The Book of Azrael (Gods & Monsters, #1)

by Amber V. Nicole

“So, it can hurt someone? Kill?” She nodded before placing it back into her basket. “In the right hands, yes, but give it a good home, a little care, and it can heal, too.”

It was never awkward with him, just a comfortable quiet.

I wouldn’t allow anything to dim her spirit.

“I will not let him have you.”

“I promise to make sure Gabby is safe. I also promise that he will never lay a hand on you again. If he even tries to take you away, I promise I’ll make him regret ever being born.”

“I always listen.”

I didn’t remember how long we talked, but somewhere amidst her laughter and smiles, I decided I would rip the world apart for her.

“You already consume my every waking thought. Must you consume my dreams as well?”

I knew then that I wanted to touch her like this for real, regardless of if it was wrong, a part of my brain whispering that it was forbidden. We were forbidden.

An ache, pure and blinding, consumed me, the sharp agony making me want to destroy everything that had ever hurt her.

“Do you knock?” Drake asked, dropping his hand. “Not when she sounds distressed.”

During large engagements, all goddesses and celestials wore similar garments on my world. Some flowed well past their feet, others barely touched the ground, but they all shimmered and shined like starlight upon the darkened sky. They were truly beautiful . . . and so are you. You are a queen and should be draped in the finest fabrics, not the cheap faux material he chose.”

There is no victory in war, only death. Even the winning side loses.”

“Dianna is different. I have seen evil. I’ve seen it born, what it craves, and how it acts. She may be stubborn and erratic. At times, she is rude or crass, even violent or dangerous, but not evil—not even a little bit.”

“It is not about possession.” His brows furrowed as he looked down at me. “I worry about you.”

“A word of advice then, World Ender. Do not fill her head with pretty words. Do not make her beautiful gowns. Do not take her on midnight strolls through a garden or give her handpicked flowers. Kaden has fed her scraps for years to keep her in line. She is a woman who craves love, no matter what she says. If you have no intention of staying or being with her, don’t court her and make her care. Don’t be the one to make her fall if you have no intention of catching her.”

Even her speaking of being with another caused something wild and vicious to awaken within me. I did not recognize these emotions.

I just was not used to how I felt around her. Dianna’s touch set fire to a place inside me, and I found myself wanting to burn.

“I will not share a bed with you any longer, when to do so gets me lectured by creatures far beneath me thinking I have ill intentions toward you.”

The point is that Dianna does not deserve to be spoken to like that or treated as just a conquest. She is not an object for you and Kaden to haggle over.

I will say, regardless of her hostility and crude comments, Dianna’s existence is not the worst thing in the world.”

I was dreaming of men who gave me pretty dresses and prettier words, as if my world weren’t fire and hatred and pain. Gods, was I so desperate for even a crumb of kindness?

I had fallen for someone who had no intention of catching me.

She didn’t know how badly I had wanted it to be her lips beneath mine.

I wanted her more than a crown, more than a throne, more than air.

No, she couldn’t die, wouldn’t die. I would rip the very fabric of this world to atoms.

Dianna was worth it, and I would risk it all for her.

I would say and do anything to stay with her, no matter how idiotic I sounded.

I wouldn’t mention that I could control my body temperature. It was necessary that I be close to her, and if that meant a small lie of omission, I could live with that.

“I’d never abandon you.”

You would have to be an ignorant fool not to think you are anything but extraordinary, Dianna.”

Her lips slanted over mine, and for the first time in my entire existence, I froze. Her kiss was light, tantalizing—and everything I never knew I had been missing.

“That feels so fucking good, my Dianna.”

I appreciate you. Truly.”

“That’s eight ways now, because when we leave here, I’m going to fuck the word friend out of your vocabulary.”

“Maybe in another life,” I whispered against his lips.

“Dianna, I physically put your heart back into your chest with my bare hands,” Liam snapped. “Now, drink!” He shoved his wrist back into my mouth, not giving me time to respond.

“And what of yours, Dianna? You always do this! You willingly try to throw yours away as if it means nothing. As if you mean nothing.”

“You should have trusted me more, Dianna. After everything we have been through, why would you think I would ever let anything happen to you?”

My body had ached as I’d poured more of my power into her. The light beneath my hand flickered, and I hadn’t cared.

I brought her back because I didn’t think I could exist without her.

“The prophecy remains. One falls, one rises, and the end begins. It was foretold and will remain. One carved from darkness, one carved from light. The world will shudder.”

To me, you are worth it—and that makes me the most selfish bastard and the most dangerous god to ever exist. I did it in a second, without thinking or worrying about the consequences, and I would do it again and again.

The mere sight of him set my blood aflame as if he stoked a fire deep in my soul—and I wanted it to burn. I wanted more. I wanted him.

Gabby’s eyes bored into the screen in silent desperation. It wasn’t for herself, but for the one she knew stared back at her—the one person who had given up her life for hers. Her eyes clouded with unshed tears as the world held its breath. Even the creatures behind Kaden were silent. It was a defining moment in what was to come.

“Remember that I love you.”

But it was not this world. No, it was mine. It was Dianna.

Liam died with whatever part of Dianna’s heart fractured that night.