Page 233 of Venom Sweeter than Honey
Preferably with an entire loaf of bread and a wheel of cheese crammed into my mouth.
However, the moment Azrael lays me on the bed, he collapses beside me, tucks me against his chest, and my eyes are too heavy to keep open.
LEVI
Azrael and Violette passed out within moments of laying atop the bed. They hadn’t even bothered to take off their fighting leathers, but I pulled off their boots and received a mumbled and drowsy ‘thank you’ from the both of them. As exhausted as I am, my mind is still whirring with the myriad of potentialities that could take place.
A persistent thread of simmering anxiety has made my muscles increasingly tense.
It makes me miss my team—Gideon, Beau, Riggs, and Mal. The latter two are still active duty and I feel like shit that I haven’t seen them in nearly two years.
If I had the team here with me, I would be a lot more confident we could pull this wild shit off. Not that I would actually even consider bringing anyone other than Gideon here because everyone else is still human.
Fuck, where is Azrael’s shadow?
We’re going to need his help.
Based on what little Violette has told me about her father, I don’t want to risk letting her come face-to-face with him.
I resign myself to the fact that I won’t be able to sleep and make my way into the bathroom.
It looks... medieval, but in a cozy tavern way.
I step in front of the mirror to examine my new appearance. I haven’t had much time to do so. And although the sight of my matte black horns and the dark tail hovering behind me is still mildly shocking to see, thefeelof them is strangely natural.
Piece by piece, I practicewillingaway individual articles of clothing until I’m standing nude in front of the mirror, before reversing and repeating the process.
I twist to look at the bathtub andwillthe faucet on.
Hmmmm.
Willingthe top half of my borrowed fighting leathers to hand, I sniff one of the arm pits.
Yikes.
It’s more than a little ripe after trekking through the mountains for four days.
Using some intention and a little imagination, I attempt towillit clean.
When my nose is met with only the scent of leather and something uniquely Azrael that makes my heart squeeze–and not my own sweaty stench–a petite grin of victory curls one corner of my mouth.
The tiny sprig of joy wilts as reality settles back in because I can’t ignore the sensation that we are in way over our fucking heads.
I’ve learned from personal experience that the only way to survive being outnumbered and even out-gunned or out-powered is to work as a cohesive unit.
I need to find that fucking phantom...
I don’t know any other gods?—
My thoughts screech to a halt.
Somnus.
I’m way too worked up to fall asleep, but maybe with some scalding hot water and breathwork... My eyes slide to the largecopper bathtub already filled nearly to the brim and billowing with steam.
I let out a groan of relief as I climb in and sink beneath the water. It’s hot enough to make goosebumps rise; for the heat to penetrate my bones; to soothe my soul.
It feels like I’m dissolving the last 38 years of stress and trauma.
