"I think she might. If she knows what I can offer her," Ace said, eyes bright.
About an hour later, I was making my way up the stairs, feeling older than I had when I'd walked into the house, body tired, mind conflicted.
But I had to bring the facts to her.
I had to give her the choice.
It wasn't mine to make.
I told her we needed to talk.
About what came next.
"Okay," Lenore agreed, taking the towel I handed to her even as damn near every nerve ending wanted me to toss her up on the counter and fuck her until everything else slipped away.
I didn't for two reasons.
One, she was still sore.
Two, this was important.
There would be time for fucking later. Depending on what her decision was.
"Are you okay?" she asked, eyes concerned, gaze roaming over me like she might find injuries.
"Fine. But we need to talk about what comes next."
"Okay," she agreed, grabbing one of my tees, slipping it on. "What comes next?"
"You have some decisions to make," I told her, kicking off my shoes, climbing onto the bed, patting the spot beside me.
Lenore, emboldened by our time together, didn't move next to me. No, she climbed onto my lap, straddling me instead.
"What decisions do I have to make?"
"If you are going to willingly help us."
"Okay. Help you do what?"she asked, eager to know what generations of her witch sisters were used for.
"Open a hell mouth."
"A hell mouth?" she repeated.
"A hole between the human plane and hell."
"That's what you want us for," Lenore said, lips parting. "You think we have the power to open a hell mouth."
"You do have the power to open a hell mouth. Witches are the only beings capable of doing so," I told her. "We just haven't found a powerful enough witch."
"What happens to the witches?" she asked, tone grave.
I took a deep breath, knowing this was a blow she didn't want to take. "In the past? The ritual drained every bit of power from their bodies. Everything. Even the ability to interpret their cards or runes was gone. They become completely mortal."
It took a long moment for her the words to truly penetrate, leaving her looking stricken. "You took away everything?"
"Yes." There was no use softening the blow. The truth was the truth.
"What happened to them then?"
"They were useless to us," I told her, shrugging. "Ace gave them books, money, set them free."
"Free in a world they didn't understand with no loved ones, no way to go back home?" she asked, eyes tearing up.
My wings moved out, circling around her.
"Yes."
"That's cruel."
"Yes," I agreed. "We are, by nature, cruel, Lenore."
"Have any of you checked on them?"
"No, why would we?"
Her gaze slid from mine at that, her head shaking. "Why only one of us?" she asked. "Each generation, why only one? If you drain us?"
"Because it takes a long-ass time to find potential sites for hell mouths. That is what Ace is obsessed with, finding them."
"That's what the map was about," she said, making my brows draw together.
"What map, babe?"
"The map. In his room. I found it the day you all left. That was why I was in the woods. I was trying to figure out what was in the woods that he wanted, thinking it might be the key to what you all wanted from me. I was right. He thinks he found another site."
"Yes."
"And he needs me to try to open it. Even if it drains me."
"Yes."
"I'm not sure what choice I have now."
"Claiming you means they can't make you do anything without me fighting to the bitter end," I told her, my hands sliding up and down the sides of her thighs.
"And they are loyal to you."
"Exactly," I agreed, glad she was being rational about all this. No waterworks, no screaming.
"Okay. So what is my choice?"
"Ace knows a ritual."
"For me?"
"Yes, for you. He says he can make you immortal."
"Immortal. That's not possible," she objected. "I mean, mostly. We can elongate our lives. With certain spells. The elder members of the coven do it while they wait for someone else to become strong enough to step into their positions. But it doesn't last. Lasting immortality is..."
"Evil," I filled in for her, waiting for her to put the pieces together.
"You want me to become evil?"
"You would never become fully evil," I told her. "You would simply have some evil in you. You've already had some evil inside you," I added, lips curving up.
"Oh," she said, eyes going wide, lips parting, likely thinking of all the repercussions that came along with what we had done.
"You're not."
"Not what?"
"Pregnant."
"Demons can reproduce."
"Yes," I agreed. "But when we choose to."
"Okay," she said, taking a deep breath. "So, what happens? If I make that choice?"
"I give you some of my blood. You do the ritual. You become immortal."
"Does this happen before or after the other ritual?"
"After. No one knows if the ritual will strip you of your powers too. So we need that done first."
"But... but if I open the hell mouth, you will all go back to hell."
She didn't say it, but I heard it nonetheless.
You will leave me.
"No. According to Ace, I won't be able to go back."
"Because you Claimed me?"
"Yes. I will stay with you. Minos won't be able to go back either. We have to stay."
"Have to," she repeated.
"What?" I asked, something inside me responding to something in her, something sad.
"I have a question about this Claiming."
My stomach clenched, wondering if this was it, if she was rejecting me, if I would be cursed to a life of misery like Minos.
"Okay."
"Do you want it?"
"Do I want what?"
"Do you want to Claim me? Was that a choice? Or did it happen to you? Are you mad about it? Would you prefer it if it never happened?"
Oh, so that was it.
She was feeling insecure, unsure.
"I couldn't have Claimed you if I didn't want to," I told her. "I don't pretend to know the process, but I know it only happens if the desire for it is there."
Mine mine mine.
That was what that little voice had been saying in my head for a while now.
That was the Claiming beginning to make itself known.
Having sex with her had sealed it, making her mine in every way.
Mine mine mine.
For all of eternity.
If she took the deal.
"So you want me? And this?"
"Babe, I think we both know I want you," I told her, hands sinking into her hips, dragging her higher on my lap where my cock was already straining for her, like it always was when she was near.
Her breath caught, her eyes going heavy, but she shook her head. "That's not what I meant," she told me.
"I want you, babe. In every way. I can't change it. But, what's more, I don't want to change it."
"Stop," she demanded, breath starting to get fast.
"Stop what?"
"Looking at me like that."
She was already getting wet for me, that sweet smell flooding my nostrils.
"Can't help it. Lenore, no," I said when she wiggled against me, riding my cock through my pants. "Too soon."
"I need you. We have to. I can't think straight until I have you," she told me, whimpering a little when her clit moved over my cock.
I couldn't claim being noble came easily to me. And I only had a small amount of self-control with regard to her.
I knew it was probably too soon.
"No, like this," I demanded when she went to move off my body.
"Like this?" she repeated, brows furrowing.
"Lift up a little," I told her, waiting for her to do so, then grabbing my cock, sliding it up her wet pussy, getting it good and wet before I pushed it against the entrance to her body. "Now slide down," I demanded.
She did so.
A little too fast, not taking heed of her aching walls, letting out a cry as my cock filled her completely.
"Ouch," she said, taking a deep breath.
"Just ride me, babe," I demanded, rocking my hips. "Ride me, and it will feel all better."
Her hands went to my shoulders as she started to wiggle her hips. She started in slow circles, testing the sensations, then back and forth, then sliding up and down my length.
"Oh," she whimpered.
My legs cocked up behind her. "Lean back a little," I demanded, and she didn't hesitate to do so.
"Ohhh," she moaned when my cock started to press against her G-spot.
"Yeah," I agreed, moving my hips in circles as she rode me, one of my hands going between her thighs, working her clit as her walls started to tighten around me.
"I love having you inside me," she admitted, voice a small whisper.
"You're going to love it even more in a minute," I told her as she kept getting tighter and tighter, close to the edge. "Come," I demanded, tapping her clit for a second before pressing hard, feeling her whole body jolt as her orgasm slammed through her system, leaving her screaming out my name.
Her walls kept clenching around me, milking my orgasm from me. And nothing in my long, everlasting life had ever felt as good as coming with her, knowing she would have me inside her, even after my cock slid out.
"Can you think better now?" I asked later, my cock still inside her because she refused to let me move. She'd folded forward into my chest, my wings going around her, holding her close.
"Mmm. Okay."
"Okay?" I repeated.
"Yes. I will do it. I need a lifetime of this. Many lifetimes of this," she added, sighing into me.
I felt hope swell up inside.
But I didn't take her at her post-orgasm word right then.
But when her mind was the same the next day after sleep and food, then I went to Ace with her answer.
And we set the plan in motion.
Chapter Seventeen
Lenore
I wasn't sure what was the appropriate weather for a day that would change your life forever, but mostly cloudy with the occasional burst of hopeful sun seemed rather appropriate. And that was what we got.
We'd all gotten up before dawn, dressing, having breakfast, then meeting in the study where Ace—in an act of good faith—handed me the written ritual along with the items I would need, including a small vial of Ly's blood.
My eyes roamed over it, committing the words to memory the way I had been trained to, even though I would never need this one again.
There was no way to reverse the ritual, either.
For better or for worse, if I did it, I would be immortal. A small part of me would be evil. It could change me.
Then again, so much of me had changed already.
It had been just over a week since Ly and I first became intimate. As he had promised, it had only gotten better each time, the pain slipping away, replaced with only pleasure.
And with the Claiming, we had grown closer in every possible way, staying up late to talk, sharing stories, secrets, hopes for our very long future together.
I was a softer, yet harder, woman at the same time.
Loving a man like Lycus could do that to you.
Yes, love.
I had known it since the string sensation realization. It had only grown since then. With each shared kiss, touch, every whispered admission, every shared fear, every motion and sigh as we moved together.
It wasn't anything like I would have thought, being in love.
It was better.
Good enough that I was willing to lose my powers, to commit to evil, to promise him an unending forever.
There were sacrifices, ones my former self would never have seen myself agreeing to. But this newer version of me didn't even see them as sacrifices.
Had it not been for Ly, for his Claiming me, I would have been forced into giving up my powers. At least, this way, I had a choice. I got something in return.
"Thank you," I said, nodding.
"Let's find the hell mouth," he said in response, still not happy about the situation. Because, as Ly had told me, he had a lot of hope about the strength of my powers. And he didn't like the idea of working so long and so hard at this to lose one of his men forever.
Two, technically.
Poor Minos.
But Ace would get to go home, where he had been trying to go for generations. That kind of homesick was unimaginable. I missed my home. I missed my mother, especially. But as the time stretched on, for me, the homesickness became duller, not stronger as it seemed to for them.
With that, we all made a line out the back of the house, Ly moving in beside me, his wing curling around me, locking in his body heat when I shivered.
I was sure I would never get sick of the way he responded to me without any thought at all. If I was cold or scared or even just wanted affection, his wings were around me, protecting me, blanketing me in his love, locking the rest of the world out.
"I picked the wrong shoes for this," Red declared, grumbling, as the walk stretched on for hours.
Demons might not die, but they felt pain. And I didn't envy Red the blisters likely forming on her feet. But she'd claimed she wanted to look her best for her homecoming. Ly told me because she'd left a demon she cared about behind.
"Not too much longer," Ace assured everyone and their falling spirits. "It's just past that rock formation," he said, pointing.
Then, just like that, we were there, gathered in a semi-circle.
"You were right," I told Ace, stepping out from Ly's hold, hand extended, feeling the tingling sensation on my palm—an undeniable sizzle of power at this point. I knew it from our sacred ritual space deep in the woods. That was where we went to do spells that needed more power than we individually, or collectively, possessed.
"Here," Ace said, holding out another sheet of paper with old, curved handwriting.
The spell for opening the hell mouth.
"Get it done," he added, voice rough as I stepped forward, feeling Lycus's wing caress across the back of my neck before I moved out of reach.
My stomach was tight and swirling as the first words started coming out of my mouth.
I could feel the spell moving through me, conjuring up my magic—what little I had of it—and pulling it toward my fingertips.
"Keep going," Ace told me, voice reassuring, as mine faltered, feeling the ground vibrate beneath me. "Louder now," he demanded on my fifth read-through of the spell, my mouth getting dry. "Louder, witch," Ace shouted.
"Shut up!" I shouted, frustrated with my seeming lack of progress.
And just like that, the vibrating became more like an earthquake.
Before I could even think to move, Ly's arms were reaching out, yanking me backward as the floor became much like lava, hot, melting the forest floor inward as the earth opened up.
"Holy shit," Drex hissed.
"This is it," Ace said, gaze going to me, eyes wide. "This is it," he said again, tone disbelieving, before his gaze slid back to the hell mouth that was steadily opening.
"I don't know what you idiots are waiting for," Red said, shaking her head. "I have a hot date with an unrepentant sinner," she added, smiling wide as she jumped forward into the hole.
"Wait—" Ace tried, but it was too late, she was gone.
"Ace," Drex said, clamping a hand on his shoulder. "This was your baby. You go a
head," he said, nodding.
Ace cast his gaze around the group, eyes warm, excited, hopeful, pleased. He was ready to go home.
"Lenore," he said, giving me a nod. "Thank you," he told me. "For your sacrifice. I hope you and Ly have a nice life together. Minos," he called, turning to his other man. "May you know some peace," he said to his old friend. "It's been an honor knowing you."
With that, he moved to take a step forward.
But before he could drop down in the hole like Red had done, to go home after so long, there was a strange rippling of the ground, a high-pitched shrieking sound.
"Lenore?" Ace asked, looking over at me.
"I'm not doing that," I assured him. "What's going on?"
"I have no fucking idea," Ace said.
"Whatever it is, I don't think we should jump into the flaming hole just yet," Aram decided, staring at it as it continued to shriek.
"Yeah, I don't intend—" Ace started, voice drowned out by the screaming as it got loud enough to cause a headache to pierce through my skull.
Then there was a loud pop, making all our bodies duck instinctively.
And there they were.
Two men.
Two demons.
In place of the now-closed hell mouth.
"Fuck!" Ace raged, raking a hand through his hair.
"Who the fuck are you?" Drex asked, looking down at the two new demons.
"Hey, look, Earth," one of them declared.
Tall and somewhat thin, he had a wickedly handsome face full of sharp lines, bright green eyes with flecks of red, a scar down his left cheek, other scars covering his hands, and a head of black hair.
"Well," he added, jumping up, brushing off his clothes. "Where are all these women I hear about up here? The ones who can, and I quote, 'suck the paint off a car.' I'm not entirely sure what that means, but I am happy to find out," he added, casting a devilish smile around those gathered. "Oh, hey, here's one. Does she suck—" he started before Ly's wings burst outward again, grabbing me, pulling me close. "Alrighty. Message received."
"Who the fuck are you?" Ace asked, stepping forward slightly.
"Oh, me? I'm Daemon."
"Daemon, the demon," I repeated, feeling a nervous laugh bubble up and burst out.
Daemon shot me that wicked little smile of his as he reached down, offering his hand to his comrade. "And this here is Bael," he said as the other demon gained his feet.
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