The Third Throne: Angel of Death

by Tabitha Barret

  “Did he believe that you saw spirits or did he placate you?” Derick visibly relaxed and leaned back into his chair.

  She immediately knew the answer. “He placated me, I think. Actually, I’m pretty sure he did. I mean, I know he believed that I was seeing things, but didn’t think they actually existed. He thought there was something wrong with me. He wanted to fix me somehow. He never understood what I was really going through,” she frowned. It broke her heart to know that CJ hadn’t really believed her, though she was grateful for his support.

  “So that’s why you left him. He was there for you, but he didn’t get it. He didn’t understand what you were seeing. He wasn’t a believer,” Derick replied quietly.

  “I think you’re right. I think that’s why I left him,” Annie knew Derick’s observation was correct.

  “Well, now you have people who believe you,” Pete smiled. He finished the last of his beer and stood up.

  “That’s right, Annie. You see something supernatural, you tell us, and we’ll point a camera at it,” Josilyn giggled.

  Annie laughed. She was grateful for their acceptance. It was nice to talk about her experiences with someone who wasn’t associated with Hell.

  Pete stood up and tossed money onto the table. “Derick, we have to set up for tonight’s shoot. Wedge and I will meet up with Morgan and we’ll see you back at the castle. I hope he was able to find the right part. Josilyn, finish working on your intro, and we’ll start shooting it just after sunset. Annie, you’re more than welcome to join us. Don’t worry about Cassie. I’ll deal with her.”

  “Thank you, Pete,” Annie nodded.

  Josilyn, Wedge, and Pete left the restaurant talking loudly about what they needed to do for the night’s shoot.

  Annie looked up at Derick and her mouth went dry. He was leaning back in his chair, appearing to be comfortable and carefree, but his eyes belied his calm. They were hungry and on fire. He was absently rubbing the lip of the glass with one finger. With his lips parted, he was sexy as hell and had undoubtedly missed her.

  Her brain failed her and she gulped. She quickly smiled and shifted uncomfortably in her chair.

  “Don’t you need to go with them? I don’t want to keep you from your job,” she said quickly, needing an exit strategy before she leaned over the table and kissed him.

  “No, I handled the shoot his morning so that Pete could hang back. Last night was rough. You were right about keeping an eye on him. He didn’t try to hurt himself, but he was definitely struggling with what he saw. Thanks for the heads up,” Derick nodded.

  “Honestly, I didn’t know what to expect, but I figured there might be aftereffects,” she shrugged. She noticed that his eyes were riveted to her face, like he was trying to remember every detail of it.

  “What you said last night to Pete about going to Hell finally makes sense. Why didn’t you tell me about the nightmares?” Derick whispered and leaned forward to take her hand.

  “Like I said, no one believed me. My dad once told me I needed to stop eating chocolate before bed and that’s why I had bad dreams. I did everything I could to keep it a secret. After keeping quiet for so many years, it feels strange to say it out loud,” she played with his fingers and shifted her chair closer to him.

  “You could have told me. I would have believed you. Do you still have the nightmares?” he rubbed her palm with his thumb, causing her to blush.

  “It’s more like a waking dream, one that I can’t escape from,” she cringed. She shouldn’t be telling him the truth. She had to stop staring at his gorgeous lips before she told him that she actually lived in Hell.

  “I’m sorry. Is that why you ran off to explore foreign countries, so that you could get away from everything?” Derick asked. He pulled her hand to his mouth and lightly kissed her knuckles.

  Annie’s brain glitched when she felt his lips on her hand. She wanted to tell him everything.

  “I know it sounds like I’m running from my problems, but it’s more than that. My parents were boring, sheltered individuals who thought knitting was an interesting past time. I wanted to see the world. I too had an uncle who traveled. He told me about the places he’d seen and I wanted to get away from the mundane. I felt like I would never really grow up if I stayed with them,” she said. She had wanted so badly to travel with Uncle Bob and CJ. Part of her still wished she’d stayed alive a little longer to see the world with them.

  “I know the feeling. Tulsa seemed exotic compared to my hometown. Maybe we could see the world together,” Derick was close enough to her that he could feel the heat pouring off her body.

  She wanted more than anything to explore the world with Derick. She wanted a normal man who wasn’t mired in darkness. She didn’t want to protect herself from Celestial Swords and crazed servants. She didn’t want to fight with her angels. She yearned to be mortal again.

  “I wish I could, but I can’t,” she replied. Holy shit, had she actually said that out loud?

  Derick tilted his head, confused, but undeterred. “Why not? I know we don’t know each other very well, but we have plenty of time to learn. We could see the sights and look for answers to life’s mysteries along the way,” his smile didn’t diminish, but brightened at the possibility of staying with her.

  “It’s complicated,” she blurted out the excuse. It was an understatement, but it was the truth.

  Derick’s expression immediately changed. He let go of her hand and sat back in his chair. His smile was a distant memory.

  “I failed to ask you the all-important question. I assumed because you were traveling alone that you weren’t with someone. I was wrong to assume, wasn’t I? There is someone,” Derick looked angry and frustrated. He avoided her gaze.

  This was her out. She could play the devil card and make a clean break. She had enough problems when it came to men. She had a deep connection with Alazar that was impossible to fight, and she had died to be with Lucifer. It wasn’t fair to Derick to make him believe that they had a future together.

  “Yes,” her small response hung in the air, causing the temperature to plummet.

  Derick snickered. He was a total fucking idiot. Of course, the woman of his dreams was unavailable. It was his lot in life to find the perfect woman only to learn that she was with someone else. She was probably fucking engaged.

  “And where is he?” Derick replied icily.

  “I asked him to give me space. He can be rather suffocating and overbearing,” she tried not to roll her eyes. She was being watched even now. Radek was sitting at the bar behind them pretending to watch TV.

  “Let me guess, he's the jealous type,” Derick could see the fear in her eyes, the second the question was asked. He had to salvage this relationship, or potential relationship. She couldn’t truly love the asshole if she had willingly allowed herself to be ravaged by a stranger in the middle of a dark castle. Suddenly a number of pieces fit together and he instinctively understood the problem.

  “Very,” she hissed. Lucifer was so jealous that she shouldn't be sitting alone with a man. She and Radek would suffer his wrath if he found out.

  “Was he your first?” Derick knew he’d gone too far, but he had to see her reaction.

  “I’ve had enough. Good bye, Derick,” she abruptly stood, knocking over the chair. She should have slapped him, but she was too embarrassed.

  He grabbed her arm before she could run off. “Tell me, is he the first thing you think of when you wake up and the last thing you dream of before you fall asleep? Annie, you don’t smile when you talked about him. Instead, you seem scared or angry. That's not love. I know he hurts you. I can tell. You flinch when I touch you, as if you’re waiting to be hit. It doesn't have to be like that,” Derick lowered his voice, avoiding the concerned looks from the other patrons.

  Annie refused to turn back and acknowledge him.

  “You don’t understand,” she whispered, wishing she could tell him everything.

  “I'm sorry, but for som
e reason, you believe that you don't deserve to be happy. You think that you need to suffer for something bad that you’ve done. No one deserves to suffer,” Derick knew he was practically pleading, but he couldn’t let her go without a fight.

  Annie hesitated, but finally answered his question. “Last night I thought about a problem that I’ve been having, one that you don’t know about. I have a friend that I’m fighting with. I was trying to figure out why I can’t communicate with him, why I can’t get through to him. After that, I thought about you before I fell asleep. When I woke up, my first thought was about the guy I’m with because he called me. It wasn’t a pleasant conversation,” she winced, remembering how she had dressed down the devil in front of everyone.

  “Is that the real reason for the marks on your neck? Is he here? Annie, I saw different marks the first night that I met you and now there’s a second set. I don’t believe your story about the curling iron, not now,” Derick said softly as he gently pulled her arm so that she had to face him.

  Annie was cold inside. While Lucifer hadn’t given her either set of marks, he had broken her arm and cracked her skull. “I'm not denying that there is something between us, Derick, but I can’t pursue it even if I wanted to. It’s safer if I walk away,” she dropped her eyes to the ground. She didn’t want to see him splattered on the sidewalk, but she couldn’t make herself leave him.

  “I’m not afraid of your overbearing, jealous boyfriend that hits you. He should worry about me. He preys on your insecurities and doubts. Does he tell you how wonderful things are when you’re together, but then something sets him off and he loses control? Does he cry to you about how sorry he is after he hurts you? Does he promise that he will never do it again? I’ve seen guys like this before, Annie, and they are never sorry. You need to break it off with him. You don’t need someone weighing you down and keeping you under his control. Does he beg you to stay and tell you that he can’t survive without you? Does he make you feel like a bad person for wanting to leave? Annie, you’re not the problem here, he is. He’s the reason you’re in Hell,” Derick reached out to touch Annie’s cheek, willing her to listen. He needed her to know that she wasn’t alone, that she didn’t have to live a miserable existence.

  Tears fell from Annie’s cheeks. A hysterical laughter bubbled up from deep inside of her. This boy, this mortal had no idea how close he was to the truth.

  “I wish it were as simple as walking out the door and not looking back, but I don’t have the luxury of doing that. I’m sorry, Derick. I wish I could tell you everything, and make you understand, but I can’t. Believe me when I say I wish this could work out, I truly do, but it can’t. You are an amazing person and I wish I had met you sooner,” she took his hand and pulled it to her lips. She kissed his palm and ran out of the restaurant.

  She was gone before he could speak.

  That was it. He had finally screwed up his chances with Annie, if he ever had a chance. How had he managed to push away the one woman who he’d waited his whole life to find? The look on her face told him that he’d gone too far when he called her out about losing her virginity to the loser. It was wrong of him to force her to talk about her secrets, but he could see that her problems were affecting her life. She needed to know that she had options. He didn’t want her to feel trapped by her situation.

  Derick ran into the hallway and paused. He didn’t know if she had gone back to her room or if she had left the inn. Either way, he wasn’t sure what he would say if he did find her. He totally expected her to punch him after what he’d said. He deserved it.

  “Looking for that girl you had the fight with in the restaurant?” a man asked from behind him. Derick remembered seeing him sitting at the bar watching TV.

  “It wasn’t a fight. It was me being stupid,” Derick admitted to the stranger.

  The man laughed and nodded. “I remember being stupid plenty of times. Odds are she went outside to get some air. Word of advice, sometimes when a person is going through something difficult, what they need is a friend who will listen. I overheard you say that you wouldn’t judge her, and the next thing I saw was tears. Sounds like you didn’t do a good job of not judging and keeping an open mind,” the stranger replied.

  “Yeah, I crossed the line. I know that, which is why I need to find her. I have to apologize,” Derick ran his hand through his hair.

  “Well, I wish you luck. That girl is special, I can tell, and not because she’s pretty. If she accepts your apology, then be the man that she needs, not the man that she thinks she wants,” the stranger nodded and walked past Derick, headed for the staircase.

  “I will. Thanks.” Derick turned to thank the stranger, but he was gone.

  ∞

  Annie stood on the sidewalk in front of the inn and let her tears spill freely. She had screwed things up so badly. She shook her head and realized that her hands were shaking. She sobbed as the reality of the situation crashed down on her. In less than a day, she had ordered Alazar to choose his fate and she had walked out on Derick. Everything was falling apart.

  Every inch of her soul wanted to march back into the restaurant, slap Derick, and then kiss him. She wanted to be with him, but she knew it would end the same way it had with CJ. She would have to leave him to keep him safe. The Bringer of Apocalypse wasn’t allowed to have a mortal boyfriend who would eventually die when she unleashed her power. If the Apocalypse didn’t kill him in this lifetime, Lucifer certainly would. Her relationship with Derick was doomed regardless of what she wanted.

  Staring up at the sky, she thought about Alazar. Midnight was still a few hours away. She was afraid that his anger would cause him to make the wrong choice. He had looked so bewildered when he had attacked her. He really had no idea what he was doing. She had seen glimmers of the real Alazar peeking through when they were sitting on the bed, but it had all changed when he allowed his fear and doubt to overwhelm him. She wasn’t sure if he could ever be whole and sane again.

  Could she kill him if he denied her? Technically, yes, she could kill him, but she couldn’t take his life knowing that she was partly responsible for his downfall. The guilt would be too much. She decided that if Alazar refused her, she would inform the Council and let them decide his fate. Depending on their decision, he would become a Forgotten or worse, they would declare him a Rogue, and then he would be Michael’s problem. She prayed that it didn’t come to that. If he accepted her and joined with her, she had to find a way to be a good and fair master.

  She rubbed her eyes and wiped the tears from her chin. She had to get a hold of herself. Lucifer needed to know about her ultimatum to Alazar so that he would be prepared for the possibility of accepting Alazar back into Hell. She feared that Lucifer might try to find Alazar and convince him to choose oblivion. If Alazar did accept her as his Master, Lucifer’s reaction could problematic. Despite knowing that Alazar was supposed to come back to Hell, it was still an abstract concept to Lucifer. He fully expected her to fail. He wanted her to fail. She knew that he would be pissed if Alazar entered Hell again. She was going to have to find a way for them to accept each other, without bloodshed.

  She was about to return to Hell when she heard footsteps behind her. Instinctively, she knew who was standing in the middle of the street.

  Turning around, she saw Derick standing behind her looking defeated. He was staring down at his feet, tapping his fingers against his leg. It was clear that he was debating what he wanted to say to her.

  He looked incredible in his black Spirit Experts T-shirt, blue jeans, and his unzipped black fleece jacket. His hair was messy like he’d been tugging at it. The force of his sadness nearly crushed her. She had done this. He had called her out on her terrible relationship with Lucifer and in return, she had broken his heart. She couldn’t stand to see him so upset. She couldn’t leave him like this.

  Derick was relieved to find Annie standing on the sidewalk across the street. He needed to apologize to her, even if they didn’t have a future toge
ther. He couldn’t leave Romania knowing that she hated him.

  He started speaking before she could say anything. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said those things to you. It was wrong of me to judge you after I told you that I wouldn’t. I don’t know what your circumstances are and I don’t need to know, unless you want to talk about them. I told you that I would listen, but I did all the talking and I made accusations that might have been false, or at least should have remained private. I don’t want you mad at me. I accept that you have someone in your life, but I want you to know that you don’t have to deal with your problems alone. I’m here for you, if you need help. I didn’t want to leave things on a bad note. Please forgive me for being a jerk,” Derick pleaded with her to forgive him.

  Annie took a deep breath. She wanted to hug him, but didn’t want to complicate things further between them. “Derick, the reason I was angry with you was because you were right, at least mostly right. I was mad because you saw through the lies that I tell people and the ones that I tell myself. I have no idea how you can be so insightful, but it’s scary. I tell myself a million excuses so that I can justify why I stay with him, but at the end of the day, I can’t walk away. I hope you can accept that. There’s an attraction between you and me, but it doesn’t change my situation. I have been trying to walk away from you since I first met you, but something keeps me coming back. I want things to be different, but there’s nothing I can do about it. You should walk away from me. You don’t need to be in the middle of my drama. It’s not fair to you. No good will come from us being together and in the end, I will have to leave. It would be easier to end things now before it gets harder,” she sighed. She needed to make him understand that there was no future for them.

  “Then let me be what you need, a friend. Come with me to town and we’ll just talk. I promise to listen. I swear,” Derick held out his hand and smiled. It killed him to see the tears on her cheeks. He hated himself for making her cry. He had to find a way to fix things. He would be happy if she forgave him enough to talk to him on the phone from Tulsa, or so he told himself.