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He grinned. My perfect match, he said into her mind.

My stubborn soulmate, she said back.

She released his lip from between her teeth and they kissed, his golden blood mingling with their tongues.

Then, as if she’d dreamed it, he was gone; only sparkling bits of dust glinted in the moonlight, catching in her hair before they flew out the window.

Chapter 40

Adalaide

It was July. The boys had celebrated six months of life, and Adalaide had celebrated two months of being twenty-five.

Her chest ached every time she thought of him, but every now and then, he sent sweet thoughts into her mind. Whenever she was having a particularly rough day, her chest buzzed, letting her know he was nearby.

Henry could say aglll, which she had translated to mean angel, and she melted every time he said it.

She’d had relatively few attacks, which should have made her feel better, but instead, their infrequency made her increasingly wary. Sanura was planning something.

After all, Adalaide could die, but if they didn’t perform the other steps in the spell, Sanura wouldn’t be affected by it. It made the most sense that she would send someone else to end Adalaide and her boys.

“Ada.”

Adalaide froze, dropping the towel she had been folding into her basket and turned slowly.

“You have some nerve, showing your face.”

Jophiel held up her hands in a placating gesture. “I know you’re upset.”

“You have no idea how upset I am.”

“I never meant for any of this to happen.”

“You never meant to curse your entire line to put an end to a necromancer who is the soulmate of the devil and a thorn in your side?” She propped a hand on her hip.

“I want to end her. I won’t deny it.”

Adalaide waited for the angel to say more. When Jophiel said nothing, she asked, “Why are you here?”

“I want you to reconsider.”

Adalaide snorted. “Reconsider cursing my line?”

“It’s my line, too. You’re all my children, but she must be stopped. Only my line can do it.”

Adalaide chewed her bottom lip. “Gabriel is hunting her. He will stop her.”

“If she survives beyond your twenty-sixth birthday, if he’s unsuccessful, she will be unkillable.”

Adalaide crossed her arms over her chest. “I will not be your experiment. My sons need me.”

“She continues to build her army. Imagine the world you’re leaving to them with her in it. Already, more than a thousand of the nasdaqu-ush are converging on America. They have the ability to wipe an entire continent clear of its inhabitants, but you could stop it.”

Adalaide glanced at her boys, biting down hard on her lower lip. “I can’t. They need me.”

Jophiel crossed the room, laying a hand on Adalaide’s shoulders. “Your cousin would care for them. Who will care for the rest of the world when Sanura’s army is so great even the seraphim cannot stop her?”

She sent a thought to Gabriel, willing him to come, to help her fight this battle. He was silent. Somewhere too far away to hear her.

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