Trust.
“Eve,” he growled dangerously in her ear. “Help… me.”
Chapter 39
Lucifer’s body trembled on top of hers. She submitted. In this pack, Lucifer was Alpha and he needed to remember that. Whatever just hit him, its intensity was subsiding and he was grateful. A blur of fur came into view and Lucifer wished he was strong enough to push the wolf away.
But he coaxed the wolf closer instead.
Lucifer’s mouth watered. His bones ached. The vibrations he felt lately were stronger now. Like someone was trying to ring his goddamn church bells, the Devil’s bones quivered and quaked with this incessant buzz.
“Eve,” he’d growled in her ear. “Help… me.”
He needed to find his center again. He needed his pack. “Help me… get back into… Hell.”
Lucifer crawled off her back. I’m a monster. He’d tackled her down to the ground. I’m a beast. His dick was rock hard and he couldn’t breathe. The air felt like it was biting him.
This was a mistake.
He tried to say that minutes ago and didn’t have the capacity to finish his sentence.
This was a mistake. Knowing how unstable he was, coming into the human world put everyone at risk. This was the worst decision he’d ever made in his entire life.
This was a mistake. Lucifer was a selfish, prideful Angel who was no better than Michael. In thinking he was doing the right thing for the world, he put those he loved at great risk of being harmed or killed.
That’s what broke him. Lucifer wasn’t putting himself on the chopping block… he’d essentially lined up everyone he cared about to stand with him and become targets. His Hounds. His brothers. His woman. The innocents, and witches. The mediums and Gatekeepers. Hell, even the Loa and Crossroads demons…
And baby Evelyn.
They were all in danger now.
This was a mistake.
When Lucifer came here and hadn’t found Eve in the house, his paranoia – a weakness that had him abandoning his brothers and Hounds in Hell – kicked up a notch. When he saw Eve in the yard talking to someone, his protective instincts nearly had him jumping over the railing and ripping apart the trespasser with his goddamn teeth. When that false threat drove off, something wicked flared within the Devil and he could barely catch his breath with how it sliced his insides. While Eve lectured him about trust and submission and everything else she had every right to yell at him about, an energy wave assaulted him. Without thought, he’d lunged at Eve and tackled her to the ground.
What kind of fucker did something like that?
An evil one.
“Are you hurt?” Luce slowly pulled himself off of her.
“Not at all. You braced our fall.”
Had he?
“You needed to dominate,” she said quietly.
Lucifer looked down and saw the teeth marks on her neck. Fuck. “It’s like something’s trying to claw its way out,” he confessed. “I can’t be in this world. Not like this.”
“You can and you will be,” Eve wiggled under him, and rolled onto her back. “That thing clawing out of you isn’t a monster. It’s what’s saved you time and time again. That’s your courage, Lucy.”
Her tender touch against his cheek was too much. Inside, Lucifer felt like he exploded into a trillion particles of stardust. On the outside, he swore he felt his wings bristle. It had been a long fucking time since he’d dealt with phantom wing syndrome.
“My courage wouldn’t make me so volatile.”
“It would if you’ve kept it caged all this time.”
He growled. “Your insults are not appreciated, Eve.” He slowly pulled away and rose to his feet.
“Chivalry can easily trip and fall on its own sword, Satan.” Eve rose with him. “Courage isn’t having the strength to keep going when all feels lost… it’s when you keep going when all your strength is lost.”
God. Damn. Like he could possibly love her anymore? His heart just cranked up a whole new level.
“You know,” she brushed the non-existent dirt from her ass and fixed her hair. “I’ve been around a lot longer than you. Technically I’m your Elder.”
He snorted. She wasn’t that much older in the grand scheme of things.
“I’m just saying,” she shrugged playfully, “I know a thing or two about a thing or two.”
He was relieved to feel the smile spread across his lips. Calmness settled in. Though the vibrations were still thrumming inside his bones, at least his vision and mind were both clear. “And what priceless piece of advice could an old Angel like you give a young Devil like me?”
He loved how Eve’s eyes glinted when she smiled.
“You can’t always wait for the light at the end of the tunnel, Lucifer. Sometimes you gotta light that bitch up yourself.”
Constantine heard someone screaming for the Devil and looked up from his seat.
“Lucifer!” Valor roared. Carrying Tilly, the Hell Hound kicked open the throne room doors and ran straight towards Constantine. “Fuck! Help her! Help! Help!”
Constantine couldn’t see anything past the blood on Tilly’s face. “Put her down so I can see.”
Valor obeyed, “She was being chased by fucking bats.”
“Bats?” Bats wouldn’t have broken her legs and crushed the left side of her face. Not to mention dislocate her shoulder.
“Fuck! Heal her!” Valor’s eyes were wild. “I canna stand this!”
“Where is she!” Drake roared from the halls. His booming voice cracked when he screamed, “Tilly!”
“We’re in here!” Valor answered.
Bishop, Drake and Sebastian crashed into the room like three wrecking balls. Constantine was suddenly surrounded by an angry pack of Hell Hounds that looked scared out of their minds.
“You should have protected her better!” Drake snarled in Valor’s face.
“She was ahead of me. I didna have time!”
They started arguing, then all out fighting with each other. Bishop broke up the fight, but it cost him a fat lip.
“Everyone shut the fuck up,” Constantine surveyed Tilly’s injuries and rocked back on his heels. “Circle around. I’m going to pull from each of you.”
They all positioned themselves around their girl. Her eyes were bloodshot, cuts and bruises littered her skin. Her leather pants were coated in malanum blood.
“Hold hands,” he commanded, “I’m going to pull from you.”
“Just fucking do it already,” Drake gritted through clenched teeth. “Every second wasted is another where she’s in pain.”
Con nodded and prayed this would work. The balance was no longer just off for Lucifer. After their bonding, each of the brothers was having difficulty in some way. Con’s ability to heal was suffering again. More than it had before.
Working with the technicality that they were now all rulers of Hell – either by power or association – this should work. It was a ripple effect Constantine hoped wouldn’t cause any one person too much weakness. He pulled from the Hell Hound’s collective pack energy, so they wouldn’t pull too much from Lucifer. If that didn’t work, he’d try something else.
Con closed his eyes, placed one hand on Tilly’s forehead, the other on her chest. “Valor,” he said calmly, “touch my wing and don’t let go.” The Hell Hound obeyed. “Clasp each other and close the circle.”
The Angel drew strength from the pack. It tasted warm and rich on the back of his tongue. He funneled that strength down his neck, across his shoulders, and into his hands. Then pushed it outwards. Imagining the energy into thread that could wrap and stitch and close up wounds and heal bones, Constantine got to work. Tilly’s ribs cracked back into place. The bones in her face realigned. Her cuts closed up and disappeared. Working his way down her body, Constantine was able to heal her with very little effort. It was a testimony to how strong her pack’s bond was.
A spark of hope flickered in Con’s dark mind. He chose to ignore it.
&
nbsp; Healing every inch of Tilly that suffered, Constantine’s wings sagged in relief when he heard her say, “Damn, that fucking sucked ass.”
“Gods lass,” Valor dropped down and the rest dipped with him so they didn’t break their connection just yet. “I’m so sorry.”
“You didn’t do anything, Alpha. Stop taking the blame for shit you have no control of. It’s not sexy.”
Someone – Baz – snorted a laugh. “Your paranoia has been over-kill lately, Alpha.”
“I canna help it,” Valor argued. “I’m scared every day for each of ye. What kind of leader would I be if I didna keep yer safety as my top priority?”
Tilly groaned and tried to stand up. Constantine helped by supporting her lower back, “How do you feel now?”
“Way better. Thank you so much.”
He didn’t want thanks. He was only doing what he was put here to do. Nothing more. Nothing less. And that… sucked ass.
“What happened?” Constantine knew Tilly had some serious defense skills. She wasn’t a sloppy woman with a blade or gun, either. Bats didn’t fuck her up like this.
Tilly’s gaze darted to the ground. “I’d rather not say.”
“Tough shit, Goldilocks.” Drake tipped her chin up, “Spill it.”
“I wasn’t paying attention. I… damnit, I don’t want to do this right now guys!”
“Can it wait?” Constantine asked her. Arching his brow, he watched her carefully. “If it was a simple slip up, then fine. But if you were chasing something that had you so focused, you no longer cared about how dangerous the situation was, then—"
Her cheeks reddened. “I thought I saw someone.”
“Who, lass?”
“The burning witch from the catacombs.”
They all looked at each other with different scowls and sneers.
“Are you sure?” Constantine couldn’t believe it.
“I know what I saw,” Tilly huffed.
“Where were you?”
“Manhattan?”
Drake crossed his arms. His teeth cracked and he ground his jaws and sneered, “Why. The flying fuck. Were you two in New York?”
Now it was Valor’s turn to get red-faced. “Chloe sent an email about a vision she had of a warehouse. No specific address, but gave a few landmarks.”
“An email?”
Constantine was fucking furious. They’d forced all the Mediums and psychics who weren’t already missing to go into hiding to keep them out of Michael’s reach until the war ended. Why would Chloe suddenly go against the Devil’s direct orders and reach out to a Hound now?
It was a trap. A trick.
Had to be.
“You abandoned your district to go on a wild goose chase?”
“We split up,” Tilly said. “The twins covered our district while Valor and I went to New York. I have enough knowledge of Manhattan, Times Square and some other places there so I felt confident it wouldn’t take us long to find the warehouse. I know how hard it was for this pack to be missing half its members, Constantine.” Tilly rose to her feet. Drake braced her, supporting her while she gained her steadiness. “We’re about to go to war. Hounds will fight better if their heads are one hundred percent in the game. If some are still missing, their pack will only have one eye on the enemy, the other will be scanning for their lost Hounds. That’s not how we’ll win this.”
Constantine considered her reasoning. And he had to agree with her. Nodding he said, “And what of the bats?”
“I was chasing what I thought was the witch about six city blocks and then I felt this…” she waved her arms around, “this big weight.”
That piqued Con’s curiosity. “A weight?”
“A heaviness in the air? A… fuck I don’t know. It just felt wrong. Really fucking wrong.”
“What then?”
“It stopped me in my tracks,” Tilly tugged on her corset. “The sky was already doing that weird red thing again. Then these bats just pummeled into me. I ducked and tried to take cover, but ended up slamming into something.”
“Like a fucking bus?” Drake scowled.
“That’s the crazy part,” Tilly huffed. “I can’t even guess what slammed into me, but—” her gaze flicked to Sebastian, “For a second, it looked like a Dark Angel.”
“Are you sure it wasn’t Michael?” Constantine hated his hopes getting riled up.
“Didn’t look like Michael,” Tilly shook her head. “But it was just a flash, I didn’t even see a face. The colors were all wrong about it. And it was huge. Terrifying.”
Baz’s brow furrowed, “Maybe it was another Hell Hound who’s been infected like me and Asher were?”
Drake frowned, “Did this thing have actual wings?”
“I don’t have a clue,” Tilly slumped. “Now I feel stupid.”
“You were hit by a bus, lass. That, I did see. I saw naught but a swarm of bats and then ye running straight into a bus. Like slow fucking motion, ye stopped dead in the street and the bus barreled into ye.”
“Well… now I feel extra stupid.”
Drake and Baz smashed her into a twin sandwich and held her tight like they needed instant closeness and assurance she was okay. Bishop looked paled and remained silent. Valor was simmering in his boots.
“You trust this Chloe?” Constantine had yet to meet all of the witches and mediums. “You trust that email was really from her?”
“Aye, my instincts are always to listen to her.” Valor tugged his beard thoughtfully. “I canna say if the email was truly from her though. I have no proof. And if Tilly did see a dark angel, then he must be captured and brought back here. We’ll need to confine him. There’s no telling which weakness Michael is exploiting in the poor Hound.”
For Baz it had been lust. For Asher, it had been wrath.
But no sin came with a swarm of bats…
“You found a Hound?” Gabriel’s voice boomed from the prison wing. “Where is he?”
“We didn’t find anything but my ass in my hands,” Tilly frowned.
“What?”
“Forget it.” Tilly turned to Constantine, “Thanks for fixing me.” She tucked her hair behind her ears, “I hope it didn’t drain Lucifer to do that.”
“It didn’t. I made sure of it.” Constantine stiffened when Tilly wrapped him in a hug and squeezed. She pulled back and studied him for a minute. Con didn’t like it. He felt like he was under a microscope, and for an Angel who preferred to never have the spotlight shining in his direction, this simple thing made him squirm uncomfortably.
“We need to go,” Bishop broke the silence.
“Aye.”
“Don’t go back to New York,” Constantine ordered. “I’ll speak with Lucifer and tell him what happened. It’s important we all stay on the same page.”
Tilly nodded and grabbed Valor’s hand. He led her and his pack to the doorways that brought them to the human realm.
Once Constantine was certain they’d disappeared, he retold everything to Gabriel. By the end of it, they were both standing there with lost expressions.
“The prisons haven’t settled. And purgatory is officially full.” Gabriel rubbed the back of his neck. He looked exhausted.
“We need to bite the bullet and speak to Lilith.”
“Isn’t it weird she hasn’t contacted us?”
“Maybe Heaven is secure and she’s staying locked down.”
“No,” Gabriel frowned, “I believe Uriel. Something’s fishy up there.”
“You think she’s been compromised?”
“That female would never allow it.”
“Doesn’t mean it hasn’t happened.”
“We need to go to New York,” Gabriel began checking the weapons strapped to his legs and hips. “My gut says New York is a bigger priority than Heaven.”
“A realm of innocent souls is not top priority, brother?”
“They’re already dead, Con.” Gabriel had spent his life protecting only the living. Just like Constantine.
Uriel and Lucifer were the ones who took care of the dead.
Eve was their middle ground. Their in-between. The axis their worlds balanced on.
“I’ll hold Hell down,” Constantine’s wings felt heavy all of a sudden, “You go topside and tell Lucifer what’s happened. Let him decide where to go first.”
Gabriel headed out. “FYI, Uriel’s in the Time Out Zone still. He’s with a cell full of kids.”
Fuck.
Chapter 40
“This is crazy,” Eve struggled to keep up with Gabriel and Lucifer. They were balls-deep in the middle of Manhattan, at the midnight hour. How the flying fuck were the streets still this packed? Did no one ever sleep anymore?
An entire day had been wasted since Tilly’s accident. That’s how long it took Lucifer to recover from his latest energy drain.
He no sooner climbed off of Eve when he was slammed with a hefty energy suck that didn’t just drop him to his knees, it fucking wiped him out entirely. The timing of his drain coincided with Tilly’s accident. That was no coincidence.
Lucifer’s skin was darkened again. He couldn’t stand to look at it. The saturation of this much evil made Lucifer look like he was a black hole in space. Yes, you could touch his skin, but the darker parts were so deep in color, one might fear their fingers and hands would sink and fall inside the darkness that ate up half his goddamn body again.
And the rage. The red haze. The vibrations. The migraine. Fucking Hell, the struggle was real. Lucifer clenched his jaw and kept moving forward. What he wouldn’t give to put an end to all of this today. Right here, right now.
Michael was close. Lucifer could feel it.
Which was why they were here, instead of heading to bust their way into Heaven right now. Luce believed what Tilly said. She saw something dark and terrifying, and he was going to cage or control it.
Whether it be Michael – which he highly doubted – or a warped Hell Hound, it was Lucifer’s responsibility to eradicate whatever this thing was from the human world.
Fuck, he didn’t know if he wanted it to be a Hell Hound or not. No one had been able to find the ones still missing, and at this stage in the game, Lucifer was resigned to believe they’d died and their souls had been dealt with in a despicable, unforgivable manner.
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