I shook my head.I hadn’t been able to see it then either—only feel it, a sensation of Hell’s dark pull just beyond reach.The thought of my former home, only steps away through this portal, was surreal.But whatever nostalgia I’d once felt for Hell was long gone.There was no part of me that wanted to step back into that life.
Bracing myself, I pressed forward, half-expecting my hand to pass through.But instead, it met with solid resistance, like a locked door barring my entry.Relief flooded through me; the portal was closed, sealed off.That meant it wasn’t wide open for any stray hellspawn to wander through.Not just anyone could stumble into this world uninvited.
Yet the relief was short-lived.The portal’s residual power hummed beneath my fingertips—a reminder that, though it was closed now, it was far from gone.Deidre’s recent arrival meant my father must have found a way around Heaven’s seals, a way to breach the boundary.There was no way he wouldn’t try again.
I pulled my hand back, frustration tightening in my chest.I wanted nothing more than for Hell to stay on its side, a firm boundary separating my past from my present.But there was no guarantee it would remain closed.I certainly couldn’t spend every second here guarding it.I had a life to live—a human life, with human responsibilities.Coffee to serve, drinks to pour, an imp and a cat to feed.And, for once, I had something personal to look forward to—a date with Jack on Friday.The thought of it was both thrilling and grounding.Besides, even if I wanted to abandon everything and keep watch here, what good would it do?I couldn’t stop an entire army from coming through, not by myself.
“Have you told anyone else about this?”I asked.
“A few,” he admitted.“Some have come to see it, but thankfully, no one’s tried to open it.”
“Thank goodness for small mercies,” I muttered.“I can’t see it, but it feels closed right now.”
Mason nodded, his gaze fixed presumably on the portal.“The aura is quiet.”
I shot him a startled glance.“The portal has an aura?”
He shrugged.“Everything does.People, places, objects of power.But the portal is different.It has this strange, ethereal glow—very unearthly.I’ve only ever seen an aura like this once before.”His gaze shifted, landing squarely on me.“And that was with you.”
My pulse spiked, and for a split second, my control slipped.The cold air seemed sharper against my skin, every nerve primed and ready.A dozen thoughts flickered through my mind—every instinct telling me that if he knew what I was and where I was from, then he was a threat I couldn’t afford to ignore.
“That so?”I said, keeping my voice steady, neutral.
Mason’s expression was unreadable, and his eyes never left mine.“Mm-hmm.When we first met, I’d never seen anything like your energy signature before.But I’m not the prying type.Everyone is entitled to their secrets, so I left it alone.But then this portal opened, and let’s just say, it raised some questions.”He spoke quietly.“You know more about this than you’re letting on, don’t you?”
Tension seized my shoulders, and the urge to keep my secret flared.Mason’s gaze remained steady, holding mine, but he was piecing it all together.My fingers flexed instinctively, weighing my options—options that included making sure he never had the chance to question me again.
Mason sighed and relaxed his stance.“Look, I’m not here to dig into your past, Lily.Whatever you’re keeping to yourself, that’s your business..I just want you to know that you aren’t alone in this.Thanks to my great-grammy, I know more about hellspawn than most.They’re the last thing I want to face.However, I also know where there’s one, there are thousands more.If this doorway opens again?—”
“It could mean the end of the world as we know it,” I whispered, the words echoing in the frigid air.
He nodded grimly.“Exactly.Most paranormals know very little about our history, let alone the danger this portal represents.But I’m not most paranormals.And personally, I don’t want to meet anything that comes through that door.”
He already had.“The portal’s closed.That’s all that matters,” I said.
“For now.”He shook his head.“Closed doesn’t mean stable.It opened once.It’ll open again.The only question is when.And when that happens, we’ll have a full-blown crisis on our hands.”
Mason’s words lingered in the cold air between us, his gaze unwavering as he tried to bridge the gap I kept so firmly in place.There was an intensity in his eyes—a determination that was both reassuring and unnerving.He wanted to understand, and the weight of his silent questions pressed down on me like the chill in the air.
I swallowed hard, my throat dry despite the chill in the air.“I’ll keep an eye on it,” I said, my voice carefully measured.
“That may not be good enough,” he commented.“This isn’t something one can handle alone.If things get worse—if something more dangerous than a hellspawn comes through—it’s not just your life or mine on the line.We’re talking about the safety of everyone.Paranormals, humans…everyone.”
He was right.I hated it, but he was right.Still, I couldn’t bring myself to trust him—or anyone—with the truth.
“I’m not asking for your whole story,” he continued.“But if you know anything that could help, anything that could keep this thing from spilling over and hurting the people we’re trying to protect—it would go a long way.”
I hesitated, the words caught in my throat.I considered telling him—just a hint of the truth, something that would let him see why I was so careful, so wary of involving anyone else.But the walls I’d built were too strong, too well-reinforced by years of secrecy and survival.
“I can’t,” I finally whispered.
Mason studied me, his eyes narrowing slightly as if he were weighing my words.After a beat, he gave a small nod.“Fine.I understand that you don’t trust easily, but if things get worse, you’ll need people who understand what’s at stake.”
I swallowed, forcing myself to maintain the mask of indifference.“Noted.”
He didn’t push further, but his gaze lingered on me before I finally turned away, the weight of his words and the threat of what lay beyond pressing down on me as I walked off into the night.
ChapterEight
