Page 67 of Not Today, Satan
I scan the terrain with narrowed eyes. “Maybe they were herded back to their lots while we were”—a blush creeps up my neck—“warming up.”
He has his back to me, too distracted with scouring the snow to hear those last words. “Where are the souldiers, then? And why aren’t they coming after us?”
I press my lips together, then sigh. “I don’t know. But we should keep moving. Don’t let your guard down.”
We reach the edge of Nix by nightfall, stopping a few times to rest. No other souls cross our path, and our footprints are the only markings in the snow. Halfway there, we sheath our weapons, but I never remove my fingers from the hilt of my sword.
I blow out a stream of smoky air as we slow in front of a red-bricked wall. Our last line of defense, it stretches to the sky. It’s so tall that it’s impossible to scale, with or without wings. There’s only one way through—and it requires a unique ingredient.
My heart thuds loudly as I rub my aching thighs. This is it: the way out of the cities of sin. Next stop, the Ignis River, then finally Earth.
I can’t believe we made it.
And there’s no one here to stop us.
“Where are the souldiers?” I ask. “Someone’s always here.”
“Could they be in a meeting?” Nate asks, peering over his shoulder. “I mean, I’m guessing you don’t do Zoom calls down here.”
I rub my roiling stomach. “I don’t know. Maybe Father gave up and moved on.”
“That doesn’t sound like him.”
“It really doesn’t.”
I grab my sword, then pause, the blade inches above my palm. Once we make it through here, I’ll have my freedom and so will Nate, but we won’t have each other.
The realization stings more than my trembling hand as I slice my blade across it. I place my palm against the wall, and my blood drips down the crevices, staining them blue. The bricks slide open, creating a gap large enough for us to walk through.
“How did you do that?” Nate breathes.
“It opens with demon blood.”
“Wait.” He props his hands on his hips. “You mean, if I’d gotten all this way by myself, I still wouldn’t have been able to get out?”
I wipe my bloody palm on my cape and shrug. “Not unless you wounded a demon and stole their blood. You’d also need this to get to Earth.” I hold up my ring finger, and the ruby shimmers. “It’s like a key. At least, that’s what Father told me when he gave it to me.”
I’ve always done what Father asked of me, so I’m sure he didn’t expect me to use the ring before he retired.
Little did he realize that he’d given me my freedom so that I could take his.
“This entire time you knew I couldn’t get out of here on my own?” Nate raises an eyebrow.
I cock my head and shuffle my foot through the snow. “Souldiers have rubies implanted under their skin once they’re sworn in. So I suppose you could’ve also kidnapped a demon and dragged them through. Or me. But does any of that matter now?”
He purses his lips. “I suppose not.”
“Good.”
Taking a breath, I head for the gap, but Nate grabs my hand, spinning me into his chest. His heart thunders against my ear, like waves battering the shore.
“What are you doing?” I whisper.
He tilts my chin so that I meet his gaze. His eyes study my face like they’re reading a book, moving ever so slightly to memorize each character.
Bending, he kisses me. I gasp as his lips are ice from spending all day in the snow, but they warm the longer they press against mine. He kisses with abandon, but when I place my hands on his cheeks, his jaw is tight.
This is his goodbye.
