Redemption - A Darla Gray Novel

by Tina Marshall

  Memories of her scent engulfed his senses saturating his cells. Unable to help himself he leaned in closer, his nose grazing across the silken skin of her cheek as he inhaled more feeding on her scent like a much needed drug. The erotic caress ignited her body creating a wave of blazing heat.

  “Well, well, well. What have we here?” His cheek glided across hers until his mouth found the softness of her skin. “You led me to believe you were dead all these years and yet here you stand. I wonder, what am I to make of that?” The words were spoken against her lips, his breath whispering across her skin. “Perhaps I made a mistake giving you immunity from my powers all those years ago.”

  “There are many things you should never have done all those years ago my Lord Beelzebub.” Mama Grace replied, her voice a breathy whisper.

  Detaching himself from her, Beelzebub drew her away from the wall and slowly circled the youthful woman leisurely perusing every inch of her body as he went. “Oh please such formality. Surely you and I have long past the necessity of titles? I can still recall a time when you called me by much more endearing names.”

  “As do I, but those times are long gone and any memories of them need to remain where they were - firmly in the past.”

  Beelzebub completed his inspection of her body coming to stand before her. His hand closed the distance between them and lovingly cupped her face. “How can anyone forget one’s action’s especially when they were so… pleasurable.”

  Mama Grace fought to remain still, staring back at the demon before her, wondering how she had been so blind to the obvious. Everything had pointed towards him being the one behind Darla’s planned abduction and it wasn’t hard for her to figure out why.

  This was after all the mighty Beelzebub.

  One of the original hierarchy demons, beaten in strength only by Lucifer himself and the only remaining general of the Enosh since the unprecedented demise of Leviathan. Not only had he fought at Lucifer’s side, he had also remained there right up until the fateful day when they had fallen from God’s graces in punishment for their crimes.

  With the Fallen’s arrival in hell, Lucifer had immediately taken it upon himself to assume the role of ‘Lord of the underworld’, swiftly deposing the many warring overlords that had attempted to rule supreme in the turbulent realm.

  Left to his own devises Beelzebub wasted no time in claiming the Northern territories along with the much coveted role as Lord of the Nephilim - the fiercely loyal highbred creatures that had aided in the attack on her house.

  Everything suddenly made sense to Mama Grace. Only someone with that much power would have been capable of not only diverting her visions but also killing the agents sent by God to retrieve Darla.

  Agents were ‘Thrones’, angels in their own right but not of the calibre of the ones that had challenged God. The Fallen ones had made up almost half of Gods warriors, an elite army that lived only to worship and protect. No Agent could stand alone against a Fallen.

  “So this is where you’ve been hiding all these years. Why did you leave?” Beelzebub’s warming smile and gentle spoken words did nothing to disguise his accusing tone.

  Unfazed Mama Grace stood her ground confident in the knowledge that he would never hurt her. “What choice did I have?” she asked incredulously. “He knew!”

  The demon caressed her neck, leaning in once more to indulge his senses with the intoxicating scent he knew so well. “I would have protected you.”

  “He would have killed us both and you know it.”

  Beelzebub stepped away all signs of affection withdrawn, a cold façade in its place. “I can still smell you inside there,” he sneered. “I much preferred your other appearance. This is all too… sweet for my liking,” he spat contemptuously.

  “It was not done for your liking Bee,” she said using a nick-name that very few would ever dare. “It was done so that I could…we… could continue living. So that I could follow my son’s life’s even if I could not be with them.”

  The sorrow in her voice almost made him regret his coldness towards her. This could not have been an easy choice for her, to abandon two sons whom he knew she adored. It was only her absence in her children’s lives that had finally made him abandon his search for her all those years ago. Nothing but that would have convinced him of her death.

  “You should have come to me; there would have been another way.”

  Mama Grace just shook her head slowly knowing the futility of that statement.

  “So who helped you? Who made all this possible, or need I even ask?” The coldness had returned to his eyes.

  Mama Grace could only stare knowing how much her answer would hurt him.

  “Ah yes, Michael! The great prince and most favoured of sons.” The level of vehemence in his voice alarmed her.

  Reaching out she caressed the face of the man she had loved so much that she had risked all for. “Bee, why are you doing this? You must know it can never work.”

  Turning his head to press his mouth against the palm of her hand the demon Lord closed his eyes, savouring her exquisite touch. “I want to go home.” he whispered, his voice raspy with emotion. “The ugliness of this world…it consumes me.” He sighed heavily. “I am so very tired; I just want to go home.”

  Mama Grace could feel the depths of his despair. This was a side to him she had never before seen. Bee was strong. Fierce! A born leader and a confident, passionate lover, but this… this was vulnerability, something she never would have believed possible had she not seen it with her own eyes.

  She reached out and brushed the golden dreadlocks that fell in soft rolls to his shoulders before sliding her hand around his broad muscular arms drawing him into her soft embrace.

  His response to her touch was immediate and fierce. “Leave us!” His command was met with instant compliance by the Nephilim.

  Burying his face in her neck his lips brushed the sensitive skin covering her gently pulsing vein and as his teeth grazed the delicate flesh a soft growl rumbled in his chest. “I have missed you so much.” His voice thickened in response to the rise of his passion.

  “Sshh.” Her body respond as it always had under the familiarity of his touch. Drinking in the sight of his beautifully handsome face, her fingers brushed across his broad forehead, mapping a path down his aquiline nose to caress the perfectly formed shape of his full ripe lips, lips that had provided her with pleasures in unimaginable ways. Following the line of his jaw her fingers spread up encompassing the high cheek bones which highlighted the wicked slant of his eyes.

  Hierarchy demons were notoriously well known for being exotically beautiful creatures, as dark and as sensuous in their beauty as angels were pure and reverent in theirs. But the features she now so lovingly caressed had once commanded a special place in her heart, a place she had kept guarded and secret for so long she had almost believed herself purged of such feelings. Sadly that wasn’t the case; with a burning rush of longing she leapt up claiming his lips with unbridled passion. Assisted by large hands which blazed a familiar trail down the length of her back, she felt him firmly grasped her ass lifting her tiny body higher in a bid for her to nestle closer to his large frame.

  Braking contact from his lips on a groan, Mama Grace showered his handsome face with erotic kisses slowly edging towards his ear. Taking the soft fleshy lobe between her lips she sucked hard before gently clamping it between her teeth, procuring a gutteral growl of pleasure from deep within the demon.

  Grasping a handful of her hair he dragged her mouth back to his, claiming it with such intensity that their teeth clashed together. His tongue drank deeply from her depths while he crushed her in his arms.

  Mama Grace moaned a response of her own, lifting her legs to wrap them firmly around his hips rocking the centre of her core against the hard evidence of his arousal.

  Beelzebub roared in approval, grinding his hips in a fevered response. Releasing her lips he trawled the column of her throat with fevered kisses.

&n
bsp; “Please Bee,” she gasped, her voice drenched with passion. “If I ever meant anything to you, give up this foolish quest of yours. God will never allow it to happen. It is pure and utter folly.”

  The instant the words left her lips Mama Grace knew the she had lost him.

  An angry snarl emanated from his chest and she felt herself slammed up against the wall behind them. His hands released their hold of her ass and sliding up the length of her body clasped her small breasts in a punishing grip whilst his mouth ground mercilessly against hers.

  Mama Grace knew him well enough to know that all his emotions had shut down; this was pure unadulterated lust driven by no more than a simple need for physical release and an underlying desire to punish. As quickly as their encounter had started it now stopped with Beelzebub abruptly releasing her and withdrawing to a safe distance across the room.

  “Maybe you could have waited until after before attempting to dissuade me from my course,” he hissed between clenched teeth.

  Shaken to the core, Mama Grace fought to regain her own composure realising how close she had come to sacrificing everything she had worked so hard for. Had she indeed waited until “after” as he had so eloquently referred to where their passion had been leading them, her seal would have been broken and her previous identity unleashed.

  Beelzebub was her weakness. He had been before and evidently still was now.

  “So tell me, does he know you still live?” Beelzebub asked casually apparently dismissing what had almost happened between them. Waiting for her reply he resumed the arduous task of picking his way through the deluge of destroyed furniture, swiping absently at suspended droplets, the motion causing them to disperse and fall to the floor.

  The seer knew exactly who he was revering to. “Do you think if he did I would still be breathing?” Her voice trembled slightly, the only residual effect of their encounter.

  Meticulously moving each and every piece of debris Beelzebub lifted a broken section of the table revealing another frozen figure beneath. Crouching low he studied Quinn’s immobile features more closely unaware of how Mama Grace had nervously caught her breath.

  Beelzebub considered her words. “Perhaps you judge him too harshly.” Something familiar about the prone man caught his attention. “Much has changed in the years since you...ran,” he continued cocking his head to study the frozen figure more closely his eyes narrowing at something he couldn’t quite put his finger on. “Perhaps you use that as an excuse to appease your conscience. Could it be that you prefer this charade of an existence over your own true nature?”

  Leaning forward he inhaled deeply absorbing and analysing the scent of the male. In an instant his gaze flew to hers wide with shock and astonishment. “Is this…?” He asked looking back once more at Quinn, searching for the signs he may have missed.

  Knowing that denying the truth at this point would be pointless- taking into account Beelzebub’s ability to identify most if not all species just by their scent – Darla gritted her teeth. “Yes.”

  Quinn’s true identity had been known to her from the very moment he had first sought her help in hunting a man by the name of Tristan Storm. The fact that he had not used his true name since the fateful day that changed his life so completely only served to convince her that it was a secret he chose not to be revealed. With a dark secret of her own to protect Mama Grace had never once questioned him on it. Confirming his identity now would feel nothing short of a betrayal of trust, regardless of the circumstances.

  “But we were led to believe he had died with the others.” Said Beelzebub wondering how he hadn’t immediately recognised the familiar resemblance to his father.

  “And I am quite sure that was his intention.” Mama Grace muttered beneath her breath.

  “Well, this certainly is turning into a day of unexpected surprises. Anything else you feel I should know?”

  Mama Grace relaxed as Beelzebub stood, moving his attention away from Quinn, resuming his scouring of the debris. But her relief was short lived as a satisfying smile settled across his face. Picking his way over to where Darla lay slumped against the wall, he quickly removed the chair which had obscured her features.

  Beelzebub stood over her inert body. “She’s a beautiful woman,” he remarked casually, seaming a little surprized.

  “More than you could possibly know. Bee please…” Mama Grace pleaded knowing her words fell on deaf ears.

  Crouching down on all fours he worked his way up her body, taking the time to savour her scent. Inhaling deep lungful’s of air he lingered above her face.

  “Mmmmm. Smell that innocence. You know it’s kind of funny; I’d always imagined that the purest soul would be that of a child or even a nun. This almost seems a waste.” Closing his eyes he inhaled again, absorbing the overwhelming essence of purity, overloading his senses with the intoxicating aroma. “Damn it’s been forever since I smelt anything even remotely close to this. It reminds me of home.”

  “Bee, please…. let her live. She has suffered more than most could even bear. She is everything that God had hoped for in mankind. Don’t destroy that for a futile quest. I’m begging you… please… reconsider. It’s not too late.”

  Beelzebub was before her, his exotic features contorted with anger. “Reconsider! Did God reconsider when he dealt out his punishment? No mercy was offered then and none shall be given now. When darkness falls tomorrow eve the prophecy will be fulfilled and I will finally return home. I would have loved for you to come with me, but it seems that it is not to be. And so here is where we part company once more.”

  The Lord of the Nephalim summoned his people with a snap of his fingers. The strange human-like creatures entered the room with their heads bowed low, humbled in what they considered to be the presence of greatness. “Take the human…and careful not to harm her,” he ordered gesturing to where she lay.

  Beelzebub waited for two of the Nephalin to gently lift Darla, removing her from the room. “Well, this is farewell my love. It seems we are constantly leaving one another behind. At least this time I will have my chance to say goodbye.”

  Clasping her face in his hands the demon once more drank deeply from her lips before gently releasing her, his touch leaving her shaken and breathless. Heading towards the damaged doorway he paused for one last glance. His eyes raked her body from head to toe in a smouldering look of stark desire, before he bestowed her with a fiendishly handsome smile.

  “We could have been amazing together,” he called, disappearing through the doorway, leaving her shaken and alone in the silence of the decimated room.

  Seconds later Mama Grace sank to the floor as the tears fell from her eyes; her heart aching for a lost love forever denied. Silently weeping she waited for Beelzebub’s power to slowly release its hold on her friends, knowing there would be no way to avoid the questions she had no great desire to answer.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  Quinn, having been the closest to the wave when it struck, received the full brunt of its force, leaving him to be the last to be released from its paralysing effect. The instant his body was free he leapt to his feet, fear, anger and adrenaline commanding him. Drinking in the surrounding chaos left in the aftermath of the attack he began to search, frantically checking off each companion one by one, desperate to alleviate that the gnawing pang of fear in his gut.

  Part of him knew the one face he sought most amongst the destruction was the one he wouldn’t find. With his rage steadily building with each minute she remained unaccounted for- he flew into action ploughing his way through the debris moving large pieces of furniture as if they weighed nothing at all.

  He was a man possessed. Not since the day of his family’s abduction had he felt such anguish. She has to be here! She had to be safe because the alternative was unthinkable.

  “She has gone.” The soft spoken words fell on deaf ears as Quinn continued searching.

  His sub-conscious mind refused to accept that she had been taken, her whereabouts
and condition unknown, her fate preordained and sealed. History was repeating itself all over again, dancing in the face of his pain and as before he was powerless to stop it.

  She has to be here!

  “Quinn… … sugar.” Maisey warily stopped a short distance from him, all too aware of his suffering. To risk touching him now would not only be reckless but dangerous also. Restrained fury emanated from him creating an almost tangible presence in the room.

  “Quinn honey, you have to listen to me.” Maisey pleaded. “They took her.”

  Unable to deny the obvious her words filtered through his rage and he stopped.

  From her close proximity Maisey could see the chords in his throat straining under his supressed fury.

  As Quinn’s clouded mind cleared bringing with it a fresh new insight, the chair clasped tightly in his hand flew across the room, slamming into the wall and shattering into pieces. With deadly purpose he stormed through the debris heading directly for Mama Grace, the resigned look on her face confirming what he had already guessed.

  “Who?” He snarled.

  Still drained from her own emotional encounter with the fallen angel, the waif-like young woman peered shakily up at him. Recognising the uncontrolled vibrations emanating from his tightly coiled body Mama Grace hastened to subdue him while there was still time. “Quinn you need to start thinking rationally and calm yourself down.”

  “Fuck calm! I. Said. Who?” His voice roared as he enunciated each word revealing the true level of his barely contained rage.

  Ripples of pulsing energy coursed through his muscles in undulating waves, signalling the beginning of his transformation. His supressed demon side -constantly held in check by his determination and self-loathing- now took full advantage of the situation to free itself.

  Knowing it was pointless to withhold the information, Mama Grace conceded and named the demon from her past. “Beelzebub. It was Beelzebub.”

  With a sharp snap of her fingers, her beloved cats- having only just begun to re-emerge since the beginning of the attack- suddenly vanished from sight.