Phenex grinned. “We know, but Az doesn’t. Bit of a sore spot for him.”

“And you shouldn’t hold anything against him,” Valac said quietly. “He did what had to be done. If he hadn’t, Lucifer would have found out what we’re doing here.” He lifted his gaze from the table and met my eyes. “Hell is not a very nice place to live, Mia.”

Shivers stormed across my arms. “Even for you?”

“Especially for us,” Bael said with a shudder. “The things we’ve seen, things we’ve been forced to do. We never want to go back there, and we sure as hell don’t want the entire world in that place. All of this, it would be over.”

“Not that Heaven is any better,” Valac said with a hiss. “Angels can be just as ruthless as demons can.”

My heart flipped as I looked from Valac to Caim. “But then what do you plan to do? If both sides suck?”

“We take it one day at a time,” Caim said with a nod. “One fight at a time.”

“One fight at a time,” Phenex echoed.

“One fight at a time,” Valac, Stolas, and Bael repeated in unison.

Hands fisted by my sides, I nodded. “One fight at a time.”

* * *

We entered the party with my hand tucked into Az’s suit-clad arm. He’d chosen an all-black ensemble for the night, one that hugged his muscular frame in perfect precision. I wore a cute sapphire dress that hit my mid-thigh and earrings that matched. A gift from Az, though he’d just tossed the thing at me and told me to get changed.

He was still mad. Not that I could blame him. I understood exactly where he was coming from. He thought I’d made assumptions about him, based on who he was. And he didn’t seem to realize I hadn’t. My unease was only based on what he’d done, and even I could admit that maybe I’d been wrong.

He made it really hard to tell him that though. His smug disdain toward me got on my damn nerves.

This party was a little different than the other. Instead of a rooftop bar, the host had chosen her own penthouse apartment as the venue. As soon as we stepped inside, a strange chill swept across the back of my neck, like an ice cold hand had pressed against it. I shivered and glanced at Az.

He cocked his head at me, and something strange flickered in the depths of his eyes. “What was that?”

“I felt something weird,” I replied in a low voice. “Like ice on the back of my neck.”

“Hmm. Stay close to me.” His words shot a new wave of unease down my spine. It was the first time he’d spoken to me without sounding angry. He almost sounded…concerned.

Great.