Page 18 of Wings of Valor
I drift off to sleep, knowing that none of us are ready for what tomorrow will bring.
8
It’s not often I work through the night like this. In fact, I used to enjoy doing so. But now, with so many threats against those I care about—and knowing the woman I love is tangled up in my sheets—I’m struggling to focus.
I still can’t believe she loves me. After everything I’ve done, the way I’ve acted. She deserves better, and yet she chooses me. Sure, she chose Raphael and Theo, too, but the fact that I’m included feels like a victory. Even with those assholes.
As much as I don’t want to admit it, sharing her with them wasn’t the worst experience of my life. They’d been willing to take it slow and give me time alone with her as to not upset the grumpy fuck that I am, but I knew she’d want us all together in a big heaping pile.
It’s what she deserves.
After checking the clock once more, my legs start to twitch. Azrael got a lead on a group of demons, and we’ve been chasing them all fucking night to no avail. We got back half an hour ago after we lost them again, and I’m getting tired of all this waiting.
It doesn’t help that today is Hayliel’s deadline with that asshole Auriel, and somehow, I’m supposed to make it through another hour here—waiting to chase demons, waiting to help Hayliel. Waiting. Waiting. Fucking waiting.
I’ve had enough.
With my slate and bag in tow, I stride down the hall to Azrael’s office, knocking once before entering through the partially opened door. “Any news?”
He shakes his head. “Nothing yet, but we’re working on it.” Noticing what I’m carrying, he says, “Do you have somewhere else to be?”
If I didn’t know Azrael, I might take his words as something they aren’t. Rude. Condescending. But I know what he’s doing. He’s keeping his emotions out of things at work and truly asking if I have somewhere else I need to be. Now that he knows everything that’s going on with me and my friends—with the city—I have no issues telling him the truth.
“Sorry. Hayliel’s deadline is today, and all this waiting around is driving me insane.”
“Go. We’ll handle this from here. Make sure that slimy fuck doesn’t get your girl.” His eyes meet mine, and I read the sincerity in them. I’m one of the few angels he can trust at the guild, so for him to allow me to leave early is something I won’t brush off lightly.
“Keep me in the loop if anything turns up, and I’ll do the same,” I say, and then stride toward the door I just came through. I barely make it past the threshold when I notice Lieutenant Atlas heading toward the balcony we usually use for quick escapes.
Hmm. Now where is he off to?
I follow behind, keeping my distance while checking the schedule on my slate. His name isn’t on it until this evening, so why is he here?
No. Stop building conspiracies where there are none. Maybe he forgot something and just arrived to pick it up.
Opening my messages with Mira, I drop a casual question about her dad. She replies immediately.
Mira: Dad left for work. Something about overtime. Why?
So maybe my message wasn’t as casual as I thought, but her response makes me pause. I don’t see anything about overtime on the schedule. I suppose it could be classified and far above my rank. I should really just let it go.
I should. But I don’t.
Zeke: Oh. He’s not on the schedule until this evening. The overtime must be above my pay grade. Thanks for the tip.
There. That shouldn’t raise any suspicions, right? Mira’s typing a reply, but I put my slate away and focus on Atlas. He’s stopped at the balcony door, talking to someone who’s just arrived.
“Yo. Lieutenant Atlas. I didn’t think you were here today. Are you gearing up to join us or what?”
Atlas’s voice is low when he responds, but I’m pretty sure he said he’s off to a meeting and won’t be back until his scheduled shift later tonight.
The guy he’s talking to sounds disappointed, but moves on without spotting me, and Atlas slips through the door. I count to five before following, and for a moment, I’m afraid I lost him. Then the metal tips of his wings catch a shaft of pre-dawn light, and I find him again—flying away from the city.
Not wasting a second, I take off in the sky, following behind at a safe distance. I have less than an hour to figure out what he’s up to, and then I have to make it back for Hayliel.
Easy.
But the farther we go, the more unease grows in my stomach. There isn’t anything in this direction. No civilization. Nothing. Only the Godless Mountain.
