Steel

Chapter 43

The light was so bright, I couldn't see a thing. Just like when my soul had exploded at Grey's apartment when I'd thought he'd cheated on me, it glowed so bright it was almost blue. A deafening roar filled my ears as my soul erupted from my chest, slamming into the door in front of us. Even I was amazed when I felt the metal give way beneath my power, melting like butter in a hot pan.

Suddenly, a shadow moved in front of me, followed by a bellow of pain and the sound of something hitting the floor. At that, I quickly pulled my soul back in, desperate to see what had just happened. The light from my chest slowly dimmed, dust settling all around me. My eyes began to focus on my surroundings- a massive metal room with a man on a dark throne, an open archway, Siena shielding her eyes beside me and Thanatiel beside her. My gaze drifted down to the ground in front of me, and I felt my knees begin to shake.

Barachiel lay on the floor, a black Hellfire spear jutting out of his chest. Dark blood gurgled up from his lips, slowly dripping onto the dusty floor. His eyes were open wide, staring blankly forward. A muffled cry left my lips, a ringing screaming in my ears as I slowly knelt to his side.

"Bar-," I croaked, my hands shaking as I reached out towards the spear piercing his chest. Every few seconds, more blood would flood out through the wound. It had hit one of the arteries around his heart. He was bleeding out.

"Te-tell Grey," he labored through gurgling breaths, "-I ke-ept my promise."

I heard Siena cry out beside me, felt her knees hit the metal floor next to me, but it was muffled, like I was underwater. It hurt to breathe. Every nerve in my body burned with the power of my soul, now seething with the taste of freedom and rage.

"Barachiel," I whispered, almost inaudibly. As I spoke, however, I watched his brilliant green eyes grow cold. He didn't blink again. I glanced toward the bloodied spear. No more blood pumped out of the wound. He was gone.

He had stood by me the moment I'd arrived in Heaven and had been one of Grey's friends before he'd fallen. And now, he'd given his life for mine. The spear would've hit me. That was why he leapt in front of me. He'd given something which I could never repay, something for which I could never express how thankful I was. He was gone, and it was because of me.

Tears began to blur my eyes, but I swallowed them as quickly as they had arrived. There was a time to mourn, and that time was not now. I would make sure Barachiel hadn't died in vain.

Slowly, I rose to my feet, my wings curling beside me as power pulsed through my veins. My eyes met his- the man who had haunted my every thought through consciousness and dreams, through every moment of the last two years. His serpentine green eyes flashed white as he slowly rose from his throne. His silver hair had not changed by so much as a single hair, still elegantly combed back from his tanned skin. It was only when I glanced towards his lips that I saw that they were moving.

"What did you say?" I snarled, my soul bleeding through my eyes as I released control over it once more.

"I asked if you were alright," his sharp lips slowly curled into a feline smile. He wore a white suit, somehow still a dazzling white despite the dust that now floated about the air.

Those were the first words he'd ever spoken to me. I felt my stomach curl with nausea.

"The spear was aimed for you. Unfortunate," he spoke again, tilting his head slowly to the side as his eyes grazed over me. "It seems you are alright. Though I am surprised you were able to break through that door. That- that was not anticipated. It seems I have a habit of underestimating you, Miss Greene."

"I'm not the same girl you killed on that mountain," I ground out through gritted teeth. The air was metallic, burning my nose as I breathed it in.