“I was wondering when you both would realize that the Uncorrupted will never appreciate you like I do.” Lucifer smiled when he saw the latest additions to his royal court.
Abbadon and Azrael shone in their golden raiment. They were dressed for battle, as they had been that day so long ago, during the glorious rebellion, when Lucifer had first tried to take Paradise for his own.
Their wings beat against their backs, and their golden armor glowed like beacons in the night. Their faces were calm and serene, extraordinarily beautiful. His lovely dark angels.
Lucifer sat in his white robes, gleaming, shining with a light more wondrous than anything they had ever seen. This was the morning Star. The lost prince of Heaven.
They walked up to the throne and knelt at his feet.
“We come to pledge our allegiance in return for an unmaking,” Abbadon said.
“Our swords are yours to command,” Azrael added.
“What proof do I have of your loyalty? You betrayed me once before,” Lucifer demanded.
Jack was prepared. “You shall hold our souls hostage until we are free. When our debt is paid, we will regain them along with our freedom from the bond and each other.”
Mimi nodded.
“So be it.” The Dark Prince smiled. With Azrael and Abbadon at his side, his return to Paradise was assured. “Arise, my friends. Welcome back to the fight.”
EPILOGUE
The White Darkness
Allegra waked into the White Darkness. It was over twenty years since she had broken her Bond. Not long ago, she had left her two daughters back on earth with their tasks, and she had journeyed down to the center of Tartarus. She found Charles in a smoky nightclub. They had not seen each other since that night when she’d left him in New York.
“There you are,” she said gently.
Charles wore a sharp black suit and was sitting in front of a piano, idly playing the keys. “How did you find me here?” he asked.
“It’s one of our favorite memories, isn’t it?” Allegra looked around. “1923. The Cotton Club. Before the fire.”
Charles sighed.
“Shall I play you something?” Allegra asked, sitting next to him. “Will you sing for me?”
Charles nodded. He stood to take the microphone and began to sing. “‘Unstop the day, you’ll rise again…’”
Allegra listened, her eyes glistening with tears as she played. When he was done, she clapped.
“Shall I tell you the story? Of Florence,” Charles asked. “I do not know if you are strong enough to hear it.”
“Begin from the beginning,” Allegra said. “I only know my side.”