Chapter 24 Talian
Breakfast this morning had been…something.
I’d been on board with Bast for a while now; the only thing that made sense was that she was his mate. Why else would he have been damn near going off the rails since she disappeared, not to mention the interest he’d shown in her before that?
But I wasn’t sure she was only his.
Asta had come to Hell to seek refuge from Lucifer after years of trying to get out of Hell.
Kai was still adamant that he hated her, but if that was the case, he wouldn’t be here helping.
It was impossible to get him to do anything he didn’t want to, and with his dislike for mortals, he should have been anywhere but here.
Yet he could be found in the library at any given time, nose in a book.
He claims it’s because he wants to handle Rome, and I’m sure that’s part of it, but who am I to call him on it? He’ll figure it out sooner or later…
Or he won’t, and that’s fewer people for me to have to share her with because I care about her too.
Have since the moment I saw her that first time, and she turned bright red at the sight of me naked.
I’d tried to stay away, but I couldn’t. I thought a taste would be enough, but I think it did the opposite.
Like a drug addict, I am wholly addicted to her now.
But what I never expected was for Lucifer to be a part of this equation.
He’s the devil after all, and if demons are said not to get mates as a form of punishment, I’d assume he would be first in line for that. He was among the highest order of angels when he fell, right hand to God himself.
Which makes me believe everything we know about mates is a lie, though it’s not much as it is.
Mates are a gift from the universe, celestial if you will. No being, not even God, has power over them, which probably should have been the first clue that the rumors were false. Unfortunately, that doesn’t help us, though, as we still have no idea what makes a mate bond snap into place.
I’d hugged Aeri not ten minutes prior to Lucifer.
I’ve slept with her, and Bast has slept in her bed and bathed with her this morning.
So, I don’t think it’s actually a proximity thing.
Especially considering how close we have all lived together, both here and in the penthouse, before everything changed.
“Stop grumbling. You sound like a spoiled child.” Kai doesn’t even bother looking up from the book he’s been deep in for the last few hours. I’d come to try and help look into the whole mating thing, but books haven’t been my thing in a long, long time, and I quickly got distracted.
“Shut up.” I flip him the bird, knowing damn well he can read my mood and will know what I did even without his attention on me. Not much gets past Kai when he actually cares to pay attention.
He rolls his eyes, shaking his head at me, but doesn’t say anything else, and for a few minutes neither do I.
Until I can’t take it anymore.
“How the fuck did he get a mate before me?” I whine, collapsing forward onto the table dramatically.
Kai snaps his book closed, the sound of his chair scraping across the polished stone floor that makes up most of the castle.
There’s the occasional wood floor or large rug, like the one near the fireplace that burns so hot the flames are blue.
Aeri’s room has a rug too, now that I think about it.
I wonder if that was on purpose or not. Either way, I’m glad.
The floor is cold, and despite how much I might not like it, she seems to spend a lot of time on the floor.
I’m pulled from my thoughts as I’m physically pulled from the chair, a hand around my neck, my feet dangling a few inches off the floor as I look down at a very angry Kai.
He’s positively seething as he glares up at me, his fingers digging into my throat, cutting off my ability to breathe. Thankfully, that’s not a problem, especially not here in Hell. There isn’t much he could do to actually hurt me here, and with the way his eyes narrow, he knows it.
“Maybe you aren’t her mate because you don’t deserve her.
This isn’t a fucking game. It’s not about why he got to be her mate first; you should be happy if you ever get to be hers at all with that attitude.
” He’s breathing hard, his jaw clenched as he forces each word through clenched teeth.
I’ve seen Kai mad plenty, made him mad more times than I could ever count, but not like this.
“Rome is pulling her mind apart and rebuilding it like it’s a game, like she’s a set of Legos, and you're worried about why you weren’t first?
!” He pulls me down until we're damn near nose to nose. We’re close enough in height that I could easily use the floor to even the playing field, push out of his hold, and maybe even deck him for good measure.
But as his words sink in, I can’t make myself move.
He’s right.
Fuck, I hate when he and Asta are right. They're always so level-headed and logical, and I know I’ll never hear the end of this.
Even worse, Kai hates Aeri, supposedly, so if he can see this, I’m really fucking up.
I let my hurt ego blind me to what’s really important here. It doesn’t matter whose mate she is; even if she’s never mine like that, she doesn’t deserve to be stuck with Rome the way she is.
Even so, I want her to be mine, and I want to be hers.
I’ve never wanted that before, never cared if demons were mateless for eternity. What did I need a mate for?
Someone to tie me down and try to tame me? No thanks. I’d been freed when I fell to Hell with my brothers, and I never intended to wear shackles again.
But with Aeri, it doesn’t feel like shackles. It doesn’t feel forced or like she wants to change me. I might have worn a different face that night with her in the bar, but it was the most I’d been myself in a long time. No expectations or impossible standards like I’d grown used to.
With Aeri, everything is easy, natural, and right in a way I’d never experienced before. I can see why some search for their mate for all of eternity.
“You're right.” My shoulders slump, and I let my head hang, unwilling to fight even if I think it might do us both good to let off some steam.
“What?” The shock in Kai’s voice is almost laughable. His hand loosens from around my throat, and I stand in front of him, meeting his gaze. His brows draw together as he watches me as if waiting for me to say something else or throw a punch.
Not that I blame him; this is a bit out of character for me, but everything feels different with Aeri, and as I watch him, I know for sure it’s not just me who feels it, no matter what Kai tries to say.
“You're right, I’m being stupid and selfish. I want her, want her to want me, and I hate that Lulu got her first, but that isn’t what this is about.
Right now, we just need to get Rome out of her head.
Then, once she is mine, I can show her all the ways I’m better than Lulu and the fucking rest of you.
” I rub my hands together like the villains from the old movies as a wicked grin pulls at my lips.
Ideas of how I’ll show her begin to fill my mind, and while I have other things to worry about, it won’t hurt to write the ideas down for later.
Lulu is already in the lead! He let us bring her here, to his fucking castle, having the imps cook her whatever she wants, providing beautiful dresses–ones that I would love to see on the floor as much as I love seeing them on her–and of course, holding her when the rest of us had been away.
Had he planned that?
No, he wouldn’t do that, right?
I have more work to do than I thought, because it’s not just him; Bast has been cozying up to her a lot lately.
I have lots of ideas, but I need to start small.
Maybe I can convince her to let me stay with her tonight.
What had Bast done to get her to allow that?
The last thing I need is to scare her more.
“Let me know if you need any help, or if we find anything to try.” I leave him standing alone in the library as I make my way back up to my room.
I stop in the hall, turning back around to head down to the kitchen. I’d intended to head back up to my Darling, but I need to have a few words with Bast first.
One of the best things about being here again is having the full extent of our powers back.
On the surface, we could feel each other, but anyone else was more complex; the power required to sense them depended on the shield they had and the distance.
Mortals were easy, but almost every demon and angel was able to do at least a halfway decent shield, which meant finding anyone required power, and most of the time it wasn’t just a little bit.
Here in Hell, I can feel every demon, everywhere, in every ring, and all the unfortunate souls that call this place home.
The only exception is Lucifer, who can mask himself from anyone, but he rarely does; in fact, I don’t know that I’ve ever seen him do that.
Wait.
My steps falter as I turn into the dining room and feel him.
When did Ruin get here?