Queen of Night

by Emily Goodwin

  “I won’t fight you on that one.” I give his hand a squeeze and we all head back to the house. I hope Lucas is right. The weres will realize they are not only outnumbered and out-powered by the coven, but by our vampire allies, which is unheard of.

  And scary.

  As it should be. But if the last few weeks have shown me anything, it’s that people are willing to do anything, no matter the cost, to get even the smallest dose of power.

  The glow of the full moon shines ahead, pouring down on my overgrown lawn. The shadow of our little brick house comes into view, and some of the tension and frustration starts to melt away. Scarlet barks, deep voice echoing through the yard. She bounds ahead, and right as I open my mouth to call her back, I see him.

  Lucifer stands in the middle of the yard, half his face shadowed by the night. He’s wearing another designer suit, with a red button-up shirt under a black jacket. I freeze and lock eyes with him, heart in my throat.

  Lucifer smiles, eyes searing into mine. “Hello, niece.”

  Chapter 20

  Lucas speeds forward, fangs flashing in the moonlight. But as fast as he is, Lucifer is faster. He holds out his hand, stopping Lucas dead in his tracks. Slowly, Lucifer curls his fingers in toward his palm, and Lucas slumps to the ground.

  I stand there, rooted to the spot, as terror plagues my entire body, rendering me useless. Then I blink and feel that blind rage again. It bubbles up inside me, spilling out without my control. Energy sizzles around my fingers, and I pull as much of it as I can before blasting it at Lucifer.

  He stumbles back, almost tripping over his own feet, but catches himself at the last minute.

  “Impressive,” he coos, wiping blood from his nose. “I have to say, all that anger…all that rage…it’s working for you.”

  “What the hell did you do to him?” I demand, holding my hands up again, ready to shove him back if need be. My familiars are by my side, and Scarlet, in her true form, is sitting between us, not sure whose side she should be on.

  “Relax, kid, he’s taking a cat nap. He’ll be thanking me when he wakes up for how refreshed he feels.” Lucifer grins, and my heart skips a beat. He looks at me with such familiarity, like he knows me, and I hate it.

  “Wake him up.”

  “We need to get out of here first.”

  I shake my head back and forth. “There’s no way in hell I’m going anywhere with you.”

  Lucifer laughs, and looks down at his shirt. His bloody nose isn’t bleeding anymore, having healed instantly just like a vampire. A single drop of blood is on the collar of his jacket.

  “Dammit,” he sighs dramatically, rubbing his finger over the drop of blood. “I just bought this suit. Well, I didn’t buy it. I walked into a fancy-pants store on Rodeo Drive and they just gave it to me. It’s fun, kid, to use your powers to get exactly what you want. And speaking of that store on Rodeo Drive, I wanted that cashier and boy did I have her.” He wiggles his eyebrows, and I pull my shoulders back, ready to hit him with another blast of energy. Julian said Lucifer might actually be afraid of me because I have the power to hurt him.

  And I just did.

  It was like stabbing a giant with a toothpick, but if I can make him bleed, I can make him bleed again. And this time the cut will be deeper.

  “I suppose I could get it dry-cleaned,” he muses to himself, still obsessing over the tiny stain on his jacket.

  “You…you can’t really see it,” I supply.

  “It doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things.” He holds out his hand. “Now, come on.”

  “No fucking way.” I hit him with another wave of energy, not hard enough to hurt him again, but hard enough to prove my point. I’m capable of defending myself, but I need answers.

  Like why in the world he wants to take me away. Why he’s holding out his hand, waiting for me to willingly go with. Why not just reach out and grab me?

  “Staying here will be a death sentence, and I don’t think either of us want that right now, do we?” He wiggles his fingers. “Clock’s ticking.”

  “I’m not going anywhere without Lucas.”

  “Fine,” Lucifer huffs, rolling his eyes so dramatically it gives Eliza a run for her money. “But first…” He turns, silver cufflinks catching in the moonlight. “Who’s a good girl?”

  Scarlet plops down, rolling over for a belly rub. I stand there, wide-eyed, with my familiars around me. They see it. I see it. And yet it’s so hard to process.

  The devil is in my backyard, fussing over and baby-talking to a hellhound.

  A hellhound that sleeps not only in my house, but in my bedroom. And sometimes in my bed. She’s been loyal to me, but only because Lucifer told her to be. Can he tell her to turn on me now?

  “Why is staying here a death sentence?” I ask, taking a tentative step forward.

  “Because of that blast of energy you just sent out. I do wonder who pissed you off that much?” He looks at Lucas, lying motionless on the ground. Michael put everyone in the room to sleep when he came to heal me, and they were just fine.

  Lucas will be fine too. He has to be.

  “Trouble in paradise already?” Lucifer asks, giving Scarlet one last pat. He stands and brushes fur from his clothes.

  “No, we’re happily married,” I snap. “There was a werewolf and—no.” I conjure ball of energy in both hands. “What do you want?”

  “Can’t we have a little family bonding?” Lucifer slowly steps over Lucas and tips his head to the sky, wincing. “They’re onto you, kid. You let loose some mega powers there.” He smiles at me, eyes glimmering. “It’s just as impressive as that right hook you got there.”

  “Oh yeah? Ready to be impressed again?”

  He laughs and keeps walking to me. “I’d say yes if we weren’t in a time crunch. But we have to get out of here and…” He trails off, hand going to his face. Long fingers tap his chin, and I hate how I feel comforted to be near him, just like I do when I’m around my father.

  Lucifer is an angel, after all. A fallen angel, but an angel nonetheless.

  “I’ll take the rap for this one. Throw ‘em off your trail.”

  “Throw who off my trail?” I ask, though I already know the answer. Lucifer knows I know too and just gives me a pointed look. “They can really sense me?”

  “With that blast that resonated through the whole town? Uhhh, yeah. Though I’m curious, niece, what did this werewolf say that pissed you off so much? Did he make fun of your clothing choice?” He points a finger at me. “Because the black works for you, but come on, cliché much?”

  “Hey! I just happen to like black and it has nothing to do with me being a witch. It’s a flattering color!”

  “I think you’d look good in red.” His eyes flash like hot embers in a fire and he strides even closer. “So, he didn’t insult your look, then what was it?”

  My lips part, and for some reason, I want to tell him the truth. To spit out everything and maybe for once actually get some answers. But I shouldn’t.

  He’s the devil.

  The actual fucking devil.

  “I’m so tired of this,” I admit, words tumbling out of my mouth on their own accord. “We’re supposed to go on vacation, and it shouldn’t be too much to ask, right? Just a few weeks away from the drama and the fighting? I take one step forward and a fucking mile back.”

  “It’s not fair,” Lucifer says, and his expression softens. “You’ve been through a lot, my dear niece.”

  “Right?” I throw my hand up and suck in a breath when Lucifer takes another step toward me. My hand goes to my stomach without thinking, and suddenly, I’m ready to throw all the energy I can muster at Lucifer.

  Because I’ll be damned before I let him take our baby.

  “What do you want?” I repeat. “What do you really want.”

  “I’ll tell you want I want, what I really really want.” He holds out his hand again, eyes sparkling with amusement. “But come with me first.”

&
nbsp; “No, and did you just make a Spice Girls reference?”

  “I was afraid you were too young to get it!” He claps his hands together and then goes totally still, tipping his head up to the sky.”

  “I believe you,” I start. “I believe the others are after me…but why are you helping me? I don’t want to owe you anything.”

  His face softens again. “You won’t.”

  “But…that’s…that’s your thing,” I say, heart racing even faster. “You make deals or do favors, and you always want something in return. You said so yourself when we talked not that long ago.”

  “I know, and I’m sorry,” he says sincerely. “It’s been a while since I’ve had anyone other than demons or desperate souls to talk to. Call it pathetic but I was lonely. And you…you’re different.” He tips his head toward me, and I don’t get a chance to ask what he means by that. “Is that why you looked so terrified when I healed your sister?”

  He moves even closer, and the moonlight shines in his blue eyes.

  “I’m not going to take anything from you, Callie.”

  “I…I thought you wanted my baby as payment for helping Abby.” I can’t help the tears that well in my eyes.

  Lucifer recoils. “Your baby? No. Babies…babies aren’t my thing. I’ve used the little carrier monkeys in Hell before, actually. You don’t know how torturous it is to be stuck in a room surrounded by crying babies until you kill your own and are forced to listen to their cries for all eternity.” He laughs at the memory of torture and then shakes his head. “Why did you think I’d want your baby?” He shudders. “Changing diapers and dealing with spit-up is a whole other level of Hell. But I’m sure you’ll love the little bugger.”

  “It was the way you looked at me, and I thought…I thought you wanted payment.” A single tear runs down my face. “I thought you’d take something from me that would hurt the most.”

  The smirk disappears from Lucifer’s face and he actually looks hurt. “I don’t want anything from you, Callie. Nothing other than this.”

  “And what is this?”

  “Us…talking. Conversing. It’s lonely down there,” he says sullenly. “You know how deep it cuts when your own family casts you out for being different. That’s all I am, Callie. I’m different. I saw things differently. I wanted humans to know we are superior because we are. And if we kept control over them, maybe the world wouldn’t be the cluster-fuck it is right now. You want torture? Try living as a human on this godforsaken planet.”

  “I…I…don’t know what to say,” I admit. “On one hand, I agree because the world is pretty messed up. But on the other…who are you to tell me you’re better than I am?”

  “I’m not saying I’m better than you,” he presses. “We are better. You are half archangel. You are superior whether you like it or not.”

  “I’ve never felt like I was better than anyone,” I say, and Lucifer looks at me like he knows I’m lying. “Not for being a Nephilim at least.”

  “You just found out you’re a Nephilim. And while I’d love to continue this conversation, we have to do it elsewhere and we have to do it now.”

  There’s a change in the energy around us and suddenly, I’m terrified.

  “Put Scarlet’s collar back on,” Lucifer tells me. “And come with me.”

  “Not without Lucas,” I tell him and hold up Scarlet’s collar. She comes over, covering a lot of ground in one giant stride.

  “Fine,” Lucifer huffs and waves his hand. Lucas shoots up and races over to me.

  “I’m okay,” I rush out. “But we have to go. Other angels sensed me.”

  Lucas protectively wraps me in his arms. “You trust him?”

  “It’s either that or take your chances,” Lucifer says and looks at his watch. “We really must go.”

  “I can feel them,” I tell Lucas. “Other angels. They’re getting close.”

  “Then let’s go,” Lucas says, tightening his hold on me.

  “My familiars—” I start.

  “They’ll be fine,” Lucifer interrupts and picks up Scarlet. “Not out of the ordinary for this town.” He holds out his hand again. “We have to go.”

  My eyes meet Lucas’s in question. Staying here is a death sentence, Lucifer was right about that. I’ve set off an alarm I can’t turn off, and the only option is to get the hell out of here. But with Lucifer?

  “What choice do we have?” Lucas keeps one arm wrapped tightly around and extends his other hand.

  “It’ll be okay,” Lucifer says, and closes his fingers around Lucas’s hand. The world spins around us, and I cling tightly to Lucas, praying we made the right decision.

  Chapter 21

  “Where are we?” I ask as soon as my feet hit the pavement. We’re standing in a parking lot, and the smell of cigarettes and smoke hangs heavy in the air. The night is warm, and talking and laughter fill the air, drowned out only by the distant hum of music.

  “Dallas,” Lucifer tells us, letting go of Lucas’s hand. It’s the first time Lucas has been transported via angel, and Julian warned me that anyone who doesn’t have angel blood might have a hard time with it. It threw me for a loop the first time Michael transported me from my bedroom to that beautiful beach in Australia.

  Lucas’s arm is still around me, and his eyes are wide, but I think it’s more from shock than from feeling physically ill. Vampires don’t feel ill, though now I’m wondering what would happen if I sat one done in an office chair and spun them in circles for an hour.

  “You okay?” I ask him in a low voice.

  “I’m fine,” he replies. “Are you?” Flashing his fangs, he moves between me and Lucifer—who’s still holding Scarlet.

  “Why did you take us here?” Lucas demands, and I never thought anyone could look terrifying while staring down the devil, but, damn, Lucas does.

  “Things are bigger in Texas, right?” Lucifer points to the neon sign behind us. “And what a better place to experience that than here!”

  “We’re at a strip club?” My eyebrows go up.

  “It’s an adult bar, employed by entertainment engineers.” Lucas lets out a snort of laughter. “Whatever you have to tell Dad, right?” He sets Scarlet down and starts walking to the entrance of the strip club. “Come on. We can talk over a drink.”

  “I can’t drink,” I grumble, and Lucas loosens his hold on me, taking his hand from my waist and lacing his fingers with mine.

  “Oh, right.” Lucifer dramatically sighs. “And this one only drinks blood. Leave it to me to finally leave Hell and end up drinking alone. You sure you can’t have just one?”

  “I wish,” I sigh. “Seriously, I fucking wish.”

  Lucas keeps a steady hold on my hand as we follow Lucifer into the club. There’s a bouncer outside, only letting a few people in at a time. He’s a big and burly looking man, whose brows furrow when he sees Lucifer waltzing up.

  “Hey,” he says, eyes narrowing at Scarlet. “You can’t take—” The man stops mid-sentence, face glazing over almost as if he’s been held spellbound. “Go right in, Mr. Morningstar.” He unclips a velvet rope and motions for us to come in.

  “How did you do that?” Lucas asks.

  Lucifer turns around with a smile on his face. “I’m the devil.”

  Lucas’s face tenses, but I don’t think it’s from concern…no, it’s almost as if he’s jealous. The club, thank goodness, is nonsmoking, and we get a table right by the main stage. This place is surprisingly full for how late it is, though I suppose a place like this is probably busiest late at night.

  “Three Old-Fashioned,” Lucifer orders.

  “Wait,” I say, looking around the club. There’s an interesting mix of men, probably traveling for business, in expensive suits, and men, in worn-out jeans and dirty shirts, who have probably been here since the club opened. “I thought angels couldn’t eat or drink.”

  “Why would you think that?” Lucifer asks.

  “Another angel told me.” Lucifer knows Mich
ael is my father, but does he know there’s another angel on our side? I don’t want to out Julian or anything.

  “Another angel like your father?”

  “No, but I’m not telling you anything more,” I say firmly. “I’m still not sure I trust you.”

  “Fair enough,” Lucifer says, and for some reason, his lack of badgering is comforting. The waitress, a pretty redhead, walks over to our table carrying a tray with our drinks.

  “When do you get off?” Lucifer asks, taking a drink from her. He brings it to his lips and takes a big swig. The waitress is not at all oblivious to how good-looking not only Lucas is, but also my uncle.

  “I, uh, work until close,” she says back, obviously flustered. She sets the final drink down and accidentally sloshes it on her hand. Embarrassed, she hurries away.

  “Amateur,” Lucas huffs, picking up the cocktail in front of him. He swirls it around in the glass, eyeing it curiously.

  “You think you can do better?” Lucifer tips his head, cocking an eyebrow.

  “I know I can.” Lucas sets the glass on the bar top and pushes his shoulders back as he stares down the fucking devil without an ounce of fear.

  My uncle chuckles. “Wanna make a bet? Whoever gets the waitress’s number first wins?”

  “No!” My fist lands on the bar top and Lucas and Lucifer round on me. “We are not doing this.”

  “Why?” Lucifer slowly rolls his sleeves up. “Worried your dear old husband will lose?”

  “I’m not,” I say with no hesitation. “If Lucas can charm the pants off me, he can charm the pants off anyone.”

  Lucifer wrinkles his nose, recoiling. “I could use without the visual.”

  “You brought it upon yourself,” I snap, looking around the strip club. “Now take me home.”

  “What? You find the setting offensive?” Lucifer quips.

  “What’s offensive about women choosing to freely express themselves?” I tip my head, watching a dancer flip upside down on the pole in the center of the stage. “I’m impressed, actually. That takes a lot of athletic ability.”