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Bax whirls to face me, eyes blazing. He looms over me. This close, the heat rolling off him is staggering.
I lift my chin. “I’m only here to help this department reach its full potential.”
“You know nothing of our potential,” he growls.
“Then educate me,” I counter, holding my ground. “Because from what I’ve seen, this bureaucracy is dangerously outdated.”
A ring of fire surrounds us. I stifle a yelp. Imps scramble for cover.
Okay, maybe that was too far.
“Dangerously outdated?” His voice is far too soft for the power emanating from him. “My methods have been molding chaos since you were but a glimmer in some celestial eye.”
For the first time in his presence, genuine fear makes me tremble. He could torch me right here. End my life. Cease my existence. Or, at the very least, cause me to feel nightmarish pain from the many forms of torture he could choose.
But Bax Daemonus does none of that.
Instead of making me feel the brunt of the violence swimming in his eyes, he turns and storms down the corridor, fire raging in his wake. Alarms sound as flames lick the walls. The sprinkler system activates, quickly drenching me and the entire floor. Demons scramble to save their paperwork, or worse yet, their cubicles from complete destruction, casting me pointed looks of anger and annoyance.
I hurry after Bax as he leaves smoldering footprints down the halls. So much for not losing his temper.
“Mr. Dae—Bax! Please reconsider!” I call after him.
He whirls, eyes molten. “My methods areflawless.” Eyes locked with mine, he extends one clawed hand toward a severed soul chained to a wall. Blue fire erupts around the writhing thing.
“But unnecessary redundancy wastes resources,” I counter, forcing my voice not to tremble. Probably not my best idea to keep arguing, but I refuse to back down. I need to succeed in this job!
Bax growls and I wonder if I’ve done it now. If he directs his anger at me, I’m done. But with another growl, he sends a blast of fire at a torture device. It explodes in a rain of shrapnel. Imps whimper and dash for cover.
That alone should make me back down. So why am I continuing. Why are my shoulders stiffening, my hands forming fists at my side. Rage building insideme. Because I can’t let this go. That’s why.
“If you would only take evenoneof my suggestions,” I say. He ignores me, purposefully setting a stack of paperwork ablaze.
As we continue our heated debate down the halls, leaving destruction in our wake, we seem to reach a stalemate. Bax is too enraged to concede, but equally, he hasn’t tried to incinerate me for daring to challenge him. I call that a win.
But I will not yield either. There are too many flaws that demand remedies I can provide. Soul-crushing bureaucracy may be Bax’s comfort zone, but it is vulnerable people who pay the price for inefficiency. I owe it to them, and my sister, to stay the course.
At long last, we reach Bax’s office. He slams the door behind us with enough force that the walls shake. And suddenly, I’m painfully aware that I’m soaking wet from the sprinklers, my white blouse is printed against my skin, my red bra quite obvious underneath, and we’re alone. Bax could snap me like a twig if he wished.
Chest heaving, Bax pins me with his burning gaze. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t end our little partnership right now.”
I lift my chin despite the panic his words send through my veins. “Because you know I’m right.”
He stalks toward me. I hold my ground as he looms over me.
“You think you’reright?” he scoffs.
Our faces are inches apart now. His heat envelops me, challenging and enticing all at once. I can almost taste the brimstone on his breath.
I meet his fiery eyes unflinchingly. “Prove me wrong, then.”
Is it wise to go toe to toe with your boss? Probably not. Aboveworld, that’s a sure way to get your ass fired. But I’m not Aboveworld.
For a breathless moment, we stare each other down. The office fills with crackling tension. I’m hyperaware of Bax’s perfectly sculpted face so close to mine, his searing aura surrounding me. His eyes flicker with that unreadable emotion again. Is it anger? Or something far more dangerous?
My pulse pounds erratically. I’m in over my head. Surely Bax can hear my heart threatening to beat out of my chest.
But I refuse to show fear. I will not forfeit this chance to reform a broken system plus earn the money I need. No matter how lethal the demon challenging me may be.
