by Jane Hinchey
“Come on, Lucy,” he cajoled, resting his hands on my shoulders and peering into my eyes. “Spit it out. What is the key?”
“The mark looks very similar to the key. It may be identical. It’s the key to the gates of Hell.”
“Ah. No wonder you freaked out.”
“Why aren’t you?”
“Freaked out?” he asked. “Let me see, I was dragged into the Xoelax dimension and spent weeks trying to survive being eaten by the Zuska. Then you rescued me and took me with you to Heaven, then came back to Earth and fought some revenants, and now here we are in Hell. A little mark on my shoulder is nothing to worry about.”
“You think?” I sank down onto the sofa in the corner of my office. Across the room, the multi-screen display showed hundreds of images, flickering constantly, giving us a live feed from Earth. I stared at it with blind eyes while my mind tried to accept the fact that Levi had a piece of the key marked on his skin.
“Tell me about the key. You were muttering something about three pieces?” he prompted.
“Unlike Heaven, Hell is kept locked. Not to keep souls out, but to keep them in. People figured out pretty quickly that Hell isn’t a great place to be and kept trying to break out, so I built the gates.”
“And made a key.”
“And made a key, yes. But it was too risky to keep it here. If someone were to steal the key, they could open the gates and the evil souls would flood out. So I hid it on Earth, in the safekeeping of a believer.”
“A believer? Like a religious person? A priest?”
I nodded. “Yes. But then word got out that there was a key on Earth, and it was getting harder and harder to keep it hidden, so the priest broke it into three pieces. He gave the other two pieces to different priests for safekeeping.”
“Must have been difficult to break a key.”
“It’s isn’t a normal key. It’s more like a talisman. Anyway, over the years, the three pieces have been passed down for safekeeping, but when two of the keepers died, the pieces of key were buried with them.”
“Well, okay, so the pieces are still safe, then.”
“Until archeologists dug them up.”
Levi’s jaw dropped. “Shit! What happened to them?”
“They ended up in a museum.”
“Together? In the same museum?”
“Not initially. Which was fine, as long as they were separated and no one figured out the connection.”
“But someone did?”
“Eventually. What with technology and the internet, yes, the museums realized they each had a piece of a whole.”
“But a piece was still missing?”
“Yes, but it was really more of a shard. And even though the pieces were handed along from priest to priest, there was now a demon on the trail. The demon had conveniently located the two pieces in the one location. All he had to do was find the third piece, and he’d have the key to the gates of Hell.”
“What happened?”
“He failed. The three pieces changed vessels and are separate once more.”
“Changed vessels? What does that mean?”
“They were passed on to new keepers. The first time the key was a talisman. This time it’s something different. It doesn’t matter. What matters is that the design on your shoulder is the same as the design of the key. Or at least very, very, similar.”
“So now you think I’m part of the key?” he asked.
“Guys,” Ashliel interrupted. I hadn’t noticed she’d left the room, but now she came bursting through my office door, a book open in her hands. “I knew I’d seen it somewhere.”
“What’s that?” I nodded at the book. It looked to be as old as, if not older than, me. I didn’t care to talk about my age, but this thing was ancient.
“Yeah, it was in the archives. I knew I’d read something about finding your true mate and markings and all that. Here it is.” She held the book out to me, and I saw a hand-drawn symbol that resembled the mark on Levi’s back.
“It’s not the key?” I could see the subtle differences between the two symbols and quickly scanned the text on the page to be sure.
“It’s not the key,” Ashliel confirmed. “It’s the mate’s mark. It happens when a supernatural entity, such as yourself—” She indicated me. “—finds their true mate. A mate that destiny, or fate, if you like, has decided is the perfect match for you. So, when you bit Levi, you not only branded him with the mate’s mark, but you bound him to you.”
“I’m bound?” Levi’s voice rose several octaves, and I felt awful for him. Imagine being bound to someone without your knowledge or consent. This was awful. I felt awful.
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize.” What had I done?
“There’s more,” Ashliel interrupted.
I sighed. This couldn’t possibly get any worse. “Let’s have it.”
“The mark will also change him, at a cellular level, to make him compatible with you. As a species.” She closed the book and lifted one shoulder. “I don’t think it’s that bad, Lucy. Levi doesn’t appear to be upset about it. In fact, the energy I’m getting from him is that he’s liking his new status.”
“But I bound him to me. Without his consent! That’s a sin.”
“You need to take that up with Fate. She set all of this up. Plus, it wouldn’t have worked if he wasn’t willing.”
“Fate? Fate is a person?” Levi asked.
“Sure. She’s one of the gods, has her own galaxy, runs it with her sister Destiny.”
“Mind. Blown.” Turning his attention back to me, Levi cupped my face in his hands. “Ashliel is right. This isn’t all that bad. I don’t mind being a fire demon. I like how I feel. And being bound to you? Well…I don’t think I mind that, either.” He slid a hand around the nape of my neck and angled my head back, his hips pressing into mine. “I don’t mind it at all.”
“Oh,” was my well-thought-out answer. With his lips a whisper from mine, my brain had simply stopped functioning. And with the unmistakable hardness of his erection, he successfully took my mind off worrying that I’d marked him to wondering how quickly I could get his pants off.
Ashliel coughed, and we both turned our heads, cheek to cheek, to look at her.
“If it makes you feel better, he can also mark you. Now that he’s a demon, it’s possible. Just return the favor, Levi, and you’re good to go. And speaking of going, I’m outta here before I have to bleach my eyeballs.”
“Now there’s an idea.” The deep rumble of his voice vibrated through me, setting my nerve endings on fire.
“What’s that?” I couldn’t focus, couldn’t think. I could only feel. And the sensation of him pressed against me was all I needed. He was all I needed.
“I want to.” His lips trailed across my cheek, from my ear to the corner of my lips.
“What?” I had no idea what he was talking about.
“Mark you. Make you mine. If there’s one thing that makes us equal, it’s love. Passion. Desire. You made me yours, instinctively, without even knowing you were doing it. I intend to make you mine.” I didn’t reply, for his mouth was suddenly on mine, hot and hard. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I pressed closer, the heat from him curling around us, joining with mine until I was sure we were going to go up in an inferno. I was all for it. What a way to go.
How he got my clothes off without me noticing, I’ll never know. One minute I’d been pressed against him, desperate for more, and the next I was totally naked. So was he. He lifted me high enough that he could capture a nipple and suck it into his mouth, rolling his tongue over the sensitive tip. My legs wrapped around him, squeezing as sensations buffeted through me, scalding my veins.
He started to back us toward a wall, but I stopped him.
“No. The sofa.” I pointed, and he changed direction, tossing me down. I bounced once, and he landed on top of me.
“Nice. I like this,” He growled, moving to his knees.
“Don’t get too c
omfy,” I grinned. “This is my ride, remember?”
“I thought it was my turn to mark you?” He arched an eyebrow, and I melted a little at the expression on his face.
“Oh, it is. You’re going to love it, don’t you worry.” I rolled us without warning, so that he was flat on his back on the sofa and I was straddling him. Immediately, his hands reached up and cupped my breasts.
“I do think you could be right, devil woman.” He grinned wolfishly, and a thrill of delight shot through me.
I lifted myself, allowing just the tip of his stiff, thick erection to nestle between my folds, playing, teasing. It was the hardest thing I’d ever done. My body shook with the need to impale myself on him, to take him inside me and ride him like there was no tomorrow. But I held back, took it slow, and was rewarded by the death grip on my hips as he tried to pull me down.
“Take me,” he growled low in his throat. “Take all of me.”
I slid down onto him, all the way to the hilt, and froze, closing my eyes as he filled me to completion. Then I started rocking.
“Jesus fucking Christ,” he whispered, his hands clenching and unclenching on my hips.
I alternated between raising and lowering myself onto him, and rocking, driving us both crazy, my slick muscles squeezing him tight. With a curse, he sat up, forcing me to change positions, and slid out of me. Not wanting to be separated from him, I wrapped my legs around his waist. Chest to chest, we embraced, mouths devouring each other as he grabbed an ass cheek in each palm and lifted me.
Then he surged into me, his mouth on my neck, and I felt it, the puncture of his teeth in my flesh as he thrust inside me. Screaming, I almost came then and there. I didn’t think anything could ever top this feeling, of his mark weaving its magic through me, and of the heat of him inside me, filling me.
Then he began to move. With just a slight thrust of his hips and another nibble against my throat, I shattered, my orgasm spinning me out of control, another scream tearing from my throat. He grunted, moving faster, harder. His tongue laved the wound on my neck before his mouth found its way back to mine, and I tasted my own blood on his lips.
I was inside him—a part of him—just as he was inside me.
12
“Finished?”
I squealed when Dacian’s voice suddenly came from behind the sofa.
“Get out!” I ordered, sitting up and waving a hand toward my office door.
“No. We’ve got important business to discuss.” He shrugged, apparently unconcerned that he’d just walked in on us having sex. “And yes, Ash told me you two were getting it on in here. I waited until you were done.”
“We’re not done,” I protested.
“You both orgasmed. We all heard. So, you’re done. For now.”
My cheeks heated when I realized that of course we had been heard. I hadn’t exactly been quiet.
“Come on, babe, I’m pretty sure Dacian wouldn’t have interrupted if it wasn’t important. Right?” Levi stood, unashamedly naked, and eyeballed Dacian.
Dacian held his gaze, nodding. “Correct.”
“Well, just get out while I get dressed,” I grumbled. Dacian opened his mouth, but I cut him off. “Don’t even say it! Out!” Without looking at Levi, I tossed him his pants. “Get dressed.”
Now that I had business to discuss with Dacian, Levi’s nakedness was a distraction. Quickly pulling on my own clothes, I wondered what had brought Dacian to Hell. To interrupt us the way he had, it had to be important. Was Heaven in worse shape than any of us realized? Was it crumbling altogether? Worry replaced the euphoria of moments before. I looked at Levi, a sadness in my heart. Everything was wonderful, and not, at the same time. He was taking all of this remarkably well—discovering he’d changed into a fire demon, that he was marked and bound to me. How could he be so calm?
“Everything will be okay.” He squeezed my hand in a comforting gesture.
“Of course it will.” I faked a smile. A heavy sense of foreboding crept over me, and I had to physically shake my shoulders to shrug it off.
“Come on in, Dacian,” I called, eager to get this over with. Whatever the problem was, we’d deal with it.
“From what Ash just told me, you already know the displaced souls are starting to return to Earth as revenants,” Dacian said, striding into the room.
Levi and I were standing by the sofa. I bit back a laugh when I saw Dacian eye it, then veer toward my desk instead.
“Yes, we’re aware.” Following him, I took my seat behind the desk. Levi sank down into one of the chairs opposite. Dacian claimed the chair next to him, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees.
“Well, there are a whole lot more. Thousands. We can’t lose their souls, Lucy. It feels like murder, sitting back and doing nothing.”
I nodded. “We need to force Michael and Gabriel to open the Pearly Gates.” Easier said than done. My brothers were stubborn fools, and didn’t seem to give a damn about the souls under their care.
“That’s not a viable option anymore,” Dacian muttered.
“Oh?”
“Heaven is too unstable. It’s not safe.” Dacian was looking at the floor, but I could feel the worry emanating from him.
“Fuck.” Flopping back in my chair, I stared at the ceiling, as if the answers to our problems could be found there. “We need to find Dad. He can fix Heaven and open the gates.”
“Yes, but we have absolutely no fucking idea where he is.” Dacian’s voice was sharp, and I snapped my eyes to him. “Sorry. I know Heaven isn’t your jurisdiction. But…”
“It’s okay, Dacian. You’re right, we need to save the souls. Dad is important, but he’s going to have to wait a little bit longer while we deal with this situation first. And I have a plan.” It bothered me that searching for Dad kept getting pushed further and further back.
“You do?” Levi and Dacian said in unison.
I nodded. “We’ll bring them to Hell. Temporarily.”
“But they haven’t sinned,” Dacian protested.
“They won’t be treated as sinners,” I assured him. “I’ll create a new zone for them. They’ll be comfortable here until we can sort out the mess in Heaven.”
“You’d do that?”
“Yes. Of course. If it’s not safe for them in Heaven, then Hell it will have to be. But while I organize their accommodations, I need you to do something for me.”
“Name it.” Dacian scooted forward on his chair, making me smile. He was so keen, so eager to help. It was a good quality to have. My father chose well with him.
“I need you to deal with the remaining revenants on Earth. As we speak, I’m sure more are falling.”
“Yes. Dozens every minute.” He shook his head before running his fingers through his hair, leaving the strands in tousled disarray. “I’ll go now. Is there anything else?”
“Nope. Let me get some things in place here, and then we’ll move the souls in. How many do you think?”
“Twenty to thirty thousand, maybe more.”
“Okay.” I hid my dismay. That was a lot of souls, and moving them here would require space I didn’t have readily available. But for every problem, there was always a solution. Waving him off, I called for Ashliel.
“You rang?” Her heels clicked across the floor before coming to a stop beside my desk.
“We’re going to do a dimension expansion,” I told her.
“We are?” The excitement in her voice was unmistakable. “Cool! I’ve been waiting for this day!”
“I’ll bet. Can you get everything in place? Alert the guards, put everyone on lockdown?”
“I’m on it. I’ll open the chamber, too.”
“Thank you.” I watched her leave, my mind on the task ahead.
“So, what’s a dimension expansion?” Levi interrupted my train of thought.
“I’m going to make Hell bigger. We need more space if we’re going to house thirty thousand souls. I’m going to create a new zone, just for the
m, to keep them away from the sinners.”
“You can do that?” His eyes were round in his face.
“Yup. This is the first time I’ve had to do it, though. That’s why Ashliel is excited. She knew we would reach capacity soon, and a massive influx like this has just sped it up.”
“And the chamber? What’s that?”
“It’s like a panic room for magic. It’ll take a lot of power to do this, and I can’t have any of it leaking out. I need to keep Hell safe while I do this.”
“So you use a dimension expansion…spell?”
“Correct.”
“Can anyone do it?”
“No. Only a select few.”
“Your brothers?”
“They’re Arch Angels as well, so yes, they can. But not in my dimension. They have no power here.” I stood, pushing my chair back, and held out my hand to Levi. “I need to prepare. This is big. It’s going to take a lot of energy.”
He frowned, linking his fingers with mine. “It’s safe, isn’t it? You’re not going to get hurt?”
“A little drained, maybe. Tired. But I’ll be okay.”
Hand in hand, we crossed to the elevator and rode up to the penthouse. The doors slid open and I had to tug Levi across the threshold, for he stood in the doorway with his mouth hanging open.
“This. Is. Amazing,” he breathed, finally stepping forward. He dropped my hand and crossed to the wall of windows overlooking Hell. I watched him as he wandered the expanse of my home, taking in its sleek, modern surfaces, the external glass walls, and black marble floors.
“I need to shower.”
That caught his attention. He turned, a leer on his face. “Need me to help?”
Laughing, I shook my head. “No, but thanks for the offer. I need to conserve my energy, and showering with you results in the exact opposite.” I waved my hand around my open plan living room, kitchen, and dining area. “Make yourself at home. I won’t be long.”