Page 29 of Ringmaster
And then, without a second thought, his lips press against mine in the softest of kisses. Feather-light for mere seconds—but it’s all I need to fall, fully and helplessly, into him beneath the stars. I can’t breathe, or even fathom this moment ending… until it does.
He pulls away slowly, leaving me starved for more. “There. Sealed with a kiss. Now tell me everything.”
I suck my bottom lip in, yearning to taste him again, then exhale, preparing to tell him everything that happened. I shift uncomfortably. Azrael’s hand finds mine, and he strokes his thumb across the top. It’s the reassurance I need to take yet another deep breath and begin. “My cousin and I were attackedwalking home from the docks today, but it wasn’t human. It was… different.”
“Different how?” he asks, interrupting.
Heat flushes my cheeks. It’s embarrassing. What if he doesn’t believe me? But this is a man who believes Zora can erase memories. Maybe what I’m about to say isn’t so far-fetched after all.
“Tavien couldn’t see it. I don’t think anyone else could. He thought it was just a pickpocket attacking us.”
Azrael encourages me, “But what did you see, Mercy?”
I gulp down my fear at the memory of the hideous thing bolting towards us. “I saw a frightful, six-winged creature. It had an enormous, fang-filled mouth shaped like a man’s and giant white feathers plastered to its body. The wings beat in unison, six of them moving as one, propelling it across the ground faster than anything I’ve ever seen.”
My voice cracks, and somehow Azrael pulls us even closer. “Go on, tell me what else happened,” he soothes, rubbing circles down my spine.
I want to focus on his touch, but I draw in a breath and continue. “I told my mother about it.”
Azrael’s fingers halt, and he sits up higher, more on edge. “You told your mother?” he repeats, a question.
I nod.
“What did she say?”
“That’s the most terrible part, Azrael. It’s why I knew I had to find you. The secrets that she’s been keeping are—” I trail off, unable to finish.
“It’s okay. You can tell me,” he rasps, once again looking at me with the bluest of eyes—so hypnotizing I find myself lost for a few seconds.
“She—” my lip trembles, and I start again. “She said she believed me, but then she told me something horrible. The creature came to her when she was just married, and while my father was away.” I choke back a sob. “And he…” I can’t finish.
Azrael rests his hand on my back. “I understand.”
“It’s still not the worst of it. She told me I’m not my father’s child. I’m—the creature made me. Whatever it is, I’m part of it.” I cry, exasperated. “And my father has always known, or at the very least, suspected. It’s why he resents us. Everything he’s ever done to hurt her—it’s all because I exist. If I didn’t…”
Azrael lays a finger against my lips, stopping my words and leaning in to kiss my forehead. “Don’t speak like that, Mercy. I can’t imagine a world without you in it.”
“But,” I whisper.
“But nothing,” he answers. “This changes nothing.”
“Azrael, it changes everything.” Tears flow down my cheeks, staining them in sorrow and guilt.
He wipes each one away. “It doesn’t. But it needs to be a secret. You can’t tell anyone else, or your life could be in danger.”
I nod and collapse into him, breathing in his scent, memorizing the strength of his body against mine—until sleep finally takes me.
Chapter 18
Azrael
Inever want this moment to end. Mercy curled against me, breathing softly, her face relaxed. Quite literally my angel. I’ll need to do some digging in the library, obviously, but if she’s half Seraphim, then she’s part angel of some sort. Do the Fates realize they’ve gifted me an angelic soulmate? This secret must be protected at all costs. I won’t risk losing her, especially to Lucifer or the Divine.
The door creaks open, and Sylis steps out, followed by Zora. Sylis shakes his head while Zora beams from ear to ear.
“It’s her, isn’t it, Azrael? ” she whispers.
“I think so,” I concede. “Is it done? Will he remember anything?”
