Page 196 of The Demon's Pet

Os looked stymied by that, but a glance at Gabe only had Gabe shaking his head in disgust.

“I’ll kill you, Morningstar,” he said as his wings flew out from his back, gleaming white under the gray sky. “I’ll kill you and be the strongest angel the fifth realm has ever seen.”

I swallowed, stepping back into a fighting stance and wishing I had a weapon as well.

“You said you would take her back to the haven and suppress her powers, not kill her,” Os said, stepping forward. “I didn’t agree to this.”

“It isn’t about you,” Gabe said. “Or have you forgotten that?” He pointed a finger to the heavens. “We serve the elder gods, and this thing can kill them.” His lip lifted in a sneer. “But not yet. She’s not strong enough. We came just in time.”

Os shook his head. “No. Just suppress her and let’s get out of here. Killing her is wrong. She hasn’t done anything bad yet.”

“That’s because demon powers take a while to truly awaken,” Gabe said. “The more she is alive to use them, the more powerful she will get. She already can use hellfire, something only a celestial with high-grade abyssal blood could do. We will get permanent dispensations from the ninth realm if we can do this.”

Os shook his head, raising his hand. “No, Gabe. And I’m seventh realm. So if I say no, that’s what goes. I told you I would help you prove it was her, and you said you would leave the others alone. Take her into custody, and we will have a trial in the celestial court.”

“She’s a demon,” Gabe said, shaking his head. His sword gleamed as a ray of sun burst through the clouds for a moment, then disappeared again. “There will be no court.” He stared at Os coldly. “Are you really going to fight me when I’m just trying to save our people?”

Os dropped his hand, looking confused.

“This guy is a piece of shit,” I yelled, backing away from Gabe still. “He just wants some kind of reward for doing this. Come on, Os. Look at me. Do I look like I’m a demonic murderer? Like I deserve to be killed for what I may do one day? Think!”

“I think a lot of creatures have already been killed for you,” Os said softly. “So I’m not sure what to do.”

Os put a hand to his head, looking pained by the entire situation.

“Stop!” A loud, angry roar interrupted us just before I heard bounding footsteps, and Griffin flew into the clearing in his lion form with his wings out.

Os looked over at him, shocked. “How did you—”

Griffin just roared, lunging forward and leaping into the air to land on Gabe, pinning him before he could get to me.

Griffin snarled in Gabe’s face, but Gabe just stuck a hand up, grabbed Griffin by the neck, and tossed him to the side like so much garbage, despite his huge size.

Griffin landed in a puff of dust and pushed himself up to face Gabe again.

“I’m sorry,” Os said to an irritated Gabe. “I don’t know how he—”

“A ninth realm pet?” Gabe’s eyes widened as he fully took Griffin in. He raised a hand, and out of nowhere, an iron cage formed in the air above Griffin. When Gabe lowered his hand, the cage dropped, locking Griffin in.

Griffin slammed against the bars, but nothing happened. Then he let out another roar.

Gabe walked closer, peering in. “Fae powers can’t hold a creature like this very long. High immunity to almost everything.” He smirked. “Except iron. That’s what the ninth realm celestials keep them in when they aren’t using them.”

Os and I shared a baffled look as Gabe paced around the cage. He raised a hand, made a gesture at Griffin, and Griffin let out a cry and instantly shifted into his human form.

He backed up against his cage, looking at Gabe as if he were a monster. “How did you—”

“Force you?” Gabe laughed. “Any celestial can decide what form you’re in at any time, pet.”

I grimaced at hearing the word from Gabe’s mouth.

“So what, he’s like a guard dog?” I yelled, trying to distract Gabe and bring his attention back to me.

“They do detect certain demons, yes,” Gabe said, crouching by the cage to study Griffin. “But there are other uses.” As he studied Griffin this time, his gaze was lascivious. “This one is especially beautiful. I think I’ll keep him for myself since, after I kill the Morningstar, I’ll be ascending to the ninth celestial realm anyway.”

Os’s mouth fell open. “You can’t justkeephim. He’s…”

Gabe stood, snapping his attention to Os. “He’s what? A glorified sex slave and guard dog in one convenient package? An extra blessing from the gods for being obedient? Whatever he is, I’m taking him.” His lip curled up in a mean sneer. “Or did you want him for yourself?”

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