Page 23 of Demon Demands

“I’ll be eighteen on Friday,” Hyde dreamily reminded me. “We should go out. I want to drink and sing karaoke.”

“I haven’t forgotten, and I already got you something,” I confessed, unsure if she would really like it or not. “But I’m not singing.”

“Is it shoes?” She questioned, grinning at me.

“Part of it,” I laughed, knowing she loved nothing more than designer brands and pink. “But that’s not all.”

It had taken me months to talk Dolyn and her father into letting her attend The Devil’s Academy. I’d pulled out all the stops too. Research and statistics, class schedules and background checks on all the teachers.

I finally lied, telling them that I’d already paid for her tuition so they wouldn’t refuse. Then I’d immediately left them when I got the answer I’d wanted, going straight to the bank to set up an account for Hyde’s schooling.

It wasn’t that they couldn’t afford it, they just never wanted her to stray too far from them. She’d been wanting to attend the academy for as long as I could remember, and she’d worked so hard to stay ahead in her classes.

An education in Stars couldn’t compare, though. The schooling in the Underworld didn’t teach demons how to thrive on Earth, and Hyde wanted nothing more than getting away from her… demons. To escape the memories she had in the Underworld for a little while and come back stronger than ever.

The little succubus and her family didn’t know it, but she was going to be my regent and rule in my absence. There was a pink envelope in the duffle bag Franklin had brought for me. Inside it was proof of her paid tuition, senior year of high school and four years of college at The Devil’s Academy, and a list of classes I required her to take.

“Is that…” Vaughn cleared his throat, struggling to get the words out. “Is the plant life glowing or am I hallucinating? This feels like that time I dabbled with fae drugs. Tell me someone else is seeing that.”

“Really, Vaughn?” I tried to make my voice sound disappointed, but I couldn’t hide my amusement. “We’ve been here for a few hours and you’ve already broken my rule about drinking the green beer?”

“I didn’t drink a godsdamn thing,” he shot back, his eyes narrowing as he noticed my grin.

Stone shrugged his shoulders. “The plants glow.”

Vaughn blinked his eyes rapidly, checking out the landscape around us as the hellhounds slowed to a steady trot. “I’m sorry. Come again?”

“The plants glow,” Stone repeated slowly, enunciating each word.

“I heard what you said,” Vaughn reassured him. “I just need an explanation.”

“Well,” I started, “I’m no scientist, but the plants and animals in the Underworld are bioluminescent. Everything appears kind of dead or starved during the day. At night, it livens up. The flowers bloom when the heat of the sun leaves, the vines grow, the animals awaken and frolic through the trees.”

“Frolic?” Novak laughed at me. “That’s not a word I ever expected to hear coming from your mouth.”

“It’s a wee bit fairytale-like compared to yer usual murder and business talk,” Palmer agreed.

“That’s what they do,” I argued, staring at the darkening sky. “They fucking frolic. The birds sing, the deer and rabbits frolic, and the bigger predators hunt them.”

“You’re asking me to believe that the Underworld has deer and rabbits, and they… frolic?” York inquired, his lips twitching as he tried not to smile.

I sighed in exasperation. “A variation of them, yeah.”

“We’re at the border,” Dolyn interrupted. “Which way are we going? Lo? Grim?”

“Mmm, south,” Grim replied.

“Toward Voletan?” Dolyn asked, confusion lacing his deep voice.

“Yeah,” I acquiesced. “That's what I’m feeling too.”

Dolyn furrowed his brow, squinting his eyes as he recalled the map we’d been studying. I slid him the mental image for a fresh reference.

“I’d been thinking that Hannibal would have been hiding closer to Kelzark. It’s closer to the coast and would have more resources to help him live off-grid.”

Hyde dismissed Dolyn’s theory with a wave of her hand. “The Zark population rivals Hell. There’d be too many enforcers patrolling to give him any comfort. Even if he was still in Lilk, the Zarks cross over the border to assist the Lilks. It’s part of the 1936 peace accord between the two territories.”

Novak leveled Stone with a lost look. “Do you know what the fuck they’re talking about?”