between here and the Otherworld. How does that make you feel?”
Jordan lifted his chest, bowing up. “At home, to be honest.”
He felt more at home here than he’d ever had with his family. They feared their darkness, tried to hide it, pretended they were something they were not. Made him feel like an outcast of his own kin because he let that darkness show, sometimes even embraced it. Here, he could be himself. Here, he belonged, like he had nowhere before. He felt it in his bones.
“Very good, then. That’s what we hoped to hear. But still … you must prove yourself worthy.”
“Worthy of what?” Jordan asked.
“Worthy of joining us,” another figure answered. “This is not a place for weak humans.”
“I am not weak and prefer not to be compared to the humans.”
“We shall see,” Eris’s father said. “Do you believe in God? The one God?”
The way he said “one God” sounded as though he mocked the idea.
Jordan cocked his head. “I did before. Then I wasn’t sure, until my father shared his truth with me. Proved to me that angels and demons exist, so God and Satan must exist, too. With all I have seen in the world, however, I find it difficult to believe that God truly cares for us.”
“Because he doesn’t,” said someone sitting in one of the thrones. “God only cares for himself. He wants all the glory. He wants all the control. He wants everyone to submit to His will. Bah!”
Noises of disgust and anger filled the room, then quieted when Eris’s father, the sorcerer, stepped forward.
“Our Lord, however, would be a much better god,” he said. “He doesn’t want all the glory. He wants his followers to keep it for themselves, to feel pride in their accomplishments and who they are. He doesn’t want control, but promises everyone would be allowed to do whatever they want. He will not ask you to submit to his will.” The sorcerer continued sauntering toward Jordan as he spoke, his voice slightly rising as his excitement grew. “When God demands everyone to care for others, Our Lord says, ‘Why? You need only to care for yourself.’ God wants humans to be more like Him, but Our Lord points out the truth—that it’s unnatural. Humans aren’t gods. They should be allowed to be human.” He stood right in front of Jordan now and leaned even closer. He dropped his voice to nearly a whisper. “And the inhuman should be allowed to be their natural selves, too.”
Jordan’s eyes lit up. “I think I like this lord of yours. He is … ?”
“Satan, yes,” the sorcerer said. “The truly better god. Do you agree?”
Jordan didn’t have to think about it for long. The choice was simple. “How can I not agree? He offers so much more.”
The figure by the fire moved between two thrones, into the center of the room. He didn’t so much as walk as he did glide. More figures rose from the thrones and gathered in the center, too, encroaching on Jordan and Eris.
“He offers everything,” one said. “Money, land, women … power. Especially to you, Jordan.”
“To me?”
“He’s been waiting for you. He was concerned with the prophecy about your mother at first, even sent us after her to prevent her from bearing children, but when he learned she would give birth to you, he realized he’d misunderstood. Your sister means nothing to him. He’s no longer worried about her, when we have you.”
Jordan’s chest rose with pride once again.
“But first you must prove yourself worthy,” Eris’s father said. “Prove you can be one of us. Have you taken my daughter yet?”
Jordan looked at Eris and back at her father, surprised at the turn in conversation. “No, sir.”
“Why not?”
“She told me she is not that kind of woman and I respected her wishes.”
Eris’s father laughed. So did several others. Jordan looked at Eris again, expecting her to be blushing. She wasn’t. Her eyes glowed with a knowing look. She licked her lips, her tongue running slowly over the full, pink skin.
“How very human of you,” her father said. He turned toward the others. “I told you he was too weak.”
Jordan bowed up again. “I am not weak!”
“Then prove it,” one of the cloaked figures commanded. “Take her.”
“Certainly,” Jordan agreed.
“Now. Here,” another said.
“Here?” Jordan asked. In front of them? In front of her own father?
“Can you take orders or not?” someone demanded.
Jordan looked at Eris again. She stood completely still, her body rigid and her face devoid of any emotion.
“Take her whether she wants it or not!”
“Prove yourself, Jordan, or we have no need for you.”
“He’s not worthy,” Eris’s father said dismissively. “Get him out of here. Give him to the wolves.”
Fear of being exiled from where he belonged—rejected by his own kind—jolted through his body. What do I care about Eris? If forcing his way with her would prove he was worthy and satisfy them, then that’s what he would do. He clamped his hand around her wrist and jerked her into his arms. Everyone fell silent. He braced the back of her head, preventing her from turning away from him, and crushed his mouth onto hers.
To his surprise, her lips yielded to his, parted, allowed his tongue into her mouth. He’d been yearning for this moment since he first laid eyes on her, wanting to feel her softness under his fingers, under himself. He grew hard against her belly and she pressed herself against him, making him shudder. She moved her mouth over his cheek and to his ear.
“You have to do this,” she whispered, her teeth scraping his earlobe. “Right here. Show them who you are. What you can be.”
“How?” he asked, his hand rubbing and squeezing her soft but firm backside as she ground against him.
“Show them the demon within you. Take me. Take me hard.”
She stepped back, as if to move away, but her eyes glinted, encouraging him. He grabbed the shoulders of her peplos and jerked outward, tearing it apart and revealing those beautiful breasts that had been teasing him for weeks. He let the fabric drop to the floor and he took in the full gloriousness of her body. The rest of the room disappeared. He forgot about everyone else, her beauty completely consuming him. He tore off his own clothing and her eyes devoured him. Her lips curled just slightly, enough for him—but no one else—to see the invitation.
And he took her hard, just as she said. He took her every way possible, making her beg and moan and scream his name, until both of them collapsed in a pile of panting satisfaction.
“You did it,” she whispered against his ear.
“Very good!” her father said from some distance, clapping his hands. Reality filtered its way back into Jordan’s world, reminding him they were not alone. “I’ve never seen anyone make Eris reach such heights. Very impressive.”
Jordan’s pride swelled. He had an urge to rise to his feet and strut around the room, displaying his manliness to the women and the men … to the demons.
“You’ve passed this test,” said one of the others. “But this is only the beginning.”
Chapter 7
Cassandra’s mind wandered just as much as her feet did as she walked up the rough terrain of the hill, thinking how vast the world was, how she could travel for days or longer without crossing paths with another person. In the last several months, since leaving behind the hut—and the frightening creatures in those woods— the only human contact she’d had was when she stumbled upon battlefields. She treated the injured, as always, then moved along before anyone could capture her.
Just as she avoided forests, especially at night, she also avoided every village, giving them wide berths as
