I’d called him here for a meeting. One where I politely informed him he needed to behave before the humans nuked us all.
“Not all the victims were innocent, pet,” Zane pointed out, which from my father’s enthusiastic nod, he apparently agreed with.
“My legions do not kill indiscriminately,” Dad claimed with a petulant sniff. “Only those that deserve it.”
“And the humans who were slain while singing hymns in a church?” I pointed out.
Dad huffed. “A sad case. Azimoth heard them screeching about casting out demons and acted in my defense.”
“And the seal shifters murdered during a bonding ceremony?”
My father examined his recently manicured nails. He seemed proud of the skulls the nail bar had added.
“Mistaken identity. Zazriel’s intelligence said it was a meeting of angels stuck in the human realm. We hate all angels, so of course my demon legion attacked first without asking questions.” He appeared genuinely upset at my suggesting his demons were in the wrong.
I rolled my eyes. It was obvious my father was a sociopath with no moral compass whatsoever. I stood a better chance of persuading Kenji to become a vegan than making him feel guilty about the crimes committed in his name.
Luckily, the humans had listened to the magical community’s reassurance that there would be no more demon attacks thanks to a truce with my father.
My father’s appearance on global television had helped. A hot guy in a designer suit didn’t look remotely scary, and with eighty percent of the population now in lust with the king of the demon realm, people happily forgot about the bloodshed.
Alaric stared into space as Dad monologued on all the reasons why demons needed access to the human realm, and I wondered if he was thinking about his long-lost fiancée. The witch murdered by one of my father’s demons at the solstice ball.
I gave up trying to persuade my father that the demon portal should be sealed.
“It would be rude to discriminate against an entire species based on a few problematic behaviors.”
He plucked a cookie from the tray Maverick had removed from the oven. My bear scowled but refrained from complaining, even though I knew he’d baked them especially for me.
“But I suppose I can put measures in place to control who passes through the portal,” Dad conceded, rolling his eyes.
“I still think we should just seal it again,” Maverick muttered.
“Mom managed it, so I guess it must be possible.” Surely I could do it? My father’s chin snapped up. Hellfire flickered in his obsidian eyes.
“Your mother was the strongest witch I’ve ever encountered. That's why I fell in love with her.” He sighed. “If only she’d loved me enough to stay.”
“Why did she leave?”
He pouted. “She didn’t appreciate my other wives.” My jaw dropped.
“Wait…what? You had other women? Were they your soul-bonded mates?” I assumed my mother wasn’t if she’d left him, but who knew?
“Of course not.” From his incredulous look, my father didn’t understand why I’d think that. “I am the king! I can have any female I like.”
Wow, his sense of entitlement truly was impressive.
I scowled at him. “You do realize that’s major red-flag behavior, right?”
“What are these red flags you speak of?” He peered over my shoulder, confused.
“Red-flag males are to be avoided at all costs.” No wonder my mother had left him. First he’d abducted her with the aid of her enemy, and then he’d trapped her down in the demon realm. What a complete asshole.
Dad bristled at my tone. “Females love me. I’ve only been in this realm for three days and already have two thousand matches on the hook-up app the incubus recommended. My harem will be much expanded by the time I return home.”
I stared in disbelief, wondering why the goddess had gifted me such a terrible father figure. I’d always wanted the sort of dad who took pleasure in taking his daughter shopping or teaching her how to drive.Instead, I had a father more interested in hooking up than building a loving relationship with his long-lost daughter.
The sort of sex-obsessed nightmare who suggested we hit up a nightclub on our first daddy-daughter bonding outing.
