Chapter 53
“How’re you feeling?”
Kairhyse smiles, his hands tucked into his pockets as he stares out into the quiet, early-morning fog hanging low in the forest. Everyone pretty much stayed in their spaces yesterday, so this is the first time I’ve been able to talk with him alone.
Lucifer and I, after our shower, decided to just lie with Amarah and Zuhara.
He fell asleep relatively quickly and has been out since last night.
I’m certain he was trying to connect with our girl through the Nitelink, and that’s what exhausted him.
“I’m great. We’re great.”
I chuckle. “I’m glad everything worked out. You deserve that.”
His smile turns toothy. “Oh yeah, you know, having lost my head for the woman I love. I definitely deserve some great shit.”
“How was that, by the way? You know… dying. Did you see the light?”
“Pfft. Fuck no.” He leans slightly as he runs his fingers through his shoulder-length hair.
“I wound up directly in a bed, some time passed, and then she showed up.” When his eyes—so similar to my own—meet mine, I already know what he’s going to say.
“Don’t bring any of this up to her. She may joke about it, but she’s still sensitive to what happened. It hasn’t even been a year yet.”
That reminds me: the one question I asked him before we came outside was how long we’d been gone. Not that he would know when we went in, but it had only been about nine months since I watched him and Xera lay to rest together. We were in the Beyond for several months.
“I won’t, don’t worry. The last thing I need right now is to trigger her PTSD and have her try to kill me.”
We both laugh, because it’s true. She would attempt my life.
“Tell me about the girl. The Witch.”
I nod. “Do you remember the incident in Sylverton? Eight years ago, now.”
“Yeah. Tragic, but”—he shrugs—“so is the story of this world. Why do you ask?”
Stepping forward, I rub the back of my neck. “She was the person they prosecuted for the massacre.”
“No shit. Your dads are rolling in their graves with your choices of partners,” he says through a breathy chuckle. “Not that I’ve got much room to talk. My mom’s shitting herself in the Vayl. I have no doubt.”
A soft chuckle escapes me. “It wasn’t her. I have no real answers about that night, but I’m hoping now that I have Lucifer, we can discuss that.” I think he feels my cue, and almost simultaneously, we begin walking. “They had her in Thornegate Penitentiary—”
“Godsdamn.”
“And the reputation of the place precedes it.”
“Wait.” I look to him; his brows are pinched and a thoughtful expression glides across his face.
“You. I don’t work for the militia but my new ‘job’ keeps me informed on everything happening within Everhaven.
It was why we knew about the gates opening in Demour, or rather, that they’d been open for several months.
Anyway, it was you that killed everyone in there. ”
Nodding, I grin. “I had an objective, and they were in my way.”
“Surprised you left the prisoners alive.”
“They weren’t in my way.”
“Fair point.”
“Alaric”—he grumbles loudly—“told me that the only person that could open the gates would be another Demon or a Yldarwright.”
“You spoke with that piece of shit? I asked him where you were… I’ll kill him.”
I know he wants to end that Fallen for more than this reason.
“He probably didn’t tell you because he knew my goal was to go to the Beyond. By telling you, that’s telling Xera. You’d have tried to help, which would’ve—”
“Yeah, yeah. Don’t defend that piss-stain.”
“My bad.” I chuckle. “Anyway, he knew of my girl, and so…”
Then I dive into pretty much every detail—from leaving Orwyn to them finding us in Demour.
I’m fairly sure I talk for a solid two hours with minimal interruptions.
Kai’s only question was about the bond and how it felt.
Seems like it’s a similar sensation as his with Xera, but he’s upset he can’t communicate with her through it.
By the time we’re done, we’ve circled back to the house, and Lucifer is in the kitchen with Xeraphine. I think we’re walking in just as they start interacting, because they may as well be hissing at each other like feral cats.
“It was stupid!” Lucifer whisper-shouts.
“I… don’t… care,” she delivers slowly while pointing her sharpened nail at him.
“He deserved to know.” It’s now she turns to us, but her eyes don’t linger on me for more than a mere second before they’re on her Mark.
She doesn’t smile, but I can hear her heart spike then come back down to normal at his return.
I make my way beside Luce, who turns to look at me before sighing.
“Let me guess, you’re scolding her for telling me where you were.”
“Yes.” He doesn’t hesitate to respond. “Because it was stupid. Anyone that knows you well enough would know you’d do something crazy and come get me in the Beyond.”
Xeraphine simply shrugs her shoulders.
“I’d have wanted to know,” Kai says as he wraps his arm around his girl’s shoulder. “I’m definitely not stupid, and I would’ve gone to the Beyond for her.”
“You’re kind of stupid…” she murmurs. “But that’s beside the point. You two can deal with your partner-problems separately from this. Lucifer, I want to know what your father’s plans are.”
I lean against the kitchen counter that rests between the wall-to-wall cooking space and the living room.
The place is dark woods and black countertops, with dark hardware and tasteful features like crown molded edges and designs.
It’s minimalistic, but it works for the two of them.
While this cabin has three full size bedrooms and equal bathrooms, it really is just meant for these two, plus Mister, who’s jumping up onto the counter.
“First, tell me what your deal was with him.”
Xera tsks. “You won’t come into my house, after I saved your happy asses, and demand I tell you shit.”
I keep my eyes on Kairhyse who stares down at her with a shit-eating grin.
Absolutely obsessed Vampire. She was right.
“I’m your elder, so I can.”
That has her laughing so damn loud, it bounces around for several seconds. “Oh, fuck no, you didn’t just pull that card.”
“Enough of this.” Zuhara’s voice comes just before she jumps onto the counter.
“Gods! You aren’t a house cat!” Xera shrieks. “Get off!”
“It’s alright, little demon.” Kai leans in and pets the lioness across her big head, which she leans into without hesitation.
“Took you less time to show her affection than me. I’m hurt,” Mister says as he plops his black feline butt down just a foot away from the large cat that could swallow him whole. “But I agree. Xeraphine, an ally is an ally, regardless of your feelings toward your own kind.”
Oh shit.
I hadn’t even considered that to be why she was looking at Lucifer with such hate. After everything her mother put her through, to Belial and Proserpina only aiding her in exchange for her body… it makes sense why she has such a destain for other Demons.
Placing my hand at Luce’s lower back, I crowd his space.
“Lucifer, Xeraphine is your mother’s reincarnation. She technically outranks you if we are talking about status.” Zuhara may as well have just slapped my little deviant with that. I’m not sure how the hierarchy works, and while I knew that was who Xera was, it wasn’t my place to tell Luce.
“Look at me, Xera,” Mister says. I catch her shifting her gaze down to her Familiar. “Tell him, it’s alright.”
She grumbles, “Lucky I like you.” Her head snaps back in our direction.
“Due to my Hybrid status, the rupture didn’t occur, and I’m capable of giving birth more than just the singular time our kind is meant to.
He wants me to have a child of Demon and Holy-bitch status with a Fallen cunt named Alaric. ”
“And do what with it?” The strain in Lucifer’s tone tells me he truly has no clue what Belial is doing.
“Give it to your father, of course. For what purpose? I don’t know…
” It’s now I feel a shift. There’s hurt in her voice, especially as she continues.
“Gods only know what he’s going to do with it.
Just another fucking child forced to do the bidding of a creature that has an objective and doesn’t give a fuck about the hurt it’ll cause them. ”
For a moment, silence envelops us. While Lucifer’s trauma can never be compared to being kidnapped, tortured, raped and forced to breed; Xera and Luce have something in common.
Both were forced by their parents into a life neither of them wanted.
I think it’s now that my little deviant is putting those puzzle pieces together.
“My father wants to kill his brother, Vaeloris. Maybe he thinks raising a being of both eternal worlds could help make that happen…” He trails off.
“What information did your father have you get? I heard him ask you for it as I was leaving the Beyond before. Tell me,” Xera demands.
Even I am intrigued, because we haven’t had a moment of rest to get these answers. Alright, there were a few, but no part of me wanted to sit and talk.
“There are some Divine beings that believe Vaeloris is building up to wage war against Belial and the Beyond. Saying that he and what he’s created have become too powerful.
That he could soon overthrow the Vayl. They aren’t wrong, especially with this news.
If he gets that child… who knows what could happen. ”
“I have no choice.” Xera isn’t as aggressive as she had been before, but she’s also been slowly pulled closer into Kai. “He’ll get the child at some point. I can’t have him coming for what’s mine.”
I nod, and at the corner of my eye, I can see Lucifer do the same. “I understand… I went to the Vayl to gather information from an informant. He confirmed that they are in fact attempting something. It’s just words in the air, nothing concrete.”
“A war between the Gods and Demons will take place in the mortal world.”
“If Vendra lifts the protection spell, as my father asked of our Witch,” Lucifer adds.
“Right. It is the common ground between the worlds, and will have catastrophic consequences,” Zuhara plugs. “We could see it all burn, leaving only Dylox and very few Mundanes alive. Likely enslaved to the victor for centuries to come.”
“If we are so lucky.” Mister moves toward Xeraphine, where he sits once more. “I know you do not care for many, but this will inevitably affect Sydni’s life.”
“I know.”
“I believe it is in our best interest to work together.”
“Ugh. I hate team-ups,” she grumbles.
“I quite enjoy them,” I finally say after what feels like eternity of not talking. “It’ll be good to have the gang back together.”
She shakes her head. “Syd stays out of this. She’s enjoying her ignorant love life with that Werewolf and Vampire.”
“Ooohh. Another couple that shares. I love it.”
Rolling her eyes, she looks up at Kai. “Bred from the same cloth, I swear.”
His ebony cheeks lift as he grins. “I’m far more handsome and witty.”
“I beg to differ,” Lucifer says through a cough. “The witty part.”
“Hey, now.”
“Yeah, watch it—”Xera slams her hands onto the counter, causing both feline to hop to all fours. “I don’t share, and if I can’t peg him, no one can. I heard you two last night in the shower.”
I burst out laughing.
“You shared with our princess—”
“You didn’t fuck her, your shadow did!” She quickly turns on him. “I won’t have this argument. I don’t share, and that was a very unique situation. It benefited us all. Me to feed. Her to find out if she liked eating pussy.”
Feeling Lucifer’s arm wrap around me, I come down from my burst of laughter to see him smiling.
“And, little demon, there will be no pegging. I’m not into that.”
“Your loss.” Luce chortles.
While Xera doesn’t make a face, Kai shakes his head in absolute disagreement. He’s only attracted to one: Xeraphine. And that’s alright, he doesn’t need to invite men into their bed when he can quite literally copy himself infinite number of times.
You’d think that would intrigue me, but no, I only have one cock so what’s the point of it? I’m sure Lucifer would enjoy it though.
“We will wait for the little Witch to heal and wake, because she, too, will have a lot of explaining to do. Especially when it comes to the mirror.”
“Mirror?” It’s now I’m pulled away from the light-hearted conversation, and thrust into deep waters that feel suffocating. “What mirror?”
“Yeah, and that’s not all…” Luce looks up at me. “She told me not to tell you but, I think this is one of those times I’ll choose to ignore her request.”