Undeniably Hellbound

by Cassandra Lawson

  I shook my head to clear it before speaking again. “No walk through the detention areas today,” I told them.

  “That’s not far!” Rave complained as he shook his head to try to get his hair out of his eyes. I had no clue where the clip had gone. “You promised we could help question the prisoners today.”

  “And you promised to be nice to Persephone while she’s in my home,” I reminded them.

  “We were hungry,” Sam argued.

  “You have food in the kitchen,” Beatrice told them. “Lucifer put it out last night.”

  “But I want chocolate,” Bix insisted. “Persephone always has chocolate.”

  “Almost always,” Sam grumbled.

  “There was no chocolate in her purse,” Tor added.

  “You’re not supposed to have chocolate,” Beatrice told them. “Hasn’t anyone told you it’s not good for dogs?”

  “Dogs?” they all gasped.

  “We’re Hellhounds,” Tor added.

  “They don’t like being called dogs,” Persephone told us.

  “You can understand them?” I asked.

  She shook her head. “No, but I’ve seen how they react when anyone calls them dogs.” Her attention moved to the Hellhounds. “Beatrice meant to say chocolate isn’t good for Hellhounds. You could get very sick. It can make them sick, right?” she asked me.

  I shrugged. “It’s not likely. The insufferable beasts are damn near immortal, but stealing could get them locked in their room for a week.” My gaze moved from Hellhound to Hellhound.

  They huddled closer to Persephone, trying to look innocent.

  Beatrice giggled. “I’d better fix breakfast.”

  “There are some leftover scones on the counter,” Persephone told her as she stood. “I need to hurry or I’ll be late for work.”

  “You’re off today,” I reminded her.

  “I agreed to help unload some shipments,” she explained. “I could use the extra money. You were at the council meeting when Julia called to see if I could work today.”

  I nodded and ran a hand through my hair. “I’ll find someone to escort you there.”

  “You don’t have to do that,” Persephone assured me. “Hades is going to take me to work, and he even offered to pick me up. Isn’t that sweet of him?”

  “Yes, it is sweet,” Beatrice agreed.

  “As long as he doesn’t kidnap you,” I said under my breath.

  Chapter 82

  Beatrice

  I’d just finished my last appointment of the day when my phone buzzed with an incoming call from my dad. It continued to ring as I stared at the display screen, wondering if I should answer it. He’d left me several messages recently, but I’d deleted them.

  With a sigh, I picked up my phone, deciding I should just get this over with. I had no clue why he was calling me or why he’d been at the council meeting. He wasn’t acting like himself.

  “Hey, Dad,” I greeted him with no enthusiasm.

  “Hey, Bea,” he began nervously. “How are you doing?”

  “Better than last night,” I replied.

  “I’m sorry about how I acted,” he said with a sigh. “I’d like to see you.”

  “Now isn’t a good time,” I replied.

  “It doesn’t have to be today,” he insisted.

  This was the first time my dad had shown any interested in seeing me in longer than I could remember. Even when I’d lived with my parents, he’d rarely been around. When they’d moved out of the area, he’d almost completely disappeared from my life. He only called when he needed money, but he’d never asked to meet me to get the money.

  “Why do you want to see me?” I asked.

  “I need your help with Kasey,” he replied.

  Kasey was my mom’s familiar, but he’d always gotten along better with my dad, for some strange reason. When my parents separated, my dad got custody of Kasey. The only time he saw my mom was when she had visitation with her familiar. It was the strangest arrangement I’d ever heard of.

  “What’s wrong with Kasey?” I asked. I’d never been close to the gecko growing up. He knew I could understand him but still chose to avoid me most of the time.

  “He’s depressed,” my dad explained. “I’m not sure why. He won’t talk to me, and he barely eats. I’m worried about him.”

  “Maybe you should take him to see Mom,” I suggested. “How long has it been? If you’re getting along well enough to attend a council meeting together, you should be able to arrange a visit.”

  “He refuses to talk to her,” my dad told me. “I can’t even get him to talk to me anymore. Please, Beatrice. I know I’m not the best father, but Kasey needs your help. You care about the familiars. You can’t turn your back on him because you’re mad at me.”

  “I’ll see him,” I relented with a sigh.

  “Great! When can you come down here?” he asked. “We could meet for dinner tonight.”

  “Lucifer isn’t going to agree to travel to your house,” I insisted.

  “Lucifer?” he spat out. “Why would he need to come with you?”

  “Desmond is still out there,” I reminded my dad.

  “I’m sure you’ll be fine in my home,” he insisted. “Desmond doesn’t know where I live.”

  “You can come to my office,” I offered.

  “You have an office now?” he asked. “I thought you were doing this counseling thing at people’s homes. That’s what I heard.”

  “I was,” I replied, surprised my dad knew so much about me. “Lucifer doesn’t want me leaving the demon realm unless it’s necessary, so he set up an office for me.”

  “You’re working in Hell?” he demanded.

  “I’m basically living here,” I added.

  “And you want me to take Kasey to Hell?” he asked incredulously. “Don’t you think that’s a little selfish on your part?”

  “If you want my help, you can come here,” I told him.

  “Fine,” he agreed with a huff. “Tell me where you are, and I’ll head over there now.”

  “I’ll see you tomorrow at eleven in the morning,” I replied. “I’m getting ready to leave the office for the day.”

  “But we’re family,” he argued.

  “Only when it suits you,” I reminded him. “I’m agreeing to meet you on my day off, so you should be happy. I’ll message you the location of the office tonight. You’ll take an elevator here, so I’ll need you to call me when you arrive. If not, the elevator will only take you to the ground floor of a parking garage.”

  I didn’t wait for a response from my dad. He was going to complain about how much I was inconveniencing him while trying to talk me into driving down to his place. “My family really sucks,” I muttered.

  I decided to put that out of my mind and get ready for my date with the devil.

  Chapter 83

  Lucifer

  Hades escorted Persephone home a little after three in the afternoon, and they were both smiling when he arrived. Hades rarely managed more than a smirk, so this was a big change.

  “How was work?” I asked Persephone.

  “It was great,” she replied. “Thankfully, Hades decided to stick around to help guard me. Some of those shipments had heavy items. Can you believe anyone would consider a fifty-pound mace a sex toy?” she asked.

  “Like I said, some demons like pain,” Hades told her.

  “You’re right,” she replied. “It’s not the only mace they have in the prop rooms at Bliss, but that’s the only one that vibrates.”

  “Vibrates?” I asked. It took a lot to shock me. I’d seen and done things that would make a porn star blush like a virgin. This was a new one for me.

  Hades chuckled, sounding genuinely amused. “When I asked about that, they told me someone had requested it. You wouldn’t believe the prop rooms they have at Bliss. There are three. One looks boring, but the other two are entertaining.”

  “They try to keep anything customers might want in stock, s
o they can see it before ordering it as part of their package,” Persephone explained.

  “You have a very interesting job,” Hades remarked.

  “Thank you again for seeing me to and from work,” she began with a shy smile. “I’ll see you later.”

  On those words, she turned and hurried up the stairs.

  Silence hung between us as I watched Hades. His eyes remained on the spot where Persephone had been standing, and I could see the layers of his sanity slipping away. I wondered how much effort it had taken to maintain the illusion as long as he had.

  “She’s the one,” he uttered.

  “I think you’re right,” I agreed. “You’ve never put this much effort into any woman.”

  “You’ve never made me promise to behave with them before,” he pointed out.

  “Is that why you stayed at her office and helped unload shipments?” I asked.

  “No, but it’s why I brought her back here when we were done,” he replied. “Any word on the missing prisoners?”

  I could take a hint. Hades didn’t want to talk about Persephone or his reaction to her.

  “Nothing,” I told him. “It’s likely they were with the angel who attacked me yesterday.”

  “What makes you say that?” Hades asked. “Angels don’t play well with others.”

  “Both angel and demon magic were involved with the attack,” I began. “If we were dealing with a fallen angel, they could have obtained readymade demon spells to throw us off, but an archangel would never stoop to that level. I’m still shocked an archangel is working with Desmond and Zareya.”

  “The angel thinks he’s using them,” Hades pointed out before continuing. “I’ve been thinking about the angel involved.”

  “What about him?” I asked.

  “I think it’s Azrael,” he replied. “His outrage over this whole thing seems out of place.”

  I shook my head. “Azrael’s outrage makes sense. He’s not one of them, and the other angels look down on him. I think he’s lying about believing Gabriel is behind our problems. Azrael thinks someone who shouldn’t be entering the demon realm is involved. His ability to enter all realms makes him feel special. I’ve been tempted to agree to work with him to find out who he suspects.”

  “I still think the emo asshole is guilty,” Hades insisted. “He’s never liked you.”

  “He doesn’t like anyone,” I reminded him.

  “That’s another reason I think he’s guilty,” Hades continued. “He’s trying to take you down and make the other angels look bad. It has to be either him or Gabriel.”

  “Why do you think it might be Gabriel?” I asked.

  “He also hates you,” Hades replied before adding, “He hates us all.”

  “Since when?” I asked. I’d never had a falling out with Gabriel, to the best of my knowledge.

  “He’s an angel,” Hades replied. “They all hate us.”

  He made a good point. Just because Gabriel wasn’t as upfront about it as Michael, didn’t mean he hated me any less. No one held a grudge like an angel.

  “All right, he gets moved up on the suspect list,” I said with a nod. “Not that it changes anything. The rule is still to trust no white-winged angels.”

  “That’s always been my rule,” Hades said with an evil grin.

  “Beatrice will be here any minute, so I need to get ready for our date,” I told Hades.

  “I never thought I’d see you fall so hard for someone,” Hades mused.

  “Neither did I,” I admitted. “Even when I decided to look for a woman to spend the rest of eternity with, I never expected to feel this way about her.”

  “It looks like the devil is in love,” Hades teased.

  He was right. I was in love with Beatrice LaCroix.

  Chapter 84

  Beatrice

  “I can’t believe you have beaches in Hell,” I mused as I looked around the white-sand beach. The waves were gently rolling in as we rested on a blanket, having enjoyed a picnic dinner.

  “We don’t,” he admitted. “This was all made by a very powerful fallen angel spell. We have several areas that were created in a time when demons weren’t welcome outside this realm.”

  “I’m glad this beach is here, whatever the reason for its existence,” I told him.

  “Do you like beaches?” he asked.

  “Yes,” I replied. “It’s one of the reasons I considered moving to San Diego when my parents left the area. I know I can get to the beaches there using a transport tube, but as I’ve mentioned before, they’re always busy. I hate waiting in the lines.”

  “There are beaches close to where you live,” he pointed out.

  “They’re not as nice, and it’s usually too cold to enjoy them,” I explained. “When it’s warm enough to go, everyone else is also there. I’m not big on crowds.”

  “We should plan a trip to my island in the Caribbean,” he remarked casually, as if everyone owned an island in the Caribbean. “I go there mostly for day trips,” he added.

  “In your elevator?” I asked.

  “Of course,” he replied. “It lets out in my suite at the resort.”

  “A resort? Why not just build a house if you own an island?” It seemed strange he’d stay somewhere surrounded by tourists.

  “I’m not there often enough to justify a home,” he explained. “My suite at the resort is kept clean. When I want to visit, I call ahead so the staff knows to stock it with everything I need. I also use the resort for business meetings in the human realm on occasion. The demon in charge of the upkeep has been loyal to me for centuries. Running this resort is payment for some of the unpleasant tasks he handles for me.”

  “So, you just go to the Caribbean for a day and hang out with the tourists?” I asked, having trouble picturing that.

  “The beach I use is off limits to tourists,” he explained. “Most are afraid to approach me, so privacy isn’t usually an issue.”

  “Does that ever make you feel lonely?” I asked. “If everyone is afraid of you, it must be hard to make friends.”

  “I have friends,” he replied with a shrug. “Now, I also have you.”

  “And you can add my huge circle of friends to yours,” I added with a laugh. “It’s crazy that I’m asking if you worry about having friends when I spend so much time alone.”

  “You used to spend a lot of time alone,” he corrected me.

  “Good point,” I agreed. “I haven’t spent much time alone in the last few months.”

  Looking over, I saw the Hellhounds chasing some type of bird down the beach. Lucifer followed my gaze and laughed.

  “This should be entertaining,” he remarked.

  “They look like they’re about to pounce on that poor bird,” I told him. “That doesn’t sound entertaining to me.”

  “They are definitely about to pounce,” was his response.

  “You’re a sick man,” I accused. “Watching them kill that bird will ruin our date.”

  He chuckled. “Just watch, and you’ll see why I’m so amused.”

  I watched as they stalked the bird, each being as quiet as possible. Bix lunged first, and the other three growled from right behind him. What happened next proved looks can be deceiving. The tiny bird let out a roar like a lion as it spun and opened its mouth to reveal razor-sharp teeth. It grew to nearly seven feet in height.

  With a yip, Bix quickly reversed direction, and all four Hellhounds raced down the beach with the bird in pursuit.

  I shouldn’t laugh. The Hellhounds probably needed rescuing. That bird wasn’t their prey. “Oh my goddess!” I exclaimed around my laughter. “What is that?”

  “It’s a Razatiel,” he replied. “They like living near water. Lucky for the Hellhounds, they have very short attention spans.” Sure enough, the bird only chased the Hellhounds a short distance before noticing a shiny shell. It stopped and shrank to its original size before pecking the shell a few times and wandering off.

  I shook my hea
d. “That thing is kind of scary. Should I be worried it will attack us?”

  “No,” he assured me. “They’re only vicious when defending themselves or their young. Just leave them alone, and they’ll leave you alone.”

  “After seeing those teeth, you don’t have to worry about me bothering any Razatiels,” I assured him.

  Lucifer took my hand and brought it to his lips. “Are you ready to tell me what’s bothering you?” he asked. “You’ve been off since you left your office.”

  “It’s my dad,” I began. “He called me right after my last appointment.”

  “What did he want?” Lucifer asked. “I’m assuming he didn’t call to talk.”

  “That would be out of character,” I muttered. “He wants me to see my mom’s familiar. I guess he’s been depressed.”

  “Why didn’t your mom call?” he asked.

  “My parents don’t live together, and my mom’s familiar lives with my dad,” I explained.

  “That’s unusual,” he remarked.

  “It is,” I agreed. “Even when I was a kid, Kasey was closer to my dad.”

  “And your mom let your dad keep him when they separated?” he asked. “Doesn’t it weaken her to be away from her familiar?”

  “Yes,” I replied. “A witch gains power from her familiar. In my mom’s case, she’s not a very strong witch. When she changes forms, she has to be within fifty feet of the form she’s mimicking, and she can’t change into anything that’s more than twenty pounds heavier or lighter than she is. To the best of my knowledge, she hasn’t changed forms since I was a young child. The last I heard, my mom was working in a human restaurant, doing her best to avoid witches. I don’t think she tried very hard to keep Kasey.”

  “I already know your brother has more limitations than you when it comes to his shapeshifting abilities. How about your father?” he asked.

  “His power is similar to Desmond’s,” I replied.

  “So, you’re the most powerful witch in your family,” he remarked.

  I shrugged. “I have better control over my magic. Anyway, my dad is looking for a therapist, and I’m certain he’s not planning to pay me. If I ask him for money, he’ll probably try to make me feel guilty for charging family, as if we’re a close family.”