Something Wicked

“Totally.” Theo downed his second glass of wine. “This Ben guy is only human, right?”

“He is. But now that he’s with the Malleus, he’s probably all supercharged and ready for a good fight.”

Theo waved a hand. “An insect waiting to be squashed.”

“The guy’s a serious pain in my ass. If I was half the demon I used to be, I’d hunt him down and gut him like a fish. That would keep him away, wouldn’t it?”

“It would indeed.”

Darrak shook his head to clear it of thoughts of the cop. “Enough about him, let’s get back to your plan. Destruction to Lucifer?”

“Can I get a hallelujah?”

Darrak snorted. “Hallelujah.”

The plan sounded good centuries ago. Even worth risking his very existence for. Power, endless power. The chance to have anything he wanted, whenever he wanted it.

Lucifer was a bastard. Not literally, of course — much like Darrak, he didn’t have a mother and a father as a human would. He was the original angel cast out of Heaven because his pride refused to allow him to bow at the feet of humans. He’d become the ruler of Hell. The head honcho. The numero uno. The six other lords had nothing on him, power-wise.

Lucifer was no angel anymore. He was a sadistic, selfish demon who could torture another — demon, human, or angel — with a mere thought.

He owned Darrak. He’d created him and could destroy him at will. Darrak had worked for him for centuries as an incubus, helping to stock Lucifer’s harem. As the Lord of Pride, he didn’t have a particularly lustful nature. It only occurred to Darrak later that the human souls probably weren’t all meant for sex. Human souls also made for a tasty, high-protein snack for a hungry demon. And the Lords of Hell had very big appetites.

Beings like Lucifer made archdemons like Darrak in his prime look like big, friendly, fluffy bunnies.

Despite Darrak’s loyal — if occasionally conspiratorial — service to the Prince of Hell, Lucifer had removed his protection over him at the first sign of disloyalty with Asmodeus. And it hadn’t even been true. Had he not done this, Darrak never would have been summoned by Selina. He wouldn’t have been cursed by her, and he wouldn’t have needed to possess humans for the past three hundred years.

It had been sheer torture — a jail sentence with no end.

And it was the reason he was now conflicted about every damn thing in his existence, including Eden. Lucifer was to blame for this unwanted, and hopefully temporary, infusion of humanity.

Darrak hated Lucifer.

And now Theo was ready to step forward and destroy the prince. He’d apparently found the means to do it. Going with him today to get that weapon would ensure Theo’s help in finding a way to break Darrak’s curse and save Eden from certain death.

And when the curse was broken, Darrak wouldn’t feel conflicted or guilty or overly emotional about anything anymore. He’d be restored to his former self, more than ready and willing to do whatever it took to gain more power and prestige. The lowly incubus had the chance to become a lord, and Eden would only be a distant, fleeting memory, much as Kristina was for Theo.

“So are you ready for the ride?” Theo asked, eyeing his friend cautiously.

Darrak grinned. “Giddy up.”

Eden gripped the sides of the sink and tried to calm down. It wasn’t easy.

She hadn’t made a stellar impression on Theo so far. And did she care? Not really.

She had to pull it together, though. Sad but true, he was their only hope at the moment.

She was a little surprised Ben hadn’t shown his face today. Where was he? Was the Malleus planning another little intervention? She really didn’t want to use her magic again, but she would if she had to. She tried not to look at her amulet, but the color had darkened enough to be noticeable. Was there a way to recover — like a washing machine for graying souls — or was this only a one-way street?

Lots of fun questions. And mixed metaphors.

She frowned at her reflection and parted her hair, peering closer at it. Her bright red roots were showing again. She was overdue for a trip to the salon to get them back to the dark auburn color she preferred.

The bright color helped remind her of the man who’d come to visit her as a child when she’d been playing out back of the townhome in Reno her mother rented at the time.

She remembered a bright smile. Green eyes. Red hair.

“Hello, Eden,” he’d said warmly.

“Who’re you?” She’d been wary, even as a little girl. Some things never changed.

He crouched down beside her. “I’m your father. I’m very happy to get the chance to meet you.”

It was a hazy memory since she’d been so young. They chatted for a bit longer, but she couldn’t remember about what. She’d liked him. He’d seemed. . nice.

It had been the only time she’d ever seen him.

When he left, she went inside and told her mother about the man with the same color hair and eyes as her.

“Don’t talk to strangers” was all Caroline Riley had said about it. She’d seemed disturbed by this alleged visit. “They’ll hurt you.”

Words to live by. And Eden had tried very hard to stick close to that philosophy in the years that passed, but sometimes it was easy to forget. Trusting strangers or boyfriends or friends or mothers had inevitably led to Eden getting hurt — either emotionally or physically.

She didn’t trust easily anymore. Which was one of the reasons Darrak stealing her body had bothered her so much. She had trusted him.

Did she still?

Not completely.

But did he mean her harm? Was he using her?

No. She didn’t believe that.

So she didn’t trust him. But she didn’t not trust him.

Complicated.

She waited a bit longer until she felt calm and courageous enough to return to the table. Just as she took a step toward the door, she felt a pain in her gut. The next moment she doubled over, gasping in pain, as the tearing sensation increased. Perspiration broke out on her forehead, and she clutched at the wall to try to remain standing.

No, not again. Tears welled in her eyes. She couldn’t handle pain like yesterday again. It was too much.

But the next moment the pain disappeared completely. She braced herself for its return, but it didn’t.

She reached into the pocket of her jeans and pulled out the marble Lucas gave her earlier with trembling fingers. She squeezed it. She didn’t believe it would really bring her any luck, but it was a pleasant thought. She needed some pleasant thoughts.

The marble warmed in her palm. When she looked at it, she realized it had started to glow.

Why was it glowing?

She frowned. “What the hell?”

Snap.

A bright white light, as if someone had just taken her photo, emanated from the marble and blinded her. She blinked and rubbed her eyes. When she opened them again, she realized she wasn’t in Opa’s ladies’ room anymore.

THIRTEEN

Eden stood alone on the shore of an ocean, barefoot in the sand. It was warm out and the sun shone above her. There were palm trees and large pink and purple flowers she could see as she turned around in a circle.

She gawked at the nearest palm tree.

What the hell just happened?

Had she passed out because of the pain? Maybe she couldn’t deal with it anymore.

Another thought occurred to her: Was she dead?