“It’s not them I mind killing,” I said.
“I know.”
And he did. Phantoms weren’t meant to be walking among us. They were half-breeds: half fallen angel, half human. Many of them still possessed powers nobody on planet Earth should know about, let alone possess.
The humans had a word for our kind: Nephilim. We were also half-breeds — all of us. It’s what made us different, what made us almost immortal, considering we were basically demi-gods.
It was the humans. The informants. The ones who mindlessly worked for the Phantoms, thinking they have some sort of use, when really they were pawns in a much bigger game than they’d ever imagined. Those were the ones I hated killing. Even if they were idiotic enough to think they had any say in this war.
I stared at Adonis as his eyes searched mine. He brought his hand up to my face. I shuddered as his touch brought me reeling back from the darkness that plagued me.
Touch.
It was what saved Seekers from turning into their worst fear: evil itself. A person could only see so much evil, and commit so much in the name of a cause, before they truly forgot which side they were fighting for.
The touch of another being, another energy source, was what kept Seekers balanced, and what kept us alive. It was one of the main reasons Seekers were partnered up. We needed one another in order to stay strong.
God help me, but Adonis was my strength.
His lips touched mine for a brief second before he pulled back and traced the outside of my jaw with his finger. I leaned into him, nearly swaying on my feet as I did so.
“Better?” he asked, kissing the top of my forehead.
I sighed. “Better. Thanks.”
“Anytime.” He winked and moved back to push the button as I rolled my eyes. I needed to remind myself to never give the guy compliments.
“Stop talking trash about me, Thena.”
I offered him an innocent look. He and I both knew he couldn’t read minds, even though some Phantoms could.
Unfortunately, he also knew me well enough to guess almost exactly what I was thinking most the time.
I knew I had to put my game face on. After all, the entire reason for going into the building had been a set up. We needed to get into the apartment; therefore, we pretended to be apartment-hunting. I was sure the real estate agent was waiting with bated breath for our take on the penthouse.
The elevator door opened, leading us back into the lobby where the real estate agent was waiting anxiously. I took Adonis’s hand, as per our arrangement and laughed as I looked into his big, baby blues.
“Oh, baby, it’s so perfect, let’s take it!” I kissed him firmly on the mouth, enjoying the fact that I got to see him squirm. He hated being the one being hit on, considering his life’s work was doing the exact opposite.
“So what did you think?” The real estate agent walked up to us in a full-out red leopard jumpsuit and gold heels.
What I wanted to say was, “I should kill you for dressing like that.”
What came out was, “My boyfriend and I really need to discuss it.”
I plastered a grin on my face as Adonis worked his magic.
He leaned in toward the middle-aged woman and closed his eyes for two seconds before focusing the weight of his godlike appearance onto the poor soul. “What do you think, Katrina?”
Katrina blinked a few times and sucked in a deep breath, before placing her hand on her heaving chest.
Nice work, Adonis, you’ve officially given her a stroke.
I nudged him in the ribs, signaling him to back off before the woman started panting. Katrina shook her head and giggled.
“I don’t know what came over me. Well, you two just take your time. You have my card. Call me if you need anything.” Katrina said the last part with a suggestive wink toward at Adonis.
“Cougar,” I coughed as she sauntered off.
Adonis laughed and led me out the door to the waiting black SUV.
“So…” I exhaled once he got in on his side.
“Food?”
“Food.” He grinned and drove off faster than a bat out of Hades.
Chapter Two
I was gripping the seat like a vice. Adonis looked at my hands and snorted. Clearly he sensed my irritated mood. So we drove up to the first fast food place he could find. I needed carbs, the only thing that seemed to make my mood better — other than being in his arms for an extended period of time — but that’s just uncomfortable for a number of reasons I didn’t feel like thinking about.
My head was spinning with possibilities. The war had been going on for as long as I could remember, which by the way was quite a long time.
I’ve been around since close to the beginning.
The fall.