by Avery Rae
Besides, to me, Priscilla and Gael were living proof that demons could find our own weird version of happiness. Even right now, they were both glowing like they had been out there having the time of their lives. I wanted that.
But I was starting to suspect that was far too much to ask for. Especially when I considered they only got to be together because Priscilla had been murdered. As selfish as I was, I didn't want that for Hazel. That was a step too far.
Gael slung an arm around Priscilla's shoulders and gave Amberlynn's now-scowling face a grin. "Where you running off to?"
She made a noise of disgust. "Somewhere I won't get sick from watching you two suck face."
"We just got here," Priscilla said with a laugh. "How could you have possibly known we were coming?"
Amberlynn pursed her lips. "I'm psychic, but my frequency is specifically tuned to you two being all sickly sweet with each other."
"Well, gird your loins, because you're going to want to stay," Priscilla replied. "We found out something very interesting today. I promise, I'll resist showing affection to the love of my life if it bothers you so much. Well, the love of my afterlife, I guess." She snickered.
"That's all I ask." Amberlynn held her hands up in the air and backed away. "And stop with the corny humor while you're at it. Love of your afterlife. Girding my loins won't do shit for that."
"It just gets worse, trust me," Gael said with a sigh. "Don't waste your breath, it's hopeless."
Priscilla nudged him in the ribs with her elbow. "Anyway, we've been going back to the community center since it reopened. Just looking around a little."
She was talking about the community center where we had found a mass of dead bodies, sacrificed for the grand goal of pulling souls from Hell to wreak havoc on Earth. I guess. We had all the souls rounded up within a few hours and sent back to Hell.
Those people had died for nothing. Hazel had nearly died for nothing. The thought pissed me off. Some part of me hoped she had given up practicing whatever it was the Druids practiced. It wasn't worth it.
"So," Priscilla continued, "Gael and I have been scouting around any time we're hunting for souls here. We noticed that the employees of that community center were always carrying cups from the same café. Always."
Lucas knotted his brow together in a frown. "And that means what? They all like the same coffee place? It's probably just nearby."
"Yeah, that's the thing. It's not that close," Gael said. "We went to go check it out." Both Priscilla and Gael slid their eyes to me. "Imagine our surprise when we saw a familiar face there."
"One of the other hunters?" Lucas asked, unsure. I had a feeling they were talking about someone else. Someone close to me. It was only a hunch, but the laser focus they both had on me told me it was a good one.
"The girl you took home that night was there," Priscilla said, confirming my thoughts. "She went into the back and didn't come out."
"So what? She probably just works there," I replied. "It's not like I gave her the third degree, so I'm not sure why you're staring at me."
"You sure about that, Edwin?" Gael asked quietly.
I looked him right in the eyes and said, "Yes. Besides, she said she was a sacrifice, remember? The Druids probably sacrifice innocent baristas all the time. Why single her out?"
"She never said she was a sacrifice," Priscilla countered softly. "Nelson Kincaid said that while he was possessing her. Did she say anything to you? After?"
"Why would she? She just wanted me to leave her alone after I got her home. She was in shock." Fuck. I was scrambling. I sounded smooth, but I could tell they weren't buying it.
Lucas shifted his hulking form around on the couch before leaning forward with clasped hands. "Why are you two grilling Edwin like this? He doesn't even like anyone. Why would he help out some girl that makes our lives more difficult?"
"Well, y'know, he was acting kinda weird earlier." Amberlynn's eyes were on me. "Where did you even go all day? Cheri said y'all didn't find much of anything in your patrol area this morning. She's been back since way earlier."
"That's true," Cheri said as she appeared behind Gael and Priscilla, a finger tapping against her chin. "You told me you wanted to explore the city and got really rude when I asked to come. Although that's pretty par for the course."
"He's rude to you?" Amberlynn asked with a scowl.
She smirked. "Only when I dare to engage him in conversation. So, what's the big deal about this girl anyways?"
"She's a Druid," Gael replied, eyes on me. If he was hoping to see me flinch, he would be sorely disappointed. "One of the people making our lives miserable right now."
"Do you guys, like, wanna stop her or something? Why?" Cheri splayed out her hands and shrugged. "I mean, wouldn't we be out of a job if you stopped them?"
"If you'll remember correctly," Priscilla replied, "we're trying to do some good despite being hellspawn, so ideally, we would want our jobs to become obsolete."
"Oh, right." Cheri smiled so widely her eyes crinkled at the corners. Amberlynn was torn between staring at her bright smile and glaring at me, her expression twitching. That sealed it for me. She definitely had a crush.
"I suggest you guys reconsider. That girl was a nobody." I sighed and got to my feet. "Come get me when you're ready to go back down to Hell."
Priscilla and Gael shared a look that spoke volumes. Those two could see right through all of this, and that was bad news for Hazel. I was going to have to find a way to warn her without bringing more attention to her or myself. Good luck with that.
7
Hazel
Two days had passed since Abby volunteered us both to be sacrifices for the cause. I was pissed. I shouldn't have been—this was my sacred duty, after all—but I knew that I wouldn't die. I couldn't. I would have to watch my only friend in this world die right beside me. And she was so happy about the fact that she would get to die in a week.
She danced out of my kitchen with a freshly opened bottle of wine. It would be our second of the night, and we'd only been drinking for thirty minutes. I'd drunk most of it, downing one glass after another as I tried to drown out my thoughts. But even with my brain fuzzy around the edges, I couldn't stop thinking about how her face would look, contorted with pain. Just like my older sister.
"Hazel, you've got such a stick up your butt." Abby collapsed beside me on the floor with a giggle, dangerously close to sloshing wine all over my carpet as she missed the table. "You should be celebrating. This is your chance, and we get to do it together. I was so bummed I missed out last time, but hey, it worked out, right?"
I blinked at her slowly. She kept on saying that like it meant something. My chance. She had no idea how wrong she was. I was never going to get a chance. I watched numbly as she clumsily filled my glass. When she began pouring hers, I tossed mine back in three long gulps. Abby took a sip then stared into her glass, suddenly quiet.
"Do you miss your sister still?" she asked. I froze. Please don't talk about this. But she continued, "I'm a little worried that my brother and sister are going to miss me."
"They'll get over it," I lied. It came so quick and easy despite the fact that I knew it wasn't true. I'd been crafted into a perfect liar. Abby was, too. She likely knew I was lying. That wouldn't stop her from finding comfort in my words.
"Good," Abby replied quietly. Predictably. "I wouldn't want them to feel that way. They should be proud. I'm just . . . so happy it's finally time."
I toyed with my empty glass, my expression taut as I held back the tears stinging at my eyes. My sister had been just as happy as Abby was to be a sacrifice. In the end, she'd suffered the longest. She nearly held on as long as I did before suddenly collapsing into a heap, never to get up again.
"How would you prefer they feel, exactly? What do you want for them?" My voice was low, almost a whisper. I knew I should stop myself before I went too far, but I wasn't able to resist. "You want them to know a life of servitude and suffering for an ungr
ateful world? You want them to have to fend for themselves because their mother, father, and oldest sister are all dead?"
Silence.
I swiveled my cotton-filled head to look at Abby. She was staring at me blankly. "You can't say things like that," she replied quietly.
"We can't socialize either." I let out a humorless laugh. "But here we are. Because it's all bullshit, isn't it?"
Abby got to her feet. All her giggly drunkenness disappeared. She gave me a stern look. "I think you've had too much to drink."
She collected the glasses from the table and walked to the kitchen. As she disappeared through the doorway, I weakly called out, "just kidding," even though we both knew I had meant every word.
I sighed and slumped back against the couch. I was going to have to go calm her down before she went nuclear. She skirted the rules as much as I did, but she wasn't as honest with herself about it, so she always got nutty on me when I pushed too far. I sighed and pulled myself to my feet, wobbling in place on rubbery legs. Before I could even start walking to the kitchen, there was a sudden knock on my door.
Edwin? I hadn't expected him back so soon. If he even came back, that was. I was supposed to not want him to come back, but some part of me would always want him to be around, wouldn't it? I couldn't even trust myself. I stumbled over to the door and swung it open. A kind smile and a head of shiny, blond hair greeted me.
"You're not Edwin," I murmured. "What're you doing here?"
Flowers were suddenly thrust in front of me. I stumbled back in my confusion.
"Whoa." The flowers hit the floor in a crinkle of plastic as Nathaniel darted forward to grab my shoulders.
I blinked up at him. "I thought you weren't coming back until next week."
He suddenly looked shy. "Yes, well, I felt terrible for the other day. I shouldn't have left you with Edwin like that. He's far too dangerous."
"How do you even know him?" I blurted out. There was a distinct slur in my voice, but I powered on. "He didn't seem to like you very much either. Got any idea why that would be?" Beyond Edwin's obvious jealousy issues, that was. But I didn't need to say that. Nobody would've seen him in that moment and thought otherwise.
"No, I'm sure he didn't. It just so happens that we . . . work for competing companies."
"Edwin works for a company?" I grabbed Nathaniel's shoulder and rose up onto my tiptoes, dying for some tiny morsel of information. "What kind of company?"
"You should ask him about that."
I wilted. He wasn't going to tell me. Of course not. That would be far too easy, and my life was a series of never-ending challenges. My family. My friendships. My attempts at relationships. Even my slightly revenge-motivated crush, Nathaniel, couldn't stay honest with me for long. But that was what came from living a life of lies, wasn't it? Lies beget lies or something like that.
Even though I was still holding on to Nathaniel, I staggered to the side. He caught me again then gave me a long look, as if just now really noticing me. "Are you drunk?"
"Obviously."
"Hazel, who are you—" Abby stumbled out of the kitchen then came to a sudden stop, holding herself up with the door frame. She narrowed her eyes to slits. "Is he like an overly friendly door-to-door salesman or are you being held against your will?"
I quickly pulled away from Nathaniel, rubbing at my forehead as I tried to make my boozy brain think of an excuse. It wasn't doing so hot.
"Do I look like a criminal to you?" Nathaniel asked, clearly offended. "First I'm a serial killer, now I'm a hostage taker or worse . . . a door-to-door salesman." Nathaniel shook his head and rubbed at the back of his neck. "What sort of lives do you people lead?"
"Awful ones," I mumbled.
"Hazel," Abby hissed.
"Do I have some sort of look about me? Is that it?“ Nathaniel looked slightly self-conscious. "Do I seem like a bad guy or something?"
"Hey, evil comes in all sorts of packages, right?"
He gave me a half-smile. "Yes, it does, doesn't it?"
"So, y'know, you could be any of those things," I mused, my mouth running off without permission. "Good-looking people commit crimes too. Ever seen the mugshot of that guy who looked like an actual model?"
"Such a cutie." Abby gave me a crooked smile. "Nothing like a bad boy, right?"
Nothing like a bad boy. I snorted as Edwin's face flashed through my mind. I'd always had a feeling the reason why he never told me what he did for a living was because it was something bad. I still couldn't figure out why he and his friends had been at the community center that day, and it wasn't like he would tell me. So obviously I assumed the worst.
That should've been enough reason for me to be wary of him. But I wasn't. One might say living a life where I was taught to be prepared to die at any moment made me very far from risk averse. There was something about the rift between him and Edwin that gave me pause though.
It made me wonder what was really going on. Maybe I'd been dumb to let Edwin flit in and out of my life at his whim. Nathaniel radiated pure good, but what did that even mean? I sure didn't know. I definitely didn't know how or why he would have anything in common with Edwin—especially if that thing in common was me.
"So," Abby continued, lips pursed in thought, "if you're not robbing the place, who are you? Hot neighbor looking to borrow some sugar?"
I snorted out a laugh. "Abby, come on, leave him alone. He's just a friend."
Her smile turned downward. "You're not supposed to have friends."
I gave her a pointed look. "Yeah, but you're here, aren't you?"
"It's different when it's just us."
"What's going on, Hazel?" Nathaniel asked, looking between us. "What's she talking about? No friends?"
"Work stuff," I said with a hint of sourness in my voice. "We've signed some really tight non-disclosure agreements that make it hard to have friends."
If he wanted to keep secrets, so could I, even if it made my stomach do a gnarly flip. I already had to deal with Edwin lying to me. I wasn't going to take it from Mr. Nice Guy, too. I ran a hand over my face and sighed. I wanted this to be a fun, carefree night. But everyone seemed determined to ruin it. Including me.
"Abby, I think you should get a car home, alright?"
Her brows came together in the middle. "But I thought I was staying the night?"
"I think I had a little too much to drink. I just want to take a shower and sleep." My stomach flipped again. Truthfully, I only wanted to be alone with my thoughts. I looked to Nathaniel. "Thank you for the, um, flowers. Sorry they ended up on the floor."
"I'm glad you like them," Nathaniel said as he picked them up, straightening them within the plastic. His eyes followed Abby as she slunk away from us to get her phone and call a car. "Listen," he said, "I wasn't being completely honest about why I came here—although I do still feel bad about that."
I pressed my lips together. Oh, really? You don't say.
"I know you're a little out of it, but could we talk? I won't keep you for long." When he saw me hesitating, he added, "It's about Edwin."
I wasn't sure how productive a conversation partner I would be, but if he was going to spill the beans, I would try to listen. I waved him the rest of the way inside. "I'll put on some coffee. I hope this is worth ruining my buzz."
Once Abby reluctantly left and Nathaniel and I were alone, I was already starting to feel unfortunately close to sober. I'd always handled my alcohol a little too well. Everyone in my family did. We were sitting in the loveseat, drinking coffee from my faux-antique porcelain set. It was familiar and nice, despite everything. This was what we always did, nearly weekly, for the past month.
Just sitting here, drinking coffee and talking. Truth be told, I still didn't know what I was doing with him. Each and every time we met, I felt this irritating guilt in the back of my mind, like I was doing something wrong.
Despite what I told Edwin about him never being here and whatever, Nathaniel wasn't that much more of a fre
quent fixture in my life. Frankly, I wasn't sure I saw him as anything more than a friendly beacon of light to my little moth brain.
I was just so desperate to be around him. To bask in his goodness. It was probably unfair of me. I saw the way he looked at me. The way his eyes lingered where they shouldn't. He just brought me flowers in the middle of the evening, for Christ's sake. My stomach gave an angry churn. What's wrong with me?
"Hazel, I've been trying to avoid bringing this up for so long, but . . ." There was a moment of long silence, then Nathaniel sighed and said, "There's something very important you need to know about Edwin."
8
Edwin
As I stepped out of the portal from Hell and into the alleyway, the flaming hands of the souls that powered it grabbing at my clothes, I was greeted by the silence of night. It was hard to keep track of the time of day without a sun and a moon in Hell.
It was permanently overcast and crackling with thunder in the sky, although it never rained. The air was dry and hot, and flames licked at the trees. It was home to me now. Earth didn't feel quite right anymore. I didn't like staying there for long. I only ever stayed for Hazel. But that didn't get me much of anywhere, did it? Coming around every once in a while didn't earn me much credit with her. Yet here I was, still trying to save her.
And now, to make things worse, I had Gael and Priscilla breathing down my neck. They'd been keeping an eye on me the past couple days. Such a perfect little duo, working together to solve all of Hell's problems. I grimaced. I didn't blame them. They were doing the right thing. I just wanted to keep Hazel safe, and I wished they would back off from their little investigation.
I had finally managed to sneak away from them. I was here on Earth, hoping I could find and talk to Hazel in time to warn her to keep a low profile. At least, I told myself it was just because I had to warn her, but it didn't take a genius to know I was lying. What were Priscilla and Gael even going to do? Ask the Druids to stop? Politely? Maybe they would scare them away. I didn't know, and I didn't care to find out, because I didn't want to lose Hazel.
