Chapter 7
Chapter Seven
Lothar
I was created in Hell, spent centuries there before we ever came aboveground, but as we stepped through the gateway and onto a Roxburgh pavement, something inside me shifted, spreading through me, and although I had limited emotions, Lucifer had made sure we understood them, and I was positive what I was experiencing was relief. But why?
Roxy and Ursula strode ahead, while I trailed behind them on my own, since Maddox had ordered Gus to stay in Hell, much to the pup’s disappointment.
Tonight, we would part ways with Urs as well, and it’d be just me and Rox.
Lucifer had assigned Urs a mission of her own, and she’d been told to come to some bar in the city for further instructions.
Apparently, we were tagging along before we headed to our next destination, one Roxy hadn’t filled me in on yet.
She was leading this search, and all I could do was follow.
Right now, that was all she was letting me do.
My gaze slid over the petite handmaid striding along in front of me, and I rubbed at my chest. There was a strange sensation behind my ribs, and this one I wasn’t able to identify, no matter how hard I tried.
Something was seriously off, and like this constant sensation in my chest, I couldn’t name it.
All I knew was I’d felt this way since I stepped through the gateway into Hell to meet with Rox a couple days ago, but most worrying of all?
The beast that all hounds carried inside them, our animal side, had been stirring restlessly inside me, in a way that didn’t make sense, and absolutely everything about that concerned the fuck out of me.
But even more confusing? The beast was like a fucking pointer dog, nose aimed right at Roxy.
I didn’t get it. All I knew was the female had me all fucked up.
It was starting to feel like I had split personalities—the beast was all about her, wanted to protect her, be near her, while I continued to struggle with the sensation of wrongness whenever she was close for too long.
My dick got hard around her, even while her scent filled me with a sense of dread, and with every inhale, the urge to get the fuck away from her increased—but as soon as I put space between us, the beast tried to take me back to her.
I’d known Roxy for centuries. Why was I feeling these things now?
Urs pushed open the door to a dive bar, and we walked in.
I scanned the room. It wasn’t full, not yet anyway, but there were several other handmaids here, and they rushed over to Ursula and Roxy when we walked in. Since I had no idea how long we’d be here, I got a beer and took a seat at one of the tables.
As the night went on, more handmaids arrived, and I watched them dance, do a fuck ton of shots, sing karaoke, and on more than one occasion throw hands when someone pissed them off.
Shit was getting rowdy, and Rox and Urs were right in the middle of it.
When these females cut loose, everyone needed to stand the fuck back and leave them to it.
The seat beside me scraped as it was pulled out, and I turned as Silas dropped into it.
“Lothar,” he said, his silver eyes hitting mine.
I hadn’t seen the fallen angel in a while. He spent most of his time with the knights of Hell. “What brings you here, brother?”
Silas had been punished, his wings taken from him a few years ago, and right now he looked wary as fuck.
The big male shoved his fingers through his gold-and-black-streaked hair, crossed his heavily tattooed arms over his chest and jerked his head toward Ursula.
“I wish I could say pleasure, but I have a feeling the next few weeks are going to be far from that.”
Urs had said someone would be here with further instructions for the mission Lucifer was sending her on. Looked like that someone was Silas.
The chair beside Silas slid out and Zenon, a knight of Hell, and Lucifer’s grandson, sat. He put his beer on the table in front of him and slid one to Silas. He gave me a chin lift. “Loth.”
“Zen, brother.” I frowned. “You both here for Ursula?”
“Lucifer has me playing delivery boy,” he said without heat. Zenon and Lucifer were tight. The king of Hell had pics all over his quarters of Zen; his mate, Mia; and their toddler, Zephyr.
“And you?” I said to Silas.
“A lot more than that,” he said, and he sounded pained.
“Urs never said it was you she was meeting.”
“She doesn’t know.” Silas’s jaw looked tight as hell. “I’m not Ursula’s favorite person. When she realizes what’s up…” He blew out a breath and rubbed his temple, looking more than a little stressed. “Let’s just say, she won’t be happy.”
“Best you try harder to make amends, my man,” Zenon said to him. “Lucifer said she’s still seriously pissed with you.”
“What did you do to piss her off?” I asked, already feeling sorry for him. Ursula did not forgive easily.
He tilted his head toward the other side of the room, to Ursula’s twin, Uma.
Oh shit. I’d heard he and Ursula had hooked up a while back, that things had ended badly. “Fuck, man.”
“You could say that.” His gaze slid back to the dance floor as he took a sip of his beer, and I knew the moment Urs spotted him, because the fallen angel actually flinched.
“Lucifer must have something pretty good on you to get you on board with this.”
He tore his gaze from her. “Nah, the knights are my family. Lucifer approached me through Zen. He needed someone with my…special abilities, and since Heaven has locked me out, I don’t owe them one fucking thing, certainly not my loyalty.”
“You think our missions are connected?” I asked Silas glancing back at Roxy, who was still dancing. Her black hair was wild around her heart-shaped face and her big blue eyes fucking glowed under the lights.
“I think it’s highly likely, given the timing.”
Silas was right. As usual, Lucifer was keeping shit to himself.
Did Roxy know more than she was letting on?
Probably. Especially with how tight she and Lucifer were.
I curled my fingers around my glass. If they wanted me to do my damn job, they needed to fill me the fuck in.
I needed to know everything they did. “So this thing you have for Urs, why did it have to be Zenon that gives it to her?”
“Lucifer said something about him not being able to leave Hell and bloodlines. Cryptic as usual,” Zenon said.
The song changed, a gritty, guitar riff echoing over the speakers. Ursula was by the jukebox, and she turned to Silas and flipped him off as the opening lyrics to “Why’d Ya Do It?” by Marianne Faithfull filled the room.
Silas stiffened beside me, while the handmaids danced, crowding the floor as they sang along to the gritty song about a male cheating on his female.
I didn’t envy Silas. Ursula was a strong female, a vicious warrior, and she didn’t let many get behind that tough exterior.
Silas had obviously managed it, before he’d fucked everything up.
Urs stepped away from her sisters on the dance floor, her sight set on Silas and strode toward our table. The male made a low sound and shifted in his seat but didn’t stand as Ursula closed in. She shoved the table aside, and Zen and I snatched up our glasses before they ended up on the floor.
Silas’s fingers curled into fists as she flicked back her red hair, kicked her leg up, resting it on his shoulder, and leaned in, getting in close as she sang along to the part about betrayal, and oysters, and before she said the word bitch, she spun to Uma, who was avidly watching, and said it directly to her twin.
Uma surged forward with a shriek but was held back by several handmaids. Urs laughed and turned back to Silas, trailing her fingers down the side of his face, then gripped his throat.
He was like fucking granite. “I never fucked your sister,” he ground out. “I’ve told you a fucking thousand times, we only kissed, once, because I thought she was you.”
Ursula bared her teeth and gripped his throat tighter, then leaned in again. “Do you really think I give a shit whose mouth you stick your tongue in?”
“You played the song, Ursula. You walked over here fucking singing it,” he said. “What else am I supposed to think?”
Her lips curled up and she chuckled. “Jesus, you’re too fucking easy, Si. I think playing with you has become my new favorite thing to do.” She licked her lips. “I bet if I checked, you’d be hard as fuck right now.” Silas’s nostrils flared, and Ursula laughed. “You really are pathetic.”
“Back the fuck up,” Silas said.
She smirked and pushed away. “I take it since you’re sitting here like a stalker, you’re my travel buddy?” He dipped his chin, grinding his teeth, and her smile widened. “Oh goodie. We’re going to have so much fun.”
Zenon called her name. She turned, and he tossed her something.
She caught it, and her eyes widened momentarily.
“From Lucifer,” Zenon said and got the hell out of here. I didn’t blame him.
She looked down at whatever it was he’d given her, then grinned. “About fucking time.”
Roxy
Ursula spun away from Silas, a smirk on her face, but as soon as she was sure Uma couldn’t see her, her expression shifted to fury. She grabbed my hand and led me from the room, down a short hall to the bathrooms.
She shut us in, locked the door, then snarled in rage, slamming her fist into the wall.
“What’s going on, Urs?”
She held up her hand, showing me the jagged stone key.
“Holy shit.” I’d only ever seen one like it, but that had been centuries ago. Now I knew why Zenon was here. The invitation had to be delivered by the leader of the realm you were representing, or someone from their bloodline. That didn’t explain Silas’s appearance though.
“What the actual fuck is Lucifer playing at?”
I frowned. “Urs—”
“First, he sends you off with Lothar and now me and fucking Silas?”
Shit.
She shook her head, pacing. “I’ve been wanting to represent Hell in The Tartarean for centuries, and he’s forcing me to do it with Silas? I’m not doing it. No fucking way.”