by Jayce Carter
Down one floor and across the courtyard, the guard stopped in front of a door with had another guard.
“You have one hour,” he said. “Then Lucifer wishes to see you.”
I nodded, then slid into the room, closing the door behind me.
Inside was a huge room set up with seating and tables full of food. Doors sat the sides, likely the quarters rooms off the main area.
A woman walked from one of the rooms, her eyes drunk with lust and her hair messy. On her heels was Kase, a spot of blood on his lip, his hand on her lower back.
I froze, the sight painful in a way I hadn’t expected.
Kase lifted his gaze to mine, an uncomfortable moment of silence as if he wasn’t sure what to say.
Instead of saying anything to me, he escorted the woman to the door, then knocked.
“But I don’t want to go,” she said in a slur, turning and pressing her lips to Kase’s.
He set her aside, firm hands on her arms, then peered at the guards. “Please return her. I am quite satisfied.”
Satisfied.
How satisfied would he feel if I kneed him right in the groin? Then again, if he’d already finished, I suppose he didn’t really need to use that equipment anyway.
When the door shut again, leaving us there, he didn’t speak right away. Leave it to Kase to play the long game.
“I told Lucifer to pick ugly donors. I should have also specified men for you.”
He let out a slow sigh. “I didn’t sleep with her.”
“Of course you did. She looked like the poster child for just rolled out of bed.”
“She wanted to, yes, but as you saw, I sent her away after feeding.”
When he tried to reach for me, I pulled back and stormed past him. “You made it pretty damn clear that resisting wasn’t possible when you fed on Troy. Or was that just a game to see what you could get me to do?”
“Werewolves are different. The blood is more potent.” Even as he spoke, there was a quiver to his voice that reminded me of when he’d fed from Troy.
I gave myself that moment to recall, to remember how his lips had looked at Troy’s throat, how I’d wrapped my lips around Troy’s cock, how lost to it all we’d been.
Then I spotted the blood on his lip and my passioned chilled.
“You can’t be angry that I had to feed, Ava. If I don’t feed, I die. While I would happily feed from only you, that isn’t possible, so we are in this situation.”
I narrowed my eyes, wanting to argue it more because I really didn’t like the thought of that other woman pressed up against him, of the way she’d kissed him, of how his lips would have looked at her throat.
I hated it, and it being unfair to be angry didn’t really matter.
Still, I took a deep breath and tried to let it go. Reality sucked some of the time, and this seemed just another example.
Besides, the memory of the blood that had leaked from his ears as well told me that he had probably needed to feed.
“What happened?” he asked. When I furrowed my eyebrows, he continued. “The banshee quieted for no reason. I doubt Lucifer leaves much to chance, so I assume that was due to you? What did you promise?”
I grabbed a bottle of water from the shelf and took a drink before sitting to explain. I told him about my deal to submit to Lucifer.
He didn’t speak, and yet the tension inside him made me want to scoot farther down on the couch.
He waited for me to give every detail, to tell him everything that had happened before he answered. Finally, he set his arm on the back of the couch and frowned. “You should not have agreed.”
“You could have died.”
“Trust me, I know. I have never encountered a banshee before. It feels as though your brain is dissolving. I could not move my body, couldn’t think or see. Even still, you should not have agreed. Who knows what Lucifer wants from you?”
His words were strange in that they were honest. He would have rather I left them to die just to avoid becoming entangled with Lucifer?
What an idiot.
I shifted to my knees and shoved his shoulder. “If you really think I was going to just sit there and let you die, then you really are a fucking moron.”
He tilted his head, that blank expression he wore when he thought I were being entirely irrational. “You have no idea what Lucifer will ask of you, and you’re now obligated to comply. Do you not recognize how dangerous that is?”
“I recognize that if you all died, I’d have been—” Alone.
The word made me freeze as I realized how true it was and how stupid it would have been to answer.
Not speaking it aloud didn’t change the truth, though. If they’d died, I’d have been alone. Not just to figure out the spirits, the shadow, how to escape hell. No, I’d have been on my own after finally finding something that made me feel as if I belonged.
The thought was worse than death, worse than anything Lucifer could do to me.
Kase stared at me, his eyes still as he seemed to read my face.
I shoved him again, as if that would explain the things I couldn’t say.
He caught my wrist and tugged me forward, into his lap. “You are a foolish woman, Ava, and you take too many risks.”
“And you’re an idiot who doesn’t understand women at all.”
“Perhaps.” He pulled me closer, but I leaned back and gestured to a spot of red still on him. There was no way I’d kiss him, not with another woman’s blood painting his lips.
He wiped it clear. “I wish I didn’t have to feed from others,” he admitted.
Instead of answering—I couldn’t say anything that would make either of us feel better about it—I leaned in and brushed my lips to his.
His breath was warm when he exhaled, that tiny release he always did, as if he couldn’t quite believe I was there.
Still, he kissed me back, and I kept my hands from grabbing at him, no matter how difficult I found that level of restraint.
He broke the kiss too fast, though. “There isn’t time.”
“I can be quick.”
He chuckled lowly, a rare sound I cherished, before shaking his head. Even still, he didn’t move me off his lap.
I peered around. “Where is everyone?”
“Hunter is trying to find information about the creature for tomorrow. We knew about the banshee in round two because that what’s what Persephone let slip, which was why Grant could prepare for it and have the spell ready. With any luck, he gets information again.”
“And Grant?”
“Sleeping. Without knowing what we’re facing tomorrow, he needed to try to recuperate as much of his magic as possible.”
I smothered my disappointment. The last thing I wanted was to risk them not being at their best because I was being overly needy and didn’t let him recover. Still, it was hard, because what I really wanted was to reassure myself that he was fine. I recalled the blood that had leaked from his ears, the way he’d been thrown to the ground.
Grant was tough—I couldn’t deny that—but he wasn’t quite like the others. He could be killed far more easily.
“And Troy?”
“Meeting with Fredrick. I was able to get rid of Colter, but apparently the pack alpha is harder to throw.”
“Why would he want to see Troy?”
Kase shrugged. “In my experience, people in positions of power do not like it when others can challenge them.”
I thought back to Troy’s story, to what the last alpha had done. “Is he in danger?”
“Not while here, I’m sure. A non-competitor killing a competitor would look poorly on Lucifer, so I doubt Fredrick would try anything so blatant. I suspect he is feeling Troy out, seeing if the new fame is going to his head. It is a foolish worry, because I have never seen a more grounded wolf in all my years.”
“Is that why Colter came?”
“Hardly. Colter and I have an understanding. He is aware that if I wanted to, I could take the cov
en. I don’t care for that sort of power or responsibility, so Colter runs it and I do as I please. It works well.”
My gaze shifted to a closed door again, as if drawn there.
“You can feel him, can’t you?”
“What?”
Kase nodded toward the door. “That’s Grant’s room. You keep looking there, as if you know it’s his.”
Did I? I have to, right?
I blew out a breath and shook my head. “I should get going. Lucifer is expecting me.
“I heard the guard. You have another forty minutes before you’re expected there. Why don’t you go check on Grant?”
“I thought he was resting.”
“He is, but I would bet he’ll sleep more soundly after seeing you, and you will be more focused in dealing with Lucifer after seeing him.”
I didn’t even bother to argue. It was what I wanted, and I wouldn’t bother him for long…
The room was dark when I closed the door behind me, but after a moment, my eyes adjusted. A huge bed sat in the center of the room, large posts stretching up and over the frame. The blankets were bunched at the foot, as if Grant had kicked them off, and he rested on his back in the center.
He didn’t wake when I closed the distance, something that made me nervous. Worse, when I reached the side of the bed, I noted that he looked much worse than I’d expected…
His eyes were sunken in, and even in the dim room I could tell his skin was ashen. Red had soaked into the pillowcase, and dried blood created a trail from his ear and down his neck.
It was odd to see him so still, so quiet, and so fragile. I recalled how I had met him, how he’d stood on my porch looking like some untouchable rebel.
His tattoos had surprised me that day, since I hadn’t spent much time with men who were covered in tattoos. As time had gone on, though, I’d stopped even noticing them.
When he’d stripped down to nothing, when I’d had him at the same time as Hunter, I hadn’t been hung up on each twisting pieces of colorful ink. There had been too many distractions.
It meant this was the first time I got a good look at him, at the expansive artwork marked into his skin.
I crawled into the bed, rewarded with a muttered curse from Grant. His voice was rough and filled with pain, but when he cracked his eyes, when those green eyes met mine, he offered a half-smile.
I stretched out beside him, careful not to jostle him.
“Are you here to take advantage of me? Because unless you have some little blue pills, I don’t think I’m going to rise to the occasion.”
“Is everything a joke to you?”
“Usually, yeah. It makes life more fun.” He groaned as he rolled toward me, on his side. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I am.”
“Wish I could say the same for us.”
“If you knew what was coming, how did it hurt you this much?”
“Because when Persephone told Hunter about the banshee, I expected a regular ol’ one. Most don’t get much over thirty years, if that. All that screaming drives them mad. What I did would offer full protection from any run-of-the-mill banshee, but leave it to me to underestimate Lucifer. The one he found was one hell of a surprise. I don’t think I’ll get rid of this headache for at least a week.”
I went to reach for him but froze before I made contact. I didn’t want to risk hurting him.
He let out a rough chuckle, then caught my wrist and tugged my hand until it rested against his chest. “I’m not that fragile.”
“You don’t look good.” My hand on his chest, feeling the thump of his heart against my palm, helped. “I thought…”
Grant pressed my hand tighter to his chest as if to prove a point. “I’m fine, really.”
I sighed, focusing on the steady beat of his heart. “I hate how much waiting there is. I always figured things like this would be all go, go, go. Instead, I’m putting on dresses, going to stupid parties, and I just keep getting my ass handed to me by Lucifer. You end up getting hurt, and for what? We’ve been in hell for days and I don’t think we’re any closer to figuring this out than we were before.”
Grant stroked his thumb over my wrist. “Oh, I see, we’re having a pity party?” He sighed, then released me. A wave of his hand and a whispered spell occurred a moment before something fell onto the bed between us. I pushed backward to see what it was.
Between us sat a bag of chocolates, and I frowned. “Did you just magic us some chocolate? I thought you needed rest to recuperate your magic.”
He smirked, the grin fuller as if annoying me perked him up. “Chocolate is needed for pity parties. I’d give you wine, too, but you are a mean and handsy drunk. Though, if I heard right through the door, if you’re doing to see Lucifer, maybe mean and handsy is the way to play it.”
I picked up the small bag of candy and chuckled at how simple it was. Leave it to Grant to be the one to try and make hell normal.
“Now, lie down and hush,” he said. “I’m supposed to be resting.”
I did as he said, twisting so my back was toward him, then let him scoot as close as he wanted to. As it turned out, that was right up against me, because he groaned as he slung his arm around me.
“We are getting closer,” he said. “It may not seem like it, it might not feel like it, but we’re getting closer. That’s how this sort of things works. The worse it gets, the closer you are to the center.”
“Sure. You’re half-dead, we’re still stuck in hell, no idea who that shadow is and now I’m stuck having to submit to Lucifer.”
“You’re forgetting something. “
“Oh yeah? What am I forgetting?”
He tapped my hand that had the bag in it. “You’ve got chocolate.”
I looked down at my hand and the candy in it, then laughed softly and settled in. “Well, I guess we can’t lose, then.”
“I’ll put my money on you and chocolate any day.”
I rested against him, choosing to take the short amount of time until I had to deal with Lucifer to relax.
We lay there for thirty minutes until I knew my time was running short. I offered Grant a quick kiss, and was disappointed to find the main room empty, Kase having taken off.
When I returned to my room, before heading to see Lucifer, something sat folded and wrapped in tissue on my bed. I picked up a note at the top, unfolding it to find perfectly written letters and Kase’s name at the bottom.
I recall the first time seeing you in this. You faced down Colter in it, and I think you need to remember that. Maybe you didn’t need something new—you needed something old. Gran was willing to retrieve this for me, and I am sure the price will be high. Make it worth it.
Kase
I frowned as I tore open the tissue, then found the item inside.
A smile crossed my lips…
It was times like this when I had to admit, no matter how scary and closed off he was, he had his charm…
Chapter Twenty
Lucifer’s room was empty when I entered, but the guard left me in it anyway.
I supposed that made sense. What was I going to do to Lucifer? Even unattended in his room?
After a few minutes, Lucifer appeared, walking into the room. He was as put-together as ever, a glass with dark amber liquid in it, a white collared shirt on with a vest that matched his slacks. The cuffs of his shirt were undone, and he’d rolled them up to his forearms as if the day had been too much.
When his gaze landed on me, he stilled for one long moment. “You are an enigma, Ms. Harlin.” He didn’t say it with any affection, as if it charmed him at all.
Still, I pulled the edges of my robe as if it were the finest of suits.
Lucifer came closer, eyebrow lifted as he peered down. “Do you have penises on your clothing?”
“Yep.”
“And you think this offers you some sort of protection?”
“In my experience, penises tend to make all problems worse.”
“So why wea
r them?”
“Because they’re as absurd as the rest of my life.”
He looked me up and down again, before shaking his head, as if he’d realized that no answer I could give would make any sense.
“You know you cheated.”
“If anyone doesn’t cheat, they don’t care enough about the game.”
“And you don’t care at all that you didn’t win fair and square?”
“What story have you heard about me that makes you think I care about being fair?”
I opened my mouth, but nothing came to mind. I hated when someone made a good point.
“So what now?” I tucked my hands into the pockets of my robe. “I’d like to get through whatever it is you’ve got planned as quickly as possible.”
“Are you not worried about what it is I want from you?”
“I just figure whatever it is, worrying about it won’t help. I made my bed, now I have to lie in it. I just hope to fuck you aren’t in it also.” The joke came out thin, the first time I admitted to just how worried I was about that particular concern.
I really didn’t want to have to have sex with him. He hadn’t implied he wanted that at all—in fact, he’d treated me like a child he had to put up with more than anything else—but I still didn’t trust him. All the horror movies I’d seen where women stupidly sleep with the devil and ended up birthing some demon spawn came back to me. I wasn’t ready to raise the antichrist…
Lucifer caught my chin in a grip that was nothing like when Kase did it to me. It was rough and none-too-kind. He forced my eyes to his red ones. “Let me be clear. I have no interest in you physically. I will not now, nor in the future, compel you to have sex with me.” Even the way he said it made it clear the idea was not in the least appealing, especially when he tacked on “ever” to the end of his statement.
Which should have pleased me—and it did, somewhat. Still, being so soundly rejected made me wonder exactly what his type was.
Not mouthy humans in penis robes, clearly.
Stop worrying about the devil finding you attractive, damn it.