*
Evan’s blue eyes were like the ocean during a hurricane. They were roiling and turbulent and for a moment, when he leveled them on me, they were almost dangerous. True to form, my dad had tried to play matchmaker and now I was seated at the long dinner table between two demons from my father’s inner circle. One was the son of my father’s right hand and the other was the new Vice President of Marketing. The old Vice President of Marketing had been disposed of in his sleep.
Both men were fairly good-looking. Dark hair, dark eyes, and the rock hard bodies all demons had. But there was nothing spectacular. Evan sat across from me glowering at the two, his fair skin and hair like a beacon of light in the large open room.
VP kept trying to hold my attention with conversation, but unfortunately, even though he was in charge of the creative division, he was not so creative in speech and he was making me sleepy. Junior on the other hand, was taking things literally into his own hands. His hands crept to my thigh under the table and with clenched teeth, I mumbled a quick spell. His hand fell back as the viper in my lap reared its head.
“Helena! Be a good girl.” My dad bellowed, his eyes flashing and I swallowed as I removed the snake.
Evan growled and I realized that he must have seen what Junior was up to. He sat between two female demons who were also doing their best to entice him. Since he was paying them no mind, I wasn’t too jealous, although I did take a steadying breath when one demoness tripped as she was getting up to leave and fell across his lap, her luscious breasts spilling out of her dress.
Without realizing it, I had muttered a spell so quickly, that in a flash, she was wearing a top that was buttoned to her throat. She looked around the table in confusion, unable to undo my spell. My dad finally took pity on her and changed her dress into something similar to what she was wearing, but with a more demure neckline. She sat back down, but she leaned away from Evan this time. I nodded with satisfaction.
Junior’s hand crawled back and this time, tried to make its way down the front of my jeans. I was used to the libido of demon men and had become a pro to all of their tricks. In an instant, his hand was on top of the table, a knife sticking out of the back. He howled in pain and rage as I removed my hand from the blade.
“Helena!” My dad bellowed again, his eyes red and dangerous. “Enough!” He glared at me and I glared back, too pissed to remember proper etiquette. My mom continued to eat as if nothing had happened.
“Dinner is over. Everyone leave!” My father waved a hand and instantly every demon, demoness or otherworldly creature in the room disappeared except for my parents, Evan and me.
I looked over the table at Evan. He was smiling broadly at me. I smiled back, happy he had approved of my handling of the situation.
My mom looked at me and Evan. “Well, now that we gotten that settled, why didn’t you simply tell your dad you wanted to be exclusive?”
Evan’s mouth gaped at my mom’s comments. I shrugged. I guess I should have mentioned that this was a possibility. But my dad had never tried to match me with another demon before, so I honestly didn’t think he would now.
“You just sleep with whoever you want?” Evan whispered to me across the table.
I nodded. “Most demons do. Here, it’s not that big of a deal.”
He looked towards my parents seated at the far end. My dad had his arm around my mom’s chair, looking every bit the loving husband. “Even them?”
I nodded, my eyes studying the smooth wood of the table. “Sometimes. They have an unspoken rule. If one gets to do it, so does the other.”
Evan nodded slowly. I was suddenly embarrassed by the ways of demons. We didn’t bond for life, we didn’t mate for love. We did everything as a means of getting ahead. Fulfilling our goals. No demon wanted me because he was in love; I was the king’s daughter and although my dad would never die; being a son-in-law for all eternity had its own perks.
Evan leaned back in his chair and picked at the meal in front of him. The long table was covered in food. Demons were known for their appetites for both food and sex and right now the assorted offerings of ham, steak, fish, potatoes and other goodies lay spread before us. Evan’s own plate contained a half-eaten steak and potatoes, but he’d stopped eating when he’d realized the matchmaking scheme of my dad’s.
“Did you not like the meal, Evan?” my mom asked, her voice dripping syrup. I resisted the urge to groan. My mom was definitely interested. Her long dark hair hung over one shoulder and her thin dress hid very little of her lovely body. She leaned forward slightly and the dress’ plunging neckline hinted at her breasts.
“Mom. Mine.” I said the two words with a calm I did not feel. I mean, really. My own damn mom.
She straightened and smiled at me. “Okay. Message received loud and clear.”
“Maybe next time,” Evan chimed in, flirting shamelessly with my mom.
“Don’t encourage her,” I whispered, “And don’t make promises to demons.”
He smiled again as he nodded. “You have one crazy family.”
I put a hand to my head as I watched my dad. He grinned at the entire exchange. Evan had no idea how crazy my family was. I would have to keep an eye on him to make sure no demons with slick tongues tried to trap or trick him into sex.
“So, Helena. Why did you suddenly show up, even though you asked to stay a few more weeks?” my dad asked, steering the conversation back to safer waters.
I shrugged, unwilling to admit that I had gotten outsmarted by a mere human.
“A witch hexed us.”
I closed my eyes and groaned as the words escaped Evan’s mouth. Red covered the table as the wine that my dad was swallowing was suddenly spit out.
“Lucas! Really!” My mom admonished, waving her hand and cleaning up the mess. Evan watched her with avid interest.
My dad laughed. His wide shoulders bobbed as he threw his head back in mirth. “A witch hexed you?”
I nodded glumly and glared at Evan. He shrugged and mouthed sorry. I turned back to my dad, who was still chortling.
“It’s not even that funny,” I said after a few moments.
My dad looked at me. “Helena, you have been a demon for centuries and you let a witch send you back to hell?” He frowned. “That is rather disappointing. This means that I have to continue your training. I have been too lax, allowing you to do what you want. That stops today.” He swallowed the rest of the wine in his glass.
I rose from my seat. “But dad, you can’t. You promised me a month.” I watched Evan’s lips tighten at the mention of my last moments with him. “You can’t go back on your promise.”
My dad looked at me and then at Evan. “Why not? You obviously want to go back on yours.”
“What’s going on?” Evan asked.
I looked back at him and pleaded silently for him to be silent. I was trying to find a way to get us back topside and to get out of my dad’s deal. But I didn’t want Evan to think that I did not want him. I didn’t want him to think I didn’t care.
My dad watched the exchange between us. “She didn’t tell you?”
I shook my head at him. “Dad, no. Don’t do this.”
I looked back at Evan. “It’s not what it sounds like.”
My dad frowned again. “It’s not fair that he doesn’t know his fate, Helena. I taught you better than that.”
I walked around the table to Evan’s side. I grasped his hand. “It is not what it sounds like. Please believe me,” I begged.
Evan looked at me and then at my dad in confusion. “What is going on?”
My dad looked and me and shook his head. “You tell him, Helena or I will. You have ten minutes. You tell him and I send you both back for your month. You don’t and you both stay. For eternity.” He waved his hand and he and my mom disappeared.
“What are you not telling me, Helena?” Evan asked his voice unsure.
I dropped my yes. “I made a promise to my dad in exchange for being allowed one mor
e month on earth.”
Evan looked at me. “Okay? What did you offer? Are we not allowed to see each other anymore?”
I sighed. If only.
“Helena? What did you offer in exchange?”
I looked directly into his eyes. “Your soul.”
~*~
Chapter 9 – Return of the Beast
So far in trying to be truthful and do something good, I ended up shooting myself in the foot. Evan was not talking to me. Finding out that your girlfriend promised your soul to her demon dad had that effect. My dad was not talking to me. I guess he took offense that I chose a human over him. My mom was not talking to me. Okay, that one was completely irrelevant because my mom and I are not close. But dammit, I was suddenly the social pariah of the season.
My dad sent another letter to let us know that he had lifted the hex. So, it was as simple as picturing my condo and snapping my fingers. Instantly, we were there. Evan gave me a long look before he tensed his shoulders and walked out of my condo and I felt, out of my life. I knew my actions had hurt him, but if he had let me explain, he would have seen that it was the only way that I could help him. If my dad knew I was planning to renege on my deal, he would find some way to trick me into moving up the date or simply revoke my above ground privileges. Either way, I lost. I had to allow him to give me enough time to think of something and a month was plenty of time.
I walked over to the fridge and opened it. Several steaks lay on the bottom shelf, remnants of Orthus’ last few meals. I felt a twinge of conscience that he was still missing and slight annoyance. It seemed the longer I stayed around the humans, the more human I started to feel. So far, I had experienced heartache, love and now guilt. When I went back to Hell, I was going to request retraining. Nothing ever came of a demon who had a damn guilty conscience. And I didn’t want to simply be bad; I wanted the old Helena back. The I-don’t-give-a-shit-about-your-feelings Helena. The I-do-what-I-want Helena. Not this wimp who cared about what happened to everyone around her, including Orthus and Evan.
But until I went back to Hell, I was going to have to deal with this annoying woman who had possessed my body. Right now she had three things to do. Find Orthus. Make things right with Evan and save his soul. And kick the shit out of Ms. I-didn’t-do-anything-to-your-dog Bri.
I headed into the bedroom to take a warm shower and change out of my clothes. I eyed the bed that, of late, I had spent so little time in. Before I could make good on my shower promise, my cell phone buzzed. Thinking it was a text message, I flipped it open, surprised to find nothing. Instead, a little icon flashed in the corner. It was the weather alert system I had set up. Quite handy, the icon changed when the weather changed and buzzed to alert me.
The icon beeped steadily before the picture changed into a gray cloud with raindrops. Okay. Now I knew it was going to rain and I could dress accordingly. If I were heading outside. I tossed the phone onto the bed and went into the shower.
Twenty minutes later, I emerged from the warm bathroom, refreshed and in a happier state of mind. My phone buzzed as I neared the bed and I looked at the display. It was the weather icon. Again. This time, instead of a cloud with raindrops, it showed a…tornado? I frowned and scanned the history.
In the past thirty minutes, the weather had changed drastically. There were at least ten updates on the phone. I frowned again and turned on the TV. A somber looking woman stared into the camera, her dark hair whipping about her face. Behind her, a wall of gray obscured the landscape and a loud peal of thunder sounded over her microphone.
“I repeat. We are experiencing an unprecedented amount of rain for the season. So far, this is the first tropical storm that has made it anywhere near us and it is moving fast. Last night it wasn’t even on the hurricane charts and now it is expected to hit land in a few days. Very rarely do we see a storm gain strength this quickly. It is expected to hit hurricane strength winds by tonight. Once again, this is a warning for tropical storm Agatha. Stock up on what supplies you can and we’re probably going to have a tough time tonight here in Miami.”
I switched the TV off. I knew what was happening and it was my worst fear. I moved to the balcony and stared out at the gray squall moving quickly towards land. Orthus was awake. He was regaining his powers. And he was pissed.
I needed to find him and fast. Now that my dad knew where I was, I had no qualms about using additional magic. With a swipe of my hand I cleared the coffee table and filled a bowl with water. I would need it to channel my magic and use it as a scry. Most witches used crystals and candles, but I could get by with water. I placed the bowl of warm water on the table and went to work. I needed additional magical help.
I could have used the psychic I had contacted since she lived in the area, but I decided to let Bri have a taste of her own medicine. I pictured her in my mind. Dirty-blonde hair, hazel eyes and a touch of bitchy. I pictured her strength, seeing it surrounding her like an aura. Purple haze that I imagined flowing into me. I could see the purple diminishing as I drained magic from Bri. Since she took Orthus in the first place, it was only fitting that she helped find him.
The wind picked up outside, howling as it squeezed its way through a crack between the glass doors and the wall. I looked out to sea. The gray had darkened considerably and instead of a separation of sea and sky, it looked like a veil of gray water moving ever closer to land. I had to find Orthus today. Even now, he was getting stronger. I siphoned more of Bri’s energy, stopping just in time to avoid her passing out. She deserved to pass out, I thought angrily, thinking of Orthus. But I was not going to dwell on Bri. I had more important things to do.
I swirled a hand through the water, pouring a mixture of my magic and Bri’s into it. Instantly the clear water started to change. It became less transparent; an opaque backdrop with a pool of clear water in the center. I started to chant, my voice low in the darkened room. The wind picked up my chant and carried it around the room, effectively infusing my magic as a part of the room.
The noise grew as the wind increased from the quickly approaching storm. I continued chanting, increasing the tempo of my words. Latin was always difficult for me to speak, but I needed the words to be clear in order to be successful. The windows in the condo started to shake. Based on the beach, it was equipped with hurricane shutters and I would have to close them in a moment.
My hair stood on end as magic flowed through every part of me. Every strand of hair helped channel the strength I needed to find Orthus. I pictured his face, his dog form and his hellhound form, not sure which state he could be in at the moment. He may have started to shift back and could be any of a variety of different dog or hellhound combinations.
I pushed harder, allowing more of myself into the bowl. I could feel the strength flowing out of me and although it was not enough to buckle my knees, it was enough to make me take shallow breaths.
Suddenly, I saw him. In the midst of a hurricane, Orthus stood in his full hellhound form. He waved his hand at the ocean and in a moment, the city of Miami lay under the surge of water, powerful enough to break apart concrete, stone, glass and metal. Effectively destroying the city. I cringed and the image changed. Orthus still lay in his Chihuahua form, but much, much larger than the dog I had conjured. His eyes were a smoldering red; a sure sign that he was regaining his hell powers. I looked around the projected room, trying to find a clue to his whereabouts.
My strength start to ebb and I pushed harder. I felt the image getting clearer as I tried to virtually move around the room. The room lay empty. Light blinded me for a moment as it poured through the single window perched high on a wall. The room itself was small with white walls and a simple wooden bed. A wooden desk and chair, along with an armoire completed the room. Nothing to hint at Orthus’ whereabouts. I pushed again, projecting outside the room. A long hallway led to a set of steep narrow stairs and descended down into a darkened interior.
The balcony doors suddenly flew open as the wind reached a peak. Startled, I jump
ed, breaking my concentration and the link to the room. Before the connection in the water was lost, three images flashed into my head; a pair of feet crossed at the ankle and pierced with a nail, a white sandy beach and a stained-glass window of a man holding a quill in one hand and a book in the other with the words, “introduction to a devout life.” Then the image was gone.
The first part I knew. It had to be Jesus on the cross. But that in itself posed a few problems. One; was it a real church or was it a cross in someone’s home? Granted the building was large and basic enough to be a church, but there was the chance that it was not. Second, if it was a church, there was a big problem. As a demon, I really didn’t like churches. I could enter one, but I would not be able to cast any spells or use any of my powers. I would be powerless and defenseless.
The picture of the beach suggested that the church or building in which Orthus was being held was on the beach somewhere. But where? Was he even still in Miami? I hoped he was, but the beach could be anywhere. Bri had powers. She could have sent him to the Caribbean. He would still be able to affect Miami. Especially if he was in the Bahamas or Cuba. Even the Florida Keys.
The last image worried me. I knew very little of saints and popes. I knew the guy probably was one of the two; who else would be etched onto a glass surface? And if it were a saint, then the building I saw was probably a church. Only question? Which church? And how far away was it? I needed some help and I knew just the person to call. Too bad he still wasn’t talking to me.
*
“My soul, Helena? Really? My fucking soul? You tell me nothing about yourself but somehow, you promise my soul to your dad?” Evan stared at me, his muscular arms crossed high on his chest. His blue eyes pierced through me.
We sat on the sofa in his living room. Well, I sat on the sofa. Evan sat across from me and watched me suspiciously.
“It’s not what you think,” I tried to soothe him.
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