Page 68 of Wings of Betrayal
“Enough!” Zalore’s voice booms through the large room, echoing around the four stone walls.
The male immediately stops in his tracks and lets out a grunt before he takes hold of Astelle’s leash and brings her to Zalore. Zalore yanks hard on the chain, and Astelle drops to her knees before him. He roughly grabs her face and forcefully kisses her, then shoves her face back. She falls backwards before quickly righting herself, and she then sits on the ground before him, head bowed.
I swallow hard, knowing the disgust I am feeling inside is showing on my face.
“So, to what do I owe this unexpected pleasure, Zarla?” His gaze traces up and down my body once more as he settles back on his throne.
The way he says my name makes my skin crawl, and I have to work hard to stop myself from being physically sick.
“I apologise for showing up unannounced, but Amaros doesn’t like me doing anything he doesn’t know about these days, and leaving the Kingdom is top of that list.”
He rests his arms on the edge of his throne, a grin lighting his face, as if deeply enjoying my disobedience toward Amaros.
“Go on,” he instructs.
I glance down at Astelle. What kind of monster is he? How could he treat a female with such disrespect, like she’s some kind of animal?
He arches a brow at me.
I clear my throat. “The watcher attacks in my Kingdom and on Earth… Were you responsible?”
He strums his fingers on the metal armrest, seeming to think it over. “I shouldn’t say…”
I roll my eyes.
He leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “But now that Amaros has upheld his end of the deal, I don’t see why not.”
I frown. So it’s true, then. Amaros is working with Zalore.
“Amaros came to me, and he asked me to have my watchers kill an archangel named Kyle.”
I grit my teeth and dig my nails into my palms, waiting for him to continue.
“My watchers didn’t expect you or Kyle to be so powerful. It made the task impossible. Amaros said you were in the possession of some powerful weapons, and despite the best efforts of my watchers, you always stopped them.”
I squeeze my eyes closed and suck in a deep breath. “And what did you ask for in return?”
He smirks and nods in Astelle’s direction.
Amaros traded my sister to this monster?
I take several slow, deep breaths, really having to control myself at this point. “He had no right.”
Zalore abruptly stands and storms down the stairs toward me, and I swear he’s going to hit me. But he doesn’t. He simply stands before me, glaring down at me with rage-filled eyes.
“Youhave no right to question me within my Kingdom. It is not your concern, female.”
Ignoring his proximity, I continue. “Do you have anything to do with the lost ones attacking angels on Earth or within the Kingdoms?”
He grins at me, and it’s clear that I won’t get anything else out of him.
I glance at Astelle, who is hunched over into a ball, staring at the floor. The confident female I once knew is nowhere to be seen, and it frightens me how easily he could break her. Someone as strong, confident, and scary as her.
His fingers trace across my cheek, stealing my focus, and I bat his hand away. He chuckles.
“You know,” he says, taking a step closer. “You’d be more than welcome to take her place.”
I glare at him as my stomach churns, and I have to internally battle with myself to remain composed.