Chapter The Devil Went Down To Georgia
The Devil Went Down To Georgia
ANGELO
The bickering amongst my family is amusing, but I’m only half paying attention to it.
We’re in a shark tank in this room, and I’m watching carefully for perceived foes.
Damon isn’t used to the absolutely disgusting shit our father gets up to because I’m the one he taps for the dirty work.
I’ve never complained about it because D has always been softer, less hard edged than me.
I’m not sure he could take the assignments I’ve been part of, nor would I want him to.
It’s the one thing I could do to protect him and I will always strive to allow him that tiny modicum of innocence.
But his instant attachment to Archer is even cuter than his adoration of Rogue, and I don’t want our parents to get even a whiff.
They don’t care about sexuality unless it affects their reputation, and until we’re ready to announce our entire family as a unit, we have to keep the specifics under wraps.
Damon barely paid attention to demonic customs and shit during our education at Discordia, so I doubt Luca will assume we’ve formed a caliphate.
Technically, under demonic tradition, that’s exactly what we’re doing; Rogue is part Cubi and we’re full demons.
The others are connected by mating, so they’d be allowed to be inducted by law.
Luca and Lola would lose their fucking minds; caliphates are most often formed in elite demon families as a prelude to taking over their family empires.
While Luca brags about me taking his seat at the head of the Geminis, I know he’ll stay in that role until the day he draws his last breath.
Having an heir is convenient and shields him from internal coups, but he has zero intention of ever letting go of the reins to our organization.
“Ang?”
I turn to look at our girl, smiling as she arches a brow. “Yes, Princess?”
“You’re obsessing. There’s a crease between your eyes that I know means you’re worried about something.” Rogue smirks when I scowl, leaning in to murmur against my ear, “And you’re stiffer than a corpse in the Arctic, baby. Not in a fun way, either.”
“Tell me about it,” I grumble as my shoulders drop.
“There’s a lot of shit about demon culture that both you and D have little awareness of.
You were raised completely outside of it, and he buried himself in books and computers to avoid Luca.
I, however, spent many years being groomed for the throne. ”
She frowns as she follows my gaze to a corner where two demons are being whipped on racks in front of a crowd of drunken, hooting lower level on-lookers. “Stuff like this?”
I chuckle, nodding at her indication. “Well, yes. Pain with pleasure is a fairly common occurrence in our species, though I wouldn’t say it’s the only way.
But the parties and events that are not attached to more formal occasions typically have a lot of hedonistic flavor.
This isn’t the worst of it, but notice it wasn’t right at the front entry, either.
Most events have rings like Hell itself, which keep the very depraved and dark stuff away from ‘visitors’ to our scene. ”
Her eyes squint and she shrugs. “That’s fine. You’d have to do some pretty weird shit to find things I haven’t seen at the club. I’m not saying degradation or high pain are my thing, mind you, but I won’t be scandalized by it. Whatever floats people’s boats is their business, Ang.”
“Archie and maybe Javi will probably be uncomfortable by the time we find my parents,” I reply as I shake my head. “I’ve seen some eye-bleach worthy shit at Luca’s ragers in the past. Reb won’t be ruffled, I don’t think, but those two are much more normal than us dark side supes.”
“Gotta lose the naiveté sometime,” she says. “They’ve bonded to our bent selves, baby, and that means seeing things they wouldn’t have ever had the chance to witness before. I’m sure they’ll survive okay.”
“Even if we run into Luca and Lola being… serviced by large, random groups of demons? Because unfortunately, that’s more likely. I wasn’t joking about seeing shit I’d like to have removed from my memory with a sharp object.”
Rogue makes a face, shuddering as she holds onto my arm. “Fucking gross. I take it back; my jackass parents aren’t remotely as bad as yours, even if they sold my brother on the black market. What kind of whacked out motherfuckers let their kid see them being rogered—or worse—in public?”
“Definitely ‘or worse’ applies,” I mutter. “But Damon didn’t have to go to that kind of shit, so he might have a wee bit of trouble as well. You know I’ve always tried to push him away from the in person parts of the Gemini lifestyle.”
She sighs. “Well, tonight is going to suck no matter how we shake the globe, Ang. Maybe we can get a group rate on therapy?”
She has no idea how accurate that might be, but for now, I’ll just smile.
It takes a bit to wend our way through the upper levels of the space Luca had his minions build, and I want to scream at the ridiculous wastefulness of this monstrosity.
I don’t claim to be any kind of eco-warrior or someone who struggled financially at any point in my life.
But I recognize the excess involved in all these organizations and species creating temporary territories for a three-day event is a bit much.
I guarantee it’s bothering Rogue, but she’s more focused on making sure that Reb and I help her surround the softer members of our group.
“Wheels, you’re gonna bruise me if you’re not careful,” Archie jokes as she holds onto him with one arm and Javi with the other. Damon is on his other side, and Reb is flanking our phoenix on the outside. “You guys have all gone super serious badass, and no one is telling the rest of us why.”
“Shut up, Archie.”
Reb’s growl doesn’t help, especially when Archie growls back. Rogue stops our progress through a room full of naked people fucking on every surface possible with a sigh. “No fighting or none of you are sleeping in my room when I finally scrub this place off of me.”
Damon grins a little at her. “I’ll help you get clean, Dragonfly. Don’t worry.”
“How much longer is it going to take to get through this shit?” Javier asks, as he frowns at the piles of demons in various levels of transformation writhing around us. “I feel like I should change my name to Dante.”
Rogue snorts, squeezing his arm. “Aw, you’re so cute when you’re squicked out.”
“I’m not squicked out—well, maybe I am a little. I’m just tired of watching pit demons rutting with their weird shit flopping all over the place.”
I laugh at his petulant grumbling. Pit demons are pretty skeevy, and he’s not wrong about having to see them…
do their thing. “You’re not wrong, but nothing we’ve passed so far is depraved enough for it to be close to our parents.
The last time I had to attend one of his bacchanals…
Well, hopefully, you guys don’t have to see that shit, but it wasn’t something I’d wish on anyone. ”
Damon frowns as he looks at me. “Is this what it’s always been like when you did shit with him?”
I shrug. “Sometimes. I don’t notice most of it anymore—unless it involves Luca or Lola.
That’s still weird and way over my line.
They never seemed to think it was a big deal, and I honestly have no idea if that’s normal for demons.
I haven’t had the guts to ask in the past—like at school—and I sure as hell wasn’t going to take a poll once he moved us up here for good. ”
“Ewwwwww,” D mutters as he shudders. “Sweet merciful fuck, if there’s anyone watching over us, please don’t let that be what we find at the boss level of this damn place. I’ll never sleep again.”
“Thanks, Ang. Horrifying and nightmare inducing. Glad you shared. Can we get a move on?” Rebel looks pained, and I’d bet my favorite poker chips he’s got a nasty image in his head that doesn’t do reality justice.
Nodding, I lead the group out of the orgy room, shutting the door behind us.
The antechamber we end up in is surprisingly free of the party atmosphere; it only has a bank of elevators with different buttons and security pads next to them.
This is unusual; in fact, I’ve never seen extra security like this at one of my asshole father’s shindigs.
“What’s this?” Rogue says as she drops to a crouch to examine the first of three panels by one of the elevators. “Buttons are in the demonic language, so that’s you, D. I’m not sure about the other part of this set-up, though. It’s not a fingerprint or cornea—I have no idea.”
Rebel is similarly bent to look at the next one, his face scrunched in concentration. “The middle is soft? But she’s right; it’s not for fingerprints. Fuck if I know what the hell your dickhead sperm donor is pulling, man. This is fucking weird.”
Something about it is familiar, but I can’t remember where I might have seen the devices.
My gaze cuts to Damon, who shrugs. He squints at the buttons, then says, “In order, they say: enter the third and fourth, fall to the fifth or sixth, and descend to the seventh and ninth. It’s definitely Inferno bullshit—even though Dad hates it—but those things must keep guests or low-level demons from getting to the most objectionable floors. ”
Okay, I sort of know what this is hiding, but normally, it doesn’t require extra security. What is Luca hiding?
“Do you think he’s trying to keep the other families and groups from seeing the really twisted stuff?” Rogue asks curiously. “I’ve never heard of that, but who knows what horrors are going on in the super secret levels? Maybe some of it would offend the other supes.”
I consider that for a moment, then shake my head.
“Shifters and vampires run hunts, so do some mythicals. Death and violence will not make most criminals or supernatural species who would attend this sort of thing blink. Whatever Luca has going on here is probably violating laws in multiple realms. This system is probably to keep anyone who isn’t accompanied by a demon from experiencing those illegal pleasures. ”
“He might host people who aren’t supposed to be on the surface at the lowest levels,” Damon says softly. “You know we saw Darkstar at that party. That son of a bitch is up to his ass in shady shit, which is why he got sentenced to running the school rather than being welcome at the courts.”
“Plus, he’s a fucking dick.”
The tone of the being behind us is filled with snark and disrespect, so I whirl around to find out who thought it would be a good plan to eavesdrop on the Gemini heir.
My jaw drops when I see the cadre of demons looking at me expectantly, their expressions full of entitlement that they certainly earned.
Somehow, my family is surrounded by the royal caliphate of Hell—none of whom are supposed to be on the surface, much less at my father’s stupid ass party.
“Prince Jasper…” I nudge Damon until he faces the group of hybrid demons who will inherit the throne of our realm with me. “I didn’t mean to—”
“Relax, Gemini.” The dark-haired heir to the greed line gives me a knowing smirk. “He’s not here to smite you for your jackass father’s sins.”
“That’s good to know,” Rogue mutters. “Though it’d be nice if that was prefaced by a fucking introduction.”
I’m about to shush her when a small guy emerges from the middle of the caliphate. I’ve never seen him before, but his floppy hair and small stature are almost as shocking as the royals in this realm. He grins a little, looking at our woman despite the half a foot difference in their height.
“That’s what I’ve been saying! These assholes run around meeting people they know in every realm, wave their dicks at one another, and I’m left looking like the dumbass in the middle.
This is the second time that dick waffle has gotten into it with someone while we all watch.
” I wince as he refers to the prince of Hell like some random dude, but the kid just steps closer and holds out his hand. “I’m Kit, by the way.”
Rogue looks surprised for a second, then beams at the guy as she takes his hand.
“I like this guy, Ang. He’s got moxie and I adore watching puffed up men get put in their place.
I’m Rogue Kelly, Guardian and mate to these twin idiots.
That pretty one is Archie, the suave one is Javier, and the grumpy-looking guy is my step-brother, Rebel. ”
That’s fantastic—our mate just became besties with someone tied to the people my father is looking to overthrow. I look at the rest of the guys and they shrug, unwilling to help me figure out what the fuck I’m going to do now.
What in the hell do I do now?