Hades cleared his throat and crossed his arms. “Look, sweetheart…Lady Black, after you sent me back to the Hall of Torment, Aganon came to retrieve me. I foolishly thought that you had changed your mind and ordered my release. Aganon was acting strangely and seemed bewildered. His hands were shaking when he lowered me to the ground. He babbled on about the Hall of Mirrors, Lucifer, and you on the floor. He was so distraught that I had trouble understanding what he was saying. Once I understood that I was needed by Lucifer, I leisurely made my way to the Hall of Mirrors and found Lucifer and Gabriel fretting over you. Once I comprehended the extent of your injuries, I instructed Gabriel to remove your ring so that your power could aid in your healing. After that I left,” Hades did his best to sell his version of the story, since it was the biggest fucking lie he’d ever told.
He had practically run to the Hall of Mirrors once he had deciphered the part about Lady Black being close to death. He thought about how he had to compose himself at the doorway before entering the hall so that Lucifer wouldn’t know that he had sprinted at record pace to reach them. He had told Lucifer to make a choice, happiness, or sadness. Unfortunately, Lucifer had misunderstood his statement. Lucifer said that he had chosen happiness. Hades had meant, either choose sadness because Lady Black would have to live with the devil for the rest of her existence, or happiness because she would drift into oblivion, away from the pain and suffering she would inevitably endure in Hell. That statement often echoed through his mind whenever he saw Lucifer abusing Lady Black. After Lucifer had thrown her across the Throne Room, he watched her rise from the floor, bleeding, as Lucifer’s words, “I chose happiness” played through his mind and made him sick. He had made Lucifer and Gabriel swear never to tell her what he had said or how frantic he had been to help her.
“You mean you hid in your room. Lucifer said that you didn’t come out for over a week. Were you afraid Lucifer would see how gleeful you were that I had nearly died? I’m sure you threw a party. Now, back to Aganon, you said that he was acting strange. How?” Anjali stalked closer.
Yes, he had shut himself in his room for a week trying to sort out his feelings for her. In the end, he realized it wasn’t worth a bloody death for claiming her for himself. He decided to let her make enough mistakes that would force Lucifer to toss her out on her ass, and then, problem solved. He, of course, would help her make those mistakes along the way. He couldn’t stay out of it completely. The faster she was gone, the faster he could forget the way she looked in that damned sexy dress and all the thoughts it inspired. There were times when he imagined Serena standing in front of him, crazed, and foaming at the mouth to invoke his hatred of the dress and Lady Black.
Hades decided to let her believe whatever silly story she had concocted. It was safer than telling her the truth. He jumped on the change of subject and tried his best to detail Aganon’s bizarre behavior.
“Well, for starters, he was muttering to himself. I didn’t pay much attention to him since I noticed that he was nursing a broken arm. The swearing would have been natural. Seems Lucifer had broken it accidentally when he tried to make Aganon explain the scream that he had heard. Now that I think back, he was saying something about how ‘she will be pleased’. I assumed at the time that he was talking about you, though I admit I don’t ponder the motivations of servants,” Hades shrugged indifferently.
“I doubt that he was talking about me since I wasn’t pleased to be bleeding on the floor. What exactly did he say?” Anjali knew there was more to it, even if Hades wanted to dismiss Aganon’s actions.
Hades nodded in agreement and tried to remember exactly what the moron was babbling about.
“He said, ‘she will be pleased’, and ‘she will be happy’. That’s all that I remember. I agree now that he wasn’t talking about you. He should have been more concerned about Lucifer’s reaction to his deed. I’m surprised that Lucifer didn’t kill Aganon immediately. You must sincerely have an effect on him. To be honest, I don’t know why you have allowed Aganon to live this long,” Hades wanted nothing more than to see Aganon strung up by his toenails and beaten to a pulp. He would have killed Aganon personally, if not for the questions that would be asked, such as “why did he care enough to kill the servant”? He didn’t need to bring any more attention to his dangerous obsession.
Anjali’s head snapped up at the obvious question. “Why wasn’t Aganon more concerned about Lucifer’s reaction? Lucifer is his Master. He controls him. He decides if he lives or dies. I’ve seen Lucifer destroy a servant in a matter of seconds. Aganon would have known the penalty for killing me. Why would he risk his own life on a kamikaze mission?” Anjali knew that was the vital question.
“You don’t know, do you? Leave it to Lucifer to keep you in the dark,” Hades paused as the answer came to him. The information he was about to tell her would definitely cause Lady Black to go on a rampage. Lucifer would get what he deserved and might think twice about harming her in the future.
“Know what?” Anjali waited, hoping that Hades didn’t dangle the information in front of her only to snatch it away and use it to get something that he wanted. It was always an eye for an eye with Hades, or a smack down for a smack down.
“Lucifer wasn’t the one who made the deal with Aganon when he was a mortal; he obtained him later through a transfer of ownership, if you will. Much like Lucifer giving you power over his servants, he can also take ownership of someone else’s servant or give his own servant away permanently. Of course, there is sometimes a hint of loyalty that remains for the original master. The reason that the person made the deal may influence the bond and make it stronger,” Hades explained.
“So if the person made a deal to get out of a bad situation, they might hold some devotion to the one who helped them? Aganon was a Greek farmer who was tired of his homeland being invaded and his loved ones being slaughtered. I knew he made a deal with someone to stop the invaders and keep his family safe, but I assumed it was Lucifer,” Anjali pondered this new information. She wondered if she would still have a bond with Lucifer if she were traded to someone else, if she could be traded. She knew blood servants were bound to the life force of their master. Sadly, she wasn’t going anywhere.
“Correct, though there are other reasons for a connection to a master,” Hades replied smoothly.
“Tell me who Aganon’s original master was,” she stared Hades down, making sure that he wasn’t planning to withhold the name.
Hades sighed. He had so many interesting ways of playing this game. He should have asked for something in return, but instead, he decided to give her the name and watch her punch Lucifer in the gut. It would be reward enough.
“Lucifer’s former lover, the one who parked her backside in the third throne before Serena; she was Aganon’s original Master. I’m sure Lucifer has told you about Maraquette” Hades was suddenly nervous as he witnessed Lady Black’s eyes narrow and felt a distinct change in the wind. He had underestimated her anger, which was visibly rising to the surface. He was concerned that her power would escape and remove a few layers of his skin. Perhaps he should have written the answer down and made her wait five minutes to read it, while he ran far away from her.
Maraquette. Jealousy spiked through her at the thought of the beautiful angel that once held Lucifer’s heart, and perhaps still did. He had left her behind in Heaven when he chose to fall into Hell. He then persuaded her to join him in Hell. Ultimately, she stormed out of Hell because of Lucifer’s cruel treatment of her. Anjali knew Lucifer felt guilty about the whole situation.
“I thought she was dead. At least that’s the way Lucifer speaks of her, past tense,” Anjali said through gritted teeth. Yet another thing that Lucifer had failed to mention. The King of Omissions had struck again.
“No, she’s still alive, but because she is a Forgotten, we consider her to be dead and lost to us, so I can understand the confusion. I’ve heard rumors that she may have turned rogue, but that would be Michael’s territory. T
ypically, we only find out if an angel has become a Rogue is when they are dropped off in chains at our doorstep so that we can torture them. Heaven likes to keep certain information quiet. I think they are afraid we will rise up and join the Rogues to overthrow Father, which isn’t true,” Hades chuckled at the thought of rising up against Father. It was the last thing he wanted to do. While he didn’t shout it from the rooftops, he was very loyal to Father.
“If she orchestrated my attempted murder, then I will classify her as a Rogue and hunt her myself,” Anjali growled.
Hades flinched, though he tried his best to hide it. He’d never seen her more deadly. In an instant, her very demeanor changed and she looked like the Destroyer, fierce and unyielding. He felt compelled to warn her.
“If she is a Rogue, it means she will be very dangerous. Rogues will go to any length to strike out at Father and any other angel they have a grievance with. Their hatred will make them stronger. They no longer fear repercussions since they believe they have nothing left to lose. Be wary of her if she is the culprit, but before you get your panties in a twist, Aganon could have been speaking of someone else. There could be another woman that he values. I would have no knowledge of such a person. I don’t care about the goings on of the servants,” Hades waved his hand. He needed to end this conversation and point her in the right direction before she lost control of her temper and blew them both up.
“Time to talk to Aganon,” Anjali turned and headed down the stairs.
Hades breathed a sigh of relief. He needed to find Katarina and work out some of his lust in a healthier and saner manner. Of course, Katarina wasn’t sane, but she was a much safer fuck.
Anjali paused and turned. “You never said why you summoned me,” she stared at Hades, daring him to say something stupid.
“Oh, yes, that. Between you and me, Lucifer is back to his usual ways, which means he is murderous and unstable. You need to forgive him and then blow him as soon as possible,” Hades said unabashedly.
He had actually summoned her to yell at her for pushing Katarina into the Realm of Fire, but thought better of it, after seeing her mood shift. He would have to lie to Katarina and tell her that he had warned Lady Black to leave her alone.
“What did he do now?” Anjali growled.
Hades couldn’t admit that Lucifer had used his own personal servant Jared as a punching bag for no particular reason, so he waved his hand implying “use your imagination”.
“I’ll deal with him when I’m ready,” Anjali spun on her heel and walked down the stairs.
Hades didn’t like her answer. He knew that he would be next in line for an ass-kicking if Lady Black didn’t calm Lucifer. Perhaps it was time to make himself scarce.
Anjali made her way down the stairs to the third floor and into the Hall of Torment, which occupied nearly half of the floor. The room was used to punish mortal prisoners who had gotten out of hand and needed extra behavior modification, the Fallen who had disobeyed a higher up, any creatures or Rogue Angels from the Hall of Shadows, and misbehaving servants. They were all beaten and tortured, until it was decided that they’d suffered enough.
The Fallen were hanging in the front rows, closest to the entrance so that anyone could hit them while entering and leaving the room, since they should know better than to disobey. Lucifer liked to make sure that they thought twice about coming back to the Hall of Torment.
Mortal prisoners occupied the middle sections, while the Hall of Shadows prisoners lined the walls away from the general population. The servants were kept in the back of the expansive room. The servants were rarely sent to the hall since they were punished on a regular basis for failing in their duties. Most servants considered it a holiday to be away from their master for a while, even if it meant spending time hanging by their wrists.
Dmitri, the brutal Overseer of the hall, watched her with interest from the corner of his dark eyes as he flogged a mortal, though he didn’t acknowledge her. She could feel Dmitri’s eyes burning into her back as she moved deeper into the hall. The other Fallen working in the room stood up straight and doubled their efforts to punish the prisoners.
She walked past the rows of moaning prisoners who were hanging like sides of beef and stepped over the various pools of blood. She located Aganon, who was hanging by himself in the last row. He was dangling with his toes barely scraping on the ground, just the way Lucifer preferred. It kept them from swinging too much and made them feel the blows more sharply. He was covered in blood, sweat, dirt, and bruises. His handsome boyish face was distorted by the swelling. His bright green eyes were vacant.
As she stood in front of him, she recalled his reflection in the mirror standing behind her as she fell to her knees with the Celestial Sword piercing her chest. He hadn’t looked angry, smug, or even happy. He looked disconnected, as if he were a million miles away, just as he did now. If Maraquette had sent him to kill her then he did it merely because she commanded it. He took no joy or pleasure from the act. He must have a strong devotion to his original master.
“Aganon,” her voice sounded authoritative, even to her own ears.
“My lady,” he replied without lifting his head. He sounded defeated. She realized that he had been waiting for her.
“Do you know why I am here?” she asked, not really understanding the duality of her question until the words were said aloud. Do you know why I’m standing here talking to you and do you know why I’m still alive? It was doubtful that Lucifer had explained all the details of her rescue from oblivion.
“Yes. You are here to kill me,” he spoke quietly and with resignation in his voice. He had already accepted his death.
“Hardly. If I wanted you dead, I would have done it by now. I have been seeking the patience to speak to you, so that I wouldn’t kill you. Lucifer has left your fate to me, though he knew immediately that I would not take your life,” she replied, stone faced.
Aganon raised his head and looked at her for the first time. She could see the confusion on his face as he processed her statement and understood that he would continue to breathe air into his lungs, at least for now. It wasn’t clear if he was happy or sad about living to see the next beating from Lucifer.
“Technically, I should drag you to the Hall of Mercy to interrogate you, but I think we’ll stay here. There are plenty of weapons to make you talk, though they are less subtle and would probably cause you to black out before you actually formed a confession,” while she didn’t like scaring servants, she figured that she was due some fear since he had dealt a killing blow to her back, without warning or provocation.
Aganon understood her warning having personally felt every weapon that the hall had to offer. The Hall of Mercy may have its racks and Iron Maidens but the Hall of Torment held swords, maces, and whips made from razor wire, his least favorite.
“I’m so sorry, my lady, so very sorry. You have no idea how much I regret my actions. You have to believe me, I never intended for this to happen,” tears filled his eyes as incoherent apologies flew from his mouth.
“It’s odd that you are apologizing now that you know you will live,” she raised an eyebrow at him.
“I thought that my apologies would fall upon deaf ears because you had already decided to put me to death. I wanted to die quietly so that I would not invoke your wrath further. I was afraid that Lord Lucifer might make me your servant, so that I would be subjected to your anger daily,” Aganon was hyperventilating as he went on and on about his potential punishments.
She felt somewhat guilty that he’d been panicking this whole time thinking about all the terrible things that awaited him, until she remembered that she was Lucifer’s blood servant because of what he had done.
“Relax Aganon. I’m not going to take you as my servant or unleash my fury upon you. However, you are going to tell me what I ever did to you to deserve a sword to the back. You were the one person I thought I could trust here,” Anjali was choked up at the thought of being betrayed by someone
she thought trustworthy. She had gone against her natural distrusted of people, the part that believed they were only capable of deception, and had foolishly placed her faith in Aganon. Perhaps she should learn to keep people at arm’s length.
Aganon’s eyes dropped back to the ground. He seemed at a loss for words. He gave up trying to form an explanation for his actions and hung his head in shame.
“You have nothing to say for yourself?” Anjali’s anger was surfacing, though she tried to stamp it down. It would not go well for the boy if her anger got the better of her.
“Nothing I can say will absolve me or make any sense of my actions. I’m sorry,” he was back to quiet resignation.
“Start talking Aganon, and pray that understanding makes its way to my heart. I’m only a few feet from instant pain no matter which way I turn,” she replied coldly.
It suddenly dawned on her that the room was silent. The moaning and swearing echoing in the room could drive someone insane, but right then she could hear a pin drop.
She looked around expecting to see everyone staring at them and listening with bated breath to their conversation, eager to eavesdrop on an interesting exchange, but instead, all eyes and heads were turned away from her. A cold chill ran through her when she recognized the terror on their faces. Her anger was making her scary, very scary. Even Dmitri was busying himself on the opposite end of the room, far away from her.
Aganon was sputtering, trying to make sense of his thoughts. He was trembling and panting as he tried to form coherent phrases. Perhaps she needed to tone down her approach before he passed out. She didn’t need her darkness coming to the surface.
“I’ll make this simple. Who sent you to kill me?” she said softly, calmly.
Aganon’s head snapped up. “My Master,” he blurted out.
“Lucifer or Maraquette?” she replied quickly.
Aganon’s tone changed in a heartbeat and he was no longer frantic. His words were smooth as if a different person were speaking them. “Lady Maraquette. She ordered me to find you and deliver a message.”
The Third Throne: Angel of Death Page 16