Basil, and that’s when I saw the two white feathered wings tucked behind his back. Oh, wow. This guy was a real angel. All he needed was a harp, a halo, and some sandals, and he would have fit the stereotype to a T.
“Demons can’t get into The Penthouse,” he said to Basil.
She looked at us with hooded eyes. “Check them, anyway.”
“Basil, we’re not demons!” What happened to my sweet, fly-chasing psychic friend? And, oh, since she was a psychic, shouldn’t she have known we weren’t demons? Then again, she’d been fooled by Shadow.
“Sorry.” The angel shrugged, flashing an apologetic smile. “I have to follow protocol.”
“We understand,” someone boomed beside me. That’s when I realized Aedan was in the room. Oh, duh. I’d forgotten about my boyfriend. I checked behind him to see Mar hadn’t come inside. Knowing we’d left her outside brought a smug smile to my face.
“Ouch!” I blinked, shielding my eyes with my hands as someone flashed a bright light on me. “What the heck are you doing?”
“Looking at your aura,” the angel answered, but all I could see was his shadow. I swear that light burned out my corneas, and I’d been too busy triumphing over leaving Mar out in the cold to prepare myself.
I blinked several times and the room slowly came back into focus. Delta House looked as I remembered, from the ugly floral drapes to the warped wooden floors and stained sofas. The place had some kind of Victorian garage sale theme. I loved and missed everything about it. The angel had just finished flashing a small golden wand at Aedan.
“They’re cleared,” he said.
“Who exactly are you again?” I asked.
“I’m sorry. Where are my manners?” The angel’s golden star dangled as he bowed low, his wings fluttering with the movement. “Camael,” he said as he stood up, “but you can call me Cam. I’m an archangel from The Council. Once His Holiness got word demons had infiltrated Purgatory, he sent me to investigate.”
Wow. At least God was thorough. And double wow. Aedan had told me The Council was a group of angels who served directly under the Big Guy.
“Have you found any demons?” Aedan asked.
I almost wanted to point out several of the snooty Alpha House members, the ones who treated me like shit because I had made it to the top of Purgatory on borrowed credits. But being an asshole didn’t make you a demon. Otherwise, all of my old bosses and former boyfriends would have been demons, too.
“Shadow was the only one.” He grimaced. “Do you have any idea where Shadow is now?”
“Probably in the fourth dimension of Hell,” Aedan answered.
Shadow had been the head ghoster in Purgatory, leading us in missions against demonic ghouls who’d terrorized the living. Little did any of us know, Scorpius, the demon lord of Hell’s first dimension, had bound Shadow to him by blood, forcing him to do his bidding. Shadow kidnapped me from Purgatory and delivered me to Scorpius. According to a Nephilim prophecy, I was supposed to become Scorpius’s blood slave and manipulate the Nephilim into helping Scorpius spurn the apocalypse. Little did Scorpius know, he’d interpreted the prophecy all wrong. After we defeated Scorpius’s army, Shadow attacked my friend Sarge with a poisoned blade, sending him to the fourth dimension. The Nephilim captured Shadow and were supposed to behead him with the same poisoned blade, banishing him to level four. He deserved a far worse punishment.
Cam arched a pale brow. “And you plan on going back to the fourth dimension to get your friends, correct?”
Aedan folded his arms and nodded as a muscle twitched in his jaw. I knew his annoyed look, and this was it. I wondered why. “Seems like you pretty much already know everything,” he grumbled.
“That’s my job.” Cam smirked. “When are you leaving for Hell?”
Aedan puffed up his chest, his eyes narrowing. “Straightaway. We just stopped by to let the other Deltas know
“Demons can’t get into The Penthouse,” he said to Basil.
She looked at us with hooded eyes. “Check them, anyway.”
“Basil, we’re not demons!” What happened to my sweet, fly-chasing psychic friend? And, oh, since she was a psychic, shouldn’t she have known we weren’t demons? Then again, she’d been fooled by Shadow.
“Sorry.” The angel shrugged, flashing an apologetic smile. “I have to follow protocol.”
“We understand,” someone boomed beside me. That’s when I realized Aedan was in the room. Oh, duh. I’d forgotten about my boyfriend. I checked behind him to see Mar hadn’t come inside. Knowing we’d left her outside brought a smug smile to my face.
“Ouch!” I blinked, shielding my eyes with my hands as someone flashed a bright light on me. “What the heck are you doing?”
“Looking at your aura,” the angel answered, but all I could see was his shadow. I swear that light burned out my corneas, and I’d been too busy triumphing over leaving Mar out in the cold to prepare myself.
I blinked several times and the room slowly came back into focus. Delta House looked as I remembered, from the ugly floral drapes to the warped wooden floors and stained sofas. The place had some kind of Victorian garage sale theme. I loved and missed everything about it. The angel had just finished flashing a small golden wand at Aedan.
“They’re cleared,” he said.
“Who exactly are you again?” I asked.
“I’m sorry. Where are my manners?” The angel’s golden star dangled as he bowed low, his wings fluttering with the movement. “Camael,” he said as he stood up, “but you can call me Cam. I’m an archangel from The Council. Once His Holiness got word demons had infiltrated Purgatory, he sent me to investigate.”
Wow. At least God was thorough. And double wow. Aedan had told me The Council was a group of angels who served directly under the Big Guy.
“Have you found any demons?” Aedan asked.
I almost wanted to point out several of the snooty Alpha House members, the ones who treated me like shit because I had made it to the top of Purgatory on borrowed credits. But being an asshole didn’t make you a demon. Otherwise, all of my old bosses and former boyfriends would have been demons, too.
“Shadow was the only one.” He grimaced. “Do you have any idea where Shadow is now?”
“Probably in the fourth dimension of Hell,” Aedan answered.
Shadow had been the head ghoster in Purgatory, leading us in missions against demonic ghouls who’d terrorized the living. Little did any of us know, Scorpius, the demon lord of Hell’s first dimension, had bound Shadow to him by blood, forcing him to do his bidding. Shadow kidnapped me from Purgatory and delivered me to Scorpius. According to a Nephilim prophecy, I was supposed to become Scorpius’s blood slave and manipulate the Nephilim into helping Scorpius spurn the apocalypse. Little did Scorpius know, he’d interpreted the prophecy all wrong. After we defeated Scorpius’s army, Shadow attacked my friend Sarge with a poisoned blade, sending him to the fourth dimension. The Nephilim captured Shadow and were supposed to behead him with the same poisoned blade, banishing him to level four. He deserved a far worse punishment.
Cam arched a pale brow. “And you plan on going back to the fourth dimension to get your friends, correct?”
Aedan folded his arms and nodded as a muscle twitched in his jaw. I knew his annoyed look, and this was it. I wondered why. “Seems like you pretty much already know everything,” he grumbled.
“That’s my job.” Cam smirked. “When are you leaving for Hell?”
Aedan puffed up his chest, his eyes narrowing. “Straightaway. We just stopped by to let the other Deltas know
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