by Janie Marie
“David,” she said softly.
“Hm?” He didn’t look away from the maps.
“Lancelot told me something when I was alone with him.”
He turned to her quickly. “What did he say?”
“When are you talking about, Jane?” Arthur asked, and she knew he was searching her thoughts.
“The fight at the school . . . When I ran after the boy.” She swallowed, watching David’s eye color darken. “He said his master had plans for me. I think he was talking about Lucifer.”
“Lucifer,” Odin said, glancing around the table. “There has been no sign of Lucifer for centuries.”
Jane’s eyes stung as David stared at her without any emotion. Still, she spoke to explain her theory. “I met Lucifer. He is very much involved, and he wants me. I think he is Lancelot’s master, which makes sense if Lucifer created him. There could be a separate leader, though. When Thanatos and Mania tried to take me, I didn’t believe they were sent by Lucifer, even though they said they were. Why would he scare me when I was willingly coming to him, you know? So there might be another individual opposing Lucifer or working with him.”
“Why would you willingly go to Lucifer?” Thor asked.
“I thought he could help me.”
“Foolish girl,” Odin said, pointing at Arthur. “You knew the Devil had his claws in this girl, but you brought her here. They likely knew of your plans to get the hounds, and he sent his armies to capture her. Of course he desires her—she is powerful.”
Arthur held up his hand. “I did not know all she has said. I also did not know Lancelot had come here.”
“She will ruin us,” Odin said, glaring at her. “She said it herself, she is evil. She knows and chooses to embrace the darkness inside her.”
David smacked the table. “She is not evil! She has fought against that darkness, and she has beat it down every time. Do not speak of her as though she brought Hell down on you. We have been at war since our creation. And she didn’t know any of this!”
Odin stood from the table. “I will not let my fortress fall. You are a good boy, David, but you have brought the Devil’s mistress into your bed. I will not let her destroy us.”
Jane covered her face. She knew she could put Odin in his place, but she was afraid all that would do was prove him right.
“She isn’t Lucifer’s fucking mistress. She is my Other and the woman I love.”
“Then she is as cunning as her master,” Odin said, slamming his staff onto the ground.
David began to lift her off him, but she wrapped her arms around his neck and cried. He growled but hugged her back and didn’t make any move to go after Odin.
“You go too far,” Gawain yelled, standing up with the other knights.
Arthur raised his hands to calm everyone, but he looked murderous as he glared at Odin. “You will stop speaking of her this way. She is not to blame.”
Odin stared at her as he spoke. “She may be innocent, but that does not change the fact she is a tool in this war. If Lucifer gets his hands on her, we will all perish.”
Hades stood along with Apollo and Artemis. “Jane has the power to end the Great War. She is more powerful than Death himself. If you make her your enemy today, you will fall. Don’t push her to darkness when we can offer her so much light. She has a good heart, and she grows stronger every day. Do you really want to abandon her, leave her with no option but to stand beside Lucifer?”
Odin snarled and glanced back at her. “You will be the death of me, girl. I feel it in my bones.”
Jane shook her head. “Please, I’m just trying to help. I don’t know why I’m important.”
“You are not important,” Odin said, causing David to stand quickly. He put her behind him but did not move as Odin spoke again. “You may be innocent, child—a vessel—nonetheless, you are a destroyer. No good will come from you now that I understand why you were given such abilities.”
“Father,” Thor said, placing his hand on Odin’s shoulder. “Perhaps it is too soon to judge her. She has the power to destroy, but she has not. She has saved numerous lives, and while she may have darker origins, she is fighting it—just as we are. Our home is for those seeking redemption. It would be wrong to abandon one who has yet to commit a crime against God. Let her stay. Let them use our home as a base while they retrieve the hounds. If you still see her as a bad omen, they can call for transport back home. Then, if Hell follows her, you can decide whether we will go to their aid. I will answer their call. They have never abandoned us. We should show them the same support.”
Odin looked between them before piercing her with his one good eye. “You have one chance, girl. Stay in your quarters, away from my soldiers. You will perform your mission, and you will leave. Take your knights, if they are foolish enough to follow you into Hell. However, any are welcome to stay and join our ranks if they see her for what she truly is.”
Jane gripped David’s hand. “I swear I don’t want to be bad.”
“You’re not!” David said, shaking with so much rage. “You will regret what you have said about her.”
Odin scoffed and walked toward the door. “Open your eyes, boy. She has charmed you just as she has charmed your brothers and my son. She is not your mate; she belongs to the Devil. Don’t you see? Those wolves were sent to bring her to him or destroy her because he doesn’t want another to have such a powerful weapon. She is destruction. I pray you are not in her path when she unleashes that power.”
Arthur held David’s shoulder when he growled.
“Odin, if you break our alliance, there will be consequences,” Arthur said.
“I am breaking no oath I have made to you,” Odin said, staring at the floor. “I will do as I have said; we will fight with you to retrieve the beasts. We leave tomorrow.” Odin then slammed the doors open and left.
Jane sobbed as David pulled her against his chest. “I’m sorry.”
“Shh . . .” He kissed her head.
“David, Arthur.” It was Thor. “Forgive Father. You know he believes Lucifer is responsible for Mother’s passing all those centuries ago. He has been raving about darkness drawing near for years now. He merely worries for our people.”
David growled, hugging her as he blocked Thor’s view of her. “And you?”
“I will protect my people as well, but I do not believe Jane is bad. Yes, I see darkness inside her, but she, your Other, is pure. I sense it. Hades is right; she needs to be granted the chance to grow strong enough to overcome the battle inside her before Lucifer reaches her. I do not doubt he will eventually come, if all this is true. If she is as strong as Hades says—stronger than Death—she stands a chance at defeating all evil. I will help her in any way I can. Please give me the chance to prove it and allow me to join you on your mission.”
David pointed a finger at Thor. “If you betray us, I will not hesitate in destroying you and your father. I will kill every Cursed and Damned in this fortress if you put her in any danger. Now, go stop your father before he drunkenly spreads rumors about her.”
“I will praise her name,” Thor said before walking out as well.
David was still shaking, but he lifted her as the silence stretched on and carried her to the door. “Have someone fetch dinner for us. Make sure it is not poisoned and that it is fresh. I’m taking Jane to rest.”
She looked at him and touched his face as someone agreed to bring them something to eat. “I’m sorry, David. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”
“I am, too,” he said.
Jane hid her face in her hands as she took it that he meant he was sorry he didn’t know, and she feared he was regretting everything between them.
A door slammed, and Jane lowered her hands as David carried her to the bed. He put her down on it and walked away. She pressed her lips together, trying to keep her cries from ripping out as she watched him enter the bathroom.
She closed her eyes as it set in that she’d just lost him. “Lancelot was ri
ght,” she whispered just as a cold, wet cloth was pressed to her face.
“Right about what?”
She opened her eyes wide and stared up at him. “What are you doing?”
He glanced at the cloth in his hand. “I’m wiping your face.”
“Why?” She didn’t understand what was going on.
“Because you have been crying.” He began carefully wiping her cheek. “Now, stop stalling and tell me what Lance was right about.”
“Are you going to leave me?” She tried not to sound so pathetic, but she was overwhelmed that he wasn’t looking at her like she was Lucifer’s secret weapon of mass destruction.
“Why would I leave?” He shook his head. “I am angry about many things, Jane, especially regarding the fact you kept things from me, but I am not going to leave you.”
She smiled sadly as she reached for him.
He let her pull his face down and kissed her softly, but he moved back quickly. “You need to stop assuming the worst about me and our relationship. I know it is difficult because your only relationships have been with Jason and Death, and they were not healthy, but I am not them. Please make an effort to believe in me. Believe in my love for you and the feelings you are developing for me. Trust in us. That is the only way we will make it through the trials we are being presented. I am fine with whatever comes at us; I am ready to fight for you, but you need to do the same.”
She nodded quickly and held his hand as he brought the cloth back to her face. “I’m sorry. I know I need to try harder—I will. I’m just so afraid of losing you. And hurting you and everyone around me.”
David sat beside her. “You will only lose me if you give up on me. Even then, I will try to hold onto you however I can.” He pulled her to straddle his lap, smiling as he wiped more of her tears away. “I love you. Don’t believe what he said. I know you are strong. Whatever it is that produces your power is meant to be there. God has a plan, and we need to trust Him.”
“But I’m afraid, David,” she whispered. “Why have I gone through the things I have? Nothing makes sense.”
David tossed the towel away. “I know, but I know you are the woman I was told I would meet. You are the woman Michael said would have the power to destroy all darkness. We will figure everything out. Together.”
She nodded, her eyes watering, but she kept the tears back. “Okay.”
He gave her that special smile and pulled her lips to his. He breathed deeply, kissing her a few times before pulling back. “Tell me what you’ve kept to yourself. I promise I will still support you, and I will not abandon you. I will understand you were under tremendous stress and pressure when everything happened, and you knew very little about me or that you could truly trust me, so I will try not to get angry. If I do, know that it’s not at you, but at what you are telling me, okay?”
“Okay, I’ll tell you.”
David kissed her again. “There’s my brave girl.”
Jane took a deep breath. “The first time Death and I were alone, my memory of him came back. It was very overwhelming because I had believed all my life I had been alone, but I was suddenly remembering all our moments together. Anyway, while we talked, he confessed he’d done something terrible.”
David’s entire body was tight, ready to fight, and it hurt to know she was going to devastate him with this.
“Death formed a bond with me when he took my memory; he can feel my emotions, I think. I know I can sometimes feel him, but I think he basically feels what I’m experiencing, whether it’s physical or mental . . . He had come when the plague began. He used persuasion to get me inside my home, and when I initially ran out to get weapons. He was prepared to protect me, I guess, but he was still keeping himself hidden. Once he felt I was safe, though, he left to find out why the plague was always coming closer to me.
“He didn’t know I would get infected. He said once he felt the virus had infected me, he came back, but you were already there. So, he waited to see why you were guarding me and that’s when he discovered you had recognized me as your Other.
“Apparently, he would not have been able to remove the virus. He had planned on stopping it from killing me, but he would have to find a different way to save me. Only, you were there, and you could save me when he couldn’t. So, he let you.
“Again, he left to do whatever it was he was doing—he assumed I would be safe with you. Then I was hurt by the wolf. He immediately came back, and when he was going to intervene, he saw Lucifer was there, watching me. He said he thought Lucifer was only there for Lancelot, but it was clear Lucifer was interested in me. Death was afraid to reveal our past together, so he stayed hidden to form a plan.
“His plan was to save me once again; I was still dying after they operated, so he needed a way to throw Lucifer off. No one could know he had a relationship with a human. So, he said he acted as if he were there to claim my soul. Michael and Gabriel came, as he anticipated because of you, but Lucifer revealed himself as well. This is the part you’re not going to like.”
David gave her a tight smile. “I won’t be angry with you.”
Jane closed her eyes and told him. “Death realized he loved me; he did not know what he felt for me, but he finally recognized it. He just didn’t want to interfere with the life he had given me. When it was over, though, he had decided to do whatever he could to keep me.”
“Keep you where?”
Jane opened her eyes. “I don’t know, but he said I was too good to go with him. He said I would need to have a neutral soul.” She swallowed. “So, he asked Lucifer to give me his blood to introduce darkness to mine.”
David stared at her without breathing for a moment before speaking. “You have Lucifer’s blood in you?”
“Yes.” Her throat ached as she continued. “He said he thought that would protect us from all of Hell knowing he had a weakness: me. He said he thought I was so good I would become neutral, and once he returned my memory, I would remember I loved him and go with him . . . He just didn’t know something was already inside me.”
David closed his eyes and squeezed her hips. “He wanted to take you from me? He put evil blood in you to take you away?”
“He thought it was the only way to keep me safe.”
“You were safe with me!”
She shook her head quickly and held on to his face. “David, I was dying. I was already in danger because Lucifer had come to me for some reason. He came up with a plan . . .”
“To take you from me!” David growled, squeezing her hips.
“Yes, he admitted he just wanted me, but he was also thinking about keeping me safe. He’s been fighting demons for me for so long. He was afraid.”
“Stop making excuses for him, Jane. Whatever scheme he thought up benefitted him. What I want to know is why Lucifer agreed to help him.”
She pressed her lips together but finally blurted out what she’d been hiding. “He made a bargain that whichever way my soul turned, the winner would claim me without any interference from the other. If I went bad, I would go to Lucifer. If I went neutral, he would claim me. And if I stayed good, you would win me, and they would leave us alone. He gave Michael the power to enforce punishment if one broke the rules.”
David rubbed his face, growling. “He bargained your soul with Lucifer so he would have the chance to keep you?”
“He was certain he would win once I remembered him.” She began chewing on her lip, waiting for him to explode.
“Why didn’t you go with him, then?” He looked at her again. “He restored your memories that night. Why are you even here?”
She didn’t understand what he meant, but she remembered that night, and she remembered why she didn’t just go with Death. “Because of you.”
David scanned her face as if he were looking for a lie. “You refused him for me? Back then?”
“I kept seeing your face any time I thought about my feelings for him. I saw Jason, too, but it was you I didn’t want to leave or hurt.�
� She lifted her fingers to his lips. “I would see your smile, and I couldn’t accept him.”
David didn’t move for several seconds, but then he hugged her, repeatedly kissing her hair or forehead. “I love you so much.”
Tears slid down her cheeks as she registered how badly he was shaking. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. He didn’t tell me much else, other than he was fine with you winning, and he would make sure Lucifer lost.”
“It’s okay. I’m not angry; I know you will always protect him, especially then.” He kissed her forehead. “That’s why he was so adamant you stay with me?”
Jane nodded with a sad smile on her face. “I think he decided to stop trying to win. I’m not sure, but I think that’s why he left. Maybe he couldn’t forgive himself for what he’d done after he found out Lucifer almost had me.”
David lifted her hand to his lips. “I’m not sure he would give you up so easily, but if that is the reason for his absence, I will consider forgiving him for what he did to you.” He sighed. “Do you know when the deal ends?”
“No. I know there was a time limit, but he was confident if I stayed away from Lucifer, I would be safe.”
David nodded as he seemed to think over everything. She was so relieved he wasn’t throwing her away or looking at her differently because she had Lucifer’s blood in her.
As soon as she thought that, he spoke. “You said there was something already in you—something he did not sense, I’m assuming?”
“Yes, he said it was hidden or that I had hidden it well. I didn’t know anything about it, but he believed Lucifer’s blood unleashed it from wherever I had trapped it.”
David sighed as he began rubbing her legs. “So, what did Lancelot tell you?”
Jane looked away from him. “He said he wanted to kill me, but his master had plans for me. He knew about the deal Death made with Lucifer, and he wanted you to lose me that way. When I said I wouldn’t go to Lucifer, he said he could sense the evil inside me. And he said I was unworthy of you.”