Chapter 10
I woke in a soft bed wondering where the hell I was.
Not Hell, I remembered.
At least, not the Hell Realm.
I refused to open my eyes, but as my fingers curled into the soft sheets, I knew that I was still alive.
My stomach twisted with hunger and my throat felt raw with thirst.
Other than that, the softness around me assured me that I’d been taken care of, and that I was alive.
But were my mates still alive, too?
Was it even worth it to open my eyes ever again?
Perhaps I’d failed just like my mother. Perhaps I would have a burden to pass on to my future daughter and be forced to leave her alone to deal with all of her problems.
“Lils?” a familiar feminine voice asked.
Olivia’s concerned tone forced me to open my eyes. If she was with me, then at least I wouldn’t have to go through this alone.
When I took in the room around me, a place full of luxurious paintings and fancy furniture, I tried to just focus on Olivia’s face.
Her dark eyes assured me that she still didn’t have a soul. She’d lost that because of me and I was still struggling to forgive myself for it.
I had forgiven myself, maybe, but now it was hard to keep it that way.
“How are you feeling?” she asked, leaning in to take my hand.
She felt warm, which wasn’t a good sign. I radiated heat because I was the Princess of Hell.
If my body had cooled, then perhaps that was because I’d lost my title.
Because I failed? Because all my Virtues are dead?
“Lils?” she pressed, her brows knitting with concern when I didn’t answer.
“Okay, I guess,” I responded, even though my heart was shredding into a thousand tiny little pieces.
I couldn’t sense my mates. Not even Kaito or the twins.
Did that mean they were gone, too? Had Hades gone into Hell?
That was entirely possible. I’d merged the realms, making it easy for a supernatural like Hades to simply walk over.
Tears flooded my eyes and blurred my vision.
Flinching, I ran my fingers over my cheek, startled by the lingering wetness.
Usually my tears evaporated before they could leave my eyes.
It was strange to feel them running down my skin. Liquid emotion that held all of my sorrow as if my life force simply fled from my eyes.
Some called the eyes the window to the soul, so I felt like the imagery was fitting. My soul was empty without my mates.
If they were gone…
“Kaito!” she yelled, startling me. “I think you should get in here.”
“What’s she doing?” he asked a moment later as he burst through the door.
I choked on a sob.
His eyes went wide. He didn’t say another word. Instead he came to me. Olivia stepped out of the way as he swept his arms around me and pulled me in close.
I buried my nose into his neck and let the tears come.
“I’ve got you, Koneko-chan,” he whispered as my entire body shivered with pain.
While I boasted enough physical injuries to keep me bedridden, my emotional wounds hurt so much worse.
But Kaito was alive.
Which meant that the others could be too.
“Where… are they?” I choked out.
Kaito kissed my brow. He didn’t ask me who I meant by “they.” He knew.
“I’ll tell you everything, I promise.” He pulled me away and ran his thumb over my tears, sending them sizzling into steam with his demon’s heat. “But first, you need something to eat. You’ve been asleep for weeks. Olivia has barely been able to get you to drink, much less accept any food.”
Olivia perked up. “I’ll go grab a tray! I’ll be right back.”
She scampered out of the room.
“I don’t care about food or water,” I protested, my heart twisting with that awful pain again. I clutched onto Kaito, black spots sprinkling across my vision at the effort. “Just tell me if they’re okay, please, Kaito.”
It meant the world to me that he was alive.
But I needed to know that they all were.
His lips formed a thin line before he seemed to realize that I wasn’t going to comply without some sort of answer.
“Logan is still asleep in the other room. Calamity has been successfully extracted from him and he’s going to be okay,” he said.
“Thank the—” I began, only for Kaito to cut me off.
“Hendrik and Dante are dead,” he said, making my heart stop. His jaw flexed before he continued. “The rest are either imprisoned or under Lucifer’s control.” He gripped my shaking hands. “Listen, Lily. We’re going to get them back. You hear me?”
No…
My mind reeled.
A cry lodged itself in my throat, refusing to come out.
This can’t be happening.
Olivia returned with a tray laden with meats, vegetables, snacks, and three different glasses of liquid. She nearly dropped it when she saw my face.
“For fucks sake, Kaito. What did you tell her?” she screeched, placing the tray down so she could face him with her hands propped on her hips.
“The truth,” he growled. “She deserves to know.”
“And did you tell her about Balthazar?” she snapped, getting up in his face.
Balthazar?
My numbed brain tried to make sense of what they were saying.
“I’m not going to give her false hope. We need more information before we consider—”
His words cut off when a demon entered the room.
I knew it couldn’t be anything else. The massive wings with deadly talons scratched the entryway as he pushed his way inside. A tail whipped around his feet and horns protruded from his head.
Except he wasn’t Cole, although the two boasted some similarities.
Like a wickedly handsome smile.
He grinned. “Did someone call my name?”