Ruby Shadows

by Evangeline Anderson

  “Of course.” Her cheeks were pink. “I’ve never been penetrated—nor do I want to be!”

  “I used to think the same thing,” I muttered and then sighed. Well, I had to admit my one and only sexual experience with Laish had been amazing—right up until the end that was. So at least I had some good memories. Eryn, however, was an angel. It was right that she should remain as she was—untouched and pure as the driven snow.

  “So I should just be ready for anything that happens?” she asked me.

  I nodded. “Yup—pretty much. Sorry, I know that’s vague.”

  “That’s all right, Gwendolyn—do what you can. I am in your hands. But maybe I’d better pull in my wings? Just in case?”

  “Uh, sure, I guess,” I said.

  “All right.” A look of concentration passed over her face and then the white feathers around her shoulders began shrinking. After a moment, they disappeared completely.

  “Uh—where did they go?” Mystified, I went around behind her to see. Her long white gown had thin spaghetti straps and on the pale skin of her shoulder blades, I saw something that looked like a faint tattoo of wings. But a tattoo done in pure gold ink—not black or blue. “That’s beautiful!” I exclaimed. Without thinking, I reached out to trace one of the golden lines with one finger.

  “Oh!” Eryn shivered and jumped.

  “Sorry,” I said, quickly drawing back my hand. “I didn’t mean to, uh, hurt you.”

  “It’s not that. An angel’s wings are just very…sensitive.” She cleared her throat. “A sensitive as certain other parts of your anatomy that, well… I think you know what I mean.”

  She was blushing again so I got the message. Geeze, I’d just molested an angel without even knowing it.

  “I’m really sorry,” I said quickly, taking a step back. “Uh, maybe we’d just better get going.”

  “That is probably a good idea.” She nodded gratefully and closed her eyes. “I am ready.”

  I was too—it was time to get this party started. Especially since I had no idea when Belial might come back or send his guards to get me for the ridiculous hearing Druaga was insisting on. I needed to get Eryn out of here and get rid of all evidence of her before that happened. That way, at least, I could deny that I had anything of his and it would be the truth.

  “Hail to the Guardians of the watchtowers of the East,” I began.

  To my surprise, as I started the spell, I felt a surge of power flow through me. It was almost like I had plugged part of myself into a wall circuit and the current had begun to flow as soon as I flipped a switch. Well, there was no time to wonder about it now—once a spell is started, it must be seen through to its conclusion. So I continued calling the corners and lighting candles, trying not to think about how the last time I’d done this, Laish had been with me.

  When I had lit the final candle, I stood in front of the small alter and the remaining white pillar candle and began to recite the spell. I had memorized it, of course—it doesn’t do not to know your spell by heart before you begin it. And anyway, it hadn’t been hard to commit to memory—it was a pretty simple spell aimed at only one thing—complete and total protection of the innocent.

  “Blessed be the innocent,

  Blessed be the pure of heart.

  So be they at the end of times

  As they are at the Start.

  Protection grant this Blameless One

  A wall around her build

  Let none with wicked thoughts approach

  Against them be her shield

  Send her a protector

  A guard against the night

  A way to hide her innocence

  Away from Evil’s sight

  Blessed be the innocent,

  Blessed be the pure of heart.

  So be they at the end of times

  As they are at the Start.

  So Mote it be.”

  As I spoke the last word, power raced through me again—so strongly it nearly knocked me over. I braced myself, head down, trying to be strong enough to contain the immense surge. What the Hell was happening to me? Then I heard Eryn say,

  “Oh!” in a long, drawn out whisper.

  Looking up, I saw the result of my spell.

  I don’t know what I expected—maybe that an invisible force field would be raised all around Eryn or that a magical shield she could use would somehow appear. Instead, a plain wooden doorway had appeared in the center of the circle. It looked like any door you might find inside a house—maybe a bedroom or a closet door—and it was just standing there.

  “What is this? Where does it lead?” Eryn asked me softly.

  I shrugged. “Honestly, I don’t know. You’ll have to open it and find out.”

  “But…is it safe?” She was eyeing the door anxiously. “It doesn’t look like a door that would lead to Heaven.”

  “No, it looks like somebody’s bedroom or bathroom door,” I admitted. “I don’t think I could open a doorway from Hell into Heaven even if I had the power of an entire coven behind me. I’m pretty sure that this leads to somewhere in the Mortal Realm.”

  “Well, that is a step in the right direction.” She sounded hopeful but still uncertain.

  “Anything’s better than Hell,” I agreed. “Maybe the spell is trying to send you someplace safe—someplace away from here.”

  “But where, Gwendolyn?” Eryn was looking at me uncertainly again. “Do you know where this doorway might lead to?”

  I opened my mouth to answer but just then the door to the living area was flung open and Belial hobbled in. Behind him came two burly demon guards and Druaga.

  The boar demon was still minus one tusk but his male equipment had begun to grow back. I saw with dismay that it was already over a foot long and dangling from his open-fronted trousers in the most disgusting way. When he saw Eryn, he stopped and pointed at her with one hairy finger.

  “There she is! I told you the mortal girl stole something of great value from me! Guards—seize her!”

  The two demons came charging forward…only to bounce off the invisible boundary created by my magic circle. They wouldn’t be able to get past it until they rubbed it out entirely—which wouldn’t be easy considering that the talcum powder I’d used had really gotten ingrained in the weave of the carpet. Still, there was no time to lose—Eryn needed to get out of here.

  Unfortunately she appeared frozen to the spot, staring with wide-eyed fear at Druaga who was in a fury, shouting and swearing.

  “Mine,” he snorted. “I tell you, she’s mine! The mortal female stole her from me—it is just as I said.”

  “Yes, yes,” said Belial impatiently. “We believe you, Druaga. But if you want the angel back, we must rub out the circle.”

  Uh-oh—they were on to us. As the four of them started scuffing at the white talcum powder on the dark carpet, I whirled around to face my new friend.

  “Eryn,” I said, taking the angel by the arms and shaking her. “Eryn, hurry—you have to open the door and go through it. You have to.”

  “But…I don’t know what or who is on the other side,” she protested.

  “Yes but you know who’s on this side,” I pointed out grimly. “And if you don’t go now, you know what’s going to happen to you.”

  Her pale, lovely face got even paler.

  “You’re right,” she said, reaching for the plain brass doorknob. “I have to go—and you do too.” She looked at me pleadingly. “Gwendolyn, come with me!”

  “I can’t,” I said as gently as I could. “I have to keep the magic going. And besides, this spell only works on virgins and I’m not one anymore—remember?”

  “Oh yes, I suppose…” She looked like she might cry but Druaga and Belial were beginning to make headway at scuffing my talcum powder circle out of existence.

  “Hurry,” I told her. “Hurry!”

  “All right.” Taking a deep breath, she turned the knob just as I felt the magic of the circle give way.

  “
No, stop her! Come back—she’s mine!” Druaga howled, charging into the circle with his arms outstretched to grab Eryn.

  “Leave her alone!” I got in his way, trying to keep him from getting to her but I didn’t have to bother.

  The minute the door opened there was a deep rushing, sucking sound. I had a brief, confused glimpse of the room beyond—there was a four poster bed but it appeared like I was looking down on it. It was as though the door was in the ceiling somehow and it was positioned directly over the bed. But I couldn’t see who or what was sleeping in it—there was just an indistinct lump under the covers. A very large lump. Oh Goddess, where was Eryn going and who was she going to land on?

  I didn’t have long to wonder. With a gasp, Eryn was sucked through the doorway and into the dark bedroom beyond.

  “Stop—I command you!” Belial shouted but it was too late. The minute Eryn was through it, the door slammed itself shut.

  “Mine—she’s mine!” Druaga bellowed. He pushed me to one side, knocking me to my knees in the process, and reached for the door. But the spell had done what it was meant to do and now it was finished. The brass doorknob came off in the boar demon’s hand and the rest of the door shivered and then crumbled to dust right in front of him.

  I breathed a sigh of relief—Eryn was safe! Well, I hoped so anyway. The spell had been all about protecting the innocent so it must have sent her to someone who could help and protect her. But who?

  “Seize her!” Belial shouted, breaking into my frantic thoughts. The two demon guards both grabbed me by the arm with their hot, hard hands.

  “Hey, let me go!” I struggled but it didn’t do a damn bit of good. The demons had too strong a grip on me. And even if I could get loose, where would I go? I was stuck here in Hell, with no way out.

  “You are to be tried and sentenced immediately.” Belial glared at me, the last vestiges of his kindly old grandpa persona disappearing completely. “And I assure you, Ms. LaRoux, you will be found guilty—I will see to that myself.”

  I realized I had bigger things to worry about now than where Eryn had been sent by my spell. Right now I had to worry about keeping my own hide intact and judging from the way Belial and Druaga were glaring at me, it wasn’t going to be easy.

  Chapter Thirty-four

  Gwendolyn

  “This Council of the Elder Demons will convene at once.” Belial rapped on the broad wooden table. “Order—order now,” he shouted, as though someone had disagreed with him.

  Seated around the table—which looked like it could have come out of any boardroom in corporate America—were a dozen demons, each older and uglier than the last. Belial was standing at the head of the table and Druaga was sitting at his right hand, presumably acting as the accuser.

  I was standing at the head of the table on the left side of Belial with my hands bound behind by back, waiting to hear my fate. A fate which wouldn’t be long in coming, I was sure. This didn’t seem like the kind of court where your case could drag out for months and months or you could make any kind of appeal. No, they were going to try me and find me guilty right now and then probably hand me over to Druaga.

  I’d rather die than let that evil bastard touch me! I thought, trying to suppress a shiver. I’ll kill myself first. But how? I looked around for a weapon—any kind of weapon. If I could find something I would use it to defend myself first and if that didn’t work, I would turn it around and end my life before the evil demon could get me. But how could I do anything with my hands tied?

  My morbid thoughts were interrupted as Belial started talking again.

  “As you know, the accused, one Gwendolyn LaRoux, has been charged with the theft of a very valuable item from the accuser, Druaga, the manager and owner of the Hotel Infernal.”

  “It wasn’t an item,” I said, speaking up on my own behalf since apparently you didn’t get a lawyer in court here in Hell. “It was a person—an angel. You can’t just steal a person! If anything, Druaga is in the wrong here! He’s an evil, vicious, lecherous bastard who—”

  “Enough! Enough, Miss LaRoux!” Belial shouted, pounding on the table again. He narrowed his eyes at me. “Do you really think that your arguments carry weight here? Think about it, young lady—you are in Hell. Druaga was simply doing what comes naturally to demons—seeking to destroy innocence. If anything, this Council applauds his efforts—the capture of an angel is no small achievement.”

  “Hear, hear!” several of the demons on the Council shouted, banging on the table.

  “An achievement you snatched away from him by stealing the angel he had rightfully stolen from Heaven,” Belial continued.

  “You’re all sick!” I shouted, balling my hands into fists behind my back. “And anyway, I didn’t steal her—she hitched a ride on my shoulder in her moth form. I didn’t even know she was an angel until a few hours ago.”

  “At which point you proceeded to work a spell that would free her from Druaga and sent her to some other unspecified place which you refuse to reveal,” Belial thundered.

  “I told you—I don’t know where she went!” I said. “The spell was for protecting the innocent. It probably just sent her as far away from this evil bastard as it could.” I nodded at the boar demon who was snarling at me.

  “Don’t worry about that—we will find her.” Belial glared at me. “It may take time but she will be located. In the meantime, since you are wholly uncooperative and unrepentant of your crimes, I recommend to the Council that you be given to Druaga as compensation for his lost property. All in favor?”

  “Aye!” shouted every single demon at the table.

  “All opposed?” Belial asked. Not a single one of them spoke up—there was dead silence.

  “The motion carries and the sentence is just,” Belial concluded. “The accused will be handed over to the accuser at once to be dealt with as he sees fit.”

  “What? No!” I exclaimed. Deep down I had been expecting this—I knew it was the most probable outcome of the travesty of a trial I was being subjected to. But I’d thought deliberations would last a little longer. I didn’t even have anything to defend myself with—or kill myself if there was no other way. Because I didn’t want Druaga touching me—the thought of that huge, hairy thing dangling between his legs getting anywhere near me was repulsive. Better to die than wind up being used over and over for his sick pleasure.

  Druaga rose from his seat and came over to me.

  “A poor substitute for the treasure I lost,” he snarled. His long, hairy snout wrinkled as he leaned forward and took a deep whiff of my hair. I jerked away from him but he didn’t seem to care. “She has lost her innocence and half of her soul as well since last I saw her,” he announced.

  I had no idea what he was talking about but I didn’t want to hang around and find out.

  “Stay away from me,” I said in a shaky voice, trying to inch back from him. Unfortunately the two demon guards were only a few steps away.

  “Hold her,” Belial directed them and they gripped me by the upper arms, forcing me to hold still.

  “Now be a good girl, my dear and it will all be over quickly.” Druaga leered at me. Or maybe not so quickly.”

  Without warning, he grabbed the top of my t-shirt in his hairy hands and yanked, ripping it viciously down the middle. My extra bra hadn’t survived my adventures in Hell so this left my breasts completely bare.

  “No!” I writhed in anger and shame, my exposed nipples hardened both by the cold air and the chilly fear I could feel knotting up my stomach.

  Druaga paid no attention.

  “Nice—very nice,” he snorted, surveying my bare breasts. Then he sniffed me again, this time bending down to poke his disgusting snout right in my crotch.

  “You asshole!” I kicked out reflexively and the toe of my little black ballet flat caught him in the throat.

  “Argh!” He jumped back, his hairy hand going to his throat. “You little bitch!” he snarled in a choked voice. “Half a soul or not, I�
��ll take you like I should’ve from the start.”

  He stepped forward again, one hand going to his hardening member. I felt my stomach turn with a sick twist. He was really going to do it—he was going to rape me and take my soul right here in the board room, in front of the entire Council of Demons! And no one was going to do a thing to stop him—including me because I didn’t have a weapon.

  Yes, you do have a weapon! whispered a little voice inside my head. You’ve got power inside you if you just let it out!

  I didn’t know what the voice was talking about but I knew I needed to find out. But before I could think further, Druaga was leaning over me, blowing his hot, rotten breath in my face and fumbling between us for the button of my jeans.

  “Get away from me!” I shouted in his face but he only laughed. I tried to kick him again but he dodged me and stripped down my jeans and panties, effectively hobbling my legs.

  “Come here, my pretty little mortal,” he snorted in my face. “Give me a sweet kiss while I fuck out your soul…”

  Oh, this was so not good…If only I had time and the right materials to try and cast a spell. But my magic didn’t work that way. It wasn’t like I could just shout out a word like Laish had! The thought started a loop in my frantic brain. Words of power…words of power…if only I could say them like he did!

  I felt something hot and hard and slimy poking against the inside of my thigh and the boar’s snout was closing in on my face, snuffling against my cheek. A shudder of pure disgust went through me. I felt like I was going to gag or faint or go crazy or maybe all three at once.

  No, no I can’t stand this! I can’t let him do it! I can’t!

  I turned my head to one side and opened my mouth, meaning to scream or shout. Instead, a word I had never heard before came pouring out.

  I say pouring out but it was more like it came sizzling out like a lightning bolt—a flash of electricity that singed the hairs on Druaga’s snout and made him jump back with a curse.