Chapter 35
Chapter Thirty-Five
B ianca blinked the room into focus. Her body ached like she’d gone twelve rounds with Mike Tyson, and her head pounded like a sadistic construction worker was jackhammering her brain.
Voices murmured behind the closed door, and sunlight peeped through drawn blinds opposite the door. She was in Dee’s room at the theatre, lying on Dee’s bed. The bedding smelled of lavender and laundry detergent.
She’d no idea how she’d gotten there. She’d been at her cabin with Shade and Eddie. She’d cast the tracking spell and found Leona. Fear spiked her pulse. That thing had locked on to her, and she hadn’t been able to break free.
The door opened, and Lucifer strolled in carrying a tray. “Good. I’m glad to see you’re awake.”
When locked in that strange, overwhelming power, there had been a moment when she’d sensed Lucifer and Raphael’s power join the merge. “How did I get here?”
Her last conscious interaction with Lucifer had her on her guard.
“I carried you here.” Lucifer put the tray on the antique chest that functioned as Dee’s bedside table. “I have apple juice, ginger tea, and toast.” He gestured the tray. “Also, Dee sent Tylenol in case you had a headache.”
Bianca sat up and took the juice and Tylenol. When her head stopped hammering, she’d get to what Lucifer was doing there. “Thanks.”
Her stomach didn’t feel ready for the toast, but she took a careful sip of the juice.
“Haglette—”
“Don’t call me that.”
“You’re angry with me.” Lucifer perched on her bed.
She didn’t feel well enough to deal with him now. She’d had enough Lucifer induced emotional whiplash to last a lifetime. “Are Eddie and Shade okay?”
“Eddie and Shade aren’t human.” With knowing dark eyes, Lucifer watched her. “And they are fine.”
“Good.” The tart sweetness of the juice got a thumbs up from her parched throat.
Lucifer tilted his head. “You should not have attempted that spell.”
“I had to find Leona.” Some of her resentment leaked into her tone. He had no business telling her what she should and should not do. He’d been the one to say their arrangement was over. Well, she was going to do the clever thing for once in her life and believe him. “I was keeping my promise to her children.”
“Indeed.” Lucifer leaned one hand on the far side of her legs, caging her beside his hip. “But you didn’t tell Raphael or me that you planned to cast it.”
Bianca didn’t care for how casual he was on her bed, and she absolutely rejected his inference that she owed anything to him or Raphael. “I don’t report to either of you. I told Eddie and Shade, and they came with me.”
“Eddie and Shade are not me,” he said, as if that explained everything.
“Lucifer.” Tangling with him invariably ended badly for her, and she was not feeling strong enough to fight with him. In fact, fighting with him had become a kind of foreplay with them, and she for damn sure was not going near that again. “I don’t know what you’re doing here, but I want you to go away.”
“No, you don’t.” He patted her thigh. “You’re angry and hurt, but you don’t want me to leave.”
Unable to believe the shit he’d spewed, she gaped at him. “I most certainly do want you to leave.”
“That makes no sense, haglette.” He smiled at her like she was a willful child. “You wouldn’t have been hurt by what you perceive as my rejection if you didn’t want me around.”
“Perceive?” Oh, she’d been there and heard every word from his damned mouth. She’d had the visual to add further proof.
He looked confused. “Well, yes. You misunderstood the situation.”
And she was out of the ability to deal with him. Ignoring her sore head, she yelled, “Eddie.”
“Don’t be difficult, haglette.” He tutted. “Once I explain the situa?—”
“Shade!” Bianca gave it more volume. “Anybody!”
He frowned at her. “I really don’t understand why you can’t have a reasonable discussion about how you got the wrong idea.”
“Help!” She would kill him, or probably die trying, but it would be worth it to make him go away.
“You’re being unreasonable.” He glared at her.
“Unreasonable!” She didn’t bother to lower the volume. The whole of Clayton—the whole of Ontario—could hear her for all she cared. “You had sex with me and then kicked me out of your home.”
Shade stuck his head around the door and grimaced. “Dick move, Lucifer.”
“You kicked me out and told Raphael to take me home.”
Shaking his head, Raphael stood beside Shade. “You did do that. She’d didn’t even get to eat the eggs benny.”
“Eggs benny?” Shade looked interested. “I like a good benny.”
“Lucifer’s chef makes the best,” Raphael said. “He uses shaved ham and the hollandaise has this touch of?—”
“You treated me like shit.” Bianca shouted the breakfast conversation down.
Lucifer puffed up. “Not during the sex.”
“The sex!” Bianca’s voice got shrill. “By all means, let’s talk about the sex. The only thing worse would have been if you’d left money beside the bed before you broke a land speed record getting away from me three minutes after you’d come.”
“Man.” Shade whistled and shook his head. “And then no eggs benny.”
“Oh, this is getting good.” Dee shoved her way through the bigger hell princes, rubbing her hands and grinning. “At least tell us the sex was good before he squirreled.”
“Squirreled?” Raphael glanced at Dee.
Dee smirked. “Nuts and struts.”
“Dee!” Eddie joined them. “That’s gross, and also none of our business. Her objection lacked substance as she gave Bianca a hopefully enquiring look.
Bianca wished she hadn’t woken up. “The sex was fine.”
“Fine!” Lucifer shot to his feet.
“Ouch.” Raphael winced.
Shade grinned. “That was harsh.”
“The sex was great.” Lucifer glared at him.
Shade shook his head. “She said fine, and everyone knows that means just okay, strictly mediocre.”
“She’s angry and hurt.” Lucifer’s jaw tightened. “She’s only saying that to get a rise out of me.”
“But to be clear,” Shade held up his forefinger, “she did get a rise out of you?” He waggled his eyebrows. “I mean, before you hit it and quit it.”
The conversation was threatening to make her lose her shit. “She can speak for herself.”
“Yes, she can.” Dee gave her an encouraging nod. “So did he…rise to the occasion?”
“Yes, I fucking did,” Lucifer bellowed. “And the sex was more than fine. It was good. Great even.”
Dee raised her eyebrows. “I didn’t ask you.”
“Bianca and Lucifer had sex?” Sophia slipped into the room.
“Bad sex, apparently.” Eddie filled her in.
Daniel joined the party. “Who had bad sex?”
“It was not—” Lucifer took a slow, careful breath. “We are not talking about this anymore.”
“He would say that,” Shade said to Eddie.
“We’re not talking about anything.” Bianca glowered at Lucifer. He was her biggest problem in this room. “Because you’re leaving.”
Lucifer folded his arms and stuck his chin out. “I’m not leaving.”
“Not this time,” Dee murmured.
“Say it again.” Shade sniffed. “Dick move.”
Raphael nodded. “And no eggs benny either.”
Lucifer scowled at all of them. “Do you mind? This conversation doesn’t involve you, any of you.”
“Technically.” Raphael looked apologetic. “It does because Bianca called for us.”
There was a general murmur of agreement.
Eyes laughing, Eddie stepped closer to the bed. “How are you feeling?”
“I was about to ask.” Lucifer huffed.
“But you didn’t.” Shade smirked. “Another dick move.”
“The Tylenol helped.” Bianca kept her attention on Eddie, the only person she felt she could deal with. “Do you know anything more about whatever that was that trapped me?”
Eddie made a face. “Are you sure you’re up for this?”
After the conversation they’d had? “No.” Reliving those terrifying moments was never going to be something she was up for. “But let’s get this out of the way.”
“You’re going with the other witches to my demesne.” Sophia joined Eddie beside her bed. “Whatever that was, it scared us enough to know we need to get you safe.”
Nodding, Lucifer informed her as if the matter had already been decided, “And I’ll take you there.”
He could go right on deluding himself. She wouldn’t leave this room with him. “You all heard everything that being said?”
Eddie nodded. “We’ve been talking. Shade and I think the third is Emma, but we have no idea who the other two are of the three he referenced.”
“That’s not important right now.” Lucifer got his shoulder in front of Sophia. “The most important thing is getting you and the children safe.”
This dickhead never knew when to quit. She spoke to Sophia and Eddie. “You’re sending us to heaven?”
Who wouldn’t find that a little exciting? Especially considering she didn’t need to die to get there.
“I’d lower your expectations.” Sophia grinned. “It’s not all clouds and harps.” She got serious again. “My demesne is positioned between Michael’s and Ramiel’s, and they’d have to go through one of those to get to you.”
“As far as we know,” Raphael said. “There had been no incursion of this rebellion into the heavenly realm. You would have entire hosts to protect you.”
Bianca’s catechism classes as a girl made her ask, “But we’ll be able to come back, right? It’s not like a once you’re there, you’re there for eternity thing?”
Sophia smiled. “You’ll be coming back as soon as it’s safe for you to do so.”
Suspicion pinged. This seemed a lot like being gotten out of the way. “What about Leona?”
“We will be going to find Leona,” Lucifer said. “Raphael and I.”
Glances were exchanged.
Raphael cleared his throat and stared at the wall past her head.
The room reeked of what they weren’t telling her. She looked at Eddie. “How will you find her?”
More glances, and Shade whistled between his teeth.
“There was a gathering while you were sleeping,” Eddie said. “It’s been agreed that whoever is not needed on this plane, will return to their demesne.”
“Why?” After all she’d been through, Bianca wasn’t going to be sidelined.
“Whatever took you is powerful.” Shade joined the cover up. “Frankly, it scared the shit out of us.”
Bianca didn’t get it. “So, how is going back to your demesnes helping?”
“The seals are more unstable than ever,” Shade said. “We already know that the rebellion was undertaken to weaken them.” His face was grave. “We cannot risk them getting weaker or even being attacked.”
“And the best way to prevent that,” Sophia said, “is for the hell princes to be there to guard them.” She shrugged. “If Shade returns to lust, I can’t be here without him, so it frees me to take you with me and protect you and the children.”
“Michael is on this plane.” Raphael finally met her gaze. “Which means, so is Ava. We can’t have that many hell princes absent from hell.”
“Levi and Zeb are working to infiltrate the rebellion.” Shade took up the explanation. “And Belle is missing. We can’t leave Wrath all on his own to guard the seals.”
If Shade went back to hell, what did that mean for Eddie? Bianca looked at her. “And you?”
“Eddie is going with Shade.” Dee gave her granddaughter a stern look. “As she’s the only one who can partially repair at least Wrath’s seal, she needs to be there.”
Eddie frowned. “But?—”
“Daniel and I will stay here,” Dee said. “All the hell gates need to be watched and closely guarded.”
“As soon as we find Leona, we will bring her to Sophia’s demesne.” Raphael gave Bianca a reassuring smile.
Nobody had answered her first question. In fact, they’d told her everything but that. “How will you find Leona without a tracking spell?”
Lucifer took her hand. “There is something we didn’t tell you.”
“Lucifer.” Raphael growled a warning.
Lucifer shot him a glare. “She’s a part of this. She deserves to know.”
He needn’t think he was winning any points with her for being transparent, however much she appreciated it.
Raphael threw his hands up. “She’s not coming with us.”
Now there were two assholes in the room. “You don’t get to decide that for me.”
“No, they don’t.” Sophia sat beside her. “But the gathering decided. We don’t know why that thing wants you. And we don’t know what the repercussions will be if it manages to get you.”
“Given the general shit show happening all around us, we can’t take any more risks.” Shade put his arm around Eddie’s shoulders.
“We need to know you’re safe.” Lucifer’s dark gaze bored into her. “I need to know you’re safe.”
She scoffed at him. “Our agreement is over, remember?”
“Setting aside your relationship with Lucifer”—Sophia gave Lucifer a hard look—“our backs are against the wall, and we need to make sure whatever and whoever the three are, that being doesn’t get its hands on them.”
“Or you,” Lucifer said.
She couldn’t trust a word coming out of his mouth. She’d done that before, and she wasn’t going to be an idiot for him again.
“I can protect you in my realm,” Sophia said.
“We also thought Emma and Ethan will need you there.” Dees tone gentled. “They know you and trust you. And considering what those two little people are going through, they’re going to need you.”
She wanted to be brave and fearless. Bianca wanted to be that feisty hero who defied objection and threw herself into the fray. But she wasn’t that person. She was terrified and so out of her league it was laughable. There were forces at work that would destroy her with a look. “What about the rest of my coven? My sister?”
Bianca had had a front row seat to what had happened to Christen, and for what they’d found in that steel bunker.
“Patty, Lynn, and your sister are already in my realm,” Sophia said. “We are rounding up other witches as we speak. We moved the children while you were out, but we didn’t want to risk moving you until you’d woken up.”
As Lucifer had already broken his promise to her, she looked at Raphael. “You’ll find Leona?”
“We will.” Raphael put a hand over his heart. “I vow it.”
“Haglette.” Lucifer’s tone was gentle. “After you passed out, there was a split second before the connection was broken, and we were able to see into Ashe’s mind.” Determination hardened his features. “We know where Leona is.”