Cassius went completely still next to me. The room temperature plummeted, causing a frost to cover the granite countertops. "So, you thought to enslave me?"
"No!" Stephanie sobbed. "You said we could never be together… immortals do not mate. I simply—"
Cassius held up his hand. It shook in the air, and pieces of frost fell from his fingertips. "You would betray a defenseless human — one for whom we have been waiting for over a hundred years — because you think yourself in love with me?"
The room began to freeze; pieces of ice formed along Cassius's face, shattering into the air the minute he opened his mouth to speak. "Dark Ones do not love."
A tear slid down Stephanie's cheek, freezing against her porcelain skin. "But we've spent nearly every night together."
"And every morning I spend with someone else," Cassius said in a flat voice. "I didn't think you were becoming so attached as to sell your soul to an archangel in order to align your destiny with mine."
"But—"
"Enough," Alex barked. "Stephanie, stop… you're making it worse."
Cassius hung his head. "You can track her blood?"
"Yes," I hissed. "But going up against Sariel…"
"He's old," Cassius stated in a bland voice. "Older than me."
"Not hard," Mason grumbled.
Cassius snapped his teeth together. "The only way to rescue her, to pull her away from the archangel's scent, would be…" He looked up, his eyes flashing once again. "…to mix the blood."
"Yes." My voice shook. "She needs angel blood."
"She won't take it." Cassius shook his head. "Believe me."
"She has no choice!" I yelled, pain searing my limbs, making them feel heavy. "She either drinks from you and makes the choice to leave, or he'll keep her forever. You know he will."
"He does like his toys." Cassius swore. "Unless he truly believes she's the human we've been waiting for, and then things are about to get a lot worse."
Alex pushed Stephanie into a chair and crossed his arms. "How can it get worse?"
"Death," I whispered. "We can distract him long enough to grab her, shield her from his scent. But if he truly believes what we do — then blood will be spilled."
"For balance to be restored." Cassius sighed. "Blood always needs to be spilled."
"Does it matter who?" Alex asked. "Because I vote Stephanie."
Her soft sobs were grating on my nerves. I should have watched her closer — should have seen the signs of her infatuation. Dark Ones did not mate for a reason. They were too addicted to those who fell for them, destroying the other half that should help make a whole.
"Track her," Cassius finally said. "We'll go when he's at his weakest."
Night.
Sariel taught the stars how to shine. At night his resources were depleted on account that his power was shared with the sky.
"Alex…" I nodded toward the siren. "Keep her locked up until we return. And Mason?"
He stood. "Let me go with you."
"You're not strong enough." I hated saying it, almost as much as I hated that I was right.
Mason let out a growl.
"Wolf…" Cassius put his hand on Mason's shoulder. "Your diet makes you weak. Therefore, it makes us vulnerable. You stay."