Risky Business

by J B Trepagnier

  “That boy had every advantage growing up. He’s fire born! It’s not like any of us had a say on his powers or demonic form. He’s always been jealous of the Dukes that are stronger than him. Just because his demonic form is a simple soldier and his powers aren’t such that we could give him essential duties in Hell are no reason to act like a spoiled child!

  “He should have been tortured the last time things went ass up in Hell. We didn’t have any proof it was him, but we should have tortured him until he confessed. Agares too! He’s another Duke that’s always been jealous that his demonic form isn’t intimidating. I’ll bet I could fill in the other two names based on that alone!”

  “What exactly is our next move?” Amduscias said. “Zepar probably had plans for the elementals. He’ll realize they are missing.”

  “He has no reason to think we’ve spoken to Eiltan Sunshadow. If he asks, the elementals were uncomfortable staying there, and we moved them somewhere else.”

  “I can hack into Zepar’s phone,” Solron said. “Maybe I can get the other names.”

  I didn’t know what hacking was, but I didn’t trust these cell phones they gave us. It sounded like anyone could get into what you kept on it and read it. I was just figuring out text messages, but there were things I wanted to send to Serafina and Amduscias that I didn’t want other people reading. Why was no one else questioning this?

  Amduscias pulled his phone out of his back pocket and stared at it.

  “Is it so easy to get into one of these things?”

  Solron just snorted.

  “Only if you’re me. I wrote the operating system and knew how to get in. I wrote that bad boy so it’s impossible to hack unless you happen to be me, and I only do it for Bael.”

  I had no idea what half of that meant, but even if Solron was the only one looking, I decided not to send Serafina any photos of my cock just in case Bael asked her to look at my phone. I didn’t really care who saw me naked, but those photos would have been specially taken for Serafina.

  “Can you do that now?” Bael asked.

  “It will take a while since he’s topside and it’s late.”

  “You’re right. It is. Get some sleep, Solron. Amduscias, take everyone home. The rest of you elementals, I’m sorry your first introduction to Hell has been under these circumstances, but this is only temporary. We will help clear your names so you can resume your lives topside.”

  “Why can’t we go now?” Kestrel asked. “The Fae know we were framed and don’t want us since we didn’t consent.”

  Bael plastered this pleasant smile on his face, but did Kestrel not realize the situation she was in?

  “My dear child, the world thinks you are in Scorchwood and Zepar may try to get at you. It’s not safe for you until you would no longer be wanted fugitives. Hell is a perfectly lovely place once you’ve gotten the tour. Amduscias has a lovely palace on the beach and plenty of bedrooms for you to choose from.”

  Serafina took over. I could tell she was still pissed, but she always did what was needed.

  “You’ll love Amduscias’s estate. Alozan plans the best feasts, and his servants are so nice. The beach is right there if you want to just lie in the sand and relax. The sands are pure white, and the water is crystal blue. And we’ll be there to entertain you.”

  Pearl just shrugged.

  “I’m tired, and it’s been a long night. I just want to sleep. We can argue about it in the morning. Can we just go now?”

  Kestrel looked like she wanted to keep arguing. Where was that fight when she first ended up in Scorchwood? The rest of the elementals shut her up when they all agreed they just wanted to sleep.

  So did I. I was hungry and sleepy, and that was never good for a Vampire.

  Chapter 6

  Fergus

  I

  didn’t want to leave my Ena, knowing Hell might not be safe. But it was time to go back to the Fae realm, and she knew this. I needed to understand how Ior would react to a halfling being alive. I needed to know what his reaction was to this entire mess, but I needed to know he would not order her death.

  I didn’t even really want Eiltan to die. Not because he made some big fucking mistake and tried to fix it, but for Serafina. If there weren’t some part of her that wanted to forgive him, she would have killed him as soon as he dragged her through that portal. She beat him to a pulp, but she stopped because she wanted to hear him out.

  There was a lot we thought we knew that ended up being lies. Eiltan had made a lot of mistakes, and she had every right never to forgive him, but maybe that lost little girl from the convent who wondered who her parents were would end up eventually wanting some sort of relationship with him. I wouldn’t blame her if she didn’t, but I would help her if she did.

  Like we portalled straight into Bael’s sitting room, Eiltan went straight for his father’s quarters. Ior was sleeping and bolted to a sitting position when he realized a portal was opening in his bedroom.

  “Eiltan, what is it? Have you found the answer? If not, this could have waited until morning.”

  “I need to confess, Father. I know the reasons behind our problem and how to fix it. There are several things I need to tell you. You might want to pour yourself a drink.”

  Ior sighed.

  “Why do I get the feeling I’m not going to like this conversation?”

  “You won’t. I’m just asking you to let me finish before you speak.”

  “I’m going to need that drink. Come to my study.”

  Ior poured two glasses of Nutmeg Rum and sat across from Eiltan.

  “First of all, I have a child,” Eiltan said. Ior looked like he was about to speak, but Eiltan cut him off. “She’s a halfling, and she survived the birth without me being there to give Fae magic. She’s fierce and intelligent. She would make you so proud. I don’t want her killed.”

  “You know the law—”

  “I know the law, and I don’t care. Warden Skinner framed her, and she ended up at Scorchwood. In the brief time she was there, she discovered Warden Skinner has not done any of the upgrades the board voted on. She’s been funneling the money into a bank account that is trying to make it look like it’s us stealing the money.”

  “Why would Warden Skinner frame your daughter?”

  “No one knew she was mine until she ended up there. I need to tell you something, Father. The Fae are barren because of me. When I first went topside to see if Hell had a remedy, I didn’t meet with the kings of Hell. I met with a Duke who wasn’t in Hell.

  “He promised me a remedy for a favor. His treatment did work and cure our ill, but he added his blood to it. One of his demonic gifts is to make women barren. His favor and the only way he will give us his blood again to cure our women is if we send an army to Hell to help him seize the throne.

  “I brought Deaglan in. He thought if we could use the blood of a child that was mixed with demon and Fae, he could synthesize a remedy. There was already a demon in Scorchwood. When a water elemental ended up in Scorchwood, we got her consent and promised to commute her sentence if she succeeded.

  “Amduscias, the demon in Hell, was utterly uninterested in her. Warden Skinner jumped the gun and just started using some money she embezzled from Scorchwood to start framing them. That was how my daughter ended up in Scorchwood.

  “She convinced me to use a warlock inmate to do medical testing. She promised to keep him in line. She tortured a Vampire and conducted tests on my daughter without her consent when I just wanted her given Fae vaccines.

  “She’s a true Sunshadow. She broke out of Scorchwood, killing the warlock and every guard on duty. They wronged her, and she got her blood for it.”

  Ior cocked an eyebrow at Eiltan.

  “I take it your busted face was her too.”

  “Oh, yes. She throws quite a punch. I knew better than to stop a Sunshadow from their revenge before I attempted to speak with her.”

  “You said you had an answer to our problem. We’ll discuss
your mistakes and your offspring in a minute. What exactly is the solution?”

  “I met with the kings of Hell this time. They are angry Zepar is trying to seize the throne and was willing to start a war with the Fae to do it. I only know of three Dukes that have joined Zepar, but that was decades ago, and it could be more. Hell will get us a remedy with Zepar’s blood if we help them fight if needed, and we renegotiate the contract for the real estate in Hell.”

  “Do you realize when it gets out Warden Skinner has been pocketing the money for the upgrades and what the conditions might be in there right now, they will shut down Scorchwood? No one will give us funding to upgrade it to make it acceptable once any of this gets out. That land is worthless for anything else. Hell can have it back.”

  “That’s another thing. Hell wants to punish Warden Skinner for the living conditions Amduscias lived in, and Hell has claimed my daughter. They said if you order her death, you’ll have to fight them for her.”

  “Oh, hush, Eiltan. I will not kill your daughter. With Fae births being so rare, a new Sunshadow should be celebrated, even if she’s only half Fae. The fact that she survived birth without Fae magic and everything you’ve told me about her so far tells me she’s a true Sunshadow. I’d like to meet her. We will help Hell because it means helping our people.”

  Eiltan rubbed his bruised chin.

  “I’m afraid she doesn’t have very high opinions of the Fae right now. She may punch you.”

  Ior threw back his head and laughed.

  “Of course, she may. She’s a Sunshadow. She must be a hell of a woman if she exposed the warden, escaped Scorchwood, and Hell is willing to fight us for her life.”

  “You’ll be so proud of her, Father. She even looks like a Sunshadow woman. She has everything but the ears.”

  “I’m not going to tell anyone it was your mistake that caused our problem, Eiltan. I will tell them the demon who was mixing the remedy went rogue and did it under the king’s noses to try to blackmail us. You sired your daughter on a visit to Earth, trying to hunt him down and didn’t realize it. You met again when Warden Skinner framed her and experimented on her. Warden Skinner was the one who informed you that your daughter was in Scorchwood. It was the two of you and the allies she made in Hell that helped save our people.”

  “What about Serafina? I’d like to bring her to the Fae realm if she’s willing and teach her about this side of her heritage.”

  “Son, I know about your aspirations of opening the portal again when you become king. I’ve been considering it. It’s an excellent idea, and we’ve been closed off for too long. I say we introduce your daughter when I introduce the reopening of the portal. This time, people can bring their children back to the Fae realm if they want to. We’ve been relying on Earth science to help us, and now the answer lies in Hell. It’s time we explore the benefits other realms can offer the Fae.”

  “You really mean it?”

  “Yes, I do. Now, go to bed. We will go to Hell in the morning. We have to plot, and I need to meet my granddaughter.”

  Well, I wasn’t expecting that. Ior must have gotten soft in his old age. Not only was he accepting of Serafina, he hadn’t even yelled at Eiltan for what he had done. What was more shocking was that he would open the portal again. Every single Sunshadow before him had been totally against it.

  My Ena was safe. If she accepted them, she would have a blood family to call her own. I knew the Fae. They weren’t unreasonable when it came to halflings. If they heard about everything she had done and that she helped Eiltan with the remedy, she would have their respect.

  They would probably throw an epic Fae ball in her honor that would make her horrifically uncomfortable. We just needed to clear her name, and then she would have three realms available should she want to visit or take a vacation.

  She was stubborn, but I hoped she would take Eiltan up on his offer to take a tour of the Fae realm and learn more about her heritage.

  Chapter 7

  Serafina

  W

  hat a night. I was so fucking exhausted by the time we got all the elementals settled and finally fell into bed. Most of them were around my age or younger, but I didn’t remember ever being that needy. I knew what they had gone through, but Clio made Amduscias’s servants change the sheets before she could sleep, and Kestrel wanted softer pillows. Blossom wanted an entire bottle of wine until Alozan could call the doctor back over to prescribe her something for anxiety.

  They all had some sort of demand for the servants before I could go to bed. I was so uncomfortable asking for anything I needed. I knew they didn’t grow up on the streets like me, but I knew none of them had servants growing up. They were acting like now that they had access to them, they should make demands that couldn’t wait. Every room in Amduscias’s palace had the softest sheets I’ve ever slept on, but Clio wanted silk.

  It felt weird going to sleep and not having anyone in my dreams. Fergus was in the Fae realm spying on my father and grandfather. It was so fucked up that my grandfather could find out he had a missing granddaughter out there and immediately decide I should die because of who my parents were.

  Fergus wasn’t back with me until we sat down for breakfast.

  “Ena, your grandfather wants to meet you and doesn’t intend to kill you. He plans on reopening the Fae portal once this mess is over. They are asking for a meeting with Bael now.”

  “What about Warden Skinner?”

  I still hadn’t forgotten that bitch framed me. I thought it was my father this entire time, but nope, it was that cunt. I would have to cut a bitch. She handpicked all of us because she thought no one would miss us. Wrong move, asshole. I might not have had anyone then, but I had people now. It puckered my butthole a little that Hell was willing to fight for me this much. Who knew? I rubbed most people the wrong way, but Hell was actually claiming me.

  “Ior made a phone call before he went to bed. They’ve seized her bank account, but she doesn’t know it. He knows Hell wants her, so they are going to let her go to work. Ior intends to let demons storm the prison and take her.”

  “Letting her rot in that shithole would be sweet karma.”

  “I think the demons have something much worse planned.”

  “Should I tell my family about you?”

  “They may guess. There’s no way you could have learned the information you did without outside help. They are on your side, my Ena. Tell them when it feels right.”

  “But what about us? I still want to make you real, Fergus. They don’t want to kill me, but what if they want to kill you?”

  “As I said, get a feel for them first and tell them if it feels right.”

  I hated it when he did that. I never did anything when it felt right. I got pissed off and blurted it out. I still hadn’t decided if I would kill my father. I was so conflicted. He hadn’t done nearly the things I thought he had to hurt me, but he had hurt me indirectly. I guess he didn’t know about me, and I shouldn’t hold that against him, but still, it was hard not to.

  I looked out at the breakfast table.

  “My father and grandfather are asking for an audience with Bael. They don’t want to kill me.”

  Amduscias let out this huge sigh and looked at his phone.

  “Then, I suppose I won’t get my driving lesson. Bael will be calling soon. We still have to figure out how to stop Zepar.”

  “I could eat him,” Roman said hopefully.

  “I want to rip his throat out,” Skoll growled.

  “My grandfather also set things in motion for Skinner to be arrested by the demons.”

  “I want to torture that one personally,” Amduscias said. “All of this is happening because of her.”

  “Are you sure we are safe here? You all sound like killers,” Clio said.

  “Skinner framed you and sent you to Scorchwood. It was because of her you ended up manipulated. She was lying to my father. Don’t you want revenge?”

  “Shouldn’t she be in S
corchwood?” Pearl said.

  “I say we let them torture her,” Blossom said. “Klonopin withdrawals are no joke, and she put me through that just to make sure I was pregnant. Is the doctor getting here soon?”

  Alozan poked her head in.

  “Doctor Bogthon will be here right after breakfast. He wants to examine all of you. I’m afraid you’ll have to stay here if they summon Amduscias and the others. I’ve asked some other elementals here to come talk to you and help entertain you.”

  “There are other elementals here?”

  Alozan just laughed.

  “Hell is not just home to demons. We have plenty of elementals here. They will be coming after your appointments to welcome you to Hell.”

  “They are really nice,” I said. “I’ve met two of them. They are lovely.”

  We didn’t have a chance to continue the conversation. Amduscias’s phone rang. I’d taught him how to set a ring tone since he hated the way the phone sounded when it rang. It was totally demon of him to set his ring tone as Saint-Saëns’ Danse Macabre. It was written after they arrested him, but he took his ring tone as serious business and went through several pieces before deciding on that one. I took a class on music in college for an elective, so I knew it well.

  Danse Macabre started filling the room. Amduscias snatched his phone up and started talking.

  “I want nice music when my phone rings too,” Roman said. “No one ever calls me, but I still want it to.”

  Something just told me Roman would be into Norwegian death metal like I was. I liked other music too. Sometimes I just wanted to listen to Classical or the Beatles, but when I was stressed out, I went for the death metal.

  “I want to show you some music later. You too, Skoll.”

  They both grinned at me. Even with everything going on and everything that had just been dumped on me, I loved showing them things about the modern world. I thought Skoll would get a kick out of Duran Duran’s Hungry Like the Wolf or even better, Warren Zevon’s Werewolves of London.