Page 99 of A Trial By Blood

We all strode in, and I still had no idea what the hell was going on. We walked into a huge room, a kind of living room with several doors leading from it. Lots of black and silver and crimson. A large couch sat in the middle, and a male covered in tattoos, tall and lean and muscled, sat relaxed in a chair beside it. He had a glass of red wine in one hand and was stroking a black cat laying in his lap with the other.

Lucifer.

We were in Lucifer’s quarters.

He took us all in. “Well, this is a surprise.” he looked at me, then back to Warrick. “But not completely unexpected.”

Warrick crossed his thick arms over his chest. “There’s something we need your help with.”

“Another favor, War? I’d say I’ve dished out enough of those where you and your mate’s family are concerned.” He stroked his cat slowly, his gaze sliding to me. “I think Ronan is capable of making his own bargain for this one. What is it you want, dhampir?”

I glanced at Warrick and back, confused.

“Think,” Lucifer said. “You know exactly why you’re here.”

Rose filled my head, beautiful, bare, wanting. My mate. I wanted to be the male she needed, the male she deserved so badly. Rage filled my veins, and the reason I was here became crystal clear.

“I wasn’t sure what fate had planned for your female.” Lucifer said. “Turns out it was you.” He took me in from head to toe. “Though, honestly, I don’t give a fuck about any of that.” He smiled, and it didn’t reach his eyes. “Love is a load of old bollocks. Romance? Pass. Making googley eyes at each other and coming up with pet names. Gag. Fucking? Well, now, that’s something I can get behind—”

“Ugh!” Roxy said and shoved the King of Hell’s shoulder. “I hate it when you talk like that. One day you’re going to fall head over heels for a female and you’ll have to eat those words.”

He smiled indulgently at who I now realized was one of his handmaids. “Rox, honey, that’s the biggest load of horse shit you’ve ever spouted.”

Roxy rolled her eyes. “We’ll see.”

Lucifer turned back to me. “So go on then, tell me what you want, dhampir, and we’ll see if I’m in the mood to accommodate.”

“I want access to Azel.”

“You want to beat the fuck out of him? You think that will help you?”

“Yes,” I said without hesitation.

Lucifer grinned, and it was pure evil. “Down here, neither of you will have use of your powers. You’ll be as weak and breakable as any human. Only Azel can’t die, because he’s already dead. You can hurt him, though, make him bleed, break him. But if he shanks you, my man?” The King of Hell shrugged. “Well, War might be carrying you out of here minus your soul. You understand that, right?”

I had to do this. Not only for me but for Rose as well. I couldn’t go back to her until I did this. Until I faced the monster who almost broke my sister and me, until I made him bleed. “Yes.”

Lucifer chuckled. “Okay, cool. But you owe me, dhampir. If you don’t die, just know that one day I might call on you for something, and it would be in your best interests to do as I ask.” His gaze slid to Warrick. “Take him where he wants to go.”

We left and headed back along the cavern. No one said anything as we made turn after turn down seemingly endless tunnels. I heard demons in the distance, their growls and twisted laughter, but I didn’t see any until we rounded the next corner. There were doors at the very end, wide and made of charred wood and iron. Two demons stood on either side.

They weren’t a breed I’d ever seen before, with their blunt features, hoofed feet, and short tusks protruding from either side of their nose. They looked more like animals or shifters of some kind, but the darkness that rolled from them was all demon.

“After Azel’s attempt to escape, Lucifer’s kept a closer eye on him,” War said as we strode to the massive doors. He said something to the guards, and the demons moved aside.

I instantly felt him. Azel.

I’d fed from him enough that I sensed him even now. Icy spikes prickled my skin, and I broke out in a cold sweat.

Warrick waved one of the demons over and ordered him to unlock the door. He did as instructed, then stepped back again.

“Time moves slower down here. We might be here for only half an hour, but it’ll be a full day on Earth. So you need to do this quickly. Azel will probably be confused when he sees you, about how much time has passed, about where he is,” Warrick said. “They’re all different, but the longer a soul is here, the more confused they can become. He might even believe he still has his powers, or that he’s on Earth.”

I dipped my chin.

“Ready?” Warrick asked.

“Yes.”