by Cara E Holt
SOUL SURRENDER
Book 3 – THE SOUL MARK SERIES.
CARA E. HOLT
Published by Cara E.Holt.
Copyright © 2018 by Cara E.Holt
No reproduction without permission.
All rights reserved.
License Notes.
This ebook is an original work of fiction. Names, characters, places and events are the product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons or events is purely coincidental. No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any manner without the written permission of the author.
Cover design by Fantasiacoverdesigns.com
CONTENTS PAGE.
CHAPTER ONE.
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE.
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN.
CHAPTER EIGHT.
CHAPTER NINE.
CHAPTER TEN.
CHAPTER ELEVEN.
CHAPTER TWELVE.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN.
CHAPTER NINETEEN.
CHAPTER TWENTY.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT.
CHAPTER ONE.
I guess I’d never wondered how one enters hell, because it was a place I never imagined myself going to. Lucifer walks ahead of me and a halo of fire opens up before us, making me stop still in my tracks. I had surrendered myself to the devil himself and there was no turning back.
“Please tell me you aren’t expecting me to walk through that?”
Lucifer turns around, his dark eyes burning into me. He wears a bored expression on his handsome face.
“Yes I am. I haven’t got time for this. You won’t burn I assure you.”
I laugh nervously. “Ha, forgive me if I don’t take your assurance seriously.”
He frowns, his dark brows almost meeting in the middle. “Walk.”
I am about to protest, when my feet move of their own volition, my brain screams at my limbs to stop moving forward. Damn him and his evil demon powers. As I near the circle of flames, I feel his hand at my back.
“Welcome to your new home.”
We pass through the flames and I think I forget to breathe. I wait to feel the heat lick at my skin and burn me. Nothing does happen though. I feel the heat of the flames surround me, but they don’t harm me.
We come out on the other side and we are on a high cliff top and when I say high I mean like dangerously high. I am not very good with heights, in fact I tend to go green and start to feel very faint. I step back into Lucifer’s chest, terrified.
I hear him sigh behind me. “What now?”
I point down towards the ground which is far, far, below. “Too high.” I can barely get my words out and my heart is galloping in a terrified frenzy at the thought of how high up we are.
He laughs then, a real belly laugh. If I was not too scared to move, I would turn around to observe the strange sight of the devil laughing. I feel his mouth at my ear.
“A winged goddess who is scared of heights. The irony.” His arms clasp my elbows as he moves us even nearer to the edge. “Take a look.”
I hesitantly stretch my neck and peek over the edge. My eyes widen at what I see. Below us, way, way down I see a sea of fire flames. “What’s down there?”
He steps us back slightly before he answers me. “Nothing, it’s just there for effect.”
I tentatively turn around to face him, but step to the side so I can move away from the cliff edge. “There are no tortured souls down there?”
He grins wickedly, his dark eyes sparking with humour. “No.”
I’m puzzled now. “Where do evil souls go then?”
He takes my elbow again and the landscape changes around us. In front of us is a huge glamorous looking mansion surrounded by rolling green hills. The house was the type you might see on some glamorous show like dynasty.
“Earth is hell. Evil souls are sent back to earth. They follow a life of hardship and suffering to help them become better souls who are worthy of heaven.”
I stop beside him, dumbfounded by what he is telling me. “So, an evil soul doesn’t come here? The phrase hell on earth is in fact the truth then?”
He sighs again, clearly bored with my questions, but I mean this was fascinating stuff. “Evil souls re-live life on earth over and over again until they cleanse their souls and are allowed entrance to heaven. There are those who despite, several lives on earth do not learn and yes, they come here. Some souls are too evil to be cleansed.”
I shudder thinking of the type of souls that after many lifetimes on earth have not earned their place in heaven. “So, if I said Jack the Ripper, would you know where he was now?”
The devil grins at me. “Oh, Jack was a very bad boy. Never did learn his lesson. He’s here alright.”
He starts to move again towards the grand mansion and I rush to keep up with him. “This place isn’t what I imagined it to be.”
He smirks. “This is my realm. I make it how I want it to look. My punishment from God for betraying him was that I would be banished here, and I would create my realm around Tartarus and be responsible for the punishment of those souls that cannot be saved.”
As we near the house the grand doors open inwards. I follow him inside into a grand hallway. White marble floors glisten and large ornate black chandeliers hang from the high ceilings. It’s surprisingly beautiful. No ceilings made from flesh or walls painted with blood thankfully. Okay maybe my imagination was getting carried away.
“Wow.” I state as I look around me in awe. “This is..”
“Unexpected.”
I nod. “Yeah, definitely unexpected. I expected some dark gothic castle.”
He smiles again. The devil smiling is a strange thing to see. “Welcome to my home.”
I follow behind him as he moves down the hallway. “I’d say thank you but seeing as you forced me here against my will and killed my friend, I’m not feeling overly grateful.”
He doesn’t answer me and continues to walk ahead of me.
“This son of yours, what is he like?”
“The one you are betrothed to? He is headstrong and goes against me at every possible opportunity. He also likes the company of humans far too much.”
“He sounds fun.”
We enter a large room that houses a grand fireplace with a roaring fire at its centre. On either side of the fireplace are two large red velvet sofas. A large grey fur rug covers the floor in front of the fire. Lucifer takes off his jacket and it simply disappears from sight. I compose myself and stiffly sit myself on the edge of the sofa opposite him. I clasp my hands together and place them on my lap.
“What now?”
He doesn’t answer me and pours himself a drink. It looks like red wine, but well I’m not even going to think about what else it could be.
“Now, I call my wilful son back home and you take your place by his side.”
A door over to the left cuts this conversation short and the most beautiful woman I think I have ever seen, glides into the room. Her long flame-red hair falls in loose curls down her back. She has ivory flawless skin that frames piercing blue eyes. She wears a fitted black dress that clings to
her curvy body, like a second skin. She walks behind the sofa that Lucifer is sat back on and from behind him, slips her hands around his neck and kisses his cheek.
“Darling, it’s good to have you home.”
Lucifer pats her hand where it rests on his chest. “We have a guest.”
Her two eyes lift then and meet mine. She examines me with interest and walks round the sofa to come and stand before me.
“Erm, hi. I’m Ebony.” I offer nervously. Her beauty makes me feel very small and insignificant.
“Lilith.” She announces as she offers me her hand. Awkwardly, I stand and take her hand and give it a very gentle shake.
“Lilith, as in THE Lilith?” I ask, my curiosity getting the better of me.
She flashes me a wicked grin and winks. “In the flesh.”
I nod and gulp. Stood before me is the mother of all demons. Lilith is the supposed first wife of Adam. She turns her back on me then and walks over to Lucifer and takes a seat beside him. He places a possessive hand on her leg.
“She’s too sweet for that son of ours.” She tells Lucifer. She takes his drink from him and takes a drink herself.
Lucifer smiles in response. “She looks sweet, but she has fire. I think she will do very well for him.”
I shuffle uncomfortably in my seat. Having the devil and Lilith sit and talk about you like you are not there is unsettling.
Lilith continues to observe me from where she sits. “She is beautiful though and he certainly likes beautiful girls. I’m intrigued to see how this plays out.”
“I’m mated you know. Did he tell you that?”
She cocks her brow in question at Lucifer, making it clear that she indeed did not know. “So, who do you belong to my child?”
I sit up straighter and try to look more confident than I feel. “My mate is the prince of the unseelie realm of Fae.”
“Ah.” She smirks. “The dark haired handsome prince.”
My eyes snap back to meet hers. “You know of Lorcen?”
She smiles a slow wicked smile. “I make it my business to know about all beautiful creatures.”
I stiffen when she refers to my mate as a creature. “I love him. I will never love another.” I tell them both firmly. I want to make it clear that whilst I may have accepted my fate here, I will never accept another as my mate.
Lilith laughs then, a silky laugh that floats on the air. “We’ll see. You haven’t met my son yet.” She turns her gaze from me, and placing her hand on Lucifer’s chest, turns her attention back to him. “Does he know she is here yet?”
He shakes his head in response. “Is he home?”
Lilith sighs sadly. “No, as usual, he is the human realm.” Her displeasure about this is clear in her tone.
Lucifer strokes her cheek tenderly, as if offering her comfort. “Call him home my love.” He stands then. “I have some business I need to attend to with Mammon. Have her ready.”
“Innocent or sultry?” She asks him, eyeing me like I am some pet project. I’ve seen a familiar look in Taylor’s eye right before she dresses me up for a night out.
“Innocent.” Lucifer replies as he leaves the room. “He’s had sultry by the bucketful.”
“Wait!” I shout, which causes him to pause at the door. “When can I see my Father?”
I see Lilith raise an eyebrow in question at Lucifer and an unspoken conversation seems to occur between them.
“All in good time.” He replies and with one last look my way he leaves.
Lilith stands and claps her hands together. “We have work to do.” She stands and gestures for me to do the same. I stand and she comes and links my arm through hers and guides me out of the room and up a large grand staircase.
“So, you and Lucifer are a couple?”
She laughs and pats my arm. “He is my mate. He is the reason I was banished from Eden. He gave up his place beside god to be with me.”
I nod, taking it all in. “Is the apple story true?”
She smirks in response. “Of a fashion. Lucifer was my apple. God sent him to test me, to see if I would be true to Adam. When I saw him, there was no choice for me. Lucifer was supposed to return once I had accepted his advances, but he refused. He wanted me and God would not allow it. He gave him a choice, his place beside him in heaven or me and to be cast out forever.”
“He chose you.” I say in awe. Lucifer chose a woman over his place in heaven as god’s right-hand angel. I stare open-mouthed at her like some idiot. This stuff was fascinating.
“He did, and we were both damned and here we are an eternity later.” She guides me into a room that resembles a modern version of a roman bath house. In the centre of the tiled room is a bath sunken into the floor. Well, I say bath it is more like a small pool.
Lilith gestures to my clothes. “Take them off.”
I look from her to my clothes. “Take them off?”
She rolls her eyes at me. “Well you can’t bathe in your clothes.”
I continue to stare at her and she sighs. I feel a chill pass down my spine and gasp when I look down to see I’m completely naked. I hastily cover my breasts and lady parts.
“Get in.” She tells me, gesturing with her head at the pool behind me. I do as I’m told and turn and walk down the steps into the pool behind me. It is delightfully warm and inviting. I close my eyes and rest my head on the edge of the pool.
My eyes flash open when I hear the water splash and I back up against the edge of the pool when I see three naked women joining me in the pool and coming towards me.
“Woah!” I say, holding a hand out to stop them coming any nearer. “Who the hell are you lot?”
I hear Lilith’s melodic laugh from behind me. “Relax. They are here to wash you.”
I twist my neck to tell her I can wash myself just fine, but she has vanished from the room, leaving me with three naked demon women. The three women descend on me and begin washing me with soap and linen cloths. One washes my hair, whilst the other two wash my body. I almost lose my shit when one starts to shave my legs, but she is insistent, so I begrudgingly allow her to continue. Although if she tries to start shaving my downstairs area, she would get a smack in the mouth. I presume we are done a short while later when they silently leave the water and offer out a large towel for me to step into. I do as I am bid and allow them to dry me. They never speak to me, never make eye contact. I observe them as they dry my body. Somehow they are now dry and in clothes. All wearing black fitted dresses. They look a little older than me, maybe nineteen or twenty. All three of them have long blonde hair and red demon eyes.
“Do you live here?” I ask the one to my right. I wait for her answer, but she does not reply and it is as if she has not heard my question. I am covered in a black satin nightgown and ushered out of the room into another grand room that houses a large ornate four-poster bed. I am guided over to a dressing table, where they begin to dry my hair and paint my nails. Taylor would love this. It was pampering at its best. Me on the other hand, I just felt wholly uncomfortable.
“Are you not allowed to speak to me?” I ask the girl who brushes my hair, my eyes finding hers through my reflection in the mirror. Again, I get no response.
Another half hour of being pampered and preened they stand me and place me in front of a mirror. They have done my make-up and styled my hair into lose curls. They place a ring of red roses on my head. I protest when they try to remove my robe, but my protests go ignored and I am left stood naked apart from the ring of flowers on my head.
I jump when Lilith appears from nowhere behind me and she examines my reflection.
“Excellent work. You are dismissed.” The three girls silently leave the room.
“Are they not allowed to talk?” I ask as I watch them leave.
“They talk, if they are commanded to.”
I frown, puzzled. “Only if they are commanded to?”
She nods as she takes a lock of my hair and plays with it in her hand. “They are lesser
demons.” She offers no further explanation than that. “Now. What to dress you in?” She steps back and examines me, tapping her chin, deep in thought. A dress of white suddenly covers me it is long but fitted, with a deep slit up one leg.
“Not pure enough.” She announces and before my eyes the dress changes on me. I am now stood in a white dress with a red floral pattern. It is off the shoulder, gypsy style and shirred around the chest area. It falls loosely to my ankles and has a split up the right side. Red kitten heels appear on my feet.
She admires my reflection in the mirror and looking pleased with herself, announces we are done.
“I think you are ready to be presented to my son.”
“Can’t wait.” I tell her somewhat flatly and this earns me a cold look from her.
“You have been chosen to be the mate of a royal prince of this realm. You should feel honoured.”
I sigh and look at her through the mirror. “How would you have felt? If you had been unable to choose Lucifer and made to stay with Adam?”
A look of displeasure crosses her face briefly before her gaze hardens again. “In time you will forget.”
She gestures for me to follow her and I fall in place behind her as we weave down yet more lengthy hallways. We eventually come to a set of doors and I jump when I hear a glass smash against the door we are stood in front of. Lilith puts a finger to her lips and gestures for me to be quiet.
“I don’t need a mate, how many times do we have to have this conversation?” I hear a deep male voice shout angrily.
“You will take a mate and it will be the one I chose for you.” Lucifer bellows in response. “They are here, so I suggest you reign in that defiance of yours.”
Lilith takes my hand in hers and pats it, as if trying to offer me some reassurance and she opens the door and guides me in behind her. We walk into what appears to be an office. A large black desk dominates the room. Lucifer stands behind it, looking mightily pissed off. My eyes hesitantly turn to the other man in the room. He is facing away from me, one hand on the fireplace, his face fixated on the flames.
“Son.” Lilith says in warm but warning voice. “Show some manners and come and meet Ebony.”
