by Emma Castle
“Yeah, Mom called me. I can’t believe it.” She hugged him again, her heart clenching in her chest.
“It could be that the treatments really worked and we are just now finally seeing the results,” the doctor explained. “Either way, I think this is good, Mrs. Kingston. We’ll continue to run tests for a few more days to be sure, but I’d like to plan on sending him home on Wednesday.”
Her mother beamed at the doctor. “Wednesday?”
“Yes.” The doctor smiled. “I try not to let patients get their hopes up, but in this case, things look very good.”
“Thank you.” Her mother hugged the startled physician and then returned to her husband’s bedside.
“I’ll leave you all to have some time with him, but make sure he has plenty of rest.”
Diana pulled up a chair by her father’s hospital bed and grasped one of his hands between hers, squeezing it gently.
She stayed at the hospital for two more hours, her mind reeling as her father got up on shaky legs for the first time in weeks. She didn’t understand how this was the same man from the day before—the man who had lain on the bed, so close to death that it hung around him like a shroud. Could her strange dream have been real? Was she actually considering that she’d made an actual honest-to-God deal with the devil? She turned on her laptop and googled “deals with the devil” first thing after she arrived home. As the search history revealed information, she held her breath and read on.
She found several articles about the mythology behind making a deal with the devil. There were even descriptions of rituals for summoning a demon at a crossroads to make the bargain. Seth perched on the edge of her desk, his face alert on the front door, his tail flicking back and forth.
“It’s Sunday. No mail today,” she reminded the tabby and stroked a hand down his spine. He arched, encouraging her to scratch his lower back right above his tail. Suddenly the mail slot on her door opened, and a letter dropped onto the floor.
Diana stared at the letter. She hadn’t heard anyone come up the stairs. She always heard steps on the stairs.
Seth’s ears flattened, and he let out an eerie meow. He only made that noise when she vacuumed too close to him under the bed.
Unease prickled along her skin like thousands of invisible spiders, making her shudder. She set her laptop aside and approached the letter cautiously. It was made of expensive crisp white card stock and bound with a red satin ribbon. She picked it up off the carpet and turned it over. There was no return address, only her name, Diana Kingston, scrawled on top in flowing cursive.
Diana tugged on the ribbon until the bow fell apart, and then she unfolded the letter to read it.
Ms. Kingston,
You have recently completed a transaction with His Majesty, the king of hell. You are hereby to give yourself over to his desires for three months in exchange for your father’s life. You will be ready each Friday night at half past eleven. A black sedan will pick you up. It will bring you to a place where you will fulfill your obligations. If at any point you wish to rescind this contract by invoking the free will clause specified in the attached contract article 2 section 1, then you must face the immediate death of your father.
Any questions regarding your contract with Lucien Star, a.k.a. Lucifer Morningstar, a.k.a. the devil, can be written and directed to Mr. Star’s counsel, Lionel Barnaby, Esq.
Sincerely,
Mr. Barnaby
Diana read the letter over several times, unsure whether she wanted to laugh or cry. “I really made a deal with the devil?”
Something brushed against her leg and she jumped, her heart jolting into her throat as she almost screamed. Seth hissed and bounded away from her, upset that he had scared her enough that she jumped.
“Jesus, Seth.” She stared at the vanishing tail of her cat as he whipped around the corner and into her bedroom.
She glanced back down at the letter and then turned the page to see a few more pages of intense-looking legal terms. “Terms and conditions.” She scanned the frighteningly long list that made very little sense to her. But she searched for the clause about free will.
“In accordance with the ruling laws of heaven and hell, a human shall always have free will, even during transactions with the devil. Any sale of the soul, permanently or temporarily, to the devil to receive benefits is valid and binding unless the mortal exclaims, ‘I invoke my right of free will.’ At such point the transaction is broken, and the benefit conferred upon the mortal will be undone or taken away.”
Diana stared at the contract and read the signature lines at the bottom where her name had been written in her own hand. She brushed her fingertips over the signature to feel the ink, and the memory of kissing the devil flooded back. The heat, the sensual dominance, the feel of wind whipping around her all swept through her like a roaring wave. Gasping, she struggled for air. She’d sealed her deal with a kiss. In some of the crossroads mythology articles she’d read, that was how bargains were made.
It is real.
She set the contract and the letter down on her desk, returned to her couch, and picked up her laptop once more. She had no idea what she was looking for. Answers, maybe? But even the internet was no help. She searched for books about the devil and the occult, and a psychic bookshop popped up in the search results. She clicked on the address and saw that it was only two miles away and was open until ten.
Diana cast a look at Seth. He lay on his back in the middle of the floor, his tail twitching.
“Should I go?” she asked. Seth’s tail stilled. “Is that a yes?” she confirmed, half smiling as Seth rolled onto his side and looked up at her.
“Fine. I’ll go.” She closed her laptop and fetched her purse. She exited the apartment and typed the bookstore’s address into her phone. By the time she reached the bookstore, the sun hung heavy in the sky. Diana parked her car and faced the shop.
A small sign dangled off the metal pole above the door. Its painted black lettering stood out against the pale gray background: The Occultist’s Apothecary. The shop was surrounded by a coffee shop on one side and a consignment clothing store on the other side. Only the coffee shop was open, but it had few customers.
Diana adjusted her purse on her shoulder and headed toward the bookstore. A small bell tinkled above her head as she entered. The musty smell of old books, candles, incense, and spices filled the air like an invisible cloud.
There was part of the shop that had a counter with bottles and other ingredients. A beautiful dark-skinned woman stood behind the counter, sorting out receipts. She flicked her gaze up and then returned to her task.
“Excuse me,” Diana said uncertainly. “I’m looking for some books.”
God, she’s going to think I’m crazy.
“Books about what?” The woman’s voice was soft and deep, lovely. Her dark eyes lifted again and held on Diana’s face. Her expression was unreadable.
“Um…” Diana had to stop herself from glancing around. “The devil. Specifically about making deals…like at a crossroads.”
“A crossroads deal,” the woman said slowly, her gaze sharpening.
“Yes, or something like that,” Diana added. She and the devil hadn’t really been at a crossroads. Or had they? The hospital was at an intersection of two streets. Maybe that qualified?
“You’re making deals with the dark one, child?” the woman asked.
“I’m twenty-one.” She wasn’t a kid.
The woman’s lips twitched. “What’s your name?”
“Diana.”
“The Huntress, a goddess’s name. It’s good to have a strong name from the old gods.” The woman held out her hand over the counter. Diana reached out to shake it, but the woman caught her hand and turned Diana’s palm face up, peering closely at it. Then she ran a fingertip along her skin, tracing lines.
“You…” The woman’s brow furrowed, and she held out her other hand. She examined both of Diana’s palms, frowning.
“What’
s wrong?” Diana peered down at her own hand.
“A person’s palm should have heart and lifelines that are similar but not exact. Yours…match.”
Diana had never really thought about her palms, but she did know the lines didn’t match. Yet as she looked at her hands now, they were exactly the same.
“Oh, child, what have you done?” the woman demanded in a soft, breathless voice, her brown eyes heavy with worry.
“What do you mean?”
“Come and sit.” The woman motioned for Diana to follow her back behind a black curtain. She hesitated a second before following. There was a small table covered with a dark-purple cloth and a tea tray. The woman poured two cups of tea and handed Diana one.
“Drink it all.” The woman waited while Diana drained the small cup of tea. The woman took the cup and overturned it on its saucer for a moment, then turned it back over. She peered into the bottom of the teacup and frowned.
“You wanted to save your father?”
“Yes.” Diana stared at the woman. How could she know?
“The dark one came to you and made a deal for your father’s life?”
Again, Diana nodded and whispered, “Yes.”
“You gave him your body, not just your soul.” The woman pursed her lips, turning the cup a little. “He’s going to break you, child. No one ever survives a deal like that.”
“Break me?” Diana wrapped her arms around her chest, a chill slithering down her spine.
“You are not the first woman to catch his eye. He loves pleasure in all forms.”
The woman set the cup down and gently touched Diana’s shoulders.
“Is there anything I can do?” Diana asked. She wouldn’t rescind the contract because her father’s life was at risk, but if there was anything she could do to protect herself, she would.
“Come with me.” The woman escorted her back to the front of the store, and she retrieved a small box behind the counter. She sat down and opened it.
A small wooden cross on a leather cord sat inside the box.
“This is a talisman that has been blessed by a saint. Take it. Though I do not know what good it will do.”
“I thought crosses only worked on vampires?”
The woman laughed. “Child, crosses do not work on vampires. Vampires are not demons.”
Diana blinked. “Are you saying vampires are real?”
“You made a deal with the devil, and you don’t believe in vampires?” The woman laughed softly. “Child, the dark is full of monsters, human and other.”
“Vampires…” She didn’t know what to say. Her world, or what she knew of it, was vanishing overnight. She slipped the cross over her neck and tucked it beneath her sweater.
“How much do I owe you for the reading and the cross?”
The woman held out a hand. “Nothing. My name is Amara. You may come back anytime you need me.”
“Really?” Diana wanted to hug Amara and did so, ignoring the woman’s outstretched hand. Amara patted her back before they broke apart, but her eyes were serious as she looked at Diana.
“You must be careful. The more you surrender to the dark, to him, the more you will lose yourself. You must find the light inside you and hold on to it. Do not go into his darkness—it will destroy you.”
“Thank you.” Diana touched the cross hidden beneath her sweater and waved goodbye to Amara before she exited the shop.
A bitter wind curled around her, icy fingers teasing her hair and digging into her clothes, making her shiver. She rushed to her car and got inside. She turned on the lights and thought—for just one second only—that someone was in the back seat. She spun, gasping, but the back seat was empty. She turned back to the steering wheel, her heart pounding and her blood roaring in her ears. She could have sworn there’d been a flash of light, like the yellow of an animal’s eyes in the rearview mirror.
“I’m going crazy. I just need to go home and rest.”
“Rest.” A deep voice laughed in the back of her mind. “You’ll need it.”
Diana closed her eyes, breathing in slowly.
Stay calm. You have to stay rational. I will face this devil and the deal and save my dad. I won’t let him break me.
When she opened her eyes again she felt better, more clearheaded, until she heard the voice one last time.
“I will have you in every way I desire.”
Other Titles By Emma Castle
Unlikely Heroes Series
Midnight with the Devil - Book 1
A Wilderness Within - Book 2
* * *
Sci-Fi Romance
The Krinar Code (coming August 2019)
About the Author
Emma Castle has always loved reading but didn’t know she loved romance until she was enduring the trials of law school. She discovered the dark and sexy world of romance novels and since then has never looked back! She loves writing about sexy, alpha male heroes who know just how to seduce women even if they are a bit naughty about it. When Emma’s not writing, she may be obsessing over her favorite show Supernatural where she’s a total Team Dean Winchester kind of girl!
If you wish to be added to Emma’s new release newsletter feel free to contact Emma using the Sign up link on her website at www.emmacastlebooks.com or email her at [email protected]!