Page 69 of Angel's Vengeance

A bolt of green magic speared through the clearing and sliced across the ground where Neela and Rhode stood, spraying snow everywhere and sending them both flying in different directions.

Neela’s back hit a tree, and her head scraped against the frozen bark.When she landed in the snow, she tried to move her body, but it was like dragging her limbs through sand.Once she finally got her knees under her, she managed to sit back and winced.

Crimson drops began to dapple the snow around her knees.Neela’s hand flew to the back of her head where her neck met her scalp, and she let out a withered groan.A small patch of bare skin greeted her fingers where hair should be.When she pulled her hand away, blood came with it.

“Nowthatis quite an interesting development.”

Neela screamed as Cyro grabbed her by the hair and lifted her to her feet.

In front of her, Rhode sprang up, kamas already in hand, rhodium armor rippling over his tense body.“Fight me.Fightme, you asshole!She’s not worth it.”

The anger in Rhode’s voice was expected, but it didn’t lessen the blow of his words.

He doesn’t mean that.He’s trying to fight for you.

Cyro grinned.“You know, it’s funny you should bring up the subject of her worth because, while I’m nothing if not a truth-teller, I’m afraid the same can’t be said of our dear Neela.You see, it seems she has been telling some tall tales.For instance, I never knew she was so vulnerable aboveground in the mortal lands.My goodness, can you imagine the agita it would have saved me to just have killed her here outright all those years ago?What a missed opportunity.”His face twisted into a scowl, but something far more sinister danced in his eyes.“And so, I would be remiss letting another tale go by.Tell me,Axtar, do you still think she’ll be worth it once you find out thatshewas the one who told me to do the rhodium experimentation on you in the first place?”

Chapter33

If it hadn’t been for the very vital services required to keep Rhode’s blood pumping and fire at the ready, his brain would have short-circuited.Just ground everything to a fucking halt because his neural synapses wouldn’t have been able to make sense of two very important things: the words Cyro had just spoken or the stricken expression painting Neela’s face with hues of abject horror and bitter remorse.The same kind of affliction common among anyone for whom lying was a way of life and not just a misinformed oopsie.

White-hot emotion warred with his rage, and for the first time in his immortal life, all courses of action eluded him.Shame replaced sense and flooded in fiery and furious on the heels of Cyro’s bishop moving in for the kill while the bastard still had his hands on Rhode’s queen.Around him, the faint sounds of battle faded into the background.Whatever charmers hadn’t yet been dispatched were either flailing around at a good clip or were giving a few of the sentinels a halfway decent workout.

But far more of his brothers stood idle around him, with a stiff shock freezing their advances.Everyone waited for whoever was going to make a move next.Meanwhile, Neela kicked a heel out, trying to break free, but Cyro was faster, drawing a knife to her throat before her foot could even return to the ground.

Rhode’s bow was in his hands, and a flaming arrow nocked and aimed at Cyro’s skull.“I don’t miss,” he warned.

“Neither do I.”Cyro narrowed his eyes and let the challenge permeate the air between them.“You know, I had every intention of killing you outright.I would have found your intelligence master eventually.One thing I know you have experience in is just how true of a concepteventuallycan be for immortals like us.Eventually, the pain will stop.Eventually, I’ll find what I’m looking for.Or, as was the case with you,eventually, something will fall into my lap that has the potential to negate the other two.Neela was that eventuality.”

Chrome joined Rhode at his side, with his guns serving as effortless extensions of his arms.“You don’t need to hear this shit.”

Behind Cyro, Titan and Iron flanked the demon ruler’s back, while the rest of the angels finished off whichever charmers hadn’t bothered to die quickly enough.

Iron swung his mace around in a circle, blue flames lighting the snowy arena like a fire dancer’s taunt.“Give her up, asshole.”

They were all waiting for Rhode, for any semblance of a sign that he was done chit-chatting because they all had other places to be.Cyro was one concentrated blast of angel fire away from being nothing more than a bad memory.Then they’d have the relic.Neela had already tugged at her earlobe and given the signal of what they’d all been hoping for.That she’d been right and Cyro had been arrogant enough to keep the artifact on his person.

But for the life of him, Rhode couldn’t release that arrow.Not yet.He told himself it was because of the knife at Neela’s throat and the way her panic made her too much of a liability, even for an expert marksman like him.One outburst or damn muscle twitch and he ran the risk of not being fast enough to kill Cyro before the bastard delivered on his own promise.

Rhode told himself all of those things, but the gnawing pit in his stomach hadn’t started to fester until Cyro dangled a carrot of the truth in front of him.

Because Neela’s face said it all, even as tears leaked from the corners of her eyes and her brows furrowed into pleading slants.But it wasn’t until his gut had started to sour from churned-up bile that he knew.

Whatever Cyro had to say would be the truth, which wasn’t just curiosity catnip for a former spy like him but basic intelligence, and the bastard had banked on it.

Rhode found Neela’s eyes.“I trust you.”

Mages, it was the truth, wasn’t it?Hedidtrust her, with his life, his brothers, but something about the stricken look on her face sent warning bells clamoring around in his skull.

“Rhode,” she said, and the quiver in her voice nearly killed him.“Whatever he says, know that?—”

“It will make things far more interesting than they already are,” Cyro said.“Just like the idea Neela gave me when I had begun to grow tired of our ...let’s just say, time together.”

The muscles at the back of Rhode’s neck tightened against the memories that threatened to rise up.

Cyro reinforced his grip on the knife at her neck.“This most recent stint aboveground was hardly the first time she’d tried to escape, just her most successful.”

Neela sucked in a sharp breath.

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