XXII

Charles stared up at the ceiling of the cell, cold expression having worn down into exhaustion across the past few weeks. Valerie, taking a deep breath and steeling her nerves, walked over to the angel. He immediately turned his blue-green gaze toward her, eyes narrowing in suspicion. "Valerie," he said, caution evident in his voice. "What is it?"

Valerie paused for a moment. "You haven't contributed a thing to our plan. Despite it relying almost solely on Aries and Asha," she added obviously. Charles stayed silent. "It does not matter what you thought of these demons; they're the reason we're going to escape eternal damnation and if you have a problem with that, you can rot down here for the rest of your life," she seethed and at first, Charles didn't react.