by K L Rymer
Perhaps it would help balance out the scales if I started doing some good. Plus, it would piss my father off big time.
It’s the sole reason why demon born and angel born exist in the first place. To create balance. That ying yang so to speak.
Only modern humans have been tipping the scales over to the demon’s favour the last several decades. It’s not looking good.
I’m actually starting to understand White’s motive for trying to kill my father, but he’s still just as twisted.
I breathe a sigh, gazing down into my coriander soup. I can’t even begin to eat my starter; how was I going to eat the main?
The young, blond footman stands to one side. I keep seeing the way he glances at Misaki, lust and yearning in his bright blue eyes, but I can barely bring myself to care.
I just want Crystal by my side again.
Maybe in another life, we could have been. I could have even given her beautiful children, her eyes on a little version of me. That would have been nice.
Just as I finally lift the spoon to my mouth, a set of footsteps makes its way down the hall towards us, and we all turn.
My heart skips a beat when I see Crystal, clad in a pure white dress. The skirt widens near the bottom but narrows at the waist, and I pull on my cravat.
Fuck, it just got hot in here.
Misaki’s eyes light up when she sees Crystal, and it’s only then when I see it’s genuine, and I watch her in surprise.
Huh... she really had grown to care about Crystal after all. Who knew my manipulative shrew of a cousin had a heart all along?
That was just Crystal; she could even melt the hardest of hearts.
Well, except for my father, who gives her a look of pure disdain, the one that makes me want to rip off his face.
“Crystal, you made it!” Misaki cries, jumping up and running around the table to take Crystal in her arms. “And cute skater dress.”
“Thank you,” Crystal replies, taking a seat beside me.
We catch each other’s gaze for just a moment, and my heart breaks just by looking into those perfect blues. She’s swept her blonde hair off to one shoulder, exposing her delicate neck, and I just want to lean over and brush my lips over the smooth skin.
But I hold back. Mostly because my old man’s watching and that thought alone was enough to make me come back to my senses (since nothing turns me off more than dear old papa). In fact, I picture him in Crystal’s dress for good measure and cringe.
That ought to do it.
I spot my diamond ring dazzling on her finger and sigh.
Shit. Not good.
My father grunts at the head of the table, and I peer up, narrowing my eyes.
What’s his problem?
“So, you’ve finally decided to come down and join us?”
Crystal freezes beside me, and I go to place my hand over hers but stop myself.
Instead, I measure her reaction.
She gazes down into her soup, breathing a little too fast, and I just wish Zeus would strike down my father with an extra strong bolt of lightning and put her out of her misery.
Crystal is still my fiancée, for now. And I shouldn’t let my father talk to her that way.
Yet I don’t say a thing, too afraid to challenge him.
It’s always been that way.
With my father, it’s as if I never really grew up and I’m still the same kid he abused for years and years.
Not physically, but mentally.
Lord Black would never lay a hand on his precious little protégé of a son after all.
Crystal looks up, showing my father her bright smile. “Yes, and I apologise, Lord Black, for my absence, but I have been terribly unwell these past few days. But I promise I will come down from now on. After all, I love your son, and I want nothing more than to eat beside him.”
Crystal places her warm hand on mine, and that electrical charge shoots up my arm so fast and sudden, it takes me by surprise, and I glance her way.
Her beautiful blues convey every emotion I feel inside, and it’s in that moment I know that I will never be able to look at another woman the same way again.
Crystal and I were made for each other, but current circumstances dictate that we can never be. Not with my father around.
Silence falls over the table after Crystal gives her spiel, and I measure my father’s reaction.
He glares at Crystal, grinding that prominent underbite as he ponders what to say. It appears she’s stunned him into silence.
Finally, he looks away and swallows more of his soup. “Yes... well... you better. No one refuses a meal with me.”
I close my eyes. Why couldn’t he just say thank you?
“Your comments have been taken on board, Lord Black.”
My eyes snap open, and I stare around at her. Crystal lifts her spoon into her mouth.
I meet Misaki’s stunned gaze, and I see she’s stifling a laugh.
We’re still not really on talking terms after her confession during the masquerade, but I lift my wine glass to my mouth and hide my own smile.
Crystal was on a roll tonight.
Lucky for her, my father’s too stupid to catch the sarcasm in her tone, and just grunts his head in approval.
My father’s always happiest when his underlings obey him.
We all finish our soup and before long the serving staff brings out the main dish. A large roasted pork leg.
The chef starts to cut the ham, and I peer over curiously at Crystal. For one, she doesn’t even eat meat (not that my father cared to check in with her anyway), but I see she’s uncomfortable, and I study her now.
Why did she come down? What’s her game? Is she trying to prove a point or something? Show my father she’s nothing out of the ordinary, and I can thrall her like any other girl?
It won’t work. My father will notice something’s amiss sooner or later, just something about her will give it away. Like her beautiful singing for one, or the fact she can burn a man to a crisp in seconds.
Crystal was no ordinary girl.
We lock gazes again, and I see the plea in her eyes.
Don’t leave me.
I feel my own eyes burn the longer I gaze into those heavenly pools, and I finally look away, a hard lump forming in my throat.
Life’s so fucking unfair.
I hear her give a shaky breath, and I know she’s fighting the urge to cry, and no wonder. I just turned her down yet again with only a look of my eyes, and I feel like utter shit.
There’s nothing worse than having to hurt the woman you love in order to protect her. Almost seems ironic, hypocritical.
The sooner I can get her on a plane, the better, and we can both be put out of our miseries.
Suddenly, the chef lets out a cry, and I peer up, grimacing at the red spilling from his finger and onto the pork.
The fucker only went and cut himself with the carving knife. The idiot. Where does my father find these people?
Crystal reacts immediately, jumping up and placing her hands on the chef’s fingers, and a light emanates from her palm.
The chef’s fingers are healed at last, but it takes Crystal a few moments to realise what’s she’s done, and she looks up at my father.
He gazes in horror at her magical, healing hands, his cheeks turning a strange, sickly purple.
The silence that follows after is deafening. All I can hear is my own heartbeat.
Crap.
Slowly, Randall Black rises from his chair, a bright, red glow taking over his eyes. “You... I knew there was something off about you...”
Crystal staggers away from the table, backing out into the hall. “I... uh...”
My father cuts her off, bursting into a set of angry red flames, and then a streak of bright crimson shoots across the table, heading towards Crystal.
I move without thinking, jumping up from my seat and pushing her to the ground, and a searing heat travels up the length of my back.
My fa
ther got me with his flame.
29. Crystal
I gaze up into Eli’s shocked grey eyes, and a chill runs through my body.
Something’s wrong. Terribly wrong.
“Eli?”
I still feel Lord Black’s red-hot eyes on me, boring a hole through Eli’s back, and I hold him closer.
He’s protecting me from his father. And he’d taken the blow for me. I’ve... never felt more love and fear in all my life.
We continue to hold each other’s gaze, his face dripping with sweat. Then his storm coloured eyes glaze next, and it’s like he’s not even there anymore.
He’s hurt.
“Eli?” I whisper. “Please... speak to me...”
His heartbeat is slowing down, and I whimper, shaking him harder.
“Eli!”
Finally, those grey eyes vanish, and now I stare up into the black crimson eyes of a demon.
Black horns twist from his forehead as he releases a snarl, and then a wide set of teeth protrudes from his lips. A little of his spit drips onto my face as I gaze in horror at the monster Eli has become.
The demon has taken full control as the man remains unconscious, and I scream his name. But he doesn’t hear.
“Move out my way, boy...”
Lord Black hovers closer, and my heart rings inside my ears. Eli, however, remains above me, biding his time.
“You traitor... bringing one of them into our home!”
A growl rumbles deep inside Eli’s chest, and a shiver goes up my spine.
He’s inhuman.
“You’re no son of mine. I should have killed you when you were born, and then that mother of yours for producing such an insolent child!”
Eli’s pupils shrink, and I gulp when I see that predator take over. Something rips from his back next, breaking through the expensive material of his suit, and then a large pair of black, leathery wings stretch across the room.
Before I can blink he’s gone, and the next thing I see is two demons wrestling across the dining room.
Their sounds are worse than a pack of fighting dogs, and the growls and roars that seem to shake the entire house fill me with ice.
Lord Black is nothing but a human flame, and I shudder.
How did I ever hope to go up against that?
Debris falls from the ceiling as they crash into walls, creating cracks and holes in the plaster, and I crawl back.
I’m going to be crushed.
Someone yanks me up by the arm, and then I meet a pair of luminous gold eyes and yelp.
But then I spot the long, black sleek hair and the designer dress, and I breathe a sigh.
It’s just Misaki. And those gold eyes belong to her demon.
Even in demonic form, she’s beautiful, and I stare mesmerised.
“Let’s go,” she growls, her voice beast-like, and then she pulls me away.
I’m too numb from shock, so I let her drag me away from the dining hall and towards the front door, our heels clicking against the granite.
It’s not until I hear a long, pained roar when I stop, turning back.
Eli...
Even though he sounds far from human, I know it’s him.
I’d recognise that tortured scream anywhere.
Misaki yanks me so hard, her manicured nails dig into my skin, and I wince, meeting her gold eyes.
“Crystal, let’s move, now.”
“But... what about Eli?”
She stops, turning back towards the dining room. More debris falls from the ceiling as the domestic staff rush around us. A little dust even coats Misaki’s black hair.
Her gold eyes shimmer slightly as they linger on the dining room, and I finally see it. She truly does care about Eli. Even though they have a complicated relationship, there’s still love.
But then her luminous eyes harden once again, and she turns away, pulling me onwards.
“It’s too late for Eli, Crystal. But you and I can still make it. No one ever wins a demon battle. Trust me.”
Her words echo through my mind, drowning out the sounds of crashing and screaming as the front door looms into view, but I stay back, pulling my hand away from her grasp.
Misaki looks back at me, desperation swirling through her eyes. “Crystal, what are you doing?!”
I back away from her, shaking my head. “I... I can’t leave him.”
She bares her teeth, and I see those long fangs where her pearly whites used to be. Tears pool in her burning gold eyes. “Crystal, you will die!”
“I don’t care. I can’t let him die for me. I have to try and protect him too.”
She grips my wrist again. “No. I won’t let you sacrifice yourself, Crystal. I... I love you too much.”
I meet those shimmering yellow eyes again, stunned into silence. Her words shock me to my core, and I almost trip as the blond footman bumps into me on his way out the door.
Tears run down Misaki’s beautiful face now, leaving streak marks in her perfectly layered foundation, and I close my eyes.
The house continues to shake as the crashing continues, and I snap back to my senses. I throw my arms around her as she cries into my hair, holding me close.
“You’re the best friend I’ve ever had, Crystal,” she weeps. “And I won’t let you sacrifice yourself for a pig like him.”
I squeeze her tighter, this beautiful, confident girl who always seems to have it together, then gaze into her eyes. They’ve returned to their normal dark brown, and I smile, wiping away her tears.
“I love you too, Misaki. You’re like the sister I never had, but I have to go. He may be a pig but he’s my pig, and I won’t let him die for me.”
I start to move away, but she grabs onto my hand like her life depends on it.
“Crystal!”
“Go, Misaki!”
I push my hand against her, and she slides out the door and into the drive, and then I lock her outside.
“Crystal!” she yells, banging on the door, but I move away, gazing down at my glowing palms.
I didn’t even know I could do that.
“I’m... I’m sorry, Misaki. But I have to do this.”
Her sobs wrench on my heart as she can barely call my name now, and I turn away, wiping tears from my eyes as I focus on my new direction.
Lord Black will not win.
The house has quieted down as I make my way to the dining hall, wondering if all the servants had escaped.
I hope so.
Even the crashing and snarling has stopped, and my heart drops to my feet.
Oh no... what if I’m too late?
I reach the dining room at last, drawing a loud gasp.
It lies in complete ruin, the table and chairs smashed into heaps. The walls have been completely demolished, exposing the rooms beyond, and there’s a hole in the ceiling leading to the upstairs. Pipes poke out the walls, dripping water everywhere, and it’s only a matter of time till something explodes.
There’s no sign of Eli or his father, and my heart hammers in my chest.
Something’s off.
I hear the sound of heavy, laboured breathing, and I move around the heap of smashed tables and chairs.
Eli lies broken and bruised, his nose pouring with copious amounts of blood. There’s a large red wound on his chest, and I whimper, covering my mouth.
He looks up, and his eyes widen when they land on me. One is still black and crimson, but the other’s grey. A lone tear falls from his human eye.
“C-Crystal...” he chokes.
I drop to my knees, placing my hand over his face as he gazes up at me.
Tears drip from my own eyes as I stare into that heartbroken grey eye of his, and I see the regret and guilt, and the love.
The love for me.
He’s dying, and he knows it. Yet he still finds the energy to look at me and smile.
It brings out his dimples, and I release a sob. “Eli...”
Now the smile leaves his lips as he shuts his eyes, and I
panic.
“Eli!”
Quickly, I assess his wound. It’s deep, exposing several layers of skin, but I can do this. I’m an angel, and we heal.
I close my eyes, and a warm light emanates from my hand.
Eli snaps his eyes open. “C-Crystal... no... leave...”
“Ssh...” I place a finger to his blood-soaked lips. “I won’t leave you, Eli.”
He shakes his head. “No. Go—”
I ignore him and place my palm over his seared flesh, and it begins to heal.
It takes some time, but I see the pain leave his eyes, and eventually, the skin becomes smooth and clear once again.
I keep my hand there a second, enjoying the feel of his strong heart. Then I move around to his back and fix the burn there too, then heal his bleeding nose.
A long, satisfied sigh leaves his lips as he shuts his eyes, and for a moment I think he has fallen asleep.
But then he looks up once again, and the grey rages like a thunderstorm. “You... shouldn’t have come back.”
I stare down at him in confusion. What was he talking about?
“You have a nerve, girl...”
My blood freezes when that familiar, beast-like voice fills the room, and Eli tenses beside me.
“He... he was waiting for you... all along...” Eli whispers, squeezing his eyes. He’s too battered and bruised to protect me, and I see the hopelessness take a hold of him. I think I even hear him sob.
I never thought I’d hear Eli cry.
Randall Black hovers behind me, and the scent of fire and brimstone suffocates me now.
I cough, trying to breathe.
A scorching heat radiates off his form, and I’m too terrified to turn. Instead, I keep my eyes on a silver butter knife, freezing when I spot Lord Black’s reflection.
All I can make out is a horned silhouette of a fire-engulfed man and glowing red eyes, and gulp.
Maybe the devil does exist all along.
He places a clawed hand down on my shoulder, and I scream as the flesh burns beneath.
Eli growls. “No!”
“Quiet boy, you’ll get your turn!”
Eli’s eyes turn black crimson yet again as he struggles to rise. Meanwhile, I continue to scream as Randall burns through my skin, and the smell of my own charred flesh fills the room.
He plans to play with me before he kills me. And he’s making Eli watch.
