Chapter 2 #2
“Paying his keep is not a problem, but as it is not tied to your employment, I’ll draw up a leasing arrangement for you. That will keep things legal and cordial.”
“I can work with that. When can I expect the castle’s arrival?”
“That’s the problem. I don’t know. As I don’t know, your hiring will happen immediately, and you’ll be free to use your hours as you see fit. I recommend that you work with that feisty filly of yours. Take the time to live for a while.”
That I could do, without hesitation nor regret. “Then I see no reason not to sign. Which envelope has the hourly contract? I’m going to use it to start a fire tonight.”
Lucifer laughed. “The last white envelope has your signing bonus in it, so don’t burn that one.
The rest are just other offers, as I didn’t want to peek into the future for this.
I prefer to get a feel for people personally.
Welcome to the team, Crystal. You’ll only regret it for a little while, then you’ll see you’ve made the best choice of your life. ”
* * *
The bonus check made me laugh; the memo indicated, if I wished, I could tear the check up, take a picture of the scraps, and accept a mansion equal to my home located within the depths of Lucifer’s many hells.
Without a second thought, I did as told, texted the Devil with the evidence, and swept the debris into my trash can to deal with later.
I’d even flagged it as void before shredding it.
A few moments later, my cell rang.
I answered, laughing as I did so. “Hello, Lucifer.”
“Welcome to hell,” he replied, and like me, he chuckled. “You didn’t even think about it.”
“The dragon is an entity you, my new boss, is paying me to deal with, and it seems sensible to have somewhere close to where you live. Did you already have the place built or is it a work in progress?”
“It’s a work in progress. It’ll be equivalent to your current home, but I’ve found that I have happier minions if they have a chance to express their interests in a home before I start the builds.
For the moment, should you need to visit me, you’ll stay in my home.
You won’t have to come around often, at least to start with.
I’m simply unsure on how long the dragon is going to hide near his sleeping place.
Being honest, he’s keeping an old friend company, an old friend who is quite tired.
His work has been hard as of late. He’ll be fine, but the dragon brings him peace and companionship in a rapidly changing world.
Once he’s ready to be on his own, the dragon will come pay you a visit.
For all I know, the pair may even test temporary separation.
” The Devil chuckled. “The dragon is sentimental, as is his old friend. Time simply doesn’t pass for them as it does for most mortals.
You’ll get used to it. Time isn’t going to pass the same for you, either. ”
“Well, I am a hedge witch,” I replied, allowing myself a smile. “I haven’t been sure how much of my general youthful appearance has been due to magic or genetics.”
My mother wasn’t a hedge witch, but her mother had been before fate had twisted and she’d perished in a car crash. I had, upon hearing of the accident, learned an important lesson about the nature of life and death.
Eventually, death came for us all with limited exception.
That I spoke with the exception would give me a great deal to think about.
“Magic,” Lucifer answered, and something about his tone caught my attention. “What do you know about hedge witches?”
“We paid for our magic with our lives,” I answered. “We’re not undead—we never actually died—but we came close in the pursuit of our gifts. Or curse, depending on how you think about it. I guess I started as a practitioner but things went sideways.”
“You were always a hedge witch. That’s part of who you are.
Practitioners chase magic. You are magic.
Death just opened the last door to your potential.
Frankly, that old dragon is going to have his hands filled trying to contain you.
If I have my way, you will never be contained.
But nobody will need to contain you. Your role is to bring prosperity to the future. ”
Interesting. I narrowed my eyes. “I thought you hadn’t peeked.”
“Some things I can’t dodge noticing. Think about it this way: at pivotal points in history, the Universe herself rejoices or weeps over what is.
Your birth was one such moment. Everyone who is of critical importance for the greater good makes the universe rejoice.
I take notice of those people. I take notice of the ones who make the Universe weep as well.
Those souls are of equal importance, and I make certain my many hells are prepared to receive those ones when their day comes. ”
A chill swept through me. “I’m one of those people?”
“You are.”
“But I’m nothing that important, Lucifer. I’m just a hedge witch.”
“You’re not just anything. I think I know your role, but I don’t know how to get you to where you need to be.”
I rose from my seat, grabbed a pen, and scribbled my signature onto the employment contract before grabbing the relevant pages and heading downstairs to my favorite of my kitchens. Tea might help, maybe. “All right. Hit me with it. I prefer working with a full deck of cards.”
“My father’s daughter must live for the risk of the End of Days to vanish to nothing but the dimmest of possibilities on a distant horizon. Should she die, the End of Days are a guarantee. Should those times come, my family dies, and I will persist alone.”
While there was nothing human about the Devil, I marveled at the reality of the situation. In some ways, I believed there was no force stronger than love. That Lucifer could be such a being willing to defy his role within his own pantheon staggered me.
The beauty of it all stole my breath. “Jesus is a girl?”
“Her name isn’t Jesus, but yes, she’s a girl.”
“That’s present tense.”
“Yes, she’s been born. She’s alive and well for now.
But it’s the for now that’s a problem. I have most of the other players in place, but I’m still missing a few.
You’re one of them. And you’re not the kind I can trick into cooperating with me.
Hedge witches tend to be difficult at best. The other hedge witches simply have zero care for how the story ends. ”
“Aren’t there many hedge witches?” I knew at least six in Fort Lauderdale alone, and I hadn’t sought any of them out. Something deep within me recognized them for what they were.
“There are many lesser hedge witches,” Lucifer conceded.
“I had held hopes one of the lesser ones might grow into her strength, but that flower never bloomed. She contracted lycanthropy and was content with what she became—and she has found her personal heaven in her family. I’m evil, but I’m not that evil.
She earned that heaven, and I made the choice to leave her to enjoy it.
The conditions needed for her to rise into greater power passed her by.
I received an excellent flower from that garden, though, which more than makes up for the lost opportunity. ”
“Okay. What does that have to do with me?”
“You’re no longer a lesser hedge witch.”
I headed down the spiral staircase connecting the floors, pondering his words. “What other kind of hedge witches are there?”
“For the sake of simplicity, I’ll break them into three categories.
The common type is the lesser hedge witch.
These are people who have come close to death and their magic bloomed.
There are hedge witches, who have stronger magic and more skills than the lesser hedge witches.
Most just call both types hedge witches.
The third group consists of the greater hedge witches, and they have obtained portfolios of some sort or are developing their own portfolio. You are in this group.”
I’d heard the term portfolio, and it involved the divines who could perish and rise again into a future life, with the portfolio being inherited, often by an infant. “I inherited a portfolio?”
The last thing I needed was to contract a serious case of divine.
“No, you didn’t inherit a portfolio. You are the originator of one, however.
I could feel your presence all throughout your estate.
All portfolios have an origin, and the estate you purchased has become your origin point.
A node is also forming somewhere on your property, which is going to be useful when your dragon comes calling.
That node will help sustain him throughout this era and into the next—and it might buffer the region from the castle’s rise.
With luck, it’ll consume the surge of magic, strengthen itself, and spare those nearby.
I spoke the truth when I told you that your neighbors would have a bad day at the castle’s rise, but that was before I realized what I was sensing. ”
I marched to my favorite of the kitchens, which was located on the second floor, a rustic haven in the midst of an otherwise modernized home.
I grabbed my kettle, filled it with water, and plunked it on the stove before turning on the burner.
“Nobody is paid enough for that shit,” I informed him in a cool tone.
The Devil laughed. “You’re right. It’s a burden.
Anyone who thinks otherwise has no idea what it’s like to be responsible for true power.
So, here’s the reality of the situation: I need you to save my sister, and I have no idea how you play a part in her salvation.
No matter how I look, every future and possibility is masked behind a shroud—and it’s a shroud of the Universe’s making.
The Universe herself wants no one to know what will happen in the days to come.
All I know is that there’s a future beyond this moment because of you, but I cannot tell what that future is. ”
I foresaw giving myself many headaches trying to make sense of Lucifer’s plight and my role in it. “All right. Let’s assume I’m playing your game with you. Obviously, I like living as much as the next person, so I don’t want everything to end. Where is your sister?”
“That is hidden behind the shroud. All I know is that she has been born recently and that she is safe, and you will be a major reason why she remains safe.”
For now. “Count me in. I like living, so I’m being selfish, of course.”
The Devil burst into laughter. “Are you even capable of being selfish?”
“I’m sure I could master the art if I try.”
My new boss snorted. “I’ll come pick up those papers you signed tonight along with the deed for your new home in my many hells. Do yourself a favor: start entering your horse in stake races. That’s a good start to mastering the art of selfishness.”
I narrowed my eyes. Lucifer’s tone indicated he doubted I’d ever be capable of selfishness but he humored me. “Alligator Bait loves racing. I just do it for her.”
“That’s not doing a good job of being selfish. Try again.”
I sighed. “I spent her purse money upgrading their stalls. I guess I could use more purse money to upgrade their barn.”
“Once again, that is the exact opposite of selfish.”
I muttered curses. “It’s close enough. Can you at least tip me off on when this dragon is going to show up?”
“Whenever he wants,” my boss admitted. “I’ll try to at least convince him to make an appearance even if he isn’t ready for the castle yet. But hey, at least you’re being paid well to have your career put on hold for a while, right?”
“I’m honestly not comfortable with being paid to be lazy,” I confessed.
“Be selfish,” Lucifer ordered. “If you don’t show me suitable selfishness, I’ll be forced to give you a raise for doing nothing.”
The threat baffled me. “Are you insane?”
“Yes. Thank you for noticing. I’ll check in on you in a week or two to see if you have begun indulging in acts of selfishness.
I’ll give you a tip on how you can dip your toes into acts of selfishness.
Go buy a new phone. Yours works, but it’s old.
It’s time to upgrade. Giving yourself unnecessary bells and whistles counts. You can afford the splurge.”
I could handle that assignment; with my upcoming work, I would need it. “Okay. I can do that. Thank you, Lucifer.”
“No, thank you. I don’t know what you’ll do, but because of you, there’s hope.”