Angel in Chains (The Fallen #3)(3)

She blinked, and her eyes narrowed as she studied him. He’d never seen quite that shade of green before. She crept closer, bringing that light scent of strawberries to him. When she stopped, she was less than a foot away from him. It would be so easy to touch her.

Though he knew well just how dangerous a touch could be.

Yet she stood close enough to kiss. But angels weren’t supposed to kiss mortals . . .

You’re not an angel anymore. The whisper came from deep inside of him. The same tempting whisper that he’d been fighting since his fall.

You’re not an angel. Do what you want.

You’re not an angel. Take what you want.

He was discovering that he could want many things.

The top of the woman’s head barely reached his shoulders. She tilted her head and stared up at him. Then her gaze swept down his body.

Az stiffened even before she whispered, “What are you?”

Rather insulting question. “I’m the man who saved your life.” Did she need to know more? He didn’t think so.

Her hand lifted and pressed against her mouth. A small trace of blood still rested near her lips. “There were three of them, and, you’re big and all, but there’s still just one of you.”

She might just be one of the most ungrateful humans he’d ever encountered. Stifling a sigh, Az inclined his head. “You’re welcome.”

She stared in surprise for a moment. Then she laughed. A soft, strangely lyrical sound spilled from her lips, and her wide smile lit up her face.

Not just pretty.

Az tensed as the wave of need hit him. Not lust for blood or death. This time . . . the lust was just for her.

You’re not an angel anymore. Take what you want.

“Yeah,” she said, as her laughter faded but the smile still lingered on her lips, “thanks for saving my ass.” Then she held out her hand to him. “My name’s Jade. Jade Pierce.”

He stared at her hand. She wiggled her fingers at him. Slowly, Az lifted his own hand and caught those wiggling fingers. Soft. “I am Azrael.” He dropped her hand. He hadn’t used the name Azrael in centuries. “Most just call me Az.”

“Well, Az, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” Her gaze slid over his body again. “But I’m gonna have to ask, once more, just what are—”

The door crashed in behind her. She didn’t scream this time, but maybe Az just didn’t give her a chance to scream.

Because as the three black panthers—fully shifted panthers—leapt into the room, jumping over the broken door, Az grabbed Jade and threw her toward the couch.

Then he ran right for the snarling beasts.

He should have known better than to let down his guard. Shifters and their damn acute senses. They’d caught his scent, her scent, and followed them right through the Quarter.

“I warned you,” Az snapped and leapt at the nearest panther. He caught the beast’s front paws and shoved the giant cat back. “You should have listened.” There would be no more warnings now. Only death.

With a twist of his hands, Az broke both paws and tossed the cat back through the door.

Ruined my door. That panther had—

Claws dug into his back, driving deep into muscle and scraping bone. Hissing against the pain, Az snapped his teeth together and whirled around in a blur. He reached out as fury slammed through him and Jade’s horrified yell rang in his ears.

Attack. Destroy. Kill.

He touched the panther, and the animal stiffened beneath his fingers. The beast’s blazing gold eyes locked on him. Az’s breath heaved as he demanded, “Ready for hell?”

The scent of flowers swept into the room, blowing in on the breeze from outside. It came right into his home and seemed to surround the shifter.

Az knew well what that scent meant. An Angel of Death was close. Despite what humans may have thought, Death didn’t smell like rot. Death was sweet. The better to tempt and lead away the souls.

Az lifted his hand. The panther fell to the ground. The fur melted away, and he stared down at the tattooed body of the man who’d chosen to seek death. “I warned you.”

A whimper had Az’s head rising. The other panther crouched, and its head swung back and forth between Az and the body on the floor. Az lifted his hand, palm up, toward the beast. “Want to join him?”

The panther spun away and leapt through the window. Glass shattered, and Az bit back a snarl of his own. Something else to fix, dammit.

He rushed to the door. Both the surviving panthers were racing away. His brother Sammael would say they were hauling ass.

Finally. They’d realized they should fear him. And it had only taken the little matter of death to drive that point home.

“Oh my God!” The wild cry came from his elderly neighbor. He glanced over just in time to see Ms. Hattie McRae duck back inside her apartment. Great. A frantic call to the cops was probably being made.

Looked like he wouldn’t be repairing the place after all. Time to clear out. Again.

Whenever humans found a dead body, they tended to ask endless and useless questions. When they asked those long and boring questions, he’d discovered the cops didn’t like it when he told them to f*ck off.

“You . . . killed him.” Whispered from behind him.

Az straightened slowly. His back burned and his shirt stuck to the blood coating his flesh.