Iniquity (The Premonition, #5)(100)

A huge slab, altar-like table resides in the center of the room, but it’s partly blocked by a Seraph who has his back to us. I shudder. I don’t need to see his dark brown eyes to recognize Byzantyne. His wings spread wide as he bends over the altar. I watch his arm pull back, as if he’s wrenching something away. I catch sight of what it is when he moves to the side a little. He has just sawed the wing off of another angel. Fear clenches my stomach and I retch. Byzantyne rests the severed wing on the ground, leaning it against the side of the altar. I turn my head and vomit, unable to stop my violent reaction.

Byzantyne turns and faces me at the sound. His hands are red from blood and gore. He steps aside for me to see his victim on the table. My heart turns black and dies in my chest. It’s Xavier. My knees weaken, and if it were not for Emil’s arm around me, I’d crumble to the floor. “Simone,” Byzantyne’s smile is crushing. “There you are. You’re late. I’ve already started. I couldn’t wait. I know you’ll forgive me my impatience. I’ve waited so long for this moment.”

Emil tries to bring me closer to the altar, but I resist him, fighting to stay away. I can’t see this. I’ll go mad if I see this. Xavier!

“There, there, Simone. This is what you need. You have to see this to remember who we are. You need to know that I am your master and you will never be anything but my slave.”

Emil drags me to the altar. I shut my eyes, unwilling to look upon the carnage that is Xavier. A hand presses to my forehead, pinning me to Emil’s chest. “Look at him, Simone. Look at him, or I kill Reed now!” I open my eyes. I have seen torture before—have experienced it myself in many, many lifetimes. All of that past experience still leaves me unprepared for this. Byzantyne has stripped off the skin from half of Xavier’s face and body. My guardian angel is still alive, but it can’t be long before shock and trauma render him unable to survive. Xavier’s eyes open, he stares at me as if he’s seeing a vision before him. There is no fear on his face, only acceptance. “He was willing to die for you,” Emil taunts. “He came here to save you only you weren’t here, were you? He’s always too late. He never helped you much before and now he has failed you again.”

The faerie souls move in closer, wanting to see the torture of a Seraph. Other Brennus stands next to me, his white eyes are almost unblinking. Byzantyne lifts another saw in his hand. I flinch and a moan escapes me as I tremble with wracking shakes. Emil lets go of my forehead. I turn my head, trying to think of a way to drown out the sound of the saw. I begin to hum; I don’t even know what the tune is until another soft voice joins mine. The humming comes from Other Brennus. It’s the melody that his battle-axe sings to me whenever I touch it. Other Brennus’ eyes are on me and they’re no longer white, but iridescent green with flecks of black in them. I turn my head, seeing Other Finn on my left side. His milky eyes stare straight ahead. In my mind, I think, Sing your song softly to Finn.

The hammer in Finn’s soul’s hand begins to sing at a whispery volume. His eyes change suddenly to bright green. He blinks, and then his eyes connect with mine. “Help me,” I mouth the words.

Other Finn looks beyond me to his brother. Other Brennus slips the soul slayer dagger from the sheath on Emil’s belt. The two faerie souls stare at one another, until Other Brennus signals his brother with a nod. In unison, they both attack Emil, stabbing and beating him with vicious thrusts. Emil crashes to the floor behind me, his body being quickly transformed into a bloody pulp. Emil’s soul rises up from his decapitated angelic body. Other Brennus growls at it. Raising the dagger that was made to kill me, Other Brennus stabs it into Emil’s soul. His lazy eyes register agony as his image turns black and explodes in a swirl of ebony smoke. Other Finn faces me, looking at me for his next order. The ropes that bind me fall away as Other Brennus uses Emil’s soul slayer to slice through them.

“Kill him,” I order, pointing at Byzantyne. The faerie brothers turn their attention to the barbaric Seraph.

Byzantyne has a stricken look on his face. He stumbles back from the altar, dropping the bone saw. His mouth opens in shock as he sees the mess that was Emil on the ground at my feet. I look away from him to Other Lachlan. I hum Lachlan’s song. The faerie soul’s eyes turn blue and he blinks, as if he’s waking up from a nightmare. I change my tune to Faolan’s song. Faolan’s soul becomes lucid.

“Set down the net and free the angel inside it,” I order the souls of Faolan and Lachlan. They cut the netting off Reed. He springs free of the snare. Pulling the ring from his finger, he becomes visible once more. He drops the ring on the floor as he extracts his spade blades from his wrist holsters.

Reed comes to me, checking quickly to see if I’m okay. Then he crouches down and examines Emil’s dead corpse for a moment. When he rises again, he pulls the chain of the boatswain from beneath his armor. He lifts it over his head, transferring it to me. The key to Sheol settles around my neck.

“Why are you giving this to me,” I try to take it off.

Reed stays my hand, covering it with his own.

“The faerie souls annihilated Emil’s soul, love,” Reed replies. “You’ll need a way out of here no matter what happens.”

“Reed,” I say his name in shock.

He lets go of my hand. “I will always love you, Evie. Always.” He presses his lips to my forehead, and then he turns and joins Other Brennus and Other Finn in stalking Byzantine. The cornered wicked Seraph pulls a dagger from a sheath attached to his waist, while adopting a defensive crouch. Every time the faerie souls try to get near him, Byzantyne strikes out, nearly decapitating them. Reed moves in. He’s so fast that Byzantyne hardly knows he’s been cut before he’s sliced open again. Reed is killing him slowly and by degrees. His black armor is covered with the arterial spray of Byzantyne’s blood.