by Lynn Hagen
Calvin had done it. He’d succeeded in getting his hands on Emilio. Unfortunately, he’d also taken Steven.
“Okay, we’re gonna remain calm and find a way out of here.” Emilio looked around and frowned when he noticed a cell door. They were in some kind of prison.
“I’m calm.” Steven brushed himself off. “I know Derek will find me and beat the snot out of the demon. His Bengal tiger is going to tear that creep apart.”
And Kenny was probably going to blame all this on Emilio. Just great. Even though this wasn’t Emilio’s fault, he’d just given the guy another reason to hate him.
Steven wandered to the door and curled his fingers around the bars. “Hello? Is anyone out there?”
Emilio snatched him back. “Stop yelling,” he whispered. “I don’t know where Calvin went, but I sure as hell don’t want him coming to us.”
“Who’s Calvin?”
Emilio waved at the door. “The demon who took us.” He didn’t want to frighten Steven, but the guy needed to know how much trouble they were in. “He’s a soul-sucker, Steven. He’ll suck your soul right out of your body.”
Steven furrowed his dark brows. “And that’s a bad thing, right?”
“Very bad.” Emilio wasn’t sure what would happen after that. He’d never heard of anyone getting their soul sucked out, but he couldn’t imagine the results would be pleasant.
Steven went back over to the door and rattled it. “It’s locked.”
Of course it was. What did Steven think, that Calvin had left it open for them to escape?
He looked around the barren room but saw nothing that would help them. Aside from inches of dust, there was a frame to a bed, an empty bookcase, and a bare bulb dangling from the ceiling. There was a tiny window, but it was close to the ceiling. Even if they managed to get up there, and as small as they both were, there was no way either of them would fit through it.
It looked like one of those small windows in the center of a basement glass block window.
“Do you know where we are?” The optimistic look in Steven’s eyes had dimmed, and Emilio hated that a guy who always looked happy seemed to be catching onto their dire situation.
Emilio squeezed Steven’s arm. “No, but like you said, Derek will find you.” He just hoped it wasn’t too late. If Calvin came to their room before help arrived, Emilio would go down fighting to protect his friend.
Steven grabbed his hand when they heard shouting and snarls. It was coming from the small window. Emilio wished he could see outside, but the only thing he saw was a dark sky and stars.
Emilio prayed Malik got there in time. That was if his mate was awake. His stomach clenched tight when he thought of the lion lying in the office, having no clue what had just happened.
Would Malik and Derek figure out that it was Calvin who’d taken them? Even if they did, would the two even know where to look?
Steven pressed his back into the wall then slid down until he was sitting on his butt. He curled his arms around his bent legs and looked around. “I don’t think we’re getting out of here. That demon’s gonna suck on my soul, isn’t he?”
Emilio moved over to Steven and hunched down in front of him, placing a hand on the guy’s knee. “Not if I can help it. If he comes into this room, I want you to run out the open door, got that? You run as fast and as far as you can.”
Steven shook his head as tears brimmed his eyes. “I’m not leaving you. You’re my friend, and friends stick by each other’s side.”
And that had been exactly what Steven had done. Even after he’d moved out and Emilio thought he’d never see the guy again, Steven had reached out to him. He was a rare soul in this fucked-up world, and Emilio would be damned if he let Calvin take that away from Steven.
Emilio spun on his heels when he heard heavy footsteps echoing down the hallway. He gripped Steven’s knee tighter, terrified that Calvin had finally come for them.
But it wasn’t Calvin who stopped at their cell door. The guy was huge, with horns like a bull on top of his head, blazing red eyes, and a nose that had a large ring in it.
“How the fuck did you guys get in here?” The man-bull crossed his arms over his massive chest as he glared at them.
Steven shoved Emilio aside and ran to the door. “Can you let us out of here?”
“That depends.” The guy looked Steven over. “Why are you here?”
“Well, see, there’s this demon who wants to munch on our souls, and he took us from my mate’s office and brought us here.”
Emilio really wished Steven would be quiet considering Man-bull might be working for Calvin.
The guy glanced Emilio’s way. “Let me guess, Calvin?”
“That’s him!” Steven practically bounced. “So, can you let us out?”
Man-bull threw his head back and belted out a deep, hearty laugh. “Calvin is always screwing up teleportation. I’m willing to bet he got separated from you two and is somewhere halfway across the demon realm.”
Demon realm? Emilio did not like the sound of that, but at least Calvin wasn’t close by. “What’s a demon realm?”
Steven stuck his hand through the bars. “I’m Steven Dunkin. It’s nice to meet you. Who are you?”
The guy simply stared at Steven’s hand as if he didn’t know what a handshake was or didn’t want to touch Steven.
“Garrett,” the guy said.
“Really?” Steven wrinkled his nose. “I thought you would have some scary biker name.” He snickered. “But I like Garrett. That’s a friendly name.”
Too bad the name didn’t match the man. Emilio didn’t think Garrett was the type to take them out to lunch and apologize for the inconvenience.
Emilio cleared his throat and joined Steven at his side, mustering as much bravery as he could. “If you could just let us out of here, we can find our own way home.”
Steven tapped his pants pocket. “I have GPS on my phone.” He looked at Emilio. “Though I don’t know how to use it. Maybe you can help me figure it out.”
“That phone won’t help you,” Garrett said. “Where you’re at, no GPS will guide you. You two aren’t even in the human realm anymore.”
Emilio’s heart sank as he became lightheaded. He staggered back a step as he gaped at Man-bull. He’d already said they were in the demon realm, but Emilio hadn’t known what that meant. But Garrett saying they weren’t even in the human realm had sunk in.
Steven reached out and grabbed Garrett’s wrist. “Please. You look like a nice man. I can tell when someone is nice,” he said. “I just want to get back to my mate. I know Derek is worried sick right now. Can you please take us home?”
The whole time Steven spoke, Garrett stared down at his hand.
“Please.” Emilio’s voice was strained with unshed tears. “My mate was hurt and had to shift. I don’t even know if he survived. I-I have to get back to him, Garrett. He needs me.”
Garrett looked from Steven to Emilio with indecision. “Do you two know where you are?”
“The demon realm?” Emilio asked. “That’s what you said, right?”
“But do you know what part?” Garrett said. “They’re many layers to this place.”
Emilio shook his head, unsure he really wanted to know.
“What part?” Steven asked.
Garrett bent to look them in their faces. “I’ve been doing this gig for over a millennium and, as gatekeeper, I have never allowed anyone to escape before, let alone helped them to do it.”
Steven appeared fascinated as he stared at Garrett. “Gatekeeper of what?” he asked in a captivated whisper. Emilio wanted to shake some sense back into Steven. They weren’t on some getaway, and Garrett wasn’t their tour guide telling them a scary tale.
This shit was real.
Garrett straightened and took a step back. “I’m the gatekeeper of Hell.”
* * * *
Malik grabbed Calvin before he could get away. He lifted the demon off his feet and slammed him into the
sidewalk right outside the demon warrior building as Derek paced back and forth in his Bengal tiger form. “You’re gonna fucking tell me what you did with Emilio, or I’m going to rip you apart, limb from limb.”
Derek roared, baring his sharp and deadly teeth close to Calvin’s head.
“I don’t know!” Calvin croaked out as he tried to claw Malik’s fingers from around his throat. “We got separated.”
“Bullshit!” Malik lifted Calvin by his throat and slammed his head into the concrete. “You already stole his soul, didn’t you?”
Malik felt as though he was losing his mind. All he saw was red as he squeezed Calvin’s throat tighter. He wanted the son of a bitch dead in the worst way. There was no doubt in his mind that the demon had already sucked Emilio and Steven’s souls out.
“Let’s take this somewhere more private.” Panahasi touched Malik’s shoulder.
One second Malik was straddling Calvin on the ground, and the next they were in some sort of chamber with a thousand lit candles and dusty books.
Christian had taken them to the demon realm but had left them with Panahasi. Derek continued to pace back and forth in his tiger form, snarling at Calvin as Malik tried to choke answers from him.
With a flick of his hand, Panahasi had removed Calvin from under Malik and pinned him against the wall. “He can’t talk if you crush his throat.”
Malik’s pulse pounded in his ears as adrenaline rushed through his body. Even if Calvin had succeeded, Malik still wanted his mate’s body. He wanted to know where Emilio was, and he wanted to torture Calvin for the rest of eternity for making Malik break his promise to always be at Emilio’s side.
Derek shifted, and with a snap of his fingers, Panahasi dressed Derek. The tiger shifter looked beside himself as he glared up at Calvin. “I swear, if you hurt Steven, I’ll make you beg for death before I ever give it to you.”
Panahasi pressed his hand against Calvin’s forehead. The demon screamed as his body arched. Red sparks emanated from the demon leader’s hand before he pulled it away. “He’s telling the truth. When he took Emilio and Steven through the portal, he lost them.”
“So they could be anywhere in this godforsaken place?” Derek snapped. He slammed his fist into Calvin’s gut. “Tell me where the fuck Steven is!”
“He doesn’t know, and I’m having a hard time pinpointing their location. There’s some kind of interference,” Panahasi said.
Malik prayed to god the two hadn’t been transported to Remtin. He didn’t want to think about Emilio and Steven wandering around that city. He still felt sick when he recalled his own time there.
“Remtin?” Malik asked as he felt himself pale.
Panahasi shook his head. “I’d be able to sense their presence there.” His brows furrowed as he looked between Malik and Derek. “There’s only one place I know of in the demon realm that can fuck with my senses.”
Malik was too afraid to ask, but he did. “Where?”
“Hell.”
Derek’s brows shot up. “You mean there’s an actual Hell?”
“And it’s made of your worst nightmares. I mean literally. Hell conforms to what you fear most and plays on those fears.”
And Emilio feared being abandoned. Malik pressed his hand to his stomach. Fuck. What if Emilio was experiencing Malik leaving him? What if that was what was playing out?
He had to find Emilio, and fast.
* * * *
“Don’t believe anything you see,” Garrett said as he led them through narrow underground tunnels that Man-bull looked like he could barely fit through. “This place fucks with your mind.”
“So how do I know you’re even real?” Emilio asked.
“You don’t.” Garrett looked back at him. “But I am.”
“I don’t get it,” Steven whispered to Emilio. “What’re you two talking about?”
Emilio frowned when Steven reached into his pocket and pulled out a candy bar. He unwrapped it and took a bite before offering some to Emilio. “Candy always helps me feel better.”
Garrett smacked the bar from Steven’s hand. “No noises and no scents. Are you trying to get us caught?”
Steven narrowed his eyes as he chewed what was in his mouth. “You owe me another candy bar.”
Emilio pressed a hand against Steven’s shoulder. “I’ll buy you a whole case if you just do what Garrett says.”
Steven nodded. “But he still owes me one.”
After taking Steven’s hand, Emilio hurried to catch up to Garrett. Man-bull was walking fast, and as short as they were, Emilio and Steven were having a hard time keeping up with him. Emilio still wasn’t sure if he could trust Garrett, but what other choice did they have? Hopefully the guy was leading them out of Hell and this wasn’t an illusion.
As Garrett had said, this place fucked with the mind. For all Emilio knew, they could still be in their cell. Had there even been a cell? He had to get out of here because Emilio was not a fan of illusions.
Steven slowed and started tugging on Emilio’s hand. His eyes were wide, and he looked as though he would start crying at any second.
“Steven, what’s wrong?”
“I don’t want to go,” Steven whimpered. “That’s my mom up there.”
When Emilio looked in front of them, all he saw were cavernous walls and Garrett’s hulking form. Man-bull had used some kind of spell to dimly light their way. If he hadn’t, Emilio and Steven would’ve been trying to follow the guy in complete darkness.
He avoided the stagnant puddle at his feet as he tried to get Steven moving again. “It’s all in your head, buddy. I don’t see anyone.”
“No.” Steven slammed his eyes closed. “I don’t want to go near her.”
What had his mother done that had instilled so much fear in Steven? Emilio wasn’t sure, but a protective instinct had him pulling Steven closer to him.
“Just keep your eyes closed and I’ll help you get past her.”
Steven nodded and closed his eyes. Guiding someone who wasn’t looking where he was going wasn’t easy.
Garrett looked over his shoulder. “You two have to keep quiet.”
Emilio curled his lips in as he pulled Steven along. They started to ascend, and the tunnel wasn’t as narrow as before. He wasn’t sure how much more they had to go but was thankful he hadn’t seen… Emilio squinted as they entered an ancient-looking chamber. Cobwebs were everywhere, and the walls looked as though they would start crumbling at any second.
And in the center of the room was Malik. Emilio slapped a hand over his mouth to stop the sob from escaping. His mate wasn’t alone. He held another man in his embrace, and they were kissing so passionately that Emilio wanted to rush over to them and tear the stranger away.
Malik looked at Emilio with heavy-lidded eyes. “I only said you were my mate to get laid.” He smirked. “I never wanted you long-term. You’re pathetic and unlovable. That’s why everyone walked out on you. You’re nothing more than a street rat that I’m going to abandon the first chance I get.”
This isn’t real. Malik wants me. He really is my mate. But it was hard for Emilio to convince himself when the two men in front of him looked so damn real. His heart felt as though it were being ripped from his chest as he passed by the two. Malik palmed the other man’s cock as he smiled evilly at Emilio.
“It’s not real,” Emilio repeatedly whispered to himself as he tried his hardest to wipe that image from his mind and the tears from his eyes.
Garrett stopped and pressed one palm over Emilio’s forehead, the other over Steven’s. Fake Malik and his lover vanished seconds before Emilio looked at Garrett.
“Why are you touching me?”
“I’m wiping away your thoughts. Do you still see him?”
“See who?” Emilio asked. He looked around, but aside from the three of them, no one was there. What the hell was Man-bull talking about?
With a nod, Garrett started walking again. They stopped when they reached a rusted steel door
. Garrett pressed his hand against it then snatched it back. “We’re gonna have to wait them out.”
“Wait what out?” Steven whispered.
“Winged wraiths.”
“What’s a wraith?” Emilio asked.
“Soulless terrifying creatures,” Garrett said as he sat on his ass and bent on leg to rest his arm on. Emilio couldn’t stop staring at the large horns on Man-bull’s head. “They’ll hate you because you’re still alive and they aren’t. As soon you get outside the door, you’ll see a large black gate that seems to go on forever. There’s an access door that you can escape through, but you can’t stop running. Never stop running until you’re through it.”
“Why are you talking like you’re not coming with us?” Emilio asked. There was no way he and Steven could do this on their own. What if they got lost getting to the access door? What if he or Steven stumbled and fell and those wraith things attacked?
“Because I can’t go any farther than this door,” Garrett said. He touched Emilio’s cheek with the tips of his fingers. “You can do this, Emilio. Steven needs you to get him out of here.”
Emilio pulled away. “Why are you helping us if you’ve never helped anyone before? Why are you risking your life for two strangers?”
Garrett smiled. “Your eyes. Steven’s eyes. I can’t let the innocence in them be wiped away. The world needs more good souls like the two of you possess.”
There was something very strange about Garrett. Emilio couldn’t put his finger on it, but he felt as though Man-bull was just a figment of his imagination.
That couldn’t be right, though. Garrett had to be real because he’d unlocked their cell door. He’d also guided them this far. Emilio would’ve never known which way to go.
Garrett pressed his hand against the door again. He narrowed his eyes as he stared at Emilio. “Go, now. Run!”
Emilio hesitated for a brief second before he grabbed Steven’s hand and they took off through the rusted steel door. Right before it closed, Emilio looked back, but Garrett was gone.