! Con! I need you to open the vehicle entrance.”

The medic climbed into the ambulance, and he must have hit a switch, because the wall shimmered and disappeared as it had before. Outside, the column of light waited. And beyond it, on a different level, was a bluish, less-focused glow. It was the one waiting for the human souls. They stood there, confused… apparently unable to see the light from inside the lot.

“Come with me.” She led them to the gate, careful not to get too close to her own light. Not yet. “Go now.” All but one of them filed out the door and straight into the glow, which swallowed them up in little flashes.

A boy of perhaps ten human years remained behind. I’m afraid.

Swallowing the lump in her throat, she went down on her knees before him. “I am, too.”

Really?

“Yes, but only because it’s something new. But it’s also something wonderful. Do you miss your family?” At his sullen nod, she took his hand. “They’ll be on the other side of that light, waiting for you.”

My parents? And sister?

“I don’t know about that, but trust me, generations of family are waiting to greet you.”

He bowed his head. I don’t think so. I did something bad. I played with matches.

“Is that how you died?”

And my sister.

“Oh, sweetheart, don’t you worry. Your family loves you. There is eternal forgiveness in the light.” She turned to the glow, where several adults and a young girl stood, all smiling. “See? They’re waiting.”

Tension mounted as he stared into the light, his chin quivering and tears rolling down his face. He kept shifting his feet, stamping them like a colt that was about to bolt. Finally, with a giant sob, he ran, straight into their arms. As he turned to wave to her, the spirit light faded.

Hers remained.

When she turned to Lore, his eyes were as large as the boy’s had been. “Idess. My… God.”

“You saw?”

He nodded numbly. “Must be the bond or something, but yeah. Wow. That was… beautiful.”

She laced her fingers with his. “It’s my turn.”

“I know. Eternal forgiveness, right?” His smile trembled, but he was trying to be strong for her.

Eternal forgiveness. She hadn’t lied to the boy. She felt it in her heart and soul, and for the first time since the light had come for her, she wasn’t afraid.

Slowly, he dipped his head and touched his lips to hers. “I love you,” he murmured. “I love you so much.”

“Be good,” she said, even as her heart split wide open. She wasn’t afraid, but she was in pain.

Before she could change her mind, she pulled away from him and walked into the light.

She didn’t look back.

Lore watched her leave, and the moment she disappeared and the gate slammed shut so it was nothing but dark, cold rock, he dropped to his knees and screamed.

Screamed until medics came. Then Eidolon. Then there was a prick in his biceps, and mercifully, the world went black.

Twenty-five

Lore was going to kill Deth. Okay, sure, he said that all the time. But after two days of doing nothing but sit in his hovel and drink, Lore realized he didn’t have anything better to do anyway. And if Lore died during the attempt, so be it. He couldn’t care less about himself, because the best part of him was gone.

The bond with Idess had broken. Which meant she was dead.

You f**ked away your purity and can’t Ascend. You’ll probably be destroyed.

Rami’s words had been clanging around in his skull since the moment she’d disappeared into the light. She’d lied about being summoned to get her wings, damn her. Lore had been stupid enough to believe it, and now she was dead. So yeah, if he died, too, so what. And if he survived, Sin would no longer be at the mercy of that evil bastard. Idess had helped him forgive himself for what he’d done to Sin, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to keep trying to make it up to her.

Lore just hoped his sister was all right. She hadn’t contacted him, nor had she answered his texts or returned his calls. If Deth had hurt her…

Soul-searing anger joined the black hole of grief that no amount of white lightning could fill.

You shouldn’t have left Sin behind again. You shouldn’t have let Idess go. They’re both dead because of you.

He took a swig of alcohol, relishing the raw burn in his gullet. If he couldn’t scour away the grief, at least he could savor the pain. He raised the bottle into the air.

“To you, Deth. One of us will be dead by morning.”

Lore hit the demon bars at midnight. He knew exactly who he was looking for, and sure enough, he found the tiger shifter, Sunil, at a poker table, doing his best to scam a vampire, a Sora, and an orange, horned thing of unknown species.

“Hey, man, can I talk to you?”

Sunil threw down his cards. “I’m out anyway.” He followed Lore to a corner table. “Heard you’re free. Congratulations.”

“Yeah. How’s Sin?”

“Haven’t seen her.”

A chill throbbed through Lore’s veins. “What do you mean, you haven’t seen her? How did you know I’m free?”

“The new Sem told me. He came to me for some healing after Deth was through with him.” Sunil shook his head, making his long, tawny bangs swish across his eyes like wiper blades. “The bastard waited until Tavin was crazed with lust, and then he brought in a whore. Turned Tav loose and watched the show. I don’t know what happened to the female, but damn, Tav’s broken. Afterward, Deth kicked him to me to patch up.”

That sick son of a bitch. Lore would take revenge for Tavin as well as for Sin. “Can you get me into the den?”

Sunil knocked back a swig of his beer. “Fuck that.” He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “I like my head on my shoulders, thank you very much.”

“Sin could be in trouble.”

“You know I like your sister, man. But I can’t risk my life for her. I have kids to feed.”

“I know, and I wouldn’t ask if this wasn’t important. I plan to re-up with Deth,” he lied.

“Then go through the normal channels.”

He couldn’t do that, because Deth would meet him in the Guild Hall, which was under a Haven spell similar to the one protecting Underworld General.

“I need to see Sin first.”

“Dammit, Sem—”

“Please.” Shit, Lore hated begging. But he sucked it up and added, “I’ll do anything.”

Sunil cursed. Long and hard. Finally, he growled, “I’ll get you through the barrier. You’re responsible for getting yourself inside Deth’s keep. And if we’re caught, I’ll save my own skin and say you forced me.”

Lore grinned. “I wouldn’t expect anything else.”

Deth was as good as dead. All Lore had to do now was pay a visit to Eidolon.
* * *

Lore had earned a fierce ass-chewing from Brother Doctor.

“I’ve left you a dozen messages,” Eidolon said, as he spread his palm on Lore’s bare chest.

“Didn’t feel like answering.”

“How have you been?”

This was exactly why Lore had avoided Eidolon. He didn’t want to talk about any of this. Didn’t want to talk about it, think about it, didn’t want to be here, because he’d made love to Idess for the last time in this very hospital.

“I lost my mate,” Lore rasped. “How do you think I’ve been?”

“I’m sorry. If anything happened to Tayla…”

“You’d die. I know.” Lore took in a ragged breath. “Thanks, by the way. You know, for knocking me out the other day.” Whatever his brother had shot him up with had put him on his ass for a good twelve hours.

But when he’d awakened in a hospital bed, Idess was still gone, and he’d gone into a fresh meltdown.

Eidolon nodded. “You shouldn’t have taken off so soon.”

“’Cuz I so wanted to hang out here and watch everyone pity me.” He looked down at Eidolon’s hand. “A little to the right. The scar has to look real if I’m going to get past Deth’s goon squad.”

Eidolon adjusted his palm. “You sure you want to do this? If you wait, we can work out a plan to get Sin out of there—”

“Can’t wait. I need something to do.” He didn’t see any way for his brothers to help get Sin out of Deth’s contract anyway. This was their best shot.

“We could keep you busy.”

Lore snorted. “Doing what? Polishing the floors? Emptying the garbage? I’m good at killing people, not healing them.”

“We haven’t replaced our ME,” Eidolon said with a shrug, and Lore stared.

“You have got to be f**king kidding me.”

“It’s perfect for you. You don’t have to worry about killing anyone.”

Lore shifted Eidolon’s pinky a hair to the left. “You should be doing standup.”

“I’m serious, Lore. We could use you.”