29. Ian
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
IAN
The chains bit into my wrists as I gritted my teeth, determined not to give Lucifer the satisfaction of hearing me scream this time. His red taloned hands worked me over with deliberate, brutal precision, rending flesh from bone. The pain was excruciating, all-consuming. He’d been at it for hours. At least it felt that way.
But as the agony pushed me to the brink, memories surfaced unbidden, dragging me back to a time centuries ago when my defiance burned hot and my will was still my own.
I stood alone in the vast throne room of Hell, my body aching from the marks of Tartarus’ chains. My brothers had already bent the knee, but I remained resolute, seething with righteous fury hotter than the flames dancing around me.
Lucifer approached, his presence radiating magnetism and raw power. “Menoetes, you’re too clever to waste eternity in rebellion,” he purred, each word dripping with silky persuasion. “Serve me, and you’ll find freedom like no other.”
A harsh laugh escaped my lips. “Freedom? You mean servitude.”
He drew nearer to me until the heat emanated from his crimson flesh warmed my skin. “You mistake me for the gods who bound you. I don’t demand chains. I offer desire, power, everything you’ve ever wanted.”
His fingers traced along my jaw, and I flinched instinctively, but didn’t pull away. Something in the air shifted, the shadows growing longer, the atmosphere more intimate.
Lucifer’s grip on my face tightened possessively as he leaned in, his breath hot against my skin. “Let me show you,” he said, before claiming my neck with searing lips.
I wanted to resist, to cling to my pride and push him away. But Lucifer’s touch sent jolts of twisted pleasure through my veins, insidiously chipping away at my resolve. I was slipping, succumbing, and part of me hated myself for it.
A ragged gasp tore from my throat as Lucifer’s teeth grazed my collarbone, his claws raking down my sides. I was betraying everything I’d fought for, but in that moment, pinned between the Devil’s unyielding body and my own treacherous need, I couldn’t bring myself to care.
A blinding pain exploded through my skull, jolting me back to the present. I was still chained to the stone slab, Lucifer’s mocking laughter echoing off the dark walls as he delivered another brutal blow.
“Still defiant after all these centuries?” he said with cruel amusement. “You’ll come back to me, Ian. You always do.”
I gritted my teeth, refusing to give him satisfaction. The pain was excruciating, but as my demonic healing kicked in, knitting torn flesh and shattered bone, a new clarity crystallized.
My body trembled as I dragged myself to my feet, rage and humiliation coursing through my veins. The pain from Lucifer’s torture still lingered, but it was nothing compared to the fury building inside me. That smug bastard thought he could break me, seduce me back into submission. But not this time. Never again.
I strode out of the chamber, my steps purposeful despite the weakness in my battered limbs. The throne room stretched before me, a mockery of infernal grandeur, but I didn’t spare it a glance. My resolve was set on one goal: finding my brothers. Not Levi—Hyperion. Not Aziz—Cronos. They needed to know the truth about Lucifer’s manipulations. They had to remember.
The journey to Levi’s apartment passed in a haze of simmering anger. I shoved the door open, stepping into the dimly lit interior of Levi’s rented place near the convent. Levi himself was sprawled on a couch, nursing a drink as he eyed me with mild curiosity. Aziz leaned against the far wall, a thick tome open in his hands, his eyebrows raised in silent question.
“You look like hell,” Aziz said.
I ignored the jibe, dropping heavily into a vacant chair, my body suddenly exhausted as the adrenaline faded.
“Lucifer’s screwing us over,” I said bluntly.
The words poured out of me, each syllable laced with bitterness and disgust as I recounted the memory of Lucifer demanding our submission to him.
As I spoke, Aziz and Levi’s expressions darkened, their eyes growing distant as if they, too, were lost in memory. Aziz’s jaw clenched, his fingers tightening around the book in his hands until his knuckles turned white. Levi’s gaze grew haunted, his usually laid-back demeanor replaced by a tense stillness.
When I finished, silence hung heavy in the room, broken only by the soft clink of Levi setting his glass down on the glass coffee table. He leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. “I remember the moment we gave fealty to Lucifer. He didn’t save us, he claimed us.”
Aziz snapped the book shut, tossing it aside with a snarl. “We were fools to believe his lies. He never intended to give us freedom, only a gilded cage.”
The pieces fell into place with sickening clarity. “We’re all the same. Titans, brothers bound in Tartarus, freed only to serve as Lucifer’s playthings.”
My voice grew colder, hardening with resolve. “We’ve given him enough fealty. It’s time to cut him off.”
“If not him running Hell, then who?” Aziz asked.
Levi smirked, his gaze sliding to Aziz. “Why not us?”
We exchanged a look, centuries of shared ambition and resentment coalescing into a single, unified purpose for the first time in millennia.
The door swung open, interrupting our silent pact. Evelyn strode in, her presence commanding the room like a queen taking her throne. Her expression was sharp, her eyes burning with a determination I’d never seen before. “Why not me?”
We turned to her, our jaws dropping in unison. I recovered first, my shock giving way to disbelief. “You?”
Evelyn crossed the room, sliding into the empty chair with an air of authority that seemed to come naturally to her. She met our gazes, unflinching. “I remember. I remember everything.”
Evelyn’s expression turned distant as she spoke, her gaze unfocused. “Memories have been flooding my mind... I was Lilith. The power I once held...”
Shock jolted through me as the realization hit. How did I not see it before? Aziz and Levi looked equally stunned.
Evelyn continued, her tone growing firmer. “I wasn’t afraid of anything. No one could make me feel small. I want that back. I need to feel that again. How do I get there?”
I reached over to squeeze her hand, trying to offer some comfort. But Evelyn snatched it back, fixing me with an icy glare. Her gaze swept over all three of us as she said coldly, “Looking back on the last few days, I can’t believe I let you treat me the way you did. Whatever reason you’ve fixated on me, it stops now.”
Aziz leaned forward. “We could just force you.”
Evelyn bared her teeth in a feral grin. “This kitten has claws. I’m not the same woman I was a few days ago or even a few hours ago.”
She rose to her feet, somehow towering over us despite her smaller stature. “If you want me, you’ll have to earn it. No more games. No more tricks. And definitely no more taking without asking.”
Levi, Aziz, and I exchanged looks, caught between amusement and disbelief. Was she serious? After everything we’d put her through, she thought she could call the shots?
I leaned back in my chair, a smirk playing on my lips. “We’ll see how long you hold out, sweetheart.”
But Evelyn’s expression didn’t waver. She met my gaze head-on, her eyes burning with a fierce determination that sent a thrill down my spine. “Try me.”
With that, she turned and walked out, her head held high. The door slammed behind her, the sound echoing in the sudden silence.
For a long moment, none of us moved. Levi and Aziz looked as stunned as I was, their usual bravado replaced by a wary uncertainty.
Finally, Aziz let out a low whistle. “Damn. Didn’t see that coming.”
Levi shook his head, a grudging respect in his eyes. “Girl’s got balls, I’ll give her that.”
But I barely heard them. My mind was still reeling, replaying the fierce determination in Evelyn’s eyes, the way she’d stood up to us without a hint of fear.
It was hot as hell.
I shifted in my seat, trying to ignore the sudden hard on. What the fuck was wrong with me? But even as I tried to deny it, I knew the truth. Somewhere along the way, between the games and the manipulation, I’d started to care about Evelyn. I wanted to protect her, to keep her safe from the fucked-up world we lived in.
The realization hit me like a punch to the gut. I was falling for her, and I had no idea what to do about it.
Fuck.