Darkness Unmasked (Dark Angels 5)

But in particular, with one.

He might not have said the words, but they hung in the air regardless. And while it was now very obvious that Lucian had an agenda all his own when it came to the keys, I didn’t think he was responsible for snatching the first one. He’d been as furious as we’d been over its loss.

Of course, I’d also been sure that he’d never harm me, and his strangulation attempt had certainly proven that wrong. Yet I still believed he didn’t want me dead. Not until the keys were found, anyway.

I frowned. “I thought you said malevolent spirits were of this world rather than from hell?”

“They are.”

“Then why would the opening of the first gate affect them in any way?”

“Because the dark path is a place filled with dark emotions and, with the first gate open, these emotions have begun to filter into this reality.”

“Meaning what?”

I slowed as I neared the living area and trepidation flared, though I still had no idea what I feared. Maybe it was simply death itself. Or maybe it was just a hangover from the hell of the last few weeks. Between escapee demons, malevolent spirits, and psycho astral travelers, I’d certainly been kept on my toes.

Or flat on my back, bleeding all over the pavement, as was generally the case.

“Meaning,” Azriel said softly, “that it feeds the darker souls, be they human or spirit.”

“So, basically, it’s the beginning of hell on earth?” Two steps and I’d be in the living room. My stomach began twisting into knots. I flexed my fingers and forced reluctant feet forward.

“Basically, yes.”

“Great.” As if the weight on my shoulders wasn’t already enough, I now had the sanity of the masses to worry about.

I entered the living room and saw the body.

Or rather, the body-shaped parcel.

Because Hunter had left out one very important fact when she’d described Wolfgang’s death.

Not only had he been sucked as dry as a fly caught by a spider, but he’d been entangled in the biggest damn spiderweb I’d ever seen.>Then the fields were gone, and we regained substance. And though it involved no effort on my part, it still left my head spinning.

“You,” he said, expression concerned, “are not recovering as quickly as you should.”

“It’s been a hard few weeks.” I stepped back to study the building in front of us, even though all I really wanted to do was remain in his arms. That, however, was not an option. Not now and certainly not in the future. Not on any long-term, forever-type basis, anyway.

Which, if I was being at all honest with myself, totally sucked. But then, I had a very long history of falling for inappropriate men. Take my former Aedh lover, Lucian, for instance.

“Let’s not,” Azriel said, voice grim as he touched my back and then lightly waved me forward.

Amusement teased my lips. “He’s out of my life, Azriel, and no longer a threat to whatever plans you—”

“It is not the threat to me I worry about,” he cut in, voice irritated.

I raised my eyebrows. “Well, he can hardly threaten me, given he and everyone else wants the damn keys.”

“His need for the keys did not stop his attempt to strangle you.”

Well, no, it hadn’t. But I suspected Lucian’s actions had been little more than a momentary lapse of control—one he would have snapped out of before he’d actually killed me. Although, to be honest, I hadn’t actually been so certain of that when his hands had been around my neck.

I opened the ornate metal gate and walked up the brick pathway toward the front door. Wolfgang’s house was one of the increasingly rare redbrick Edwardian houses that used to take pride of place in the leafy bayside suburb. The front garden was small but meticulously tended, as was the house itself. I pulled out the gloves as I walked up the brick pathway toward the ornate front door, then said, “Lucian is no longer our problem.”

“If you think that, you are a fool.”

And I wasn’t a fool. Not really. I just kept hoping that if I believed something hard enough, it might actually come true. I slipped the gloves on and switched the discussion back to my health. It was far safer ground.