The man in back grinned and started to move his lighter toward her headrest.
“Knock it off,” the man driving barked again, and the car swerved slightly.
The guy next to me scowled and closed his lighter.
The car got off the highway at the next exit. It surprised me we hadn’t been stopped by cops already, with how fast we’d been traveling, but he slowed as we moved into a concrete jungle and abruptly drove right, down into an underground parking garage.
The two in front got out. The driver opened the door and grabbed me by the collar of my coat to ‘help’ me out of the car. I nearly stumbled, but he held me upright like a kitten being dragged by the scruff. I didn’t know who he was, he had to be an mid-level demon. I was not getting away from this guy on my own. The woman stalked along beside us to an elevator and pushed the button to call it. The third demon slunk along behind us, flicking his lighter and closing it, repeatedly. He was beginning to get on my nerves.
They clearly weren’t concerned about anyone seeing us. Did they just not care, or were we in a private building? I would bet on the latter. Inside the elevator, the woman punched the button for the top floor and then had to key in an entry code. The elevator rose smoothly and swiftly, stopping with a cushioned finish that promised not to spill any tray of drinks service staff might be carrying.
The doors of the elevator opened automatically upon our arrival at the penthouse. The windows were floor to ceiling and let in a fair amount of light. I was shoved forward onto a plush, light blue carpet that made me think I’d stepped onto a cloud. Cream colored sofas in suede ringed a sunken sitting area. Skirting that space, we moved to the left, where a large desk looked out over the city, and someone sat with his back to us. I could see short, white blond hair groomed back like little feathers. He turned, and his features were angelic - light blue eyes, red lips, and a thin, pointed nose. He smiled like a gracious host. “Ah, good, you’ve arrived. I trust you’ve had a pleasant journey, Allyson?” There was an authoritative air about him as he placed his fingers together, the pad of each finger meeting the corresponding pad of the finger on the other hand.
I threw a wary look at my back seat companion. “Uh, yeah, great.”
I looked back and saw the boss had followed my gaze.
He stood. “Timerious. I will deal with you later. Leave us.”
“But, boss,” he whined. A quelling look sent him slinking quickly out.
“Now, let us sit,” the blond man said, gesturing toward the sofas.
The big man turned me.
“Gregor, really, handcuffs?”
“She’s dangerous, boss.”
“You couldn’t handle one measly little healing angel without handcuffs? Take them off.”
Gregor produced a key and uncuffed me. I rubbed my wrists and took a step back.
“Now, leave us. I don’t think Allyson will go anywhere until she has at least heard my proposition, will you, dear?”
I was confused by his demeanor, but if it meant having a little more freedom and room to move, I’d agree to hear him out, while watching for other ways out of there. I nodded.
“Good.” He inclined his head to the male and female demon. “You are excused.”
I couldn’t hide a smirk at the way he addressed the two, as if he was a very pleasant and proper schoolmarm from olden days. He really was very… pretty. He had dressed in a thick, cowl-neck sweater in light blue under a woolen suit of cream.
He gestured to the sunken sitting area with one impeccably manicured hand. “Please, Allyson, have a seat.”
I stepped down into the area and took a seat in the center of the far couch. There didn’t seem to be a better or worse place to sit if I were considering escape, but I felt like keeping some distance between me and this demon. As pleasant as he acted, I had the feeling he housed immense power. The air positively hummed with it.
He sat on the couch, facing out at the windows with a sigh and crossed his legs. “Lovely, isn’t it?” He inclined his head toward the windows. “As close as one can get to the clouds without being in them. It reminds me of home.”
I really couldn’t recall much of the “home” he referred to.
He tilted his head. “I’ll come right to the point, Allyson. I could use someone of your talents on our team.”
I laughed, one short bark. “Banishing demons?” What use did a demon boss have for someone who could banish demons? Unless there was some kind of turf war going on?
He smiled condescendingly. “No, my dear. You are a healer. When you cast a demon out of a human’s body, you are healing the human of something that does not belong there. You have another talent I believe you have recently become aware of.”
I tilted my head, puzzled. How could he know about the conversation between Gabby and me?
He chuckled at my consternation. “You just never know who or what might be listening in, do you, dear? Or who might be sharing information?”
I had to agree. Was he suggesting the room had been bugged? Or that Gabby himself was a turncoat? I found that incredibly hard to believe, but who really knew?
“You are capable of forgiving a demon, giving them the right to venture into heaven again, are you not?”
I didn’t like the direction of the conversation, but it wasn’t really a question, so I didn’t bother to deny it. I nodded once.
“Imagine what a coup that would be for me, to offer your services to Lucifer himself?” He looked like a cat who had just lapped up a bowl of cream.
His goal was becoming clear. I could potentially allow his whole demonic force back into heaven. It didn’t make sense. I wouldn’t have been accorded that kind of power without some checks and balances, would I? I felt a little nauseous. Would heaven have based their defense on my simply being willing and able to refuse such an… offer? Surely not. “And if I refuse?”
He smiled ever so slightly. “Oh, I’m sure there are ways we could… coerce you into complying.”
His tone was utterly charming, as if he were talking about tickling me with flowers. I knew that wasn’t what he had in mind. Something in the set of his features suggested his smiles didn’t mean what smiles usually meant.
“I think you might need a little time to consider my request. It would be so much easier, less messy, and less trouble if you came to this decision of your own free will.”
I shook my head. “What makes you think this will work? Why wouldn’t…” I shot a look upward. “He just smite me if I even attempted such a thing?”
“Free will, dear, free will. He gives us our abilities and aptitudes, then it’s up to us what we do with them.” He stood in an abrupt but gracefully fluid motion. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have other things to do. I’ll leave you to Gregor and Jacelyn to consider your options.”
His two favorite henchmen returned at the mere mention of their names, as if they had been waiting just out of sync with reality so they could pop in upon request. Perhaps that’s what lackeys did, hovered out of sight to do their master’s bidding.
I stood and skirted around the table, away from him, so I could get out of the sunken sitting area. Though I’d been shown more contempt and antagonism by these two, I still found him far scarier. Perhaps, in part, because he didn’t appear worried in the least about what I could do, while those two had felt the need to have me handcuffed.
I clasped my hands together and hunched my shoulders meekly to show I would go with them without the benefit of restraints. If I were free, then I had a much better chance of making an escape if the opportunity presented itself. I hoped Matt would find me, but I wouldn’t count on it. It was best to be prepared to save myself.
“Take her below and introduce her to a few of your co-workers. Maybe when she gets to know some of them, she’ll see we’re not all bad.”
The woman took a breath as if she were going to sigh, but he turned toward her, and the exhalation never happened. “Yes, sir.”
We went down in the
elevator to a floor with another open plan. The demons appeared to occupy the whole building. This floor also had a sunken sitting area where the television played in front of us, and hard rock thumped from my left. A gang of rampaging teenagers would have decorated the same way, dropping their stuff everywhere. All eyes in the vicinity, and there were several pairs, turned toward us. The din of voices silenced, leaving the television talk show people yelling at each other.
To my right, light glinted off multicolored bottles of liquor behind a bar on the far wall. Several people clustered around a pool table between me and the bar, two women and two men in leather. One man was leaned over, lining up his shot. Now he stood up and stared, along with the others. Beyond them I could see an open window into a kitchen area.
In the sunken sitting area directly in front of me, several more people lounged. There was a man with his feet up and a petite blonde on his lap. Zyriel. Our eyes met, and he quickly looked away. I’d get no help there, apparently.
To the left, I found, instead of the desk as on the floor above, another television was hooked up to a gaming system, and some kind of game was being played by several males and a female.
I imagined they had trouble getting someone to come in and clean up after the ragtag group. The inhabitants were dressed in a variety of styles, from rapper to outlaw biker and just plain teen punk. If the two with me were dressed as grown-ups, the rest of them abdicated any sort of responsibility.
A blonde woman in the sitting area walked over and knelt on the couch in front of us. “An angel. Can we pluck her feathers?” Her wide blue eyes were disturbingly vacant, as if she’d been tortured into non-attachment.
“She’s not an angel right now, she was born human. Keep an eye on her. Boss wants her to sign on with us, so try not to scare her too much with your antics. She better be intact when we come back.” The duo backed up into the elevator and left.
I took in the faces around me with more than a little trepidation. They ranged from mildly curious to slightly antagonistic to downright hostile and even a couple faintly hungry looks. Zyriel didn’t look at me, as if afraid of us being linked. He needn’t have worried. I wouldn’t rat him out, no matter what he had offered in the past.
As I stood there uncertainly, a black cat with green eyes, looking a little worse for the wear, came out from in between the couches and walked over to me.
“Hello, kitty,” I said and leaned over to pet it.
The blond smirked. “Better watch out, that cat hates everyone.”
The cat sniffed my leg then began to rub against me.
“Well, I’ll be damned,” the blond exclaimed.
“You already are,” someone snorted.
As I scratched the cat’s head, another woman walked around the corner to my right. She was dressed in bike shorts and a sports bra and covered in sweat, like she’d just been running laps on a treadmill.
They must have a gym here. It made sense, they had everything else. The woman narrowed her eyes and suddenly flew at me. Her shoulder hooked in under my abdomen and she tackled me to the floor, knocking the breath out of me. I hit the floor hard on my left side, taking the jarring impact on my left upper arm and hip. She fell on top of me, further restricting my ability to breathe. Then she hooked her hand over my shoulder and yanked me onto my back as she scrambled to pin me
“Lula was my friend, you bitch.” Her face contorted, and she hauled back with her right hand.
I struggled, but could not break loose. The fist never made impact, though. Instead, the weight of the woman suddenly lifted off me.
I looked up to see Zyriel scowling.
“Asphodel wants her in one piece. He has a plan, she’s the only one who can make it happen.”
The other woman seethed and yanked away from Zyriel, but didn’t have another go. She just pointed her finger at me. “You’d better stay out of my way, bitch.”
I scrambled to my feet, then rubbed the back of my head where it had made contact with the floor.
Zyriel frowned down at me. “Let’s find you someplace to stay out of the way. How about something to eat?”
If it had been anyone else, I would have refused food, but while Zyriel wouldn’t acknowledge me, I didn’t think he would harm me either, so I let him lead me into the kitchen.
In utter contrast to the room we’d just left, the kitchen gleamed with spotless stainless steel, like an industrial kitchen for feeding a crowd - easy to clean and work in, with everything to hand. A woman stirred a pot on the stove. Her head shot up then she relaxed. “Hey, Z.”
“Trish, this is Merry. She’s going to be staying with us for a little while.”
“Ally,” I murmured.
Zyriel stiffened beside me. “That’s what I said, Ally.”
Trish looked up, her black eyes suddenly interested as she blew a bit of dark brown hair out of her eyes. “She’s the angel born as a human?”
“Yeah, one of them,” Zyriel replied.
A bell dinged. Trish grabbed an oven mitt and opened the range to retrieve a pan of rolls that smelled of garlic and butter. She set them on the counter, then slanted a look in my direction. “You hungry?”
I snorted. “When it comes to food that smells as good as that does, always.” I had trouble thinking I should expect any danger from this petite woman.
“Trish here is the daughter of a lesser demon and a human. She’s kind of here by default, not so much of her own choosing,” he said quietly. “She made some bad choices, but she’s not a bad woman.”
Her eyes flicked up, then back to her task as she opened drawers and cabinets, pulling out dishes.
“I’ll leave you with Trish,” Zyriel said and walked out.
Probably doesn’t want to appear chummy with the enemy. I sat down on one of the stools as Trish set a steaming bowl of pasta fagiole in front of me and the butter dish, along with a plate holding a couple rolls. “So, you became the de facto chef here?” I asked.
She gave me a lopsided smile. “Keeps me out of trouble, if you know what I mean. Most of ‘em won’t bite the hand that feeds them. At least, not when they’re in their right minds.” She rubbed a red welt on her left forearm that looked like a healing burn. An accident in the kitchen, or something else? Maybe my friend from the car with the lighter.
I reached out impulsively. She flinched, and I stopped. “May I?”
Her eyes widened. She shifted back a step then steadied, stood up straighter, and nodded. I laid a hand on her arm, my hand tingling slightly as energy warmed the area, drawing the burn up and out, clearing the skin.
She watched me in surprise. “Wow. Thanks.”
I picked up the spoon. “Thank you.”
A thump heralded the entrance of the cat via the counter into the bar area. He hopped down and padded around the counter to sit at the base of my chair and proceeded to bathe his face.
“He looks a little worse for wear too,” I commented.
“Yeah, Biggles likes to have a go at him, but he’s gotten pretty good at hiding, and most of ‘em will stop him if they get a chance. I’m just afraid one of us won’t be around one of these days, and he’ll take a hurt he can’t recover from.” She looked sad.
“Why not set him free in the city?” I asked, regarding the big tomcat.
Trish looked as if the thought had not occurred to her before. She was so used to her own confinement here. Her brow wrinkled. “Where would he go? Would it be any better?” She tilted her head and pursed her lips as she considered the questions.
I studied her face. She didn’t appear that old, but looks could be deceiving with demons. She seemed guileless and weary. “What about you? What keeps you here?”
She gazed at me, and her eyebrows drew together. “I guess… where would I go?”
“Anywhere.”
She smiled wistfully, her sad eyes telling me that it sounded like a pipe dream. “Anywhere?”
“Why not?”
She looked around as if she couldn’
t imagine anything beyond her four walls. “I belong here.”
Like a child asking the repetitive question, I said in an unchallenging tone, “Why?”
“I’m one of them.” She didn’t quite sound as if she believed it.
I pressed my suit. “What have you done to deserve it?”
She ducked her head. “It’s like being in a gang. You just… do what you’re told, to get along.”
I had a feeling she had never done anything to warrant her existence. She was just the kitchen mouse, believing guilt by association kept her confined.
I scanned the large, empty kitchen. There was no one there but us, no one paying us any mind. A service elevator in a corner caught my eye. I couldn’t believe my luck. I trilled to the cat. He looked up and squeezed his eyes in agreement.
“What do you say we take a little walk?” I said, standing and picking the cat up. He began to purr and rubbed his head against my chin.
My gaze returned to the service elevator. “Does that thing work?”
Her eyes were wide. “Yeah.” She glanced back toward the doorway to the bar area.
“Trish,” a voice yelled from the living area. “Is lunch ready yet?”
“Almost,” she called. She wrung her hands, glancing at the elevator, then back at the door to the room. Her face cleared. She untied the short apron, flung it on the counter, and skirted the island. “Let’s go.”
We were in the service elevator and headed down in half a dozen heartbeats. It seemed to take four times as long as the ascent in the regular elevator, but that may have been my excitement at finding a way out.
Of course, when the doors opened, we weren’t alone in the garage. Our blond, angelic demon stood in front of me. Asphodel, Zyriel had called him. His two favorite henchmen flanked him. I let the cat drop to the floor.
“Did you really think we wouldn’t know you were leaving the floor?” he asked silkily. He glared at Trish. “I’m most disappointed in you. I’ll deal with you myself, later.”
Trembling slightly, I inhaled and blew out a breath. I wasn’t about to give up that easily. Daylight blazed beyond them through the entrance to the parking area. I could never agree to what he wanted so it was likely I would die here if I didn’t find a way out.
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