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Josiah looks at me, then back at Raffe ‘Does she need to be here?’

‘Apparently, she does,’ says Raffe ‘It turns out that she’s the only one I can trust to watch my back’

I stand a little taller when he says that

‘Laylah didn’t know’ Josiah shifts his body to et involved, but you kno ambitious she is Look, you can trust her this time because you’re her only hope out of thishe needs from her’

‘Kill her? You mean set her up for a fall?’

‘No, I mean kill her He was furious with her, wouldn’t believe a word she said when she told hi on us He flew into a rage and told her he killed the Messenger and he could kill her too The Messenger, Raffe Uriel killed hiel Gabriel, the Messenger of God being shot down over the rubble of Jerusaleh my mind They looped it for days on TV

Josiah shakes his head like he’s still having trouble believing it ‘Uriel said Gabriel had gone insane, that he hadn’t actually spoken to God in eons, that he’d made up all the rules that God had supposedly commanded him to make He said there was no reason why Uriel couldn’t be Messenger, that he could lie as well as Gabriel So Uriel had him killed Killed He ad just as shocked as Josiah

‘So what’s the big deal?’ I ask ‘Our kings used to get murdered all the time’

‘We don’t kill our own,’ says Josiah ‘The last time that happened, Lucifer and his are got through ‘It was kind of a big deal’

‘Yeah, I’ve heard of him,’ I say

Raffe lets out a frustrated breath ‘I can’t do anything about it from the outside’

‘I know,’ says Josiah ‘That’s why you have to let Laylah fix your wings Soot word out to try to find Michael, but it’s unlikely we’ll find him in time’

‘Why does Laylah think they’d vote for me instead of Uriel?’

‘You still have loyal followers Ru that you’re back, and I’ve been careful to cultivate them in your favor You have a shot’

‘No wonder Michael is staying away Knowing hi he wants to do He can’t lead ar feathers and buried under adel who can challenge Uriel right now Even if Michael wins in absentia, an archangel would need to stand in for him until he comes back If you can do that, then Laylah can stand behind you She now has every reason to want you to have your wings back’

‘Raffe, you can’t trust him Not after what he’s done’

‘I know it looks bad,’ says Josiah, ‘but have I not ave ave ed it to you’