“You need to show me what you’re capable of, Maxine. This Eurynomos is starving,” said the voice that belonged to Asmodeus.
The creature let go of another high-pitched roar and attacked. I wasn’t fucking prepared and I didn’t even have the time to tap into my source. The creature pushed me into the warm steamy pool. Before I knew it, the Eurynomos was sitting on me, wrapping its black hands around my throat.
I started coughing, kicking my legs as he opened his mouth revealing sharp pointed claws instead of teeth. The water was getting into my nose and mouth. Memories of Arthur resurfaced and the skin around my neck was burning raw.
I spit out the water and then I remembered that I didn’t have to follow any rules in here. The creature let go of another loud shriek arching its ugly head backwards. That gave me a split second window and I treated it with the fiery blast. It screamed when the flames covered its cheek, releasing me. I scrambled out of the pool, taking long deep breaths. My throat felt like it was on fire, my knees threatened to give out, but this was my opportunity to fight back. Summer was waiting for me on earth, and I was planning to find her, no matter what.
I charged my energy, releasing the satanic vibes that were beneath my skin. My hair stood on end and I felt myself rising above the ground at least a few inches. Water was dripping down on the marble floor. I combined my spells and the turbulent energies gathered over the centre of my palm. I pushed it out and the fire covered the creature’s body. The impact threw the Eurynomos out of the steamy water, and it slammed on the floor.
It started burning, squeaking and screaming. I kept breathing in and out, feeling as its heart began shrinking. This was the end of the Eurynomos and the beginning of new Maxine Brodeur.
Chapter 6
“That brightness follows from their inward fire, that fire from vision. And their sight extends as far as each, beyond their due, has grace.” ― Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy
As soon as the Eurynomos vanished two Watchers appeared at my side, each grabbing my arm, and started dragging me towards the door.
“Where are you taking me? I demand to speak to Asmodeus!” I shouted. I obviously passed his stupid magical test, so that must have meant something. Everyone including Mammon had been telling me I was special, but no one was ready to reveal why.
Now I had proven to great Asmodeus that I was much more powerful than any other mongrel that had ever entered hell.
“The master has other matters he has to take care of. You have been sold off,” the dark-haired Watcher stated and kept squeezing my arm harder. They led me through the long torchlit corridors.
“Sold? What does that mean? Please let me speak to him. I have information that he requires,” I shouted, ready to use my energy against those two fuckers, but I quickly realised that I was outnumbered.
There was another Watcher walking behind me. I’d used up a lot of my power fighting with the Eurynomos, so I didn’t stand a chance even attempting to escape. I needed some time to recharge my batteries and heal.
The guards dragged me outside the building, to the town square where yesterday Catherine was selling her mongrel slaves. Now the whole town seemed deserted and there was no sign of the scene. A few older demons were staring back at me. One of them pointed at me and whispered something to the other one. I didn’t know where the Watchers were taking me and it looked like no one was going to give me any answers. That bastard Asmodeus simply sold me off.
The Watchers pushed me towards a horse carriage that looked a lot like a cage. I didn’t want to believe that this was happening to me, the head of the lust circle found me attractive. Maybe he was only trying to scare me into talking. He said it himself: I was too valuable to let go.
The third Watcher opened the cage and a second later I was tossed inside. I quickly tapped into my demonic soul, but I realised that the cage was charmed, like the chains in the first circle.
“Off you go, Storm,” shouted one of the Watchers and slapped the black, beautiful horse. The animal groaned and snorted loudly and then off he went, galloping through the town square. I stood up and grabbed the metal bars, realising that I was most likely leaving this circle forever. I shook the bars in frustration, releasing my fire, but I only burned my fingertips. Hell had swallowed me up again. My future had already been decided.
The horse galloped through the empty streets, passing houses in the gloomy darkness. Demons that were walking on the streets didn’t pay any attention to me. Soon the horse rode through the Ash Forest in pitch-black darkness. I tried to whistle and shout to the horse, but nothing was working. The horse kept moving. The Watcher must have put the animal in a magical trance. Sometime later I passed a group of demons standing by the side of the road. Some of them were holding billboards with the figure of Asmodeus; others were obviously campaigning for other candidates. Surprisingly they were all shouting for the uprising to begin. I couldn’t hear anything else, as the horse kept speeding up from time to time and the ride in the cage became uncomfortable.
I thought about Zach and Ricky. Those two were determined to get me out of hell and right in this moment I was ready to accept any given help, especially from my friends. I was done being tossed around from demon to demon like a piece of meat.
Somewhere on the edge of the forest I saw a few mongrels digging holes in the ground. Two Watchers were keeping an eye on them, one barking at a boy that couldn’t be more than sixteen to hurry up. I couldn’t do anything about it because no one in hell seemed to care that mongrels were also living beings. The horse kept galloping and soon I found myself in the wasteland again.
The animal was probably taking me to another the circle in hell. Eventually I sat down near the edge of the cage and shut my eyes. It was pitch black, so it was difficult to figure if I was travelling back to Mammon’s castle or somewhere completely different. It was hell and I needed to get used to the fact that darkness was part of day-to-day living.
The bottom of the cage was dirty and the blasting humidity was making me nauseous, but I had managed to drift off to sleep for a bit.
When I opened my eyes next I was soaking wet. Rain was pouring down from the sky and the horse must have stopped, because the carriage wasn’t moving anymore. I stood up and saw lights all around, recognising the shape of old buildings. The temperature was still high, and the rain felt refreshing. A Watcher approached the carriage.
“Get out. Beelzebub is waiting,” he barked in a harsh voice, unlocking the cage. I felt exhausted all of a sudden, drained of all my magical power. The rain felt suddenly heavy and toxic. I hated it, but I knew the weather in this part of hell wasn’t going to improve anytime soon. I didn’t dare to compare it to London, but it was dark, wet and depressing in the Circle of Gluttony. The Watcher grabbed my shoulder and started dragging me over towards a tall, square tower. I passed other demons. They were all trying to walk through the muddy road. Somewhere ahead I spotted a river with brown water, but it was difficult to make out anything else.
Everyone here looked miserable and sad. Some tried to shelter themselves by standing near a few stands with food. I heard some screams and moans nearby, but I couldn’t see who was screaming, because moments later the Watcher pushed me inside a tall tower that suddenly appeared right in front of us. I wanted to stop and ask where they were taking me, but the Watcher pushed me through the tall Gothic- looking door and barked at me to start moving.
I wiped the water from my face being greeted by silence. Right in front of me there were stairs that led up. I sensed demons nearby, powerful demons from Beelzebub and Lucifer factions. My heart thumped quickly behind my ribcage. The Watcher kept pushing me to hurry up. My legs were aching like crazy, but I kept climbing, in some ways glad that I was taken to the next circle. That way I was getting closer to getting the hell out of here. At least that was my plan.
Finally we reached an entrance and I was pushed through to the large open plan room with random red chairs and a long wooden table. The entire space was
lit by an enormous fireplace.
There were three demons standing in the room. The Watcher pushed me right in front of them. When I looked up, for a long moment I thought I was having hallucinations.
Rodriguez, my long-time enemy, was one of the demons that greeted me and he had that delighted look on his face.
Rage filled every nook and cranny of my body. I hated Rodriguez with a passion and now he was here, as if he was expecting me to show up.
Next to him stood the one and only Beelzebub. As with Mammon and Asmodeus, I recognised him easily. I knew what each of the major demons in hell looked liked. Except Lucifer, of course. No one on earth had ever seen Lucifer, and those who had weren’t alive any longer.
Beelzebub was short and fat with masses of curly black hair and a long moustache. He was dressed in a long white cloak and reminded me of a priest. I opened my mouth to say hello to the third demon, but I quickly realised that this would be a huge mistake. Cyril was an employee of the faction on earth and no one knew that we actually knew each other. I had no idea what he was doing in hell, especially standing alongside Beelzebub and the head of the Lucifer faction. He and Paul had saved me from Rodriguez’s hands several days or weeks ago. I still wasn’t quite sure about the timing in hell. Rodriguez had wanted to execute me and no one was supposed to know about it.
“Well, well, well…who do we have here?” Rodriguez said, folding his arms over his chest. I tried to keep a straight face, but fear paralysed me from head to toe. My throat was burning raw and my clothes were soaked right through to the point that I felt uncomfortable. I hadn’t eaten since I woke up chained in a cell in the first circle and now my stomach was growling painfully loud. This meeting was going to be brutal. My demonic senses were all over the place.
“Hey, arsehole,” I snapped and then spit on the ground under Rodriguez’s feet, trying to pretend that I wasn’t scared.
Rodriguez approached me and grabbed my cheeks, pulling me closer to his face.
“You’re nasty scum and you’re going to burn alive in the pits,” he whispered, but loudly enough so everyone gathered around could hear him. “You killed the prince and soon the whole world will know that you’re a murderer.”
He squeezed my face harder and I would have killed him with my look if that were possible. I had never trusted him, even when we met for the first time in his office. Over time that feeling became mutual. Now the old demon hated my guts.
“If you would have listened to anything that Ricky told you then you’d know it was Alexis. The same bitch that kidnapped Prince George,” I snarled at him. Yes, maybe it was my fault that he followed me all the way to Purgatory, but Arthur had given his life to save his daughter. To me he was a real hero.
“Rodriguez, calm down. No one is throwing anyone to the pits yet, at least not until we find out why this mongrel rat is so important,” Beelzebub said and nodded to someone behind me. Some demons ran over to him carrying a huge tray filled with food. The obese Beelzebub chose a few things and shoved them inside his mouth. My own stomach growled and I instantly wanted to punch him.
I glanced at Cyril, who looked tense, staring back at me with mixture of surprise and admiration. I saw it only for a split second, and in that moment I knew that he was still on my side.
“I finally know all your dirty secrets and now understand my past mistakes,” Rodriguez said. “You will rot here in hell and once I find that bastard child of yours, I’ll drown her.” He turned to Beelzebub. “This mongrel scum is only valuable because the dark lord must have found out about that illegitimate child with royal blood. You should be taking her to the pits, master.”
“Be careful what you wish for, demon. I’m the only authority in this circle and you aren’t even supposed to be here. Asmodeus has revealed that she can influence the election, influence the dark lord. That mongrel knows Lucifer’s plans and for now I need to keep her alive.”
I laughed, shaking my head. The demons in hell were all delusional, believing that Lucifer would have revealed his plan to me. None of them realised that we had never actually met.
“You’re all deluded. I don’t know shit. The deal that I made was with Morpheus. Lucifer wanted my soul and for some reason I ended up in Mammon’s castle. None of this makes any sense,” I said, knowing that now I really needed to find the way out of here, ideally without sustaining any more injuries. Rodriguez was itching to get his hands on me, but Asmodeus must have sold me to Beelzebub for a fair amount.
Cyril spoke up. “Gentlemen, Miss Brodeur must be telling the truth. Master, you have paid a very high price for a mongrel. She was also in Mammon’s hands before, but she managed to escape,” he pointed out. “She is indeed valuable.”
Rodriguez didn’t have any business in hell. His job was focused around royals on earth. Arthur was dead and he was supposed to be fixing things in the palace, trying to console the royal family in these sad times. He must have already informed the press. I still couldn’t come to terms with the fact that Arthur was dead.
“Cyril, you’re here with me and you weren’t supposed to talk,” Rodriguez shouted. “Maxine Brodeur was a threat to royals from very beginning and you have done nothing to stop what happened to the prince.” He looked like a giant lion with his hair standing up. And this time around he wasn’t even attempting to break my wards or get into my head. I suspected that his abilities weren’t working as well in hell as on earth. That was a pleasant surprise.
“Let the boy talk, Rodriguez. Mammon is fearing the worst. There have been talks about an uprising. You know what that might mean to all of us,” Beelzebub pointed out, looking at Rodriguez sharply.
“The election is a joke. The dark lord won’t step down and there isn’t anyone powerful enough amongst other circles that could challenge him. I should personally escort Miss Brodeur to the Circle of Pride.”
Beelzebub laughed and I glanced back at Cyril who looked amused too.
“You’re losing your mind, Rodriguez. The whole of hell is on lockdown. Asmodeus took a great risk transporting her here,” Beelzebub said. “I won’t allow anyone to get out of here.”
I could have sworn I noticed a tiny smile on Cyril’s face when the fourth greatest demon said that.
“Name what you need and I will get that for you, master. We both know that life on the outside comes with advantages,” Rodriguez said through his gritted teeth. He was obsessed with me for some reason and I didn’t doubt even for one second that he was ready to murder my child.
I understood his position. As a head of the faction on earth he was supposed to prevent what happened between Arthur and me. No one cared that he took his position over after I got knocked up by the prince. It was just a small insignificant detail.
“No, Rodriguez, you’re too greedy. Besides, everyone knows that my circle is the most unpleasant one. Mud, rain and constant anguish. I’m proposing a snake challenge instead,” Beelzebub announced, clapping his hands. Cyril moved an inch and Rodriguez looked relieved.
Snake challenge. That didn’t tell me anything, but judging by everyone’s face I presumed this was going to be painful. My head was dizzy and I needed to fuel my body with some real food. I could be tortured and beaten, but I had to get some food into my belly and fast.
“We will try this my way. One bite and the mongrel girl will tell us everything that we need to know.”
“Fine, but if that won’t work, then I will just rip her wards apart. I’ve been meaning to do that for a really long time,” Rodriguez added, smoothing his long beard and staring down at me with open hatred.
Beelzebub clapped and then I saw a real cobra appear right in front of me. It hissed and started crawling towards me. I had nowhere to escape; the Watchers were guarding the doors and Beelzebub could simply break my neck with the wave of his hand. My heart skipped a beat and then I just closed my eyes, waiting for the worst. The cobra bite was deadly. It was time to come to terms with that.
Time to finally accept that I was about
to die.
Chapter 7
“Two spirits—each one leaning on the next—thus talked about me on the right–hand side, then laid their heads back, to have words with me.” ― Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy
I wasn’t afraid anymore. After everything that happened, I was done with running away from my destiny.
I sensed that Rodriguez, Cyril, and Beelzebub were watching me from the other side of the room. The snake was crawling up towards me slowly. A bead of sweat ran down my back and I sucked in a deep breath.
The snake was at least five meters long and had black and gold stripes that ran along its length. It was a beautiful creature, and its eyes were fixated directly on me. Waves of my magic were running through my system. The fire, I could treat it with my flames, but then what next? Beelzebub would get to me before I even blinked. He wanted the snake to bite me, probably to release some kind of poison that would untie my tongue.
My fingertips were warm, but the fire didn’t appear like I expected. The snake crawled closer; it was just by my feet.
“What if she dies from the venom, master? Then she will be truly useless to you,” Cyril said, his voice tight. He couldn’t show that he cared about me. I understood that, and I didn’t want him to put himself at risk.
The snaked hissed and revealed its pointy tongue, stopping about a meter away from me. Then it rose upwards staring directly into my eyes. Okay, I was officially freaked out, but I had nowhere to run. This wasn’t the way I was supposed to die in hell, bitten by a cobra.
“She won’t, she will suffer greatly with pain, but then we will know everything. Lucifer would approve my methods. He himself sent for her.” Beelzebub chuckled, rubbing his palms together. I swallowed hard, watching the cobra’s eyes.
Satanic Fortitude (Doomed Cases Book 4) Page 5