Violet Eden Chapters 04 - Endless

boy will make a fine Grigori.
    They all would. I’d ensure they had their chance with my last breath.
    Olivier pushed me every few steps until we reached the top of the staircase, where four more exiles waited.
    They had a prop.
    ‘Original,’ I muttered, looking at the crucifix.
    Olivier took his time, tying me to the heavy wooden cross with thin ropes.
    It felt wrong in so many ways that they were doing this, and even more disturbing was seeing the sheer satisfaction it brought them.
    The ropes dug into my wrists and ankles as the exiles hoisted me onto their shoulders and paraded me into the main room. Facing the ceiling I couldn’t see much, but I heard the roars and hissing. I felt like the hunt being delivered to the barbecue.
    Finally, I was placed up against a stand so that I faced Lilith and Phoenix, who stood behind her throne. In front of her was a small golden table. My breath caught before I could stop myself when I saw the modern automatic bow and rows of small arrows, each knitting-needle-slim and no longer than four inches.
    Lilithwas adorned in a golden gown complete with plunging neckline and cut-outs down her sides that showcased her curvaceous body, leaving little to the imagination. On anyone else it would have looked crude – on her, it looked iconic. Her golden hair almost blended into the dress and her lips were highlighted by vibrant red lipstick. Her only other accessories were the chains that flowed from her throne down to the collars around her human slaves.
    A whimper fell from my lips as Lincoln’s power ran through me and I saw the shadows. Each human was shrouded by thick venomous shadows which had an almost oil-slick quality that confirmed their will had been tainted by an exile. A shiver ran through me.
    To Lilith’s left, I finally spotted Evelyn. She was bound in silver chains with exiles on either side of her, holding her up. She had been badly beaten, only her eyes left untouched. My anger boiled and was only contained when my gaze locked with hers. Evelyn’s body may have been sagging under the strain but her eyes were as fierce as ever and focused on me. I didn’t need a soul bond to feel the love she was sending me.
    I looked away. I would have broken down otherwise.
    Finally, I let my gaze travel to the place I’d been purposely avoiding since first entering the room. To the right of Lilith, Lincoln was chained up. He stood tall and fearless despite the fact that, like Evelyn, he too had been badly beaten. From the angle he held his arm, I suspected his shoulder had dislocated again. Nonetheless, his strength was so overpowering I found myself half smiling at him briefly. He nodded me on as if that was exactly the right thing to do.
    The ballroomwas lined with spectators. I pushed my senses out, registering that there was definitely a favouring of dark exiles. With Lilith now in charge and Phoenix viewed as her second-in-command, I wondered if exiles of light would be so happy to continue their truce with the dark. I imagined it would not be long before they went back to the old ways and began warring with one another.
    The man standing on the opposite side of Lilith’s throne caught my attention. He didn’t seem to belong; small and unassuming, he was bald with wire-rimmed glasses. Dressed in a conservative grey business suit and cream tie, black briefcase in hand, shoes nicely polished – I couldn’t get a clear signature from him. He was definitely an exile, which was strange in itself – I’d never seen one who looked so … average; on the whole, exile physiques fitted the GQ ideal.
    He looked back at me, nothing more than a hint of curiosity showing in his expression. The hair on the back of my neck prickled.
    Something about him is very, very wrong.
    The drums continued their relentless pounding and exiles started to walk towards me in time to the beat. One by one they moved closer, pushing their power out towards me. They were combining their forces. I didn’t know what they were planning but my heart began to race in anticipation.
    They want me frightened.
    Be strong. Stay strong.
    One by one the exiles morphed into their creatures of choice. First something bat-like swooped in on me. Then something with great talons streaked by so close I felt it graze my arm. Another came, more like a gargoyle, then another; a dragon. They were relentless. A horned devil covered in orange fire, a creature illuminated in blinding white light with a gigantic and