Free Hellbound Warrior: (Dark Warrior Alliance Book Five) by Brenda Trim, Tami Julka Page B

woman a child he will fight heaven and hell to free that child. He will never be free if that happens and it will all be my fault.”
    Kellen joined them and patted her on the back. “Hey now, don’t worry about that. Rhys knows what he’s doing. Besides, his mention of the Goddess was strategic and a plea for her help. He was asking her to intervene on his behalf,” Kellen informed her. It was an olive branch that she very much wanted to believe was real.
    Illianna wondered if their Goddess could hear a plea from the Underworld. She didn’t think any of the Gods or Goddesses could. Heaven knew she’d prayed to her God countless times to no avail. She knew better than to believe that meant there was no hope. There were some issues her God couldn’t affect, and she knew the collar acted as a barrier between her and him.
    “For all of our sakes, I hope you are right, Kellen,” she replied, standing up to pace across the dusty floor.
    “Do you know the way to the Third Circle?” Dante asked.
    She stopped suddenly, kicking up a plume of dust, making them cough. “Why would you want to go to the Third Circle? Aren’t you leaving with us?” she asked, cocking her head.
    “We aren’t leaving yet. Didn’t Rhys explain that?” Dante clarified as he leaned against one of the worn wooden posts.
    “No, he didn’t mention that,” she replied, hesitantly. Where was he going with this?
    “He told you we were on a mission for the Goddess,” Kellen clarified.
    “Yes, he did. I just assumed we were leaving after I was freed.”
    “No, we have to get the Triskele Amulet before Lucifer manages to free himself from Lake Cocytus. The amulet is the Goddess’ talisman and has the power to disable his bonds to the lake,” Dante told her, standing to take up his own bout of pacing.
    She rubbed her thumb and forefinger between her eyes. “Why didn’t I realize it wasn’t going to be so easy?” she grumbled, more to herself than the men with her.
    “You don’t have to go with us. You can head to Limbo and try to free yourself,” Dante offered. The demon didn’t want her to go, that much was obvious, but she agreed with Rhys. Their paths had crossed for a reason.
    “No, I’m going with you guys—”
    “Of course she’s going with us,” Rhys cut her off. She looked over her shoulder and saw him stalking out of the back, tugging his shirt down his torso. He was pissed and didn’t look like a sex demon that had just fed. In fact, he looked far worse than before he’d gone to the back with the practitioner.
    “That was fast,” Kellen quipped, obviously trying to lighten the mood.
    “Not fast enough,” Rhys practically snarled. “Let’s get the fuck out of here.” She had never seen him more miserable nor had he ever sounded so irritated. Surely, he should be in a better mood after feeding his demon, she thought sourly. Part of her was shouting serves you right , but the rest of her felt badly that he’d clearly done something he didn’t want in order to free her.
    He grabbed her hand on his way past, dragging her behind him. She tugged and tried to get free, but he tightened his grip. She had no desire to touch any part of the demon, but he refused to let her go. She ignored it for the time being, needing to focus on keeping up with him. The slight tremor in his grasp told her more than words what this experience had been for him.
    The wind slammed into her the moment they stepped outside, but for the first time in a century it didn’t chafe her skin. And, that was because these demons had taken the effort to give her not only clothing, but a bit of dignity, as well.
     
    Going back to the previous conversation she’d had with Dante, she had a decision to make. Go with Rhys or try and make it on her own? She wasn’t able to get herself out of Hell on her own, as much as she wanted to.
    “The exit to the Third Circle is to the left,” she informed them.
    Rhys followed her directions and maneuvered them