The Sweetest Burn

“Your tie to Demetrius is now broken,” Zach called out.

Adrian stopped so abruptly that I had to pivot to avoid smashing into him. “What did you say?”

Zach didn’t move from his spot in front of the altar. At the other end of the church, Brutus chuffed, then rose from his position behind the last pew. That’s when I realized that at some time during our binding ritual, the gargoyle had run to the back of the church to hide from the light.

“Your tie to Demetrius is now broken,” Zach repeated, speaking slowly so there could be no misunderstanding. “It broke the moment I tied your soul to Ivy’s.”

“How?” Adrian asked, holding his arm out when I came nearer. “Don’t,” he said without looking at me.

“Screw that.” I flared, grabbing the arm he was using to ward me off. “I knew who your real father was when I agreed to tether my soul to yours, and I did it because I didn’t care. You are who I want, and you are not him.”

“Ivy.” He said my name as if it were painful. “I’m part of him, and because of that, I led him to you all those times. Because of me, he nearly killed you. He might be in New York right now, looking for you through me. You can’t expect me to forgive myself for that.”

“Yes, I can,” I said, touching his face and refusing to back down when he flinched. “You didn’t know, and each time Demetrius found us, you did everything you could to protect me, even when we first met and you couldn’t stand being near me.”

I couldn’t feel his emotions, but I didn’t need to as I saw his features twist with pain. “I always wanted to be near you,” he said in a ragged voice. “The only person I ever wanted to get away from was myself.”

I threw my arms around him, tightening my grip when his whole body tensed. “I don’t ever want to be without you, either, and I wouldn’t care if that meant Demetrius was always hot on our heels. We’d find a way around him, just like we found a way around our fates. If we can beat destiny, beating Demetrius should be easy.”

He laughed, although it sounded choked. “You always make me want to believe in the impossible, even when I know better.”

“In this case, you don’t know better, but I do,” I said, pulling his head down and kissing him until his mouth lost its stiffness. “You’re mine,” I whispered against his lips. “And I’m yours, from now until hell freezes over, or until we beat it back to where it came from.”

He stared at me, and in his eyes I saw tinges of hope. Behind that was ruthlessness and an almost animalistic determination to destroy those who’d caused us so much harm.

That was fine. Hate was useful sometimes, and Adrian would need all of his before we were done. But he needed something else more, and I wasn’t afraid because he had that, too.

Love. I saw that in his gaze, as well. Felt it in his hands as they touched me, in his arms as they wrapped tightly around me, then felt it seethe from his mouth as he claimed mine with a desperation that put passion to shame.

When he finally lifted his head, my lips felt swollen and my breath came in pants. Despite that, I would have kissed him again at once if not for the very loud, very deliberate harrumph from the front of the church.

“As I was saying,” Zach stated, his tone daring us to ignore him again, “your bond to Demetrius has now been fractured. Tethering your soul to Ivy’s introduced enough of a supernatural disruption that Demetrius will no longer be able to track you through your blood tie.”

“Maybe we should head back to the light realm, anyway,” I murmured. “We’ve been here for hours. As you said, Demetrius could already be in the city looking for us.”

“You can’t go back,” Zach replied, stunning me. “You also chose to tether your soul to his, so as Adrian’s bond with you fractured his tie to Demetrius, so your bond to him fractured your access to the light realms.”

Shock and disbelief made me ask, “I can’t enter the light realms anymore? At all?”

“Not unless I or another Archon pulls you through their gateways,” Zach replied.

Adrian’s hand slid down my arm in a comforting way even as he sent a truly furious look at Zach. “Why did you wait until it was too late to warn her of that?”

“Ivy, would you rather have access to the light realms or have Adrian by your side?” Zach responded, answering a question with a question.

I closed my eyes. The light realms were more than the only demon-free places in existence plus an endless source of manna; they were also portals that could take us anywhere in the world. Having access to them had been a priceless advantage...unless that price would have cost me Adrian.

“You already know the answer,” I said, opening my eyes.

The stare Zach leveled at Adrian was pointed. “And that is why I did not bother to tell her beforehand. Now, my time is finished here. Return to your hotel. You will be safe there. Even if Demetrius was using your link to follow you, now that it is severed, this city is too populated for him to find you before I return. I will see you at dusk.”

With that, Zach disappeared. “Wait!” I said, but of course, the altar remained empty. How Zach loved his disappearing acts.

Adrian shook his head. “Typical.” Then he took my arm. “Sun’s almost up. Even if Demetrius did follow me here, he can’t stay long enough to find us. This city has millions of people, so even if he sent every minion he made to look for us, they wouldn’t find us, either. I say we go back to the hotel like Zach suggested and then leave with him tonight.”

“All right,” I said, thinking that if Zach hadn’t promised to return, I’d have no way to get Jasmine and Costa out of the light realms. I gave the braided tattoo around my arm a wry glance. As far as it was concerned, the locks on the realm gateways had been changed.

Voices suddenly filled the cathedral as three priests entered from a side door near the front of the church. Then they stopped short when they saw us.

“How did you get in here?” one of them asked, almost sputtering in his indignation.

Adrian snorted as he held open the door for Brutus and me to leave. “Believe me, Father, that’s a long story.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

THE LIMO WAS still parked near the Cathedral, but Brutus was too big to fit inside, so Adrian sent the driver away and we walked back to the hotel. Brutus cringed at each new beam of light as the sun rose. At least the tall buildings kept most of the bright rays from reaching him, and being with us seemed to calm him a little, too. When we entered the Waldorf through the private entrance on 50th Street, the sun was fully up. Brutus hurried into the hotel, and the doorman didn’t even blink at the Archon glamour that made it appear as if we’d gone for a dawn stroll with our pet seagull.

It made me wonder what other strange sights the doorman had seen, but I didn’t pause to ask. I was so exhausted, I was running on fumes, and yet a nervous energy filled me as we entered the elevator, which was thankfully large enough to fit two adults and a hulking gargoyle.

Adrian had fulfilled his promise to prove that he wouldn’t betray me again. And since we were now alone—sort of—with almost a day between now and when we’d see Zach again, with a nice, big bed waiting for us...well. Granted, Adrian had to be as worn-out as I was, so if he stumbled into the bedroom and fell right asleep, I’d completely understand. I might even pass out as soon as my head hit a pillow, too. But—more tingles of anticipation went through me—what if he didn’t want to sleep?

The doors opened onto the Towers floor and we went into the Historic Suite. Adrian threw his coat onto the nearest chair in the foyer and then led Brutus into the side bedroom. I heard drapes being drawn and Adrian speaking in Demonish, followed by chuffs from Brutus, then the sound of water running.

I went into the master bedroom, struck anew by its loveliness. Royal blue drapes hung from the ceiling to frame the entire bed while white pillows and sheets provided a snowy contrast against the deep blue blankets. Crystal lamps adorned the nightstands as well as the end tables around the nearby love seat. A dark wood entertainment center with a flat-screen TV faced the bed, not that I wanted to watch anything right now. I also didn’t want to look at the view from the windows, even though from this high up, it was really something.