Josilyn laughed. “Ahh, I see, so you like Derick, most girls do. He’s not my type; I like them a little wilder. Derick is too sweet for me. He looks good in a pair of tight jeans. I’ll give you that. Good luck though, he doesn’t date much, or at all. I thought he was gay for a while, but then he started dating this freshman. Now that was a mess. The girl slapped him across the face in front of everyone. He was devastated,” Josilyn bit her lip as if she’d said too much.
Annie watched Derick intently as he spoke to Cassie. He looked at Annie and smiled a few times as he diligently listened to Pete, who was becoming louder and louder. Cassie was actively trying to capture Derick’s attention and failing. She could make out the words, “tour,” and “home.”
Annie decided it was best to leave the cute mortal alone and worry about her angel problem before she forgot her objective. “So why are you having so much trouble with the tour? What happened?”
“People around here are freaked out by the mere mention of this castle. There are all kinds of crazy stories that the locals are all too happy to tell you about. No one wants us to go in there. The old woman who takes care of this place doesn’t give tours at night and made a point of leaving early to avoid us. I think that Cassie screwed up and didn’t tell the woman that we wanted to film at night. She tends to leave out all the really important things,” Josilyn rolled her eyes.
Annie had a feeling that Cassie wouldn’t be open to the idea of moving the group to a safer location. Given what Josilyn said about Pete packing his bags and running here, he too would be hard to convince. The only option left was Derick. If he had enough influence with Pete, it might be easier to get Derick to derail the group. She set her sights on Derick, hoping that he would listen to reason.
“Why don’t you go warm up in the van? I have a feeling this caretaker isn’t going to show up. I’m going to head back to the inn and get some rest. Maybe I’ll see you guys tomorrow,” Annie patted Josilyn on the shoulder and nudged her toward the van.
“I think you’re right. I don’t foresee us taking a tour tonight. Wish us luck. Swing by tomorrow and maybe we’ll see each other. It was nice talking to another sane woman. Thanks for listening, Annie,” Josilyn winked at her and headed toward the van.
Annie squared her shoulders and walked over to Derick, Pete, and the ghastly woman.
“It will all work out, Derick, I promise you. I told you, I will handle things,” Cassie smiled at Derick as she spoke.
Derick was relieved when he saw Annie walking toward them. He was grateful to have an excuse to get away from Cassie. He was pissed that she was wasting their time with details that should have been taken care of, but as always, he had to be the rational one when dealing with Pete.
He tuned Cassie out and focused on Annie’s dark tendrils that lightly blew against her cheek and watched them caress her face. She was gorgeous. He wanted to caress her face. Wait, what? He justified his stalker thoughts by admitting that he hadn’t been with a woman in over two years. It didn’t help that she was smiling at him as if he were the only person in the world. His pulse raced when he thought about standing next to her. He quickly came up with questions to ask her so that he wouldn’t become tongue-tied and ultimately talk about the weather.
He stood up straight and tried to clear his head. He forced himself not to watch her hips as they swayed seductively. He definitely wasn’t going to look at how tight her Mortal Kombat T-shirt was and how it showed off her full breasts. He was still sporting an embarrassing and debilitating erection from the odd connection that had nearly knocked him to his knees when she looked into his eyes.
“Any luck?” Annie asked, more to Derick than to Pete. She ignored Cassie’s sneer.
Cassie tossed her dark hair over her shoulder and moved closer to Derick. “Not that it’s any concern of yours, but the caretaker is on her way.”
“You know, everyone I’ve spoken to around here claims that there’s something evil lurking in this city. No one wants to come out after dark. I have a feeling that the caretaker is just as superstitious as the rest of the town. It’s no wonder that she hadn’t shown up. I’ve been to a lot of old cities where the locals take their legends very seriously. I’m sure the woman will show up by morning, but I think tonight is out of the question. You’re better off getting some rest and trying again tomorrow,” Annie lied. She watched Cassie’s eyes squint tightly, belying her frustration with Annie’s intrusion.
Derick nodded his head, grateful for a second opinion. “I’ve been trying to convince Cassie and Pete of that for the last half an hour. As much as I want to do a night shoot, I don’t think it’s going to happen tonight.”
“I have faith that Mrs. Pavel will be along shortly and then I will make her understand the importance of this trip. Once she sees the amount of money that we are willing to invest in this project and the type of media exposure she will receive, I’m sure that she will change her mind. Relax and I will take care of everything,” Cassie said politely to Derick. She turned her back to Annie.
“You know, there are other castles in Romania. Maybe you would have better luck with one of them, or even better, there are a ton of spirit sightings in the antebellum mansions in the southern states like Georgia or South Carolina. The battlefields there always have sightings of unexplained occurrences. Plus, it’s much closer to home,” Annie said directly to Derick, trying to plant the idea of leaving.
Derick nodded and seemed interested in her suggestions. He turned to Pete about to speak, but Pete ignored him.
Pete rudely stepped in front of Derick and got in Annie’s face. “Like you know anything about spirits. Why are you even here?” Pete barked.
Derick was appalled by Pete’s lack of manners. He knew Pete was about to imply that Annie was only there to make fun of what they were doing and scare the girl away, as he did to everyone who thought that they were freaks for looking for spirits.
Annie sighed and spoke calmly to Pete. “I’m here because I trekked all the way from Budapest to visit this city and the castle, though I’m more than happy to do so when the sun is high up in the sky. You’d be nuts to walk around in there at night. The innkeeper told me that the castle is undergoing renovations and isn’t exactly safe. Like I said, there are plenty of other castles to choose from, ones that don’t have tales of menacing ghouls lurking about. I admit that I was interested in your documentary, after seeing your T-shirts and speaking to Josilyn, but clearly you don’t like curious people wanting to know more about what you do. You should give up on your documentary since you don’t seem interested in talking about it,” she tried to embarrass Pete so that he would lower his defenses and take her advice seriously.
“I don’t believe that you care about the afterlife. I’m sure you saw our logo and thought that we were wackos or delusional because we believe in something most people don’t,” Pete said defensively. He stood his ground and didn’t back down.
If he only knew how much I believe in the afterlife, Annie snorted.
“Pete, relax. She’s a tourist, like everyone else that comes to the castle,” Derick calmly put his hand on Pete’s arm to diffuse his rash friend.
Annie noticed that Cassie had quietly slipped off into her rental car to talk on the phone.
She turned her attention back to Pete and tried to think of a way to make him understand that she was on his side.
“Apparently, you’re the only one who thinks that there is a Heaven, a Hell, or a plane of existence where spirits become stuck instead of moving on. How arrogant of you. Seems you’ve corned the market on spirits and finding the truth about them. Personally, I came to see the castle because of its historical importance, but I have to admit that I have taken the occasional spirit tour to learn about the local legends and experience the culture. I would never be so narrow-minded as to call someone a wacko without significant evidence, nor would I preemptively judge them based on their beliefs,” Annie cocked her head and smirked.
She tried
to hide her laughter when Derick grinned wickedly, knowing that she had just bested Pete and deflated his anger. Pete appeared sheepish as her reprimand got past his natural urge to strike out at people before they hurt him.
Pete sputtered and tried to come up with some sort of apology, but Derick saved him from the trouble.
“Are you staying in town?” Derick sidestepped Pete and moved closer to Annie, which was a huge mistake. She had more of an effect on him than he’d originally thought. Standing next to her was like standing next to a furnace. He was almost shaking as he held himself back from completely invading her personal space.
Annie jumped at the question, hoping that she could convince Derick to leave. If he left, Pete would have no other choice but to abandon their plans for the night.
“Yes. I have a room at the inn down the hill,” she did her best to sell the lie, though she wasn’t exactly sure why Derick was asking.
“Really? That’s where we’re staying. I could give you a ride. I think you’re right about Mrs. Pavel not showing up. Right now, I’m freezing and the jet lag is killing me. I need to get out of here,” Derick smiled. He ignored Pete’s shocked face.
Annie suddenly realized that Derick was so close that he was practically touching her arm. Though she lacked experience with mortal men, she could tell that Derick was taking an interest in her. Not that she wanted to lead him on, but currently it was the only way to force the group to abandon their castle tour.
She imagined what it would be like to be alone with the mortal and was surprised to find that she liked the idea. She convinced herself that she just wanted to make sure that Derick and his friends were safe. She also wanted to sit down since her back was throbbing, or so she told herself.
“That’s very nice of you. Thank you,” her voice was huskier than intended, which didn’t go unnoticed by Derick.
Derick shook when he heard the change in her voice. His stalker mind was back in full force as he imagined asking her to join him in his room. He didn’t know anything about this woman and he was already thinking about asking her to stay with him. What was wrong with him? He never asked women to stay with him. Maybe being in a small car with her was a bad idea. He pushed his fantasies aside and decided to put some distance between them immediately. He was about to excuse himself from the obligation when Josilyn shouted from the van.
“Am I going to die of hypothermia or are we calling it a night? I’m just asking,” Josilyn called from the passenger seat.
Pete and Derick exchanged a glance and looked back at Cassie. Derick knew that Cassie would be pissed, but he was beyond listening to her nonsense.
“It’s too late to explore the castle. Everyone’s tired. Let’s start fresh tomorrow,” Derick shrugged, hoping that Pete would concede.
Pete sighed and threw his hands up in defeat. “Okay, but we’re going to be behind schedule. We’re going to have to work hard tomorrow to make this happen. I’ll talk to Cassie. Just make sure that you’re rested and ready to go tomorrow,” Pete motioned toward Annie and frowned.
Annie raised her eyebrows at the insinuation that she would be the reason that Derick might be tired in the morning. Unclenching her fists, she reminded herself that she was the stranger and that Pete was frustrated because he couldn’t accomplish his goal.
“I’ll be ready,” Derick said, embarrassed by Pete’s comment. Apparently, his lust was more apparent than he had thought if Pete had noticed it.
“Here, take the keys to the cargo van. Keep the van loaded and ready to go,” Pete tossed the keys to Derick.
Pete sprinted over to the minivan and began giving orders so that they could get moving.
Derick and Annie stared awkwardly at each other. After a few seconds, Derick snapped out of his stupor and directed Annie to the white cargo van.
“I can give you a ride back to your car tomorrow,” he said, looking around the parking lot for her car. He was hoping that he could secure more time with her in the morning. He had no idea why he was so desperate to be near this woman, but he was overcome with the urge to keep her in sight.
“Actually, I walked. I was hoping it would tire me out,” she said as she bit her lip. Wasn’t it common practice for women to walk through the desolate countryside, alone, in the dark, and be perfectly safe? She needed to remember to act more like a mortal girl.
“Oh. Isn’t that kind of dangerous?” Derick chuckled. He opened the passenger side for her and watched her climb in. He was lucky that he remembered to open the door for a lady. He was lucky that he remembered his name. She was having a distinct effect on him, which intrigued him.
“I think it’s probably more dangerous to accept rides from strangers in foreign countries,” Annie chuckled as she watched Derick get into the van.
She suppressed a laugh when she saw the stunned looks on the faces of Josilyn, Morgan, and Doug, who were gawking at the two of them. Josilyn looked like she was going to jump out of the van and yell at Derick.
Annie knew that this was a huge leap of faith on Derick’s part. He’d just met a strange girl in a strange land and here he was offering to get into a van with her. Either he must have trusted her, or he was planning to kill her.
Get in line, she grimaced.
Trust wasn’t something she was accustomed to extending to people. After years of dealing with Hades and his little mind screws, it was unnerving to have someone blindly trust her.
“I don’t bite. Trust me, it’s safer being with me than walking through the streets with a ghoul haunting the area,” Derick laughed as he started the van.
Annie wasn’t sure if that was true, but she wasn’t concerned about Derick trying to hurt her. Instead, she was relieved that the mortals were safely away from the castle. Her next task was to confront Alazar.
Chapter 6
Alazar paced around his room, coughing and wheezing. His lung was healing faster than usual, which was odd, but it was the least of his concerns. How had Anjali finally tracked him down? He couldn’t believe that she had made an appearance now, just when he was about to give up and kill everyone in sight. Perhaps he had summoned her accidentally. Had he called to her? Not likely. He enjoyed the thought of killing. It was the one thing that made him feel warm and whole again.
If he were being honest, it wasn’t the only thing that made him feel warm. Touching her skin had made him feel warm which was a welcome feeling after being buried in ice for so long.
He rubbed his fingertips together, remembering the sensation of her skin. He had no idea that his Master could evoke any kind of feelings in him. The way he understood things, she was supposed to wield him like a weapon, not make him want to be closer to her. It must have been a trick, a way of getting through his defenses to make him yield to her. Sadly, he had almost fallen for it. Instead of wanting to kill her, he had almost hugged her. The truth was he wanted to take her hand and leave with her. He kicked the already broken end table and cursed. He was angry that he had reacted to her physically. Why had he wanted to go with the monster that wanted to chain him to her side for all eternity? What would ever possess him to do that? Maybe he did need the physical comfort more than he thought.
What would Aeries think of him now? Aeries would probably kick him in the balls and tell him to get his head on straight. Their Master was the enemy.
Alazar closed his eyes and forced himself to think about what joining with his Master would lead to. The Hall of Mirrors would be his final destination, if Anjali’s dress were any indicator of where she now resided. He thought about the possibility of having to go back there again. Even without Serena chaining him to the ceiling and torturing him, he couldn’t do it. He’d suffered the sight of his beauty decaying too many times, and had endured the pain of death as he slowly desiccated. As the Angel of Death, he was meant to dole out such a punishment, not suffer from it.
He broke out into chills when he thought about entering Hell again. He imagined having to walk past the Realms of Torture and recall how he�
��d been burned, beaten, and broken within their grasp. Lucifer and Hades had watched with glee as his body had been engulfed in flames and crumbled into nothing more than soot. He would have to look at Lucifer every day, and remember his boot threatening to crush his throat. He would have no choice but to kill Lucifer and Hades if he stood before them again.
In the beginning, Hades had pretended to befriend him, telling him that he would help him and watch his back, yet he was the first to lash out at him. His hand unconsciously moved across his stomach where Hades had driven a sword through him. He may not harbor a physical scar, but the attack had mentally damaged him.
Alazar had stupidly taken an interest in a female because he could no longer bear the loneliness of being in Hell. Mortal women were not enough to entertain him and it had been too many centuries without a female of his own kind. The female angel had been more than willing to play with him even though she had been anxious. He had thought she was nervous because of who he was and what he was capable of doing. Regrettably, as it turned out, she had feared what would happen when her lover Hades found out about her indiscretions. Katarina had told him that she’d been interested in him while they were in Heaven, but had been too innocent to act upon her girlish curiosity. Sadly, neither Hades, nor Katarina had informed him of their cruel on-and-off-again liaisons. He had been swept up into one of their games whereby they would cheat and hurt the other by detailing it. He was set up from start to finish and had paid for his stupidity.
No, he couldn’t go back to Hell under any circumstance. If Anjali somehow managed to bind him to her and become his true Master, he would rather kill himself than follow her into Hell. It was decided, either she would die, or he would. There would be no other option.
He stopped and stared at the wall. He needed to get control and think things through logically. Why was she here? What did she hope to gain by seeking him out? He was afraid that he knew the answer. She needed him to start an Apocalypse. Though he liked the thought of killing, he didn’t like the thought of being her puppet. Killing everyone was one thing, but he didn’t want to be forced to kneel before her to do it.
The Third Throne: Angel of Death Page 13
