The Devil's Lover: The Resurrection

by Dahlia Lu

  The crowd roared.

  “Trent! Trent! Trent!”

  They chanted his name.

  Then the band started to play.

  Trent grabbed the microphone and closed his eyes to feel the rhythm of the song.

  He started to sing:

  Slowly drowning in the sweetness of your scent,

  I found myself standing on the edge of desire.

  We laced our hands together just for the night

  and embraced this delightful sin.

  Drown out all the voices of the world

  and hold me in your eyes.

  Let them judge our love because

  we committed this crime knowingly.

  Follow me to the Hell I called home

  and seal our fate with one lustful kiss.

  Chapter 3: Searching for Home

  Bi woke in the middle of the night. She heard the sound of faint footsteps, followed by someone opening the front door. Curiously, she got out of her warm bed to investigate. She saw Chevalier’s back of as he closed the door behind him. Bi debated for several seconds about whether to follow him. Chevalier never left the house in the middle of the night.

  Bi grabbed her coat and left the house. She locked the door quickly and ran to catch up with him. By the time she got to the bottom floor, Chevalier had already driven away on his motorcycle. Bi waved for a taxi on the road, thankful when one stopped for her.

  "That way!" She pointed the driver in the direction she saw Chevalier take.

  "Got it,” the taxi driver replied.

  †††††

  The distinctive shadow of a man separated itself from the hospital's wall. Seth appeared from the shadows and stepped onto the square tiles of the floor. His presence went unnoticed by the busy nurses. He calmly walked into the room where Kali lay and closed the door behind him. He watched her for several minutes before he sighed.

  "I can’t believe he would get Skye involved in this,” he muttered to himself. He took out a vial of clear red liquid and opened it, then separated her soft lips with his left hand to pour the liquid into her mouth.

  "It would take too long for you to recover on your own,” he said to her. "I need to you find Lord Lucifer so this whole bet will be over. Then Father- Lord Arvin- will return Skye to her former self.”

  "Hey, you!"

  Seth was startled by Vince's entrance and quickly disappeared. Vince blinked a few times before he ran to Kali's side. One minute he clearly saw a man wearing black clothes standing over the girl's bed, the next there was no one there. He hadn’t had any sleep for the past two nights, so maybe he was going reasonably insane.

  His thoughts were suddenly distracted by Kali's squinting eyes. He leaned over her and shook her head gently between his hands.

  "Hey, hey,” he said softly. A relieved smile appeared on his face when she opened her eyes for the first time. "And here I thought you would never wake up.”

  Kali's lucid violet eyes looked back at him in confusion. There was an enchantment about those eyes that held him mesmerized for a long moment. It was very difficult to look away, but Vince realized it was rude to stare.

  "Where am I?” she inquired.

  "I am- uh, I mean, you're at the Sinarc Hospital,” he stammered. "There was an accident and…"

  Her eyes widened with sudden realization. She bolted off the bed. Vince was so startled that he stood up while trying to hold her back. "Don’t move, the doctor said you still need plenty of rest.”

  "I have to go,” she said hurriedly and broke free of him. "I have to go see him!"

  "Miss!" Vince called out to Kali as she ran down the hallway. She bumped into a few nurses but didn’t slow down.

  "Miss!"

  He ran after her.

  †††††

  Bi had kept watched on Chevalier from a distance for over fifteen minutes now. He stood by himself at the dock and stared out at the night's pale moon. He seemed to be troubled by something. When Bi finally decided to approach him, a figure of a young woman was suddenly walking toward him. Bi stood still again to watch.

  The woman came to Chevalier's side and stood adjacent to him.

  "Did you found out who did it?" Chevalier asked without looking at her.

  "Not yet,” she replied.

  "Then why did you call me out, Adria?" Chevalier said.

  "I don't know who did it," she admitted, "but I know where she is.”

  "Where?" Chevalier turned to her.

  "With Lord Lucifer,”

  "Lucifer?" Chevalier cocked his head in confusion.

  "It appears he has brought her back.”

  †††††

  Kali stood in the middle of the city as the people moved pass her. There were so many streets and she doesn't know how to find Lucifer. She looked left and right, confused.

  "Miss!" Vince caught up to her. He paused to catch his breath. "Where...are you...going?” he asked breathlessly.

  "I need to find him,” she replied, "I need to find Lucifer.”

  "Well, do you know where he lives?" Vince asked. "I could take you to him.”

  "I-" Kali hesitated, "I don’t know…” she stammered.

  "Did you forget?"

  "I just don't know,” she cried. She plopped down on the ground and wrapped her arms around her knees.

  Vince scratched his head, puzzled. He didn't know what to do. "Where do you live, then?"

  She remembered the place Arvin had shown her through the looking glass. "He's not there. He's somewhere I don't know.”

  "Who is he? Did he leave you?"

  She shook her head. Her tears stained her rosy cheeks. "He's with another woman. I have to tell him that I- that I-"

  The words just wouldn't come out. She felt an uncomfortable pressure in her chest. The curse was constricting her. She gasped for air.

  "Hey, hey, take it easy,” Vince patted her back.

  Kali caught a familiar sight from the corner of her eye. There was a poster glued on the side of a brick building. It was a face that couldn’t be mistaken for anyone else. He stood in Lucifer's image, imposing as ever. It was her Trent.

  She ran toward the poster and snatched it from the wall. Her hands were trembling as they traced the face on the poster. She read the text. "A concert... tonight.”

  She bolted into the street. Vince chased after her, but lost sight of her quickly in the mass of people.

  An uncomfortable feeling in his heart woke him up in the middle of the night. Lucifer reached to his side to make sure Kali was still there. He was relieved to find her body next to his. He paused for a short moment, then gently ran his finger through her hair. He picked up a silky lock and pressed it against his lips.

  "Kali,” he whispered her name under his breath.

  †††††

  Skye dismissed her servants and strolled along the stone path of the mansion’s garden. She was not surprised to see that it was poorly taken care of. Many plants were dead, wilted, and crumpled onto the soil. There was a strange beauty to it, a lifeless serenity that could even be compared to a dying heart. The servants told her they had hired gardeners to tend to the garden, but nothing was able to grow. Skye didn’t mind. She found it pleasing. However, it was not the strange beauty of the garden that had lured her out this morning. She sat down on a stone bench and watched the dead leaves falling off the tree branches.

  She did not have to wait long. Seth appeared from the shadow of the tree and stood before her.

  “Have you come to lecture me?” Skye inquired.

  He stared at her in disappointment before he spoke. “Who do you think he is? How long do you suppose you can fool him?

  “That is none of your concern,” she replied as she turned her eyes away from him.

  “You believe the rumor? That Lucifer was infatuated with a mortal girl? Haven’t you learned anything from Soren?”

  “I have!” she snapped at him. “Soren did what he had to do!”

  “And what do you s
uppose you’ll do once the real Kali finds Lucifer?” Seth asked. He placed his hands on her shoulders and shook her. “If he finds out the truth, what do you suppose he will do to you?”

  “He will never find out!” she retorted. “Arvin promised me that he won’t recognize her. She’s no threat to me!”

  “So little you know of Lucifer…”

  “He is blinded by his love. He thinks I am Kali. He believes it in his heart!”

  “Even if it is so, will you be happy when he is looking at another woman through your eyes?”

  “I’ve wanted to be his longer than I can remember!” she argued. She broke free of his hands and pushed him back. “I have waited for a chance like this, a chance to be with him, and I will remove anything that stands in my way.”

  “Even me,” Seth said softly under his breath.

  “Even you,” she agreed.

  Chapter 4: Connection

  There was a crowd flooding the entrance of the Century Stadium. It was the second night of Trent’s concert and the atmosphere was as hectic as the first. A mob of people was attempting to get in.

  Kali could hear voices all around her as she stood in the middle of the crowd. At first, she didn’t realized what they were. Another good look at her surroundings and she realized that she was listening to the whispers of their thoughts. She brought her hands to her head, half doubting her sanity. What she was hearing were their deepest and most private thoughts, but it was unfocused, jumping from one person to the next.

  How long do I need to wait? I hope they believed my lies. How am I going to pay for rent this month? I’m so excited, I can’t wait! I need to come up with a better alibi or my wife will find out about my mistress. It’s so cold tonight. Should I go to the doctor for this rash? This guy better take me to an expensive hotel afterward.

  Kali shook her head to block out the thoughts. After a moment of concentration, all she could hear was the chattering sound of the excited people around her. With a sigh of relief, she stepped up to the entrance.

  “Please let me in,” Kali pleaded to the security guard.

  “Do you have a ticket?”

  “No, but-”

  “Sorry ma’am. No ticket, no admittance.”

  “No, no you don’t understand,” she said quickly, “My son is in there. I really have to see him, so if you would please-”

  The security guard looked at the young girl and decided that she couldn’t be older than 17 or so. He pointed to the crowd of rejected fans without tickets. “You got to come with a better lie than that.”

  Kali looked to the crowd and then looked back. She was growing impatient.

  “Let me in!” She raised her voice at him.

  “Hey lady, I’d never hit a woman, so please leave now,” he pushed her out of the way. Kali lost her footing and fell to the pavement.

  There was a man standing right in front of her. She slowly tracked her eyes up from his well-polished shoes to his imposing face. He was in his late twenties or early thirties. When he bent down, she thought he was about to help her up. She was mistaken. He lifted her chin up with his forefinger and took a good look at her. He stood up again and removed his sun glasses. His eyes were fierce, like a tiger’s, and were just as beautiful.

  “You got a pretty face,” he said to her. “Are you interested in modeling?”

  Kali didn’t realized what he asked until she fully got up on her feet. “I’m not-”

  “Hmm. Too bad then,” he said and walked past her.

  There was a beautiful woman with him. She wore a glamorous red dress embellished with expensive jewelry. He walked over to the security guard and took two VIP tickets from the inner pocket of his jacket.

  Kali ran to him and grabbed him by the sleeve. “Please sell one of the tickets to me!”

  He looked down at his sleeve and then up at her. “This suit cost more than you’ll ever make, so I suggest you remove your hands.”

  She slowly let go. “Please sell me a ticket,” she repeated.

  He pondered. “And how will you pay for it?”

  “I don’t have any money on me right now, but I will after I-”

  “So, in another words, you don’t have any money,” he interrupted her.

  “…yes.”

  “I’m not interested in money,” he said to her. “I’ll give you one of the tickets if you would agree to have a photo shoot with me. Rather a good deal, since these tickets was personally given to me by Trent.”

  She thought about it. “And I can go see Trent with your ticket?”

  “I suppose.”

  “I’ll do it,” she agreed.

  He turned to his partner. “Go home, Claire,” he said to her.

  The beautiful woman was stunned. She couldn't believe her ears. “You’re not serious!”

  “I very much am,” he replied.

  “I got dressed up especially for this!”

  “If you still want to keep your career and that pretty dress of yours, I suggest you do as I say,” he said coldly.

  “But-” She glared at Kali before stomping her foot and walking away in a tantrum.

  “She-” Kali pointed.

  “Never mind her,” he said in an indifferent tone as he turned to the security guard and handed him the two tickets. “Models are all the same. They think too highly of themselves.”

  Kali didn’t understood what he meant, but it wasn’t important. She followed him inside.

  †††††

  Kali stood in a crowd of people that barely left her with any room to breathe. She was too far away from the stage to see anything. There were two massive screens on the sides of the stage, but they were pitch black. The show hadn’t begun yet.

  Kali figured that her chances of making her way through this many people were slim, nearly impossible. She squeezed her way out from the crowd and headed towards the ‘Employee Only’ door. There was a big man in a black suit standing guard. She showed him her VIP ticket and he gladly opened the door for her.

  Kali could still hear the fans chanting his name from backstage. There were many people rushing in and out of the hallways carrying papers and equipment. Kali caught a glance of a young man’s back that looked awfully familiar.

  She curiously followed him.

  She could see his profile when he turned left to enter a room. She slowly approached the door and stood quietly by the door frame. She gazed at him as tears welled up in her eyes.

  “Can I help you?” he asked her casually when he noticed her presence.

  She took a few slow steps toward him and then wrapped her thin arms around his waist. He was taken back for a short moment until he freed himself from her embrace. The drowned look in her eyes when he backed away made him feel somehow at fault.

  “You’re a demon,” he said as he recognized her scent.

  She didn’t know what to say.

  “Who sent you?” he asked. “And what it is that you want from me?”

  “I’m your–”

  And then there was that feeling again. The same exact feeling, only that it was so much stronger than before. Kali attempted to finish the sentence, but it was only said in her mind. The word didn’t come out. It couldn’t. Everything surrounding her was swallowed by the black wave.

  †††††

  Lucifer clenched his hands into tight fists. There was that uncomfortable feeling again. He couldn’t explain it. It felt suffocating. He placed a hand over his heart to trace the source of the feeling.

  Archangel Michael materialized from thin air. He sat on the window frame, looking into the chamber.

  Lucifer did not even glance at him.

  “I don’t feel the need to say anything,” Archangel Michael said.

  “Then you shouldn’t have come,” Lucifer replied.

  “You've resurrected her,” the Archangel got straight to the point.

  "I have,” Lucifer admitted.

  “There are laws even we must abide by, Lucifer,” the Archangel rem
inded him. “It may be within your powers, but everything comes with a price. I will not interfere with your affairs, but you should reassess the consequences of your impetuous acts.”

  “I hardly consider it impetuous.”

  "Yet, you are still not happy,” the Archangel concluded.

  "Don't act as if you know me so well.”

  "Who really does, Lucifer?"

  Lucifer paused for a long moment before he spoke again. "She is not completely back to me. If she is, then why do I still have this feeling of unquenchable thirst for her? Why does part of me still miss her when I have her in my arms? Why do I feel so empty and unsatisfied?”

  The Archangel sighed.

  †††††

  Kali found herself lying on a sofa. She suddenly remembered what had happened and got up to walk to the desk in front of her. She found a pen in the drawer, but couldn’t find any paper. She decided to write on her hand.

  ‘I am –’

  The pen wouldn’t write. Kali forced it to scratch her name, but her right arm felt as if it wasn’t her own. She struggled with the task and lost.

  “What are you doing?” the voice of a man asked. She turned her attention to the door. It was that man that she had asked for help earlier.

  “I’m under a curse,” she said in a low tone.

  “Yes, you are,” he replied. He came to her side and gave her his jacket. “You are one of the craziest fans I’ve ever met.”

  “Fans?” she cocked her head.

  “You’re a fan of Trent’s, right?”

  She thought about it. “I suppose I am.”

  “The concert is over, go home,” he said, and then left the room.

  She paused for a moment to think. It was futile to continue trying to convince anyone who she really was. Not as long as she still had this demonic curse. Her only chance was to find Lucifer and hope that he, of all people, could recognize her.