That Old Black Magic

Out of the corner of his eye, Darrak noticed an unconscious black hellhound lying off to the right. That must have been the source of the howl he’d heard earlier.

He’d been willing to let himself go, to be swept into the Void in order to not hurt anyone now or in the future. But seeing Eden in the grip of the wraiths was enough to bring forth the side of him that enjoyed a bit of destruction. And then some.

He wouldn’t lose her only a moment after they’d found each other again.

Not like this.

Darrak wrenched himself farther away from the edge of the Void, and it was like pulling himself slowly out of quicksand. But he did it. He ignored the pain, got to his feet, and moved closer to the wraiths now twenty feet away from him.

“Demon-angel,” one snarled. “We have something it loves.”

“Let go of her,” he warned.

“She doesn’t belong here, but we’re happy she has traveled so far.”

The other wraith drew her pasty-white fingers over Eden’s stomach. “Two lives, twice as sweet. A taste we’ve never experienced before. So delicious.”

“Two lives?” he growled. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“Small life, it is. Created from two places, two worlds, two beings of opposite means.” Wraiths were known to be cryptic double-talkers. It just made them more annoying. “And the demon-angel had no idea, its senses dulled from its curse, no true idea of what the small life created from two worlds—”

“Oh, for the love of—” Eden fought against the choke hold the wraiths had her in. She looked at Darrak. “This wasn’t how I wanted to tell you.”

“Tell me what?” he asked tightly.

Her gaze locked with his. “I’m… pregnant.”

“What?” He gaped at her. It felt as if he’d just been shoved back into the Void and was holding on by his fingernails.

Eden watched him uncertainly before her eyes narrowed. “You heard me. Now do something, will you?”

Pregnant. Eden was pregnant.

This unexpected piece of news changed pretty much everything in his entire universe in one split second.

His hands tightened into fists. “Let go of her or you’re going to be very sorry.”

“A strongly worded warning. That should work perfectly,” Eden said dryly. “Thanks.”

The wraiths circled Eden, their hands brushing against her enough to keep her from moving, keep her from protecting herself with her magic. “All will be sorry soon. The shadows are restless. Their master stays away looking to take a trip to a place with no shadows.”

“Shadows,” Darrak repeated, glancing around. He knew what the wraith spoke about. The Netherworld was filled with the shadows. It was what made it eternally night here. No light could broach darkness like this. The darkness was what fueled Hell — evil without form.

Lucifer controlled those shadows, the darkness, keeping it from spreading, growing, branching out past the Netherworld. It was what gave him his vast power, but also what kept him chained here even while able to take mortal form in the human world.

But he’d been neglecting his duties in Hell lately, whining about wanting to go back to Heaven. What a total crybaby.

“Are you afraid?” he asked the wraiths. “Is that what this is? Afraid of the shadows? I can help you.”

“It can’t help. It’s tainted. It’s part angel now.”

“Sweetheart, that only makes me more powerful. I’m an archdemon with a shiny gold star.”

That was a nice way to think of it, actually. Less “freak of nature,” more “awesome upgrade.”

“This woman and her unborn child are too delicious to give up at any price. They are ours now.” They tightened their hold on Eden and she let out a shriek of fear.

Darrak finally had had enough.

He phased from where he stood near the edge of the Void to reappear right in front of the wraiths in a flash of fire. Grabbing each by their throat, he squeezed until they released their grip on Eden.

“Did you say she’s yours?” he asked.

“Yesss.”

“Pardon the expression, bitches, but possession is nine-tenths of the law.”

He launched the pair of them backward. They made a lovely arc through the dark sky as they flew, screaming, into the gaping mouth of the Void.

A couple less wraiths in the Netherworld was like stomping on a couple of cockroaches in a seedy motel. It didn’t make much of a difference, but it was still extremely satisfying.

Darrak quickly moved toward Eden and checked her throat. Luckily, the wraiths hadn’t done any damage. She stared at him with wide, shiny eyes.

“Are you okay?” he demanded.

Eden grabbed hold of him, and he crushed her against his chest. She felt so good, better than anything. How could he have forgotten her for even a moment? He’d been forced to forget, by someone, something, but he’d remembered anyway. First with the vision of her and now with the real thing.

He pulled back and took her face between his hands. “Is it true? Are you really pregnant?”

She studied his face and nodded. “Yes.”

“Is — is it mine?”

Her warm gaze turned into an icy glare very fast. “Are you kidding me?”

Darrak cleared his throat. “Uh, well, it’s an honest question. Demons created from hellfire aren’t usually able to—”

“Unbelievable. No, it’s not yours. It’s Ben’s. Or Lucas’s. Or maybe it’s Stanley’s. Not sure, I’m such a tramp.”

She went to pull away from him, her cheeks flushed red with anger, but he caught her hand to draw her back. “Okay, okay, I’m sorry. I get it. It’s mine. But just so you know… that’s impossible.”

“There’s a lot of things that are impossible. And yet here we are.”

“Touche.”

He pulled her closer, swept her soft hair off her face, and kissed her very hard on her lips. It didn’t take long at all for her to kiss him back just as passionately. If he’d had any remaining doubts that she was real then they’d now be gone. That fire, that stubbornness, that taste of her mouth against his… all Eden. His Eden. The only woman he’d ever loved. Would ever love.

She’d saved him.

Eden had found a way to come to the Void because she loved him as much as he loved her — she was his princess in shining armor.

And she was pregnant with his baby.

It was too much to process. All too much.

But the kiss was a very good start.

Then she pulled away from him and glanced to the right. “Oh no!”

She ran toward the hellhound, falling to her knees next to it.

“Eden, be careful,” he warned. “Hellhounds are dangerous.”

“No… this is Andy.” Her voice caught. “Those monsters must have attacked him when I was trying to pull you up.”

That was Andy? But he was a werewolf the last time Darrak had seen him.

This… this definitely wasn’t a werewolf.

Darrak went to the hellhound’s side. “Is he…?”

“Christ on a cracker… what happened?”

His eyebrows went up. “That’s definitely Andy.”

The hellhound raised his head and blinked at them through glowing red eyes. “Those two were hot as hell but not very nice girls, were they?”

“What happened?” Eden asked.