As though a clock’s gears grind into place at the midnight hour, a gong sounds in my head, and the song starts playing loud and clear, lyrics and all.

“That’s it! That’s the boy band!” I shout with way too much enthusiasm…since I don’t understand the purpose of the song at a time like this.

Sheesh. The old me even predicted this moment? I was so awesome. I hate myself for being that awesome back then and setting the bar so damn high for the new me now.

I decide to sing it aloud so the guys can hurry up and help me piece this puzzle together before I have to save them and piss them all off at me.

“True to your heart! You gotta be true to your heart!”

They barely spare me a glance, staying busy with all the pointy ends of the weapons still stabbing at them.

I start dancing, singing louder, and reciting the words verbatim.

“And when you’re true to your heart, I know it’s gonna lead you straight to me.”

They still don’t look up here. If they don’t help me figure it out soon, I’m going to be forced to take drastic measures. Because I’m not saving them.

At least not until one of them gets terribly wounded. Then I’ll probably blow up half of purgatory, since I have zero control these days.

But if they can’t figure out how to be true to their hearts, we’ll have to trust mine. And mine always tells me to do crazy things that piss them off.

Chapter 20

EZEKIEL

“What the fuck is she singing for right now?” Jude snaps, hissing out a breath as he bends way back, narrowly dodging a strike that would have caught him in the throat.

I can’t believe Paca is singing and dancing instead of blazing her purple fire all around. That was the damn point of wearing these stupid fucking veils—to stop her from overreacting to the situation.

However, this reaction? I have no idea what’s going on with our crazy fucking girlfriend right now.

I tear my veil away, along with the headdress, cursing when I get a metallic kiss from a sword that stings like a bitch.

The blade pulls back, leaving the small gash on my arm, and I tense, waiting on purple fire to rain down on us.

No overreaction.

No reaction at all…

Paca is still singing, as I’m forced to slice this one in two, and he…turns into two fuckers I now have to deal with.

At this rate, we’re going to have to ask for her fucking help, even though we came in with the intentions of avoiding it and proving we’re it for her.

“Open your eyes. Your heart can tell you no lies,” she continues, singing that damn chorus again.

A sharp harmonica draws my attention up to the floating chunk of land. Lamar is the one playing the harmonica, eyes shut as he gets into it. He dances right alongside her, as Hera starts singing harmony, clapping with the beat, even as she smirks at us like she’s enjoying our misery.

What the fuck is Paca wearing? It’s like some sexy, Asian-inspired thing that is really distracting with all the skin it’s showing.

“Fucking keep your eyes here!” Kai shouts, drawing my attention back to see he’s just taken a blade to the shoulder that was likely intended for my heart.

Shit.

“Why the hell is she trying to distract us right now? Does she think we’ll give up if we fail and call for her help?” Gage grinds out, slicing through a sword that breaks against his.

I can’t help but glance up when Lamar puts his all into it, taking a solo with the harmonica, as Paca dances dramatically behind him, singing twice as loud once the solo ends.

I jerk my head to the right, dodging a spear, blinking as Paca runs her hands down her sides.

“You got me stabbed! Are you happy?” Gage shouts, cursing as he breaks off the end of the spear that’s jammed through his side.

“You’re really undermining the very intense situation down here!” Kai gripes, spinning and countering three strikes with just one maneuver.

“When things are getting crazy,” Paca keeps singing, as Gage shouts to me, “How do we kill something that only multiplies in death?”

“And you don’t know where to start.”

“If I knew, I’d have already done it!” I shout back at him, unable to tune out Paca’s ridiculously upbeat song that really doesn’t jive with the suspense we have going on at current.

“Keep on believing, baby. Just be true to your heart!”

After a few more pointless lyrics, her song comes to an abrupt end.

“I’m not saving your ungrateful asses. I guess you’ll just have to watch them pummel me until you figure out what the clue means for yourselves,” she calls down as Lamar continues playing the harmonica. “This is what it means to me.”

I look up just as a shadow falls over me, and my eyes widen as she lands on top of one of the guys in front of us, collapsing and fumbling around until she scrambles to her feet, and shoves her hair out of her face.

“That was way cooler in my head. Gotta work on my landing,” she chirps, smiling over at me.

My eyes widen, and a roar of rage comes from Gage, as a spear stabs through her shoulder from behind.

She winces, shutting her eyes as she takes a calming breath, and stops the spear from traveling through her far enough to reach me.

“Yeah. I made those weapons myself,” Hera calls down with far too much glee in her tone. “They’ll cut deep, dear sister. All of them. Even against you.”

Kai goes to rip one out, but she turns, her eyes widening, as a blade cuts through her middle.

Hera picks up singing the song, starting teeny bopper melody over, as my heartbeat starts thundering in my ears.

“That’s catchy!” Hera calls out mid-chorus, and then jumps back in without missing a beat.

I grab Paca, yanking her to me, as Jude swings his scythe up to block the next strike against her. Black blood oozes from her slowly closing wound, as she looks up and gives me a lazy grin.

“You fucking cruel bitch. Don’t you dare. Get your ass back up there. We’ll get ourselves out of this, and prove to you that we’re the only motherfucking Horsemen you can have at your side,” I bite out through mostly clenched teeth.

She spins out of my arms, catching the tip of a blade intended for my back that I left too exposed.

The sword spears her through the middle, and Gage dives for her, as I stare in horror at the smile that grows on her face.

“True to your heart,” she sings, jumping in with Hera, even as blood starts staining her teeth.

The floating island moves in front of us, while Lamar dances, even as Paca struggles to free herself from the sword impaling her.

“Attack only her,” commands a familiar voice from overhead.

My own blood starts boiling when Paca rips free from the sword in time to throw herself in front of Gage, taking the blow from a club that knocks her to her knees, even as she clings to his sides. She releases a startled cry of pain this time, as the club bashes her again from behind.

It all happens so fast that none of us have time to react.

I feel frozen to my spot, as Gage struggles to try to shield her, getting overpowered by her as she forces her way between him and the next several blows that come in quick succession from several assailants. She’s too strong for Gage to conquer, and she continues to use her body as a shield.

My gaze swings up to find Manella lounging in the throne Paca vacated, but my attention quickly moves to her again, watching as the vortex keepers follow his order.

“Don’t listen to him! Attack the Horsemen, not her! Make her want to save them!” Hera shouts, even as the knights follow Manella’s orders, striking Paca over and over and over.

Even when I try to dive into the fray, Paca lifts a hand, blowing me back, taking the next several strikes, as blood drips from her collection of wounds.

She’s never successfully used so much power on us before, and I almost hate her for doing it now.

“Why are you ignoring me?! I’m your master!” Hera gripes louder, as Lamar disappears from sight, the chunk of land floating lower and lower.

So many distractions. So much of Paca’s blood.

She pins me down with her next pulse of power, along with the others, when we’re all blown back and end up stuck to the wall. Just like in the arena that day, all we can do is watch as Paca takes the beatings, the knights surrounding her, as she refuses to defend herself.

“This is my trial! Go make your own if you want to work your agenda! Don’t steal mine, you lazy asshole!” Hera says, still berating Manella.

It’s like white noise. Sounds that don’t matter but grate on your nerves, while watching something you’re powerless to stop.

“Why bother, when you’ve so generously done all the hard work for me?” Manella drawls.

Paca starts singing again, her face just barely in view, before the knights completely swallow her. Losing sight of her means we can’t see anything at all going on, and they could be doing anything.

Her song cuts out as she cries out in pain, the sound of it slicing through to something deep inside of me.

Something pulses in the air, as my eyes begin to burn, and my skin sizzles.

Gage’s eyes start glowing brighter and brighter, but it’s only a mild distraction as I strain to break the holds against me.

I feel something inside me snap, as Kai roars like a feral beast. Jude leaps away from the wall, snapping free first, eyes glowing just as bright as Gage’s.