Page 93 of Hidden Sacrifice
“They are by your bed waiting for you, Babe,” he said as his eyes roamed my skin.
“How much more needs to heal?” I asked, watching as both his eyes moved in sync.
“Honestly, most of the major work is done. I will need some time to regrow some of the muscle, but I’m starting to get some power reserves back for more than just healing.”
My eyes roamed Jax’s body; he was noticeably leaner now. If that meant he healed enough to maintain a shield, tonight might not be as hopeless as I thought. “I imagine we can assume about the same of Fachnan.”
Jax shrugged. We could only estimate how healed Fachnan would be by now.
“You ready to get married, Babe?” Jax gave me a small smile.
“You know, when I was a kid, I imagined my wedding. Four grooms, a black dress, and an unknown demon attempting to kill me were not part of my plan,” I laughed.
“We don’t have to show up, you know. We could find a portal off the realm and spend the rest of our lives hiding out,” Jace offered, but we all knew that wasn’t a real possibility. I couldn’t live the rest of eternity looking over my shoulder, waiting for Fachnan to catch up to us. We were demons. We were the predators. May all the gods show mercy on any poor soul that decides to target my family and me, because I sure won’t.
“Let’s go get married,” I said, getting to my feet and heading out of the closet.
Justice was lying across my bed on his back. His arms folded under his head as he stared at the ceiling. I was surprised to see he wore black fitted pants, but his shirt was white. Several buttons were left undone at the top to show off his green inked runes.
Jasper stood, leaning against the wall with his arms folded across his broad chest. Black pants, black shirt, black vest. His tail flicked back and forth like an irritated cat as tension radiated from his body. We were all tense.
“You look stunning, Fox,” Justice said lazily as he turned his head in my direction. I watched his eyes rake over my body with unrestrained lust. I hoped we wouldn’t die tonight so I could at least take full advantage of my wedding night.
“Are we ready to kick off this party?” I asked, knowing we needed to start heading for the throne room before Lucifer sent someone down to escort us.
“One more thing,” Jax said, grabbing a small, wrapped box from my side table before offering it.
I took the box, feeling four sets of eyes watching me as I pulled the red bow free from the black box before opening it. Nestled inside was an ornate crown made of black metal with red gems. “Wow.”
“Can I?” Jax asked, his hand gesturing toward the crown.
I nodded and watched as he gently removed the crown from the box before placing it on top of my head, securing it in place. Now, I felt like a princess.
My eyes met with Jax’s as his hands slowly slid down my face. His thumbs brushed the delicate skin of my lips before moving down my neck. His thumbs rubbed up and down as we shared a simple moment staring into each other’s eyes. His emotions were calm, resolute even.
“Can I hear you say it?” Jax whispered. “Just one more time before we head in there. Just tell me you love me, and I can die.”
I didn’t wait for him to finish the rest of the sentence before I pulled his lips down to mine. This kiss tasted bittersweet as we desperately clung together. I refused to allow this to be a goodbye, but this may be the only one we get. I pulled back slightly, just enough to look him in the eyes. “I love you, Jax.”
His eyes closed for a moment as if he was savoring the words. As I closed the mental door to the room I had just made, I knew I was.
An alarm went off. “It’s time to go, Princess,” Jasper announced.
Jasper led the way to the throne room while Jax escorted me on one side with Jace on the other. Justice took up position behind the group, walking casually. We met two members of the black knights outside the large doors of the throne room. Coming to a stop in front of them, we waited in silence. They nodded simultaneously before turning to open the doors wide as music burst from the room.
It didn’t sound anything like the wedding song humans used in their ceremonies. It was slow and eerie, featuring a violin. I felt all the hairs on my body raise as goosebumps lined my skin. Justice pushed calming energy out to the entire pack, helping us regain our composure as we were revealed to the large audience.
I’m not sure how many demons could fit into the throne room, but aside from the narrow path that led up to the throne, the entire room was packed. We would have to walk in single file if we wanted to avoid being within touching range of the demons that lined our path.
“Jace in front of me, Jax behind,”I called out, and we seamlessly merged into position as we headed up the path. This didn’t feel like a walk to an altar for marriage. This felt like a march to the gallows.
Lucifer waited for us on the bottom step of the throne. It took me a moment to spot him standing there as he wore an all-white suit in place of his usual black-out attire. Even his smile was dazzling; he looked like this was the best day of his long life.
Reaching the end of the path, the space widened out, and Jasper moved to the left. Jace followed him, which placed me directly in front of Lucifer, while Jax quickly moved to the area on my right. Justice was the last to find his place, to the right of Jax, as he walked casually over to the spectating demons. Justice bit the air at them, and I nearly laughed as I heard several gasps as demons shuffled back, giving him a wider berth.
“Eternally damned. I have gathered you all here today to witness the birth of a new age,” Lucifer began, and the entire room fell silent. “There is a prophecy yet to come to pass. One that speaks of our freedom from the slavery of our eternal task. A chance for our world to be remade and a second chance for those whose souls are permanently scarred. We should all rejoice in the celebration of this pack. Tonight, that is exactly what we all will do!” Lucifer yelled out the last part, throwing his hands into the air as a rush of excited shouts and cheers erupted from all the demons watching.
I waited for the sound of Lucifer in my head. The real conversation. But all I heard was the roaring of the demons cheering for my mates and me.
