Page 8 of Stroke of Shadows

The woman pouted, reaching over to place her palm over Lucifer’s peck, her movements sluggish. “I thought… I thought you were gonna show me what a real man was?” she slurred.

Sythe choked on the remainder of his drink, both Xander and Jax smirking.

“Tempting,” Lucy said, gently persuading her to leave. “Next time, love. I think maybe you should go drink some water, sober up a little.”

Reaching over, Sythe lifted the rope to allow her to pass, her expression like thunder as she re-joined her friends.

“Smooth,” Xander muttered.

Jax shook his head. “Real man?”

“Fuck off.” Lucifer wiped a hand down his thigh. “She’s drunk. You can’t trust what she says.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Sythe said, grinning. “That’s what they all say.”

Lucifer glowered, flexing his fingers against the leather of the armchair. He’d been working with Kace, adding more glyph tattoos to his growing collection and testing his arcane. They hadn’t been sure how his body would handle the strain since he was without a beast, normal druids unable to control the enchantments. But Lucifer seemed to be able to accept the glyphs without ill-effect. Which wasn’t entirely a surprise, considering he was no longer a normal druid, his chi expanded when he’d taken the Rite.

“Riley still isn’t sold on you going dark,” Xander commented, his pale eyes piercing. “You sure you want to leave right now?”

Sythe gripped the glass hard enough it cracked, the minute fracture spiderwebbing before he set it gently down. “I’m not throwing all my planning and work away, Xee. You all know how important this is.”

Months he’d been working on the profile he needed to infiltrate the Beauchamps. If he dropped it all now, everything he’d done would be for nothing. And that wasn’t an option.

“Why the fuck would someone willingly allow themselves to be possessed? To become a puppet?”

“Sy’s right,” Jax agreed calmly. “Why would the Church of the Light agree to be a conduit for a Daemon when it goes against everything they preach?”

“I don’t give a shit about the church,” Sythe growled. “They’re clearly just stupid pawns in a bigger game.”

“Daemons haven’t been free from the chains that tethered them to the Nether for long,” Lucifer added. “It takes time to establish an alliance, and for Gideon to build his own army.”

“Ah yes, the Undead,” Xander said, lips pressing into a thin line. “Just another pain in our arses.”

“So what better chance than for me to infiltrate the church? To figure out what role they play and to put a stop to it.” Sythe stood, too much energy as he clenched his fists. “Gideon’s the king, take him out, and the playing board falls.”

“You’ll have to get through Bishop,” Lucy said, head cocked. “He’s the one who controls the Unhallowed, and he’s Gideon’s bitch.”

Sythe grinned, the smile not friendly. “What do you think I do for a living, Batboy?”

Lucifer clicked his tongue. “Your confidence is going to get you killed.”

“We’ve been telling him that for years,” Xander muttered.

Sythe shook his head. “This place is giving me a headache.” The anxiety of his departure grew. It happened every time he left, the panic of not being able to contact his brothers until his job was done. “So who’s playing poker? Is Ti—”

“No.” Jax drained the rest of his drink. “Everyone but Titus.”

The information wasn’t a surprise, but Sythe still swallowed the lump forming in his throat. It was just another reason for going dark, revenge for his brother, who was recently tortured.

“You need to give him time,” Lucifer said, sitting forward. “The Rite isn’t something so easily recovered, and he’s yet to accept the power as his own.”

“He hasn’t left his room for weeks—” Jax began.

Lucifer barked out a laugh. “He’s just had a ton of black magic forced through his chi, if he wants to hide in his room for a few weeks, then let him. He’s strong, he won’t fall.” Except Lucifer’s smile was forced, hiding the strain they all felt.

Titus was strong, but that didn’t mean they weren’t worried about him. He didn’t think Axel would be going, knowing he preferred to stay close to his cousin as much as possible. Guilt, Sythe suspected, although Axel had nothing to feel guilty about.

It was a risk of their jobs, death, and now, thanks to what happened to Titus, rituals that forced you to transition into the very things they were trained to kill. Sythe was going to take deep pleasure in separating the head of the Daemons who hurt his brother, and every person who sold their soul to the Undead.

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