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December thirty-first.
    New Year’s Eve. The marking of a new year and a new world.
    “And while you will play a vital role as a weapon of Light, the war will be unfathomable in its devastation to this earth.”
    I swallowed the lump forming in my throat, thinking of my father, of my best friend Mindy, of her mother. I would protect them any way I could when the time came. But I feared the future all the same.
    “I know what you’re thinking,” said George. “How could agents of good allow death and destruction to come to this world?”
    I nodded in agreement and said, “Why should humanity suffer? They aren’t part of this war.”
    “Oh, but they are,” said Uriel. “They will choose one side or another and play their part.”
    “But what of the innocent who are killed? It’s not their fault.”
    “Every war suffers the death of innocents,” replied Uriel, his tenor dropping lower as he gazed on the altar. “Civilian casualties are an ugly reality.”
    I followed his gaze and watched the lovely young faces of the children now singing a soft rendition of “Silent Night”. What would happen to them?
    By instinct, I placed my palm over my abdomen, until I caught Uriel’s keen gaze follow my movement. I pulled my hand away quickly. The archangel’s mouth lifted in a knowing smile. I straightened and cleared my throat.
    “I’m sure George has apprised you of where I plan to go.”
    He sobered at once, schooling his features into grave planes. “You seek Jude in Erebus. And you need my assistance.”
    “Yes.”
    He tipped his godlike face forward, dipping his chin in acquiescence. “I will grant it.”
    George arched a brow at my surprised reaction.
    “Wait. You don’t plan to try to talk me out of it?” I asked, baffled.
    “Of course not. I trust you know your path. If I can help you, I will.”
    Speechless because I’d planned on having to persuade him through a lengthy and bitter debate, I shifted in the pew to face him more easily.
    “I have a way to find Lethe—”
    “How?” interjected George.
    Uriel waved him off. “That is not our concern.”
    “Of course it is,” George said vehemently, the charm and wit gone. He held on to the pew behind me with a white-knuckled grip. “What if she—”
    “George,” the archangel said with remarkable patience, “we know that she will use every precaution to journey there and back safely.”
    “But—”
    “Stop.” Uriel raised a firm hand in the air. Though he spoke forcefully, his expression showed only understanding and sympathy. “Sometimes you must trust blindly. Give her the unconditional loyalty she deserves. We’ve discussed this before, my friend.”
    Suddenly, this conversation wasn’t just about me anymore. George’s chiseled jaw softened as he lowered his gaze in resignation. “You’re right. Go on, Genevieve.”
    Hesitantly, I turned back to Uriel. “I’m sure George has already told you Jude was taken by Lethe. I need to know what to expect on the other side. I need to know if there’s a way to escape the loss of memory.”
    I refused to believe Jude could forget me entirely, but I couldn’t focus on that right now. I needed to take every precaution of getting in and out of there with my memory intact. After all, what if I actually did make it inside Lethe, only to forget why I’d gone there in the first place? The thought filled me with dread.
    “In ancient times, a sentinel of Light began telling the myth of the Rivers of the Underworld.”
    “But they weren’t entirely myth,” I corrected.
    “Exactly. The soul collectors are like rivers running into the same deep ocean.”
    “An ocean of souls?” I swallowed, but my mouth was bone-dry.
    “Erebus is, in fact, the abyss where all souls meet who have been consumed by one of the five soul eaters.”
    A streak of cold lightning shot through my veins. If this was true, then Danté would be in that abyss. So would countless other hate-filled souls seeking someone to