Alistair glanced over at me. “You seem…different from last time.”
“Yeah, things have changed.”
He didn’t reply, but when I looked at him, I saw a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. I’d come out of it, somehow, back to my senses. Not quite the way I was before, but hopefully everything over the past few months had changed me for the better.
“You never left town, did you?” I asked.
“Well, you did put me in a bloody coma.”
“Yeah, but you woke up after about a week. So why are you still here?”
Alistair scoffed and reached into his jacket to pull out a pack of Lucky Strikes. “Don’t get all mushy on me, boy. I just wanted to make sure I kept an eye on you in case you fucked up even more.”
He shook the pack until a cigarette stuck out enough to pull out with his teeth and then offered me the pack. I drew a cigarette out and reached into my pocket for my lighter. After lighting my cigarette, I did Alistair the courtesy of doing the same with his.
“Besides,” he said right before he took the cigarette from his lips and exhaled, “how’d you know I was only out for a week?”
“You held me prisoner, I wanted to make sure you weren’t gonna come after me again,” I said. “So don’t you get all mushy, either.”
“All right, enough blather. Where are we off to?”
From that point on, no other words passed between us, save for ones related to my navigation. Alistair was old-fashioned in a lot of ways. The kind of guy who never talked about his feelings. Supposed I picked that up from him. Not always the healthiest form of expression, but it seemed to work for both of us.
I tried not to laugh when that thought popped into my head. Alistair had no wife, no family, nothing other than his work to keep him busy. And I wasn’t much different. Sure, I had Lilith, but that was more out of convenience than love. After everything I’d just been through, I didn’t even really know what I felt for her anymore.
So maybe the current lifestyle wasn’t really working out for us as much as we thought. Still, I had to admit it felt nice to share a cigarette with the closest thing I’d ever had to a father. Even if neither of us actually said a single word acknowledging it.
“I saw the car,” said Alistair, breaking the silence. “Went over to Cassandra’s after she called. Can’t believe you wrecked the damn thing.”
“And I had a choice? Not like I asked an unstoppable murderer to land on the roof.”
“When I gave you my car, it was with the understanding you’d take care of it.”
“Relax, I’m gonna get it fixed.”
“Damn right you are.”
“I’ll see if they can reinforce the roof against aerial assaults while I’m at it.”
We both laughed and then the silence returned. Finally, I saw the storage units where I told Wayne to take Morrison. It was on fire and the fire department, police, and paramedics were already on the scene. We were stopped by police trying to control the crowd and we both got out of the car, my hand still holding the gauze to the wound. Together, we approached one of the officers watching the perimeter.
“Sorry, folks. Can’t come through this way.”
“It’s okay,” I said, staring into his eyes, channeling my power into them. “We’re investigating the fire.”
The officer stared back at me. For a moment, it looked like he had doubt. I was worried my powers weren’t working on him, that maybe I was too weak after being kept prisoner for a few days. But his eyes then started to glaze over.
“I’m sorry, come on through.” He raised the yellow police tape for us and we crossed the line.
We moved past the paramedics and police who were tending to victims and taking statements as the firefighters worked to put out the flames. I looked around, trying to see if I could spot either Wayne or Morrison. And then, I finally saw Wayne sitting in the back of an ambulance. A paramedic was beside him administering oxygen and he had a blanket over his shoulders as a uniformed officer stood in front of him.
“Coop!”
Wayne looked up when I called his name. The officer turned away and blocked the path. “I’m sorry, can I help you?”
“It’s okay, son,” said Wayne, refusing the oxygen. “He’s someone I work with. Mind giving us a moment?”
The officer looked uncertain but finally relented. “Okay, I’ll be back later, Detective.”
“Thanks.” Wayne also dismissed the paramedic and Alistair and I came over to him. “Al, good to see you again.”
“Likewise.” Alistair offered a handshake. “Though wish it were under better circumstances.”
“You and me both, brother,” said Wayne.
“Where’s Chuck?” I asked.
Wayne shook his head. “I’m sorry. Brought him here like you asked and everything was fine at first. Then, I heard something coming from outside. Went to check on it and before I could close up, I was attacked. Someone knocked me out and when I came to, I was in the ambulance and the place was in flames.”
“Asmodeus?” asked Alistair.
“The flames were probably Iblis’ doing, but yeah, basically,” I said.
“Where the hell were you anyway?” asked Wayne.
“Cain got the drop on me. Spent the past few days chained up as Asmodeus tried to pull the information from my mind. He succeeded,” I said. “And now that he has his hands on Chuck, only a matter of time before he gets to Dakota.”
“Wonderful,” said Alistair. “Too late to stop Asmodeus, so what happens now?”
“I don’t know where exactly Dakota is and got no way of contacting her. All I know is that she’s somewhere in the Philippines. Raziel left her in the care of Chuck and some other people who could be trusted down there.”
“I could check the Sons’ records,” said Alistair. “Might have a lead on some churches or religious organizations down there that are more plugged into the supernatural side of things.”
“Sure you could do that without arousing suspicion?” I asked.
Alistair nodded. “Fairly certain.”
“Okay, do it,” I said. “Guy’s name is Charles Morrison, he’s part of the Opus Dei if that helps at all.”
“It just might. I’ll see what I can dig up,” said Alistair.
“Good. If you find anything, text me. Don’t expect a response right away, I might not be reachable for a bit.”
I put a hand on Wayne’s shoulder. He looked at me with uncertainty. Hard to blame him after everything that happened a few months ago. Would no doubt be a while before Wayne trusted me again—if ever.
“Take care of yourself, Coop,” I said.
“Right…you too,” said Wayne, his eyes uncomfortably avoiding contact with mine.
I turned away and started to walk towards the perimeter. Alistair shouted after me and came up by my side. “Where are you going?”
I took my phone out of my pocket and opened up the Uber app. “Going back to my place. There’s something I’ve gotta do.”
“Now? In the middle of all this?”
I stopped and sighed. “The reason I went to Cassie’s was because I needed some guidance. I’d been lost this whole time, going about this all wrong. If I’m going to stop Asmodeus, then it means I have to ask someone else for help.”
“I’m right here, who else is there?” he asked.
“If I told you, you wouldn’t like the answer,” I said. “But from what Cassie showed me, I don’t think I’ve got any other choice.”
I kept walking towards the street. Alistair ran ahead and blocked my way.
“Not letting you go that easy,” he said.
“I’m serious, Alistair. Get out of my way.”
“You’re injured, lad. You’ve just been through an ordeal. You need time to get your head on straight. Time to think before you act too rashly.”
“Somewhere, there’s a young mother whose baby is about to fall into the worst possible hands. And I’m the only one who can stop it,”
I said, staring intently into Alistair’s eyes. “You above all people should know what that’s like. And no one understands better than you why I have to do this.”
Alistair hesitated, staring back at me. I wasn’t sure if he’d accept that or if he’d still try to stop me. If it was the latter, I was prepared to deal with him. Even injured, I was sure I was more than a match for him. But fortunately, it didn’t come to that. Instead, he reached into his pocket and held out his keys.
“Just make sure no one lands on it this time,” he said.
“You sure?”
Alistair nodded. “Time’s wasting, no sense in you waiting around for a driver when you’ve got a car right here.”
“Thanks.”
After returning to my condo, I gathered supplies from the office and pushed aside the coffee table in the living room to make more space. With the can of red spray-paint, I drew a symbol on the hardwood floor, one I’d hoped I’d never have a reason to draw. But times were desperate and I had to do what Cassie showed me, no matter how hard it might be.
Once I set up candles at five points around the circle, I sat in the center and folded my legs in the lotus position. I rested my hands palms-up on my thighs and closed my eyes. I concentrated, focusing on establishing a rhythm with my breathing.
I started speaking in Latin. Chanting a request, appealing to the cosmos to open a gateway. Even with my eyes closed, I could imagine the flames of the candles growing with intensity. I felt heat coming from the floor beneath me, and then I opened my eyes.
The candles practically exploded, the flames quickly surrounding the circumference of the circle. The sigil itself was glowing brightly, burning almost. I rose to my feet as the scent of sulfur invaded my nostrils. My senses went into overdrive, warning me that the supernatural was all around.
I stepped forward, moving through the flames. And on the other side, I saw Lilith standing there, arms folded across her chest, an incredulous look on her face.
“Luther,” she said. “You’re not exactly the person I’m most excited to see right now.”
“I don’t doubt that for a second,” I said. “But something’s come up. And I need your help.”
She scoffed and shook her head. “You really are unbelievable, you know that? I ask you for help and you tell me to fuck off. But now when you need something—”
“I’m going to help you,” I said. “But before I can do that, I need to sit down with someone, and I need you to help get a meeting set up.”
Lilith’s eyes widened and her arms dropped to her side. “Are you serious? You’re really going to do it?”
I nodded. “It’s time Lucifer and I had a little chat.”
30
If you told me when I woke up this morning that this whole thing would end with me sitting across a table from the Devil himself, I would’ve laughed myself to death. But that’s exactly how it all played out.
Lilith and I sat in a cab pulled along by her pet basilisk. I adjusted my red tie and looked out the window at the landscape of the domain I ruled. Buildings made of bone and twisted metal, splashed against a crimson sky, not a speck of green anywhere to be seen. A barren wasteland where nothing could survive.
“Tell me about him,” I said.
“Raum,” said Lilith. “He hates aristocracy, despises the Infernal Court, and believes in overthrowing the Hell Lords. Thinks the domains of Hell should be ruled by the demons who inhabit it, not the Fallen.”
“So basically he’s a demonic Jill Stein?” I asked. “Well, I suppose that’s a bit redundant.”
“Up until now, he’s mostly just been an annoyance,” said Lilith. “There are a lot of factions that hate us and want to see us taken down. That’s why I wanted you to help me restore order. If we’d presented a united front, we could have avoided things getting to this stage. Unity would’ve been enough to get some of the factions in line.”
“And now?”
“Up until now, the factions have been divided,” said Lilith. “But somehow, Raum’s managed to unite them together under his leadership. He offered to let me live if I abdicated and threw you under the bus.”
I rubbed the hair on my chin while staring out the window. Then I looked across the cab at her. “You didn’t, did you?”
Lilith sighed with exasperation. “I’m still here, aren’t I?”
“Just wanted to be sure.”
“The thing I don’t understand is how Raum could have united everyone. The factions may hate us, but they’re not exactly looking forward to an anarchist taking control.”
“I think I know,” I said. “He’s back.”
“Who?”
I stared at Lilith and I could tell as her expression changed that the intensity my eyes conveyed was enough to answer her question.
“Asmodeus?” she asked. “But how?”
“Made a deal with Thanatos.”
“And what does Asmodeus have that Thanatos wants?”
“It’s not what he has, it’s what he’s going to get his hands on. Unless I can stop him.”
I went quiet after that and looked out the window again. But I could feel Lilith’s eyes on me. I still hadn’t told her everything about Dakota and the child. Nor did I really want to. I never fully trusted her even when I’d let the darkness take over. Now I trusted her even less. I wouldn’t put it past her to try and turn this situation to her advantage, too.
“You’re not going to tell me?” she asked.
“I need to keep things compartmentalized,” I said. “That’s my price for agreeing to meet with Lucifer on your behalf.”
She sighed but didn’t offer any protest. Like it or not, Lilith needed my help. Lucifer had no interest in meeting her, not after the bad blood between them. But he would meet with the son of Abraxas. In his mind, I was the rightful Hell Lord, not Lilith. She was just a regent in my stead.
We came to a stop. I turned my head, looking over my shoulder towards the front of the cab. “We here?”
“No, we’re at the border,” said Lilith. “Crossing from one realm into another is strictly forbidden. Anyone who’s caught trying is sentenced to Cocytus.”
“The frozen lake?” I asked, remembering Inferno.
“That’s right, except Dante got it a little wrong,” said Lilith. “Cocytus is like Hell’s prison. The water isn’t frozen, but it is freezing. You’re held below the water by chains forged from ice as rabid piranhas bite your flesh, which heals every single day. But the pain remains as a constant reminder, never ceasing for even an instant.”
“Damn…” I muttered. I looked at Lilith and saw she was now looking away. “Is that where you were kept?”
There was something in Lilith’s eyes, a vulnerability I’d never seen before. It was strangely humanizing and it almost made me forget what she was. She wouldn’t say anything more, but I could tell that Cocytus was the prison she’d escaped from.
We started moving again. I looked out the window as we passed and saw demons in uniforms with inverted pentagrams serving as their insignias. We’d gone through the gate and now I could see it closing back behind us. It seemed like we were on a highway of sorts and I saw other cars driving on the road.
“So if there are cars down here, how come we’re pretending that it’s the nineteenth century?”
“It makes a good impression,” said Lilith. “Plus, Basil rarely gets a chance to go outside.”
“Basil?” I asked. “You named your basilisk Basil?”
“So?”
“You could’ve at least make an effort to be more creative,” I said.
Lilith scoffed and looked out the window again. I did the same. The highway was cracked and broken. In the distance, I could see the towering skyline of Hell’s capital. Much like in our realm, the buildings were twisted and mangled, like something out of the imagination of HR Giger. We finally came to a stop. The door opened and Mara, Lilith’s right-hand demon, stood outside.
“We’ve arrived,” she said, offering a
hand to help Lilith, which was accepted. No such gesture was made to me. Instead, I just got a hard stare. Mara didn’t seem to like me much.
I followed them around towards the front of the carriage and stopped by Basil’s side, patting the back of his head. He gave a low rumble, which I assumed was his way of purring.
“Thanks for the ride, big guy,” I said. “Sorry you got saddled with such a crappy name.”
He made another noise. I decided to interpret it as him saying, ‘I know, right?’
Mara stayed behind with the carriage while Lilith and I walked up the steps to the towering skyscraper. This building looked completely out of place in the center of Hell. The steps leading up were marble and the tower was completely white. Unlike the other buildings, this one seemed fairly normal, like the kind of thing you might find in any major city. No bizarre architecture of any kind.
The doors opened for us on their own. We entered the lobby, which was completely empty. Next came the sound of a chime and I looked to the side to see an elevator with its doors open, waiting for us. Inside the elevator car, there were no buttons. The doors closed and it started to rise.
“Gotta say, this makes me feel a bit uneasy,” I said.
“Imagine how I feel,” said Lilith. “At least you weren’t imprisoned by him.”
The elevator slowed to a stop and the doors opened. This room was just as white as the rest of the building, with white leather couches and a glass table in the center of the room. Across from the elevator, we saw a man standing in a white suit, staring out the window. He had large, feathered wings and slowly he turned to face us.
It was said that the Morningstar was the most beautiful of all the angels, and being up close and personal with him, it was easy to see how that legend came about. His dark hair was short and he had a well-groomed goatee. The Fall from Heaven transformed his eyes from the pristine, unearthly blue of the angels to the yellow, demonic ones that looked into mine. When he smiled, I felt a chill go through me.
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