Gage cracks his neck to the side, but we all refrain from commenting.

“We’re aware she studied it. Why bring us here today? To show us what that thing can do without much effort?” I finally ask.

He shrugs. “As I said, I have no idea. Rafael requested it. He assumed it could possibly jar some of her muscle memory, maybe inspire some last minute preparation. I’m not sure why we’re even bothering at this point. Just seeing that small demonstration of power and feeling the pure, unadulterated sin so close…I don’t imagine even the five of you will survive this.”

“Are you trying to talk us out of it?” Kai asks incredulously.

Harold’s jaw tics, and he glances away. “That woman is pure evil to have ever designed you all to land in my area for my path to redemption. She purposely made it so I’d have no choice but to take you under my wing. Unfortunately, it means I’ve come to care for you as a byproduct of all that concern.”

His gaze returns to us.

“It’s what’s stopping my ascension. At least now I understand why my balance never fully purified, even after all I’ve done.” He glances down at his feet. “I’m happy where I am. Being neutral suits me best. However, the more I’m stuck mulling over this mess, the less certain I am you’ll survive. What’s the point in any of it if you’re underdeveloped and unable to defeat it?”

“If this is your idea of a pep talk, you’re severely lacking in motivational speaking,” Gage states dryly.

I nod in agreement, as I lean up on my horse, itching to go after Paca, but desperate for any information we can pry out of this stingy network of angels and devils.

“We’re fighting a battle Lucifer protests, while refusing to pass along much information in the way of helping us out. We’re fighting a battle even a fallen angel doubts we can win. We’re fighting a battle Heaven’s trained champion fell under quickly. Yet, we know very little about our opponent,” I add, sighing heavily as I begin massaging my temples.

It’s starting to press in on all of us too heavily to deny it anymore.

“Because we don’t know enough to share any more information. If there were more, trust me, we would share it. Lucifer is just as limited, and what he does know wouldn’t help you. Jahl won’t hold back, and none of us are truly sure what it is truly capable of. Not even the prophets.”

He takes another step back, exhaling harshly.

“I must take my leave. I’m limited to the amount of time I can spend in Purgatory without disrupting my balance. Take care, Horsemen. As much as it pains me to say, I’d rather if these versions of you continued to exist.” He turns, gradually fading from sight in a slow, deliberate siphon. “The old ones were pretty fucking terrible,” he adds just as he fully disappears, his voice lingering in his wake.

We’re all quiet for a minute, taking the moment to collect ourselves. We don’t exactly do emotion very well, and it’s been a tense few months since Paca landed back in our lives.

“What did that fucked up riddle mean?” Jude asks quietly.

“You’ll need answers to the puzzle you’ve laid. To seek such, refer to all things from your favorite decade,” Kai states almost automatically, his eyes widening. “It’s supposedly the answer to all those stupid fucking riddles, right?”

“She wants to check the nineties room for a reason. We’ll search it for any clues,” I say in quiet agreement.

“Unless she’s already there and getting the fucking clue she needs to solve this particular puzzle she’ll likely hide from us like the sneaky shit she is,” Jude bites out.

In the next instant, he’s gone, leaving the horse behind, as he siphons out.

“While he’s off to intercept our shifty girlfriend, does anyone know what the hell we’re going to do with four massive horses?” Kai asks, sighing as he scrubs a hand over his face. “Or how we’re going to defeat that thing, keep our girl and ourselves alive, and not stress out about all of this happening too damn fast to keep up?” he adds.

“I’ll tend to the horses,” comes Lamar’s voice from behind us. As I turn around to spot him smiling tightly, he adds, “Though, you should learn their names, since they’re about to do battle with you.”

I start to argue that, but decide I’d rather chase after Paca, so I siphon away instead, leaving that discussion to Kai and Gage. However, they land in the nineties room with me, where…Jude has Paca caged against the wall.

I can see it in her eyes she’s hiding something, but then…she does something I’m not expecting.

She grabs the back of his neck and jerks him down until his lips crash to hers. The man who is made of iron will surrenders too damn easily, one of his hands fisting her hair as he kisses her back. His free hand fists on the wall, and though I expect him to pull back, he ends up lifting her up instead.

“For right this moment, I just need you to be my favorite,” she whispers across his lips, breaking the kiss long enough to say those words.

“Pretty sure it’s supposed to be my turn to be the favorite,” I dutifully inform her, glaring a little at Death, who needs to fuck off.

She breaks the kiss and gives me a sly smile, as Jude walks her toward me. Twisting in his arms, she reaches over, fingers going into my hair, as she gives me a gentle tug.

I come willingly, but she stops just short of kissing me, her gaze piercing mine. “You’re my favorite too,” she murmurs before her lips move to mine.

I forget what we’re even talking about, as her devilish tongue slips between my lips and drowns any thoughts away, replacing them with an unyielding need to have her under me, over me…and any other position I can get her in.

“She’s trying to distract us,” Kai says, even as his voice grows shaky.

Paca breaks the kiss with me, leaving me to chase her lips, as she clings to both me and Jude.

“You’re all my favorites. For now. Until we win this and then you have to go back to impressing me enough to have a turn,” she answers with a saucy little grin. Her smile slips just a little. “But until then, all I want is all four of you surrounding me, touching me, taking me, touching every part of my—”

He cuts her off with a kiss, pressing against her side as he all but shoves me away, and he rips her out of Jude’s arms. Gage snatches her away before Kai can take full control, and Paca’s legs wind around his waist as her lips fuse to his.

He siphons them to the new shag carpet, putting her under him as he comes down on top of her, devouring her the way I want to.

When he starts kissing his way down her throat, I go to grab her wrists, pulling them up, but she goes phantom, instantly turning herself naked, and then turns back whole.

She drags me down, kissing me instead of letting me pin her down the way she needs to be, as Gage resumes his descent.

I stop thinking, because it’s not going to change anything. She won’t leave us. We won’t allow it. It doesn’t matter what secrets she keeps.

She ours. Our comoara trădătoare. No matter if we’re dead or alive.

Chapter 25

PACA

Kai eats the strawberry from my fingers, as the servants finish lavishing us with food and booze. Gage kisses his way down my bare back, while I sigh contently, lying atop Kai.

Jude is walking around in some low-slung silk pajama bottoms, reading over the last of the information Lamar was able to accumulate on Jahl.

Death’s a man who fights death harder than the other three. Ironic, huh?

Kai drags his lips up my neck, as another group of servants come in to begin drawing us a bath in the massive tub that showed up in the floor today.

“Hell knows how to send you off to your death, even though Lucifer hasn’t been seen in a while,” Kai murmurs against my throat.

My attention subtly returns to the TV on the wall, trying not to be too obvious with how intently I’m watching the movie that’s playing. It’s a two-thousands film based on a nineties graphic novel. I knew better than to read the graphic novel in front of them. They’re not just pretty faces. They’re clever too, and they pay a lot more attention to me than they used to, picking up on my subtle nuances and tells, since I’m terrible at deception.

Distraction is my number one tool to combat their keen powers of observation.

My heart clenches in my chest as I watch the ending I was dreading, because it’s almost exactly as I expected. Almost. Sort of. The girl comes back to life in this one.

A weapon can be used more than once, and never fully ceases to exist. The ammunition is the loss that comes at a cost you will find the hardest.

I’m a weapon, the ammunition, and the trigger.

My brain is almost short-circuiting from all the many scenarios and probabilities…desperately clinging to the impossible chance of my survival.

“You okay?” Ezekiel asks me, brushing an escaped tear from my cheek.

“It’s just so damn touching how Hellboy loves Liz,” I state on a quiet sob, gesturing to the tender moment of their fiery embrace.

“Fuck’s sake. What the hell are you watching?” Kai groans.

“Is that a hell pun?” I ask, smiling brightly down at him with so much hope.