Ink & Dagger (Sins of Eden #1)

43. Chapter XLIII

Chapter XLIII

Emily

“ T ouch one fucking hair on his head and I will destroy you, bitch.” I boomed.

It was my voice, but it wasn’t. There was something hauntingly beautiful and unfamiliar about it as I spoke. The Witch froze and slowly turned to face me, a hint of fear flickering across her face as she realized I was no longer restrained.

My body was sluggish to respond from whatever they’d injected me with and my mind was a mess. I was still processing everything I’d learned and trying to understand everything, but one thing was certain. He was my Demon and I would kill this bitch if she hurt him.

“Brigid, ignore her. Do it,” Agatha barked.

Charlie slowly stood up beside me and I smirked as both Brigid and Agatha’s eyes widened. Brigid glanced at Agatha, concern written across her features as she waited for orders. Dumb bitch looked like she was about to piss herself.

“What’s wrong, Brigid? Can only kill someone when they’re restrained?” I taunted, keeping her attention trained on me.

She narrowed her eyes before turning and jamming the knife deep into Jaxon’s chest. I let out a blood curdling scream, my knees buckling as I let out a sob. Charlie held me tightly to her side, her arms around my waist to help support my weight, and I gasped at the influx of power that radiated through me from our contact.

“How dare you. You vile, loathsome, bitch!” I wailed, raising my hands up and focusing all of my power at the Witch.

I couldn’t bear to look at him, but something akin to the sinister way I’d felt killing Erik shrouded my mind. My skin glowed brightly and from my hands shot a powerful ball of light. A sick smile spread across my face as Brigid’s body turned to ash and I slowly drew my gaze to Agatha. A deep rumbling shook the ground and the floors began to crack. Vines shot up all around the room wrapping around Agatha as Charlie clasped my hand in hers and stepped forward.

“I’ve been forced to keep your secrets, forced to endure your torture for years, and watch helplessly as you mutilated my Maritus , but you went too fucking far!” Charlie shouted.

“You wouldn’t understand. You two have all the power of Heaven and Hell combined, while we have nothing,” Agatha screeched, fighting off the vines.

All around us cracks formed, shaking the foundation of the house as our combined rage and magic filled the air.

“Release me at once! You do not know what you are doing child!” Agatha yelled as Charlie’s vines spread and tightened around her.

Our bodies glowed, side by side, our magic feeding off of one another as we continued to throw everything we had at the room around us. The cages and Demon traps that had been containing Jaxon, Adrian, and Killian crumbled and cracked as more and more of our power was unleashed and I felt a draw of magic from our joined hands as I focused on destroying the cages that kept them locked away.

Killian broke free with a roar, charging across the room to his brothers. He ripped the cage door off its hinges, before wrapping his hand around the handle of the knife protruding from Jaxon’s chest. I sobbed in relief as Jaxon’s black eyes snapped up to mine.

Returning my focus to Agatha, I drew power from Charlie and the well of magic within me, letting it fill me until it felt as if I would explode from the pressure and unleashed a scream, obliterating her with everything in me.

The walls of the cellar began to crack and buckle and a ball of light grew before us. I tried to pull away, break the connection between Charlie and I, but I couldn’t.

“Emily. Let go! Pull back, you’re going to kill us all. Please, you have to let go, honey. She’s dead,” Charlie shouted as I continued to unleash my fury on the room.

Whatever I’d tapped into, I was no longer in control of and I was terrified that the powers I was wielding were going to consume me.

Darkness clouded my sight and my heart raced violently from the amount of magic flowing into me, as if Charlie were a faucet that I’d tapped into and I was draining her dry, pulling everything from her into myself.

The sound of Jaxon’s voice broke through my conscience and I could hear his voice, begging, pleading for me to let go. I wanted to tell him that I was trying, that I didn’t know how, but my lips wouldn’t move.

Charlie was ripped from my side, disconnecting us, as Killian tackled her around the waist and Jaxon caught me as my legs buckled. I felt depleted.

“Sweet Witch, we have to get out of here. We need to go,” he shouted, pushing my hair from my face and holding me up.

“I’m not leaving without Charlie and I don’t know where Ghost and Cerys are,” I panted as I tried to move around him to check on Charlie.

My terrified screams were lost to the sound of cement crashing and iron bars being torn from their braces all around us and I watched in horror as a large piece of ceiling gave way and plunged towards Charlie and Killian.

From the blinding light a man stepped forward, adorned in scars and battle armor. Giant ivory wings spread across his back as he knelt down and cocooned both Charlie and Killian beneath him, bracing himself against the ceiling as it fell around them. He looked up and his eyes locked on mine. It was like staring into a mirror.

“Emily Celeste Cross,” his gravelly voice called. “Do what you must, I will hold the foundation for as long as I can and help get your sister out of here, but you don’t have much time. My brother is not far behind.”

I stared into his gold eyes, unable to look away as I watched him push the cement away and lift Charlie up.

Killian lit a ball of fire in his hand and crouched down, ready to attack.

“My battle is not with you, Demons. I am here to protect my daughters,” he said, tentatively brushing debris from Charlie’s face before gently placing her still form into Killian’s arms.

“Why are you helping us?” Jaxon gritted out from beside me as his grip on my waist tightened.

“Lust. Of course you would claim her,” he said, glancing down to Jaxon’s arm around my waist before looking back at Killian who cradled Charlie gently in his large arms.

“Wrath,” he acknowledged with a nod of his head.

“If you care about my daughters the way I think you do, then you’ll agree when I say that they will not be pawns in our war. Keep them from Heaven’s reach and watch over them both. I will fight Hell myself if I find out that your father has plans to use either of them,” he told Jaxon.

I gripped Jaxon’s arm tightly as screams echoed through the house above us, startling us all.

“Go now. I promise we will meet again,” the Angel said.

I peeled my eyes away from him and looked up at Jaxon. “Where to, Sweet Witch?” He asked as he searched my face.

I could barely gather my thoughts after everything I’d just learned, let alone think of where our Familiars might be, but I gave my head a shake before looking back over at Charlie.

“I still can’t feel Ghost.” I told him. “He has to be here though.”

“Kill, take Charlie and Adrian to my home and get them help. We’ll be right behind you. Uriel, this changes nothing.”

“I would expect no less, Jaxon Morningstar. Oh, and do tell my brother I said hello, ” he said with a chuckle as Jaxon tugged me backwards with him towards the stairs.

I watched Killian cradle Charlie closer to his chest and place a hand on Adrian, blinking them from the room and I shyly waved goodbye to Uriel before racing up the broken steps to the first floor of the coven house, just as another ball of light began to form in the destroyed cellar.

“You lead the way and I’ll keep an eye out for any more surprises,” Jaxon said as we paused at the top of the stairs.