“What the hell was that magical shit? I always knew that there was something fishy about you!” Andrej shouted, smiling widely and using his gun to scratch his head.
“It’s time. We have to make them forget what they just witnessed. Lucifer gave me my magic back,” I whispered to Ronan, who still stared at the dead body of his son.
All of Andrej’s men seemed confused and scared. Zach had his eyes closed, but he seemed satisfied with the outcome.
Ronan nodded to me and we both approached the group. I smiled and touched Andrej’s arm.
“You haven’t witnessed anything out of the ordinary tonight. Ronan killed a boy,” I said, sending waves of my demonic magic through his mind. His thoughts were murky, but he was receptive enough and soon began to forget about what he saw. Ronan was talking to Andrej’s other men. He seemed weakened by the fight with Nameless, but his magic began to work.
Andrej was resisting and grabbed my wrist all of a sudden, squeezing it painfully. I concentrated harder and reached to a further part of his subconscious. I sensed that he liked to endure pain and cause suffering to others. He fed on it and I bet my father was looking forward to seeing his soul in hell.
“Olek, get rid of the body. We need to leave Maxine now,” he finally said. I backed away from him, knowing that I really needed to reconsider the promise that I had given him earlier on.
The man had a dark, twisted soul and I wasn’t surprised that his ex-wife had left him.
“We are leaving. Thank you for everything, Andrej,” I said, shaking his hand. He gave me yet another intense look and then winked at me.
“No problem, darling, but we have to transport your friend to the emergency room. He’s losing shit loads of blood,” Andrej reminded me.
“Transport him to the pub. We will try to treat him first,” I said, not ready to leave Zach with humans in the ER. Ronan had plenty ingredients upstairs. The potions could sort him out.
He nodded to his men and we started walking.
Zach was placed at the back of Andrej’s van. I didn’t want to leave him with Dostojevsky’s men, but I didn’t have much choice.
I waited until we were back on the road before I told Paul and Ricky everything that had happened when I met Cyril in the Angel station, and how I managed to escape from Alexis’s hands.
“Your father has finally done something useful for a change,” Paul said. “And I’m glad that the old demon got what he deserved.”
“Yes, he caught me by surprise outside Ricky’s cell. He must have been waiting for me there,” I said, feeling slightly uncomfortable that Paul was calling Lucifer my father. I didn’t think that I could ever get used to it. Hell was never going to be my home, despite everything Lucifer had done for me. The only reason that he had given me my magic back was because he still needed me to take care of Alexis. It was that one task that was still unfulfilled. It was just a matter of time before our roads would cross again. The place in the pits was already waiting for her.
Chapter 28
“The man who lies asleep will never waken fame, and his desire and all his life drift past him like a dream, and the traces of his memory fade from time like smoke in air, or ripples on a stream.” ― Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy
“It’s been a hell of a two weeks. I’m so looking forward to seeing my girl. And having a strong drink,” Ricky said when we arrived outside the pub an hour later. Emma must have listened to me for a change, because she wasn’t standing in the window, waiting for us to arrive. I felt a little guilty that we left her alone. She must have been worried sick this entire time.
Andrej’s van was already parked outside and as soon as we got out, his people helped me to transport Zach to the back entrance. We needed to start treating him with potions. He had lost a lot of blood and I worried that simple spells wouldn’t take care of his injury. He was going to need a blood transfusion in the hospital.
Moments later Andrej and his people had driven away, wishing me good luck.
Alexis was still on my mind and the fact that she wasn’t with Rodriguez tonight was worrying. It was late at night and right then I didn’t have to be concerned about her. I finally had my friends back and that’s what mattered.
Paul exhaled sharply when I unlocked the door to the pub with his key. I knew he and Ricky must have gone through a lot.
We all helped Zach walk up the steps. He was lucid, but it looked like he was in a lot of pain. Ronan had shut the door behind us and sealed up the magical wards.
Paul switched on the lights, and then a familiar voice echoed through the empty space.
“It took you long enough, my darlings. I have been rather bored.”
“Cornelia,” Zachary whispered, and I nearly let him go when I saw Alexis. She was sitting on the chair by a table in the middle of the pub. She had Zachary’s niece. Ronan broke our connection in the forest, so I couldn’t sense her anymore. I should have known that her absence tonight was premeditated.
“Uncle Zach,” the little girl said, sounding scared and trying to move towards Zach, but Alexis held her firmly. Her eyes were fixated on me and they were filled with hatred. The rush of anger was hitting me hard in the gut. This wasn’t happening, it couldn’t be. Alexis shouldn’t have known about the pub.
“No, no … if any of you make a move the little one will get hurt,” the bitch said, smiling.
We all stared at her, and our energies circulated around. There was only so much that I was able to handle tonight, but Alexis had managed to surprise me yet again. Zach’s breath was laboured, and he was ready to launch himself at that bitch. “Your human friend is upstairs unharmed for now, sleeping peacefully. For a human, that girl is really annoying.”
I glanced around, knowing that there wasn’t any way out of this. I had to do what Alexis wanted. She wouldn’t hesitate to hurt Cornelia. I sensed her excitement that buzzed through her like a summer storm. She was feeding on the little’s girl fear. That bitch had no idea that I had my magic back, so that was my advantage.
“What do you want?” I asked, knowing that she showed up here because of me. She couldn’t stand the fact that I tricked her into believing that she could defeat Lucifer.
She smiled and yawned, stroking Cornelia’s black hair.
“This and that, well, mainly I need to bring you to justice. The royals want to see you behind bars,” she sang, and then giggled sweetly.
Zachary moved slightly and Alexis pulled Cornelia closer, eyeing him intensely.
“The basement, Max, show it to her. I bet she wouldn’t want to miss that kind of surprise,” Paul said unexpectedly, taking a step towards me. I opened my mouth to ask him what the hell he was talking about, but then Ricky sent me a silent message to let him carry on.
I was pretty confused and Ricky too had no idea what Paul was planning.
“Rodriguez confiscated your wings a while back, Watcher,” Alexis said, sounding bored. “There is nothing in the basement that would interest me.”
“I heard that you were after Lucifer’s parchment. I have it. I have been guarding it since I got to earth,” Paul said, staring back at her. It was funny that Paul came up with such a terrible lie. The basement was empty and after what happened in the forest Alexis wasn’t going to fall for yet another stupid trick. My clever escape must have stuck with Paul somehow.
Alexis laughed and wrapped her well-manicured fingers around Cornelia’s throat.
“The mongrel whore tricked me once, but I won’t fall for it a second time,” she added. I just had to go with her. There wasn’t any other option. Alexis wasn’t bothered about anyone else, but her dream of taking Lucifer’s place was still deeply rooted in her heart. She was too greedy to let it go. “But fine, we can play that little game. I need some more excitement in my life. Show me the basement, ex-Watcher.”
Alexis got up, holding Cornelia’s hand and tossing her red hair behind her. The little girl was very anxious, staring back at her uncle who was barely standing.
>
I couldn’t believe that we were actually doing this. Nothing good would come of it. Paul was putting the little girl’s life at risk.
“You and the ex-Watcher are going first,” she ordered pointing at me.
“Do anything to her and I will tear you apart myself,” Zachary snarled, clenching his fists.
“If this is a lie and the basement is empty I’ll strangle the little one, so start praying that your friends here aren’t planning to trick me in any way,” Alexis said, and I knew that she was crazy enough to keep her word.
Zach glared at me, and I knew what he was thinking. This had to work. Whatever Paul was trying to achieve, we needed to protect his niece. I wasn’t ready to risk anyone’s life, but I followed Paul to the entrance of the basement. Emma was upstairs, and she seemed fine. That bitch must have broken Ronan’s wards to get inside and then she sealed them back together so we wouldn’t suspect anything.
Paul unlocked the door to the basement and we started walking down. Ricky and Zach were left behind. Alexis was right behind us, dragging Cornelia along with her.
“What the hell are you planning?” I hissed to Paul, nearly missing a step. He didn’t respond, which only made me more frustrated. Maybe he was hit in the head too many times when he was captured, and he must have lost his mind. Either way I was too worried about Cornelia to even attempt to bring up my magic.
“Right, ex-Watcher. Let’s see what you have,” Alexis said, looking around. I had been in the basement before, but there was nothing else here apart from beer barrels and stacks of bottles.
“The parchment is here. Give me one moment,” Paul said and pushed a small old dirty rug away. Under the floor there was trapdoor. Paul played with the lock for a bit, then pushed it away. Intense waves of magic were released, and I felt it moving through me. It was too dark to see what was inside the trapdoor, but as more time passed soft, luminous light seeped underneath our feet, slipping across and connecting with my demonic soul. I didn’t think that Paul was serious; the old legend about a parchment that could give someone an unlimited power to defeat Lucifer was just a myth. Even Ronan had admitted to it when I told him how I managed to escape from Alexis. The energy suddenly pulsated like it was a living being spreading around us and I knew Alexis sensed it too.
She pushed Cornelia aside and placed her hands on her hips.
“I told you, I don’t have time for games. What’s inside?” she demanded, looking at Paul. The basement was only three meters by four meters, and Alexis was standing close to me. I knew I could tangle her with my power. She wasn’t expecting it from me, but I was afraid of hurting Cornelia. She was so little and Zachary would never forgive me if I let something happen to her.
“Let me get it for you. It’s the parchment. I had been keeping it safe for years,” Paul explained.
Alexis hesitated for a second, looking from me to Paul, probably thinking that this whole thing was going way too easy. Her hands turned into flames and she looked frustrated.
I could tell that Paul was definitely planning something. I had a knife in my boot, a knife that could easily wound her, and then I just had to use my magic to finish her off. The plan looked simple enough in theory, but in practise, this was much more complicated.
“Fine, go and get it,” the bitch ordered and Paul went down on his knees. He stuck half of his body inside the door-trap. Alexis moved closer, burning with curiosity. I smiled to Cornelia, trying to keep her calm.
A heady tension filled the basement, binding all of us together. Seconds dragged and a pounding power rushed down my spine unexpectedly. Alexis must have sensed it too, because she leaned even closer to Paul, trying to peer through what he was doing. To anyone from the outside Paul must have looked comical. I suspected he’d hidden a weapon or something else in there a while back.
“How long does—”
Alexis didn’t finish her question, because a moment later Paul pushed himself backwards and he head-butted her really hard. She slammed on the ground. I was ready to launch myself on her. It would have been too easy if she had passed out, but that bitch was made from steel, so I wasn’t counting on it. All the lights went off all of a sudden and the complete darkness sucked all of us in.
“Max, summon the gates of hell!” Paul shouted at me, and spilled something in Alexis’s face. The reborn demon screamed with rage, holding her eyes. A smoke started coming out between her fingers. I didn’t waste anytime tapping into my source, and feeling tingles all around my body.
Alexis screamed like someone was pulling off her skin, stumbling on her feet and spreading her violent magic. Cornelia started crying, so I grabbed her, concentrating on my anger.
“Max, what are you waiting for?” Paul shouted again and I pushed Cornelia into his arms, knowing that he had to get out before the energy of the gates sucked him in too.
I managed to unleash rage that bubbled under the surface of my skin. I only had a few more moments before Alexis figured out the right healing spell. The floor began shaking and the glass bottles rattled loudly all around me. Soaring heat wafted around the room and the ground underneath my feet began splitting.
Paul grabbed Cornelia and got to the stairs, telling me to finish that bitch. There wasn’t any time for hesitation. I just had to hold on to all that pain that she had put me through in the past, to the time when I thought there was no hope. The gates of hell opened a second before Alexis was able to see again.
The incredible force started pulling her towards the pits and she screamed trying to stay on her feet. She started throwing spell after spell towards me. Paul moved his sword across both entrance walls, so it protected him and Cornelia from being sucked inside the entrance too.
Energy was pounding through me and the heat was becoming unbearable. My whole body reacted, shuddering with pressure, and I screamed. Then she was sucked inside the pits, vanishing in the dark fiery hole.
Seconds later I jumped after her going back to hell, knowing that this time I had to kill her for good or gift her to my father. Either option sounded good.
I was expecting to land on the hard surface or at least crash painfully the same way it happened just several hours ago. Instead I plunged into cold water, disappearing underneath its surface.
I fought to swim back outside, but the water was freezing cold. The air in my lungs ceased and I couldn’t feel my limbs. This was hell. I didn’t accidentally open another passage, so where did that water come from? I started kicking my legs and holding my breath and finally reached out for the top, gasping for air.
I tried to tap into my source, but some other force pushed me underneath again. My throat was tight and water was getting inside my nose and mouth. I was getting tired as I attempted to swim back up, kicking my legs as hard as I could.
“Hmm, someone has her magic back. I wonder how this happened. I can go back and forth to hell, but you’re going to stay here forever!”
Her voice rang in my head when I finally managed to tear through the water, taking another deep breath of hell’s air.
I swam towards the edge with that one moment of freedom, coughing and spitting water on the way. Alexis stood a few meters away from the lake. She was trying to touch her necklace, the one that she had stolen from Matilda.
She kept pressing it and pressing it, but nothing was happening. Then she narrowed her eyes at me and I realised that she couldn’t get back. I dragged her to hell without a way out. Now I just had to kill her, but it appeared that Alexis had other plans.
She was ready to kill me instead.
Chapter 29
“The heavens, that their beauty not be lessened, have cast them out, nor will deep Hell receive them — even the wicked cannot glory in them.” ― Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy
“Where is your father now, little mongrel whore? He isn’t coming to help you? Is he?” she asked, laughing, and then started stabbing me with her tranquillising spells. Her energy lifted me above the ground and then slammed me on my back, the
dull, paralysing pain blinding me for a split second. Acrid smoke from the pits was burning my eyes and I kept telling myself that I needed to wait for a window to attack.
In hell Alexis didn’t have to follow any rules. The darkness and the heat. It was just the way I remembered hell. My skin was burning and my throat felt raw. Everything was falling apart and I was supposed to fight, not lie on the ground, pitying myself.
“Shut up, you bitch!” I shouted back, spitting out dust that was in my mouth to be able to breathe again. She ceased her attack for a few seconds and I stood up, struggling to remain on my feet, glaring at her from the distance. She was smiling, standing gracefully on the rock, and behind her there was something shining in the darkness.
My heart lurched with hope, because I instantly recognised it. The Watcher’s sword, not just any Watcher’s and not just any sword. This one belonged to Paul. He must have thrown it down after I jumped after Alexis. That way he was sending me a silent message. Finish her.
“Lucifer! I dare you to come and save your mongrel daughter. Show yourself, you coward,” she roared, turning and glancing around. She was really playing with the devil, but this wasn’t his job. He gave me this task and I needed to complete it.
Only silence answered her and I laughed.
I could see that Alexis was still in love with my father, and she was bitter, hurt and filled with resentment because he pushed her away. This was never about wanting to take his place. She was heartbroken.
Either way I didn’t give a fuck. This was going to be her end.
I wasn’t going to wait for her to start torturing me again. My soaring energy came back and first I threw a ball of flames at her, and then I launched forward. She dodged to the side to avoid the fire, and then she hesitated, not being ready for my sudden act of violence.
After all, my physical strength was an asset too.
We both slammed on the ground, and I grabbed her arms. We started rolling around and I dug my sharp nails into her skin. It was a cat fight in hell, two women tearing each other apart.
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