by Мишель Роуэн
And a demon lord with a big appetite was about to arrive.
“This is perfect,” Theo said. “I was concerned about Lucifer figuring things out, but it doesn’t really matter. Asmo will protect us until we can figure out a new plan.”
Darrak couldn’t stop looking at Eden. It was Asmo who had frozen her in place. A glance at the other humans showed that they were unmoving as well. The best way to deal with potential prey was to paralyze them and ensure they couldn’t fight back.
“He’s coming,” Theo said.
He was right. Darrak could feel it. The building felt alive, throbbing with energy, and. . kind of lusty, too.
Suddenly, the club grew darker, the walls literally turning black. But it wasn’t really the walls — it was smoke. Black smoke coated every inch of the club and bled down to the floor. It looked like ankle deep, thick black mist that rippled and undulated.
Eden’s gaze widened nearly imperceptibly, and Darrak could tell she was afraid.
It bothered him.
But he couldn’t go to her. Not now. There was no time.
Asmodeus was about to have his awakening. Now Darrak wished he’d brought some of that fiesta dip. It seemed like an event worth celebrating. The beginning of the rest of Darrak’s existence would begin after this short break.
Please stand by.
“Welcome, my lord,” Theo said with reverence. He stood up from his seat.
“GREETINGS, ALL,” a deep and booming voice sounded. It echoed through the club. “I’M GLAD YOU COULD JOIN ME TODAY. THIS IS GOING TO BE SO AWESOME!”
Asmo had always been one of the more enthusiastic demon lords.
“Welcome, Asmodeus,” Darrak said as well.
“DARRAK! IT’S BEEN A LONG TIME. HOW’VE YOU BEEN, PAL?”
His eyes flicked toward Eden, standing so still and silent. “I’ve been better, actually.”
“RIGHT? TRUST ME, I KNOW. I FEEL YOUR PAIN, MAN. I MEAN, LOOK AT ME RIGHT NOW. IT SUCKS TO BE BODILESS.”
“Not for long,” Theo said. “It’s your time, what we’ve been building to. Take form now, Asmodeus, and show us your magnificence once again.”
Theo had always been a bit of a brownnoser.
“YEAH, ABOUT THAT. THERE’S A TEENY BIT OF A PROBLEM.”
“What?”
“I CAN’T TAKE FORM. JUST TRIED. NO LUCK.”
Theo frowned. “Then what should we do now?”
“PLAN B. I’LL TAKE A PERMANENT BODY. NOW THAT I SEE I HAVE NO OTHER CHOICE, I’M COOL WITH IT.”
“Oh. . uh.” Theo wrung his hands. “Great. Well, whatever works, right? As you can see I’ve assembled a nice assortment of humans here for you. Please, feel free to take your pick.”
Darrak had moved to stand between Theo and Eden so he had a better view of the lounging zombielike humans. He realized for the first time that one of them was Nancy.
Why was she still here? Wasn’t she with Stanley last night?
But Stanley worked for Theo. It all came back to Theo, didn’t it?
Darrak pushed away the sinking feeling he felt at seeing the familiar face.
“I’VE TASTED ALL OF THESE ONES BEFORE.” The smoke gathered and moved toward the group like an anchored storm cloud. “AH, THIS ONE I’VE ONLY NIBBLED ON.” Darkness covered the body of the man sitting next to Nancy like a shroud. There was a slight, strangled cry, and then the darkness moved away. Nothing of the man remained.
“OOPSIE. GOT A LITTLE CARRIED AWAY. I’M SO HUNGRY!”
“It’s not a problem,” Theo said tensely. “There are plenty more where he came from.”
The same thing would have happened to the women who disappeared. It bothered Darrak more than he’d like to admit. Asmo took the lives of humans as if he was Forrest Gump sampling from a box of chocolates.
“HMM. . WHAT ABOUT THIS ONE? SHE’S NEW, ISN’T SHE?”
Darrak thought he was referring to Nancy, but the smoke had shifted direction. It approached Eden instead.
“No,” Darrak said, but it was too quiet, so he said it again, louder. “No. Theo, I told you. He doesn’t get to touch Eden.”
Theo shrugged. “What Asmo wants, Asmo gets. Just accept it, Darrak.”
“Stop him.”
“You think I have that kind of control?”
“If he harms Eden, there’s going to be a problem.”
Theo smiled and placed a hand on Darrak’s shoulder. “Come on, just chill.”
Darrak pushed his friend back from him. Hard. Theo staggered back, surprised, but then fire appeared in his narrowing gaze.
“Don’t do that,” he warned.
“Stop Asmodeus now.”
“No.” Theo shoved Darrak.
Darrak held his hand out to his side and summoned his fire. He turned to the smoke gathering at Eden’s feet. Her expression hadn’t changed. She looked almost serene, but there was a slight tension to her forehead and her eyes moved back and forth.
So not as serene as she looked at first glance. Terrified. And Darrak would be willing to bet that she had no access to her black magic at the moment, if she was tempted to use it. And he wouldn’t blame her at all this time if she did.
Well, maybe a little.
“Asmodeus,” Darrak snapped. “She’s not for you.”
“OH, YEAH? WHY THE HECK NOT?”
“Because she’s mine.”
“SHE’S FILLED WITH MAGIC LIKE AN OVERFLOWING TEAKETTLE. I LIKE HER.”
Theo grabbed Darrak’s arm and held him in place. “Let her go. You’ll forget her. Just like I forgot Kristina.”
Darrak glared at him. “You never forgot Kristina.”
He waited for the other demon’s response. What he hadn’t expected was feeling a blast of energy come off his friend, launching him across the nightclub like a bomb had gone off. Darrak got back to his feet in a flash.
Archdemon power. He missed having that much of it.
But he still had some.
He allowed fire to course down into both of his hands this time and moved toward Theo.
“What are you going to do?” Theo asked. “Fight me?”
“Looks like.”
“Just like that. After everything I’ve done for you? Would you really want to mess this up? This is your answer. Asmo’s going to take her. She won’t be your ball and chain anymore. You’d throw that chance away? Are you that much of an idiot?”
There really was no way to answer that question. “Yes, I’m that much of an idiot,” didn’t really sound too good.
Maybe Theo was right.
Free from Eden. Free from the necessity of possessing her body at night. Free from his ties to her during the day. He could be restored to his former self, a demon who didn’t care about anyone or anything and only cared about achieving more power and more pleasure.
It was for the best. When the curse was removed and Eden was gone, this would all be a distant memory.
“What will happen to her?” he asked quietly.
“I WILL POSSESS HER, USE HER SHELL, AND THROW AWAY THE YOLK. I WILL BURN AWAY ALL THAT REMAINS OF HER SO THERE’S PLENTY OF ROOM FOR ME TO PARTY. SHOULDN’T TAKE MORE THAN A FEW SECONDS.”
“But. . but she’s a woman,” Darrak said, trying to remain calm. It might be a little late for that.
“I’M VERY OPEN-MINDED. WHAT IS SHE, A SIZE SIX? ARE THOSE BREASTS NATURAL OR SILICONE? FORGET IT, I DON’T REALLY MIND EITHER WAY.”
The thick smoke began to crawl up Eden’s body like a black boa constrictor. Her eyes closed.
Darrak surged forward, mindless to anything but saving Eden from this fate. Theo’s hand clamped down on his shoulder again.
“Don’t do this,” Theo growled.
Darrak spun around and hit Theo hard, knocking him right to the other side of the club thirty feet away. Before the demon hit the ground he disappeared in a haze of fire and reappeared right in front of Darrak’s face.
Phasing. He still missed that ability more than he could say.
&n
bsp; Darrak grabbed hold of his friend and shifted to his demon form. Theo did the same. It was funny how similar they looked this way, then again, they’d been made at the same time. That made them almost like twins — the same.
But they weren’t the same. Not anymore.
“I said I’d destroy you if you got in my way.” Theo clenched his razor-sharp teeth.
“Right back at you.”
“Over a woman?” Theo shook his head. The flames that coated his body were blue while Darrak’s were amber. “How sad.”
“You’re sad.”
“Not your wittiest comeback, I’m afraid. Besides, it’s too late. No matter what you do, you can’t stop this.”
Darrak craned his neck to see that Eden was completely surrounded by the smoke now. It covered her like the man Asmo had already devoured.
He was too late.
“OH, SHIT.”
Theo pushed Darrak away from him. “What’s wrong, my lord?”
“PARDON THE SAYING, BUT THERE’S NO ROOM AT THE INN. SHE’S ALREADY DARRAK’S HOST SO SHE’S BLOCKED TO ANYONE ELSE. IF I HAD FORM, I WOULD BE SOBBING RIGHT NOW WITH DISAPPOINTMENT.”
Theo shifted back to human form.
“You can still have her,” Theo said. “But you have to break Darrak’s curse first so he stops acting like a smitten schoolboy. Stanley!” He raised his voice so it reverberated through the entire club. “Could you come in here right now?”
Theo still believed Darrak was dealing with a temporary curse-driven shift in personality. Which was the truth, of course.
Eden was still in one piece. Still frozen, though, with her eyes closed. He hoped she was unconscious and not experiencing any of this firsthand.
He changed back to human form and looked at Theo warily.
“Somebody need a hug?” Theo asked, with a big shit-eating grin on his face.
Darrak forced a smile. “You are such an asshole, you know that?”
“I aim to please.”
So all was forgiven? The shoving match? The threats of destruction?
Sure. Two could play at that game.
“Seriously”—Darrak slapped him on the back, as close to a real hug as he was comfortable with, and tried to laugh—“I’m going to kick your ass.”
Theo shook his head. “You’re just lucky I like you. Not too many others would have put up with all of your bullshit.”
He was right. Why had Theo put up with him? Was he really and truly Darrak’s friend? Selflessly and at the threat of his own existence? Well, that would go against demon nature, wouldn’t it?
But so did falling in love. Theo hadn’t been cursed when he fell for Kristina. And he had been a mess after she’d died — at least until he’d pulled himself together and put on his public face. It had been a long time ago, but Darrak remembered it clearly.
“It’ll be okay,” Theo assured him.
“Fingers crossed.” Darrak turned away so he could slide the black diamond he’d just stolen from Theo into his own pocket.
Theo was a true friend, despite many problems Darrak had with him.
But having a backup plan was always a good thing.
Stanley entered the club and looked at them warily. “So, I’m here. How goes it?”
“OH, GOODY. HE’LL DO FOR NOW.”
The black smoke shot toward Stanley, surrounding him in an instant. Stanley shrieked, flailed his arms as if fighting off a swarm of bees, before the smoke disappeared and he stilled.
Then he inhaled a great gulp of air and opened his eyes, looking down at his hands and smiling.
“Not bad,” he said.
“Asmodeus?” Theo asked tentatively.
Asmo, currently in the form of Stanley, approached them. “That’s my name, don’t wear it out.”
“Uh, how do you feel?”
“Fabulous! And look at me.” He pointed at his head. “I’m balding!”
“Congrats.”
“Although,” Asmo moved toward Eden again, “this one is more esthetically pleasing to me.”
He slid a hand down to her butt and squeezed.
Without even thinking about it, Darrak found he was beside the demon lord and prying his hand away from Eden’s body.
“Don’t touch her, please,” he said firmly.
“I can touch whatever I want.”
Darrak squeezed Asmo’s wrist tighter. “No. You can’t.”
Asmo smiled. “You’ve always been a funny one, haven’t you?”
“I do enjoy making others laugh. Or scream in pain. Either or.”
Asmo looked down at Darrak’s grip. “Go ahead. Break the wrist if it makes you feel better. It won’t be mine for much longer.”
Darrak released him before he did any irreparable damage to Stanley. It had been very close.
Asmo cocked his head to the side, studying Darrak. “There’s something strange about you. I didn’t really notice it before, but now. .” He leaned toward Darrak and sniffed, before a look of displeasure spread across his borrowed face.
“Do I smell bad?” Darrak asked. Not to be vain, but he did find that hard to believe.
“No. You smell kind of. . uh. .” Asmo’s lips turned downward for the first time. “Good?”
“Thank you.”
He scrunched his nose. “I mean good in the worst way possible. What have you been eating?”
Darrak glanced over at Theo, who watched their conversation carefully. “Donuts mostly. Chocolate ones.”
“Not food. I mean from your power source.” He sniffed Eden then. Darrak knew for a fact she smelled like lavender. It was from her body wash. She only wore perfume on special occasions. “I sense black witch, but there’s something else there, too. Can’t quite put my finger on it.”
“Uh. . she’s actually a nephilim,” Theo offered. “Didn’t I mention that before? I could have sworn I did.”
Asmo’s eyebrows went up, and he took a big step back from her frozen form. “Ewww. Really? A nephilim? And she’s your host? Darrak, how do you stand it?”
Did this mean he’d leave Eden alone now? “I manage.”
Asmo literally gagged. It took him a few seconds to pull himself together. “Oh, gross.” He shuddered. “That’s what I sensed in you. Celestial energy.”
“In me?” He pointed to his chest.
“Uh, yeah.”
Theo drew closer. “What does that mean?”
“What it means is the deal’s off. All of it.” Asmo held his arms as if he was hugging himself. “Yuck. Celestial energy. I’ve never been this close to it before.”
“But, Asmo—” Darrak began.
“No. It’s over, you disgusting hybrid. I’ve never seen such a thing before in my entire existence. It sickens me.”
It took a lot to sicken the Lord of Lust. Darrak would have been honored if he thought it was a compliment. But, it wasn’t.
“What do you mean by hybrid?” he asked.
“You’ve changed,” Asmo said.
Darrak shook his head. “As soon as my curse is removed, I’ll go back to the way I was before. Sure, it hasn’t all gone smoothly, but there’s no reason for me to believe otherwise. Theo convinced me that I’m the same underneath. Hell is my only home. It’s where someone like me belongs. It’s the only place I belong.”
Asmo’s lips curled with disgust. “Nope. No longer. You’re not welcome there. Not like this. You’ll contaminate the atmosphere.”
What in the hell was he talking about?
Theo looked as confused as Darrak did.
But then realization came into both of their gazes at the exact same time.
Celestial energy. He’d been absorbing it from Eden. That’s what had been powerful enough to give him form after all these years when no other human had been able to do that for him. Why her soul had been the brightest and shiniest thing he’d ever seen and he’d gone to it like a moth to a flame.
He’d taken it into himself. It had helped heal and help him.
It had bec
ome a part of him.
Removing the curse wouldn’t change him, wouldn’t take away this humanity and emotion he felt.
It was just the way he was now.
“Oh, shit.” Darrak felt like he’d just been punched in the gut by the hand of God. Clarity was a bitch sometimes. When he composed himself enough, he looked at Theo. “Release Eden. I know you can do it.”
Theo looked at him with shock. “Uh. . I don’t know if that’s such a good idea.”
“Just do it,” he growled.
“Fine.” Theo flicked a wrist at Eden and she stumbled forward. Darrak caught her.
She gasped for breath and then threw her arms around him tightly. “I heard everything.”
He leaned back and looked down at her face. He wanted to hate her for doing this to him, for infecting him with this celestial energy. He’d known she was powerful, but she’d managed to destroy him without lifting a finger.
But Darrak couldn’t hate her. All he could do is feel relief that she was still all right.
It was all kinds of annoying.
Darrak looked at Asmo. “Will you break my curse?”
Asmo made a face. “Why would I ever want to do that, you weirdo?”
“To help us out.”
Asmo laughed so loud some would consider it a cackle. “Help you? Wow. That sounds like angel talk, loser. My advice to you, Darrak, is to kill this nephilim and find a new host. She’s going to drag you down. And I don’t mean to Hell.” He shuddered again. “I’m just really grossed out right now. I touched her ass and everything.”
“I’m sorry,” Theo said. “If I thought it would make a difference. . uh. .”
“Shut it.” Asmo paced back and forth, looking at each of them in turn. “I don’t want this body. I refuse to be in this one, and it’s not just because of the baldness, although, I must admit, that is a contributing factor to my decision. I need a perfect specimen and obviously that’s not going to be a human. I’m going to have to go demon for this. It’ll take a little more energy to burn out his insides, but I’m willing to make the effort.” He sighed. “I mean, I’m the Lord of Lust. How can anyone worship me if I don’t look the part?”
Darrak drew Eden closer to his side. He had a really bad feeling about this.
“We’ll find the perfect demon for you,” Theo said. “I promise.”