Red Rain: Book 4, Night Series

by RS Black

  He dropped his hand to his knee, but still he knelt in front of me. I wanted to ask about my family, but I couldn’t seem to ask those questions, because Death was looking at me in a way I’d never seen him look at me before.

  “Once you asked me if there was hope for redemption. I laughed, because there is no hope for a demon. There never can be. The curse is sealed, a vow that can never be broken. But you were never a true demon, Pandora.” He shook his head. “You were always so much more. Your humanity, that’s where you derived your strength, that’s how you fought and won against such impossible odds. I calculated all angles, I knew every choice you could possibly make. But I never truly expected this outcome. Anyone else, and the outcome would have been different.”

  I bit my bottom lip hard. “What are you saying?”

  His fingers reached out to me again, as if he wanted to touch me, but this time he curled them up into a fist and brought it back gently to his side.

  “You chose your name well. For out of the box poured disease, poverty, misery, sadness, and death. And all that remained in the box was hope, and tonight, you let that out too. You helped me to see that sometimes, even an ancient such as I can still feel it. So I offer you a choice, creature. Be mine, and you shall never know the fires of Hell again.”

  I gasped. Could he be telling me the truth? Was such a thing even possible? He was Death, controller of souls.

  “But...but, I’m a demon. I—”

  Grabbing my flailing fingers, he brought them gently to his lips. Not exactly kissing them, but showing me more affection than he’d ever done before.

  I couldn’t understand this. Couldn’t believe this.

  Perhaps I was still in Hell. Maybe this was just a test. Because Dean would never act like this. Dean was a horseman. Guardian of the Apocalypse. There was no mercy to be had from him, only vengeance and fury.

  A tear slipped out of my eye as I waited for the torture to begin again, waited for the screams to flood my ears, but he pulled me into his chest and rubbed a hand up and down my spine.

  “This is not a trick. You are safe now, and if you say yes, you will be safe always.”

  Tempted beyond belief, I wanted to say yes. With all my heart and soul I wanted to say yes. But...

  “I don’t love you,” I whispered brokenly, tensed and ready for him to fling me back into the nightmare. “Asher—”

  His kiss was so gentle I barely felt it and the breath of his words feathered through my hair as he said, “Asher is part of the deal.”

  “Why? Why are you doing this?”

  “Because I need you. And you need him.”

  Jerking almost violently, I dug my fingers into his shirt. His normally crisp Armani shirt was tear-stained and ruined, but he didn’t seem to care.

  “Dean, what is this? You don’t do something for nothing.”

  He nodded before slowly disentangling my hands from his shirt and taking a measured step back.

  “You’re right, Pandora. I’m a selfish being. I do not love you. I do not believe myself capable of that emotion. But I feel great respect for you. Yours is a life I value. I enjoy death, I enjoy what I do. But the world would suffer without you in it. Your capacity for compassion and kindness, it intrigues me. But also your cleverness, your ability to weave an outcome from impossible odds. I admire you greatly. You are a treasure I do not wish to lose and I know that the only way to keep you as you are is to give you your heart’s desire.” He pointed behind him.

  A shudder rolled through me when I saw Asher’s unmoving form. He was pale and drained of all color, his beautiful wings gone.

  “You would give him back to me?”

  “I would do much for you.”

  Those words wrapped like thorny barbs around my heart, sinking in deep and pricking me with the heavy weight of them.

  Dean did not love me, and I did not love Dean, but I understood the profundity of those words, because I felt them deep in my soul too.

  Somehow, by some miracle, I’d crafted a perfect trifecta for myself.

  Luc, with his unwavering loyalty to me.

  Asher, with his endless capacity to love me no matter what I did or who I was.

  And now Dean. A being of such great power who needed nothing and no one, except for me.

  I loved them all, in my own way.

  I needed them all, just as they needed me.

  I needed Luc’s fire.

  Asher’s devotion.

  And Dean’s strength.

  Without the three of them in my life I was nothing.

  He wiped the tears from my face with the pads of his thumbs.

  “How would I be with you, Dean? What is the cost of my soul?”

  His brows gathered. “There is a group of warriors in need of a leader; you and Asher would be their leaders. They are a race called the Hyperion.”

  “Hyperion?” I’d never heard of them. “What are—”

  The smirk I’d once learned to hate, but now could only think of as distinctly Dean, tugged at his lips. “The hubris of demons to believe only they are capable of creating monsters. Pandora, this world is vast, and your kind are most certainly not the only ones with creations run amok. This world is inhabited by legends and creatures even one as old as you has never seen nor heard of. Be mine, and I shall open your eyes to far greater than you’ve ever known.”

  I couldn’t deny that his offer was incredibly tempting. For so long I’d believed only demons had created the creatures that lived and breathed in this world. To be told now—after five thousand years—that suddenly the world wasn’t flat, was astonishing.

  “Luc?” I asked, my brain still needing time to process all he was telling me.

  He nodded. “Luc’s already given himself over to me. And should you accept my offer, you’ll eventually get to find out where.”

  The way his words shivered with laughter almost made me grin. Knowing Dean he’d just sent Luc to his version of Hell and as much as I loved and appreciated Luc now, there was a part of me that wasn’t upset by this.

  Which should have made me feel bad, but really didn’t. To go from thinking my eternity would be spent in Hell, to now having a choice—it scared me, but it also thrilled me.

  Once the thought of handing my soul over to Death would have filled me with horror, but I was changed now. I saw the world far differently. Knew the ugliness that awaited a Nephilim upon death. No matter how good, or kind, or fair we tried to be, in the end all demons were destined to lose.

  Though we fought like hell to resist it, though we even sometimes believed our own lies—the way the High-Caste Lords did—that we actually stood a shot at winning, in the end we’d always lose. And there was the true irony.

  You could never trust a demon.

  Wrath. Envy. Pride. Gluttony. Lust. Greed. And Sloth.

  All of them planning and plotting in Hell, believing someday they’d get out again. But Yahweh’s army would always be there to stop it.

  His smile grew wide as if he knew where my thoughts were leading me.

  “You’ve read my mind?” My lips twitched.

  “Can’t say that it’s not good to get back into that head of yours. You were entirely too powerful for your own good.”

  “Am I still a demon?”

  “No.” He shook his head, taking my hand in his and giving it a squeeze. “No, Pandora. Ya-El still burns in Hell. I split your soul. You’re who you should have always been.”

  I frowned. No power? No...Lust?

  His hands framed my face. “You’re free, woman. You can live a long and eternal life fighting for the Light you so cherish, or you can live a human life that is all your own. Marry Asher. Have kids. Grow old. And someday I’ll come to you again, when your skin is weathered, and the light in your eyes has dimmed, and I’ll take you to the peace your Kemen always craved. The choice is yours.”

  “What? But I thought my only choice was to join you or go back to Hell.”

  He shook his head. “I w
ould never do that to you. You’re no longer cursed, creature. This is a new day, a new life. I want you to fight with me, but the choice”—he dropped his hands and looked at me intently—“is all yours.”

  This wasn’t a decision I could make on my own. I shook my head. “Asher.”

  The moment I said his name a gentle zephyr rolled across his form. He didn’t wake up with a gasp, but a sigh.

  I couldn’t help the scream that ripped from my throat when his eyes found mine.

  I flung myself into his arms, wrapped them around me, and kissed his face, his neck, his cheeks, as I felt the flesh of his leg begin to stitch itself together beneath me.

  Grunts of surprise and possibly even pain dropped from his lips, but I couldn’t let him go.

  “Is this real?” he asked me with an unsure frown.

  But I couldn’t answer; i could only breathe him in and shake, every muscle in my body clinging to him, desperate that he never be parted from me again. And Asher was just the same.

  His hands claimed my back and I didn’t think he was in any hurry to leave my side, either.

  Dean’s voice interrupted our reunion. “Your answer, woman.”

  It was difficult, but I managed to loosen my grip just a little so that I could look at Death.

  “What answer?” Ash asked.

  I framed his beloved face; tracing the swirls of scars he’d acquired in the short time he’d known me with my thumbs. Every imperfection, every mar, every flaw, all so perfect to me. Asher was perfect for me.

  “We can be together, Ash, but—”

  “Yes.” He shook his head, kissing my thumbs. “Yes.”

  “What?” I laughed. “But you didn’t even give me a chance to say what the deal is.”

  “I don’t care.” His warm brown eyes danced.

  How could I have ever thought them dull?

  Life and passion glowed through their depths when he looked at me.

  “I’ve survived many lifetimes, little demon, but I didn’t truly live until the first day you looked into my eyes. Whatever it takes, whatever we have to do, I’ll do it. I don’t care.”

  “But, Ash, we have a choice.”

  “Then you make it.” He gripped my fingers. “All I want is to be with you. I don’t care how we have to do it.”

  “We can be humans. As we are now. We can live a lifetime of love and happiness and someday die, as the laws of nature dictates. Or we can bind our souls to his and become immortals, guardians of the light and justice.”

  He smiled. “I already know what it is you want.”

  “But you’re tired of fighting.” I dug my fingers into his shirt. I couldn’t deny that I wanted my humanity. It was what I’d always wanted.

  But I’d crawled out of the darkness, I’d seen the depths of evil that lived and breathed in this world. Could I really make the selfish choice to let others suffer just so that I could have another fifty or sixty years of peace?

  “What’s fair, Ash? What’s honest?”

  He tucked my bangs behind my ear, his warm fingers lingering on my temple. “You deserve happiness. We deserve happiness. We’ve fought our fight.”

  I glanced down at his lap.

  “But”—he tipped my chin up with his pointer finger, rubbing my chin tenderly—“the woman I fell in love with cared more for the plight of others than herself. You could never be happy knowing how others suffered and I would never forgive myself for turning you into something other than who you are. I love you, Pandora; the rest doesn’t matter.”

  “Then it is set,” Dean interjected. “Once I take possession of your souls, you’ll regain power.”

  “Oh,” I laughed, “so you’re saying we’ll be as all powerful as you.”

  His eyes danced with laughter. “In your dreams, demon girl. But don’t worry, you won’t be disappointed.”

  He stood and turned to leave.

  “How do we get out of here?” I asked his back.

  Turning, he gave me the cocksure grin I’d come to associate with him alone. “When times get hairy and you need to get away, all you have to do is will yourselves home. This realm is safe and belongs only to you. You can fashion it into whatever you will.”

  I laughed, still pressed tight to Asher. We must have looked a ridiculous sight to the ancient Dean, but my give a damn was broken.

  “Aren’t you afraid we’ll never leave?”

  “Don’t worry, creature”—he glanced between us—“I won’t come calling until after the honeymoon’s done. The harpies can wait a few more weeks before reinforcements move in.” Then with a finger wave he misted away, his ghostly words of “I’ll see you soon” echoing through the cavernous realm around us.

  Harpies? That’d sounded ominous. But I forgot all about that when Asher squeezed me tight.

  “Strong walls shake,” Asher breathed into my lips when we were finally alone.

  “But they never collapse,” I whispered back.

  Twin lengths of blue mist spiraled from out of our chests. I ran my fingers through his and he ran his hand through mine.

  “I thought this would hurt.” Wonder and awe laced my words.

  Asher chuckled. “I think that bastard just wanted to make us believe that.”

  I cuddled deeper into Asher. “Poor man doesn’t realize that we now totally know the truth of him.”

  “Yeah.” He kissed my jawline. “And that is?”

  “That he’s a giant sappy puppy dog.”

  Asher gave a bark of laughter. “A puppy dog with enormous fangs and a face only a mother could love.”

  There’d been a witty comment on my tongue, but I forgot it in an instant. “Asher! Your wings are back.”

  His eyes were wide too and I knew why. I felt the heavy press of unfurling wings on my own back.

  Gasping in delight I twirled and studied the jeweled lavender feathers of my new wings. “Are we...” I swallowed hard, unable to even comprehend it to be true. “...angels?”

  But I forgot all about that question when his hot hand found the curve of my breast and my delight in my new wings and the possibility of my new powers was lost in a fog of lust and love that only Asher could ever inspire in me.

  “With the kinds of thoughts I’m having, I’m going to say no,” he grunted. “Though I’m sure it doesn’t hurt his endgame one bit to make others believe it.”

  Laughing, I spread my wings and he did too.

  “Are you happy, my little demon?”

  When our wings touched, it was like fire and electricity coursed through my blood, making me gasp and moan as sensations of pure bliss invaded my soul.

  “So happy, Ash. So very, very happy.”

  His hand cupped me harder and I could only cry out in expectation.

  “Thinking we should go find Bubba and let him know—”

  I placed a finger across his lips. “Totally agree. But...” I ripped the already tattered edges of his shirt open and dragged my nail down his beautifully scarred chest until he groaned and rocked beneath me.

  “After,” he grunted. “It can wait. It can wait.”

  “Oh yes, the world can wait for just a few more hours.”

  Then there was no more talking.

  So many had sacrificed themselves tonight. Vyxen, Luc, and so many more I wasn’t even aware of, but I knew in my heart that given the choice, they’d have done it all over again. My people might be demons, but tonight they’d all proved they weren’t heartless.

  I was sorry for the lives I’d never know again, for the carnival I was no longer a part of, for the people I’d loved and lost. But I carried them all inside me, in my heart, and so long as I lived, Grace, Kemen, and even Vyxen would too. Their sacrifice had not been in vain.

  Asher and I were guardians of Light now. Our lives would always be full of beasts and monsters and the worst that humanity had to offer, but we’d never be alone again. We’d walk this path together.

  I was Asher’s.

  And Asher was mine.
>
  And for an ex-demon like me, there can be no greater redemption in life than to know love and to be loved in return...

  ~*~

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  Author’s Note

  You may have noticed that I deliberately left some loose ends unresolved here. Like, where is Luc now? Just where are Pandora and Asher going from here? Those questions will be answered in future Night world books. This world I’ve created is so large and expansive for me to write in that just ending it all with this book wasn’t really an option. Even though Pandora’s storyline has been resolved, there are so many other stories to tell. Who are the Hyperion? Just what is Dean planning? I plan to live in Night for many more years to come and I hope you guys will join in on the ride with me. If you’ve been at all curious about the berserkers and Adam’s camp, then make sure to pick up your copy of Forbidden, which deals with the berserkers and also expands on the Night universe. Reckless, Book 2 of the Tempted series, will be coming out soon and you’ll be seeing many familiar faces in it, such as Grace. Both of those books are written by my new Urban Fantasy pen name, Selene Charles.

  This is RS Black’s final book. There will be no more RS Black. So if you love my Urban Fantasies, make sure to look up Selene Charles for any future adventures.

  I hope you guys have enjoyed Pandora’s story and will trust me to lead you on many more great adventures, to include her new home base as a leader of the Hyperion warriors. Remember, stay tuned for an extended sneak peek of my newest Night world series, Codename: A.

  RS Black’s Books

  Crimson Night, Book 1

  All Hallows Night, Book 2

  Howler’s Night, Book 3

  Red Rain, Book 4

  Spinoff Night books written by Selene Charles

  Tempted Series

  Forbidden, Book 1

  Reckless, Book 2 (Coming Soon)