“What are you doing?”

“Pay me no mind, child. I have loved you like a daughter. I’ll not let this asshole take you away, not until your time is done.” She raised her arms. “And it’s not done, not by a long shot.”

“Aumae?” Sachiel drew closer to her, his head tilting the other way. “What are you doing?”

“You.” She sneered. Her eyes turned black. “You used my sister for another child. You picked her on purpose, knowing she was half-messenger, and then you assaulted her body when you tried to rip your daughter from her womb.”

“He did what?”

Damien moved closer to me, his hip bumping into mine. “Get ready, you guys.”

No. I shook my head. Damien didn’t know something else was going on. The plan wouldn’t work. I reached back and found Kellan’s hand. I felt his tension. He knew my aunt was going her own way. He tucked me behind him.

I murmured to him, “We all have to be touching.”

Kellan nodded, still tucking me behind him.

Damien frowned, hearing me. “What? What are you talking about?”

Sachiel was drawing closer to Aumae. He was curious, but that would shift. Whatever Aumae had planned, it wasn’t good. He would kill her, if he were smart. He’d strike first before she could finish whatever she was doing.

“Kellan.” I thought, “We have to do something. We have to stall him.”

“I know.” Then he spoke up, “You can’t beat us all.”

It worked.

Sachiel turned to us, his back now to my aunt. “Is the begging already starting, demon?”

Kellan growled, actually showing his teeth. His anger was boiling up, but he was keeping it contained. “Without Shay, I’m a full demon.”

“My daughter is three-fourths messenger. My son is half-messenger. Aumae is half herself, and you, yes, I suppose you are almost a full demon. There’s a small sliver of humanity in you. I can see it. It’s like a pumping heart. It’s doomed to turn black within the hour, but even then, you are no match for me.”

“Guys,” Damien said under his breath. “What is going on?”

“I thought you were supposed to drain us of our powers. That was your plan, wasn’t it?” Kellan wasn’t backing down. He moved even closer to my father. I went with him, but clamped onto Damien and jerked him with us.

“What are you doing?” he barked at me.

Kellan ignored us, saying, “But you couldn’t take on my father.”

Sachiel was silent, not moving for a full ten seconds as he stared down Kellan. “You wouldn’t.”

“I would.”

“What are they talking about?” Damien whispered to me.

Kellan answered for me, “Calling my father.”

“What?” he whispered again to me. “That wasn’t the plan. Why are you guys changing the plan?”

“The plan?” My father didn’t sound surprised. “So you were going to betray me, my son. You were going to see your mother, your siblings, even that human father of yours. They’re still looking for you, you know.”

Damien froze behind me, growing more still with each word my father said. All the blood drained from his face.

“And now you’ll never see them. Now, you won’t even go to the above with me. I’ll cast you out.” Sachiel shared with Kellan the same ominous look. “You’ll both be in hell for the rest of your eternity.”

“Not unless I call my father forward.”

Kellan sounded so sure. Even I paused at that, frowning at him. Was he—no… Would he?

Sachiel shared my thoughts. “You’re lying.” But there was doubt in his statement. “You wouldn’t. You’d need—”

And as he said that, Kellan reached around me and jerked Damien forward. He wrapped an arm around his neck, the other holding a knife to his throat. Damien went completely still, his chest barely moving, and Kellan pressed the knife harder to his skin. He lowered his head, holding my father’s gaze steadily. “I would. I need a sacrifice mixed with my demon blood. That’s all I need, and he’d be here. I have no problem taking the life of the guy who betrayed Shay.” His arm tightened over Damien.

Thunder erupted, and lightning smashed down behind us. It wasn’t close, but close enough where I felt the electricity go through my body, jolting me.

“Kellan.” Damien’s Adam’s apple bounced up and down. “What are you doing?”

“Shut up.”

I moved to their side, grabbing on to Damien. Aumae said we needed to maintain contact, all three of us.

“You’re a part of this, Shay?” Damien asked me.

I ignored him, staring at my father. “Kellan will do it, and you know it.”

“I don’t believe you. His father is as much a fan of his as I am of you. I have no problem killing my own child, not if it betters me. His father is more ruthless than I am.”

“You can’t take all of us on, and I’m sure once his father arrives, he’ll go straight for you. We’ll get away. You won’t. The odds are not in your favor.” Something new had risen up in the air. I felt it now. It was low, but building in power. It was like an invisible river. It was first a small trickle, wetting our feet, but it grew and grew. I felt it growing and its current was a strong pull. It was sweeping around us, threatening to pull us away with it, whatever it was. I glanced over my father’s shoulder and saw Aumae there. Her arms were in the air. Her eyes were black. The wind was picking up just around her. It was circling her, whipping and snarling. I was shocked my father hadn’t heard it yet. Whatever she was doing, it was new power, power that wasn’t there because of him. He should’ve noticed, but he was still locked on Kellan. He believed his threat and he was focused on what would happen if Kellan’s father did arrive.