I held Faith’s hand and rubbed it gently. “Jet told me all about what happened. I want you to know I was looking for you. I’ve been searching ever since I lost you.”
“I was too,” she said to me before turning back to Jet. “You passed on my message?”
Jet nodded. “I did. I told Everly everything you wanted me to.”
“Thank you. Not just for that but for… being there… when it happened.” She was too young, too small, too fragile to have to say those words. If I could have kept her in a tall tower and locked her away forever, I would have done. My precious sister, the last family I had.
“You are most welcome,” Jet said, a smile curling his lips. I had never loved him more than at that moment, seeing him talk with my sister, seeing the tenderness in his eyes, knowing he helped her when there was nothing in it for himself.
“Oliver was there too,” Faith continued. “He helped me when I realized I was… gone. He was so nice to me.”
Of course Oliver was there, I should have put that together myself much sooner. He always warned me away from looking for my sister. He knew she was dead and didn’t want me to find out.
I wondered if he would have ever told me or tried to spare me the knowledge forever.
It was better knowing but I still couldn’t hold it against him. Helping Faith wake up in her spirit body would have been so hard for him. He’d known her as long as I had, she was as much his little sister as she was mine. I instantly forgave Oliver. Together with Jet, I was grateful the two men in my life had looked after her.
Faith’s eyes suddenly grew wide as she shot me a panicked look. “What are you doing here? Did you die too?”
Where did I even begin to explain?
The truth was stranger than science fiction.
“No, Jet and I are alive. We came here on purpose. There is a demon keeping innocent lives here, causing all the ghosts back home to be trapped. We came here to kill that demon.”
Any curiosity she might have had was lost in the exhaustion and pain clouding her mind. Which was probably a good thing, the less detail she had the better. I wouldn’t want to overwhelm her with information she didn’t need to know.
“If you kill him, will I be allowed to go to Heaven?” she asked, her voice cracking on the last word.
I only had a theory to go off.
I didn’t want to make promises I couldn’t keep.
But if there was one thing I knew, it was that I would not leave Faith here. She was getting out of Hell no matter what happened. “You’ll leave, I promise.”
For the first time, she genuinely smiled.
Doubt briefly made its home in Jet’s eyes but I couldn’t share his fear. He didn’t understand how deep the bond was with my sister. I would walk to the ends of the earth for her.
I would go to Hell and back for her.
Faith’s head fell back onto the rock as she breathed deeply. She was wearing out, even from the short conversation. I had never seen her so lethargic and devoid of hope before. It was terrifying.
“You should sleep,” I started. “We’ll stay with you. We could use a break too.”
“You won’t leave?” Her voice was so small. So very, very small.
“I promise, we’ll both be here when you wake up.”
She nodded and shuffled back down to lay on the dirty ground. I rubbed her back until she fell asleep. Even a little bit longer after that.
“We should get some sleep, too,” Jet said, placing a gentle hand on my arm to get my attention. “We’ve been walking all day and we need to be strong for when we find Kostucha.”
I had no doubts about that.
Crawling to my sister’s feet, I joined Jet and we huddled together on the ground. Every breath I took brought more red dust into my lungs and soaked up the tiniest bit of moisture still clinging to my body.
I turned over so I could face Jet. We didn’t need to lay in each other’s arms for warmth here. In fact, even touching skin to skin felt far too hot. We lay next to each other instead, close enough that I could still see every inch of his beautiful face.
“We can’t leave her behind,” I whispered. The last thing I wanted to do was wake Faith. At least in sleep she could seek refuge.
“We won’t,” Jet replied, putting as much conviction into his words as I did.
He was on my side.
That meant more to me than anything else he could have said.
“Now sleep,” he added. “Tomorrow we’re going to kill that bastard.”
Perhaps I had dreamed Jet into existence.
Maybe Hell was tricking me by making me fall in love with him just so the devil could take him away again.
He seemed too good to be true.
I crashed deep into sleep with a smile on my face.
There was no difference between day and night in Hell. Every moment passed by with the same scorched heat and dryness that never changed.
When I woke up, Jet’s hand was resting casually on my back. He was sound asleep, reaching for me without conscious thought. I watched him for a few moments, trying to remember every part of him in case I never got to see him again.
His nose was pert and long. His chin and jaw were strong, masculine, and covered with beard stubble. I couldn’t see his eyes but I knew they were the darkest shade of brown possible, like two pools of deep water that someone could get lost in.
Every part of him was the pure definition of handsome, hot, and gorgeous.
I had to stay alive for him.
But the very notion seemed impossible.
Jet’s eyes suddenly blinked open, catching me staring. His rose colored lips twisted into a smile. “Creepy stalker.”
I pushed at his glorious bare chest. “You’re the one who followed me into Hell. If that doesn’t say desperate, I don’t know what does.”
He caught my hand and brought it to his lips, kissing each of my knuckles. I wanted to sigh and shudder with the feeling he was spreading through me.
If only things had been different…
“We should go,” I said, hating to break the moment.
He leaned onto his back and looked up at the sky. “God, I’m thirsty.”
“And hungry.”
“We should have brought food.”
“We bought daggers,” I pointed out. “We packed light.”
Jet let out a laugh, the action making his whole body move. He pushed himself into a sitting position. “Let’s get going then. The sooner we finish this, the sooner I can make you breakfast.”
It sounded so much simpler than it actually was.
Jet held out a hand and helped me onto my feet. Faith was still asleep, her little body unmoving except for the shallow rise and fall of her chest. I knew she was already dead, that she couldn’t die again, but all my instincts told me otherwise.
I went to crouch down to wake her but Jet stopped me. “She should sleep.”
“I’m not leaving her here, Jet.”
He bent over and scooped her frail body up into his arms like she weighed nothing. Her head lolled to one side as she sighed but did not awaken.
“I never said anything about leaving her behind,” he replied. “Let’s get going.”
My heart grew to a hundred times its size.
We started walking. The only guide we had were the large boulders. I checked over my shoulder several times, just to make sure we had actually travelled away from them.
Faith barely moved in Jet’s arms. She had to be weighing him down even with her slight frame but he never complained. He kept up a brisk pace with me, not once insisting we stop for a rest.
After hours of walking, my sympathy was pouring out for him. “I can take her for a while if you want a rest,” I offered. She could hang onto my back and I could piggyback her like we used to do when we were younger.
She wouldn’t giggle in my ear and tell me to go faster like she once did.
I swallowed the lump creeping up my throat.
“She’s fine,” Jet assured me.
“Well, if you want a break, let me-”
My words never got a chance to get out.
A loud rumbled started to shake the ground. The vibrations started at my feet and travelled up every inch of me. My teeth chattered, my fingers buzzed. Everything moved, making it feel like the ground was lurching in waves all around us.
Jet and I stood still, unable to take another step.
The air grumbled like thunder clouds were bumping together in an almighty fight to the death. The noise grew so loud I wanted to cover my ears.
“What’s going on?” Jet asked, to no-one in particular. He was gripping Faith close. She was pulled from sleep by the chaos, wrapping her thin arms around Jet’s neck and holding on tighter. Her face wore a million question marks.
I shook my head, wishing I had an answer. I gripped both daggers, one in each hand. I was ready and prepared to use them, no matter what was coming at us.
If Kostucha was picking a fight, then it was going to be the last one he ever took on. I would throw both weapons into his chest and pray it was enough to kill him.
He had picked the wrong girl to argue with.
All of a sudden dozens of lightning strikes hit the ground. The earth opened up, swallowing them in gaping holes. There was nothing in the air, not even a visible cloud, these were not naturally occurring storms.
I didn’t realize I had backed up into Jet until I ran into him. We stood together, united and ready for whatever was about to happen.
And, really, being in Hell it could be anything.
Dark shadows drifted toward us from all directions. They lingered just out of reach, threatening us with all kinds of unknown horrors.
I lunged at one, stabbing right through it. All it got me was embarrassment at thinking my dagger would actually do something to it.
The largest crack of thunder yet roared through the air, making all three of us jump. Faith buried her head in Jet’s shoulder, whimpering. I didn’t blame her. I wanted to do the same thing.
The dark shadows all conglomerated in one area.
They started joining together, taking shape.
Before I could comprehend what was happening, Lucifer was standing in front of us.
The devil himself had come to greet us.
Chapter Seventeen
I had seen depictions of the devil in books and movies. He was always portrayed as a creature far removed from anything resembling humanity. He would have horns and a pointed tail, eyes as red as the hottest larva.
They were all wrong.
He was much, much worse.
Lucifer stood on two legs but his arms wore cloven-hooves that looked like they belonged to a goat. He was easily twice as tall as a human male but he walked with a gait that looked like he might topple forward and run like a wild animal at any time.
His eyes were red. They glowed like coal embers, buried deep under his brow and seeing everything. I doubted the devil missed anything. Big or small, he was watching.
Always watching.
The horns on his head weren’t perfectly shaped into curves. They twisted into long points, sitting on either side of his head and resembled a bull more than a man.
But it wasn’t his horrible appearance that was the worst part of him. The devil wore an aura that made my blood run cold. It was like he could leach all the hope, happiness, and life out of a person. Like he could kill you if he got close enough and all it would take was a blink in your direction.
Every inch of me wanted to be as far away from every inch of him as possible.
Running would be useless. If he could manifest out of dark shadows, he could do anything. He would only have to send one lightning bolt our way and we would be struck down in an instant.
The four of us all stood in dead silence, assessing one another. I would have done anything to take Faith and Jet out of the equation. They didn’t deserve to be here, it wasn’t their fight.
It was mine.
And mine alone.
When Lucifer did finally speak, his voice echoed and whipped around us like lashes from a cat-o-nine tails. “You are here without my permission.”
Not exactly what I was expecting.
Jet opened his mouth to speak but I cut him off. Knowing him, he would throw himself into the line of fire just to save us. I wouldn’t let him do that.
“We didn’t know we needed your permission,” I said, somehow managing to keep the quiver from my voice. The last thing I wanted to show was weakness. For some reason I was certain the devil would thrive on that.
“You are in my domain, I rule Hell and everything in it. Yet you come here when it is not your time and intrude upon my trapped souls.”
“I’m sorry,” I started, taking a gamble of how to play out the situation. “I didn’t realize I needed your consent. Please grant it to us now so we may continue on our journey.”
His red eyes glowered at me. But at least I held all his attention. If he forgot about the others, I was doing my job. They didn’t deserve to be caught in the crossfire.
“And what does your journey entail?” he asked. When he breathed, the sound was labored like he growled each breath in and out. Like he had a fire in his belly.
“I am here to kill Kostucha.”
“The demon of hungry souls? Why would you do such a thing?” He appeared genuinely curious, if that was at all possible. It seemed ridiculous that I was holding a perfectly reasonable conversation with the devil.
Maybe I was still dreaming.
“He has caused the world to be unbearable,” I started to explain. “He took all our adults from us. We are dying because of him.”
“Ah, that’s right. He’s the reason I have so many souls in my domain now.”
“They don’t deserve to be here.”
His hoofed hands waved as he spoke. “That may be true but a soul is a soul. Once it is here, I claim it as my own. It matters naught how they arrive.”
Except for us, of course.
Because we were still alive.
He started pacing. Seeing him move was even more frightening, he appeared ready to spring at any moment. He was massive. My daggers would be barely more than a paper cut on his skin.
“So you’re here to kill Kostucha,” he repeated.
“Yes, I am.”
“And your… friends?”
“Were stupid enough to follow me,” I said levelly.
My comment elicited a chuckle from deep within his throat. “One of them is mine. Are you trying to steal her?”
“Merely keeping her company.” There was no way I would reveal she was my sister. No way on Earth. No way in Hell.
“And you really think you can kill the demon of hungry souls?” His eyes sparkled with amusement, mischief, and evil. They pulsated with the red light, making it difficult to keep looking at him.
“I’m going to try.”
My answer sent him into a new round of laughter. Wisps of smoke snorted from his large nostrils as if there was a fire in his belly. For a moment he forgot we were there while he was lost in his amusement.
Even though he seemed so relaxed and happy, the aura he gave off told the real story. Waves of unease and hopelessness rolled off him in full force, hitting us with every part of the dark emotions.
Every instinct still told me to run.
But there was no way to get away from him.
The devil was everywhere.
He finally had to catch his breath as his laughter subsided. The clouds of smoke still hovered around him, whispering upwards until they vanished all together.
Lucifer pinned me with his gaze again, narrowing his red eyes on me like they were lasers. “You are a very stupid girl.”
Somehow I didn’t think he was waiting for a response to that statement. I knew how stupid my plan was, as did everyone there. If he wanted an argument he wouldn’t get it from me.
“Tell me, stupid girl,” he continued. “Do you even know how to fi
nd the demon you seek?”
I wanted to say yes, that we were on our way to slay him and even Lucifer couldn’t stop me. But I figured he would be able to see straight through my lie.
Now wasn’t a time to play games. I would surely lose. People rarely won against evil and he was the epitome of the word.
“If I know him, he will come to me,” I finally replied. The demon already had my scent from when we fought. I had no doubt in my mind he would remember I was the one who had vanquished him to Hell and he would like to take revenge.
The devil nodded thoughtfully, his horns bobbing with the movement. “You really think he would bother himself with a mere human? You mean nothing to him.”
“I am the reason he is here.”
Realization hit as he snorted with delight. “Ah, this is all making sense now. What a treat for the demon. He will surely like a chance to kill you. Not that he has been unhappy here, we have spent many hours playing with the condemned souls.”
A shiver ran down my spine. Who knew what kind of special torture they had been inflicting on the innocent souls trapped here, their only crime being dying at an inopportune moment.
Faith whimpered in Jet’s arms behind me. I had hoped she would sleep through the encounter. I guess we couldn’t have been that lucky. Jet’s clothes rustled as he tightened his grip on her.
Lucifer continued, oblivious to our discomfort. “I would like to see what fun the demon of hungry souls would have with you. I’m sure it will be very… amusing. Would you like me to tell you how to reach him?”
It felt like a trap.
It even smelled like a trap.
But I needed to know. I did not want to lead Jet and Faith around the endless planes of Hell forever. “I need to find him. If you could help with that I would appreciate it.”
He seemed to think everything I said was a joke. To him, I was nothing more than a plaything, something to pass the time with until he was distracted by something better.
“Sure, why not? He could use some new toys. All you need to do is go ahead for one hundred paces and turn left. He will be waiting for you behind the three boulders,” Lucifer explained, making it sound so simple.
Too simple.
We Are Always Forever Page 16
