The Demon Realm

by Annette Morris

  He nodded and stepped over to the bodyguards. He said something to them I couldn't hear.

  I ignored them all and walked towards my car. Once there, I realised it was going to be a tight fit. I only had a small car.

  The bodyguards didn't hesitate. One jumped into the back. He took up the whole seat just by himself. The other one, Brian, sat in the passenger seat. I was barely going to have enough room to even sit on my seat and reach the gearshift with Brian there. He was almost sitting in my seat.

  I gaped at them and then swung my head towards Diego.

  He grinned, shrugged and said. "We will talk tomorrow," he turned and hurried off.

  I stood staring after him for some minutes after he'd left. Finally, I turned and sat in my seat. Well, sort of. I was half on the seat. Brian took up the other half. I was so squashed I was certain there would be indents in my skin from the door handles. But somehow, I managed to drive us all home.

  The talk with Diego tomorrow was not something I was looking forward to. I hoped Diego could control himself, because I might not control myself. I was so angry that I didn't think there was anyway possible for me to calm down enough to even get to sleep. And that had been the whole point of me coming home. So I could get sleep. I sighed. Maybe it would've been better if I'd stayed at the vampire house?

  Too late now, I thought as I swung the car into the driveway. I opened my door and almost fell out of the car. I swore I heard a chuckle from Brian, but when I looked over, he was straightfaced and blank.

  Brian and the other vampire followed me inside the darkened house. Everyone must be in bed I thought. Trying not to make too much noise, I left the bodyguards outside my door. Shutting it firmly behind me, I quickly stripped off my clothes and fell into bed. I was exhausted. Within minutes of my head hitting the pillow, I drifted to sleep.

  I didn't remember anymore until the sound of my mobile phone ripped me from my slumber. It was sitting beside my bed. I always left it turned on in case of an emergency.

  Janey

  I fumbled around for a few seconds, trying to wake up enough to grasp my phone. "Hello."

  "Janey?"

  "Umm… Alex? What's up? Is everything all right?"

  "Um, yes. Everything's fine, but aren't you supposed to be here? You know… working?"

  I glanced at my clock and gaped in disbelief. "Three pm! Shit!"

  "Janey? Are you okay?"

  "Yeah. I'm fine. I just saw the time, Alex. I must have been more tired than I thought. I'll have a quick shower and get out there." I threw back the blankets and jumped out of bed.

  "Okay, but Janey… did you and Diego have a fight or something?"

  That stopped my headlong rush. I asked warily, "Why?"

  "Well, it's just that he's been in a bitch of a mood all day. You'd gone home, and I wondered…"

  I wasn't about to have a heart to heart with Alex, on the phone. If I did that, I wouldn't get to work for the rest of the day. "Look, Alex. I'm getting up now. I'll be there soon."

  "Okay, see you," Alex said abruptly.

  I stared dumbly at my phone. What the hell… My phone had gone dead. Just before it did though, it sounded like someone had entered the room Alex was in. Three guesses who that would've been, and the last two wouldn't count.

  Apparently Diego wanted to talk today.

  Oh, what joy! I had that to look forward to.

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  Janey

  After showering, I changed my clothes and threw extra into a bag. I had a hunch I wouldn't be coming home for a while.

  I walked out and said goodbye to mum. The whole situation confused her. It worried her about everyone and everything. Especially considering there were two vampires staying in the house last night. I didn't have time to explain it in detail. Instead, I gave her the ultra short version that only took a few minutes.

  Needless to say she was not impressed. Not with me. Not with Alex, and not with this whole situation. She'd never forgiven Alex for getting kidnapped and being turned into a vampire. She acted as if it had been Alex's fault. In the end, I gave up arguing with mum. I explained my new job and left it at that as I exited the house.

  Outside, I noticed Brian and my other bodyguard were sitting under a tree, in the front yard.

  Guiltily, I walked up to them. "Have you guys had something to eat or drink?"

  They both nodded and stood in silence, waiting for me.

  I waved them towards my car. Squeezing in again, we drove back to the vampire lair. In my mind, I was going over all the arguments I could put forward to Diego. Surely, he couldn't expect me to give up my life, and just work all the time? I had a life outside of work! And, the best argument of all… he wasn't my boss… Serentis was. So, if Diego didn't like that, he could take it up with Serentis.

  As I parked my car and grabbed my bag, I continued to go over all the things I could say to him.

  However… my planned speech flew away quicker than I realised when I looked over at the front door and saw Diego standing there waiting. He was casually leaning against one side of the door. His clothes were a little different today. He was wearing black jeans and a tight red button-up shirt. A shirt that showed off his muscles to perfection. To put it simply he was waiting for me.

  I narrowed my eyes. He was playing with fire here. That outfit should just about be illegal. It was totally unfair that he could look so good. My eyes widened as I got closer. Up close, I could see the shirt was stretched tight on him. How the hell he managed to get the buttons done up I have no idea. But boy, I would love to take the time to undo each one and see what was inside.

  I tripped as my mind had been on Diego and not on where I was walking. The other guard with me, reached out and grabbed me to steady me.

  Diego rushed toward me. His eyes were glued on the part of me that the guard was touching. His eyes flared red.

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  Janey

  The guard noticed and quickly dropped his hand from where he'd been touching me. He looked over at Diego and nodded.

  I continued walking.

  Diego stepped in front of me, blocking my path. The guard flowed around him and walked inside.

  I stood there and waited.

  Our eyes clashed as they met. His were like fire with determination and need. Mine were angry and passion filled.

  He stepped closer.

  I remained where I was.

  He inched closer still. The gap between us reduced.

  I noticed there were flecks of light in his eyes. His eyelashes were black and thick.

  His arms wrapped around me and pulled me closer to him. And then closer again, until he made certain that every part of him was connecting solidly with me.

  He was happy to see me… I could feel that much. I squirmed as he tightened his grip even further to bring me to a standstill.

  His head lowered.

  Mine rose.

  Our lips met. I swear I heard bells ringing. My lips opened. His tongue slid inside my mouth. Mine slid inside his. We tangled around each other. I gasped, and he swallowed the sound. I moaned, and he savoured it. I had no idea how long we stood entwined. But I heard bells ringing out again.

  Suddenly, he released me and pushed me back. He left one hand around me holding me steady, because let's face it after a kiss like that, I needed the support. My legs were shaking. It was all I could do not to collapse to the ground in a feint. He used his other hand to retrieve his phone, from his pocket.

  That must've been the bells I heard. It must've been his phone ringing.

  "Yes," his voice was raspy.

  I looked up at him as he spoke.

  He focused his eyes on me. They didn't waver as I watched him.

  "Yes, I'll be right there." He closed his phone and slipped it back into his pocket. Not taking his eyes off me for an instant.

  I watched every movement.

  "I have to take care of something. Eat, and I'll join you later." In an instant, he was go
ne. Moving away from me and through the open doorway at a fast pace. I could barely make out his body as he moved.

  I gasped and shook my head as if to wake myself up. "Okay," I looked around to see my daytime bodyguards had come outside and were now standing waiting for me, outside the doorway. "Well." I walked inside, trying to regain a semblance of myself. That kiss! I could still feel it. His mouth on mine. His tongue inside… I stumbled but caught myself. I had to forget what happened and get back to work. That's what I had to do. Yep, that's what I needed to do.

  Weaving my way down the corridors, I ended up at my work room. I dumped my bag alongside the chair and stumbled to sit down.

  My guards stayed outside.

  Raking my hand through my hair, I grasped my notes from yesterday and tried to make sense of them. I needed to get my mind focused. I needed to forget that kiss.

  With that thought, I put my attention onto my notes and began to re-read them. I could sense it would be a long night tonight.

  Janey

  I was reading through a book on demons and had come across information that had stopped me in my tracks. I read back over it multiple times, still not understanding it. 'God created the Devil and other demons. He created them to be naturally good.' "Wow!" I mumbled. I never would have guessed that one.

  "What?"

  I jumped at the voice. It was so close. Glancing to the side, I noticed Diego was sitting on my left. He had some of my notes and was reading through them. I stared at him in surprise. When did he arrive? How come I hadn't noticed him? He still wore that same red shirt though. And now he was sitting down, it seemed tighter.

  "What?" He looked at me. "What were you going 'wow' about?"

  "Um…" I'd forgotten what I'd just read.

  "Janey?"

  "Oh, um. I was just…" What was I reading? Oh yeah, that's right. I remembered now. I reread the passage to him.

  He leaned back in his chair. "Have you ever read the bible?"

  I shook my head. "No."

  "Why not?"

  "I don't know. I guess I never found the time for it."

  He stared at me. "You love books. You would've found the time to read it. This is the oldest book in creation. Why haven't you read it, Janey?"

  I shrugged. "Because too many people say it's not true. Or, at least, certain parts of it. How can you read a factual book and know it's not true?"

  He shook his head. "Don't think of it as factual. Think of it as fiction."

  "Fiction?"

  "Sure, why not? Various authors wrote stories and then the whole thing was pieced together. Who knows if it is fiction or fact? But if you think of it as fiction, you are more inclined to read it."

  "Why?"

  "Because, if it is fiction, you can discount certain parts while you are reading. You can say to yourself… like that would ever happen. It's the same when you read a futuristic, sci-fi book. You might read about some magic gun that can shoot around corners and you think, yeah, like that will ever happen!"

  "But it has!" I objected hotly.

  "What has?"

  "They have invented a gun that can shoot around corners. I saw it on the Internet the other day when I was researching weapons."

  "Um… okay. We'll have to look into that and take into account in our weapons training." He was jotting down a note and then looked back at me. "So, anyway… read the bible as a group of fiction stories, that have been collected at various times, and written by various authors."

  "Like a book of short stories?"

  He nodded. "Exactly."

  "I suppose I could do that. At least it's not so daunting as trying to read the whole thing in one sitting."

  He laughed. "Yeah, I don't think anyone could do that. Not if the aim was to understand it, anyway."

  "How did we get onto the bible again?"

  He grinned. "Time for a break. Did you have something to eat when you arrived?"

  I thought back to when I arrived here. I'd been so bamboozled by that kiss, I'd forgotten all about getting food. I blushed as I looked up at him. "Um… no, I came straight here and got to work."

  He grinned at me, but didn't comment. He stood up and held out his hand as he rose. "Come on, it's mealtime."

  I grasped his hand, and he pulled me up towards him.

  He pulled me in closer and kissed me on the lips. "Food first." He turned and tugged.

  I followed.

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  Janey

  We both grabbed some hot slices of pepperoni and vegetarian pizza.

  "Do you want that slice?" Diego leant over and pointed towards my last slice.

  I shook my head as I pushed it towards him. "No, you can have it. I'm full."

  He nodded and grasped the last slice off my plate.

  I glanced over at my bodyguards. They were both sitting eating pizza at a nearby table. I picked up my soft drink and sipped it. "Diego?"

  He glanced over at me. "Yep."

  "Where am I going to sleep tonight?"

  His face blanked completely. No emotion was visible at all. Then even while I looked, a grin gradually came over his face. "With me."

  I nodded. "Oh, okay."

  The grin stayed on his face. And, if I wasn't imagining it, it seemed to grow wider. Even though he kept eating my last slice of pizza. Well… someone was obviously happy.

  I leaned in closer… "Why are you grinning?"

  He laughed as he lifted his head a little. "No, I'm not. I'm just…"

  "Just what?"

  "Just…"

  I waited, but nothing more came out. I shook my head. "Well, I have to get back to work."

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  Janey

  "Okay. I have to stop off and get something. But, it's on the way." He stood up and waited for me.

  I got to my feet, then followed him back into the building. My guards tagged along, close behind.

  Diego walked into the library I'd been taking books from. He walked along the stacks until he came to what he must have been looking for. For a second or two, he hesitated, then pulled one large book from a high shelf. He walked back and handed it to me.

  I took it from him and glanced down at it. "The Bible?" I was shocked. Diego had given me a bible.

  He laughed. "Yes, just a little light reading for you."

  I laughed along with him. "Okay." I remembered what he'd said before and added, "So it's a book of short stories?"

  "Yes, that's it. Read one story at a time."

  I nodded and tucked the massive book under one arm. "Okay. Thank you." I wasn't too sure when I'd find the time to read it. But I determined I would now. It had always seemed so daunting before. I mean it's a massive book. But if you break it down into stories… it makes sense. And made it easier to tackle.

  Maybe I could start reading it before I went to sleep tonight. Then I glanced over at Diego. Nope. That wasn't going to work. Not tonight, anyway. I had a feeling that Diego had other plans for me during that time.

  Plans I was now looking forward to.

  Janey

  I was deep into the Canons of the Fourth Lateran Council when Diego called me.

  "You ready to stop yet?"

  I shook my head and kept reading. "What the hell?"

  "What?"

  I looked up at him. "I've never even heard of this before." My gaze ventured back to the book.

  "Heard of what?"

  "Listen, I'll read it to you." I found the starting place and put my finger on it. "… who according to His divinity… hang on, I'll skip ahead… according to His humanity was made passable and mortal, suffered on the cross for the salvation of the human race, and being dead… descended into hell…" I looked up at Diego and then continued reading, "rose from the dead, and ascended into heaven."

  "What? Where is that written?"

  "It's in The Canons of the Fourth Lateran Council." I looked over at Diego. "This was in 1215."

  "I've never heard of Him going to hell before?"

&
nbsp; "Neither have I."

  We were now sitting in silence.

  Diego leaned forward towards me. "How did He get out of Hell? Don't you have to do some kind of deal to get out of there?"

  I looked over. I knew I had fear in my eyes when I looked at him. "Deal? What do you mean, deal?"

  "Well, I heard you had to sign a contract with Lucifer and…"

  "Oh, my God!" My eyes shot back to the book in front of me.

  "Okay, what now?"

  "I read something about that. Let me find it. Hang on…" I raced my eyes through my notes trying to locate where I'd jotted it down. "Ah, here it is. Someone… it doesn't say who… did a deal with Lucifer. In exchange he wanted a photo of the Crucifixion. Someone later took the picture to the Holy Office. And, look at this… the devil always signs his contracts in blood… and they are always for a specified period, like twenty years."

  "So," Diego was trying to make sense of my notes. "Did He do a deal with Lucifer and that was why He was released? And if so, what was the deal? What was He supposed to do?"

  "Well, it couldn't have been to spread the gospel because wouldn't Lucifer have been against that?"

  "Um, yes. He would have been."

  Again a silence descended as, I could only assume, we were contemplating our thoughts.

  Diego grabbed the bible and flipped the pages. "Look, in Acts 2:31… Seeing what was to come, He spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, that He was not abandoned to the realm of the dead, nor did His body see decay."

  I stared at Diego. "So, it is true? He went to Hell."

  Diego flipped through the bible while I searched online, with my mobile phone.

  I looked up and sighed. "Apparently it all depends on the meaning of Hell."

  "I thought there was only one meaning of Hell?"

  "Apparently not. Listen. In the Hebrew Scriptures, Hell means the place of the dead, or the place of departed souls. The New Testament Greek meaning is the place of the dead. Other Scriptures in the New Testament show that Hell is a temporary place where souls are kept as they await their final judgment. Revelation 20:11-15 talks about a distinction between Hades and the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the final resting place of the lost… so, He went to Hades and not the lake. So Hell is… two places?"