Once Bianca disappeared, a few other demons were eager to have a conversation about their delighted host.
“So what do you think about Bianca? She is amazing, isn’t she?” asked a female demon with blue hair and purple lipstick.
“Of course. It amazes me that she doesn’t care about the protocol and isn’t afraid to speak up. As far as I knew Lucifer has people everywhere,” I said, hoping to find out how Bianca managed to attract so many demons that were sharing her views. She must have inherited a lot of gold in order to finance such a lifestyle.
“She has connections and uses her attractiveness to influence a few important demons. I have never known anyone so charismatic,” the girl with the blue hair said, and her eyes gleamed with admiration. Right, so now everything was clear. Bianca had slept around in order to get to this position. I didn’t know why I was even surprised. Demons and humans were very much alike.
“What about her sister?” I pressed, hoping that maybe I could get some useful information after all.
“I heard that Alexis was Lucifer’s right-hand lover. She assisted him with all his plans and aspirations. I have no idea what happened, but then she got banished to the pits, and somehow ended up with demons that were plotting an uprising against him. Rumour has it that he scarred her demonic soul, and that’s why Alexis hates him so much,” the blue demon whispered, glancing around like she was afraid that someone would hear her. “Alexis’s and Bianca’s father took care of lost souls. He was campaigning to be a head of Lucifer’s faction not long ago. ”
I nodded, trying to process everything I was hearing. I presumed that it hadn’t been easy leaving the side of one of the most powerful demons in hell. It wasn’t the first time that a woman had her heart broken, but I guess Alexis took it badly and now she was trying to avenge herself.
“Does she know where Alexis is?” I asked. Suddenly I was overloaded with information. I had to do something, rather than stand here and wait for the blond bimbo to reveal her plans.
“You heard her, she might know something today. Isn’t this exciting? Alexis is much more powerful than Bianca, but her soul has been damaged and she is going to be dead soon.”
The blue demon made a face and I felt energy rushing through me. It belonged to Bianca, who showed up in the living room once again. Her crystal blue eyes moved around the crowd, and the tension escalated. Something was just about to happen. Other demons stopped talking and waited.
“You … you and maybe you too, come with me,” Bianca ordered, pointing at the tall demon with broad shoulders, the woman with the blue hair and then me. Obviously Bianca liked what I said and was ready to share with me her next secrets, whatever they were.
I glanced at Morpheus who looked pleased that I had been selected. He stood with a group of male demons. Most of them were disappointed that they weren’t picked. My skin itched with soaring power. Too many demons were trying to use their abilities in such a tightly concealed space. Bianca gestured to us to follow her.
A moment later, our group left the swanky living room and entered the long hall. As we were moving through the corridor I spotted personal photos on the walls. I saw Alexis in a few with the man that looked very much like her father. In one of the photos there was Bianca with a dark-haired demon that also looked familiar.
“Oh my Lord, I’m so excited that we’ve been chosen. Now Bianca will reveal her master plan to us. We’ll become her close associates,” the girl with blue hair whispered behind me. I had no clue what that meant, but I didn’t care. As long as I was getting closer to catching that rotten bitch, the circumstance didn’t matter.
Bianca was humming under her breath until we reached the black metal door in the end. She unlocked it and gestured for us to go inside. The next room was a dark chamber. A tall demon with broad shoulders shuddered with excitement. The room looked like it was a prison cell. It had tiny windows that couldn’t have been reached from any standing position, secured with metal bars. The odour of sweat, blood and urine circulated around and I had to keep on breathing, hoping that my nausea would pass eventually.
In the far corner of the room I spotted a creature, a mongrel. His clothes were ripped, and his face and arms were covered with fresh open wounds. He was unconscious, his head lay flat on his chest, and for a split second I wondered if he was alive at all. A Watcher in his true form stood by him, obviously playing the role of his guard.
There was something very disturbing about this scene. Bianca licked her manicured fingers and laughed. Obviously some things stayed in the family.
“Marvic, wake him up. I see you have been busy with our guest. Have you been trying to entertain the poor man?” Bianca asked the Watcher. He smiled, but there was no warmth in that smile. I bet he enjoyed torturing the poor mongrel and was glad that his mistress approved it.
The Watcher spread his enormous wings, strained his muscles and kicked the mongrel in his stomach. I was forcing myself to keep it together, knowing that this was my chance to finally locate Alexis.
A loud agonising scream spread throughout the chamber, and the mongrel finally lifted his head. His hair was soaked with blood, and his eyes were swollen. I could barely sense his energy in the room. The Watchers must have broken this poor bugger’s wards.
For a moment he looked around the room, until his eyes set on Bianca.
“What do you want, witch?” he snarled.
“Oh, Conrad, that wasn’t very nice,” Bianca stated, caressing her chin. “I was hoping that you’ve been enjoying your stay in my humble palace. Tell me, have you been useful enough?”
Conrad spit on the floor and glared at her with pure disgust.
“You set me up for a failure, mistress. The demons on earth aren’t keen on sharing information,” the mongrel rasped, but then his eyes focused on me for longer than was necessary. My energy spiked, and my blood pressure rose. He must have sensed something, but I didn’t believe that he could see through the spell.
Bianca looking down at her nails, yawning.
“I need to remind you that I have your lovely human wife and babies down in the pits. Marvic here needs only one word from me, so stop acting out and start talking,” Bianca stated and gestured towards us. “My demon friends, this is why mongrels are useless creatures, and that’s why their population has to be reduced to minimum. Conrad meant to find my dear sister. I sent him to earth to track her down, but it looks like he has failed yet again.”
“You stupid bitch, I have what you need, but I want to see my family first!” Conrad shouted spitting blood everywhere. Okay, I couldn’t take this anymore. This was one example of how unjust the whole faction system really was. Bianca nodded to the muscular Watcher smiling widely and a second later Conrad was burnt with hot metal. His screams were terrifying and I wished that I could do something, anything to ease his suffering.
“Talk, dear, or Marvic will start torturing your son in front you. Where is Alexis? What’s happened to her?” Bianca screamed, losing that sweet tone of voice all at once. Her eyes gleamed with dark, twisted power.
“She has the child, and she has the Warlock witch,” Conrad said, breathing hard. He was in pain, the chains digging into his skin. I waited, not breathing at all, hoping that he could tell me that my daughter was all right.
“Have you given her the message? Have you told her that I’m ready to help her?”
“My task wasn’t easy. I had to go hungry for days. The human world is tough. People don’t care if you’re on the street. You sent me there with nothing!” Conrad shouted, exposing some of his infected wounds. Snippets of excitement moved around the group. Two demons along with Bianca wanted to see his blood being spilled. I was shaking deep inside, ready to reach out for an invisible sword and cut off their heads.
“You asked for it, Conrad. I guess I have no other choice,” Bianca said, calmly and then snapped her fingers. A second later a little mongrel boy appeared in front of us. He couldn’t be more than five.
“No
… Nicolas … You twisted evil bitch!” Conrad roared, staring with desperation at his petrified son. The boy lifted his eyes and screamed.
“Papa!”
I couldn’t look at this and I knew if Bianca tried to do anything to the child I wouldn’t hesitate to kill her. Her cruelty made me sick.
Bianca went up to the boy and wrapped her well-manicured hands around his tiny neck. The child squeaked and Conrad shook violently.
“One last chance, after him there will be a few more children left. I’m glad that you have such a big family. After I’m done with this one I could just pick and choose which one of your children I can torture next.” Bianca giggled, slowly suffocating the little boy. I tapped into my power, ready to wipe that smile off her face.
“Your sister has the child, but the Warlock protects her with magic. Alexis is going to her home up north. She wants to break the sleeping spell. Please let him go, I’ll do anything for you.”
Chapter 17
“Tremors strike here when any soul feels pure and rises, newly cleansed, to start its climb. And that cry follows as the soul ascends.” ―Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy
I took a step forward ready to release my vibrating power towards Bianca. Her well-manicured fingers were squeezing the boy’s neck and I was already picturing what I could do to her. She was going to kill him and I couldn’t just stand here. The Watcher glared at me and at the same time she released the boy, snapped her fingers, and Conrad’s son disappeared from the chamber.
I kept on breathing, tapping into my energy again and forcing myself to stay calm. The Watcher kept staring, and I wondered if he suspected something.
Matilda wouldn’t let Alexis anywhere near the antidote to her spell. I kept on breathing, taking small tiny breaths and pushing my energy down to my core. The Watcher had noticed my distress, so I needed to control myself better. Now I had all the information that I needed, and it was time to disappear.
“Warlock? Why is my sister teaming up with a Warlock and who is that child?” Bianca asked. A Watcher handed her a white handkerchief, so she could wipe her hands. I wished that Conrad wouldn’t have to say anymore. Bianca was stuck downstairs, but she had enough gold to send people to do any dirty job for her.
“The child is under the Warlock’s care. Alexis needed its blood for a ritual, but something went wrong and the child was charmed and now it’s useless to her. Alexis is frustrated, because her immunity has been severely weakened,” Conrad continued, giving her all the information she needed in order to help her sister.
“That child must be important. I wish that I could leave and offer her my assistance. She’s probably so scared and alone,” Bianca said, and her voice vibrated with emotion. “She’s going to travel up north to some sort of forest, you say?”
“Yes, she will be travelling to the Warlock’s home. Your sister is running out of time. She’s seeking an alliance amongst other demons. She doesn’t want to fail.”
Now, this whole thing made sense. Alexis was hoping that she could awaken Summer from the sleeping spell, and of course the answer was in Matilda’s remote cottage. Morpheus was right this time and I shouldn’t have doubted him.
“What else?”
“Nothing, there is nothing else. Your sister’s soul is dying, her soul is lost, but she thinks that child can save her,” Conrad squeaked glancing around like he was searching for his son. “Now, release my family. You promised. They have done nothing wrong.”
Bianca made a promise and she would be a coward if she didn’t hold to her word. An unpredictable smile spread over her face. A second later she walked over to him and ran her fingers over his sweaty arms. He hissed when she touched a long deep cut by his collarbone. Then she turned around, facing the three of us. The silence was unnerving, the escalated tension affecting everyone in the room.
“You see, my dear friends, mongrels can be useful sometimes. My dear sister is in danger. The dark lord scarred her soul. Made her rot from inside out,” she said, staring at the blood on her fingers. “Lucifer favours mongrels like Conrad. He wants to give them rights!”
Bianca was starting to lose her plot. Lucifer had been oppressing mongrels for years; he had never given them any rights. Conrad was a perfect example of someone who lost everything because he was half demon. Even his freedom was just a bargaining tool.
Marvic spread his wings and passed something shiny to his mistress. Conrad looked at me then, his mouth parted. He must have recognised me from somewhere, because he was pleading with me to help him.
I was already thinking about my next steps. Ronan had washed his hands, but right now I needed to find him. Everything began in that small remote village, in the forest where I met Matilda for the first time. Alexis was heading over there. Watchers were complex creatures, but I was afraid that Alexis had disabled Matilda’s magic somehow. Someone else was helping her.
“Let them out, I have given you everything you wanted,” Conrad pleaded.
“True, but with great difficulty,” she muttered still standing close to him. “This one is for you, Daddy. I hope you will enjoy torturing his soul.”
A second later she grabbed Conrad’s hair, pulled his head up and slashed his throat. Blood sprayed everywhere, covering her hands and her beautiful dress. I wanted to react, but it was too late. Conrad was dead. Anger overwhelmed me for a second. I couldn’t have saved him. Bianca was planning to kill him anyway. Conrad’s body slid down on the floor, his head hanging on his chest. Bianca licked her bloodied fingers and smiled. She was disturbingly joyful.
“Marvic, execute his family. We can’t have any witnesses,” Bianca ordered with an icy tone of voice, and her obedient Watcher nodded. A second later he left the chamber. I clenched my fists, digging my fingers into my skin, wishing that I could follow him. A tear slipped down my cheek, but I wiped it off quickly. I couldn’t help them without being exposed. I had no idea where Bianca was keeping Conrad’s family.
“She is amazingly cruel, and so intelligent,” squeaked the demon with blue hair. I wanted to slap her, shake her and ask her what the hell was wrong with her. Bianca had demons around her that could be easily manipulated. She was luring them with luxury, gold and her charisma. This was sick and I couldn’t stay here any second longer.
“Now, my dear friends. I’m unable to leave the underworld and head over to the human world. I’m looking for a volunteer, someone that is willing to help my dear sister,” Bianca asked, looking around. Fury tightened my chest, but I fought with myself to keep this act going. I didn’t want to compromise my daughter’s life. Conrad was dead, killed by a crazy demon in hell.
Bianca looked around, her eyes wandering over the group.
“I can help you. I have certain connections in the outside world. Your sister is a truly brave demon,” I stated, coming forward and pretending that my excitement was genuine. Ricky would have called me a moron, but I had to take advantage of being here. Alexis was determined to use my daughter as a shield. Bianca could gather as many supporters as she wished, but Lucifer was one and only. His power was unreachable; no one could push him out.
Her eyes narrowed, and for a brief second I thought that my cover was blown. Morpheus’s spell should hold for a few hours, like Ricky’s when I arrived at the market.
“Oh excellent. Your faction will allow it, I’m sure. Besides, I’m much needed here. You must find her and let her know that I support her entirely,” Bianca said approaching me. “I wish you to leave right away. You mustn’t waste anytime.”
“Of course,” I assured her and then we all left the bloodied chamber. I was going to remember the death of Conrad and somehow I was going to avenge him. Bianca owned a piece of hell. She was most likely responsible for more deaths. Ricky had never spoken about his life downstairs and now I understood why.
Upstairs the party was still going and other demons were oblivious to the fact that the hostess had just executed a presumably innocent mongrel and his family. Morpheus watched me from
a distance, a glass of champagne in his hand.
I left through the same door and started walking through the long narrow tunnel. Morpheus caught up with me half an hour later.
“I assume that everything went according to plan?” he asked, startling me. My skin was burning, my eyes were aching, and my hands were bleeding because I had been squeezing my fists so hard. Morpheus didn’t know what went on inside the chamber. Shock was blinding me, and I felt guilty that I hadn’t done more to help Conrad’s family. The rules downstairs overshadowed everything on earth. Death didn’t mean the end for others. I had only seen a fraction of hell, but the tiny bit that I’d seen didn’t mean much at all.
“Bianca is even crazier than her sick sister,” I said, wanting to see the sunlight again, experience the harsh wind on my skin. For the first time in my life I was regretting that I accepted Morpheus’s deal.
“She has her quirks, but yes she is deluded,” he agreed. “But did you get what you wanted?
“Alexis needs my daughter awake and alive. I know what I have to do,” I told him, wondering if that crazy bitch had taken control of Matilda’s magic too. I was struggling to keep on walking; my feet were covered with blisters. It was a small price to pay for the information that I got.
“Good, I’m glad that I could be of assistance,” Morpheus said. “And just so you know, there won’t be any uprising. Bianca has her cult, but she has no idea with whom she is dealing. There are upper level demons in hell that support Lucifer.”
“She killed a mongrel, treated him worse than an animal,” I muttered, wishing that the pits could swallow her once and for all.
“She has extreme views, but she doesn’t concern me. There is an election coming up and some demons are still unsure of who they should support. Some of them strongly believe that after the centuries hell might evolve, that maybe Lucifer will hand over his power,” Morpheus admitted.
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