Angel Betrayed (The Fallen #2)(44)

His nostrils flared as he drank in the scents around him.

Rule number three . . . what you can’t see, you can probably smell. Everything had a scent. Right then, he smelled . . . brimstone.

Hell.

When you felt hunted, you probably were.





When the witch fell over, Seline knew that was a very, very bad sign.

But Sam grabbed the guy and hauled him to his feet and held him with a strong grip. Right then, Seline got a look at Mateo’s arms and the back of his shirt. Blood soaked the shirt, and deep claw marks ripped the material—and Mateo’s flesh.

He hadn’t been bleeding when he’d come into the room. She’d seen his back when he put down his mirror. He’d been fine then.

She inched away from them.

“Mateo.” Sam barked the witch’s name. He lifted Mateo’s drooping chin. “Mateo, wake up.”

The witch’s lashes began to flutter. Seline didn’t dare move. So much for a few hours’ rest. Her heart was pounding so fast she could barely breathe.

“What happened? Dammit, what did you see?” Sam demanded.

Seline didn’t think she wanted to know. She’d never wanted to know about her future. Why would anyone want to know if bad things were just waiting around the corner?

Mateo’s hands flew up and grabbed Sam’s wrists. “Hell . . . after you.”

So not what she’d wanted to hear.

“You can’t escape him.” Mateo’s voice grew stronger. “Not once he has your scent. You can’t run. He’ll find you. You can’t kill him . . . you aren’t strong enough.”

Um, Sam wasn’t strong enough to kill someone? Who could the Angel of Death not destroy?

He has to be strong enough to defeat Rogziel. Sam was the strongest Fallen she knew. Mateo had to be wrong. He’d better be wrong.

“Days . . . ,” Mateo said, “only days left.”

Sam didn’t look even a little bit afraid. The smile that twisted his lips was vicious. “I’ve never been afraid of hell.”

She couldn’t say the same. She was terrified—that was why she’d stayed with Rogziel. He’d told her she would burn because of what she was, unless she earned redemption.

She’d just gotten blood and death.

Sam’s shoulders rolled. “I’m not the running type.”

Again, not so much her. Seline was very tempted to flee then.

“He’ll come at your throat. You will fear,” Mateo promised. “You will . . .”

Sam shoved the witch away from him. “This he . . . does he have a name?”

“Too many names.”

“Great,” Seline muttered, dragging her hand through her hair. “We needed the all-seeing Oz, and we got the freaking Riddler.” Why couldn’t the guy just answer a simple question? “Hey, buddy, over here.” She snapped her fingers and pulled Mateo’s attention her way. She was not going to look at his torn flesh. “Who did you see coming for Sam? His brother? Rogziel?” Some other supernatural that she needed to start worrying about?

“They all come,” Mateo said, and the strength vanished from his voice. Now he just looked and sounded beaten. “Time for a reckoning.”

Crap. An attack from all sides. We are so screwed. Mateo bent and picked up his mirror. “Are we finished?” Sam’s hands fisted, but he nodded.

Mateo’s fingers tightened around the mirror. “Then the debt is paid.”

Whoa, wait, the guy had peeked into the future because he owed Sam? Seline rocked back on her heels, and, helplessly, her gaze darted to Mateo’s wounds. She could smell his blood and see the pain on his face. She asked, because she had to, “What happened to you? How’d you get those marks?”

“When you look into the world of the spirits . . .” The mirror disappeared into a faded black bag hooked near Mateo’s hip. “Those spirits see you, too.”

Creepy. “And they—what? Touch you?” More like claw and bite.

“Yes,” he said flatly.

So he’d willingly let his body be savaged because he owed Sam. Her stare drifted to her silent Fallen. “What kind of debt was that?” Had to be something big. You didn’t agree to use your body as a ghost punching/clawing bag over some piddly deal.

Sam didn’t answer.

Mateo did. “He took the heads of four shifters who wanted to rip all the flesh from my body.” He inclined his head toward Sam. “A few scratches seemed like equal pay to me.” Then he opened the door and walked into the night.

Seline followed and shut the door. Because she didn’t want any more surprises, she pushed the lock into place. It clicked softly.

Seline was silent for a moment. Then two moments, because she really wasn’t sure what she was supposed to say. Finally, when the silence got too thick, she cleared her throat and asked, “Um, you got any more guests coming tonight that I need to know about?” Was anyone else coming by to spread doom and gloom?

His eyes slowly slid to her. “Not tonight.”

She expelled a hard rush of air. “That’s something.” Okay, first order of business . . . shower. Then sleep. Then hopefully no dreams that involved nightmares about fire and blood.

Right, good luck with that one. Considering the week she was having, Seline was pretty sure that her real life would definitely chase her in her dreams.