Lucifer led me forward still, pointing out more people of note in the crowd. “The man in the red and gold mask is Mammon, Archdemon of the dragons. He lives in China and handles that part of the world for me.”
Mammon was huge and built like a truck, with jet black hair and eyes that I swore were glowing orange. He glared at us as we passed by, and I really would not want to meet him alone in a dark alley. Or any of his other dragons, for that matter. I’d seen enough of those for one lifetime, thank you very much.
“The woman beside him wearing green is Nemesis, Archdemon of the imps,” Lucifer continued.
My jaw dropped at that. Nemesis was a demon? Not some mythological goddess or abstract concept? She had bright red hair and sensual curves, but barely even glanced my way, too busy with a crowd of admirers flocking around her.
I couldn’t help but feel a bit shell-shocked at seeing so many powerful people, and I didn’t fail to notice that these were all the Archdemons who might be responsible for the attacks over the last few days. A whisper of fear trickled down my spine, but I had to trust in Lucifer. He wouldn’t have brought me here if he thought I would be in any danger. Besides, Azazel would be protecting me from the shadows all night long. Only that knowledge made me feel a tiny bit better.
Closer to the throne, Lucifer stopped in front of a woman who was more beautiful and alluring than anyone I’d ever seen in my life, even with a red leather mask on her face. Her dark hair was in an elaborate coif that suited her bone structure, and she had green eyes that rivaled Lucifer’s.
He gestured toward her. “Hannah, I’d like you to meet Lilith, Archdemon of the Lilim.”
“It’s good to see you again,” Lilith said, and even her voice was sultry. “But you don’t remember me, do you?”
“No, I don’t. I’m sorry.” Should I remember her? Was she another person who’d been close to me in one of my past lives?
“No matter.” She leaned in close, as though sharing a confidence. “I’m incredibly grateful for your part in rescuing my son, Asmodeus. He should be around here too somewhere, and I’m sure he’d like to thank you himself.”
I couldn’t help but raise my eyebrows. “You don’t look old enough to have an adult son.”
“My dear, you flatter me.” She made a dismissive gesture, her fingers fluttering. “It’s but one of the benefits of being an immortal.”
“How are your daughters, Lilith?” Lucifer asked. I sensed he was closer to this Archdemon than any of the others.
Lilith’s face showed genuine affection as she spoke of her children. “Olivia is settling in nicely as mediator between angels and demons. Thank you again, Lucifer, for helping her get that position.” She looked around and then smiled toward a couple talking to a tall man with long black hair. “Ah, Olivia and Kassiel are over there with Baal now.”
The woman named Olivia looked a lot like Lilith, with the same seductive beauty that was hard to take your eyes off, but the dark-haired man beside her, Kassiel, sparked an odd reaction in my body. My heart beat faster, almost painfully, tugging inside my chest in a physical reaction I couldn’t explain. I lifted my hand and rested it over the bodice of my dress as I waited for the response to the man to die away. Then it vanished as quickly as it came upon me. How odd.
“And your other daughter?” Lucifer asked, as if he was genuinely interested.
Lilith inclined her head slightly. “Lena is still recovering from her time with that awful cult, but she improves every day.”
I had no idea who they were talking about. What cult? But I didn’t ask. Lucifer had been a good sport when I took him to that seedy dive bar, so I figured I owed him this. I could smile and nod along with these people, even if their conversation did make me feel like a child at an adult party.
“Excuse me.” Lucifer pressed a kiss to my cheek. “I must speak with Fenrir. I’ll return in a moment.”
He headed over to speak with a large, bearded man with wild gray hair who stood in the corner. The long-haired man named Baal joined them a moment later.
“I have no idea who any of these people are,” I muttered.
“Fenrir is the Archdemon of shifters, and Baal is the Archdemon of vampires.” Lilith cocked her head. “You know, I think this might be the first time all the Archdemons have been in one building in decades. Lucifer demanded our presence here tonight. I wonder if he has something planned for us.”
Had he summoned them here because of me? But why?
Lilith slipped her hand in the crook of my elbow as she led me to the buffet. “Don’t worry about the others. They’re all jealous. Who wouldn’t want to be on the arm of the Demon King?”
Maybe she was right. Tonight’s sin was supposed to be envy, after all. I watched Lucifer as he prowled across the room with barely restrained power in every one of his movements, and noticed the way everyone responded to him. Treating him like a king.
And me?
I was Persephone being claimed by Hades, and I had no choice but to enter his underworld and become his dark queen.
23
Hannah
Lilith and I grabbed a few fancy appetizers to eat at the buffet, and I was grateful to her for sticking by my side even though she didn’t know me at all—at least, not in this life. As an introvert, parties were hard enough. Add in the fact that I was the lone human at a ball full of demons and it was hard not to run back to the penthouse as fast as I could.
“Ah, there’s my son now,” Lilith said, raising her hand to wave him over.
The man who approached could only be described as sex on a stick. With dark hair, bronze skin, and muscles galore, he looked like some kind of international model on a billboard somewhere. He wore a plain black mask and a black suit, oozing sex appeal with every step, although he didn’t make my heart flutter the way Lucifer did. He looked like the kind of guy you had one crazy, unbelievable night with, and then never saw again. In that Fuck, Marry, Kill game he’d be Fuck every time.
Unless you’re Brandy, maybe.
“Hannah, this is Asmodeus,” Lilith said.
He reached out to take my hand, then bowed a little and brushed his lips against my knuckles, sending tingles through me. I hoped Lucifer wasn’t looking, or Asmodeus might be flying against the wall soon. “An honor,” he said, his husky voice sliding along my skin like silk.
I nearly fanned myself. Shit, I needed a cold shower after five seconds in his presence. How had Brandy withstood a week of this? No wonder Lucifer had said there was no way she could have resisted leaving the bar with him.
“I’ve heard a lot about you,” I said, after extricating my hand.
“All bad things, I hope?” he said with a wink.
I laughed, unable to resist his charm. “Things I had a hard time believing until now.”
Lilith pressed her hand to Asmodeus’s face. “Have you been feeding? You still look a bit weak from your ordeal. I’m sure any number of demons here tonight would be happy to help.”
He pulled away. “I’m fine, mother.”
“All right, dear.” She ruffled his hair with obvious love, then excused herself to speak to someone else, leaving me alone with the incubus.
“You’re Brandy’s friend.” He said it as a statement, his voice becoming more serious. “I’ve heard a lot about you too, and it seems I owe you my thanks.”
I shrugged, the action making my shimmering cloak flutter. “All I did was nudge Lucifer in the right direction.”
“You’re a good friend. Brandy is very fond of you.” The way he said her name made me think he cared for Brandy too.
I remembered how she spoke of him at the spa. “I’m not the only one she’s fond of…”
His shoulders stiffened and pain crossed his green eyes. “Brandy is special, but it’s impossible for the two of us to be together. She knows that.”
“Maybe, but I know Brandy better than anyone and she’s never backed down from a challenge. She’s also never spoken of any other guy the way she
spoke about you.”
He studied me. “May I tell you a secret?”
Err…me? I’d met the guy two minutes ago. But I nodded. “Of course.”
He closed his eyes as if in pain and let out a shuddering breath. “I haven’t slept with anyone since meeting Brandy. My parents want me to feed, and I know I need to, or I’ll die. But I can’t. I don’t want anyone but her.”
“But you can’t have sex with her?”
“Only once, and then never again. Not without killing her.”
“Is there no way around that?”
“No, there isn’t. Unless…” He trailed off and looked across the room, his gaze landing on his mother. “There might be a way. But I’d have to give up everything. For a human I barely know.”
I spread my hands. “I can’t tell you what to do. All I know is that Brandy would love to see you again. Maybe all you’ll have is one crazy, wild night together that you remember for the rest of your lives. Or maybe you both decide you want more and find a way to make it work. Either way, you should go to her.”
“I think you’re right,” he said, his voice distant. Then he took my hands and bowed slightly. “Thank you, my queen. I always did appreciate your wise counsel. It’s good you’re back.”
My mouth fell open. “You’re welcome?”
He straightened the cuffs on his shirt. “I have a long drive ahead of me. I better get going.”
“Give my love to Brandy.”
With a nod, he vanished into the crowd, and I hoped I’d done the right thing. There was obviously something there between the two of them, and if nothing else they needed to get some sort of closure. Hopefully they’d be able to find a way to be together too.
And now I was alone again. I scanned the crowd for Lucifer, but didn’t see him anywhere. Plastering a pleasant expression on my face, I worked my way to the edge of the room, nodding at people I didn’t know and shaking more hands than I wanted to think about. The darkness along the walls was deeper, but there was also an area with tables. My feet throbbed in my heels, and I collapsed gratefully into the chair closest to the wall, then slipped off the expensive, sky-high heels.
Being a human among demons was intense to say the least, but it was far easier to handle from over here. The other guests barely paid any attention to the edges of the room, focusing all of their attention inward instead to observe each other, sometimes with suspicion gleaming in their eyes from behind those masks. It made for great people watching, though. Demon watching.
A small group sat at the table behind me, their faces shrouded in darkness. As I listened, relying on my mask to disguise exactly where I was looking, I learned that the demons were scandalized by some new woman who was half demon and half angel but was favored by Lucifer, and I was just leaning into the details of the story when a rough voice nearby caught my attention.
“It’s true then. Lucifer’s woman has returned.”
“She’s human though.” The second person snickered. “We’ll see how long she lasts.”
My pulse kicked up a notch at their words. I glanced over, peering into the shadows and trying to make my movements so small that no one would notice my focus had shifted to the new conversation. I got a glimpse of a huge man with a red and gold mask. Mammon.
“Not long,” he said. “Things are already in motion. Many of the Archdemons are involved. Soon Lucifer will be defeated, and it will be time to return to Hell.”
His words were enough to strike fear in my heart. I had to tell Lucifer immediately. I bent to slip my shoes back on, then took a deep, fortifying breath and threw myself into the crowd. I darted between demons, trying to get to the center of the room so I could find Lucifer and warn him about Mammon.
When I was almost halfway there, one of the spotlights swung around and beamed down on Lucifer. I caught my breath at the sight of him, shadows playing across his face and his eyes burning with power. He stood in front of his throne and turned in a slow circle. A silver crown graced his head, throwing off fragments of the light as he moved, and it fit him as if he’d been born to wear it. The room quieted as everyone gave their attention to their king.
His commanding voice rang across the ballroom. “Someone in this very room has been plotting to overthrow me. Trying to take what is mine.”
At first I assumed he meant his throne, but then his gaze found me in the crowd, like a caress only I could feel.
He meant me. I was the thing he considered his.
“All traitors will be punished.” As he spoke, another spotlight illuminated the corner of the room, near where I’d been sitting, where Gadreel and Samael now led out four demons. I wasn’t sure what kind they were, but I had a sneaking suspicion these were the demons involved in the attacks that had been captured.
The demons were pushed down so they kneeled in front of Lucifer, facing the audience. Their faces were drawn with lines of tension and their hands were bound behind their backs, but otherwise they appeared uninjured. I could barely look into their eyes. Pure fear glimmered there as shadows began to snake round them. Like even the darkness was toying with them.
Lucifer began to pace slowly behind the traitors as he spoke. “These four—an imp, a dragon, a gargoyle, and a shifter—were all caught in plots against me. Tonight they will be punished.”
I expected the audience to react in some way, but it seemed like everyone in the crowd was holding their breath, too terrified to move. Me included.
“I have been Demon King for thousands of years.” Lucifer’s voice boomed around the ballroom, echoing from the walls I couldn’t see. “Though many have tried to overthrow me, all have failed. There’s a reason I’m the King. Perhaps you all need a reminder?”
Then he bowed his head and took a deep, controlled breath. His shadowy black wings erupted behind his body, and I gaped at him along with everyone else in the ballroom. Tendrils of black, smoky energy crept around him coalescing and growing thicker, until they almost looked like inky black, swirling solids. I stepped forward, moving carefully through the crowd again as the lines of black shadow wrapped around each of the demon’s necks. Nobody moved but me.
“I do not tolerate insubordination.” Lucifer snapped his fingers, and suddenly bright blue flame erupted from the darkness wrapped around the demons. The traitors screamed as the unnatural blue fire consumed them, lighting the room with eerie, flickering light. Everyone gasped, their faces paling, their mouths falling agape, but nobody stepped forward. I heard a few people whispering in shocked voices about hellfire, as the four demons turned to ash before our eyes.
Then the entire room bowed as one, lowering to knees of submission on the floor, until I was the only one besides Lucifer standing. I stared at him in horror as he surveyed the people kneeling before him, his wings spread wide with darkness trailing off them like mist.
He’d just…killed them. Right there, in front of everyone. And his people bowed. My breathing came in shallow, fast pants, and my dress felt like it was tightening around me, constricting my chest until I had no space for air.
Lucifer’s gaze met mine with a dark smile, and he was triumphant. Proud. His eyes glowed red as he looked at me like he was encouraging my pleasure as well.
Because I was his queen.
And the worst thing was…a part of me wanted to smile back. To applaud him for what he’d done. They’d kidnapped Brandy. They’d threatened my lover. They’d tried to kill me. They deserved retribution.
As soon as everyone was upright again, I used their cover to take off running, sliding between bodies and moving as fast as I could while staying upright in my heels. My chest heaved as nausea roiled through me and my heart practically leaped out of my body. I made it to the elevator without anyone stopping me, but when I pressed the button, it wouldn’t light up. Turning to see if anyone was trying to follow me, I noticed a door off to the right. With a fluorescent glow behind a small window, I realized what it was. A stairwell. Even demons needed an emergency exit.
&nbs
p; I burst through the door and slipped my heels off, holding the skirt of the gorgeous gown as I sprinted up the stairs, my legs pumping and my lungs threatening to burst. We were a few flights down from the parking garage, and I shoved through the doors, then raced across the lot in my bare feet until I found another door leading to another stairwell outside. I had to get the fuck out of here.
As I stepped out into a side alley, I gulped in the fresh night air as panic threatened to overtake me. I’d known he was the devil. He’d said he was a villain. What had I expected? That he’d be someone different with me? Had I willfully ignored his dark side, or had I craved it? He’d never been anything but honest with me about what he was, but I’d been drawn to him anyway. He should have inspired fear in me rather than lust. But that was his job, after all. Temptation. Sin.
It didn’t matter. The deal was over anyway. Tonight was the seventh night—Devil’s Night—and I was done. Maybe I was Lucifer’s reincarnated love, and maybe I wasn’t, but either way, it was time to return to my real life. I didn’t belong here. Not in this fancy hotel, not in these expensive clothes, and definitely not with the demons.
I put the shoes back on, not about to walk barefoot in a Las Vegas alley full of broken bottles and old piss. Then I pretended my feet weren’t on fire as I shoved my panic to one side and summoned enough confidence to walk a straight line. No way I was going back in that hotel. I had a tiny little purse with a wad of cash and my phone in it, and that was enough to get me home.
A flash of light exploded nearby, the force and shock nearly knocking me over. A pair of gleaming copper wings were highlighted against the dark night sky, swooping down toward me, and in my already-panicked state I screamed. Strong hands grabbed me, lifting me up…and then everything went black.
24
Lucifer
As I surveyed the room, taking in my followers and their show of loyalty, I wore a dark smile, my eyes glowing red. I hated doing shit like this, but it was necessary. A show of force to ensure they all knew I was their king. Demons needed a firm hand. Whatever this newfound conspiracy was, someone would come forward rather than risk my wrath. Then it would be settled. This shit had happened before and would happen again, and I’d deal with it every time.
Demon King (Claimed By Lucifer Book 1) Page 17
