The door burst open, the wood splintering in half from the force. A dark figure lurched into the doorway, his powerful form backlit by the cloud-studded sky. Az and I jumped to our feet, and fear shook through my heart. Was it the demon from the legends? Had it come to claim our lives?

The figure charged forward, and the light hit the familiar panes of his furious face.

Ramiel. My breath whooshed from my lungs, though I wasn’t sure I should be relieved or scared as hell. He’d been more than clear about his so-called Order rules, and Az and I had just ripped those rules to metaphorical shreds. And I’d do it all again ten times over. As much as I cared for Ramiel, and as much as I respected him as a leader, this was not the kind of thing he could command. I understood why he’d done what he did, but that didn’t mean I had to agree with it. We were stronger as a unit, stronger with this bond. I wasn’t about to throw that away, even though he was glaring at us like he might rip us both to shreds.

“Az, how could you?” Ramiel rushed forward and grabbed Az by the shoulders, shaking him so hard that I swore I heard Az’s neck snap back. “I told you to stay away from her. I told you to keep your hands to your damn self!”

I’d never seen Ramiel so angry. And, to be honest, it kind of scared me. He was the calm, controlled Ramiel, who wouldn’t even let himself get close to me for fear it would make him lose control over his emotions. And what’s more, I didn’t even understand why he was as upset as he was. Yes, we had disobeyed his orders, but it wasn’t like it was the end of the world. Besides, it wasn’t like this was the first time Az and I had shared a moment together. He was overreacting. Big time.

“Honestly, Ramiel. Stop it,” I said, frowning as he continued to shake Az like a rag doll. “This isn’t fair.”

“Fair?” He twisted toward me now, his rage coming at me in vicious waves. “Fair has nothing to do with it.”

Sam, Uriel, and Lizzie all poked their heads in the door, but then quickly backed away when they saw what was happening. I couldn’t blame them. I didn’t want to be in here either.

“Then, what does it have to do with, Ramiel?” I asked, fisting my hands and propping them on my waist. “Because, I’ve got to be honest with you, you’re acting insane. Az and I had sex. Big deal. It’s not some kind of horrible evil thing that must be avoided at all cost. It’s natural. It’s normal. Stop acting like the Archangels and get a grip.”

Ramiel froze, and his silver eyes went sharp. He didn’t like that I’d compared him to the Archangels and their hideous rules about sexuality. But for once, I didn’t feel as though I’d needlessly put my foot in my mouth. The Order of the Fallen hated the Archangels. Part of that anger came from the fact that the Archangels tried to control every minute of an angel’s life, including who they could and couldn’t love, and the parameters of their physical contact beyond that. And now Ramiel was trying to do the very same thing to me. To Az. To all of us. I’d gone from one constricted life to another without even realizing.

Lizzie popped back through the door, shot me a look that was full of silent apology, and then turned toward Ramiel, who was still holding tight to Az’s shoulders. “I think it’s time you told her. Otherwise, you’re just going to make her hate you. And as much as you like to put on a big show, I’m pretty sure that’s the last thing you want.”

I swivelled my head toward Lizzie, confusion rippling through me. “Lizzie? What are you talking about? Tell me what?”

She pressed her lips together and closed her eyes. What the hell was going on?

“Please don’t get pissed off at me. I promised Ramiel that I’d keep my mouth shut. So that he could tell you himself. Of course, I assumed he would have told you by now when I made the deal. It’s not fair for him to keep it from you any longer, not when hiding the truth from you is clearly breaking your heart.”

The sounds of the world suddenly seemed very hollow and distant. My heart thumped hard, and I whispered, “What truth?”

Az took that moment to jerk his shoulders out of Ramiel’s grasp. He crossed his arms over his chest and gave Ramiel a nod. “She has a right to know. Then, she can make her own goddamn decision.”

Ramiel’s face paled. “I didn’t want to tell you like this. Or in a place like this.”

“Ramiel, just spill it,” I said, though a part of me knew that whatever this was, I didn’t actually want to hear it. There was something terrible going on, something that explained why Ramiel, why Sam, and why even Uriel had taken a step away from me. That something was so terrible that Ramiel hadn’t even wanted to tell me. Lizzie hadn’t either. But how could it be worse than not having each and every one of them by my side?

Ramiel let out a long sigh and began pacing the length of the small room. “Lizzie found something else in that book you two were translating, only this little tidbit had nothing to do with the world’s history and everything to do with the future.” He stopped suddenly, his face screwed up in pain. “It was a prophecy. About you, Erela. And it said that you would die in this war. In order to save the love of your life.”

* * *

At some point after Ramiel’s confession, I plopped down onto the floor. That was a whopper of information alright, and I didn’t even know where to even begin in order to process it. That crazy Old Enochian book held some kind of prophecy about me. Me, of all angels. And, I mean, that thing was old. Really, really old, which meant that there had been a prophecy about me for hundreds of years. That alone was enough to take my breath away.

And then there was the thing about me dying. That part kind of sucked, no matter which way I looked at it.

Finally, I took a deep breath and looked up to see our entire pack huddled around me, silent, wary, concerned. Even Rourke seemed to understand the weight of this new discovery. Hell, he probably understood far more than I did right now.

“How do you even know this prophecy is about me?” I asked, turning my attention toward Lizzie. “Did the prophecy actually list my name? Doubtful. Maybe it’s about another Nephilim entirely.”

She pressed her lips into a thin line. “Actually, it did. Erela Michael, daughter of an Archangel and a half-demon. There aren’t many angels around with those precise qualities…”

Shitoodles. It was hard to argue against that. I’d expected this grand, vague prophecy where it was hard to tell who or who it couldn’t be about. I’d seen them before. They also hardly ever came true. This, however…well, this kind of had the markings of something that we couldn’t ignore. Of course, I would have chosen an entirely different method of protecting me than Ramiel seemed to deem necessary.

“So, let me see if I’m understanding this correctly…” I slowly said. “Lizzie found a prophecy about me in this book. She showed it to you, and then you all decided that in order to stop it from happening, you would prevent me from falling in love with any of you.”

Ramiel’s jaw clenched, and he flicked his silver eyes away. “That was the idea, yes. If you don’t have a love of your life, then you won’t die.”

I let out a hollow laugh. “It’s far too late for that, Ramiel. Far too late.”

I loved them all, blindingly so. The question for me wasn’t if I had found the love of my life. It was which one of my loves I would end up having to protect. By dying.

Man, this really put a damper on my blissfully perfect night with Az.

“Yes,” Ramiel frowned. “Because it seems as though Az just couldn’t control himself, even if that meant it would save you.”

I rolled my eyes. “You’re such an idiot, Ramiel.”

He blinked at me.

“I was already doomed before last night.” I pushed up from the floor, wondering how much it would take for him to understand exactly what I was trying to say. Curling my hands into fists, I willed him to see my meaning without me having to blurt it all aloud in front of an audience. I love you, you idiot. I love all of you. “There was nothing you could have done to save me.”

“I told you this was a bad idea, Ramiel,” Sam muttered.

I whirled toward my red-haired angel. “Oh, don’t get me started on you and your fake break-up. You made me think you were just using me. You all suck for not telling me about this immediately.”

Uriel held up a finger. “I would just like to say that I just follow Ramiel’s orders. Besides, I didn’t think you’d particularly miss my affections, since…well, I know where your heart truly lies.”

He nodded once at Sam, and then at Az.

Oh, they were all just so infuriating! Why didn’t they understand? Why couldn’t they see the truth?

The distant sound of clattering hooves filled the air. Lilith, who stood just inside the doorway, turned toward the noise to gaze outside. Her face remained blank; her voice was flat. “Oh, look. It seems as though we’re saved from this awkward conversation after all. The demon who likes to collect heads is here.”

We all scrambled to the windows, my love life thankfully forgotten.

In the distance, a form glided over the rolling hills on a black stead that was at least twice as large as humans’ horses. The rider and the horse moved together in one fluid motion, waves of ash trailing behind them like a blanket of pure death. I swallowed hard and took in his thick armor, his two broad swords, and the steel helmet that encased his head. And the two severed heads dangling from his waist that bounced with every gallop.

This was going to be…fun.

“So, what’s this guy’s deal?” I whispered to Lilith. “What exactly do we need to be prepared for?”

“Like I said, he likes to rip people’s heads off. And then he likes to eat them.” She lifted her hand to her amulet and squeezed tight. “It’s probably been awhile since anyone has ventured into any of his villages. So, he’s likely to be hungry.”

“He eats people, but he’s not a blood demon, right?”

Lilith sniffed. “I don’t appreciate the comparison. I drink blood as sustenance. He eats to cause violent chaos.”

“What is he then?” Rourke asked.

“A death demon,” Lilith said. “He craves it. He seeks it out. It’s the only thing that can keep him alive, just as blood keeps me alive, just as water keeps water demons alive.”

And just like fire kept fire demons alive…and yet, I rarely needed the flames, if ever.

“He’s getting close,” Ramiel said, voice firm and hard, our love life arguments now seemingly forgotten. But I knew he was still stewing, even if he put on a brave face. “Anything else we need to know, Lilith?”

“He’s one of the only demons in the realm that has wings. So, he’s kind of hard to beat.”