Eden was back in the misty world.

This time it was a dream—she knew that even as one of the angeling babies fluttered over on snowy white wings and hugged her tight with chubby little arms. The dream was warm and cozy, and she longed to stay there, but she had a job to do.

Find a way out.

That thought made the dream dissipate, lifting her mind from the hazy world and bringing the real one back to her awareness. Her eyes were still closed, but she heard Ralphie’s soft babble and Ren’s whispered response. The smell of breakfast roused her even more. The food kept getting more delicious, and she’d been eating all she could manage. She needed her strength, and the baby needed it too. She’d been resting a lot, but also pacing the room, getting exercise in case escape would require physical exertion. But mostly, she worked at staying out of that hazy, misty realm of her mental escape while she waited for Ariel to visit.

Laylah said she would come when she could.

A swish sound jolted her eyes open—sure enough, it was Ariel.

Eden pulled in air and quickly sat up—too quickly. Her head spun with the sudden movement. She had to brace her hands against the cot, forcing herself to go slow as she swung her legs off. Fortunately, Ariel came to her, so she didn’t have to get up.

The angeling girl knelt in front of Eden. “Are you all right?”

Ariel was as beautiful as any angeling, but she was still a girl—thirteen at most, with long blond hair and a strong, sinewy body. Eden frowned as she realized the girl was injured.

“Ariel, what is this?” She reached for the girl’s face—it was smeared with so much blood Eden couldn’t tell the source.

Ariel leaned away from her touch. “What?” But then she rubbed at it, and her hand came away damp. Her hair was mussed and darkened by it at the hairline. Eden expected some explanation or surprise, but Ariel just shrugged and wiped her bloody hand on her body armor. “I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?” Eden frowned and looked to Ren for help—she had come up behind where the girl was kneeling, carrying Ralphie on her hip.

“Have you been in a fight?” Ren asked.

The girl snorted then stood. “It’s nothing but fights on the streets now. I think the humans have started to notice.” Then she cringed a little and bit her lip. “The other humans, I mean.”

Eden sat up straighter. “But you’ve been out there. On the streets.” She dashed a look to Ren, but she was frowning disapproval. Eden knew she didn’t want to escape—she felt they were safer here—but that was just her love of the angeling talking. Regardless, Eden wanted out. To Ariel, she said, “Are you going back soon?”

“Yes.” And she seemed enthused about this. “We need all angelings at the front. I only came because Laylah said you wished to see me.”

“I did,” Eden said in a rush. “I have a favor to ask.”

Ariel nodded, but before Eden could speak, Ren cut in. “Eden, no.”

Eden ignored her and reached for Ariel’s hands.

Ariel leaned away slightly and gave Eden a strange look, but she allowed it—Eden gently held the girl’s smaller hands in hers. “Take me with you,” Eden said.

Ariel’s expression morphed into utter disbelief. “You want to fight in the war?”

Eden smiled. “No. I want to escape, Ariel. You did it before. Take me away from here. I don’t care where to—anywhere is fine.”

“But… I cannot…” She dropped Eden’s hands and stepped back, standing up on the way.

Eden’s chest squeezed in disappointment.

“You know Elyon can track you, right?” Ariel flicked a look to Ren as if she thought Eden might be slightly crazy.

Eden was tired of people looking at her that way. Yes, she was damaged. Yes, the trauma of being Elyon’s pet prisoner had fractured her mind in some ways—but that was all self-defense. She wasn’t crazy. “It’s not a sign of mental illness to want to escape from your prison.” Eden rose up to face the two of them—Ren and Ariel—doing her best to show she was completely here… and capable of making a decision like this for herself. “Razael is an angel, just like Elyon. He will say and do whatever he wishes. He could easily lie to us. We don’t know for sure that Elyon can track us.” She flicked a look to Ren—she could stay here if she was determined, but Eden would take the babies with her, if she could. If not, then just her and her own unborn angeling child.

“Razael is not like Elyon,” Ariel said, her frown growing darker. “I am on the streets battling Elyon’s forces. Believe me, Razael’s Regiment fights with honor. They only destroy when attacked. I try to tell them that Elyon’s angelings will slay them without hesitation, but Razael’s angelings do not have the same Wrath in their hearts.”

“That may be true,” Eden tried, “but that doesn’t mean Razael will let me go. Even if Elyon is defeated.”

“You know what Elyon is,” Ariel said gravely. “I can promise you, Razael is different.” She seemed to struggle with something—as if she wanted to speak, but was holding back.

Eden edged forward. “What is it?”

Ariel dropped her gaze to the floor. “Things are different here,” she said quietly. “Razael is an honorable angel.”

There was more to this. “But he’s making you fight, right? Against your own brothers and sisters?”

Ariel’s head whipped up. “No. That is not Truth.”

“Tell me the truth,” Eden prompted gently. It was hard to remember, but for all Ariel’s skills and bravado, she was still very young. Just a child.

“In Truth, Razael has saved me.” She said it more confidently now, all hesitation gone. “Were I still in Elyon’s Regiment, I would be making my vows. I would be forced to take a Mentor and engage in sex.”

“What?” Ren was aghast, but Eden couldn’t muster even a little surprise.

Of course, Elyon would degrade the angelings he and the others had fathered. That was the fate of her own child and any babies still left with these angels. Their power was immense—and they would abuse that. Eden didn’t know if it was that absolute power which corrupted them or something more fundamental—maybe they were simply corrupt to begin with—but she didn’t care. She just wanted to take her baby away from this hell.

“You escaped Elyon’s Regiment,” Eden said softly, stopping Ariel from having to explain all the horrors to Ren. “I want to escape too.” Surely, the girl could understand that.

“But you are safe here,” Ariel insisted. “Razael is an angel, yes, but he is nothing like Elyon. He required nothing of me. He even resisted sending me to the front. I had to convince him that my skills with my blade were ready. Even then, I don’t think he would have agreed except he is desperate for warriors.” Ariel stepped closer and placed a hand on Eden’s shoulder. “I would take you anywhere you wished, but you are safest here. Before, when we escaped to Molly’s apartment, I had not… I did not think it through properly. I only knew of the nursery, then. But now… Razael has accepted me. Offered me protection. And he explained how Elyon could track you.” She looked to Ren. “Both of you carry his spawn, directly or indirectly. Elyon will not let you go.” She turned back to Eden. “We are fighting the war for you as well. So you may be free of him.”

Eden could see the fervor in her eyes—the girl believed every word she was saying. And there was a kind of worship when she said Razael’s name. Eden could understand being loyal to someone who saved you from a monster. But she’d also seen the look in Razael’s eyes when he visited her—that was the look a man had when gazing at something he wanted. Maybe he wouldn’t force her the way Elyon had. Maybe he was more “honorable” than that. But he was still a powerful creature, and Eden would only be safe when she was away from them all.

“I understand,” Eden said to her, but she backed away, out of Ariel’s grasp. The crush of disappointment was hard—harder than she expected—and the temptation was great to just lay back down on her cot and escape into her world of mist and innocence. But she couldn’t afford to do that. She needed to regroup and think of another plan for escape.

“I’m sorry,” Ariel said. She looked pained.

Eden tried to smile, but it was more of a grimace, so she just looked away.

“Let me get you cleaned up,” Ren said, ushering Ariel toward the baby’s changing station.

Eden took a seat on her cot. What could she do? The guards here were friendlier, but she had no reason to believe they would betray Razael’s wishes and help her escape. Ariel had been her best chance, but the angel had won her over. She’d tried with Laylah, too, but she seemed on a mission to convince Eden that Razael was her personal savior. It was like he had a hold over them… Elyon was cruel and capricious. Fear was the malevolence that hung in the air around him. It was easy to understand why his angelings wouldn’t go against him. Razael didn’t seem to inspire fear in his angelings so much as an unwavering loyalty. She didn’t understand any of these creatures—the angelings or the angels—so maybe there was some kind of bond that made them unable to turn away or disagree. Molly had managed it, convincing one of them to leave… but then Asa had been in love with her. Or at least infatuated. He built the nursery and gave her everything she wanted—including her freedom.

Would Eden have to do that? Get an angeling to fall in love with her and set her free? The thought made a shudder run the full length of her body, her legs twitching on the cot, and her hands flopping with jerky spasms. She couldn’t even… imagine… doing that. Elyon had broken her so horribly she’d had to retreat inside her own mind to survive. She’d passed through the worst of that—she hoped—but her insides still had a desperate tension. Like if she didn’t hold everything together, she might literally fall to pieces. The idea of loving any man—or even pretending to—made her stomach roil. And the physical act of sex—she pressed the back of her hand to her mouth, unsure if she was suppressing a scream or emptying the contents of her stomach. Just… no. Seducing an angeling into letting her go wasn’t an option.

She suddenly was tired again—the mere thought had drained all the energy from her. She gingerly lay back down on the cot. Sometime later, she heard a small pop in the air and knew without opening her eyes that Ariel had left. More time passed. Eden wasn’t just tired—she was worn out. Bone weary in a way that seemed like a warning signal. Maybe she was depressed. Maybe she’d messed up with not eating and did something horrible to her body. Maybe she was just normal-tired, but her brain thought it was something worse because… because her brain wasn’t always working right these days. She had to admit that—and because of that, she had to stay out of the misty world for a while. Just until she got fully anchored in this one again.

She pulled in a deep breath and vowed to get up and move around again. Get her blood flowing. She couldn’t afford to get pulled into a downward spiral.

Just as she pushed herself up on the cot, the door swished open.

Her heart jolted—an angel. She could tell by the way the air hummed with the angel’s power. Only this one was female.

The angel strode in, imperious and devastatingly beautiful. Long black hair. A magical dress made of smoke that seemed to float around her. Her dark eyes swept the room—Ren was frozen over by the babies’ cribs, as startled as Eden—but the angel’s gaze quickly settled on Eden. She glided across the floor toward the cot, her movements exaggerated by the dress. An angeling—also female—followed in her wake.

“So here you are,” the angel said, her eyes alive with interest as she raked her gaze across Eden. She lingered on Eden’s belly, and Eden’s hand automatically went there. She’d managed to jerk upright, her feet swung off the cot, but beyond that, she was frozen.

“Who are you?” Eden gasped. She might not have spoken at all if it were a strange male angel, but somehow, her body was only half terrified of this female. That was probably a mistake.

“My name is Zuriel.” Her voice flowed like honey, and her smile grew. “And you are quite the find, aren’t you?”

Eden had no idea what she meant, but it still sent a shiver through her. A thousand questions flashed through her mind. Only one made it to her lips. “What do you want?’

Zuriel frowned for a brief moment, then her smile tempered to something not quite so… intensely interested. “Don’t worry, dear. I just wanted to get a good look at you.”

“Razael could be back soon.” Eden’s heart lurched again. It wasn’t like she wanted Razael to return, but maybe the threat of that would keep this Zuriel angel from doing something she shouldn’t.

Zuriel’s eyebrows lifted. “Well, he’s left me in charge while he’s gone.”

Oh shit. Eden swallowed down her panic and kept her mouth shut.

Zuriel frowned again when she said nothing—then the angel gestured forward the female angeling behind her. She was clad from head to toe in battle armor. “I’m stationing Naphtali here in the nursery while Razael’s gone. He left strict instructions for you to be protected, and I wouldn’t want his favorite human pet to be damaged in any way.”

Was that supposed to be reassuring? “Thank you.” Eden wasn’t sure what else to say.

Zuriel cocked her head. “You’re a curious one.” She waved off the angeling, who went to take a station by the door. Then she eased closer, peering intently at Eden again, the way angels did when they were reading your soul.

It wasn’t like Eden could stop her, so she just lifted her chin and met her stare. “You seem to be the one that’s curious.”

A smile curled the corner of Zuriel’s lips. “Virtues and defiance. No wonder Razael’s smitten.”

Eden’s heart lurched again. Razael being fond of her wasn’t in any way safe for her.

When she didn’t respond, Zuriel frowned just a little. “You don’t have an affection for him.”

Eden had that feeling of being stripped bare, her innermost thoughts laid out for the angel to see. She knew they couldn’t read minds, but sometimes it felt like they could. “I just want out of here.”

Zuriel’s face morphed into surprise. “I see.” There was something about the way she said that…

“Can you help me?” Eden asked. Maybe there would be a price for that. Maybe this Zuriel would want something from her just like the others. It was a terrible risk, but she was a female angel, and somehow that made a difference. Plus, Eden was out of choices.

“Oh my,” Zuriel said. It wasn’t an answer. “I don’t think Razael quite understands what he has here with you.”

Eden didn’t understand that either, but she rose up. “Please. I just… I need to leave this place. Go somewhere far away. I won’t be any trouble to anyone. I just need to go home.” Home was a barren apartment that seemed lost in another world, but she would take it in a heartbeat. Then she’d grab a few keepsakes and run somewhere—anywhere in the world where she could forget this nightmare and raise her child.

“I can’t do that, dear.” And the angel actually seemed pained by this. “But I’ll have a little talk with Razael when he returns.”

Eden’s heart lifted. Hope. It was unreasonable, but it gripped her heart just the same. “Thank you.” This time she meant it.

Zuriel smiled, and there was real warmth in it. Then she twirled in her smoke-waterfall dress and glided from the nursery. Her angeling—Napthali—stayed behind.

Ren gave Eden a look of complete surprise from the other side of the room. “Well, that was interesting.”

Eden just nodded. Interesting… and maybe a way out? She almost didn’t dare to think it.

But when she settled back down to her cot, her mind was racing with the possibilities. Maybe Zuriel would understand. Maybe she would convince Razael. Suddenly, it seemed like she had a powerful ally, and with that, anything was possible. With all those thoughts zooming around in her head, she thought she would be awake for hours… but fatigue pulled over her like a tide, and it quickly washed her out to sea.

She closed her eyes and fell deep into sleep.