The darkened sunglasses afforded me another view of the land outside. So different from home, I thought, watching as the sun glared off the greenish blue water. I wondered how the humans could stand it, such constant brightness keeping the eyes overly stimulated, but Luc had told me that they loved the sun. In fact, that was one of the reasons places like LA and Miami were so sought after. The endless days of summer.
Right now, at home, my views would be of the underground volcanic flows. The heat would be rising off the magma chugging slowly through the lake, the reddish glow cutting through the endless dark. The light from the heated magma would bounce off the walls of the numerous caverns making shadows dance across its surface. Here, the light was in a different direction and the shadows cast were lifeless, boring and dull. But, at least it smelled good.
Orthus stirred from his bed on the couch. I ran to the room service cart and uncovered the silver serving tray that contained the five steaks I had ordered. It was an unspoken apology to him. I grimaced as he stretched and one eyelid opened slowly. He stretched again and I stifled a giggle at his little butt wagging in the air. It was bad that I had put a sleep spell on him, but it was worse that I had changed him into a little lap dog.
He sniffed the air. His sensitive nose took in the aroma of the steaks. As rare as possible as I had requested. I remembered the server’s quick look of disgust at the bloody outline of the steak and grinned. He probably thought I was a freak.
Helena? Orthus asked; his mind linked with mine.
“Hey Orthus,” I said, quickly moving to the dog.
He looked at the tray in my hand. Mine?
I nodded, watching in satisfaction as he snatched up the meat and began to chew. Good, I thought. Now that he had accepted my apology, he could not retaliate against me for the spells. One of the rules of hell. Even though, technically, he wasn’t quite awake before he accepted, he still accepted. A loophole. Another rule of hell. Learn to create them and to exploit them.
He stopped mid chew and looked up at me. Did you somehow become larger? He looked around. And where are we? He slowly started chewing again, his brows drawn together. It is really bright in here.
I shoved another steak under his nose. “Thank you for accepting my apology, Orthus,” I mumbled, in case he did not realize.
He stopped chewing again and looked at me suspiciously. What did you do Helena? He swallowed and walked over to look out the window, his small body trotting daintily across the plush carpet. I knew the exact moment he spotted himself. The fur around his neck stood on end and his little body started to quiver. WHAT THE FUCK AM I? HELENA? WHAT DID YOU DO?!
I quickly put a hand to my head. Even telepathically, too much could be rather overwhelming. And right now, Orthus was practically screaming.
Orthus looked at me in disgust. I am calling your father.
I shook my finger at him. “You can’t, not until I release you from the spell.”
He laughed at me. A spell? It will wear off. And I will be able to use my powers then. And you will be sorry you ever fucked with me.
I narrowed my eyes at him. How dare he threaten me? I was the Princess of Hell. “Well, you can do that, but until the spell wears off, I will parade you around as much as I can. Perhaps, I would even pop in to the Gates and see Cerberus while we’re at it.” I scooted closer to him. “Honestly, what’s a widdle dog like you gonna do about it?” I smiled. “And I am sure big brother Cerberus would love to see you.”
You wouldn’t, he growled at me.
I raised an eyebrow. “Try me. I might even take a detour around heaven just to show you off.” I inched even closer and ruffled the fur on the top of his head, smiling when he jerked his head away, his lips raised in a snarl. “Big, bad hellhound looking like a little puppy. I’m sure the angels will love that.”
His face blanched for a second before he shook his head, the movement causing the tags on the collar around his neck to tinkle and his face tightened at the sound. He walked along the edge of the couch, his short legs making his pacing movement awkwardly funny. What do you want me to do Helena? You ran away again. You know he’s gonna be angry.
I sighed, knowing Orthus was right. Regardless if he called now, or I called later, my dad was going to be mad when he got here. “I will deal with that when the time comes.”
Hmmph, he grumped.
“So, you gonna help me or not?” I asked as I sat back on the couch.
He hung his head slightly. I can’t get out of this can I?
I shook my head and bit my lips to hold back the grin. He really was adorable as a Chihuahua. His big eyes looked up at me and I resisted the urge to scratch behind his ears.
Fine. He sighed. I’m in. I guess you probably need me to protect you anyway. But when this blows up in your face, I am not the one that will be blamed. He marched over to me and stood near my feet, all five pounds of righteous—well—indignation anyway.
And I am not doing any damn tricks for your entertainment, so don’t think that you can ask. He snatched another steak from the tray. And don’t think your debt is paid. This is not nearly enough to pay for my mental anguish and pain and suffering. This is far from over. He swallowed and glared at me.
I rolled my eyes before giving him a mock salute. “Yes sir!”
Orthus eyed me menacingly before turning and walking away, his tail high in the air.
Secretly, I wanted to experience the one thing which seemed to send thousands of humans to hell. If I accomplished it, then great. If I didn’t, it was no big deal. But I really wanted to see what the big deal was about falling in love. And right now, being on earth, it meant falling in love…with a human.
~*~
Chapter 2 – A Demon, a Dog and a Priest
“OH MY GOD!”
A woman with a large poof of hair made a beeline for me. Her face was bright red and her entire body trembled as she raced towards me. I braced myself and clenched my fists as she approached. I didn’t want to have to use a spell first thing in the morning, but I wasn’t above hitting below the belt. And if this bitch was intent on bothering me before I was fully awake, I was definitely hitting below the belt.
She reached me and lifted a huge ham of a hand. The air around me crackled as I prepared to zap her and then my mouth dropped open in amazement. She zoomed in on Orthus lying on the pillow next to me.
“YOU ARE SO CUTE!” she exclaimed, overly loud and way too excited. Her hand seemed to swallow his head as she enthusiastically patted him. Orthus growled menacingly and I almost felt sorry for the overbearing human. She smiled, her sparkling white teeth a huge contrast with her super tanned skin. She reached into her handbag and pulled out a plastic baggie filled with dog treats.
I watched, mesmerized as Orthus stopped mid-snarl and sniffed at the baggie. Within seconds she’d pulled out a strip of some sort of meat and given it to him. His eyes rolled back in his head as he gobbled up the treat, greedily asking for more. The woman glanced at me and made baby talk as Orthus licked her hand.
I waved airily at her. Go ahead. Pet him. You could keep him if you want, I wanted to say, but knew Orthus would probably take offense. Instead, I held the cup of coffee I was drinking closer to my mouth and breathed over the cooling brew. Instantly, the coffee heated up turning slightly reddish and I sighed happily. I eyed Orthus, a grin plastered to my face, as the woman finally walked away. He lay on his back, his little legs sprawled open and his tongue hanging out of his mouth. I grabbed my phone and before he could move, I snapped a picture.
He jumped up and eyed me. What was that?
I feigned innocence. What was what?
That, he said, pointing his nose towards my phone. What is that?
It’s a phone, I told him reassuringly.
That’s it? he asked, suspiciously.
I smiled at him, a toothy grin that raised the fur on his back, I wasn’t lying to him at all, I was just omitting that human technology had improved tremendously. That’s it.
He eyed me again before lying down, this time on his belly with his legs tucked neatly underneath him. I know you are up to something, he said, before he looked away, his nose tilted snobbishly in the air. I’ll have you know, that I won’t allow it. Don’t cross me Helena.
Smiling, I wrapped the terry cloth robe tighter around my body. The sun beat down on us and heat began to penetrate the thick material. I ignored the looks of the thinly dressed women who sat near me on the beach, as they glanced curiously at my outfit. I sent out an energy pulse to test the wind-blocking shield I had in place, satisfied when it held. A woman walking nearby frowned as she passed me and was blasted with a wall of heat. I shrugged, it was my area, my rules, so my temperature. She fanned herself as she quickly walked back to her lounger.
I dug my toes into the warm sand, my eyes hiding behind my sunglasses as I looked at the white sand where it blended with the blue water made even warmer by the sun. Still I was not about to venture into the deep blue sea as I watched the other sun bathers. It was not my hair or anything quite so vain. It was walking out of the water dripping wet. I shuddered as I thought about air-drying. Not a fan. Literally.
Eyes closed, I went back to enjoying my moment of peace. Suddenly the air shifted as Orthus perked up. I opened one eye blearily. It was poofy hair again. This time she had brought a friend. Or two. I eyed the two little dogs covered in long fur and envied them. All that glorious hair in this Miami sun. They must be so warm. I ignored the heavy panting that accompanied the two white furred creatures, their beady black eyes darting about.
Poofy hair walked over to Orthus. “HELLO!”
I winced, surprised that I was still able to hear the waves hitting the shore.
“SEE LADIES,” she said to her dogs, “I TOLD YOU TWO HE WAS HANDSOME.” She acknowledged me with a smile. “HE REALLY IS A BEAUTIFUL DOG.”
I smiled and leaned back on my lounger, wanting to make it clear that I was not interested in having a conversation with her. She took my silence as confirmation to continue talking and I grimaced resisting the urge to remove her vocal cords. That would definitely put my on dad’s radar. Although technically, I didn’t have to remove her vocal cords, per se. A grin flashed across my face, seconds before she finally stopped talking. Her eyes bulged and her mouth opened and closed, no sound emitting from her throat. She dropped the leashes of the two dogs and clawed frantically at her neck as her face turned a bright shade of red.
Sighing, I released the spell I had on her throat as her frantic gasping drew unwanted attention to me. She took a deep breath and looked around wildly. I shifted as I tried to make myself a little more comfortable. More and more people were looking my way and I lowered my sunglasses to meet their eyes. Some looked away, but a few had the balls to stare back. I smiled at the ones I recognized; their pictures on the fast-track wall in my dad’s office. Fast-track to Hell. The ones so evil that it would take divine intervention to save them. I could tell them to go to hell, but they were already quite on their way. Yup. It would be interesting to see when they arrived.
Poofy hair looked at me and her hands suddenly flew to her face. She raced over to Orthus and snatched up her two little dogs and then looked back at me in horror. “HOW DARE HE DEFILE MY BABY?!” She wailed. “HE IS A HORRIBLE, HORRIBLE DOG!”
I looked at Orthus. What did you do?
I smelled her butt. She wanted it, waving it in front of my face like that. He walked back to his little pillow and sat down. I didn’t even touch her yet.
That was disgusting. I made a face. You are gross you know, I told him as we both ignored the woman still yelling at Orthus.
I contemplated choking her again, but before I had a chance to, she grabbed Orthus by the collar and leaned into his face.
“YOU ARE A HORRIBLE DOG. YOU ARE NOT WORTHY TO CLEAN MY BABIES BOWLS AFTER THEY ARE FINISHED EATING. STINKING MUTT.”
Uh oh. She had gone too far. I grimaced as I watched Orthus’ face change. He was a hellhound after all. And right now he was mad.
Mutt? He growled menacingly. Mutt? This time, he projected his thoughts to the woman and her face contorted as she struggled to comprehend the words entering her mind.
I am one of the honored Hellhounds. I am the brother of Cerberus, Guardian of Hell. I am the descendent of a god. My father was one of the original Titans of Greek mythology. Mutt! Be lucky I do not smite you and reduce you to dust! He rose to his full Chihuahua height. Be gone!
He suddenly turned on the woman and barked loudly. She grabbed her two dogs, and tucked them quickly, one under each arm. She started to walk away as Orthus advanced on her, his footsteps quick and dainty as he danced around her legs. He barked again and the woman saw something in his eyes. Her own eyes widened and she tightened her grasp on her dogs. They whined in protest and she ignored them instead, her eyes on Orthus, she ran.
Orthus quickly followed and I leaned back again and closed my eyes. I could hear the shrieking as she tried to move through the soft sand, Orthus close on her heels. I rolled over. The sun was warming my front but now my back was starting to get cold. I fell asleep waiting for Orthus to get back.
*
A shadow fell across me causing me to shiver and I heard Orthus’ low growl. Turning, my eyes widened as I looked up at the police officer holding Orthus in a small cage. His face was unsmiling as he held Orthus’ struggling body in the small metal contraption.
“Is this your dog ma’am?” he asked his voice deep and gravelly.
I thought about denying Orthus and watched his eyes narrow.
Don’t you dare, he warned.
Smiling up at the officer, I bit the inside of my cheek to stop my sharp retort, my eyes narrowed as I glared at the pissed off dog. “Yes. He’s mine.” I reached for Orthus and frowned when the officer did not release him.
“Did you know that your dog bit someone, ma’am?” His voice sounding like silk over steel, smooth and hard, just like I liked my men. I eyed his firm shoulders through his uniform and looked at the snug fit of his pants. In particular, the way the fabric stretched across the front. His dark skin was a smooth chocolate and his hair was a series of dark waves against his head. Oh my. First the Latino, now this one. Miami had some good looking boys. He cleared his throat and I looked away from the fly of his pants. I couldn’t help it, my eyes were drawn. He glared at me and I feigned attention.
“Ma’am. Your dog bit someone.” He indicated Orthus, who was lying in the bottom of the cage glaring at me. “This is a serious crime in Miami.”
I smiled sweetly at him. “My dog couldn’t have possibly bit anyone, Officer.”
He arched an eyebrow. “Ma’am, we do have a report made by the victim. She is being attended to by paramedics right now.
I nodded. “I understand, Officer. But perhaps she mixed up the dogs.” I smiled sweetly again. “My dog couldn’t have done it, I promise you.”
He sighed and looked at me. “Ma’am, I am truly sorry. But the law dictates that I take your dog to the county animal services for them to deal with. I can give you the number and you can talk to them.” He handed a card to me and then turned to walk away.
Orthus’ voice resounded in my head and I rolled my eyes. Helena. Quit fooling around. He sounded desperate and I was getting tired of the game I was playing with the officer anyway.
“Officer,” I called out. “I can prove my dog didn’t bite anyone.”
He stopped and I stole a quick peek at his awesome ass before he turned around. Then I stole an even longer peek at his even more awesome front. He cleared his throat and I looked up guiltily.
“Where’s this proof?”
I waved my hand and muttered a quick spell. Orthus cursed and I smiled devilishly. “My dog couldn’t have bitten anyone because he has no teeth.”
The officer looked at me skeptically, his voice unbelieving. “He has no teeth?”
I nodded. “He is an old dog and was having so many dental problems; I had to get his teeth removed.” I smiled
as Orthus cursed again. “So you see he couldn’t have bitten her. At least not enough to cause her to need the paramedics.”
The officer bent down and placed Orthus on the sand. I almost swooned as the elastic fabric of his shirt stretched over his muscles. The envious stares of the women around me bombarded me and it was all I could do not to run my hands over his well-muscled form. They were all watching, but were more focused on Officer Hot than on me.
“Show me.” He demanded curtly.
I grinned. I loved a demanding man; they made everything so much more…fun. I rose slowly and pushed up the sleeves on my robe. He was so cute; I almost wished I was wearing the half-naked outfits of the other women at the beach. I reached into the cage and pried open Orthus’ mouth, ignoring the string of curses that poured into my mind.
Shut up! I told him as he started another litany of otherworldly language. The constant stream was giving me a headache.
The officer looked at Orthus’ empty gums and ran a hand over his head. “I don’t know how I missed that,” he muttered, his face contrite. “I could have sworn…” He released Orthus from the cage and turned to me. “Ma’am, I apologize,” he said as he rose with the empty cage in his hand.
I waved him off. “Don’t worry about it. Honest mistake.”
He nodded and gave me a slight smile before walking away. I watched his ass until it was out of sight.
Orthus coughed.
I looked over at him. What?
Forgetting something?
I shook my head. Not to my knowledge.
He stared at me. Helena. I am not in the mood.
Fine. I snapped. I waved my hand again and in moments, I heard the snap of his teeth as they popped back into his mouth. I should have given you human teeth, I thought wickedly and watched him grimace at the thought.
Tired of all the interruption, I gathered my things and grabbed Orthus’ leash. He looked up at me.
Hell in Heels Page 2