by Andrea Speed
Because Gill was more or less one of them, they updated her on Hell’s odd situation. Without Lucifer, they had no leader… except Ceri, his natural heir. For right now, he was using Bucket as a liaison and redirecting Hell’s mission statement. Namely, tormenting and killing humans was passé. Now it was all about turning Hell into a functional society for demons who wanted to live there. It was jarring and unexpected, but he was the son of Satan, and they couldn’t object. Some demons had fled to Earth, not sure what to think, but those angels hunting them had made Earth a little less enticing. Still, for the most part, the demons were generally happy having a life not completely defined by tormenting another species or serving a master. It gave them a slight bit of hope that maybe things could change.
Bucket did retrieve Lucifer’s spell book, which Esme took possession of, and after a cursory glance, hid within her mazelike underground library. To say it was dangerous was an understatement. She was considering destroying it, but first she had to figure out how. At least no one else could use it.
There was a contingent of demons who wanted Lucifer back. But they also knew Cthulhu was currently using him as a pillow, and none of them were brave enough to risk the wrath of Cthulhu, so mainly they just sulked. Heaven didn’t have a replacement leader to rally around, which was good for now. If they ever found one, it might be an issue for later.
Once Gill left, Logan found it bittersweet. He had his sister back, in a way. But maybe not for long, and she would always be a version of his sister—not quite the real thing, but an amazing simulation with angel powers. He couldn’t think of her that way, though. She was either his sister or she wasn’t, and right now, she very much was. Logan was really going to have to come to grips with this, but not immediately.
Alex had somehow become part of their oddball group. They weren’t big on socializing or anything but dropped by enough that they seemed to be used to them, if not precisely a fan. There was no forgetting or getting around the fact that they were the most dangerous supernatural tactical nuke around, but if there had to be one walking among them, at least they could be friends with it. And it was never not handy to have an elder god on your side.
Especially considering Esme still had her “supernatural sheriff” responsibilities, being the most powerful spellslinger around. Stopping the apocalypse had enhanced her rep, but the way things were changing with Heaven and Hell had added a layer of chaos to everything. They all helped when they could, even Ahmed, who usually complained but never let go of an opportunity to show the world his stylish new duds. He also still lived in Logan and Ceri’s basement. Why wouldn’t he? He’d had many decades of solitude and had decided limited alone time was best for him. He wasn’t a bad guy, apart from his persistent Eeyore qualities, and his knowledge was voluminous. Also, it was good to have a physically indestructible being on your side.
A week after Logan and the gang had saved the entire planet—and doomed a small swath of it—they were sitting in a diner at 1:45 a.m., thirsty after an attempt to break up a vampire attack had turned into a battle royale between two different nests of vampires who, as it turned out, were battling over territory. While there were twice as many vampires as they were expecting, it was still fairly easy for them. Although Logan had offered to give it to Ceri, Talon was still welded to him and, as it turned out, was absolutely fine with spitting void on vamps and chomping them, which killed them. Esme also had a fireball spell that would have made any Dungeons & Dragons players jealous and caused vampires to almost instantly vaporize into ash. Lyn had an axe. It was just an axe, one you could pick up at a big-box store, and combined with her strength, she had vamp heads rolling like baseballs. Kind of funny and kind of disgusting. Alex didn’t join them because vampires were too easy to kill. But what wasn’t easy to kill from Cthylor’s perspective? It was amazing they ever showed up at all.
Esme and Lyn were sitting on one side of the booth, sharing a plate of fries. Lyn was having a cola, while Esme was having an herbal tea and occasionally reminding Lyn caffeine would keep her up. Lyn didn’t seem to care. Logan and Ceri were sitting on the other side of the booth, sharing a greasy grilled-cheese sandwich, which was really excellent if also sort of gross, but in a good way. They were both drinking iced tea that probably had the same amount of sugar and caffeine as Lyn’s soda, but they didn’t care. Against all odds, they were somehow still alive, as was the Earth. It was time to go nuts. This was all bonus time.
Ahmed was sitting at the counter, pretending to drink his tea while reading a Spanish-language newspaper, since in all of his time alive, he’d learned to speak and read many languages. Which he never failed to brag about when given the chance.
“Are you sure you don’t wanna be in Hell, though?” Lyn asked Ceri, noshing on a fry. “You’d be treated like a king, wouldn’t you?”
Ceri shrugged one shoulder, pulling a piece of crust off his sandwich. “Like an emperor, I imagine, but I don’t want that.”
“Oh yeah, having a bunch of fawning people at your perpetual beck and call. No wonder they call it Hell.”
Ceri raised an eyebrow at Lyn’s smirking face. “Would you like the job?”
“Could I?”
Esme nudged her. “Do you think demons are really gonna take orders from a harpy?”
“If they know what’s good for them, yeah.”
Ceri shook his head. “They’ll be too scared of you to even show up. You’ll preside over an empty kingdom.”
Lyn shrugged. “I’ve done worse.”
Logan almost asked but decided in the end it wasn’t worth it. Instead, he looked over at Ceri. “It is your birthright. Sure you don’t want it?”
Ceri gazed at him with kindness. “Are you kidding? My life is here with you. I wouldn’t trade that for any kingdom.”
Genuine warmth bloomed in Logan’s chest, and he had to blink back tears. For so much of his life, he’d felt unlovable and toxic. It was hard to believe anyone could ever love him. Logan leaned in and gave Ceri a quick peck on the lips, which was met by mock gagging from Lyn and a balled-up napkin Esme threw and bounced off his chest. “Oh, grow up,” Logan snapped in mock anger.
They both gave him innocent grins that looked cheesy as hell, and Logan realized he hadn’t lost the rest of his family after all. He’d gained a new one.
A new, really annoying one. Oh well. Couldn’t have everything, right?
More from Andrea Speed
Kaede Hiyashi is sick and tired of living in the shadow of his father, supervillain Doctor Terror. Brilliant but crazy, Doctor Terror sends his son to Corwyn, California, for reasons Kaede can’t imagine. Sent to accompany and protect him is Ash, a genetically modified supersoldier raised and trained by an infamous death cult.
Corwyn is lousy with superheroes, led by the obnoxious Dark Justice. Kaede finds himself dancing around Dark Justice as he digs into his father’s mysterious business and teaches his socially awkward—but physically lethal—bodyguard to acclimate to “normal” life. Can these two wacky supervillains figure out what Doctor Terror wants them to do, solve the riddle of the villain known as Black Hand, and keep Dark Justice from raining on their bloody parade? The course of love—and world domination—never did run smooth.
Mean Streets: Book One
From the Infected Universe
With his friend lion shifter Roan McKichan no longer in the picture, former sex worker Holden Krause is now working as a detective investigating cases in Seattle. When he receives a request to investigate a rather unusual case for Big Mike, a local drug dealer, he ignores the potential hazards in working for such a client and takes it on.
But Holden hasn’t given up his vigilante ways, occasionally seeking violent retribution for those ignored by the justice system. There’s a man stalking the streets, assaulting anyone he perceives to be trans or gender-nonconforming in any way. When the brutality escalates, the case becomes personal for Holden.
If he cannot juggle being both a detective and a vigilant
e, his taste for blood and danger might finally catch up with him.
Infected Series: Book One
In a world where a werecat virus has changed society, Roan McKichan, a born infected and ex-cop, works as a private detective trying to solve crimes involving other infecteds.
The murder of a former cop draws Roan into an odd case where an unidentifiable species of cat appears to be showing an unusual level of intelligence. He juggles that with trying to find a missing teenage boy, who, unbeknownst to his parents, was “cat” obsessed. And when someone is brutally murdering infecteds, Eli Winters, leader of the Church of the Divine Transformation, hires Roan to find the killer before he closes in on Eli.
Working the crimes will lead Roan through a maze of hate, personal grudges, and mortal danger. With help from his tiger-strain infected partner, Paris Lehane, he does his best to survive in a world that hates and fears their kind… and occasionally worships them.
Sequel to Infected: Prey
Infected Series: Book Two
In a world where a werecat virus has changed society, Roan McKichan, a born infected and ex-cop, works as a private detective trying to solve crimes involving other infecteds.
The newly married Roan is struggling to balance his work with his home life as he grows increasingly distracted by his husband Paris’s declining health. One case with strong emotions attached takes up most of his time: finding the murderer of a missing little rich girl. It’s a family with secrets so toxic they’d rather no one investigate, and there’s no shortage of suspects. But despite the dangers and obstructions involved, Roan won’t stop… until he loses something infinitely precious as well.
Sequel to Infected: Bloodlines
Infected Series: Book Two
In a world where a werecat virus has changed society, Roan McKichan, a born infected and ex-cop, works as a private detective trying to solve crimes involving other infecteds.
But when your heart is gone, it’s easy to fall into a black hole and never crawl out. Roan has been lost and alone for more than a year, and his best friends think a new case might be just the motivation he needs. Roan forces himself back into the game and discovers a dead man who might not be all that dead, a street hustler that wants to hustle him, and a dominatrix who is well prepared to take Roan’s orders. As Roan claws his way out of the darkness by diving back into his work, he finds himself in a race against time in the adrenaline-pumping realization that nothing helps a person want to live like helping someone else survive.
Readers love Andrea Speed
Infected: Throwaways
“Once again, Andrea Speed shows off her skill at writing some great action scenes and pulling readers along on a suspenseful ride.”
—The Novel Approach
“I really enjoyed this book and I definitely like where things are going from here. Holden is definitely the anti-hero we need today.”
—Just Love: Queer Book Reviews
Hearts of Darkness
“I found myself enthralled with the twists and turns that emerged in this story as I followed the two men throughout their journey.”
—MM Good Book Reviews
“I kept turning the pages as quickly as possible due to the dialogue, the characters, and the overall fun I was having.”
—Rainbow Book Reviews
Infected: Holden
“…I’m extremely excited about this new series. The mysteries are interesting and the main character even more so.”
—Rainbow Gold Reviews
“This book was truly a different kind of read than I normally read. I like the fact that it was a little on the dark side and that the book was full of all kinds of twist and turns.”
—Gay Book Reviews
ANDREA SPEED writes way too much (and yet seemingly not enough). She is the writer of the Infected series for DSP Publications as well as a bunch of other stuff, and was editor in chief of CxPulp.com, where she reviewed comics as well as movies and other stuff. She’s won a couple of Rainbow Awards and feels she may be ubiquitous on the web. But she is not (sadly) the Italian DJ of the same name that often comes up first in Google searches. A small medicinal horse.
Website: www.andreaspeed.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/andrea.speed.3
Twitter: @aspeed
Tumblr: www.tumblr.com/blog/notmanos
Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/3020553.Andrea_Speed
By Andrea Speed
7&7: A DSP Publications Anthology of Virtue and Vice
Darlings of New Midnight
Hearts of Darkness
THE INFECTED UNIVERSE
INFECTED SERIES
Infected: Paris
Infected: Prey
Infected: Bloodlines
Infected: Life After Death
Infected: Freefall
Infected: Shift
Infected: Lesser Evils
Infected: Undertow
Infected: Epitaph
The Infected Holiday Special
MEAN STREETS
Infected: Holden
Infected: Throwaways
Published by DSP PUBLICATIONS
www.dsppublications.com
Published by
DSP PUBLICATIONS
5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886 USA
www.dsppublications.com
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of author imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Darlings of New Midnight
© 2020 Andrea Speed
Cover Art
© 2020 Tiferet Design
http://www.tiferetdesign.com/
Cover content is for illustrative purposes only and any person depicted on the cover is a model.
All rights reserved. This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of international copyright law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines, and/or imprisonment. Any eBook format cannot be legally loaned or given to others. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the Publisher, except where permitted by law. To request permission and all other inquiries, contact DSP Publications, 5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886, USA, or www.dsppublications.com.
Trade Paperback ISBN: 978-1-64405-819-0
Digital ISBN: 978-1-64405-818-3
Library of Congress Control Number: 2019952379
Digital published March 2020
v. 1.0
Printed in the United States of America