by Laurèn Lee
Adriel’s Reckoning
Demons in New York #3
Laurèn Lee
Copyright © 2018 by Laurèn Lee
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Created with Vellum
For you—
Never give up on your dreams
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Also by Laurèn Lee
1
Brianna and her husband Nick walked hand in hand down the boardwalk at Canalside in downtown Buffalo as the brilliant, neon sun lowered itself closer and closer to the horizon each minute. Pedestrians cleared out as the frigid air settled in for the evening.
Brianna, her long, silky onyx hair in a fishtail braid, clutched Nick’s arm and nuzzled her head against his shoulder as they strolled. She wore a thick, designer coat and knee-length leather boots. Nick, tall and bulky, felt proud to have a beautiful girl on his arm. In high school, he was the class clown, but as an adult, he grew up to be a successful marketing professional. In a few short weeks, they’d be celebrating their first wedding anniversary.
“It’s almost time,” Brianna reminded him.
“I know,” he replied and blushed.
“We should start soon,” she suggested.
“Champagne, wedding cake and sexy time? I like it!”
Brianna giggled and nudged Nick playfully. They stopped walking and leaned over the railing on the boardwalk to watch the sun dance in the sky behind the Naval Park. Birds overhead cooed and cawed; it was almost time for them to head south for the winter.
“I’ve been thinking of some names,” Brianna said.
“Oh yeah? Like what?”
“Well, if it’s a girl, I was thinking Bella. You know, after my grandmother?”
“Uh, huh.” Nick nodded.
“And, if it’s a boy, I was hoping we could make him a junior!”
“I think that’s a great idea, babe. You’re going to be such a great mother.”
Brianna kissed her husband. “I love you.”
Nick pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her. Their tongues intertwined in each other’s mouths, and a desperate urge grew inside of them. Nick tugged on Brianna’s braid, and a moan escaped her lips.
“Maybe we should start a few weeks early, huh?”
“That sounds good,” she breathed. “But, maybe not in public or out in the cold.”
Nick chuckled and kissed Brianna on the forehead. She closed her eyes and absorbed the moment.
Both were at the ripe age of twenty-five years old with their entire future ahead of them. They met after their college graduation, only to find out they’d gone to school together all along. While they never met on campus, Brianna said she knew they must have been destined to be together.
“C’mon, babe. Let’s go home.”
Brianna nodded, and they turned to leave. Their car was parked about half a mile away, but darkness had already set in on the day. They were alone now; not a soul strayed on the boardwalk. The couple walked a few paces then heard a distinct rattle of metal behind them.
Brianna whipped around, and Nick followed suit. Standing before them was a tall, blond man with piercing eyes. His was face covered in shadows, but his teeth, bared, glowed in the dim of the night.
“Whoa, where did you come from, bro?” Nick asked.
“Good evening,” the man said with a British accent.
Brianna grasped her husband’s hand and held on tightly. “How did you get over there? We were just standing there a second ago.”
“Unnecessary details,” the man said. “What’s important is that we have a little chat, shall we?”
Nick stepped forward and shuffled Brianna behind him. “Listen, we’re just out here for a walk. We don’t want any trouble.”
“Trouble? Who says I want any trouble?”
The dark figure stepped toward the couple, his eyes reflecting a gleaming red. He held his hand out as though he expected raindrops to fall into his palm. Instead, a ball of fire appeared out of nowhere and spun madly in the man’s grasp.
“What the hell?!” Nick shouted.
“Babe, let’s go! I’ll call the police,” Brianna whimpered.
“The police?” The dark figure tossed his head back in laughter. “The police won’t save you.”
The dark figure took a few more steps closer to Nick and Brianna, and Nick held out his hand like a crossing guard. “Stop right where you are, bro! I don’t want to have to hurt you.”
“Babe, come on!” Brianna squealed.
“You? Hurt me? I’d honestly love to see you try,” the stranger said.
Nick turned to Brianna. “When I tell you, you need to run, okay? This guy isn’t going to mess with us.”
Brianna shook her head madly. “No!” she hissed.
“I could snap your neck like a dandelion, did you know that?” the stranger threatened.
“Go, babe. Now!” Nick urged. He turned back to the dark figure and cracked his knuckles. “All right, you crazy piece of shit. Let’s do this.”
The figure smiled, wound up his arm and threw the fireball at Nick, hitting him squarely in the chest. Nick howled in pain, which sent a chill down Brianna’s spine as she sprinted away. She stopped to turn around and saw Nick on the ground. She wanted to turn back, but fear coursed through her veins. She hoped her husband was still alive as she picked up the pace again and dashed toward their car. Once inside, she’d call the police.
Nick’s skin melted before his eyes underneath the weight of the fireball resting on his chest. Adrenaline took over, and soon he felt numb to the burning. Then the smell of sizzling flesh urged bile up his throat.
“Make it stop!” Nick cried.
The figure stood over him and snickered. “Right on your back where I knew you’d be. That’ll teach you not to be so cocky.” He stomped onto the fireball above Nick’s chest, and the flames disappeared. His foot, though, landed firmly on Nick’s core, forcing all the air out of his diaphragm.
“Shit!” Nick screamed, tears streaming down his face. “Please don’t kill me. I’m married!”
“Ah, yes. Marriage. I was almost married, but then my fiancé went off with someone else. You’re lucky I’m putting you out of your misery.”
“Please! No!”
The figure took out a shiny dagger, which sparkled in the moonlight. Two ruby gems glistened on the handle and mirrored the man’s menacing eyes. “Everything will be better now. I’m saving you.”
“Stop—”
Nick fell silent, and the figure kneeled beside him, listening to his shallow breaths grow few and far between. Just as Nick exhaled his final breath, the figure took the dagger and cut into his own chest. Black blood o
ozed out of the self-inflicted wound, and he hovered over Nick’s lifeless body. The thick blood dribbled into Nick’s wound, and sparks shot through the air.
Nick’s skin healed rapidly as his breathing regained its normal rhythm. In a few moments, Nick opened his eyes to reveal glowing fire-engine red irises, the same as the figure.
“Welcome to the world, demon. Now, let’s go turn your wife into one of us too.”
2
“I’m really worried about her, Adam. She hasn’t returned any of my calls, and her car wasn’t at the condo,” Tori pouted. “Do you think she’s okay? Did I do something wrong?”
“Tor, I don’t know what’s going on with her. Maybe she and Liam ran off and eloped?”
“No way. She’d totally tell me if she was going to get hitched in Vegas or something!”
Adam shrugged and picked up his guitar to rehearse a new song he’d written a few days earlier. His shaggy hair lay in his face, and he shrugged it aside to clear his vision. He strummed the acoustic guitar with silky fingers, and the melody melted off the chords.
Tori pulled her knees to her chest and bit her fingernails as though she was taking the SATs all over again.
“We’ve never gone this long without talking,” she whispered to herself. “Something’s not right. I can feel it in my bones.”
Out of habit, she grabbed her phone from the end table next to their plaid, beaten-down couch and checked her messages. No new text messages and no missed calls.
She thought back to their days in college together and how they promised they’d never drift apart. They swore to each other they’d be best friends forever, no matter what. Sure, their plan to move to New York City never panned out, but it was for the best, she thought.
She had Adam, and Charlotte had Liam.
“Liam hasn’t called you yet either?”
Adam closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath. “No, babe. He hasn’t called me since you asked me about an hour ago. If he does, you will be the first person to know.”
“Aren’t you worried?”
“Sure, it’s pretty shitty of them to ditch us like this, but there’s gotta be a reason why.”
“What if they’re in trouble?”
Adam groaned and closed his eyes. He set down his guitar gently on the floor and turned to his girlfriend. “Tori, everything is going to be okay. We’ll hear from them eventually. They probably just went on a trip and don’t have cell service or something. Okay?”
“I don’t know,” Tori trailed off. “My instincts are telling me something is wrong.”
“I hate to break it to you, babe, but your instincts aren’t always spot on. Remember the casino? You lost all our rent money because you felt like red was going to hit on roulette.”
“I really did think it was going to hit!” Tori pouted.
Adam pulled her into his lap and encompassed her in his arms. “Just gotta be patient, all right?”
“You know patience isn’t my strong suit,” Tori said.
“Well, you gotta learn how to relax at some point.”
“Relax? Really? Are you telling me to relax?” Tori stiffened.
Adam realized his mistake immediately and kissed Tori on the lips to silence her. “Why don’t you go for a run to ease your mind?”
Tori thought for a moment and finally conceded. “I guess I could do that.”
“Great! And don’t worry about being gone too long. I want to rehearse this new song.”
“Wait,” she paused. “Are you just trying to get me out of the house?”
Adam shrugged and winked. “Have a great run, babe!”
Tori stomped to their room, muttering to herself while she flung clothes about the bedroom as she hunted for a running outfit. She tried on a few different Nike tops until she picked one that felt the most comfortable. She’d only picked up running a month ago when she realized her favorite pair of jeans didn’t fit her any longer. Then Tori became obsessive and determined to lose the few extra inches around her waist so she’d be able to squeeze into her Guess jeans once again.
She always assumed the “Freshman Fifteen” would be the last splurges of weight gain in her life, apart from having a child, but she never guessed she’d gain weight being in a relationship. It made sense, though; she and Adam had been together for a few years now and were beyond comfortable around each other. She didn’t need to count her calories because Adam said he loved her just the way she was. Unfortunately, Tori didn't always feel the same and decided to make a change.
After graduation, Tori and Adam moved out of Buffalo and into the suburbs almost an hour away. Adam’s father, a real estate agent, found them an incredible deal on the house in a tiny, tight-knit neighborhood. Tori fell in love with the brick ranch house as soon as she set foot inside, but being so far away from the city was difficult. However, Tori and Adam both agreed there was nothing better than a countryside sunset.
Tori chose to run every other day at sunset to absorb the colors in the sky. The pastels painted across the horizon kept her motivated, and she only stopped when she wanted to snap a shot on her iPhone to post to Instagram.
Tonight was like any other night: Tori laced up her running shoes, waved goodbye to Adam, and jogged out the door with her Bluetooth earbuds firmly in place. She pressed play on her Trapt playlist and hit the pavement.
As expected, the sunset illuminated the dull sky with hues of orange and shades of bronze. She breathed in the fresh air, her lungs swelling with delicious oxygen. Her heart raced as she picked up the speed on the gravel road a few blocks away from her house. The bass from her music thumped and matched the cadence of her feet against the ground. The endorphins took over and coursed throughout her body. She felt weightless and powerful. And then, out of nowhere, Tori tripped as though her foot caught the edge of a pothole. She flew through the air and landed face-first on the ground.
“Ouch,” she moaned.
Carefully, she pulled herself up to see her hands speckled with blood from the gravel. Little pieces of stone were wedged into the cuts in her hand, and she cringed at the bloody mess. Her phone also hit the ground during the fall, and the device lay several feet away, the screen obliterated.
Tori had never been the clumsy type; in fact, she often displayed cat-like reflexes. Tripping was definitely not a typical occurrence.
Just as she prepared to stand, a heavy chestnut boot stepped on her fingers, crushing them beneath the sole.
“Arrrrghghhhhhh!” Tori agonized.
She looked up to see none other than Liam, her best friend’s fiancé, staring back at her with red, glowing eyes.
3
Two Days Ago
“Now it’s just you and me,” Liam said.
“You don’t scare me,” Adriel retorted, wiping blood from his mouth.
“You’re a fool if you don’t fear me. I am more powerful than any demon. I’m more powerful than Lucifer. I am the new King of Hell.”
Liam raised his fist again, and Adriel squeezed his eyes tightly shut, preparing for the blow to end it all.
Except the hit never came. Adriel opened one eye and peeked to see Liam standing near the opening of the cavern, his ears pointed toward the realm outside Lucifer’s lair.
“What’re you doing?” Adriel asked cautiously.
“Shhhhh!” Liam hissed back.
Adriel rolled his eyes and sighed heavily. If Liam wanted to pound him into oblivion, why wouldn’t he just get on with it already?
“Do you hear that?” Liam asked.
“Hear what?”
“Voices…” Liam trailed off.
“You hear voices? Maybe there’s more wrong with you than meets the eye,” Adriel quipped.
Liam shot Adriel a scathing look and put his finger in front of his lips, signaling him to be quiet.
Adriel brushed himself off and pulled himself up off the ground. He leaned onto the cave walls for support, desperately trying to think of a way out of Hell. He’d gotten what he came
for, and now it was time to get out and regroup. No way he could take on Liam all by himself in this state. While he felt the demon powers pump through his body, he felt the lack of his full powers. It was like a corner piece of a thousand-piece puzzle went missing. Almost whole, but not quite.
Shrieks called out in the distance, and Liam looked back to Adriel. “Now do you hear?”
“Sounds like something is going on. You should probably go check it out,” Adriel suggested.
Liam bit his lip. “You’re right. Come with me.”
“What? The Prince of Hell needs an escort? Are you afraid?”
“I’m the king,” he spat, with emphasis on the last word. “And I’m not letting you out of my sight. We’re not finished yet.”
Adriel stood his ground and crossed his arms over his body like a stubborn child. “Make me.”
Liam grinned maliciously, clenching his right fist by his side. In return, Adriel grabbed at his belly and grunted with dissatisfaction.
“What are you doing to me? It feels like you’re inside my stomach!”
“Come, Adriel,” Liam beckoned.
Reluctantly, Adriel took the dozen or so steps toward Liam, and they left Lucifer’s lair one after the other. As soon as they stepped outside the doorway, Liam unclenched his fist, and Adriel’s body returned to normal, sans Liam’s torture.
They strode down the hallways of Hell, flames and smoke painting the walls on either side of them. The shrieks grew louder, and Adriel shuddered. There’d never been a riot in Hell, but then again, there was a first time for everything.
