I never meant to hurt you.
With love,
Maxine
The end of Book 2
Infernal Initiation (Doomed Cases Book 3)
Chapter 1
“I alone, I was the only one preparing, as in war, to onward-march and bear the agony that thought will now unfailingly relate.”
―Dante Alighieri, The Devine Comedy
I heard voices, whispers all around me, but my head felt so heavy. Slightly disoriented at first, I forced myself to sit up. It took me a few moments to realise that I wasn’t in my own flat. My thoughts were spinning too fast. I shut my eyes again and eased onto my back, trying to steady my breathing as panic sliced through my belly.
The space around me looked a lot like a prison cell, and that could only mean one thing. The magic I attempted to use against the prince failed and I got myself in a hell of a lot of trouble.
I remembered walking straight into Arthur’s private quarters. That horrible conversation with the prince himself invaded my sleep-hazed consciousness once again.
Arthur stood in front of me overwhelmed with emotions. His skin was slowly turning sallow. A vein bulged along his throat.
I kept reminding myself that whatever happened I had to stay calm. The future king had no idea that his only daughter was a mongrel, that her DNA had an imprint of demonic abilities. And if I wanted to stay on Earth, I had to keep my mouth shut. Rodriguez would have the power to execute me on the spot if he knew that I gave birth to a royal child in secret, putting the prince and the whole of Hell at risk of full exposure.
The letter revealing the birth of our child had fallen from Arthur’s hands and lay on the floor between us. I stood in front of the man I loved, unable to form a proper sentence. I had sacrificed everything for him, so he could go on and have his perfect life with Natalie. It was the most difficult and complicated decision that I ever had to make, and yet he thought that I was the one without a heart.
“Where is my child, Max? Do I have a son or a daughter? I swear to God, I’ll destroy you if you don’t tell me what the hell happened two years ago,” he demanded, clenching his fists and taking a step toward me.
I swallowed hard, and my stomach twisted deep inside me, filling up with heavy bricks. It was too late to try covering this whole thing up. Alexis was already out there, probably going after Matilda. On top of that, Ricky was dying, and he was still in Gjöll. I felt torn between what was right and wrong, guilty that I left him there and chose to come here instead.
“It’s a girl, and her name is Summer,” I blurted out, experiencing the events from two years ago all over again. It was like a thousand small razors were stabbing me in the gut. Matilda had written to me regularly, telling me how things were going, and that Summer was developing well. Yes, I came back to London to attempt to start over, but I’d thought about her every single day since then.
His face fell, but his eyes flickered with excitement, slowly turning into disappointment. I could see Arthur felt wounded so badly that he couldn’t even tell me what he was expecting from me. His lashing emotions were weakening my energy. I couldn’t keep standing in front of him and pretending that Summer was safe. Alexis had an advantage and I needed to leave urgently to send a message to Matilda.
“A baby girl. I have a daughter?” he whispered, the tears in his eyes breaking me into tiny pieces. There were so many things I wanted to tell him.
I nodded, waving off the anger. Every minute was precious, but I couldn’t just leave him in that state. Sooner or later the news would spread, and I didn’t need to guess what would happen to me once the head of the faction learned the truth. Arthur had to be protected.
“Yes, Arthur, we have a child together, but you need to understand that no one can know. There would be a scandal, the royals—”
“Stop talking, Maxine. You have no idea what I’m going through right now. You lied to me for almost two years. Were you ever planning on telling me the truth?”
Then he was beside me, his hands on my arms and shaking me. “Tell me that you didn’t give her away for adoption, that you didn’t make such an important decision behind my back.”
I pushed him away, trying to get some space to think. There was no point lying to him, but what other choice did I have? There was so much at stake. Summer was a precious little creature who had done nothing wrong. And it was I that put her in danger.
“It doesn’t matter what’s happened to her, Arthur,” I shouted back.
“Maxine, tell me right now where she is, or you’ll see what I’m capable of. She’s my daughter and I have every right to see her,” he roared, completely losing control. He was ready to fight with me. I hadn’t realised that he would take this so hard. Arthur had always wanted to have a family, but royals would have never accepted a bastard child.
My body pulsed with magical energy. I had to make him forget that this conversation had ever taken place. I had no other choice.
“And then what? Have you even thought about it? You can’t claim her. It’s the same as it was with our relationship,” I said louder than I intended, thinking about the spell that could take care of this situation. I didn’t have time to stand here and explain myself. I had to let Matilda know that she had to relocate quickly. “She’s gone, Arthur. I gave her up for adoption and you can never find her.”
It was cruel, and maybe I was killing whatever feelings he ever had for me, but this was necessary. Arthur would fall in love with her instantly, and then he would claim her as his. Then the faction would step in, and we would lose her forever.
His face went pale in an instant and I prepared myself for the worst.
“No, no…impossible. She’s my daughter. I’ll get my lawyers involved, hire the best people in order to get her back. You won’t win!”
I took a few steps back and concentrated on my power. Maybe in the past, compulsion had never worked on Arthur, but I had to try. Everything had turned against me. Arthur was delusional; this child could put him into an early grave. Lucifer would think that I’d been conspiring against the faction, trying to turn royals against him.
The waves of energy soared through me. I lifted my arms while Arthur was still talking. The air changed its consistency, and the smell of burning coal wafted through the air all of a sudden.
I closed my eyes releasing the energy through my skin. The moment I stepped into the palace I told myself that I would never tamper with Arthur’s mind. Now I was breaking that promise.
He was still talking, and it pained me that I was forced to do this. Alexis wanted to see me suffer. She’d made Nameless post the letter to Arthur. She was breaking me slowly, going after my daughter.
The waves of energy shifted through the air as my magic slipped inside his head. My whole body went rigid with overbearing emotions. Arthur’s mind was in despair. In the past two years, I had to tell so many lies and now it came to this.
“I loved you for so long. I believed in you. If I had known, maybe everything would have been different,” he said, slurring his words. The energy was working as my magic was absorbed in his cells. A second later, he had this absent look on his face. The guilt shattered me. I detested myself for making it happen. His thoughts were devastating, and I knew that he was telling me the truth. Every hair on my body rose, as my magic flew over, connecting with his nervous system, shifting his memories and feelings.
I could permanently damage him, and he would never be the same. It was a risk that I was willing to take.
“No, you don’t!” another voice shouted, and a split second later my head exploded with pain.
“You’re awake. Good. Now we can talk.”
The voice brought me back to reality. I looked around, dazed, still sitting on the bunk bed in my dark prison cell. The vivid images from Arthur’s quarters began fading away quickly. I rubbed my eyes and saw Zach sanding in front of the bars, with his hands in his pockets. He was wearing casual clothes and looked as handsome as always. His expression was serious, and my de
monic senses told me his thoughts were calm. I attempted to smooth my tangled hair, probably looking like someone had dragged me through the hedge backwards.
“How did I get in here?” I asked, aware that my magic was turning me into a real monster. Arthur was immune to my demonic magic—that was the only logical explanation. I failed to make him forget, failed to protect my daughter, too.
“Your Prince Charming’s entourage brought you in here. I overheard Rodriguez. Apparently, you were trying to use magic to play with Arthur’s head, or something like that,” Zach explained, folding his strong arms over his chest.
I started pacing around the cell, thinking about my options. I didn’t remember passing out, and I was certain that I was alone with Arthur in his quarters. Rodriguez had probably set up protective wards around the prince, and when I used my magic, the old demon must have sensed my power.
“When did they bring me in here?” I asked. I’d left Ricky behind, and who knew what kind of condition he was in? I shouldn’t have run to the palace when he was fighting for his life. Arthur would never have forgiven me anyway.
“Twenty-four hours,” Zach said, sounding annoyed. “Rodriguez must have hit you with some strong spells because you were out for a day. Anyway, don’t ask me how. I’m not supposed to know anything, right?”
Of course. How could I be so stupid?
I was trying to use my magic in the palace against the prince, with the head of the faction downstairs. How could I have thought this would work? Rodriguez had always thought I couldn’t be trusted. Now he had a perfect opportunity to punish me accordingly.
“What’s happened to Arthur?” I asked, knowing that Zach was most likely going to joke about it, but he stared at me with mixture of admiration and shock.
“He told me everything, Max. I know about the kid,” he said.
Shock rendered me speechless for a moment. I got up and moved closer to the metal bars, staring at him in utter disbelief. No, this was impossible. Arthur hated Zach, so why on Earth would he reveal such a secret to him? This didn’t make any sense.
For about a minute we stared at each other in complete silence. My pulse was speeding, and I had no idea what I was supposed to say next. My secret was out, and I could only hope that Zach was the only other person who knew about it.
“He told you everything? I don’t understand,” I said.
“You had a child with him and you hid her away from him,” he said, but in his tone of voice there wasn’t even a hint of accusation. He simply stated the fact. What felt like a bunch of ice cubes cascaded into my stomach. I hoped that Rodriguez didn’t know, that Arthur had some sense of decency and kept this secret to himself.
“Save it, Detective. I don’t need a lecture. It was my choice. I was only trying to protect him. Right now, I need to get out of here. Ricky is dying thanks to me, and my enemy is chasing my daughter. I don’t have time to explain anything,” I said bitterly, grabbing the cold metal bars of the cell. I sensed that Zach was feeling sorry for me, but he didn’t need to. I made that decision two years ago, so now it was time to face the consequences.
“Fine, whatever, but you don’t have to deal with this on your own. Despite your lies, I want to help you, Flower. Your Prince Charming wants to track down the baby. He asked for my help, probably thinking that I would pity him,” Zach said, scratching his head, like he was questioning the prince’s sanity. Zach should have been the last person Arthur asked for help.
I shook the bars, losing control for a second. The energy filled the space, and the warmth of my hands indicated that I hadn’t fully recovered from my encounter with Rodriguez. Arthur must have insisted on bringing me here. If so, Rodriguez’s hands were tied—he couldn’t punish me like he wanted to; he needed to obey the prince. Arthur knew the truth, and I didn’t expect him to just sit around waiting for something to happen.
“If you want to help me, then get me out of here,” I said, worried that I wasted a full twenty-four hours. Alexis was out there, ready for anything just to save her demonic soul.
“I would love to, but Rodriguez’s people are waiting for you outside. A few of my guys saw them watching the doors. You’re screwed, dear, so you should accept that you need my help.”
Chapter 2
“This multitude, their wounds so various, had made my eyes (the lights I look by) drunk. So now they wished to stand there, and just gaze”
―Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy
Arthur had revealed our secret to Zachary, but luckily Rodriguez had no idea what really happened between the two of us. Arthur had always said that he didn’t trust people who worked in the palace. He must have realised that I was close to Zachary, and he possibly wanted to use our relationship against me.
I had used demonic magic to influence a royal. It was a serious violation of protocol, and now Rodriguez had every right to summon me for questioning. He always suspected that I was hiding stuff from him, things that as far as he was concerned could harm the royal family. I knew that the old nosy bastard set his people outside the station to make sure I would stay where I was.
Zach had given me a heads up, but why?
After all, I lied to him about who I was, about his partner and missing sister. He was supposed to hate me, but maybe I had been wrong about him all this time.
“Why do you want to help me? Since we’ve met, I have done nothing but lie to you.”
“I don’t know. You got knocked up by a prince, then had that kid in secret. It’s admirable, Flower,” he said, touching my fingers through the bars. There it was, the same look. The electricity moved between us, and I told myself this wasn’t the time to think about our failed romance.
“And Arthur himself asked you to track down our daughter?” I asked, wondering if this was some kind of trick. In the past couple of weeks, Zach couldn’t stand the fact that the world he had been brought up in was filled with demonic creatures and magic. Alexis took control of his sister, and he wanted to avenge her, possibly by working against me. I doubted Zach was capable of something like that, but I had to have my ears and eyes open.
I needed to reveal to him that his sister was alive, that she was with his enemy, Nameless thief.
“He instructed Rodriguez to lock you up, then told me everything behind closed doors. I have never seen him so furious,” Zach said. “So, whether you like it or not, you need my help.”
He wasn’t joking, and I was stunned that he was so committed. Maybe I had missed something in the past day when I was lying in the cell unconscious. Arthur didn’t care that the adoption was irreversible. He was determined to track down our daughter.
“I need to find Ronan. Your sister stabbed Ricky in Gjöll,” I said, and in a speedy rush, I went over what happened when I followed Zara to the tunnels in the underground. We didn’t talk about my daughter—for me it was a sensitive subject, and I still couldn’t get over the fact that Arthur found out about her. Alexis was planning to use dark magic, just so she could control Summer. I still had my bond with Matilda. She had created a spell that connected us together after I came back to London. This way, I could always tell if she was all right. But I had a feeling that Alexis wasn’t planning to waste any time.
“Where is Zara now?” he asked after I was done.
“I had to leave Gjöll to come back to the palace. I believe she might still be with Nameless.”
Zach punched the wall, then and gave me a furious look. I felt for him, I really did, but at the same time, Ricky was dying in the hospital, and we couldn’t waste time talking about this.
Zach’s fist was bleeding, but he didn’t seem to care. “You’re going to take me to them. I’ll help you get out of here, and this is the way it’s going to work between us,” he said, staring at me with electrifying anger. “Once I get my hands on Nameless, I’m going to kill him.”
“He was doing whatever he could to save Zara. She was under the influence of Alexis. You can’t blame him for everything that went wrong,” I to
ld him, aware that he was right: we both needed each other.
“Alexis—is she like you?”
“She’s a full-blooded demon, but her soul is dying. Two months ago, she kidnapped George in order to heal herself, but because of me, she was tossed down to the pits of Hell,” I explained, bringing up events from the past few months. I should have killed her when I had a chance. Somehow the royals became part of my life. I brought Summer into this world, because I couldn’t go through with an abortion, but in the end, I chose to abandon her for the greater good. I was just a stranger to her now, but I loved her with everything I had inside.
“So, this whole story about the bomb in the palace was made up?” he asked.
“Yes. Rodriguez had made a decision to fabricate the truth. I told you already—humans aren’t supposed to know anything about demons. That world is completely shut down for anyone on Earth.”
“So where is your daughter now, Max?” Zach asked. “We both know that the prince won’t stop until he finds her.” He was obviously thinking about his niece, Cornelia. She hadn’t seen her own mother for years and she was already six years old.
“She’s with her guardian, safe for now. You need to get me out of here, Zach. I’ve already wasted a day. Alexis knows Matilda’s location, and I know she is heading over there. My daughter has royal blood in her veins, and that crazy bitch believes she can heal her soul with it,” I continued, knowing that Zach was on my side. “She’s going to murder my little girl.”
His sister had nearly killed Ricky, but that wasn’t her fault. Alexis had poisoned her mind and used dark magic to do unspeakable things. Zach was pacing around. We had one moment together that could have developed into something deeper, but lies overshadowed the past. Now we needed to unite and stop that crazy bitch.
“Zara couldn’t have fallen for the thief, but she was never like me,” Zach muttered. Maybe he had never connected with his sister. I opened my mouth to tell him that deep down she was still herself, but then we heard some noise outside. Zach swiftly took out a bunch of keys and opened the cell, no doubt worried we were running out of time.
Doomed Cases Box Set: The Complete Collection Books 1- 4 & Prequel Page 50
