My glare finds Rector.
My wings crash open.
And a growl rips through my throat.
Rector closes his eyes, and his face tightens with concentration. I know he’s trying to summon his own wings, but I’m not going to let him. I race forward and whip my left wing across my body. Then I swing it out and throw Rector ten feet from where he stands. He lands on his side and rolls three times. When he tries to lift himself back up. he stumbles and grunts in pain. I relish the sound.
In the blink of an eye, I’m on him. I use my wings to lift him upright, then circle my feathered appendages around his body, restraining him in a circle of black. His arms fly out, searching for something. But there’s only me. Pow!
I pound my clenched fist into his gut and his rib cage and the line of his jaw. From the sound of it, Aspen is tearing Kincaid a new one outside our boxing ring. I take a step back and thrust my wings against Rector’s chest. When I yank them open, he flies through the air and slams into a soul shelf. The shelf teeters back and forth but doesn’t fall.
Without hesitation, I charge toward him again. I hold Charlie’s face in my mind as I kick him one, twice, three times in the side. Then I think about the things he did to Aspen and lose myself to fury. My fists crash into his face so many times that my knuckles begin to slip against his flesh. I shake the blood off my hands, thankful that we’re immortal, that the cuff around his ankle means the torture is never ending.
Rector lies on the ground in a heap. I glance over to where Aspen is landing another kick on Kincaid’s knee. He falls but quickly regains his composure. I’ll hand it to him, he’s persistent.
“Hey, Aspen,” I say, nodding toward Rector. “Want to get some payback for earlier?”
Aspen moves away from Kincaid and toward me. Kincaid wipes the sweaty blond hair from his forehead and narrows his beady eyes. His face looks like it belongs on a wanted poster.
Aspen studies my wings warily. “I didn’t know you could…”
“Yeah,” I say, “Me, either. Not really.”
She gets closer, and Kincaid makes a movement like he’s going to tackle her from behind. I wag my finger at him. “Calm down, anus. You and I are going to play next.”
Kincaid raises his hands like he wants none of that.
I reach out to Aspen, who flinches. Our eyes connect. “It’s okay. I’m still me,” I whisper. Then I take her face in my hands. “Are you okay?”
Her gaze travels over my wings and then down to the floor where Rector groans. She nods.
I wave my hand toward him. “My gift to you.”
Aspen’s mouth tightens into a thin line. She looks one last time at my wings before turning her attention to Rector. I, on the other hand, spin around and stroll toward Kincaid.
“Want to dance?” I ask. Kincaid shakes his head. “Too bad.”
I hit Kincaid exactly six times and wing-slap him once before he drops like a bag of stones. His eyes roll back in his head. He’s not dead, of course, but he won’t be causing us any more problems.
Aspen is down in Rector’s face, whispering something to him. He clenches his jaw, but the ashen color on his face gives him away. I couldn’t be more proud of Aspen if she grew testicles.
I nudge Kincaid with my foot and confirm he’s down for the count. Satisfied with my handy work, I head toward Rector and Aspen. Aspen sees me coming and straightens. Rector spits blood onto the floor. He swishes his tongue around his mouth before spitting out a tooth.
“That’s unsightly,” I say. “People have no manners these days.”
Aspen wraps her arms around her waist and winces.
“Are you sure you’re all right?” I ask, my tone softening.
“She is fine,” Rector answers for her.
I kick him. “I wasn’t talking to you, asswipe.” I nod toward Kincaid. “See that sack of shit over there? Your collector buddy? He struck out. So it’s just us three, big boy. And soon it’s just going to be you. Because me and Aspen here? We’re going to take Charlie’s soul and skedaddle.”
I grasp Aspen’s hand and move away from Rector. I’m playing Mr. Tough Guy, but deep down I feel like collapsing. When I saw Rector and Kincaid, and maybe even when I first spotted Patrick, I figured we may not make it out of here. I draw my wings back into myself like it’s nothing, like I’ve done it a million times. It doesn’t hurt the way it did to bring them out, which is something. I notice suddenly that my long-sleeved T-shirt is still intact. I guess the initial burning singed through my clothing.
Aspen sighs next to me. When I glance at her, she’s smiling. We’re both in shock at our success. I want to scoop her up into a hug and laugh but decide to wait until we’ve blown this joint completely.
We’re only a few steps away from Rector when he speaks.
“Did you think it would be so easy?” he asks. A chill races over my skin. “Did you think I would let you both waltz out of here with Charlie’s soul?”
I cross the distance between us. “What else you got, Rector?” I snarl. “Stop screwing around and just bring it, because Aspen and I will take on anything. So let’s see it, champ.”
Rector sits up a little straighter and grins. Blood trickles from the corner of his mouth. “As you wish.” Rector fills his lungs. “Come on, my sweet children! Come to me!”
Aspen and I scramble backward, retreating as quickly as we can from what appears before us.
42 
A Choice
Demons pour into the room. The whistling sound they make engulfs my senses. There are so many of them, too many to defeat. My mind spins, deciding whether to try and fight regardless.
Beside me, Aspen clutches my arm. I glance at her, at the crease between her green eyes. Understanding passes between us. We won’t make it out of here. I expect to get angry, for that anger to fill every crevice in my head. Instead, I am awash with guilt. I allowed Aspen to come with me on this futile quest.
And I’m the reason she may die tonight.
Demons creep closer as Rector struggles to stand. At last, he’s successful. I don’t know what to do. I’m not sure there’s anything to do. Rector has won. He’s wanted to destroy me ever since he learned my name. And now he has me cornered. So it surprises me when he limps toward Aspen like I’m not even in the room.
“My wicked little rose,” he says to Aspen. “Don’t be upset. You brought them here with your screams, after all.”
“Stop calling her that,” I bark.
“No,” Aspen whispers.
I squeeze her hand. It wasn’t her fault. The demons would have come eventually, the scent of our perspiring flesh guiding their noses.
Rector ignores me. “As I was saying when we first met, I have a proposal.”
“Screw your proposal.” I step in between him and Aspen. I may not be able to defeat the demons, but I can kick his ass one more time before they attack us.
“Let him talk.” Aspen’s spine is straight, and her chin is raised. She looks like a goddess.
“Smart girl,” Rector says.
I stare him down for a few more seconds, then move aside. Right now, I just want to make things better for Aspen, so if she wants to hear what he has to say, then I’ll oblige.
“Start talking, old man,” Aspen says.
Rector folds his arms across his chest and grins. “My proposal is simple,” he says to Aspen. “Dante can leave and take Charlie’s soul with him. But you will stay behind.”
My fist connects with Rector’s jaw. He hits the ground.
The demons stir. Their overgrown toenails click against the floor, and they raise their giant heads and hiss. The yellow-and-black scales smeared across their bodies remind me of bumblebees. One near the front flicks out its forked tongue. The demons are waiting for an order to strike, their glassy eyes taking in everything. If Rector weren’t here, I have no doubt they would have already overpowered us.