Black Spring

by Christina Henry

  “I’m not holding my breath,” I said. “Besides, I don’t need a million dollars. I just need to be able to take care of my baby.”

  “But first you need to not show up at Lucifer’s wedding dressed like the country mouse,” Beezle said.

  I threw some underthings and a brush on top of my clothes. “I don’t have anything else to bring, and I’m not going shopping now. So Lucifer will just have to deal with the indignity of having a poorly dressed relation.”

  Beezle muttered something that sounded like “But what about my dignity when I’m sitting on your shoulder and you’re wearing that off-the-rack dress?”

  “What was that?” I asked.

  “Nothing, nothing,” Beezle said. “Nathaniel said to tell you that he’s getting the portal ready now. He’s waiting for a signal from Lucifer. Once the portal opens, you’ll only have a short time to use it, so get a move on.”

  “I’m sure Nathaniel didn’t say to get a move on,” I said.

  “No, I did. Get a move on.” He flew out of the room after throwing one more black look toward my suitcase.

  I fingered the cheap material of my dress. So what if it wasn’t a designer label? Did that make me less valuable as a human being? Why were immortals so damned shallow? Didn’t they have more important things to worry about than who was wearing what and when? They were all trying to outmaneuver one another every second of the day. You’d think they wouldn’t have room in their brains to think about clothes.

  “Madeline!” Nathaniel called, and his voice was impatient.

  I zipped up the case and hurried into the living room. That is, I hurried as fast as a pregnant woman carrying a suitcase can waddle, which isn’t very fast.

  Everyone else was gathered in the living room. Jude and Samiel both had backpacks slung over their shoulders. Nathaniel carried a garment bag. The dogs lingered around the edges, their ears curled in question. I patted their heads gently.

  “You guys will be okay without us for a day or so, right? Beezle says you don’t have to be dogs if you don’t want to.”

  They rubbed their faces against my legs, telling me without words that they would be fine. I still didn’t want to leave them. I was worried about what might happen if the shifter returned while we were away.

  Beezle landed on my shoulder, settling himself in for the trip.

  “And where are your fancy clothes?” I asked.

  “I’m perfect the way I am,” Beezle said. “I don’t need clothes.”

  “Are you telling me that Lucifer won’t be offended that you don’t have a bow tie or something?”

  “Children, please,” Nathaniel said. He had one finger pressed to his ear like he was listening to an in-ear microphone.

  “Is Lucifer talking in his head or something?” I whispered to Beezle.

  The gargoyle nodded. “Interesting that he chose to have Nathaniel open the portal and not you.”

  “Am I supposed to read some dread portent in that?” I asked. “Maybe he just didn’t want to trouble me.”

  “He didn’t want to trouble his Hound of the Hunt?” Beezle said skeptically. “I think it much more likely that he wants you to conserve your energy for whatever is waiting on the other side.”

  Nathaniel beckoned us all closer. He pointed his finger toward the floor and drew a circle in the air. A line of energy left his hand and the portal opened in front of our feet, a swirling vortex that bore a strong resemblance to Alice’s rabbit hole.

  I moved toward the portal, and Nathaniel put his hand on my arm. “Let me go first.”

  The argument we’d had the day before rang in my ears, and I started to shake my head no.

  But before I could raise a protest he’d stepped forward and disappeared into the hole.

  “Dammit,” I swore as Samiel dropped in right after Nathaniel, almost as if the two of them had coordinated it ahead of time.

  Jude looked at me and gestured toward the portal.

  “You’re not going to try to go in front of me to make sure the helpless woman is safe?” I said.

  “No, because it’s my job to stay here until you’re through in case anything comes out of the woodwork at this end,” Jude said, smiling a little.

  “So they did arrange it ahead of time,” I said.

  “You didn’t have to take twenty years to pack,” Beezle said. “They had too much time to discuss things among themselves.”

  “Just hold tight,” I said, and stepped into the portal.

  I expected the usual feeling of having my brain squeezed between my ears, but this portal felt sort of light and floaty. If that was Lucifer’s doing, then I was grateful, although I would never tell him so. It would be nice to arrive at the other end without feeling nauseous for a change.

  The trip was over almost before I knew it. One second I was in the portal, and the next moment I had landed softly on a plush carpet, blinking in surprise at my many-greats-grandfather, who stood waiting for me with the beaming smile of a game-show host.

  “Air Morningstar,” Lucifer said, winking. “The only way to travel. Much more comfortable than your usual portal, yes?”

  This was not the first time that I’d had the disquieting feeling that Lucifer could read minds, although he strenuously protested otherwise.

  “Nothing but the best for my future grandson,” he said, a greedy light in his eyes as he looked at my burgeoning belly. “You may want to step to one side, Madeline. I believe my friend Judas is arriving.”

  Lucifer lightly pressed my shoulder and guided me to his side so that we could see Jude arrive. The wolf narrowed his eyes at his old enemy.

  “Morningstar,” Jude growled.

  “Judas,” Lucifer said merrily, ignoring the malice in Jude’s tone. “Welcome to my humble home.”

  I glanced around the room and thought that Lucifer’s idea of humble and my idea of humble were two very different things.

  The room had quite obviously been decorated by someone with piles of money and the taste to go with it. He’d eschewed the baroque-madness look favored by so many other ancient creatures and gone with clean, modern lines and simple colors. It didn’t look like a comfortable room for cozying up with a book, but neither did it look like the kind of place where you’d be afraid to sit down because you might break the furniture.

  Samiel and Nathaniel stood off to one side, holding their bags. I opened my mouth to yell at Nathaniel for going into the portal before me and realized that Lucifer watched me closely. Was he looking for a wedge to drive between Nathaniel and me? Everything I did for the next few days was going to be observed. I’d better start acting accordingly.

  “Thanks for having us here,” I said, trying to sound sincere.

  Lucifer’s eyes crinkled in laughter. “You look as though you just swallowed a toad, Granddaughter.”

  I guess fake sincerity is not my best thing.

  “Come, I will have Zaniel show you to your rooms and then you will join us in the main hall. Evangeline is greeting the other guests there,” he said.

  He led us to a door that opened onto a hallway. Zaniel, the messenger who’d delivered the wedding invitation to me, stood there like a soldier at rest.

  “Show my granddaughter and her entourage to their rooms,” Lucifer said. “Then you will escort them to the hall for cocktails.”

  “Entourage?” Beezle muttered. “We’re her family.”

  Lucifer gave Beezle an amused look, and Beezle glared back at him.

  Zaniel nodded his head once. “Of course, Lord Lucifer.”

  Lucifer bent to kiss my cheek, so he didn’t see the flare of emotion in Zaniel’s eyes. This kid really did not like me.

  I steeled myself not to shrink away from Lucifer. At the touch of his lips on my cheek, the darkness inside me opened its eyes.

  Lucifer pulled away from me after that brief touch, his eyes dark with anticipation. He’d felt the magic inside me, felt like call to like. And he was happy that I was here, where he could try to ben
d that magic to his will.

  I gave him a steady look, so he would know that I wasn’t scared, and that I wouldn’t surrender.

  The Morningstar only turned away from me, smiling.

  10

  Zaniel led us through the maze of hallways and stairways that seemed to comprise Lucifer’s house. It reminded me quite a bit of Azazel’s home, which had been a warren of little rooms, most of them filled with horrors. Lucifer might not be a scientist experimenting the way Azazel had been, but I had no doubt there were plenty of things I did not want to see behind these doors. He was nicknamed the Prince of Darkness for a reason.

  We were brought to the topmost floor of the mansion, and Zaniel bowed.

  “You and your people have the entire floor at your disposal, Ms. Black,” he said.

  “Okay,” I said, passing my suitcase to Nathaniel. “Why don’t you three go find rooms? I just want to have a quick word with Zaniel here.”

  Samiel and Jude looked uncertain, glancing at Nathaniel.

  “Don’t look at him like he’s in charge of me,” I said. “I’ll be fine.”

  “What about him?” Jude asked, jerking his head at Zaniel.

  “I won’t break anything,” I said.

  Samiel and Jude seemed fine with that, and they turned away to choose rooms. Nathaniel, however, stubbornly stood his ground. I gave him my best death glare, but he ignored it. He wouldn’t argue with me in front of Zaniel, but he wasn’t going to leave me alone, either.

  “In case you’re wondering, this kid is not the shifter,” Beezle said loudly, breaking the tension.

  “Thanks, but I wasn’t worried about that,” I said.

  “Then what did you wish to speak to me about?” Zaniel asked. He looked polite and attentive, and there was no hint of the hatred I’d seen earlier.

  “Why did you go see Sokolov when you were in Chicago?”

  He wasn’t expecting that, and because he was caught off guard I saw the surprise in his face before he schooled his expression again.

  Zaniel frowned slightly. “I am sorry, Ms. Black. I do not know this individual of whom you speak.”

  But it didn’t matter what he said. I’d seen the truth in his face. He had gone to the Agency and spoken with Sokolov. Now I just had to find out why—and at whose behest.

  “I must have been mistaken, then,” I said lightly. “I’ll be right back as soon as I drop off my case in the room.”

  “You do not wish to change for cocktails?” Zaniel said, looking at my scuffed combat boots, threadbare jeans and the T-shirt that didn’t quite cover my belly.

  “No,” I said firmly.

  Nathaniel followed me down the hall, carrying the luggage like a bellhop. I picked the first room on the left and he followed me in. Beezle flew to the dresser so he could stretch his claws without hurting me.

  I closed the door firmly behind me and gestured for Nathaniel to come closer. I was sure the room was bugged, and if by some strange chance it wasn’t, then I didn’t want Zaniel to overhear what I was going to say.

  “We’re going to have a lot of problems if you keep undermining my authority in front of everyone here,” I said to Nathaniel. “There was no reason why you couldn’t leave me alone with Zaniel for a minute.”

  “Madeline, you have no authority over me,” Nathaniel said. “And the sooner we resolve that misunderstanding, the better. I will not leave you alone in this place, not even with a seemingly harmless errand boy. He is Lucifer’s son and we know he bears you ill will.”

  “He wasn’t going to try to attack me in the hallway with everyone watching,” I hissed.

  “How do you know?” Nathaniel said. “If he killed you under Lucifer’s roof, then his father might be angry with him but the damage would still be done. And do not believe that he would play fair. You have too long faced enemies that want to stand and fight you. Zaniel knows he is not as powerful as you. He would not engage you in a battle. He would surprise you and you would be dead before you could blink. And so would your child.”

  I stared at Nathaniel. “I thought I would be safer with Lucifer than with anyone else.”

  “Safer does not mean perfectly safe,” Nathaniel said. “There is still much danger here.”

  I sighed. “Fine, be my bodyguard if it makes you feel better.”

  “It does,” Nathaniel said.

  “Let’s go down and get this farce over with,” I said. “I can’t imagine I’m going to enjoy mingling with a bunch of people who might slit my throat when Lucifer isn’t looking.”

  “Are you truly not going to change?” Nathaniel said. He wore his usual black suit and white dress shirt, open at the collar. He looked perfectly respectable even if I did not.

  “I have nothing to change into anyway, according to Beezle,” I said.

  “You weren’t there when she was packing,” Beezle said.

  Nathaniel nodded toward the bed. “I believe Lucifer left that for you.”

  The bed was covered with a red silk comforter, and on the silk there was a perfectly lovely wine-colored dress with a fitted bodice and an A-line skirt. There was also a shawl that looked like it might be cashmere. A string of white pearls lay across the shawl, and on the floor was a pair of dangerous-looking heels.

  I pointed at the shoes. “First of all, I’d kill myself in those things. Second, my belly is too big for the cut of that dress. It’s made for someone with a small waist. I can’t even find my waist. Third, if Lucifer wants me to wear that getup, then I am definitely not putting it on.”

  “Madeline, why be contrary for no reason? Pick your battles. It would please Lucifer to see you wear this. I think you would find it would accommodate your new figure,” Nathaniel said.

  “I am not interested in Lucifer’s pleasure,” I said. “If I wear the clothes, then I’m giving in. He doesn’t get an inch from me. Not an inch. I won’t be his caged bird. And maybe if he sees that, he’ll give up this stupid quest to make me his heir.”

  “He will never give that up,” Nathaniel said. “I saw his face when he kissed you. He knows the darkness is rising inside you. You become more powerful every day, and your child may be even more so. Lucifer will not risk you falling under another’s influence.”

  “Too bad Lucifer still doesn’t realize Maddy hasn’t been influenced by anyone since she could talk. Her first word was ‘no,’” Beezle said.

  “I’m not changing,” I said, and went into the hall.

  Samiel and Jude waited there. Samiel had put on a gray suit that made him look very handsome. Jude was dressed like a Hell’s Angel as usual, so I felt better. Jude wasn’t going to give Lucifer an inch, either.

  Zaniel led us down to the main hall. The room had double doors, like Amarantha’s castle and Azazel’s mansion. It was as if all the old creatures had used the same architect. I had a strange moment of déjà vu when the doors swung open as we reached them. I half expected to see Nathaniel standing there, golden and arrogant, as he was when I’d first met him. But Nathaniel stood at my side, his hand clasping mine, and we stepped into the room.

  There were a lot of people. A lot. I did not recognize the majority of them, although Beezle started whispering in my ear as soon as we entered, pointing out dignitaries from the faerie world and various wolf packs and other assorted creatures. I heard none of it. Anyone who had caught sight of us was whispering and pointing, and the whispers followed us as we crossed the endless room. It was like Azazel’s ballroom all over again, and I lifted my chin. None of these gossiping immortals mattered to me.

  Someone grabbed my elbow. “Maddy, thank goodness.”

  I smiled up at J.B., who looked very handsome but as uncomfortable as could be in his suit. “Where’s your entourage?” I asked, looking behind him.

  “I ditched them as soon as I saw you,” J.B. said. “I haven’t had a decent conversation for weeks. Faeries are so damned boring.”

  “The one thing Maddy isn’t is boring,” Beezle said from his perch on my shoulder.
“Wait until you hear about the giant squid that destroyed our street.”

  “There was a squid?” J.B. asked, looking at me with a raised eyebrow.

  “There was a squid,” I said.

  “And you probably dispatched it with the maximum amount of mayhem,” J.B. said. “How many fire trucks showed up?”

  Beezle chortled. “Does he know you, or does he know you?”

  “It’s not my fault that burning is the most effective way to get rid of giant monsters,” I said. “If the giant monsters would just leave me alone, we wouldn’t have a problem.”

  “Speaking of monsters, look who else is here,” J.B. said. He jerked his head toward the left, where a familiar set of horns rose above the crowd.

  “Focalor?” I asked, surprised. “Why is he being treated like a guest? He was a key player in the uprising against Lucifer.”

  J.B. shrugged. “I’d like to speculate on Lucifer’s motivations, but that way lies madness and migraines. And look there.”

  He pointed at a tall man with golden hair and white wings. I could only see the back of the man’s head, but there was something familiar about him. Of course, all angels sort of looked the same, with the wings and the blond hair and the unearthly beauty.

  “Another angel of the host?” I asked.

  J.B. shook his head. “How about an archangel?”

  “Michael?” I asked.

  As I said his name he turned toward me, almost as if he had heard me speak. I was unable to suppress a little gasp. It was his eyes that took my breath away. Instead of the usual angelic jewel-brightness, his eyes were made of flame. For a moment it seemed like that flame rose up around him, that he was wreathed in it. Then he nodded at me, and turned back to whoever he was speaking to, and the moment passed.

  “Anybody else in need of extra oxygen?” Beezle asked.

  “So I wasn’t the only one who felt that?” I said.

  Beezle shook his head. “In a room full of powerful people, he stands out. Kind of like you.”

  We were about halfway through the room, standing in a little cluster—me, Nathaniel, Samiel, Jude, Beezle and J.B. It was comforting that all of us were together in this place, that the friends I’d trusted over and over to help me through the apocalypse were with me one more time. Especially since the apocalypse could rear up again at any moment. That tended to happen around me.