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“Those souls are the worst kind of fucking crap there is, Ana. Murderers, drug pushers, rapists, and pedophiles. Why do you care?”
She thought of the pale woman from the shuttle. “I just . . . I think some of them are lost and not through their own fault. If they had a light in their lives, a chance to grow without darkness, they’d be different.”
He shrugged dismissing her softness. “At least they have a chance to work their way out, make it up to District One. It’s not so bad up there.”
Ana paused, moistened her lips, and asked the question that had been haunting her forever, it seemed.
“Where did you end up . . . when you were down here?”
They’d reached the tree. The trunk was massive, spanning nearly eight feet in width. The thickness of the canopy blocked out the sun and the coolness of shade caressed her cheeks. She welcomed it, not used to the sun.
Declan glanced behind them. The two guards were still several hundred feet away.
He turned, looked down at her, his lips tight. He blew out a hot breath and spoke quietly. “I caught her eye.”
They stared at each other for several long moments and Declan moved so that his hand hovered over the bark of the tree. “Stay close to me and be silent. I’ll do the talking if need be. We don’t have a lot of time.”
Ana nodded and then grabbed his arm. “She won’t be there, will she? In this Succubus place?”
“I hope not,” Declan said as his hand slammed against the bark. “We didn’t exactly part on good terms.”
The tree shimmered and Ana watched in astonishment as the center liquefied. It expanded an
d then melted away leaving a gaping hole big enough for them to walk through. Seriously, Hell would be a lot easier to navigate, to understand, if it was actually the fire and brimstone she’d imagined. This was just weird. The only lingering connection was the ever-present aroma of sulfur.
“After you,” Declan said.
Ana didn’t hesitate even though everything inside her was screaming no. She squared her shoulders and stepped through.
Cold dread sat like a lump in Declan’s gut as he followed Ana through the portal. Long-ago memories threatened, but he pushed them back fiercely. He would not relive the horrors from his time here.
Yet they were always there: images of long blond hair, entwined limbs, and the rot of evil.
As soon as they cleared the threshold, the insanity that was Succubus Blues embraced them fully. The music, the mayhem, the drugs—most of all, the scent of fear and the taste of pain.
Happy hour was in full swing, but then again it was always happy hour down here. An overabundance of illicits and alcohol fueled the crowd into a frenzy most nights and there were always casualties. The bodies were piled outside in the square, taken back to the bowels of District Three. There they’d regenerate so that their pitiful existence could happen all over again.
It was a true fact. There was no escaping District Three or the reach of Lilith.
As far as he knew, no one but he and Julian Castille had managed to do it, and that was only because of Bill. If the little bastard hadn’t pulled Declan’s ass out when he did, there was no telling what he would’ve become.
No, it definitely wouldn’t serve him well to run into Lilith until he was ready.
Declan flexed his fingers, felt the power that lay beneath his flesh. It was there, not cut from him like before, impotent and useless.
He glanced at his timepiece. They had less than two hours to accomplish their goal. Seth said he’d have a shuttle waiting for them, commandeered by one of his own men. If they didn’t haul ass and get back to the platform by the agreed upon time, they’d be stuck in District Three indefinitely. There would be no changeover for the guards for at least another two weeks.
His gaze rested upon Ana’s small form. The serum he’d gotten from Samael would never last that long.
“What now?” Ana asked, her eyes trained ahead, taking everything in.
They stepped out of the way, letting the two guards who’d been behind them by.
“Follow me and remember what I said, no—”
“Talking,” she interrupted sarcastically. “I get it, you Tarzan, me Jane.”
In the midst of all the chaos that surrounded him, he fought a smile. “That would be right,” he murmured, and added, “Keep your eyes low, do not encourage contact with anyone.”
