by Rue Volley
Rue Volley
The Devil’s Fire
The Devil’s Gate Trilogy Book #2
Rue Volley resides on Earth with her husband, Von Erik, and their two pug sons, Momo and Oshi. She is an award-winning author, graphic artist, and screenwriter. She is also the Creative/Marketing Director for Crushing Hearts and Black Butterfly Publishing, and co-owner of Lovebites Production Company, which specializes in Dark Fantasy Films.
Books by Rue Volley
Hellhound
Hellhound: Dogs of War
Hellhound: Prince of Fire
Hellhound: Handbook
The Blood & Light Vampire Series
A Witch’s Tale
Finding Mia
Finding Chloe
Paper Dolls
Heaven to Hell
The Devil’s Gate
The Devil’s Fire
Rue Volley
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This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, duplicated, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior written consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
©Text Copyright 2015 Rue Volley
Cover by Rue Volley
Edited By Karmin Dahl
All rights reserved
This is a work of fiction. All characters and events portrayed in this novel are fictitious and are products of the author’s imagination and any resemblance to actual events, or locales or persons, living or dead are entirely coincidental.
Published by Hot Ink Press
“Hell is empty and all the devils are here.”
~Shakespeare
Acknowledgements
I am forever grateful to the following people in my life.
My husband, Von. Without you, I would be lost.
My Publisher and dearest friend, Sarah Davis Brandon. Thank you for always believing in me.
My Personal Assistant, Karmin Dahl. You know that I think you are a rock star.
My Publicist, Gladys Gonzales Atwell. Love you, baby, you rock my world.
My dear friend, Nicola Omerod. You signed me first. I will love you forever.
My good friend and go-to information buddy, Catherine Stovall. Thank you for always answering my questions and venting with me. It takes a village to raise a child.
My fans, friends, and family. For always supporting me on this journey.
#Onehouseunited for being the best publishing house in the world. Mega Talent, Mega Love.
Much love to the following team of people who helped me on this journey with The Devil’s Fire.
Laurie Lambert
Brandy Lowe
Shyla Colt
Tonya Allen
Lily Luchesi
Cassie Hoffman
Pyxi Rose
Katie Shelby
Amanda Muller
Lilliana D’archangelo
Carmilla Voiez
Jeannette Joyal
Sarah Davis Brandon
Jessica Baker-Bridgers
Jane Barron
Amanda Wimer
CShell
Jacquie Talento
Rebecca Poole
Heather Kirchhoff
Jenny Bynum
Kitty Honeycutt
Abbey Pearson
Crissy Armenta
Wendy Lovetiggi
Enjay Taylor
Miranda Anderson
Michelle Clay
Bella Doerres
Shebat Legion
Channing M’Lynne Heater
Amber Haynes
Emily Hardy
Katie Blythe
Heather Hammond
Branda Beachum
Megan Matteson
Sher Lynn
Elizabeth Morgan
Abby Garrett
Stephenee Carsten
Jamie Turner
Kim Napier
Nikki Allen
Tracy Gollins
Lora Stultz Chesnut
Natalie Alice Berry
PLAYLIST
Ed Sheeran-Give me love
Vaults-Premonitions
Banks-Waiting game
Broods-Every time
Phantogram-Black out days
Sia-Breathe me
Silversun Pickups-Catch and Release
Victories at Sea-Stay Positive
Duran Duran-The Chauffer
Florence + the Machine- What the water gave me
Radiohead-Lotus Flower
Maroon 5-Moves like Jagger
Tricky-Hollow
Bon Iver-I can’t make you love me
Bastille-Bad Blood
Placebo-Every you, every me
Paramore-The only exception
Thirty seconds to mars-The Kill (bury me)
Shakira-Empire
~Then~
I stepped back as he walked toward me. I felt the door to my back as he reached out and took one of my wrists and held it at my side. I struggled a little bit, but his strength overpowered me. I turned my face, so I didn’t have to look at him. He leaned into my ear.
“If you want to fuck me like you hate me, then do it. Hurt me, cut me—take everything that I have to offer to you and devour it. Devour every piece of me. I offer that to you, but don’t, don’t pretend that you don’t know what I am.”
“Jack, don’t. Don’t talk to me like that.”
He paused and lifted my wrist above me. He grabbed my other one as I struggled with him. I couldn’t stop him, but it fueled him. He wanted me to hate him.
“Why, Abigail, does it hurt to hear the truth from me? To understand what really sets me free? I want to be treated as I deserve. For the animal that I am. I want you to submit to that part of me. Until you do, you will never know who I am, not fully.”
I turned my face as he leaned into my ear. “Beg—”
I shook my head. “I won’t.”
“Submit to me, tell me to take it from you. I know that’s what you want of me.”
I turned my face, my eyes soft and tender. They filled with tears as he released my wrists and stepped back from me. “I only want you. Just you, Jack. Nothing else, and if I have to beg then I can’t be what you want.”
He held his hands out as he saw the blood that still lingered on his fingertips. He held it up to me and I watched as his hand trembled before me. “Abi…help me.”
He lowered to the ground as I knelt down and cupped his face in my hands; I made him look at me as my mind raced and my heart pounded in my chest.
“Jack, I need you just as you are, but this isn’t the truth. This is what your father left behind for you; it’s a lie. You’re not the monster, he is.”
Jack leaned into me and sobbed like a child. I held him and let my fingers gently move through his thick hair. After all that had been said and done between us, it was he who needed to submit. Not to me, but to the truth. All I did was speak the words. He moved back and placed his hands on my face and parted his lips. The words right there between us, I slowed my breathing. The world all around us was fading as he started to speak to me.
“Abi, I lo—”
“Jack?”
We both stopped and looked in the direction of the small voice that spoke his name. My eyes widened as Rose stood there in the long hallway with Victoria at her side. Jack rose up as I did, the sight of her bringing me back to a harsh and unforgiving reality.
“Rose?” Jack said as she started to walk toward him. I stood there, unable to move, unable to think, unable to breathe.
Victoria watched on as Jack stepped up to Rose and I watched him touch her face, her
bottom lip, he lingered on her as he did on me. She reached up and placed her hand on his as she spoke.
“Jack, I’ve missed so much. Victoria, the doctors, they told me.” She looked back at Victoria and she nodded to her, never once looking at me. “They told me how you saved me, saved my life that night, how you pulled me from the car. Oh, Jack. I love you so much, I—they told me that the new medication woke me up, it was as if I had been in a dream for years. Jack, oh my God. I missed you so much, baby.”
Jack held her face in his hands. “Rose—I love you,” he whispered to her.
She leaned in and hugged him as my heart sank into the deepest pits of Hell, far away from the three simple words that should have been spoken to me.
~Present Day~
I woke, covered in sweat. My chest was rising and falling, my breath hitched, succumbing to undeniable loss. I felt nauseous, reliving our final moment over and over again, as my mind betrayed me.
Betrayal was nothing new.
It had been weeks since, well—since it ended.
Our love didn’t go out in a fiery ball of flames. It was more like smoke and ash.
I had simply walked away from the estate that night. Hot tears were flowing down my cheeks, my heart breaking into a million pieces. I left most of them at his feet and doubted that he even cared.
There had been no calls, no texts, and no reaching out from either of us. I had experienced his lack of intimacy before, but this felt cold and lifeless. Dead by all rights. Something told me to leave it alone, let it be a memory, but this is my penance for doing just that.
I sat up, fingering at the base of my neck. I felt sweat rolling down my skin like beads on a pearl necklace. My hair was stuck to my face, my lips were swollen. My eyes were bloodshot from lack of sleep. The thunderous sound of my heart echoed in my ears. It was always the same, night after night, week after week.
This is who I am now, the girl who lived through it.
Or did I?
I ran to the bathroom, splashing cold water on my face. It stunned me, shook the nightmarish cobwebs from the corners of my mind. I looked up in the mirror and saw a stranger staring back at me. I was thinner now, paler. My eyes were darker. The faint black circles that lay beneath them only reminded me of how many sleepless nights I had absorbed since him—since her.
Since everything had changed in my life.
My eyes lowered, and there it sat, off to the side in a small cream-colored bowl on the edge of the vanity. I gripped the sides of the counter, tapping my nails a few times while it mocked me. I picked it up, slowly turning it in my fingers as the light penetrated its flawless surface. I scrutinized his gift to me. It was priceless, or so he had said.
Priceless to him, meaningless to me. What was the point of everything if this was all that he left behind?
Jack lingered on me, around me. I could still taste him on my lips, feel his touch against my skin. His animalistic growl echoed in my mind. All of his seductive words exasperated me. I could imagine him saying the same words to her, repeating his cycle, completing his legacy.
Becoming exactly what Victoria had envisioned. Like father, like son.
I held the ring tightly in my hand. I slammed my closed fist on the top of the vanity, one tear rolling down my cheek. I wiped it away with such disgust.
I lifted my head, surveying my reflection. My eyes were engulfed with anger. “Why didn’t you do more?” I asked myself. I hated my surrender. I hated myself for allowing it to happen.
I slammed my fist on the top of the sink and felt the ring dig into my palm. I tightened my grip on it and absorbed the pain.
My bottom lip quivered. This devastating realization would come and go at will. His absence left a great void in my life that nothing could fill.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, filling my lungs to capacity. I leaned forward and gently tapped my bare heels together. Making my wish.
Home.
Home.
Home.
Jack finally appeared in my mind, majestic as ever and just out of reach.
I let out a huge sigh and with it a river of tears.
“Two double shots of espresso over ice.” The man said, then he turned to his lovely wife. Her stomach protruded outward, full of the new life that they had decided to create together. She rubbed the large bump, her wedding ring caught shimmers of light on every small diamond woven into the silver band. I couldn’t look away. The ring was stunning. Absolute perfection, just like her flawless skin. She had a glow to her like most expectant mothers do.
She looked happy. I envied that happiness and her. I envied her future. One that I knew that I may never have. One that bludgeoned me like bullies on a playground.
Kids? Marriage? A house to call my own? These were all things that seemed to be out of my reach now. I couldn’t even entertain the thought, without love.
The pregnant woman placed her open hand on the glass and gawked at the pastries like a child at the zoo for the first time. I didn’t even attempt to start on his drink. I waited for her to order. I would have to guess that she comes first and that was totally understandable. Her husband waited patiently for her to speak. My eyes skated over to him and then back to her.
I smiled, but it was fictitious in nature. I just went through the motions, faking it all. This job had given me something to do. A much needed sense of purpose. It neutralized the venom that crept in my bloodstream.
It also helped me not think—and not thinking was good, it was actually better than good, it was great.
The last thing that I wanted to do was think about anything. It hurt too much. I saved that for when I was alone and I could summon Jack to pacify me for brief moments of time.
I placed my hand on the top of the glass case. “Can I help you?” I asked, in my most pleasant tone. I didn’t want to disparage her, she seemed so excited to be here.
She held one finger up and then turned it into three as she spoke. Her husband laughed. “Make that one shot—and three blueberry muffins, please. Those, the whole tray.” She pointed at the shelf behind the glass. I grinned as I reached in and started to place them into a bag. I knew they would all be for her. She had successfully curbed her husband's need for extra shots of caffeine but showed no restraint with food.
“So I can’t have two?” he asked.
She rolled her eyes. She was so animated that it amused me. “Are you trying to die of a heart attack on me? Triplets, Ralph. Three babies, right here.” She rubbed her large stomach and then pointed at it. “A muffin for each one, trust me, it’s not for me. I’m just the host now.”
He let out a small moan. I could tell by his defeated expression that the war had already been fought and won. She would always be the victor. He nodded in my direction. “She’s the boss, one shot, and three blueberry muffins, please. Oh hell with it, make it four. What’s the point of a diet now, right?”
“Make it five, one for the road,” she added. He glanced back at her. I laughed. He held up his hand and signaled five to me with his fingers.
I lowered my voice, “Three kids, huh?”
He looked down at himself and paused, shaking his head very slowly. “Yeah, I had no idea that I could do that, lucky me. All girls, oye.”
I smirked, I couldn’t help it. They were adorable. “Oh, man,” I said quietly. She leaned against the counter.
He turned to face her, quickly placing his hand under her elbow. “Are you okay, baby?”
She nodded back to him without saying a word. She placed a hand to her back and hissed. It must be so hard to carry a child. One would be enough, but three? I was amazed that she was walking. He reached up and touched her cheek. The gentle kiss on her lips followed. The man lingered at her mouth, closing his eyes and showing her nothing but pure adoration.
He loved her above all else. Above all other things in this world.
I sighed, turning toward the espresso machine. I placed a small white cup under it. I carefully started to make
his drink, eyeing them as I worked on it. He kissed her cheek and she grinned. They whispered to each other. All other noise in the coffee shop seemed to fade away as my mind wrapped around the two of them and their happiness.
I wanted that. I wanted what they had.
His hand moved to the base of her back, drumming up memories of my past life. I could see Jack’s face, his thumb to his bottom lip. I could feel his fingers graze my skin. It excited me. I cried out as the hot liquid burned the top of my hand. I jerked it back, gritting my teeth and cursing under my breath.
“Damn it.” I shook my hand and stared at the top of it. I opened and closed my fist a few times. The spot was already turning red and the uncomfortable sting crept its way up my arm.
My boss stepped up and graciously handed me a small white towel. I wrapped it around my hand without hesitation. Covering up a couple of scars. I burned myself at least once a week now. My mind continually wandered. I felt like a tourist, quietly studying those around me, especially couples.
“Here,” he said in a quiet tone. He leaned in toward me. I could smell his cologne. I closed my eyes as his rich woodsy scent soothed me. He noticed and a small grin curled the edge of his lip.
“You’re doing it again, Abi,” he whispered next to my ear. I opened my eyes and looked up at him.
“Doing what?”
“Smelling me. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate it, but it may look strange to the customers.” He looked back at the busy floor and all of the people waiting to be served.
I blinked a couple of times. The burn was finally starting to register with me. The pain didn’t bother me, I could handle it, but it did give me an excuse to leave the floor.
I held my hand up. I eyed it, his amber eyes lingered on the white towel and then studied my expression for a moment longer. “I’m sorry, can I go take care of this?”
He finished the drink and turned to hand it to the couple at the counter. The man smiled, grabbing it up and immediately sipping on it. The woman was already devouring a muffin. My boss turned to face me and nodded toward the back. I knew that he wanted to talk to me and that was fine. My clumsiness was probably wearing on him, but I needed this job.
