by Мишель Роуэн
It was on the tip of Ben’s tongue to tell Oliver to shove his rules and guidelines up his ass. But he said nothing. Instead he stood, nodded his head like an obedient child, and left the room.
His fleur-de-lis brand itched as he stalked through the halls of the underground Malleus headquarters. He’d been taken for a tour there and shown the cells where they kept various evil creatures locked away awaiting punishment or for experimental purposes.
Ben’s face ached from where the other demon had used him as a punching bag. He’d been unable to move, held in place by magic. Hardly a fair fight. His eye socket and jaw had felt better, that was for sure.
He passed a cell just as a guard exited holding a tray. The tray held. . feathers?
A deep, muted voice could be heard from inside the metal cell warded by magic. Ben couldn’t make out the words. On the door was a tiny opening at eye level.
“Don’t you want to help us?” the Malleus guard asked. “You came here to help, and now all you do is whine. You would be smart to keep your mouth shut.”
He closed the door completely and it locked with a click, then he walked off down the hall. A white feather fell off the tray and drifted to the ground in front of Ben. He leaned over and picked it up, twisting it between his fingers.
“That’s mine,” a voice said.
Ben looked to his right. A face peered at him through the opening on the door to the darkened cell. A man. His face gaunt, his eyes sunken. A lock of bright red hair fell across his forehead.
Ben pushed the feather through the opening and the man took it.
“Thank you.” The man’s voice was weary and barely audible.
“No problem. Feather pillow?” he asked.
“No. My wings. Or, rather, what’s left of them.”
“Your wings?”
“Ben!” Oliver shouted down the hall. “I thought I told you to leave?”
“How long have you been here?” Ben asked the man.
“A while.”
“Who are you?”
Distrust flickered in the man’s green eyes. “What do you care?”
Ben glanced at the opening again but the man’s face was gone. Talking to prisoners without permission was breaking the rules. The Malleus had a lot of rules.
He left the building without speaking to another soul and went back to his house. He picked up the phone and dialed Eden’s number. It went through to her voicemail. He hung up without leaving a message. The next person he phoned, however, did pick up.
Twenty minutes later she arrived. Her face fell when she saw how beaten up he looked.
“Ben!” Sandy exclaimed. “What the hell happened to you?”
“Don’t you mean, who from Hell happened to me?” He explained the events of the previous night to her, glossing over the worst of it.
He’d been given some healing ointments by the Malleus. He wouldn’t scar, but it hadn’t taken care of his wounds overnight.
She touched his face, worry filling her expression. “Honestly. You’re a magnet for trouble, you know that?”
He snorted. “I know.”
“At least you’re okay.”
“For now.”
That earned him a stern glare. “So now what do we do?”
“We wait. At least that’s what I’ve been told.” He frowned. “Do you know of any prisoner at the Malleus who has wings?”
“Wings?”
“With white feathers. And he has red hair and green eyes.”
She seemed distracted by inspecting his wounds. “Sounds like an angel to me.”
His eyes widened. “An angel?”
She nodded. “I’ve never seen one before — not one with wings, anyhow. They’re usually up in Heaven. The earthbound angels who watch the Netherworld gateways temporarily get rid of their wings while they’re here to ensure they’re not damaged.”
Then that was impossible. “Why would the Malleus be holding an angel in a prison cell?”
“They wouldn’t, of course,” Sandy said firmly. “The Malleus fights on the side of light — on the side of angels — against the darkness.”
“You’re right, of course. I guess I was just seeing things.”
“Listen. . Ben, I wanted to talk to you. About. . about what happened yesterday. When you and I. .” She chewed her bottom lip and averted her gaze.
“The kiss?”
“That would be the topic at hand.”
“I think you already established how you felt about that. How it was a mistake and against the rules.” He raised an eyebrow. It hurt a little.
“Yeah, I did say that already, didn’t I?”
“And also how you know how much I care about Eden and my current obsession to save her from demons and other nasty creatures of darkness.”
“So we discussed this already?”
“We did.”
She forced a smile. “Then, well, that’s good. Forget it. Why don’t I just grab some bandages and I can patch you up a bit?”
Ben stood up from the couch. “Sandy, can I ask you something?”
“Sure.”
“Do you like working for the Malleus?”
“Of course. It makes me feel like I’m doing something worthwhile.”
He nodded. “Me, too.”
“And even though they have a lot of rules, it still makes sense.”
“Most of the rules I agree with.”
“Most of them?”
“Yeah. There’s just one I’m finding I’m not too fond of.”
“And which one is—”
She tensed with surprise when he kissed her but didn’t resist. He wondered if he’d forget about everything if he kissed her long enough. If breaking this one rule with Sandy would be enough to make the rest of it make sense.
It was definitely worth a try.
TWENTY-FIVE
Eden wondered exactly what would be involved in a demon lord awakening.
It didn’t sound like a chance for balloons and streamers, but maybe she was wrong.
She needed that black diamond. The angelheart.
No matter what else happened here today, she had to get her hands on it.
The front door to Luxuria was unlocked when she and Darrak arrived at almost noon. She had to force herself to take each step farther along the hallway leading to the main club. She felt like Dorothy getting ready to approach the Wizard of Oz and ask him for a ticket back to Kansas.
“You okay?” Darrak asked. She was walking so slowly some might consider it standing still.
“Not especially.”
And, as if she needed anything more to deal with at the moment, a wave of pain hit her without warning, almost bringing her to her knees. She cried out. Darrak grabbed hold of her before she fell.
It was gone as quickly as it had arrived. Just a drive-by.
Darrak’s eyes were filled with concern as he helped her steady herself. “We can leave.”
She laughed weakly. “You don’t mean that.”
“I do.” His jaw set. “We’ll wait for Maksim to get back from wherever he is. We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.”
“No, I’m okay now. This is your chance to get your curse removed. And I don’t get the pain very often. That, hopefully, was my only dose today.”
He didn’t look convinced. “Fine. But when the curse is broken, I want you to leave immediately and don’t look back.”
“Why?”
“When I change. . I can’t guarantee how I’ll act then. Toward you. I don’t know.”
Right. He felt that when the curse was broken, he’d revert back to his old demonic self — no humanity need apply, right?
“So you’ll become dark, dangerous, and not a fabulous conversationalist?” she asked.
“The first two. I could always hold my own at a cocktail party.”
“You really think that’ll happen? Losing the humanity you’ve gained after all these years?”
He nodded solemnly, then stroked a st
rand of dark red hair off her face and tucked it behind her ear. “I do. I just wish. .”
“What?”
He kissed her then. Just a quick brush of his lips against hers before he pulled away.
“Come on,” he said. “Theo will be waiting for us.”
Eden pressed her lips together and tried to ignore the lump in her throat.
Was it true? Would he change the moment the curse was broken? He believed it completely, so why wouldn’t she? Probably because it made her sad that this Darrak she’d grown very fond of was only a façade. He seemed to embrace this chance to return to his former self, not doubting it for a moment. Not wanting to be anything else.
This unfortunate experience was just a blip in the video game of his existence.
And it was true, he didn’t feel remorse for anything he’d done in the past — not even being the cause of death for all of his former hosts. He was a demon who did demonic things. Period. After all, a lion didn’t apologize for eating a gazelle, did it?
Depended on the lion, she thought. And the gazelle.
They had no choice but to go forward with this. The last thing she wanted was for Darrak to continue to possess her. This really was their only answer.
However, it relied on a great deal of trust. For Theo and for this Asmo demon.
Eden would let Darrak handle the trust. She’d focus on getting the angelheart.
As they rounded the next corner toward the inner entrance, Theo stood there with his arms crossed as if waiting for them.
“Darrak,” he greeted his friend. His black-eyed gaze moved toward her. “Lovely to see you again, Eden.”
Her face felt tense. She bit her tongue so she wouldn’t immediately tell him to go to hell. A demon would probably take that more as a suggestion than an insult, anyhow.
She couldn’t help but sense something different in the club today. The lust and desperation that always hung in the air there had risen to palpable levels. There was an audible hum in the building, and electricity seemed to lightly charge the room. It felt like the air outside just before a thunderstorm — a restrained energy about to be unleashed.
A demon lord was preparing to take form.
That didn’t help relax her very much.
“Is Asmo ready?” Darrak asked.
Theo nodded. “More than ready. He’s been waiting for this for centuries.”
Eden stayed silent, trying her best to look at ease. She watched Theo very carefully and wondered if he had the angelheart on him right now.
“You can talk to him?” Darrak asked.
“He’s been able to communicate with me despite his incorporeal state. However, until today it’s taken a great deal of concentration.”
Darrak moved away from Eden’s side. “Lucifer knows about our plan.”
Theo waited, as if for a punch line, but when one didn’t come, his eyes narrowed and he shot a fierce look at Eden. “Is that so?”
“It’s not Eden’s fault. He already knew. However, he’s been sniffing around and trying to find more about that weapon of yours.”
“That’s so not fair.” Theo stomped his foot. A frustrated, pissed-off demon was not a pretty sight. But it was a bit amusing.
“Better we know now, than later,” Darrak pointed out.
“You’re right, of course.” He swore under his breath, and then patted his pocket. “I’ll have to put this somewhere safe until there’s a better time to use it. Honestly. How annoying is that?”
“The best laid plans,” Darrak said.
“Yeah.” Theo’s sullen expression brightened a little. “Speaking of getting laid, how’d you enjoy your orange juice this morning, Eden?”
She wondered if she had enough black magic in her to decimate an archdemon where he stood, leaving only a black smudge behind. It would jeopardize more of her soul, but it might be worth it to wipe that smug, amused look off his stupid pretty face.
“It was refreshing, thanks.”
His smug look grew. “Did it quench that little thirst you’ve got? I bet it did. Lip-smacking good.”
She’d like to smack his lips. And then grind them into a paste.
“Theo.” Darrak’s voice held an edge of warning. “Enough.”
Theo mock pouted. “Oh, you’re no fun anymore.”
She wouldn’t destroy him, but she couldn’t let this go completely unaddressed, though. “Darrak tells me you fell for a human woman a long time ago.”
Smug look officially decimated. “I did.”
“Were you in love with her?”
This earned her a smile, but it looked forced. “Oh, Eden, I knew you were a romantic. You’d like me to admit that I was, wouldn’t you? Do you think that would help you find my weakness?”
“Just making conversation.”
“There was a woman once. And yes, I allowed myself to feel emotion for her. But I was always the one in control. And when the time came for me to choose whether I wanted to save myself or save her, I made the only decision I could.”
“You killed her.”
That earned a flicker of something in his eyes as he looked down at the floor. It was either fire or pain, she wasn’t sure. “No. But the result was the same. She died. Her soul perished. And it didn’t really matter to me. It’s not as if I pined for her for years, doubting the decisions that led to her demise. Demons can’t fall in love the same way humans do. We don’t do the unselfish thing.” Whatever had been in his expression disappeared as if it had never been there in the first place, and he raised his gaze to hers again. “But we’re great in bed.”
“Do you still pine for her?” Eden asked.
His expression shuttered to one that was completely blank. Darrak wasn’t the only one who could wear masks. “I told you I didn’t. The affair was so short it made no difference in my existence other than teaching me a valuable lesson.”
“Which was?”
“Humans are forgettable. Now, why don’t we get this show on the road so Darrak can be on his way to forgetting you as well?”
She glared at him. No romantic tale of lost love — whether or not he’d admit it was true — would ever help her get past the disdain she had for the demon.
Weird, though. She’d felt just a bit of pity for him. He was fooling himself if he thought that lost love hadn’t gotten to him.
But it didn’t matter anymore.
“This is so great,” Darrak said dryly. “I thought you two would get along famously with each other. Glad to see I was completely and utterly wrong about that.”
“Your girlfriend asks too many questions,” Theo growled.
“She’s naturally curious. It’s one of her many charms.”
“Follow me.” He turned and walked away from them. Eden had to hurry to keep up.
They entered the main club, with the bar along one side and the dance floor in the middle. Without the flickering lights or the loud music it seemed a bit tired and drab.
They weren’t alone.
“Who are they?” Eden asked. A dozen men and women were seated in the lounge area with their backs to them. All stared forward at the wall and didn’t move.
“Human sacrifices,” Theo said conversationally. “Asmo has a great deal of power at the moment, but he might need to recharge. Plus, he’ll be very hungry when he takes form. But don’t get upset. They’re practically drained to start with. They’ll just disappear. No mess to worry about.”
Eden’s eyes widened. Human sacrifices?
“The women who disappeared. It was Asmodeus who did it, wasn’t it?” She looked at Darrak. “You lied to me.”
“Ooh, point for Darrak.” Theo grinned. “Maybe you’re not as whipped as I thought. If he didn’t tell you that, I guess he didn’t tell you about the dude I strangled out back, either.”
Eden felt like the wind had been knocked out of her. Theo killed Graham. She knew it.
She looked at Darrak. Why didn’t he tell her? Why would he keep this from her?
; “Don’t make a big deal about this,” Darrak told her. “Not now. Please.”
Don’t make a big deal about murder? About a demon who sucked the life energy out of anyone he wanted and who was about to do the same to a dozen more? About Theo snuffing out Graham’s life like he meant nothing?
If she made a big deal, if she freaked out right now and ruined this, they wouldn’t get the chance to break Darrak’s curse. It pained her to bite her tongue, to restrain her power, even though she was shaking inside with anger and disgust, but that’s exactly what she did.
For now.
“Later, then,” she said quietly, her throat tight with trying to keep herself under control. “But these people have to leave here so they can have a chance to recover.”
Darrak glanced at the backs of the zombies’ heads. “Is there another way for Asmo to feed today, Theo?”
“Sure.” Theo sat down on a leather armchair near the dance floor and put his feet up on a glass table. “One fully energized human — or almost human — will be better than twelve nearly drained ones any day.”
Darrak’s eyes narrowed. “Eden is not on the menu.”
Theo sighed wearily. “Well, I guess that will be up to him, won’t it?” He looked up at the ceiling. “Asmodeus? We’re ready. Let’s do this.”
If Theo thought he could serve her up on a platter, then he had another think coming to him. Theo knew she was a black witch. She’d sworn not to use her power again — and she really didn’t want to if she could help it. But she would if she had no other choice.
The air began to crackle with more electricity — but it wasn’t because of her. It raised the fine hair on Eden’s arms.
“It’s over,” she said. “I’m leaving. And I’m taking those people with me. This needs to stop right now.”
Theo looked at her. “Oh, Red, it’s way too late for that.”
The lights in the club flickered. The ground trembled. The buzz that had been low frequency before grew louder and louder.
Darrak and Eden exchanged a glance before she forced herself to look away.
He’d lied to her again. He’d brought her here where a demon lay in wait ready to drain anyone who came into his path.
“I don’t care what you say,” she snapped. “I’ll stop this. I’ll—”
She suddenly realized she couldn’t speak or move. She was frozen in place.