Page 110 of Burn of Obsidian

Whimpers echoed against the concrete, the walls and corners of the room shadowed where the candles failed to penetrate the darkness. A cool air drifted along Jax’s skin, lasting only a second before those whimpers grew.

Gideon stepped back from the lectern, the pages giving off a gentle gold glow.

Nael gripped an angel by his throat, his wings limp, broken and missing most of his feathers. The celestrial fought, but there was little strength behind it. With a cry, he was tossed in front of the lectern, his head automatically bowing to Gideon as tremors rocked his shoulders.

“Master,” he whimpered. “Please… I can’t – ” His words cut off when Nael kicked at one of his limp wings. They spread out flat beside him, bone splitting from where the wing joint met his back.

“Read,” Gideon demanded, standing over the angel with a baleful expression.

The angel wept, his movements jagged as he clumsily climbed to his feet. He began to mumble beneath his breath, the words incomprehensible before he stuttered, “I… I can’t read it. It doesn’t matter how many pages, I can’t. I don’t have the ability.” He flinched when Gideon raised his hand. “Please, you need a Sage.”

Arcane burned along Gideon’s palm, the magical flames as black as night when they met the angel’s skin. His scream lasted only a second before his throat was crushed, mouth open in a silent cry. Rage caused harsh lines on Gideon’s face, his eyes a violent blaze when he snapped a sharp command towards the Skull.

“Put her on a hook,” he snarled, Thea crying out when the Skull reached down and pulled her to her feet, attaching a set of thick manacles the same as his around her delicate wrists. “She’s no longer needed.” His long coat swished behind him when he turned, seeming to head out of the room.

Jax’s chest ached, lungs throbbing when he raised his head. “Wait,” he croaked, and Gideon paused. “This isn’t straightforward, you have to wait for the words to align to read it.”

Gideon turned, fury apparent in every line of his body. “How could you know that?”

“Jax!” Thea screamed. “Don’t – ” A hand was pressed over her lips, hard enough the fingers created dents in her cheeks.

“My mother was a Sage.” Not only a Sage, but she was an archangel, the highest rank amongst the angels. “I can read it.”

Gideon took his time to approach, movements silent when he crouched down until they were the same height. “Your mate risked everything to bring me that page, and you’re telling me you can read it?”

Jax glanced over at Thea, her eyes wide.

“Answer me, pup,” he growled, forcing his attention back.

Jax grit his teeth, his pulse rapid against the side of his throat. “I can read it.”

Gideon chuckled, the sound dark and edged with malice. “Oh, how the Fates have truly blessed me.”

Chapter 42

Thea

Thea didn’t resist when the Skull yanked her, her eyes unable to look away from Jax. A heavy collar locked around his throat, attached to thick chains that also bound his wrists. His muscles strained, sweat a slight sheen across his brow. She desperately wanted him to look at her again, to explain she knew what she was doing. But he didn’t, instead his back hunched over, jaw clenched with concentration.

The pages had been placed on the floor in front of him, all three glowing gently against the candlelight.

She had no idea where she was, Roach placing a blindfold over her eyes before guiding her to a car. Concrete, steel beams and mould, that was what surrounded them. The walls were wet, glistening with the air uncomfortably humid. She tried to ignore the gentle patter from the man held on the hook, his blood dripping down into a pit that had crudely been built into the floor. Bile had burned her throat at the smell, but she’d managed to swallow it back down.

Weird thing to be proud of, but she was.

She’d moved well past fear, determination surging through her as she tried to keep herself calm and under control. When she was calm, she could call wild magic. Not that it would be much help.

They just had to survive.

That was it, her plan.

Simple, without much fanfare to distract her or go wrong.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

She was achingly aware of steel, the manacles throbbing where it touched her skin. They locked around Jax’s golden bands, because of course the Skull couldn’t take them off either. It meant the manacles weren’t too tight, but the chain that joined them together was unnecessarily thick, the weight heavy enough that her arms quivered.

Jax let out a grunt, the sound barely audible before his body twisted painfully. His muscles seized, each one visibly rigid as the collar at his throat burned like coal.

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