Page 32 of Realm of the Wicked

Without another word, Damien stormed from the room, the door slamming shut, echoing in his wake.

‘Well. I wish I could say I expected a different reaction.’ Agatha stood, gathering the dishes. ‘I know it doesn’t seem like it, but he really has learned to control his temper over the years.’

‘Hmm.’ I stared at the door, knowing I should offer to help Agatha clear up, but unable to focus on anything other than Damien. The rich food and wine blurred my thoughts. ‘Are you okay if I go back to my room? I’m rather tired from everything.’

Agatha paused with a silver-edged plate in her hands. ‘Of course. Go on and get some rest. I can handle this.’

‘Thank you. I promise, I’ll help tomorrow, I just⁠—’

I just, what exactly? Couldn’t stop thinking about Damien being tormented over trying to protect my soul? Wanted to make sure he’s okay? Was completely and utterly confused as to why I feel so empathetic toward the man who tore my old life away from me?

‘No need to explain yourself. Go on.’ She sent me away with a wave of her hand, only speaking again when I reached the door. ‘Tell him I’m sorry for pushing him too hard, though, will you?’

I smiled to myself as I entered the dim hallway once more. Apparently, secrets weren’t a thing in the Fringe.

12

DAMIEN

I ran my hands through my hair as I wandered the halls, feeling it fall out of place. To be completely honest, I wasn’t even sure why I continued to go through the motions of looking ‘human’. Despite many of my… associates taking on the standard demon appearance, I had always remained human. But looking and being were two different beasts.

As a demon, I didn’t require sleep to prevent exhaustion. I didn’t require food to sustain myself. I didn’t really require much of anything. My existence was simple: transfer souls to Hell. I was the guardian of the realm. The keeper of the keys. Some required more effort than others. Some souls deserved more punishment than simply spending the rest of eternity in Hell. Others fought their judgment, even though they had no control over what came next.

Maybe the fighting back gave them a sense of control in their last hours, a last grasp on being able to decide which direction their lives took.

Some took their space willingly, resigned to a future they knew was coming. Those were the ones who stuck with me the most over the years. The ones who did their best to make amends for their sins, only for the transgressions to still outweigh the good when it came down to it.

But having such a simple existence meant not much was required of me. For the first few decades, I leaned into it. I couldn’t remember many specifics from those years, but I remember the feeling. I let the animal take over, the beast that lives within us all.

That was my way of surviving. I didn’t beg, or kick or scream. I just became the most basic version of any of us. Violent. Malicious. Evil.

Eventually, I realized I couldn’t spend eternity like that. At some point, I was bound to burn myself out living as a shell. And so, I once again fell back into my ‘human’ nature. I dressed well. Did my hair. Sat down to dinner with myself, pretending like I hadn’t spent my days listening to the screams of lesser beings as they faced their doom.

I hadn’t felt like an animal in many, many years. In fact, I had almost forgotten the feeling, the sensation of losing control over yourself, until I saw Stella stepping toward the Nihil. My instincts reacted quicker than my logic, but I couldn’t imagine what would’ve happened if I’d been even a moment later. Bambi was a more fitting name for her than I’d initially realized.

I paused my pacing, my ears catching a noise further away. It was too early in the night for the Remnants, the souls that shattered when they entered this realm. Footsteps, light and quick. Stella’s, most likely. Going the completely wrong way from her bedroom.

A sigh escaped me, and my hands clenched into fists. Hadn’t we just had a conversation about staying safe? Fuck. Maybe it was easier remaining an animal.

I turned and followed the sound of her footsteps. Before long, I caught sight of her walking away from me into a dead end of a hallway. Not that she’d realize it was a dead end until she’d been walking for hours. Everything repeated until you were far too lost to ever find your way back. Fuck. I didn’t realize quite how many things would be deadly to her in this house.

‘Stella,’ I called.

She spun around, eyes wide as she noticed it was me behind her. ‘Oh! I was… um. I was looking for you, actually.’

I nodded toward the hallway in front of her as I stepped closer. ‘You wouldn’t find me down there. That hallway doesn’t exactly… end for quite some time.’

Stella turned her head to look at the depths of the hallway once more. ‘How far does it go?’

‘A few years, give or take.’ I shrugged. ‘I’m not the first person to live in this house, and I won’t be the last. I didn’t bother removing most of the traps the previous owner set up. Maybe I should spend some time looking into that, if you’re going to be making getting in trouble a habit.’

She glared at me, a look full of fire. ‘Anything in particular you’d like to share with me?’

I thought for a moment, taking her request seriously. ‘The voices you’re hearing call your name at night. They’re called Remnants. They’re souls who couldn’t handle the transfer, and shattered.’

‘Are they dangerous?’

‘Not particularly.’ I shrugged. ‘But they are quite distracting, and before you know it, you’ve been walking down one of the unending hallways for two hours and unfortunately for you, I can’t always be around to help.’