Page 89 of Crimson Soul
THIRTY-FOUR
Blaise
“Poppy, take a deep breath.” I cupped Lilith’s face in my hands, wiping away the big tears rolling down her cheeks with my thumbs. “We’re going to save them.”
“And kill that fucking bitch,” she muttered bitterly.
“Of course we are, but we need you in your right mind to do that.”
“I am in my right mind,” she grumbled, patting out a spark of hellfire on top of her head. I let go of her face and took a step back for safety. It wouldn’t do anyone any good if she were to burn me to death by accident. She frowned. “Okay, maybe I do need to calm down.”
“I can help with that,” Kai said, wrapping his arms around her waist and burying his face in her neck. Calming vibrations poured out of him, visibly relaxing her, and exuding over the room. The muscles in my shoulders loosened, and I fucking wished Kai had his enhanced powers when Lilith was missing. Maybe we wouldn’t have been at each other’s throats as much.
“Are you sure you don’t want to wait until tomorrow so we can prepare?” Thaddeus asked, walking down the crumbling clay hall toward the portal to purgatory that swirled bright red with bubbles popping, secreting blood that we stood in front of.
“I’m sure.” She sighed. “It’s my fault Mystia took them. I’m not letting her kill them.”
“But we can’t have you getting hurt in the process,” Aziel said.
“I know, but I don’t think you guys realize how much power my soul contains.”
“You’re a fucking goddess, Lilith,” he told her, reaching out and poking her nose. “We know you’re powerful.”
“I’m not a goddess. I’m—”
“The Crimson Demon,” Titan said, teleporting next to us, making us jump.
“Yeah, exactly!” She threw her arms up as Kai let her go. “What’re you doing here?”
“I’m not letting you face her without me. I can’t...” His lips pulled into a thin line. “I can’t let you go into a dangerous situation without me because if something were to happen to you and I wasn’t there…”
She paused, staring into his eyes and took a few steps forward until her feet touched his. Wrapping her arms around him, she pulled him into a hug. “Thank you, Titan.”
It took him a moment before he smiled, wrapping his arms around her small frame. “Of course.”
She knew how he felt for her, but she couldn’t return those feelings. Still, I knew she loved Titan as a friend, and he had proved his intentions with Lilith over and over again. I trusted the demon, and so did she. I was glad he’d shown up. Facing the blood witch without him didn’t seem right anyway.
They pulled apart and Aziel clasped him on the shoulder with a nod. Titan gave him a knowing look as we turned our attention back to the portal.
“Blood…How clever.” Lilith snorted with her hands placed on her hips. She wore a pair of leggings and a regular black t-shirt with tennis shoes, and she couldn’t look hotter. I fucking loved that woman, and I was going to help her keep her family safe.
“She is a blood witch,” Aziel said.
“Exactly.” She sucked on her bottom lip as she tilted her body, inspecting the barrier on the portal. Evidently all portals to purgatory were blood red with the viscous fluid popping out every so often. None of the supernaturals, even Lilith, were able to teleport there either.
Lilith’s fangs dropped and she sunk them into her wrist before pulling, slicing it open from her wrist down to her elbow. We let out collective gasps.
Holy fuck. She’s bloody lost it.
“What’re you doing?” Kai asked.
She grinned, blood smeared on her lips. “Blood magic.” Putting her other hand under the gash, she collected the blood. The wound healed almost instantly, and she barely bled enough for it to fill halfway up her cupped hand.
Her long eyelashes fluttered as she closed her eyes, and she placed the other hand over the blood. The blood started to steam and glow a dark crimson. Her voice got louder as she held her hand out, using the other hand to guide the blood out of her hand by telekinesis. The scent of her blood had changed, I’d noticed when I drank from her. It was sweeter than before and smelled of nightshade, iron, and the minerals found in spring water.
That scent flooded my nostrils as she started moving the blood in the shape of a symbol with a star and a circle with an X in it. The blood moved so fast in the air that the symbol was clearly visible, and it flew toward the portal, smacking into the blood of it before catching fire.
“Holy fucking shit.” I breathed out, my mouth open like a fucking fish.
