Wicked Ruin (Se7en Sinners Book 3)

  I roll my eyes and keep pushing forward. “Whatever.”

  After damn near fighting my way through the half naked, half fucking throng, I hit Irin’s quarters, only to find her lazing on the sectional while watching a full out orgy in the middle of the floor.

  “Stay,” she insists, heavy-lidded eyes glassy.

  I look to Lucifer who appears to consider her offer at first. “We would…” he begins, “but we’re looking for someone.”

  Irin turns to me, stacking up the pieces. “He isn’t here. Shouldn’t you all be keeping an eye on our guests?”

  I try to focus on her and not the naked woman just feet away from where I stand, crying out her pleasure and pain as she takes double penetration like a pro. Yikes.

  “We were, but…”

  “There was a…hiccup,” Lucifer interjects. Something must flare in his eyes because Irin nods with understanding.

  “I see.” She turns her head and one of her dutiful servants rushes to her side. “Party’s over.”

  The young man nods once, before rushing through the double doors. Irin claps twice, and the sinuous scene before us comes to a screeching halt. “That goes for you all as well.”

  Without a word, the foursome stands and gathers their strewn clothing, not an ounce of shame or shyness etched in their faces. I just witnessed a woman get pile-driven by two guys with her face buried in another woman’s snatch, yet my cheeks are red with embarrassment.

  “Apologies, Irin,” Lucifer drawls, taking an empty seat on the sectional.

  Irin shrugs. “I was bored anyway. Drinks?”

  Right on cue, a server approaches with glasses of gold-speckled bubbly. I look to Lucifer who wears a devious smirk. He’d love it if I succumbed to my irrational, basal desires after indulging in Irin’s elixir.

  “No, thank you,” I say, shaking my head.

  “Something else then?” Irin inquires. She raises her brows, almost as if challenging me to refuse.

  “Champagne?”

  Before Irin can even respond, the server is scurrying off to fetch me a fresh, full glass.

  We don’t lower our masks until the raucous sex crew is gone. Then simply sip our drinks in silence. The moment after Irin dismisses her staff, Lucifer jumps right into it.

  “Raphael was here. He saw Eden.”

  “Even through the veil?” If it weren’t for the slight frown between Irin’s slender black brows, I’d think she’d found that tidbit amusing.

  “He must have been able to shatter it. Unless they’re working with Dark magic, which is more than a bit surprising, if not disturbing.”

  “Did they make anyone else?”

  Lucifer shakes his head. “The Se7en apparently cut off the rest of their lot. I had eyes on Raph, but he eluded me, as if he knew we’d be expecting him. Meaning, he knew we were here. Raph has always been a spineless follower, so I’m not surprised at his involvement. I am curious to see who else has joined Uriel’s cause once intel comes in.”

  So no wonder I didn’t spot the Se7en all evening. Still, that doesn’t make me feel any better about Legion being practically absent after making such a big stink about me staying close to him. Maybe whatever he had going on with Adriel was more important.

  Over the next hour, the members of the Se7en—minus Legion, of course—filter into Irin’s quarters, varied shades of determination on their faces. Even Adriel looks a little less superior as she wafts in, her winter white still pristine. When Niko makes it in, he rushes straight to my side.

  “E, what happened?” He cups my cheeks, looking for any and all signs of distress.

  “I’m fine. Honestly.”

  “The spell…it should have—”

  Before he can get the explanation out, he’s ripped from in front of me, and damn near thrown across the room. Nikolai lands on his feet, but Legion is already right in front of him, his hulking frame heaving with fury. I swear, he’s about to burn through his suit as heated as he seems.

  “You said it would work!” he roars.

  Even in the face of violence personified, Niko stands tall. “And it did. You should have disclosed the fact that a Seraph could strip spells.”

  “A Seraph can’t do that.” Legion takes a step back and roughly rakes his hand through his hair in frustration. “It also doesn’t help that she made friends with a flock of Harpies and was practically untraceable. What the hell were you thinking, Eden?”

  Suddenly, every eye is fixed on me. Harpies? I guess that explains the bird theme. Still, it doesn’t explain why Legion couldn’t trace me.

  “What?” I scoff. “I didn’t know what they were or what they were doing to me.”

  “Harpies are conniving little shits,” Lilith comments. “Most times, they’re harmless, but they’re not to be trusted, Eden. Ever.”

  “Like I said, I didn’t know they were Harpies. And they seemed nice enough,” I shrug. I mean, I knew they were something, but when you’re quite literally surrounded by the supernatural, there’s no way to take inventory of every non-human. And they looked nothing like the Harpies depicted in books and Wikipedia.

  “That must’ve been how Raphael could sense you,” Lucifer muses.

  Legion thankfully abandons his standoff with Niko and comes to where I sit on the sectional, kneeling down to meet my eyes. “Were you hurt? Did he say anything to you?”

  I shake my head. “No. I don’t even think he knew who I was. He just seemed…interested. Like something was pulling him towards me.”

  Those silver eyes scan my face, still not convinced. But it only lasts a second and then he’s pulling away from me. I can see it etched in his features—all is not forgotten and forgiven. The kiss he witnessed between Lucifer and me is still heavy on his brain.

  “Good news is,” Toyol begins, cutting through the tension, “we were able to get a tracker on one of the lesser angels. Now all we have to do is wait and let him lead us back to their lair.”

  “And then what?” Lucifer questions. He casually leans back into the sofa as if he doesn’t even notice Legion’s ire-filled glare staring silver daggers into his skull. “You all storm the castle and hope they let you leave with your heads? Remember, even with a couple of original fallen Seraph, an angel, a warlock prince, and a handful of demons, you’re still outnumbered. Uriel has Raph, meaning there’s a good chance he’s lured others to his cause.”

  “And what about me?” I pipe up. “Adriel can wield light, and so can I. I can be an asset. Use me.”

  Legion shakes his head. “It’s too dangerous, and you’re still untrained. When I found you at the church, I detected three Seraph. Add in lesser angels, and that’s more than any of us can handle.”

  “He’s right,” Lucifer tacks on. “Three Seraph would be impossible to kill. But I don’t agree with benching our rookie.” He turns his focus on me, then Legion. “No one knows what she can do. Don’t let your petty emotions blind your judgment. If it were anyone else, would you be so quick to keep her out of this fight?”

  “She isn’t anyone else,” Legion answers darkly, a hint of a warning in his tone.

  “Then use her. At this point, the ball is in our court. We have the element of surprise on our side, and we have Uriel’s mate.”

  “And they have The Redeemer and Eden’s mom,” Legion retorts. His tense jaw works with irritation. “Fine. If Eden wants to fight, then I won’t stop her. You just make sure you remember your place.”

  “Oh, and what would that be?” Lucifer goads.

  “Out of my fucking way.”

  With that, Legion stalks out of the room, those double doors slamming shut at his back. I guess the meeting is adjourned.

  I gather the skirts of my dress and my elaborate mask and stroll over to where Niko stands, anxious to find out where he was all evening.

  “I’m so sorry,” he says at my approach.

  I shake my head. “You have nothing to be sorry about.”

  “That remains to be seen.”


  We both spin around to find Lucifer just feet away. His expression is as smug and disinterested as always, but there’s a glimmer of purple fire churning in his glare.

  “You heard Lilith,” I say. “The Harpies could have had something to do with it.”

  “Maybe,” he shrugs. “Maybe not. But let me remind our little warlock friend of the conditions of his freedom. You fail—you’re mine for the rest of eternity. And I’m not known to play nice with others.”

  “I’ve got it.”

  Niko starts to brush by him, but Lucifer stops him with a hand to his chest, his eyes shining even brighter, even wilder, with vicious delight.

  “No. I don’t think you do, mate.”

  I try to step between them, but their frames are like marble over steel. “Just leave him alone.”

  “You see, if anything happens to Eden, I will hold you personally responsible. And then maybe I’ll pay your brother a little visit…see how that gorgeous sister-in-law is doing, and that precious baby boy of theirs. Where might they be, anyway? Surely, they’d want to know of your recent resurrection…”

  Eyes nearly opaque, Niko grits out, “You leave them out of this.”

  The temperature drops twenty degrees and my breath escapes in a frosty cloud of condensation. I shiver as the air crackles between us, charged with icy violence.

  Lucifer is nonplussed. “No. I don’t think I will.”

  “Then maybe I’ll have a talk with Irin. You know, I didn’t see the familial resemblance until you sent me back. Her short stature, the black eyes, even her hair is the same. And then I thought…it’s funny how Saskia looks like a younger Irin. You remember Saskia, right? The impish girl you’re keeping prisoner? The same girl you instructed to wait on Eden during her time in Hell? You’re getting sloppy, Luc.”

  My gaze goes wide with realization. Saskia. The quiet, dark-haired girl that sounded like she was being choked from the inside out. She saved my life, probably more than a couple times. I’ve been so preoccupied with my own shit that I didn’t put two and two together. Saskia could be Irin’s younger sister. Or…her daughter.

  Even with Niko dangling leverage over Lucifer’s head—leverage that could have him struck down by Irin’s wrath within seconds—Lucifer simply…laughs.

  “You stupid, stupid boy.” Lucifer moves in to meet Niko’s glare, so close that their faces are only inches apart. “Who do you think sent her to me?”

  “Bullshit.”

  “Is it? Maybe we should ask Irin.”

  Niko doesn’t respond, but I can see that this revelation rattles him. Even if he doesn’t want to believe it, fiction is less likely than fact. Why else would he instruct Saskia to attend me? If he wanted to conceal her existence, he could have had her stashed in a dungeon somewhere, writhing in hellfire. Instead, he basically dangled her in front of us, like he wanted us to know the truth.

  “Let’s just go.”

  I grasp Niko’s forearm and try to pry him away from Lucifer’s unrelenting stare. He resists at first but then turns to me, his expression softening just a fraction.

  “Leave my family out of this,” he hisses, bumping Lucifer’s shoulder as he passes.

  “You can’t hide them forever,” Lucifer calls after him. “I’m not the only one anxious to find them.”

  Simmering rage ripples off Niko’s frame as we exit the room and head down the hallway. I don’t dare say a word. When we turn the corner, he kisses me on the forehead, his lips like ice, before turning to stalk the opposite direction. Lucifer’s threat to his family has not only shaken him to his core, but it also aroused his venomous demons that had lain dormant for decades. I’d only seen a mere fraction of the Dark’s power. There’s no doubt in my mind that Niko is capable of much more than he’s let on.

  I’m so preoccupied with my own inner musings that I don’t even pick up the scent as I approach my bedroom door. And by the time my Nephilim instincts kick in, it’s already too late.

  Because within the stutter of a heartbeat, I’m face down, the salty taste of tears on my tongue as I cry out while my body writhes in agony.

  And he’s already taking exactly what he came for.

  Me.

  Legion fucks me like a man possessed. Like a man who’s shed his skin and let his inner beast claw its way out and take the reins of his body and soul.

  My moans are muffled by the bedspread to the point of being suffocating. But every time I lift my head to gulp in air or even turn to get a glimpse of him, he pushes my face back down. As if he doesn’t want me to see him. As if he’s so far gone that he’s afraid I won’t recognize him.

  He gathers my wrists in his hands and secures them behind me, using his hold to ride me harder and deeper with every stroke. With his fire branding my insides and his touch searing my skin, I’m lost to him. Utterly lost and helpless under his control. Part of me is afraid at the rough way he fucks me, without an ounce of tenderness, but the carnal part of me is so turned on that our wet slaps of drenched flesh can be heard echoing even over my tortured mewls and moans.

  I come so powerfully and tragically that my knees buckle beneath me. But even with me calling out his name, begging for him to ease his assault on my sagging body, he doesn’t stop. If anything, he gives it to me harder and grips my wrists even tighter, ensuring that I can’t get away. I try to keep steady, but as pleasure merges into pain, my sex-clouded brain begins to sober. He’s not going to stop. Even as I beg him to, even as I cry out for him to let me go, he doesn’t even seem to register that I exist.

  His hands are bands of molten steel around my wrists as his cock spears me faster and deeper, slicing me open with every thrust. I understand being caught up in the moment, but something about this is wrong. He feels wrong. And the fact that he won’t stop, no matter that my tears are no longer tears of ecstasy, is just so fucking wrong.

  “Oh God. Please,” I rasp, my voice hoarse from screaming. I have no more strength within me to fight him off. I’m completely powerless to him. “Please let me go.”

  Then as if he’s been blasted by an unseen energy, his body is ripped away from mine, and he’s thrown across the room with enough force to shatter one of the wardrobes into splinters. I spin around, pulling the comforter around my naked, sore body, just as he stands. Legion’s eyes are wide with terror, and the color has drained from his face. He opens his pale, dry lips to speak, but his wild gaze says it all.

  That wasn’t him.

  “Eden,” he manages to croak. “Eden, I’m sorry. I…”

  I shake my head. There’s nothing he can possibly say that can make this okay. There’s nothing he can do to make us okay. We both know it. This isn’t just another crack in our already fractured relationship. It’s a crater as wide and deep as the darkest pits of Hell.

  With tear-filled eyes, I watch as Legion rights his clothing and exits the bedroom, closing the door behind him. As soon as he’s out of sight, I release all the fear, pain, and humiliation that had been strangling me since he had lost control. In chest heaving sobs, I cry into the satin comforter, hating him for hurting me. Hating myself for lying there helpless, too caught up in his violent frenzy to fight him off. I don’t know what any of this means, but I know, undoubtedly, that he could have done much worse. He could have killed me tonight, and if he hadn’t come back to me, he would have.

  Now the question is, who’s to blame? Legion? Or the twisted fuck within that possessed his soul and stole him away?

  I don’t know how long I lay there and cry, my naked body covered in the scent of his sweat and sex. But when I finally look up, I see that I have an audience. Reeling back, I gasp audibly and clutch the covers against my chest tighter, hoping that I haven’t exposed any more skin than has already been on display. I don’t know how long he’s been sitting there casually reclining, one leg bent with his ankle resting on his knee. But he knows what happened. I can see the pity dimming his star-flecked violet eyes.

  “How…how did you get in here?” Ther
e’s no way he came through the door. I would have heard it, even over my sobs.

  “I tried to warn you,” Lucifer mutters, ignoring my question. “I thought we had more time—at least until the threat had passed. I should have been here.”

  “You knew this would happen?” My voice cracks, still raw with emotion.

  Lucifer shakes his head. “The wayward souls are full of malice and resentment. They feed off the anguish and misery of others. It fuels them. And Legion’s resistance only entices them to torture him more.”

  “But you knew he would get like this. You knew he would turn into a monster.” And he let it happen anyway. Not only that, he set it up. He wanted Legion to become what he once was.

  “Eden, I don’t think you understand. What happened tonight…what you saw… That was nothing.”

  “Nothing? Nothing?” I scoff. “He…he…” I don’t even know what he did. And even if I could describe it, I certainly wouldn’t be able to say it out loud. Not to Lucifer.

  “He is what he is. What you pretend not to see. A savage. A killer. A demon. I’ll admit, I relied on shock value during your short stay in my realm. But Legion…this isn’t for show. This isn’t a game to see how far he can push your boundaries. It’s who he is.”

  He climbs to his feet, his movements lithe, yet there’s an unexpected tension that’s set in his shoulders and along his defined, chiseled jawline. He strides to the bed and sits before me, close enough that the scent of deadly belladonna nearly eclipses the remnants of sex lingering on my skin. With him here—in my bedroom, on my bed, with only a rumpled comforter shielding my naked body—I feel uneasy. Nervous. Scared, but not frightened of him per se. Just anxious of his mere presence.

  “Eden,” he begins, those twin glimmering galaxies searching my face before finally settling on my mouth. “I never wanted this for you.”

  “I know. You wanted me dead.”

  He nods solemnly. “I did at first, but only because I knew what Uriel was capable of. I didn’t know you. And once I did… Well, the damage had already been done. Adriel had already found you. It would only be a matter of time before the Se7en found you too.”