“What did you tell him?” he asked.
“I couldn’t turn my back on Kasey,” I replied. “It’s not his fault my dad’s a jerk. If he’s going through something, I need to help him. My dad tried to guilt trip me into heading down to his place today, but I told him he needed to come here.”
“Good,” I told her with a nod. “I’m not sure I trust him. He clearly doesn’t have your best interests at heart.”
“There’s nothing to worry about,” I assured him. “My dad is annoying, but he’s harmless. If anything, he’s too lazy to be a danger to me. I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up canceling his appointment or doesn’t show up at all.”
Lucifer mulled over what I’d said. He didn’t seem thrilled with me seeing my dad. “When is his appointment?”
“Tomorrow at eleven,” I replied.
He nodded. “I’ll be there.”
“You can’t be in the room when I’m working with Kasey,” I reminded him.
“I’ll sit in the waiting room with your father,” he announced with an evil grin.
“Okay,” I agreed. “Just don’t upset Kasey.”
“You aren’t worried about me upsetting your father?” he asked.
“Nope,” was my reply. “You can upset my dad as much as you want. He’s not my patient.”
“This should be fun,” he said with a laugh.
Chapter 85
Lucifer
I wasn’t happy about granting Beatrice’s father entrance into my realm. The self-absorbed bastard hadn’t been there for Beatrice, and he’d forced us to endure that horrible council meeting. Sadly, that wouldn’t be the last meeting I would have to attend. Beatrice was a witch, and she couldn’t always avoid council meetings. Thankfully, she seemed to despise them even more than I did.
“I wonder if he’s even going to show up?” she mused as she moved around the waiting room, rearranging the various toys she had for the familiars. It was obvious she was nervous.
“You don’t have to do this,” I told her. “We can deny him entrance to the demon realm, and he can look for a different therapist for your mother’s familiar.”
“I don’t know of anyone else who does this,” she admitted. “I’m sure there are others, but I wouldn’t know where to refer him. Besides, he doesn’t have the money to pay a therapist even if I can find one for him. As much as I hate seeing my dad, this is the right thing to do.”
I was about to argue when my phone rang.
“Give me a minute,” I said before answering the call. “What’s going on?”
Rainer would only be calling me if there was a problem. He knew I wanted to stay close to Beatrice for her father’s visit.
“There was an angel spotted in the lower detention area. Shortly after I got the call warning me of the angel’s presence, several riots broke out. Some of the prisoners are using angelic weapons,” Rainer explained.
I cursed under my breath. When I found the angel fucking with my realm, I’d clip his wings, and I didn’t mean metaphorically. “I’ll be right there.”
When I ended the call, I found Beatrice watching me. “What’s going on?”
“There is rioting in one of the detention areas that appears to have been caused by an angelic visitor,” I explained as calmly as I could manage. “I’ll be back as soon as possible.” Leaving Beatrice with her father seemed like a bad idea, so I hesitated.
“Just go and take care of things,” she pushed. “Being around my dad will suck, but I can handle this on my own. I’ll be working with Kasey, so I won’t have to talk to my dad much.”
I moved forward to give her a quick kiss. “If you need me, call. If I don’t answer, call Hades.”
“I’ll be fine,” she assured me.
As I hurried off to deal with the riots, I had the strangest sense of foreboding. I tried to shake it off, reminding myself that there was no reason for me to worry. Beatrice would be fine. She could handle her father.
Chapter 86
Beatrice
I was beginning to believe my dad wasn’t coming when he finally called. Looking down at the phone, I considered ignoring his call. I didn’t want to see him. My life had changed a lot since my parents had moved out of the area. I was happier and more confident. Kasey was the reason I answered the phone.
“Are you on your way?” I asked.
“I’m at the elevator,” he replied. “My girlfriend is with me. I hope you don’t mind.”
His girlfriend? I had a hard time picturing my dad with a girlfriend. He’d always seemed to prefer his own company. Then again, it could be that he hadn’t wanted the company of his family.
“I do mind,” I bit out. “This is an appointment for Kasey, not a date for you and your girlfriend.”
“Are you honestly going to take your jealousy out on Kasey?” he demanded.
“Jealousy?” I asked.
“Yes,” he replied. “You were always needy. Can’t you just get past all that and let me be happy? Everything can’t always be about you.”
I opened my mouth to point out that, in his world, it had never been about me, but I decided against it. He wasn’t worth my effort. I’d see Kasey today, and then I’d tell my dad he needed to find someone else. I’d even pay for the appointments to avoid seeing him again.
“The elevator will be opening soon,” I began, trying to keep the irritation from my voice. “It will let out inside my waiting area.”
To avoid problems, this elevator only allowed my patients to travel between those two points. It was safer if we didn’t allow others access to Lucifer’s main elevator. The rest of Lucifer’s home was also inaccessible to my patients and their witches. The powerful wards on my office only allowed a few people to enter the waiting room using the door from the hallway. Most had to use the elevator to the waiting room.
“I can’t wait for you to meet my girlfriend,” he said before ending the call.
It seemed I would not only get the pleasure of my dad’s company but the woman who was foolish enough to date him. I could do this. They’d only be here for an hour, at most. I pulled out my phone and scrolled to Lucifer’s number before realizing how ridiculous it would be to call him for something like this. He was dealing with riots. I could complain about my dad later.
Walking out into the waiting room, I waited for the elevator doors to open. When my father and his girlfriend stepped out of the elevator, I knew something was wrong. I hit the screen to call Lucifer and then set the phone, screen down, on an end table.
“Where’s Kasey?” I asked.
The woman beside my father laughed. Even in heavy makeup and a cheap wig, I could tell she was a demon. The man standing before me wasn’t my father.
“Kasey’s at home,” he replied with an evil grin.
“And where is our father?” I asked Desmond.
“Dead,” he replied. “I’d planned to get to you at that meeting. The stupid angel said he could make it happen.”
“Angels are worthless,” the demon scoffed. “Well, not totally worthless—he’s doing his part now.”
“Poor, stupid Beatrice,” my brother crooned as he changed to his own form. “You were a fool for betraying me. Now, you’ll pay the price for your stupidity.”
“What’s your plan?” I asked, trying to keep him talking. Like the villain in a lame superhero movie, my brother loved to pontificate about what a genius he was. “Are you seriously going to try to kill me in Lucifer’s home? That seems suicidal.”
“I’m not going to kill you today, Bea,” he assured me. “I want to spend hours making you beg for death before I kill you. That will have to wait. You’re finally worth something to me. Who would have guessed you’d ever be worth anything?”
“You’re the bargaining chip we need to get Lucifer to surrender to us,” his demon friend added with a smirk. I remembered hearing Lucifer say her name was Zareya.
“Do you honestly think someone as powerful as Lucifer is going to bargain with you for me?
” I asked. “He can have any woman he wants. I’m nothing more than a passing fancy for him.” This might be a bad move. If my brother thought I was useless to him, he might just try to kill me. I had no intention of making that easy for him. I also couldn’t allow Lucifer to negotiate with Desmond. My brother was planning to kill me, no matter what deal he made with Lucifer.
Desmond laughed and shook his head. “I was at the council meeting, so I know how much you mean to Lucifer. You’re his weakness—the one thing that can bring him down—and we intend to exploit that weakness.”
“You’re a fool,” I accused. “Why didn’t you run when you had the chance? Why return to Hell?”
“Why would we run?” Zareya asked with an evil laugh. “Then we’d have to live our lives in fear. No, we won’t run. We’ll rule Hell after we destroy Lucifer.”
“Beatrice!” Rave’s shout from outside the waiting room door leading to the house interrupted us. The other Hellhounds joined him in calling for me.
“Go away, you annoying mutts!” Desmond shouted when he heard their yips.
“Don’t talk to them that way,” I hissed.
“Still feeling tough, Bea?” Desmond sneered. “Maybe I should let Zareya slice you up a little and see how tough you are. We can’t kill you, but we can hurt you really badly.”
Chapter 87
Lucifer
“I can’t believe the bastard was this careless,” I muttered.
It hadn’t taken us long to deal with the riots. The demons involved didn’t have any idea how to use angelic weapons, making them mostly useless. It had also been easy to identify the weapons as Gabriel’s.
“I was right,” Hades gloated.
Now wasn’t the time to point out that he’d been more convinced Azrael was to blame.
“Gabriel isn’t this stupid,” Xavier argued. “He wouldn’t bring weapons with his name engraved on them to start a rebellion in Hell. Whoever is involved knows we’re going to have to get angels to collect these. Gabriel would know this. Even if he’s bored, he doesn’t want to get kicked out of Heaven.”
“I agree,” I told them. “Gabriel isn’t the one causing problems. Someone set him up.”
“Such a smart traitor.” When I turned toward Michael, I found him regarding me with a sneer.
“Why isn’t this a surprise?” I asked under my breath.
“It shouldn’t come as a surprise,” Michael snapped. “You’re a traitor who should have been dealt with centuries ago. Banishing you to another realm—one where you can live like a king—isn’t a punishment. You must be destroyed.”
“And to do that, you’re going to challenge me, in my realm, surrounded by my people?” I asked. “You’ve lost your mind, Michael. The demons didn’t even know how to use the weapons you gave them, so you have no back up.”
“Do you honestly think those expendable demons were the extent of my plan?” he asked.
My response was a bored shrug. It was best if I didn’t show any reaction with Michael.
“You don’t want to see your little witch die, do you?” he asked with a sneer.
“Stay away from Beatrice,” I ground out. So much for hiding my emotions.
He laughed at my reaction. “When I saw her, I knew she’d be your downfall. Admittedly, I had trouble seeing the attraction. She’s not much to look at—far too skinny. And a witch? I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that you’d fall for a witch. You’re not the angel you once were.”
He was baiting me, but I wasn’t going to give in. Momentarily allowing my composure to slip had been a mistake—one I wouldn’t repeat.
“What do you want, Michael?” I demanded.
“The fight I have longed for since the day you were cast out,” he hissed.
“We fought,” I reminded him. “You would have lost had we been allowed to continue.”
“You would have been the one to die,” he insisted.
I was beginning to understand what had driven Michael to this level of insanity. He wasn’t trying to take over Hell. Michael wanted a fight to the death. It had been what we’d expected during my failed rebellion. A prideful fool looking to prove himself, I’d wanted to defeat Michael. My reasons for the rebellion had been complex, but my fight with Michael had been a pissing contest. We’d been stopped from killing each other, and I’d moved on. Michael, apparently, hadn’t.
“So, that’s what this is about?” I asked with a smirk. “You want to challenge me?”
“I want to destroy you,” he bit out. “You’re a traitor whose very existence is an insult. Once I’ve killed you, I plan to destroy the world you’ve created and all the abominations in it.”
“You’ve lost your fucking mind,” Xavier accused.
“You are a disgusting half-breed!” Michael hissed. “You’ll be among the first to die.”
“Does the demon helping you know you’re planning to kill her?” I asked, hoping to get some information on where Zareya and Desmond were.
“Once she’s dealt with your witch, I’ll destroy her, too,” Michael added with a gleeful smile.
“I’m not going to sit here playing games with you,” I practically growled before turning to leave. I needed to get to Beatrice.
“If you walk away from me, I’ll make sure your witch is dead before you can get to her,” Michael warned.
Chapter 88
Persephone
Hades was late, which meant I was going to be late for work. I’d already called to let Julia know my situation, and she’d been understanding about the whole thing.
I was cleaning up the kitchen to distract myself. Actually, I was considering eating another zellafruit. I’d already had two for breakfast. There was only one left, but if I had to wait much longer for Hades to take me to work, I’d have no choice but to eat the last one. I might even risk going to work blue again and eat the skin.
The Hellhounds raced into the kitchen and surrounded me, barking like crazy.
“I don’t have any chocolate,” I told them, but they continued yapping at me. “What do you want?”
The Hellhounds really annoyed me. It was a strange reaction since I like everyone and everything. I love all animals, but these little beasts usually brought out the worst in me. Of course, I felt bad about my reaction and ended up spoiling them to make up for it. I was tempted to lock myself in my room and turn the music up to drown out their yapping, but they seemed worked up over something. They kept racing to the stairs and then back to me again. It could be a trick. I wouldn’t put it past them. I decided to follow them, partly to distract myself from the zellafruit.
“Fine,” I told them. “What do you want me to see?”
They raced up the stairs and down the hall. As we neared Beatrice’s office, I began to worry. She might have fallen and need help. I heard the shouts as soon as we reached the door.
“Quiet,” I told the Hellhounds. “I need to hear what’s going on in there.”
The little monsters quieted down, and I listened as Beatrice argued with a man and a woman. I only caught a few words here and there, but the one that stuck out most was Desmond. Her brother was in there with her.
“We need help,” I whispered, taking my phone out of my jacket pocket. There weren’t many people who could help. It wasn’t as if most people could enter Lucifer’s home. I was surprised Beatrice’s brother had managed to get in here.
Moving away from the office to avoid being overheard, I dialed Hades’ number since it was the only one I had. My call going to voicemail was almost enough to make me use a very unpleasant word. I didn’t use the word, but I thought it.
“Hades, this is Persephone. Beatrice is in her office with her brother and a woman. There may be more people. I’m going in to help her. It would be nice if you could send help. Thank you.”
After ending the call, I looked down at the Hellhounds. Their little mouths were open slightly, and their eyes were wide.
“There’s always time to be polite,” I told them. They
shook their heads. I wasn’t sure if they were disagreeing with me on the importance of being polite, or if they were surprised that I was going to help Beatrice. “I’m the only one here to help Beatrice.”
One of them let out a little growl.
“Don’t get snippy with me,” I warned. “You can’t even get in the office if I don’t open the door. Of course, it was rude of me to say it that way. I’m glad you’re here to help with the fight. Let’s go help Beatrice.”
Chapter 89
Beatrice
Desmond was obviously playing games with me. He wanted me afraid so he could feel powerful. Hurting me was his end goal, but he wanted me cowering in fear first. His frustration at my bravado was obvious. It wasn’t that I didn’t fear my brother. I’d simply rather die than admit that he had that kind of power over me.
Stalking closer to me, Desmond asked, “You think you're tough now that you’re Lucifer’s whore, don’t you?”
When the door burst open, it was enough to distract my brother. I took advantage of his distraction by slamming my fist into his jaw. He staggered back, but before he could react, Zareya was in front of me with a knife in her hand.
“Stupid bitch,” she snarled.
“I am sick and tired of being called stupid,” I growled. It wasn’t smart challenging a demon with a knife, but I was seriously pissed. I wasn’t about to let these two win.
Persephone hurried into the room, but when the Hellhounds tried to enter, the spell protecting the office sent out a blast that knocked each against the far wall in the hallway. Aside from keeping my patients from entering Lucifer’s home, the spell also kept the Hellhounds out of my office so they wouldn’t harm my patients. Their angry growls continued from outside the door.
“This is the big rescue?” Desmond asked, gesturing to Persephone and the Hellhounds in the hallway. “Four mutts and a redheaded bitch?”
Persephone’s lips curled into a pleasant smile. “You must be Beatrice’s brother.”
Undeniably Hellbound Page 27
