“What do you have for me?” I asked, forcing a smile.
“What don’t I have for you is a better question,” he replied. He was holding a pie tin filled with whipped cream that was, of course, on fire. He set it on the table, put his finger in the middle of it, right through the flames, and pulled out a dollop. He dabbed it on my lips, and exhaled loudly.
I knew he was going to use the whipped cream as an excuse to kiss me, and thankfully, I came up with a plan. I would let him lean in, then stop him at the last second and ask for a drink. I’d promise to kiss him back if he just got me a glass of water. Then, when he left the room, I would free the sword.
I tried not to contort my face in disgust as he moved his lips toward mine. I opened my mouth to speak, but before I could . . .
BAROOM! A roaring explosion rocked the room. When the smoke cleared, we saw a huge, jagged hole in the wall behind us.
Gavin was standing in the center of it.
CHAPTER 36
My love. Like every time I saw him, a wave of pleasure tore over me.
Gavin, however, did not seem the least bit happy to see me. He looked at the two of us—Graham leaning over to kiss me, my lips covered with whipped cream—and he staggered backward.
“Gavin, he didn’t . . .” I was cut short by something hot against my throat. Graham held a knife to my neck. I could sense it was the same blade he’d used to kill the girl from the past, the girl who’d gone before me.
“Not another step, or I’ll kill her. You know I will,” Graham warned. “I was wondering when you’d show up,” he added.
I held my breath to keep still. Why is Graham acting like he expected Gavin?
“You’re a little late, though,” Graham continued. “It’s already done. We’re just enjoying dessert now, as you can see.”
Graham opened his mouth, and a long serpent tongue snaked out and licked the whipped cream off my lips. My stomach churned.
Gavin’s face turned dark, and his eyes went wild. He clenched his fists, and was visibly straining against his instinct to lunge. It was killing him to see me in Graham’s arms. I tried to shake my head, to let Gavin know that Graham was lying, but it made the knife dig deeper. I felt the warm trickle of blood on my collar.
“What a pity that you broke the Covenant for nothing,” Graham said. “You couldn’t save her, and now you’ve doomed yourself.”
What is he talking about? What is the Covenant? And why is Gavin doomed? I wondered. How is Gavin even there? I thought he couldn’t enter a demon seat . . .
“Let her go,” Gavin hissed through closed teeth.
“I think not,” Graham answered. “I’m rather enjoying her.”
Gavin roared with equal parts anger and anguish. As he did, his wings burst out from his back. He began to pace, menacingly.
In response, Graham morphed. His skin turned red, slick, and scaly. Scarlet, almost translucent wings sprang from his shoulders, and the muscles on his arms doubled in size. As his shape shifted, his hand on my throat relaxed, and I darted out from under his arm.
Gavin flew across the room, grabbing Graham. They slammed into the wall, sending metal weapons flying. I ducked under the table, narrowly missing being sliced by a passing dagger.
I peeked out and saw that Gavin had Graham by the throat. He lifted the demon, walked toward me, and slammed Graham’s face into the table. I screamed and retreated, as forks and spoons clattered to the floor in a noisy rain around me.
The entire table lifted above me. I looked up and saw that Graham was holding it over his head. He threw it at Gavin, and it splintered over my angel’s broad back. I ran into the fireplace. It was warm, but offered cover from the objects swirling around the room.
Graham started taunting Gavin as they circled each other. “I knew you’d choose love over duty. Not that I blame you. She was quite delicious.”
Gavin raised his lips in a silent snarl.
“Was it worth it?” Graham continued. “Was the love of a worthless human worth your own undoing?”
“The only worthless thing in this room is you!” Gavin spat.
“Not for long, thanks to you.” Graham smirked. “You didn’t think my family would take our punishment forever, did you? We’re jinn, not lowlife incubus! And, finally, we’ll have our honor restored. In fact, once I kill you and the little Abbey girl here, I bet we’ll even get promoted to—”
ARRGGHHH! A guttural scream erupted from Gavin as he charged toward Graham. Graham leapt, and they collided in midair with a sonic boom that rattled the chandelier. Both tumbled around the room, smashing into the walls, the ceiling, then back down to the floor. Every impact left a huge crater behind.
In the flurry of fists and flying, it was hard to tell who was winning. Gavin grabbed Graham by the shoulders and flipped the demon foot over face. From the floor, Graham bit Gavin on his Achilles’ heel. In response, Gavin smashed Graham with a kick in the chest.
They then started pulling weapons off the walls. Gavin launched a javelin into Graham’s thigh. Graham laughed and yanked it out. Graham threw a huge spiked hammer at Gavin. It bounced off Gavin’s forehead like a pinecone off a bear. Human weapons seemed no more dangerous to them than a human throwing a plastic lawn chair in someone’s way—a nuisance, but nothing deadly.
I looked across the room at the Archangel sword. Its flames had gone out, but the glass box was open. I didn’t think Gavin saw it, and Graham didn’t know I had unlocked it. Every time I thought about running over to it, another weapon whizzed across the room. I couldn’t figure out how to get to it without getting killed.
They continued to fight, but eventually, Graham started to tire. His movements slowed, his reflexes weren’t as sharp, and he was taking far more hits than he was delivering. Finally, Gavin landed a powerful punch to the jaw that left Graham motionless on the floor not two feet in front of me. It looked as if Gavin had won. Tears of relief streamed down my cheeks.
I peered over Graham’s back at Gavin. He was bloodied and battered.
“Are you all right?” I asked.
“Right as rain,” he said, twisting his lips into a half smile. “You best get out of here before he wakes up. Let me finish him off.”
I shook my head. “I won’t leave you.”
“Won’t leave me, eh?” He raised his eyebrows. “What was that whole scene in the driveway, then?”
“I mean I won’t leave you again. Ever. I promise. I was just coming out to tell you.”
“You were just coming out?” he said incredulously.
“Yeah, I had this under control,” I said.
“This? This?” He motioned around the ruined room. “You had it under control?”
“Well, you came in at a bad time,” I protested. “I was in the middle of a new plan.”