The belphegor demons laughed.
Primal anger sharpened in Alexa’s gut. “Is Lucifer your new master? Who are you working for? Who wanted you to kill Milo?”
“I’m following orders, just like you.” Willow thrust her lollypop back into her mouth. “This is what’s going to happen. First, I’m going to kill you and the rest of the angels, and then I’m going to take that bottle from you.”
“Try anything,” growled Lance, the fur on his back standing on end, “and I’m going to rip you open like a bag of Cheetos.”
Willow giggled and twirled around. “Bad doggy.”
Alexa gripped her hands into fists. “I’m surprised you’re following orders at all. What did Lucifer promise you? Power? A seat at his table? You’re nothing to him but a tool in his plan to destroy all life. What will you do when there are no more souls for you to eat? You’ll wither and die? Your bodies need to constantly feed, to replenish. Otherwise you rot. I know that for a fact. You’re not like the other demons. I was told that belphegors can’t enter the Netherworld either. You’re a prisoner here. Just like me.”
Willow pulled out her lollypop and then picked a scab from her arm. She smiled at Alexa, popped it into her mouth, and began chewing.
“Is that what you think?” Willow prowled closer. “That Lucifer wants to destroy all the humans and this world? To extinguish all life?”
Alexa held the girl demon’s stare. “Well, doesn’t he? They call him the Lord of Darkness because he wants to remove all the light, all the life, and replace it with death and darkness.”
Willow shared a look with one of the belphegors. “They have no idea,” she said as her eyes traveled from Alexa to Milo to Lance and then back to Alexa. “You have no idea what he plans. Do you? What he’s been planning all along? What occupied his mind all those years in purgatory? Don’t feel too bad. He’s got the Legion confused too. They share the same delusions and confusion as you do, which makes it so much more… exciting.”
Alexa could feel Milo’s eyes on her. Was she right? Was Lucifer planning something else? Had Lucifer fooled them all?
Icy dread crawled up her spine. “I’ll make a trade with you,” said Alexa. “I’ll give you this,” she patted her jacket pocket where she hid the jug, “and you tell me what Lucifer’s plan is.”
Willow opened her mouth, and for a moment Alexa thought she was going to answer. “Ah-ha! You’re trying to trick me into telling you,” she spread her arms, “the big plan. The new strategy.”
“What strategy?” asked Alexa. “Tell me. I’ll give it to you. I swear it.”
“Liar, liar, pants on fire!” sang Willow.
“I’m not lying,” pressed Alexa. “Tell me his plan and it’s yours.”
Willow looked down at herself. “This body is only temporary. Soon, I’ll have a new body, a stronger body, a beautiful body. It won’t look like me, but it’ll still be me.”
Alexa frowned. “You’re not making any sense. If you didn’t want to end up looking like a rotting corpse, you should have thought about that before feasting on mortal souls. You knew what would happen. You did this to yourself.”
Willow’s smiled faded a little. “It doesn’t matter what you think because soon you’ll be dead.”
“Fine, so why not tell me this big plan,” said Alexa. She stepped away from the desk, again wishing she had a blade with her. No way was she going to let the decaying demon girl kill her. “If I’m going to be dead… who am I going to tell, right? You can tell me.”
Willow pouted and shook her head from side to side. “No. I think I’ll just kill you.”
Willow shot forward. She moved like a midnight storm, faster than Alexa remembered, and in her eyes, Alexa saw she truly meant to kill her. She was barely aware of the other four belphegors’ attacking blows on her friends as she focused on Willow.
Alexa sidestepped Willow’s first blow, but strands of her jacket exploded all around her, falling like snow as Willow’s sharp talons shredded through it as though it were paper. She twisted her body in the other direction to avoid a second strike. But the demon girl was so damn fast Alexa could barely register her movements. Even her angel instincts did nothing to block or anticipate the third blow. Willow attacked from the back, and Alexa went crashing into small tables and lamps. She twisted her body and kicked out, just as Willow leaped towards her. Alexa caught the demon girl in the chest, and with a shout, she went sailing backwards.
“Alexa! Catch!” shouted Milo.
Alexa reached out instinctively and caught one of Milo’s spirit sabers just as Willow threw herself at her again, spitting and hissing like a wild cat.
With her both hands, Alexa swung the long sword in an explosive strike. She caught the demon girl across the chest, sending a shower of black blood spraying her face.
Willow cursed and jumped back. Alexa took that moment to look around.
Cries sounded all around her, followed by a dog’s growl and the tearing of flesh. Then she heard the clash of metal on metal.
She saw Lance first. He was a flash of white fur and teeth as he attacked a belphegor demon viciously. Chunks of demon flesh and black blood showered his coat. Still the demon came at him, but Lance never stopped.
Milo swung his sword at three belphegors, holding his position in front of Alexa as the demons assaulted him. He kept them from her, protecting her again. The belphegors hacked with their death blades as they advanced. Milo parried a deadly blow from the side, but he wasn’t fast enough to recover as a blade sliced him from the other side. Light streamed from a wound at his side, and his face twisted in pain.
Fury gripped Alexa. She leaped forward and cried out as she stumbled back. She felt a stinging slice along her back as she spun around.
“I want that bottle.” Willow licked the end of her fingers, which were stained in blood. “Whatever’s inside is important. I can tell, you know, just by how you’re protecting it with your body. I’m going to take it from you.”
“Not going to happen,” hissed Alexa. She pulled her hand from her side and it was slick with her angel essence.
“Have it your way then.”
Willow’s face warped into something feral and grotesque as she shot forward in a blur of limbs and talons.
Whatever training she’d had in Horizon, now was the time to put it into practice.
Alexa swung the sword in a blind rage as Willow charged at her. The smell of carrion filled the air, and she was sprayed by the demon girl’s blood as she slashed off the front half of a thigh. The bone splintered into white shards under her blade.
But Willow never stopped advancing. She attacked with more energy and skill, laughing fiercely. She was enjoying the hell out of this.
“You’re dead. Dead. Dead,” she cheered, spinning like a top.
Alexa looked over her shoulder and saw a belphegor’s head burst apart in a black spray as Milo caught it with his saber. Then he faltered a little. He was tiring, and the other two were getting too close. He brought the blade up, ripping open the belly of another.
Alexa felt the air shift and swung her saber with both hands.
“You missed,” laughed Willow as she easily dodged Alexa’s strike. “Missed. Missed. Missed.”
Alexa cursed. Then all at once, Willow came for her. She didn’t have a chance to swing the sword again. She tripped on something hard, falling backward and sprawling into a stack of books.
Willow was on top of her in seconds.
Instinctively, she brought the sword up to impale her, expecting the girl demon to fall on her. But Willow smacked the sword aside, and sharp talons reached for the inside of Alexa’s jacket.
Alexa twisted. The demon girl’s longer arm came up, and she slammed her talons against Alexa’s throat like a knife, holding her back.
“Give it to me!” Willow pressed her talons into the soft flesh of Alexa’s throat, and she felt warm liquid pour down her neck and into her shirt.
Alexa attempted to answer, but she only coughed
blood. She desperately tried not to surrender to the fear that the crazy girl demon would slash her throat, but her hands were pinned by Willow’s weight. So she did the only thing she could—spat blood into the demon’s eyes.
Willow flinched in surprise, and her talons slipped from Alexa’s throat momentarily. Alexa reacted.
She head-butted the girl demon as hard as she could.
Willow fell back screaming, black blood pouring like an open tap from her nose. She reached up and touched her nose. “You tricky little bitch. You broke my nose.”
A smile reached Alexa’s lips. “Good. That’s not the only thing I’m going to—”
Something dark and small zipped past Alexa, making her breath catch in her throat.
Pain exploded in her side just as she spun and saw the edge of a death blade. The male belphegor lunged for her again, but she swung her saber in fury between his clavicle and his skull, severing his head.
Black blood sprayed her in the face, blinding her. She reached up to wipe her eyes, but it was too late.
One sweep of Willow’s foot and she was falling, twisting to catch herself, but not fast enough. Alexa pitched forward, and the saber slipped from her hand as she stopped her fall to protect the Holy Oil. Turning again, she landed on her side and screamed as she felt the wound from the death blade rip. She reached up and touched the hard clay of the jug—it was still intact.
Something grabbed ahold of Alexa’s jacket and she was yanked to her feet. She threw her hands in front of her to ward off her attacker.
With one swing of Willow’s talons, she sliced through Alexa’s jacket, cutting it in half like a slice of cheese, and caught the clay jug.
Alexa’s eyes widened as she threw herself at the girl demon. “No! Give it back!”
Willow barely noticed as she backhanded Alexa across the face with such force that it sent her to her knees, black spots dancing before her eyes.
Alexa coughed up more blood and felt the first burning sensation of the death blade’s poison mixing into her bloodstream. Her ears whistled, and she shook her head, trying to focus on only one Willow. Her cheek throbbed where Willow had hit her.
When her vision corrected itself, Alexa saw the girl demon holding up the ancient jug. And then she shook it.
“Willow, stop,” croaked Alexa, struggling to control the rising panic. She tried to get to her feet but stumbled and fell. “You don’t understand what it is. It’s dangerous.” She was barely aware of the fight that continued around them. Her focus was purely on the girl demon and the precious jug she held in her hand.
“I know it’s dangerous,” said Willow. “What do you take me for? I’m not a fool. You want to use this against Lucifer, don’t you?” She pressed her ear against it and shook it again. “What’s in it? Poison? Unless it’s a new oracle concoction that I’ve never heard of before, you do know poison can’t kill Lucifer, right?”
Alexa stared at the girl’s black eyes as though in a trance. Sounds of battle still rang through the little shop as she started gasping in panic, feeling as if a rock were pressing against her chest. Hopeless. This was hopeless.
With a grunt of desperate effort, she crawled ahead a few inches. That only made it worse, tighter. She felt the rock crushing her.
Alexa heard Milo’s voice shouting her name over the pounding within her. But she couldn’t take her eyes off the girl demon or the Holy Oil. She couldn’t let Willow take the first ingredient. If she did, all would be lost. They were running out of time and options. Too many of her failures had already plagued the mortal and celestial worlds. This was their only chance to vanquish Lucifer—her only chance.
She had to try something.
“You’re right,” said Alexa, blinking the sweat and blood from her eyes and keeping her face as void of emotion as she could. “It’s worthless to Lucifer.” She felt Milo’s attention sharpen on her as she struggled to her feet. “It’s got nothing to do with him.”
“Really?” Willow sounded dubious. “Then why did you hang on to it like your life depended on it?”
“Because it does.” Alexa kept her eyes on Willow. “The oracles told me where to find the memory oil,” she lied, talking fast. “I lost my memories when Hades—”
Willow dismissed her with a wave of her hand. “Spare me the dramatics. I know all about your memory loss.” She peered intently at the jug, her brows low, and Alexa felt her insides turn watery. “And you thought this would bring them back?”
“They promised it would work,” said Alexa. “It’s useless to anyone else, well, anyone who hasn’t suffered some kind of amnesia.” She swallowed and took a careful step forward, keeping her eyes locked on to Willow’s. “I want to remember. I want to know who I am. I can’t function like this. It’s like I’m only half of myself. I want to know all of me.”
Willow watched her for a moment and then shook her head. “Why am I not surprised you’d risk the lives of these angels only to serve some selfish need to remember your mortal past. Like we care. You suck. You suck as an angel. You know that? You’re even more selfish than I am. What does that say about you?” Willow flashed her pointy teeth. “Plenty, I imagine.”
Just as Alexa sensed movement near her, she realized how quiet the shop had become. She glanced around at the startling amount of foul-smelling gore spilled across the floor and walls. The last standing belphegor charged wildly at Milo and Lance, and Alexa saw Lance hit the ground. The belphegor laughed, easily blocking Milo’s attacks.
“Stop!” shrieked the girl demon.
The belphegor demon froze, his death blade hovering in front of him.
“Come here,” Willow ordered. “They won’t do anything. I’ve got the bottle.”
Milo’s eyes were fixed on the demon as it moved quietly to stand next to his mistress. His eyes met Alexa’s briefly before settling on Willow.
“Please, Willow,” urged Alexa, as she saw the satisfied smile on the girl demon’s face. “Please just give it back. It’s no use to you. Give it back and I’ll—”
“You’ll what?” Willow licked her lips. “You’re dead anyway. No. I think I’ll keep it.” Willow moved her thumb over the lid.
“Don’t open it.” Alexa realized her mistake as soon as the words were out of her mouth, but it was too late. The smile on the demon girl’s face widened.
“Here.” Willow tossed the jug to the belphegor demon. “You open it. My hands are wet with blood.”
“Wait!” cried Alexa.
But the belphegor had already popped the lid open. He brought the jug closer and peered inside. “Smells like corn syrup. I hate corn syrup.” Sneering, the demon spread his fingers, and the jug slipped out of his hand.
Fear and desperation gripped Alexa’s throat.
“No!”
The jug hit the floor and exploded into hundreds of chunks of clay. A splash of toffee-colored liquid pooled at the demon’s feet.
The demon shrugged. “Oops.”
Alexa froze. Milo and Lance cursed.
“What did you do!” shouted Alexa. The fight in her was abruptly gone, and her insides throbbed with a dull ache.
Willow laughed at the horror on Alexa’s face. “Ah, poor little Alexa. I guess you’ll never get your memories now.”
Afraid to move, Alexa stared at the golden liquid around the demon’s feet. It spread slowly around his boots, and as the light hit it, she was surprised by how ordinary it looked. She tasted the rising fear and rage at the sight of the laughing girl demon. Perhaps they’d been wrong.
“Nothing’s happening,” came Lance’s voice, as he moved to stand next to her. “Why isn’t it working?”
Willow wrinkled her brow and leaned forward for a better look at the golden liquid. “Why? What’s supposed to happen?”
The oil burst into white flames.
Willow squealed and jumped back, cowering under a desk.
“What is this?” Confusion rippled across the male demon’s face as the flames spread and licked ove
r his body, reaching past his waist. “What’s going on? Wh—what’s happening? I can’t move. I can’t move!”
His clothes flapped around him as if caught in a breeze, but the demon was as solid as a statue. And still the Holy Fire rose until it grew high above his head and he was completely surrounded by a wall of white flames.
The same flames reflected in Willow’s wide, fearful black eyes as she watched from under the desk. For the first time, Alexa saw real fear flash in the girl demon’s eyes as she watched her companion burn.
“Help! Help me, Willow!” The demon’s voice carried over the flickering of the flames. The stench of sulfur and rot was quickly replaced by an overwhelming scent of something sweet like honey.
The demon opened his mouth again to speak, but instead he spurted white flames as if he breathed fire. Flames shot out of his eyes, his ears, his fingers and toes.
The belphegor demon didn’t have a chance to scream as he burned into cinders.
Alexa watched in horror and could almost hear the demon’s silent scream, his plea for help.
With a final flicker, the Holy Fire went out. All that remained of the demon was pile of gray ash.
And when Alexa looked back under the desk for Willow, she was gone.
CHAPTER 11
ALEXA DIDN’T KNOW HOW LONG she sat on the sidewalk outside JP’s Curiosity Shop, staring at the pieces of the jug she’d picked up from the floor.
A middle-aged couple walked by, but they scarcely noticed the angel. She rubbed her fingertips against the smooth surface and felt only clay. It was curious that there was no trace of the oil on the shards. Not even a tiny drop of the golden liquid could be found on the ground where the jug had shattered. It was almost as though it had never been there, never existed.
But it had existed. Alexa had seen its power. She had seen how it had devoured a demon. It had taken less than twenty seconds for the belphegor to be completely consumed by the Holy Fire and then burned alive until there was nothing left of it but a mere pile of ash.
To keep the morale up, Lance had decided to give the shop one more going-over for more Holy Oil, but Alexa knew it was hopeless. Like the wound at her side that would never heal without the help of the Healing-Xpress.
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