Page 48 of A Lost Light

The councilor was free. But his wife was possessed now, and running right toward the portal that would make her a powerful hostage. Aahil was after her in a blink, and I knew that he could handle a little case of jinn possession. It seemed our little firecracker was older and more powerful than the jinn the cult had managed to enslave.

Andy was rolling around on the ground with the councilor, both of them glowing with magic, but she had Niamh and Zhong with her. I would be worried that the older witch would get the better of our untrained powerhouse of a leader. But I knew it wouldn't get that far.

Zhong proved me right, stepping forward when the opportunity presented itself. The councilor managed to make it to his knees, swaying as he knelt there and prepared a spell that would probably fry Andy’s synapses. Our witch didn't back down, snarling obscenities at him and something about how we were trying tohelphis stupid ass. But the gargoyle ended the threat by bringing one very large stone-hard fist down on top of the councilor's head. The man's eyes rolled back in his head, andhe pitched to the ground, hopefully just unconscious and not dead.

I grinned to myself in my half-physical form, still hanging out in between this world and the otherworld. I felt unnecessary. Though I had helped put down a couple of cult members earlier. Bella was right. Our little group could probably put an end to this silly war before it even really got started, if we were so inclined. We were certainly more power than was needed for this little spat.

My amusement faded with a sharp tug at my gut, followed by a crawling sense of dread that I shouldn't be able to feel. Only one person could truly unnerve a boogeyman. I immediately looked for Dyre. And found him about to lose his mind.

Corpses lurched to their feet all around the yard, not rushing into action, but swaying in eerie readiness. I registered the angel standing way too close to the crazy blond witch and immediately knew what had happened. “Shit.”

Andy was pressing a hand to her chest, a frown on her face. But there was no time to explain what was happening. I dematerialized entirely and rushed to Dyre's side. Elijah had a hand on the necromancer, whose eyes had gone completely black. Dyre's aura radiated out around him, and I had to stepintothe blackness to reach him.

“Dyre!” I shouted, faint whispers filling my ears. The cries of a million lost souls pleading for mercy. “Sunshine!”

Was this what it was like every time he tapped into his true power? I was a creature of darkness myself. I gave people nightmares and fed off their terror. But this… this was disturbing, even for me. Dyre seemed to be in a trance as he held out his hand, the darkness of his power twining around the witch before him, andpulling.I gaped as I saw a faint, shimmery essence begin to leave her, pulled into Dyre. He was consuming her essence. Her soul.

“Dyre,” Elijah was saying. “I know. I know what she's done but please, stop.” His blue eyes glowed and he was outlined in his own glowing gold aura of angelic power, his hand gripping Dyre's arm as he did something with that magic.

“You idiot!” I snapped, wrapping my own aura around Dyre's, attempting to remind him of the here and now. A good nightmare might distract him. But then again… it might send him over the edge in an attempt to save himself. “We need that bitch alive,” I said, shaking him. “If you drain her, we won't be able to question her!”

The drain didn't stop, but those black eyes slid my way. His deep voice reverberated with the echo of all the souls he had consumed in his long, long life. “I hunger,” Sunshine informed me. And wasn't that just great.

“Yeah, well, rein it in, buddy. We need this one alive and coherent. Maybe you can snack on her later.” I was out of my depth here. Iknewhunger. And I couldn't even begin to imagine how much worse a half-starved wraith must feel. “Dyre's not gonna be too thrilled when he realizes you lost your shit and embarrassed yourself like this.”

He regarded me with narrowed eyes, but his life drain on the witch seemed to have at least paused for the moment. “He is often upset by silly things,” the wraith agreed. “However, in this case, we are in agreement. He wants this woman punished for her actions.”

A glowing hand gripped Dyre's deathly pale cheek and turned his head away from me. The angel stared into his black eyes, his wings flaring out behind him, angelic power so radiant it hurt to look at. “She will be punished for her sins,” he assured the necromancer, sounding exactly like the holy instrument he had once thought himself to be. “I will ensure it, master. Let me do this. Please. Let me serve you.”

My eyebrows nearly met my hairline at that little outpouring. I glanced between the two men, my cock giving a little twitch despite the situation. I had never really envisioned Dyre as themastersort of guy. But now I was imagining the golden boy kneeling at my lover's feet, ready to obey his every command, and… I really needed to fucking focus.

“Sunny,” I tried again. “Maybe you should let the angel handle this. Then Dyre can be mad at him, not you.”

“As if I care if my vessel is disappointed,” the wraith muttered, his dark voice absolutely chill inducing.

Ahh, but Sunnydidcare what Dyre thought. And we all knew it.

“He'll be upset that he lost control,” Elijah chimed in. Then the clever angel went right for the big guns. “And Andy will be disappointed in you. She'll be mad we won't be able to get information from this witch.”

Dyre's body shuddered as Sunshine and Dyre no doubt had some sort of internal conversation. Then he dropped his hand, severing the drain on the cult's leader. “Fine,” Sunny bit out. Then he grabbed the angel by the back of the neck and drew him even closer, “but you owe me for the loss of a feast.”

Elijah was every bit as tall as Dyre, and a bit broader, more muscular. But he let himself be manhandled by the slender necromancer. Who, to be fair, was wraith-powered right now. “Of course,” he said, lifting his chin and meeting the wraith's black gaze. “Whatever you want.”

A slow, evil smile curled Dyre's blue-tinged lips as he leaned in even closer. “I will take this instead. And I will tell you something, because my host must pay the price as well.” He leaned to the side, whispering in Elijah's ear, but I heard every word. “He lied to you.” Then the wraith was devouring the angel, kissing him hard, one hand still gripping the back of his neck,while the other pressed between his glorious wings, crushing them together.

He released the stupefied angel and turned to me. “Boogeyman,” he said, lifting a hand to brush my hair back from my face. “I've missed you in our bed. I wish to taste you as well. Before Dyre insists on making us boring once again.”

A surprised laugh escaped me. Here we were, standing in the aftermath of a magic battle, and the wraith wanted to make out. “Any time, Sunny,” I said, holding my arms out to him. “And make sure Dyre hears me when I say, I've missed you too. Both of you.” Thingshadbeen rather busy, and there were a lot of budding relationships going on in our little family. It had been some time since I’d spent the night alone with my shy necromancer and the impatient houseguest who shared his body.

I had never really kissed Sunny on his own, when he was fully in control. It was overwhelming, but right, somehow. His darkness and mine were… comfortable with each other. I knew hecoulddevour me in a heartbeat, feed off the fear and connection to the otherworld that made up who I was. But he devoured my mouth instead, tasting, claiming. The same body, but an entirely different person.

When he released me, I chuckled again. “This has been a very strange evening.”

Sunshine blinked and his eyes bled from black to violet. Dyre ran a hand through his long red hair and muttered, “Fucking wraith.”

Chapter 29

Ishook my head at the chaos around me. I wasn't sure if this was a big win or an embarrassing clusterfuck. But then, the councilor and his wife were still with us, sitting on the front steps looking defeated. And the cult fuckers were all dead or unconscious. I wasn't sure how I felt about the dead part. But I wasn't thinking about that right now.

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