CHAPTER ONE

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Stomach clenching, lungs burning, my scream rose through jagged glass shards embedded in my throat as Lilith stepped through the portal and into Leonard’s altar room. I writhed against the prison of my body as black bonds wrapped around my limbs, binding my arms and clogging my throat where Lilith had stuffed my soul deep within my physical body. Sludge filled my lungs, my head, my everything, until I dripped with Lilith’s darkness. Possessed and bound so powerfully that no one heard my despair.

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Except me.

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My soul was locked away in my own private hell, where Lilith was the Queen.

 

Lilith spun, throwing out her hand to stop my soul-group from passing, but Elliot, Thomas and Madeline had already passed, and stepped through the circle of light. Behind us, Ben, Avril and Ezra hurtled backwards onto the grass. Darkness blanked them out as soul-eaters descended on them.

“No!” I screamed, but they didn’t hear me.

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A dark, powerful energy threw them to the floor as demons and soul-eaters streamed from the portal across their prone bodies. Lilith’s sick jubilance washed through me. She loved her creations. Demons were her soldiers and her children. Existing to do her bidding. Soul-eaters were pawns to be used. The perfect army.

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Human bodies littered the ground, charred and decimated. All that was left of Leonard’s worshippers. Crimson coated the floor. A severed hand lay at my feet, while sightless eyes on another corpse stared into oblivion. All dead, their souls having snapped free of their bodies.

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Leonard’s remains lay discarded near the altar. His head was twisted at an angle, his stomach torn wide open. Forever locked in the shock of his death, his mouth hung open. His soul would have ended up in its vibrational equivalent. The ‘now’ he created was a long way away. For him.

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Everything we’d fought against had turned for the worst.

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Time was irrelevant here. The battle we stepped from before I opened the portal for the first time had just happened on Earth. Lilith didn’t want to come back here. She wanted to arrive months later when the soul-eaters had time to decimate the human population. She wanted them terrorized and easily controlled; to walk in and control a population already subdued and beaten, and it had been the last thing I’d been able to do before she took over my whole body.

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Crimson bloomed on Elliot’s arm, staining his torn shirt. He grabbed at it and crouched close to the floor. He couldn’t move an inch as an army of soul-eaters spewed from the portal.

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Lilith whispered under her breath. Muted words rose above the roar and screech of soul-eaters and resounded around me. She commanded them, using the language of the angels to control. Soul-eaters circled the room, filling it. Choking me with sulphur, their darkness leeching the shimmering blue light of the portal until the room was thick with darkness.

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Lilith directed the soul-eaters to fly through the hole in the wall through which the city lay far below. Their dark forms blotted out the clouds as they rushed past and scattered across the mass of buildings, disappearing over the horizon. So many soul-eaters. So many innocent people to devour.

Lilith chuckled in my ear. I cringed as far away from the sound as I could. The bonds tightened, immobilizing me as though being trapped in my body wasn’t paralyzing enough. You understand, Light-Stream worker, don’t you? I can snuff all the work you’ve done over the centuries to advance human souls in an instant with a few words to my soldiers. They obey me without question. You’d learn a lot from them.

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She was going to annihilate humanity. She didn’t care about these incarnate human souls, and how valuable they were. Unable to access their knowledge and skills of lifetimes, they lived beneath the veil. These souls were as innocent as children. Vulnerable, trapped, and at the mercy of a formidable master demon.

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She was completely insane.

 

The centuries of being held prisoner in a crystal too much for her mind, although there was a distinct possibility she had always been psychotic and the time spent in isolation in Hellioth did nothing but stoke her anger. Her need for revenge.

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“Stop this, Lilith. Please. They’re innocent.” Hope she’d listen turned to ash when she cackled her reply.

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How does it feel to know that the Earth is my feeding ground? That those souls will exist merely for me to rule over? That beyond this Earth, there will be no more life for them? This will be my kingdom. They will bow to my will, because I will give them everlasting life here. I’m giving them nothing more than they’ve always wanted.

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“I promise I’ll do anything you say if you take us back,” I said. Bile rose in my throat, not knowing if Ibn, Ben, Avril, Ezra — if anyone — was still alive.

She laughed, as though killing billions of souls was a joke. She was completely and irrevocably deranged. Earth, by design, allowed souls to grow and flourish, not to stagnate indefinitely. This was the perfect playground, and the Light-Stream workers’ purpose, to pave the road for human souls to develop.

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“Human souls already have everlasting life,” I said.

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They think their existence ends with their physical bodies and I won’t tell them any different. They won’t age. They’ll be trapped in an immortal, physical body in this dimension. I’ll give them all they’ve ever wanted and in return they will worship me as they should have done centuries ago.

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My stomach churned with lead weights. This isn’t the way it should be. Lilith would stop the advancement of human souls just to rule over them. Hadriel’s power thrummed through my extremities, tingling in the far reaches of my mind. Still a part of me, but for how long?

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I had to stop her. I had to act before she could do more damage than she’d already done. While she stole most of the power, I still had Hadriel’s memories. His knowledge. And I knew exactly what I had to do and how I needed to do it.

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I would only have one chance.

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Confusion warred with malevolence as her attention slipped to me. A shockwave of power burst from my center, rocketing out of my body and into the structure of the portal. It ricocheted off the spinning web of light and into the walls, cracking bricks and mortar. A boom echoed around us. Plaster dust showered us as the ceiling cracked.

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Lilith shrieked as the portal imploded out of existence. The soul-eaters circling the room escaped through the hole in the wall, leaving us in the wake of their devastation. The pale-blue light that shimmered around us vanished with the portal, leaving us in gloomy semi-darkness, lit only by the flickering firelight of the sconces still alive on the walls.

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I sagged in my bonds, exhaustion weighing me down. White haze fogged my consciousness as I clung to awareness.

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What have you done, Light-Stream worker? Lilith’s voice resonated in my head, harsh and angry. Red hot slashes of rage lashed at me.

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“Stopped. You,” I gasped. Lethargy pulled at my consciousness. I gritted my teeth, struggling to stay awake. Needing to keep my wits about me. I squeezed my eyes, sending a prayer for Ben. For Ibn. Avril. Ezra. I hope somehow, some way, they’d survived.

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“Cassie!” Elliot cried out.

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He lay curled on the floor. His wound no longer dripped blood, but only because he was dressed in a 1940s trench coat and three-piece suit, a fedora perched on his head, transformed to the state of his previous life, now intangible. Cutting off the portal and connection to the dimension beyond had turned him back into a ghost.

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“Oh, Elliot.” I sobbed even though Lilith would be the only being to hear me.

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You’ll pay for what you’ve done, Light-Stream worker. The hiss of her words flayed my psyche.

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Strands of black ooze lashed at me, whipping my head, arms, body. I clenched my eyes shut, protecting myself as much as I could, but it was useless. Whips of her rage cracked and gouged into me. White-hot agony lanced through me; each whip poisoned with her fury. All I could do was silently bear her wrath.

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“Cassie, are you alright?” Elliot stood, his brow scrunched in that way that voiced his concern as he approached me.

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“Elliot,” I wheezed, even though he wouldn’t hear me.

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You’ll never touch him again. I’ll make sure of it, Lilith hissed.

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His hands stayed at his sides, fists clenching. Perhaps that was a blessing because he would only hold Lilith. He would never know my body wasn’t mine. Thomas helped Madeline to her feet. His hand stayed at her elbow while he kept her steady.

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“Where are we?” she asked. Her hair was a mussed mess, her pupils blown. She was recovering quickly, but no soul should have to witness where she’d been and what she’d seen. I wondered what damage Lilith had done to her. Scars her soul would always bear.

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“Back in Leonard’s altar room,” Elliot said, but Madeline gave no sign she’d heard him.

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She couldn’t even see him. To her, he was invisible.

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I wanted Elliot’s touch; wanted his arms around me, holding me with love, with care. And now I might never know that again. It didn’t matter that I needed it. There was no way I could touch him now.

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Without Elliot’s warmth I was hollow. An incomplete being without the other part of its soul. My eyes burned and I let my tears fall.

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“Elliot. Oh god, Elliot!” I wheezed, the rest of my intangible heart shattering. I struggled, testing the bonds, but Lilith had me locked so tight again I barely flinched.

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Thomas cursed under his breath. A muscle worked at his jaw and my heart jumped. He saw Elliot. It made sense because he was a part of our soul-group. We would always see each other, no matter the dimension.

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“The portal’s gone. We’re trapped here,” Thomas said, his voice hoarse. “Ben!”

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Black clouds roiled outside through the hole in the building, clogged thick with soul-eaters and demons swarming like flies. I’d imploded the portal. Our only connection between dimensions. Cut off from everyone. We were stuck here. The dimensions beyond the Earth plane could collapse and we would never know. Worlds imploding, one after the other. All life — gone.

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“We have to believe they’re safe and got away,” Elliot said, his forehead folding.

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“They have to be safe,” Thomas whispered, as he raked trembling fingers through his hair. I silently repeated his words.

 

“I’m back to being a ghost,” Elliot said. “At least I’m healed.”

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“Wait. We can still use this.” Thomas snapped out of his haze and moved to the altar, near Leonard’s body. He picked something up from the ground. It was the band Leonard used to turn Elliot corporeal. It had fallen off Elliot as he’d passed through the portal. I’d forgotten all about it.

 

Elliot extended his arm towards Thomas. Thomas placed the band on my soulmate’s wrist. Elliot’s body snapped back to a physical state, his body staying healed. A shadow appeared under him and his skin glowed with health and vitality, blood flowing through veins made from flesh and blood.

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“Cassie!” His footsteps rang out in the silence of the room, hard, heavy and determined as he strode towards me. His arm banded about my waist. Fingers firmed on the back of my head. His lips caught mine, hot and demanding.

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Only he wasn’t really kissing me. Just my body.

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My arms snaked around his waist without my permission. Lilith pressed my breasts against his chest, her thigh hiking up around his hip. She snared her fingers in his nape, clutched the lapel of his trench coat and shoved herself against him.

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I gagged, cried out, shook in my bonds, but Elliot didn’t know he kissed Lilith. As long as she had me trapped inside my own body, he never would.

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I thrashed against Lilith’s hold. With all my power, I pushed against the black ooze. “Stop it!”

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Lilith chuckled and thrust her tongue into Elliot’s mouth. She tilted her hips, rubbing her core against Elliot’s thigh, blissed out on sensations as they sparked and fluttered through my body.

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Oh, I like this. I think I’ll keep him for myself for a while.

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I choked on tears, utterly helpless to stop Elliot being used like this. Elliot pulled back, his green eyes gleaming as Lilith plastered her body hard against him. Elliot’s brows tightened and the familiar line creased between his brows. His fingers released Lilith’s hair, falling to her shoulder.

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“Are you alright, Cassie?” He drew his knuckle down her cheek, a light caress that should be meant for me.

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Instead, Lilith soaked it up, pushing her breasts against him. “I’m fine, because I’m here with you,” I heard her say. “I’m just shaken up from coming back here and seeing all this carnage.” She moved towards him to kiss him again.

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Elliot’s gaze flowed over Lilith’s face. He took Lilith’s hand, and squeezed it. “At least you’re okay. We’re here. Together. Safe.”

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“That’s not me. I’m in here! Please, Elliot. Please hear me.” I sobbed at the slight tilt of his head when his gaze shot behind me, eyes flaring wide.

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“Watch out!” Elliot swept my body behind his as a shadow shot from the corner of the room towards the altar, where Dee’s journal lay open.

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Lilith whispered under her breath, commanding a soul-eater to snatch up the journal. Elliot ran into its path, grabbing the journal from its claws before rolling to the ground out of its way. Sibilant words fell from Lilith’s lips and the soul-eater spun on Elliot.

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“No! Not Elliot! Keep it away from him!” I screamed.

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The soul-eater raised its clawed hand, slashing at Elliot. His coat shredded and lines of crimson bloomed across his stomach. Elliot scrambled backwards, uttering angelic words as the creature attacked.

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Elliot came up on his knee, his words growing louder and stronger, while Lilith continued to whisper, fighting against him. The soul-eater jerked between them, caught between a war of commands. With everything I had left in me, I wrapped my fingers around the bonds at my wrists and jerked.

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Lilith stuttered. Elliot staggered to his feet, ordering the soul-eater to leave. It shrieked, a sound like nails down a chalkboard. Madeline clapped her hands over her ears, her face scrunched, while Thomas put his arms around her, hugging her to him. The shadowed form flew from the room to join the horde filling the sky outside.

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That’s another thing you’ll pay for, Light-Stream worker, Lilith hissed.

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“Do what you will. I’ll never give up,” I rasped. How I’d do that, I didn’t know. Only that I would never stop fighting her.

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“Elliot?” I cringed at the insincerity of Lilith’s voice as she walked towards my soul-mate. She didn’t understand the first thing about caring.

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“A creature like that would never understand what this is.” Elliot clutched the journal, the line a deep V between his brows.

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“Then why did it try to steal it?” Thomas said.

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Elliot shook his head. “I don’t know, but we can’t leave the journal here. We’ll take it back to the Sanctum. It’ll be safe there.”

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“It’s the safest place on Earth,” Thomas said.

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Lilith hissed, the sound rattling over me.

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“You’ll never win against us,” I said.

 

Little fool. Getting into your Sanctum is where I want to be. Just think of the goodies I can use there.

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Sharp spikes rose in my stomach. The Sanctum held the most powerful objects of the Earth, put there for safekeeping against creatures like Lilith. I struggled against the black ropes, but it did no good. My legs gave out. My shoulders groaned as they took the weight of my body. I needed to keep my strength. I had to fight the only way I could. Lilith had possessed me, but we weren’t connected.

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She’d stuffed my soul into a tiny prison inside my body, but it took effort and concentration to keep me here. I could use these bonds against her, but only if I had the strength. I would need to bide my time. Make her think she’d beaten me down. Weakened me.

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I’d keep everyone safe and hope that Elliot would see the lie.

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“We need to go back to the others first. They’re going to be worried,” Thomas said.

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We’d left Jenny, David, Laura and Thadius behind, before we’d passed through the portal and into the other dimensions. I burned to see they were safe. That they’d survived while we’d been gone. It had been weeks, but we’d come back only moments after we’d disappeared from Earth.

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“Agreed,” Elliot said. “Careful what you say around them though.” He gave Thomas and Madeline a heavy look. “They won’t remember their soul journey. If we tell them too much too soon, we risk them not believing us and we’ll lose them.”

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That meant they’d never remember Ben. We all might never see him again. The doors to the altar room slammed open. Elliot wrenched my body to the ground as a gunshot boomed in the room.

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“Cover. Now!” Elliot yelled.

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He grabbed my arm and hauled me behind the altar as Thomas and Madeline dove for cover behind the rubble.

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“Get them!” One of the thugs yelled as half a dozen men ran through the open doors, filing out along the wall to cover us. The low light didn’t make their guns any less menacing. They held them with a sure, firm grip. They were men experienced in using them. Professionals.

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Leonard’s thugs had come to take us down.

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