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PROLOGUE

Death could be kind or he could be cruel Tonight, he felt damn cruel

Sas flapped behind hi to thethat day They’d killed so many—men, women, and children Sammael had taken the souls fro—only those slipping froel of Death—and their eyes had filled with terror

So hter Stood back while they begged and screamed

His job was only to take the souls He gave the He served He didn’t question

Until now

There was no reason for him to be in this forest No reason for him to watch these ht anyway

They were laughing and drinking They didn’t sense him No one ever did—not until it was too late

Blood still stained their hands

Watch and wait and take the souls when it is time That was his job, and it was the job he’d done for centuries

Angels didn’t feel ee

No, angels weren’t supposed to feel But he’d never fit into that perfecttoo much, and he just couldn’t shut off the fury

Sas closed in behind him To kill, to take a soul, he only needed one touch Just one

He s around, as if they sensed him

They only see when death is at hand

Sammael reached for the first man Death is at hand for you One touch and the huony contorting his face The laughter stopped then, and the scent of fear teased Sammael’s nose

His black wings spread behind hian to run and scream, his smile stretched

No

Another touch and another body hit the ground Again and again The laughter that filled the air was his now He had the power, and he didn’t feel like being kind to the mortals around him

Shouts of “devil” and “, but he didn’t really expect these fools to recognize an angel

They saw hied their fate Marked by Death now Death was closing in, and they couldn’t fight him There would be no escape

When they ran, he just flew after theht the men, lifted them up into the air, and then tossed their dead bodies back to the ground

“Pleasemercy!” One man’s desperate cry

He had no mercy

He touched and he killeduntil no one was left

When the haze of rage cleared from his eyes, the dead circled him

The sainst Sa like the dead men, no, like those wohtered Like the children had screamed when he’d just stood there and watched the bastards attack

No