"So how do we catch her if she already knows you're coming?" Jane asked.
"She's expecting me. Maybe even Alyx. She won't be expecting you." I pointed at Zifah. "Or you."
"Me?" Zifah said. "I told you, Landon, I don't want to get involved."
"That's too damn bad," I said. "There's no point in you being here if here is going to go the way of Hell, and that's what's going to happen if you don't help me."
"Look, you're a nice guy, and your girlfriend is hot, and your other friend is even hotter. I don't care if this Rebecca gets into Heaven. It doesn't concern me."
I wanted to strangle Zifah. "It concerns you because if you don't do it, I'm going to kill you."
"Really, Landon?" Zifah said. "You're resorting to-"
He started choking as I wrapped my power around his scrawny neck. "I don't like threats, which should tell you how important this is to me. Let's say God lets Rebecca into Heaven. Guess what? Abaddon is still here on Earth."
I let him go. He rubbed at his neck dramatically.
"All I need you to do is distract Rebecca and give Jane a chance to swoop in and get her into the trap. You said you were a master sneak."
"Well, of course, I am."
"Then will you do it?"
He growled softly for a few seconds. "Fine. I'll do it. On one condition."
"What's that?"
"I want a steady supply of popcorn."
Demons. "Okay."
"What about me, diuscrucis," Gervais said. "I don't seem to fit into your plans."
"You'll be waiting back in Central Park. We'll bring Rebecca there, and when Abaddon comes, you'll help me get him in the Fist."
"How am I supposed to do that?"
"I don't know, this was your plan, remember? I trust you'll think of something."
"We can call on Dante, too," Rose said.
"I plan on it. It's going to take all of us to get this done. Are you with me?"
I didn't get much of a response from the assembly of angel, demons, mortal, and other.
"I said, are you with me?"
"Yes," they said, catching on.
"Pathetic. Are you with me?" I shouted.
"Yes," they shouted back.
"Good. Then let's save the world."
Yeah, it was hokey. But what was wrong with that?
Forty-Six
Alyx and I were standing across the street from Rebecca's penthouse three hours later. It had taken a bit of time to fine tune the details of our plan and to get it organized. Rose had called on Dante and filled him in, and everything was supposedly in place. The fact that I was relying on not one, but two demons made me nervous. Very nervous. Especially since one of those demons was Gervais.
Luckily, Rebecca was keeping Abaddon to herself. For the moment at least. I could feel the demon's power, even from the distance, so I knew he was up there. I wondered what they were doing? Playing house, as Zifah had suggested? Who was Rebecca possessing to do it, and how could they survive anything like that?
They were lewd thoughts for another time. Like never.
"How is he not killing everyone in that building?" Alyx asked.
I kept staring at the penthouse. I could see there was a light on up there. "I don't know. Maybe he's learned to control it better? Or maybe Rebecca told him not to kill anyone." I turned my wrist to check the time. "Are you ready?"
She nodded. "As ready as I'll ever be."
She looked amazing in a red dress that hugged her athletic form. It flowed to the floor, with slits along the sides to give her legs some clearance to move. I was wearing a tuxedo, looking good in it, if I did say so myself. The charade wasn't for anyone, but the vampires I knew would be guarding the lobby. We had to make it past them and into the elevator without making a scene and giving ourselves away. I could hide Alyx's aura as long as she was close enough to me, giving us the appearance of plain, ordinary, wealthy mortals. The kind that might live in the building below the penthouse. I could hide any aura that was close enough.
"I have to say, this is the best ride I've ever gotten," Zifah said.
He was the reason for the long dress. He had his arms wrapped around Alyx's leg, clinging to the inside of her thigh where he wouldn't be seen. It had to be a dream come true for the little demon to get that close to Alyx's groin.
"Keep your appendages to yourself," Alyx whispered. "Or I will eat you."
"Okay, okay," Zifah said.
My phone vibrated. I didn't need to check it. "That's the signal."
We made our way across the street. I kept my arm around Alyx's shoulder, holding her close and playing it that we were a little bit drunk and amorous. We paused a few times to share an overly passionate kiss, and it was all I could do to stay focused on the task instead of falling apart at the taste of her.
"Good evening Jeeves," I said, reaching the front of the building. The doorman was a were though none of the mortals around would know it.
He sniffed me quickly, not picking up Alyx's composition through a strategic scent of booze and perfume.
"Good evening, sir," he replied, opening the door for us.
We had cleared the first hurdle.
We strolled into the lobby, continuing our facade of drunken laughter, embraces, and nearly pornographic kissing. There was a part of me that wanted to save and savor it for the bedroom. It was an important part of the mission, and I wasn't one to shy away from doing what needed to be done.
We made our way past two vampire bellhops and another vamp guard who had the black teeth of one who had drank from Abaddon's fountain, reaching the elevator banks by drawing a lot of the right kind of attention. People looked at us out of the corner of their eyes, embarrassed and curious at the display. They probably thought we were a pair of celebrities the way we were carrying on, left to wonder if the paparazzi had taken a day off, or fallen asleep.
I pushed Alyx against the wall, kissing her while my hand found the button to go up. She growled softly against me, her teeth catching my lip and biting tenderly, her tongue tracing the flesh.
"I'm ready to forget about Abaddon," she whispered in my ear.
I swallowed hard. Maybe this hadn't been the best approach? "Stay focused."
"I'm focused on you."
"I know. Stay focused on the mission."
She giggled softly beneath my kiss. "I love you."
The elevator dinged, and the doors slid open. There were five other people waiting to go up, but when I turned Alyx into the car and shoved her back against the wall, and she wrapped one of her legs around me, they decided to wait for the next one.
We shifted as soon as the doors were closed, keeping up appearances for the surveillance cameras. I moved her close to the control panel, hitting the button to bring us up to the floor three below Rebecca. It was the best we could do without having access to a private elevator.
We made out all the way up, which seemed like it only took a few seconds. I was sweating beneath the collar of the tux, and another part of me was making itself a little too apparent, much to Alyx's enjoyment.
Finally, the doors parted, and we slipped together out into the hall. As soon as we made it into the corridor, we pretended to trip and fall, winding up splayed out on the rug and fake laughing like a pair of idiots.
That was Zifah's cue to abandon his hiding spot. He departed from beneath the dress, blending in with his surroundings so completely that I could barely make him out in front of the wallpaper.
We were fairly close to Abaddon, and his power was enough to ruin my earlier predicament. It was also enough to disguise Zifah. I stayed on the floor, still laughing while I pushed open the elevator doors just enough for him to climb into the shaft. He would head up to the penthouse while we circled from the outside. It was up to us to provide the distraction that would allow him to sneak in.
"Ready for round two?" I asked.
She kissed me one more time and slowly dragged herself to her feet. "Yes."
Forty-Seven
<
br /> We made our way down the hallway. There was an apartment at the end that was directly below one of the windows in the southeast corner of Rebecca's penthouse. From what I knew of the layout, it was a full-length window that went directly into the bedroom. It would be thick, bullet-proof, demon-proof, and angel-proof.
It wouldn't be me-proof.
"Do you think anyone is home?" Alyx asked.
We were holding hands, still walking a little crookedly for effect. I had spotted the cameras in the corners, and I knew the viewers had to be Solen goons; vampires or the Turned. We ambled to the end of the corridor and bounced up against the door. I made a motion like I was fumbling for my card, making sure to hover over the security panel and obscure what we were really doing.
I didn't need to do anything with the panel. Instead, I reached out with my power, finding the locking mechanism inside the door and turning it. The door clicked, and I pushed it open.
It turned out; someone was home. I had barely gotten inside, pulled the door closed, and separated myself from Alyx when I heard the unmistakable sound of a shotgun being primed.
"What the hell are you doing in my apartment?"
We both looked at him at the same time. He was middle-aged, handsome, wearing a pair of silk pajamas. He looked pissed. His television was on, and a can of beer was sitting on an end table.
Did he always keep a shotgun right next to his sofa? What were the odds of walking in on that?
"What?" I said, still playing the drunk.
"You're in my apartment," he said again.
"This is my apartment," I said.
He shook his head. "You lousy drunk. How did you open the door anyway? Did I forget to lock it again? Go on, get out of here."
"I like him," Alyx said to me, running her hand along my chest and playing it sexy.
"Him?" I asked.
"Me?" the man said.
She slid away from me and moved slowly toward the man. He kept his shotgun up but didn't make a move to blast her. It was a good thing for him.
She reached his side, putting a hand on his face. "Do you want to play with us?" she asked.
I wondered if the guy watched porn, and if he did, what he was thinking right about now. If the stakes weren't so high, I would have thought the entire thing was amusing.
"Wha- What do you mean, play with you?" the man asked.
"Come on, Kevin, don't be shy," Alyx said, looking at me. I guess I was Kevin. "Say hello to our new friend."
She smiled mischievously. She may have had a good heart, but she was still a demon, and sometimes it seemed she just couldn't help herself.
I walked over to them. The man was slowly lowering the shotgun, clearly confused. I put my hand on his arm suggestively.
"What do you say?" I asked him in the most seductive voice I could manage. To an onlooker, it was probably hilarious. "If my wife wants you, I want you."
The statement seemed to disgust him. His face wrinkled, and he tried to take a step back. "You perverts. Get away from-"
Alyx hit him in the temple, just hard enough to put him out. We lowered him gently to the floor.
"You're enjoying this a little too much," I said.
"You looked like you were enjoying it, too."
"No, I wasn't."
"Yes, you were."
"You started it."
"Yes. It worked, didn't it."
I couldn't argue with the results. The occupant was disabled, and we had our path up to the penthouse. "Come on."
We made our way over to the window. I gazed into it, down to the city below. Then I cast my attention to the top of the opposite building. I could just barely make out Jane perched on the edge of it, watching.
Then I took a step back. Alyx replaced me, her finger growing into a long, sharp claw. She pressed it against and then into the glass, quickly cutting away a piece large enough for us to climb through.
"Hold on tight," I said, stepping up to the opening.
The wind rushed in from outside, adding atmosphere to the effort. Alyx wrapped her arms around my neck and chest and clung to me while I focused my power, using it to press us against the side of the building and keep us from falling as I climbed out.
I didn't see it, but the activity should have sent Jane from her current position to the next one, a secondary skyscraper on the western side.
I had just started scaling the glass exterior of the building when the screams began to rise from below.
Forty-Eight
I looked down. I had a moment of instinctual panic when I realized how far I was from the ground, before remembering that I couldn't fall to my death. To a lot of pain, yes, but my head would have to be totally crushed to not recover.
I scanned the street. It took me a few seconds to find the source of the screams, though I should have guessed before I looked.
Vampires.
Lots of them.
They were coming out of the building's parking garage, at least a hundred strong. They pounced on the mortals with reckless abandon, grabbing them, biting them, dropping them and continuing on.
Rebecca was making her move.
We were out of time.
"She's starting the attack," I said. "We need to get up there before she comes down with Abaddon. Forget the original plan, we have to distract her."
She wouldn't put the demon on the streets right away. She couldn't without killing her own. They would clear the area, and then he would descend as backup. The angels would confront him, and they would die unless they submitted to her demands. And some of them would die. Michael wouldn't agree to let her in without trying to stop her first, but I knew Heaven had nothing that could handle the demon. Not without Avriel and his Box.
"Your turn," I said to Alyx.
She kissed me on the cheek, her face growing and elongating as she did. She released herself from my back, planting her claws on the building and climbing it easily. I scaled the wall below her, a little slower in my ascent. She reached the penthouse window in seconds, drawing back her arm and slamming a massive fist into the heavy glass. It didn't shatter the first time, or the second, or the third. She was reaching back for a fourth punch when a dark tendril began to ooze through the cracks she was making.
"Alyx, watch out," I shouted, feeling the urgency. I planted my feet against the building, pushing off with my toes, using my power to send me springing up to her. I got a grip on her arm with one hand, reaching out to the tendrils with my other.
The fear and pain nearly overwhelmed me before I was able to calm myself enough to reverse it. The tendril evaporated against my skin, dissipated by my passive will.
"Swing me," I said.
Alyx grunted, pulling me back and swinging me forward, toward the window. I could see the dark tendrils of Abaddon's energy filling the bedroom. He wasn't there, watching us, but he knew we were coming. So did Rebecca.
Good.
The window came in fast, cracks spreading across the entire pane. I threw my power out ahead of me, pushing against it with more force than even Alyx could manage. It exploded in a spray of shrapnel that peppered the king sized bed with the rumpled sheets and dead, naked, female vampire laying in the center. It blasted the large armoire, and the priceless art that hung on the walls.
I landed inside, right in the middle of the darkness.
"Alyx, stay back," I said.
She wouldn't be able to survive in the mess. I wasn't even sure I could.
The tendrils shifted, coming toward me like a nest of vipers. I felt the overwhelming fear of the demon, his power a gale force against my own. I had to stay calm. I had to stay within myself and let it come.
The darkness snapped at me, leading edges biting at my flesh, falling away as it struck it. Cain had no idea what he had done by stringing me up and forcing me to get myself down.
I owed Zifah more than a steady stream of popcorn for helping show me the way.
I waded deeper into the room, even as the darkness eased up around m
e, pulling back through the doorway I was about to pass out of. Seeing the room clear, I heard Alyx enter behind me, back in human form in order to fit the space more easily. I paused, waiting for her to catch up.
"How?" she asked.
I answered with a smirk and took her hand. We followed behind the retreating blackness, and I knew what we would find when we got to the end of the poison-brick road. I could only hope our entrance had been enough of a distraction to get Zifah inside unnoticed.
We came out into the main living space. The memories came rushing back to me all at once. Merov's party. Rebecca's entrance. The blood fountain and the demon Reyzl. I blinked them away, noticing that the windows had been replaced, as had the furniture with something a little more Rebecca's style. How long had she been living right under my nose and I hadn't known it? Had she been here almost as long as I had?
Had she been watching me the entire time?
"Diuscrucis," Abaddon said. His voice was deep and smooth and wise, more like I had experienced it in the Box. He was standing in the center of the room, his darkness wrapped around him like a cloak, his head shrouded by it. My heart was pounding, the fear of him threatening to make me turn and run with every moment that passed.
Rebecca was next to him. She didn't have a host. Not anymore. The host was back in the bedroom, dead. Before or after? I had no idea. I wouldn't have imagined it was even possible.
"I can see you," I said, her soul forming an ephemeral outline of the demon she used to be. It was a bit rough around the edges, as if it wanted to fall apart at any moment.
"I knew you would come," she said. Her voice was a high-pitched whine in my ears. "I wanted you to come. I wanted you to see it."
Abaddon's head had turned to look at her. He could see her? Without a third-eye or did he have one somewhere in the blackness of his being?
"You need to stop this. Rebecca, you're killing innocent people."
"Innocent? No one is innocent, Landon. Everyone has done something that they are ashamed of, or that they regret. Why should they be welcomed to His Kingdom, while I suffer as this?"
Execution (The Divine Book 6) Page 19