Something Wicked

damage from Hell than I can live and in person.”

Eden tried not to look away from Lucas’s intense gaze. She tried not to feel any fear toward him. He looked so broken and beaten and incredibly human that, despite his angry words, it was difficult to remember who and what he really was.

Lucas looked at Darrak. “You know you’re compelled to tell me the truth right now, don’t you?”

“Yes,” he hissed.

“Did she tell you who I am?”

“No.” The demon’s voice was deeper now and filled with darkness like something out of a nightmare. The sound of it raised goose bumps on Eden’s arms.

“Then how did you know?”

“I guessed. And I was right.”

Lucas studied him for a moment. “Interesting.”

“Do I win a prize?” Darrak’s tone was insolent.

Lucas turned to Eden and gave her a thin smile. “Our deal was that you don’t directly tell him about me. It doesn’t seem as if you did, so I can’t fault you. You’re very lucky that I always hold true to the exact wording of my bargains.”

Funny. She wasn’t feeling all that lucky at the moment.

Lucas touched his throat gingerly as if testing for deeper injuries.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

He frowned. “What?”

“It’s just. . that cut on your forehead is kind of nasty. You might need stitches.” Eden dug into her pocket and pulled out a tissue, which she pressed against the wound.

Lucas flinched. “It’s nothing.”

“If you want to have a mortal form like this, you’re going to have to look after it properly.”

“This is only temporary.” He took the tissue away from her, and her arm dropped back to her side. As she stepped away from him, he eyed her curiously.

“Excuse me,” Darrak said. “If Eden’s all finished kissing your boo-boos, can we move this along? I have a full schedule today.”

Even in his demon form, Darrak was still sarcastic at inappropriate moments.

“You tried to kill me,” Lucas said.

“Gee, you figured it out. I wish I was as smart as you, Lucifer. You’re my hero.”

Shut up, Darrak, she thought, hoping the glare sent in the direction of the scary- looking, fiery demon might be enough to quiet him, but she doubted it.

“I created you,” Lucas said.

“Sorry I forgot the Happy Father’s Day card this year. I made a really nice one with crayons.” An unpleasant smile creased the demon’s fearsome expression beneath the flames. “They melted a bit, though. Made it difficult to draw the bunnies and smiley faces.”

“You aren’t going to beg my forgiveness?” Lucas asked.

“Nope.”

“And will you attempt to end my existence again?”

“More than likely.”

“Darrak,” Eden snapped. “What is wrong with you?”

He turned his horned head toward her. “You used my true name. Again. Thanks for that, by the way. Right now I’m compelled to tell the truth, remember? So sue me.”

“No, I don’t think I’ll sue you,” Lucas said. “Frankly, I’m not sure what to do with you.”

“Bullshit,” Darrak replied.

“What did you say?”

“I said bullshit. It’s a common English expletive used to reply to insincere, nonsensical talk. You know what to do with me. The only penalty for a treasonous act like the attempted murder of someone like you would be immediate decimation.”

Icy fear coursed through Eden’s body.

“It is, isn’t it?” Lucas agreed. “But I’m not quite ready for that yet.”

“Oh, no?” Darrak still didn’t move an inch. However, his eyes showed the strain of his attempts. “Why not?”

“Because I need you,” Lucas said evenly.

A low, scary chuckle sounded in the demon’s throat. “You’re kidding. You need me?”

“Yes.”

“This is the warm and fuzzy, sentimental moment I’ve been waiting the better part of a millennium for. I’m kidding now, of course. I don’t do warm and fuzzy.”

It’s a mask, Eden thought suddenly. This whole sarcastic, kill-me-now thing Darrak was doing. It was masking how worried he must have been feeling at Lucifer’s mercy like this.

“I’m going to give you a choice, Darrak,” Lucas said. “I’m fairly well versed in what has happened to you all these years. Why you disappeared—”

“You mean, after you fired me and sent me out on my own, an act that allowed a witch to summon my archdemon ass straight out of Hell? Besides, what you accused me of wasn’t even true.”

Lucas just shook his head. “That you were a conspirator? Perhaps not directly with Asmodeus, but you were not innocent of my accusations. I don’t regret what I did. I need demons I can rely on to protect me and do what I tell them to do, not ones that gossip and plan uprisings behind my back.” He sighed. “Maybe you simply were never right for the job and worthless as an employee and an archdemon.”

“Don’t be a hater.”

“Theo was much better at following orders than you ever were.”

Darrak smiled, showing the sharp teeth behind his coating of translucent fire. “Theo would be thrilled you think so.”

“Speaking of Theo, I want the angelheart he plans to destroy me with,” Lucas said.

Darrak’s smile faded and he looked at Eden. “Is there anything you didn’t tell him?”

“Uh. . nothing actually comes to mind,” she admitted. “But he already knew about the murder plot.”

“It’s strange,” Darrak said. “You’re allegedly mortal here and without any power. And yet you easily have me frozen in place like this.”

“I allowed what happened earlier as I was curious to see what you’d do next,” Lucas said. “I could have stopped you at any time, but instead Eden did that for me. My form or level of mortality is meaningless when it comes to those I created. Even here, I can send you to the Void if I choose to, but not before causing you more pain that you’ve felt in your entire existence.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“No?” Lucas approached Darrak. “How about I give you just a little taste, and you can see how lenient I’ve been so far.”

Lucas didn’t move. His expression didn’t change.

But Darrak’s face convulsed and his body quaked. A roar sounded out from deep in his throat as if he was experiencing sheer, unadulterated agony.

A cry rose in Eden’s chest at seeing him in pain like this. “Stop. Please.”

Lucas glanced at her, then back at Darrak. The demon went silent, closing his eyes, his chest hitching.

“The fact you still exist is because I am allowing it,” Lucas said to him. “Look into my eyes and tell me if I’m lying.”

Darrak slowly opened his eyes and looked closely at Lucas. “Did. . anyone ever tell you. . that you have lovely eyes?” His voice was slightly weakened from his short torture session. “For a lousy, self-pitying, ex-angel boss, that is.”

Eden shook her head with frustration. She really couldn’t help him if he didn’t at least try to help himself.