All Hell Breaks Loose (Hellscourge Book 9)

by Diem, J. C.

  “He says he’s at peace with dying.” My reply eased some of her sadness. “He gave me a gift that helped me escape from Vepar and Bob.”

  “What gift could he possibly have given you now that he is no longer with us?”

  “He isn’t with us in body, but he’s still with me in spirit,” I replied. Instead of telling her what he’d infused me with when he’d kissed me, I showed her. Placing my hands on the tabletop, I imagined them blending in with the wood. They obeyed me and became almost indistinguishable from the grain.

  “He gave you his camouflage abilities?” Elijah said in wonder.

  Reynolds gave a half smile. “He also gave her the ability to take on someone else’s appearance. She walked right up to me and I had no idea it was her at all.”

  Sophia grasped the implications immediately. “You can walk right past our enemies without them even realizing who you are.”

  “I can’t keep up the illusion for long,” I warned her. “I’ll still need to wear my bracelet.” Brie’s spell to make me almost invisible to demons was a vital tool in my arsenal. I’d left it with Sophia for safekeeping.

  “I have your belongings here,” she said and gracefully stood. She opened a drawer and took out a paper bag. “You will have to buy more clothing, I am afraid,” she said as she handed it over. “I have bought you a few items, but you will no doubt require more.” It wouldn’t be wise to return to her store just yet. Our enemies would be watching it and we didn’t have the capacity to teleport in and out right now.

  “Thanks,” I said and upended the contents onto the table. My cell phone, bracelet, dagger and sheath, sapphire rune stone and the carving of the angel slid out. I put the bracelet on and slid the sheath into my right boot. I held onto the carving of Nathan for a few seconds before adding it, and the rune stone, to my pocket. The only thing missing was the fragment of metal. I’d left it in the nightstand of my bedroom.

  “I noticed the strange markings on the bracelet have increased in number,” Sophia said.

  Spinning it around slowly on my wrist, I saw what she meant. It was almost completely covered in the symbols now. Only a small section remained clear. They were similar to the markings the Demon Princes had all over their bodies and the images on the tarnished silver pieces I brought back from hell. All three were connected, but I wasn’t sure how. “I still have no idea what the symbols mean,” I said.

  “I have a feeling they are important,” she said in a worried tone. She had been sent a vision about the mysterious object of power. Once it was assembled, it would supposedly aid me in my battle against the Hellmaster. She hadn’t been sent any information in relation to the strange markings. “I almost feel as though they are a warning,” she added.

  “They began appearing when I started killing lesser demons,” I said. “With each Prince that I killed, more of them showed up.” We sat in contemplative silence, puzzling over something none of us could understand. I shrugged it off and returned to a more urgent matter. “I’m going to try to visit Raziel and the other angels in a dream tonight. I’ll ask them to lend me their power so I can zap Vepar with holy fire. Hopefully, it will frighten her enough to convince her to break the deal she made with Nathan.”

  When I was upset or under stress, my inner dwellers could see through my eyes. Confronting Demon Lords was always a stressful situation. I was sure Raziel and his colleagues would be able to watch our conversation and know when I’d need them to attack Vepar with holy fire. They needed time to recharge after zapping Zach’s essence to death, so I hoped they would be back to their full strength by tomorrow night.

  “I am sure they will agree,” Sophia said. “They know how important Nathan is to you. He was chosen to be your guardian and they will not stand by and allow a demon to treat him as a slave.”

  Needing something to take my mind off my troubles, I turned to Reynolds. “Can you drive me to a department store? I don’t know how long we’ll be staying here and I should buy some more clothes while things are relatively quiet.”

  “Of course,” he replied and stood. It was only late afternoon, so I had plenty of time left to grab a few essentials.

  Sophia handed me some money before I could ask. “Thanks,” I said with a weary grin. The grace the angels had infused me with was rapidly fading, leaving me feeling tired. Only Nathan’s essence could give me a jolt of excess energy, it seemed. I didn’t think I would have much trouble sleeping tonight.

  Reynolds and I made our way back to his car. He drove to the closest department store where I should be able to find everything I needed. It was only a few blocks away from our new base. His phone rang just as he pulled over. “It’s my partner,” he told me and motioned for me not to say anything. “Hey, Gomez. What’s up?” he said when he answered it. I couldn’t hear his partner’s response, but his expression was grave when she was done. “I’ll be right there,” he said and hung up.

  “What is it this time?” I asked.

  “A double murder,” he replied with a heavy sigh. “Our captain wants us to investigate it.” He meant Vepar of course.

  “If it was demons that were evicted from their vessels, they would have floated to me by now. It sounds like the victims are human.”

  “That’s what I figured. Can you get back to the base on your own?”

  “I’ll be fine,” I assured him. I couldn’t expect him to be at my beck and call all the time. He had a job to do and he couldn’t exactly say no to his captain, even though he knew she was a Demon Lord.

  I climbed out and he took off with his siren blaring. Cars swerved out of the way to let him through as he headed northward.

  Entering the department store, I carefully scanned the faces of everyone in sight as I searched for clothes. Sophia had given me plenty of money, but I chose items that wouldn’t stand out rather than designer wear. Picking black or dark blue, I grabbed jeans, t-shirts, a couple of hoodies and underwear. I also grabbed a suitcase to put them in. It had wheels so I wouldn’t have to carry it all the way back to our base.

  On my way to the door, I stopped long enough to stuff my bags into the suitcase. As I made my way to the exit, a pack of six demons entered. Thinking fast, I angled away from them. My bracelet would hide me from them, but I wasn’t taking any chances. Brushing against a pair of boys who were in their late teens, I took on the appearance of the shorter one. Even my clothes became exact duplicates of his.

  Feeling safer now that I was wearing someone else’s face, I skirted around the demons who were nearly blocking the doorway. Their eyes scanned the crowd, but they didn’t appear to be tense. Maybe they were just looking for someone to torment. Idle demons found ways to amuse themselves. A captain was in charge. I saw her true face appear as I sidled around them. With a wave of her hand, she gathered her minions together and turned to leave.

  Surrounded by my enemies, my back went stiff and my shoulders hunched slightly. They paid no attention to me at all as they stepped around me and continued their patrol. They’d just been checking their territory to make sure no enemies or rivals had infiltrated it.

  Letting out a quiet breath, I headed in the opposite direction and made my way back to our base. Timing how long I could hold the illusion, I managed to last for a full minute before it faded. I was making progress, but it would take practice before I could hold it as long as Sam had been able to.

  Grateful to my best friend for his gift, I hoped I could find a way to release his soul from captivity. He deserved better than to fade away to nothingness if I was killed in the line of duty.

  ₪₪₪

  Chapter Eighteen

  Once I was back at our base, I gave Sophia the remainder of her money. I didn’t have a wallet or handbag to put it in and I didn’t want loose change jingling in my pockets. “Would you like some tea?” she asked.

  “Sure. That’d be great. I’ll just store my things in my room.” I rolled the suitcase to the small office that was now my bedroom.

  We were lu
cky the suite of offices had a bathroom with an actual shower in it as well as a kitchen. I was glad Leo had picked this place for our observation. We’d never anticipated that we would end up hunkering down here, hiding from our enemies.

  Speaking of enemies, I hadn’t seen the undead raven yet. It had to be lurking somewhere in the city, waiting for an opportunity to make my life miserable. It had been plaguing me ever since my first trip to hell. I still hadn’t found a way to get rid of it. I had a feeling it would haunt me right to the bitter end.

  Sophia had tea waiting for me when I returned to the kitchen. With no television to watch or books to read, I had little to occupy me until it was time for me to sleep. We made small talk until dinner, which turned out to be a quick microwave meal. Leaving Sophia and Elijah talking at the table when I was done, I crossed the hall and let myself into Nathan’s room.

  He didn’t notice my arrival. He was too busy trying to wriggle out of his chains. The look of desperation on his face made my insides twist. Kneeling beside him, I pressed my palm against his cheek and he went still. His eyes met mine and I saw a moment of clarity. “Violet?” he said in a bewildered voice.

  “It’s me,” I replied softly.

  “Vepar is in my mind,” he said in horror. “I can hear her voice commanding me to go to her.”

  “It’s because of the deal you made with her,” I told him. “I’m going to make her break it and then you’ll be free.”

  “I will never be free from her,” he said bleakly. “I fear we will be bound until one of us dies.”

  “I promise you that you won’t be the one who will die.”

  He searched my face and smiled at my ferocity. “You have become my guardian now.”

  “Only until you get your grace back. Then things can go back to how they should be.”

  “I do not think things will ever be the same again,” he said softly. Then the reason left his eyes and he began to struggle to get free again.

  My touch seemed to offer him some comfort, so I sat beside him with my hand on his shoulder. Nathan didn’t need to sleep, but I did. My eyelids eventually began to droop from fatigue. Bending to place a kiss on his forehead, I left him to his struggles and headed for my room.

  Taking my boots off, I lay down on the mattress fully clothed and pulled a blanket over me. Despite Elijah’s blessing and my wards, I didn’t feel secure here. I wanted to be able to leave at a moment’s notice. Within minutes, I drifted off to sleep and ended up in the shadowlands of my mind again.

  Sam opened the door to Raziel’s house before I could knock. “I see you have already gotten the knack of camouflaging yourself,” he said proudly.

  “It is seriously the best gift anyone has ever given me.” I hugged him hard then gave Heather a hug as well.

  “Can you show us your ability?” she asked in excitement.

  In this place that I’d created with my mind, I could make myself look like anyone. Instead of using my imagination, I called on the new power that Sam had given me. Touching her hand, I made myself into an exact duplicate of her. “How do I look?” I asked with her voice.

  “You look hot,” she replied and sniggered.

  Dropping the illusion, I checked on Sy and saw he was working on a new rune. I doubted the angels would be happy if I allowed him to practice his spells in their house, so I didn’t offer. Morax and the other lords were still crispy and didn’t look like they’d improved at all. Morax opened his eyes a crack and gave me an unhappy glare. I knew he needed me to return to hell, but I had a few tasks to complete first.

  Raziel and his two cronies joined us, knowing I had something to ask them. “Can you obliterate Vepar’s essence like you did Zach’s?” I queried.

  “We do not know,” Raziel replied with a frown. “It may have been our power that was used, but you were the one wielding it. As far as I know, destroying demonic essence has never been done before.”

  I’d been so sure they’d been responsible, but it seemed it was my own personal magic that had made it possible. Being a Nephilim gave me powers that even demons and angels didn’t possess. “Vepar won’t know that,” I said. “Will you let me borrow your grace again so I can give her a jolt of holy fire?”

  “You do not need our permission,” one of the other angels said unhappily. They hadn’t offered their names and I didn’t particularly care who they were. They’d punished Nathan horribly after he’d been harvested. As far as I was concerned, they still had a lot of penance to do to make up for it. “You can simply draw it from us whenever you need to,” he added. Even Raziel wasn’t happy about it, judging by his morose expression.

  “Have you recovered from me using your power to zap Zach yet?” I queried.

  “Not quite,” Raziel replied. “We will be back to our full power in a few hours.”

  “Why do you want to confront Vepar again?” the third angel asked. “That would be courting disaster.”

  “She made a deal with Nathan and I need her to break their bargain. I know demons well enough by now that only the threat of death will get her to agree.”

  “She will most likely demand that you will not be allowed to divest her of her life,” Raziel pointed out. “Vepar will continue to be a thorn in your side if you make this agreement with her.”

  “One way or another, she’ll get what’s coming to her,” I said darkly. It might not be my hand that would weild the weapon that would take her down, but I was confident that it would happen eventually.

  “Nathanael needs to be restored to his full power if he is to continue to be your guardian,” the second angel said. “How are you going to retrieve his grace from Hagith?”

  Touching him on the arm, I assumed his appearance. “I think I can find a way,” I replied with his voice.

  “I wish I could be there to guard your back,” Sam said wistfully.

  Dropping the illusion, I took his hand. “You will be. Having you inside me rather than at my side isn’t the same, but it gives me a lot of comfort.”

  He smiled shyly and Heather surreptitiously wiped away a tear. She knew how much I loved Sam and that he felt the same way about me. It had crushed me to steal his soul, but she’d been right to urge me to do it. I couldn’t have left him in hell. It would have been the worst kind of betrayal.

  “When are you planning on confronting Vepar?” Raziel asked.

  “Tomorrow night,” I replied. “Reynolds will be there to back me up if anything goes wrong.” He was just a fragile human and his cover would be blown if he came to my rescue, but he was all I had. Once again, I’d have to trust Fate to watch my back.

  ₪₪₪

  Chapter Nineteen

  Reynolds arrived shortly after I’d eaten dinner the next night. Sophia had even more money than I’d realized. She’d rented the suite of offices for six months. We didn’t have to worry about anyone walking in on us, not that they could get through my defenses. We were the only ones who could open the doors.

  We hadn’t been able to contact Brie, Dom or Jed to let them know where we’d shifted to. I could have used my bracelet to summon Brie to me. But I didn’t want to blow her cover and give away that she was our spy. Disappearing without warning would be a sure sign that something was up. Besides, she rarely left the warehouse and I couldn’t summon anyone while they were behind the angelic wards.

  Reynolds got straight to business when he sat down at the table. “I have good news. I’ve discovered Captain Marsh’s address. You won’t have to sneak into our headquarters to blackmail her after all.”

  Vesper Marsh was the human name Vepar was using. She seemed a bit young to be a police captain, but half of the cops were demons and they would back her up. None of the human cops had questioned her authority so far.

  “How did you find out where she lives?” Sophia asked.

  “I overheard her telling a young officer to meet her there at ten tonight.” He grimaced at the thought of one of his colleagues sleeping with a demon.

  “L
et me guess,” I said. “He’s good looking, has black hair and blue eyes.”

  He blinked in surprise. “How did you know?”

  “She’s been lusting after Nathan for tens of thousands of years from the looks of it,” I replied dryly. “She picks men who look like him.” Nathan’s vessel was very close to his true form. Most angels chose to possess humans who resembled them when they came to Earth on their missions.

  “Where does she live?” Elijah asked.

  “In a condo in Chelsea.”

  “This could be the perfect opportunity to ambush her,” I said in growing excitement. I’d been planning on sneaking into their headquarters and getting her alone somehow. This would be a far better idea.

  “I agree,” Reynolds said and launched into his plan. If everything went well, his cover wouldn’t be blown and he could continue to be our spy.

  “It sounds dangerous,” Sophia said when he was finished. “There is no guarantee that Violet will be able to call on the angels’ power again.”

  “I’m doing this for Nathan,” I reminded her. “That’s all the incentive I need.”

  She couldn’t argue with that logic. She knew how much I loved my guardian and that I would do anything necessary to ensure his safety.

  Reynolds and I left at nine so we’d have plenty of time to get into position. He parked around the corner from Vepar’s building and climbed out. There was nowhere handy to hide, so we stood behind a van that was parked nearby. When a car approached a few minutes before ten, we went on full alert.

  The detective peeked out from concealment and observed the driver as he parked and climbed out. He gave me a nod and I readied myself. We were going to have to act fast to pull this off.

  Waiting for the young cop to approach the door to Vepar’s building, we rushed him quietly from behind. Reynolds expertly used the butt of his gun to knock the guy out. Together, we carried him back to his car and put him on the backseat.