Avenged by an Angel (Eternal Mates Paranormal Romance Series Book 16) Read online

  Avenged by an Angel

  Felicity Heaton

  Avenged by an Angel

  Duty should mean everything to the Fourth Commander of the Echelon angels. It did before he met her. Now, the only demon he wants to slay is the one that haunts the enchanting mortal huntress, and the temptation to hunt him in Hell, a realm that might kill him, is becoming impossible to resist.

  Held captive by a dragon shifter in Hell, Emelia survived a torment that changed her in ways she hates. She wants her strength back. Her life back. To do that, she needs closure. To get that, she might have to trust not only a man again, but an immortal.

  But when the price of vengeance is the soul of the angel bringing her back to life, will Emelia be willing to pay it?

  THE ETERNAL MATES WORLD BY FELICITY HEATON

  Eternal Mates Series

  Book 1: Kissed by a Dark Prince

  Book 2: Claimed by a Demon King

  Book 3: Tempted by a Rogue Prince

  Book 4: Hunted by a Jaguar

  Book 5: Craved by an Alpha

  Book 6: Bitten by a Hellcat

  Book 7: Taken by a Dragon

  Book 8: Marked by an Assassin

  Book 9: Possessed by a Dark Warrior

  Book 10: Awakened by a Demoness

  Book 11: Haunted by the King of Death

  Book 12: Turned by a Tiger

  Book 13: Tamed by a Tiger

  Book 14: Treasured by a Tiger

  Book 15: Unchained by a Forbidden Love

  Book 16: Avenged by an Angel

  Book 17: Seduced by a Demon King - Coming Fall 2019

  Cougar Creek Mates Series

  Book 1: Claimed by her Cougar

  Book 2: Captured by her Cougar

  Book 3: Courted by her Cougar

  Book 4: Craved by her Cougar

  This series is complete!

  London Vampires Series

  Book 1: Covet

  Book 2: Crave

  Book 3: Seduce

  Book 4: Enslave

  Book 5: Bewitch

  Book 6: Unleash

  This series is complete!

  Discover more available paranormal romance books at: http://www.felicityheaton.com

  Or sign up to Felicity's mailing list to learn about new titles, be eligible for special subscriber-only giveaways, and read exclusive content including free paranormal romance ebooks: http://ml.felicityheaton.com/mailinglist

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Seduced by a Demon King - Preview

  About the Author

  Paranormal Romance Books by Felicity Heaton

  Copyright

  CHAPTER 1

  He had a mission. One different from the others he had completed before. This time, he wasn’t charging through the bridge he had created between Heaven and Earth in order to eradicate a demon.

  He was heading to the mortal plane to retrieve a half-breed, one who would soon take her sire’s place in the Echelon. A female.

  He couldn’t recall the last time a female had served as a member of the Echelon, the revered small squadron of angels gifted with the power to hunt and destroy demons. It had certainly never happened in his lifetime.

  Lightning crackled and snapped around him, causing the hairs on his nape to stand on end as he breached the mortal realm. He shot through the layers of the elegant sandstone building in central London where he had spotted his target, passing through them as if he was made of air, and materialised as he hit the room where she stood.

  He landed hard, shaking the building to its foundations, and rose to his feet as the electricity that charged the air around him dissipated, the light each tiny bolt of lightning caused gradually fading to allow him to see the one he had come to retrieve.

  Sable stared at him, her golden eyes wide and bright, reflecting the lingering flickers of white-blue lightning that sparked from him. Her lips slowly parted, her surprise written plainly across her face.

  Beside her, a blonde female gawped, her deep blue eyes large with shock.

  He revelled in it.

  Savoured it.

  His silver gaze flickered to beyond the two females and he curled a lip at the white-walled room on the other side of a sheet of glass. He had witnessed what the organisation the half-breed worked for was capable of and it did not sit well with him, or any of the broader immortal community if the rumours were to be believed. Not only demons despised this place, innocent species did too. Shifters who wanted only to live their lives in peace within their packs. Witches who were more human than many of the people who worked for this organisation.

  Archangel.

  His lips compressed as he clenched his jaw, his black eyebrows drawing down as a spark of anger ignited in him.

  Insolent humans.

  Using the name of an elite of his kind for their nefarious ventures.

  He flinched as a piercing, shrieking noise filled the pleasant, stunned silence, grating on his nerves and fraying the weak threads holding his temper in check.

  Upon opening his eyes, he realised it was the female he had come to detain who had dared to raise the alarm. She stood farther away from him now, the blonde held behind her and her other hand still on the red button on the black wall.

  The hard, sharp edge to her golden eyes challenged him to make a move against her.

  Movement in the adjoining room gained his attention for barely a second, long enough to see they were removing the semi-nude shifter male from it and the mortal males who had accompanied him were fleeing in fear.

  Pathetic creatures.

  He calmly returned his gaze to the reason he had been sent to this wretched realm.

  Two more females rushed into the room and flanked her, their silver swords drawn and aimed at him. As if such paltry weapons could pierce his flesh.

  “What do you want?” the one called Sable spat at him, her icy glare declaring her intent to fight him.

  Brave. Courageous. He gave her that. But also foolish. She knew she was no match for him, and yet she sought to intimidate him. Many had attempted to cover their fears with such a poor façade when faced with him, and all had eventually cracked and crumbled, falling to their knees to cower before him.

  He furled his white wings against his back. Their longest feathers grazed his bare feet, and he decided that he should have gone with wearing his armour rather than a simple white-and-gold tunic over his trousers. It would have made a stronger impression on the puny mortal females huddled before him and might have sped things along.

  It certainly would have stopped the bastard offspring of an angel from being so mouthy.

&n
bsp; “I came as soon as I learned of your existence. I am come for you.” He pointed to the silver cuff around her wrist and she looked down at it, the colour slowly draining from her face, adding a satisfyingly fearful pallor to it.

  Now he was getting somewhere. Perhaps she would be more compliant now.

  “What’s he talking about?” the blonde female whispered with a curious edge to her frown as she looked at Sable.

  “It’s not important. I’ll tell you later.” Sable turned from her comrade to face him again. “Listen, buddy, I’m not going anywhere and definitely not with you. I don’t even know who you are.”

  Perhaps she wouldn’t be more compliant after all.

  They had warned him that she was a difficult thing, but he hadn’t listened to them. Mostly because his superiors had said she had a difficulty rating the same as his and he tired of their taunts about his temper. He had stated he would easily take her into custody and he meant to do that. Swiftly. He had no desire to linger in this realm, around such lowly beings.

  “You got a name? Other than Tall, Dark and Pompous?”

  Pompous?

  He glared at her and unleashed a fraction of his power. She straightened her spine in response, resisting the pressing weight of his power as it buffeted her. Her three comrades didn’t fare so well. They all staggered back a few steps towards the door, and beads of sweat broke out on the brow of the weakest.

  “Give me your sword, Anais.” Sable held her hand out to the blonde female, who did as she instructed, drawing her weapon and placing it into Sable’s palm. Her fingers closed around the hilt and she held it out in front of her, pointing it at him. “I’m giving you to the count of three. Tell me your name or bugger off. Fail to do one of those things and I’ll kick your arse. Choice is yours.”

  Amusing, but boring. He had heard better threats, from more dangerous foes. She was part angel, but no match for him in a fight. Still, he had strict orders to bring her back with him, unharmed, and that meant he had to lower himself to select the first ridiculous choice she had given him.

  In a manner of speaking, anyway.

  “I have no name. No angels do. All I can give to you is that I am of the Echelon.”

  He held his right arm out to her, revealing the cross marked on the inside of his wrist.

  A cross she also bore on her skin in the exact same spot.

  The irritation that had been building in her eyes gave way to a flicker of curiosity and something akin to hope, but she didn’t move from her spot near the other females. He needed her away from them. While their weapons couldn’t kill him, they might land blows while he was attempting to detain Sable, and he would lose his temper.

  He didn’t think the council would forgive him if he killed three mortals.

  They hadn’t mentioned any restrictions when it came to humans, but the council rarely took a favourable view on killing them.

  “I met an angel with a name. Aurora. Heard of her?” Sable said.

  He barely held back his irritated sigh. “The one you speak of is no longer an angel… and you will come with me.”

  She pinned him with a glare when he considered just crossing the distance between them and grabbing her, putting an end to this farce. It seemed she was better attuned to the feelings of others than the council had suspected. She could read him. A rare gift.

  The huntress who had sweated when he had unleashed a fraction of his power edged backwards towards the door. He shifted his focus to her and used another gift of his to change her mind about sneaking away and going for reinforcements. She stilled and stared blankly at him. A weak mind was always a glorious thing. So easy to influence. He wished the other two were weak too, but he had tested their minds and found them strong. As strong as Sable’s was.

  Influencing them would hurt them.

  “What’s it like having no name?” Sable casually waved the sword at him, the curiosity back in her eyes. “How does that work? How do other angels get your attention?”

  Her constant questions perplexed him. He couldn’t remember ever appearing before anyone who had been so irritatingly unaffected and able to string words into sentences in his presence rather than just staring at him in a dumbfounded manner.

  “They address me as Fourth Commander of the Echelon if they desire my attention.” He wasn’t sure why she needed to know or why she had such a problem with angels having no name.

  He had a rank, and that was all he required.

  “That seems like a pretty crappy way of getting someone’s attention… and you’re only the fourth commander?” She frowned and shook her head, a teasing note to her tone and expression that he found annoying. None of the people he had graced with his presence had ever dared to tease him before either. She smiled and he knew she had read him again, had felt his irritation and dislike of her conversation, and she was going to use that knowledge against him. “That must grate a little. Who’s the first? Oh, wait! He doesn’t have a name, so I guess he’s just First Commander of the Echelon.”

  He frowned at her now, his pride a little chafed by her taunting and his patience wearing thin.

  “How many are there?” She swung the sword up to rest on her shoulder.

  So casual.

  Would she be so casual if he exerted a little power and popped one of her comrades’ heads with nothing more than a thought?

  “How many what?” He played along with her, lost in the pleasing thought of terrifying her by killing her little friends in front of her.

  “Commanders.”

  “Six.” He could see where this was heading and he folded his arms across his chest, warning her not to go there.

  She did. With a huge grin. “Six, and you’re only number four. Ouch. How long did it take you to reach number four?”

  “Silence,” he barked and even the alarms stopped shrieking. “I am not here to speak of my rank. You will come with me. Echelon are rare now, and all must serve Heaven.”

  Sable shook her head. “If you haven’t got the memo, maybe I should tell you… I’m a queen of demons.”

  That surprised him, moderately, but didn’t sway him. “You will come with me. The demons are of little consequence. They may find another queen.”

  Her expression turned horrified and she had the sword pointing at him again before he could blink, the darkness in her eyes warning him he wasn’t the only one close to losing his temper now. “That’s my husband you’re talking about so callously. My people! I’m not going to Heaven. I’m going back to Hell.”

  His temper snapped and the room darkened in response, the light forced out of it as he stepped towards her, glaring down at her as he spread his wings. They spanned the room and drew fearful glances from the three mortal females. Sable stood firm in front of him, her blade never wavering, not even when his power began to slip beyond his grasp. He held his hand out in front of him, filled with a dark need to call his blade to him and teach her a lesson in humility and respect.

  The steely determination in her steady gaze challenged him to try.

  A sensation shot down his spine and fire arced through his blood, a warning from those on high that he was close to overstepping the line.

  Again.

  He drew a deep calming breath, reined in his temper enough to regain control of his powers, and tried again. “I am not known for my patience. I would not test it. You will come with me. By force, if necessary.”

  The blonde female called Anais and a second female jumped in front of Sable, blocking his path to her.

  His gaze caught on the second female, a slender brunette with fierce green eyes. Strange warmth flooded him at the sight of her, but it was swiftly followed by fury so dark and deep that it threatened to shatter his carefully controlled calm and send him into a killing rage.

  She bore wounds on her fair skin, visible above the collar and below the sleeves of her black top.

  She had been beaten.

  “What did this to you?” The words seemed to leave his lips o
f their own volition, coming from an unfamiliar part of him, one that felt alien and rocked him with the strength of its will and the depth of its feelings.

  She shook her head and backed away from him, her eyes gradually widening and filling with fear.

  Her lips wouldn’t answer him, so he sought it from her eyes.

  He stared deep into them and saw it all for himself.

  He witnessed her suffering at the hands of a dragon.

  His blade was in his hand before he knew what he was doing. Blue flames flickered along the length of it, darkest near the hilt. Almost black. A need filled him, a terrible hunger that he couldn’t hold back or deny.

  “A dragon resides in this place. I will slay him for you.” He swept the blade down at his side and focused his senses to find the dragon shifter who had been in the other room when he had arrived.

  Sable shoved the two huntresses behind her. “Don’t you bloody dare! That dragon had nothing to do with what happened to Emelia.”

  Emelia?

  His gaze drifted back to the slender female. She had bowed her head, her dark hair falling down to obscure her face and steal the pleasure of seeing it from him, and had wrapped her arms around herself, holding herself so tightly, he felt she feared she might fall apart.

  “Where does the dragon who did this to you reside?” He spoke to her, but it was Sable who answered.

  “In Hell.”

  His mood darkened again on hearing that, but he recalled that all dragons had been banished from the mortal realm millennia ago by a powerful witch. He flexed his fingers around the hilt of his blade, his mind working to find a solution to his problem so he could hunt and slay the dragon, but none presented itself.

  Irritated by a seemingly irremovable object in his path, he muttered, “I cannot enter Hell.”

  And regretted it when Sable’s eyes lit up.

  “What a shame,” she said with a victorious smile.

  She believed she would be safe from him there, but he wasn’t going to give her a chance to escape him.

  He lunged for her.

  A huge bare-chested demon male appeared between them, his eyes blazing red and dusky ridged horns curling from above his pointed ears, twisting around themselves to flare forwards like daggers on either side of his temples. The male bared sharp fangs and grew even larger, his burgundy leathers creaking as his muscles expanded and bones lengthened, and he came to tower over him. His dark leathery wings brushed the walls and ceiling as the male hunched over in the room.