Chapter 32
SIMONE
Ismile as Lana rests a hand on my stomach.
“I can’t believe you’re still pregnant,” she says, shaking her head. “Lucifer showed us that vision of you so long ago, and you’re barely any bigger.”
“I know.” I sigh. “It’s hard to wrap my head around the time thing.”
Jessica leans forward, eyeing me with a strange focus. “You look different.”
I scoff. “Besides the fact that I’m a balloon?”
“No,” she says, dragging the word out. “You’re just… I don’t know, more confident. Like you feel good in your skin.”
My eyes tear up. These putaine pregnancy hormones! I’ve been crying since the girls showed up at the manor. Well, laughing and crying.
“I guess I am,” I say, leaning back against the couch cushions. “Oh!”
Lana’s eyes widen. “I felt that! The baby’s playing football in there.”
“Yeah, and my pancreas is the goalpost,” I mumble, rubbing my distended belly. I love my little tenant so much already, but he or she has been seriously active lately.
“I bet Corson taught it cheap shots,” Jess says, setting us off again.
“Speaking of,” I say, hungry for any scrap of information, “how are the Fallen? Oh, and Ethan and Liam. Can they come visit too? Or do you think I’d still be welcome at Abaddon?”
Lana and Jess exchange glances, and suddenly I’m having difficulties swallowing. Will they shun me at Purgatory after all?
“I guess no one told you,” Lana starts, wringing her hands in her lap. It’s uncharacteristic for her—our team leader always deflects everything with sarcastic jokes, not letting herself feel awkward.
“Told me what?” I ask carefully.
“Simone, honey… Ethan is dead,” she says, her voice full of pain.
My heart freezes in my chest. “What?”
Jess nods sadly. “Yeah, that fucker Andras had him killed. We saw it happen.” Her head hangs low. “It was horrible.”
I shake my head. “I can’t believe no one told me. When did this happen?”
“In their defense, it wasn’t long ago,” Jess says. “We were on a mission and got ambushed. They wanted to take someone we love from us. Punish us for our role in what happened.”
“I’m still not sure what exactly happened.” I look from Jess to Lana. “What did Belial do? And Andras? Az actually told me he’s my ancestor.”
“You call him Az, that’s so sweet.”
I glare at Jess. “Don’t change the subject, coquine. Or we’ll talk about your two boyfriends.”
Jess beams at me. “Always happy to talk about them. It’s a much more pleasant subject.”
“Yeah.” Lana sighs. “Belial almost killed me.”
“And Andras almost killed me,” Jess adds. “Your great-great-great-grandpa is a dick.”
I stare at them, wide-eyed. “Where is he now?”
“The Pits,” Lana answers. “They’re both there, actually. Andras and Belial. Aim brought him to Lucifer in exchange for Amy’s life.”
I furrow my brow. “Who’s Amy?”
“Aim’s girlfriend.”
“Lana,” I groan. “That tells me absolument nothing.”
“Okay, okay!” she raises her hands in surrender. “So, a while ago, I was on a mission, Kevin got led to Naamah by his dick, and I met Ash. He saved me from death via golem crushing.”
“That would have hurt,” I concede as I cringe. “But an archdemon just saved you out of the goodness of his heart?”
Lana snorts, picking up another canapé. “Yeah, no. He made me come on his thigh and fed on my pleasure.”
I bite my lip. “Why is that hot?”
“Because you know what it’s like?” Jess asks, inspecting her cuticles.
Amused at her nonchalant behavior, I grin at her. “I guess. Okay, go on.”
“Right,” Lana continues once she swallows her food. “Ash stalked me for a while, offing Nick when he tried to kill me.”
“I’m sorry, what? Sleazy Nick tried to kill you? He’s also dead?”
“Yes and yes,” Jess says. “Don’t tell Daniel I said this, but good riddance.”
Silently, I nod, not mourning the creepy man at all.
“Anyway, after a while, Ash got impatient and kidnapped me.”
“This is starting to sound familiar,” I drawl, rolling my eyes.
Lana grins. “Yeah. Then Kevin, bless his heart, came to save me.”
I raise an eyebrow. “From an archdemon’s lair?”
“Uh-huh.” She grins and pops a grape into her mouth. “Naamah made him walk around on a leash.”
“Excuse me?”
“To be fair,” Jess intercedes, putting her teacup down on the low table with a soft clatter of china. “They still do that for funsies.”
“Merde… Then what?”
“Then Andras killed my boyfriend’s best friend-slash-lover,” Jess says quietly.
“And Ash sent me away for my own good.”
“I’m guessing it wasn’t good?” I ask Lana, dreading where this is going.
“Hell no. Belial attacked Purgatory, sending all these horrible demons against us. Then he decorated my ribcage with his spear, but Ash came and smote him. Or was about to. Sataniel opened a hole right under him. He’s been in the Pits since.”
I try to process the deluge of information. It’s like a fascinating epic story, only my friends actually got hurt. “And you’ve been with Ashtaroth since?”
My friend’s face brightens instantly. “Yes. We’ve been doing the horizontal tango on every surface of his fortress ever since.”
“Lovely,” I drawl, wishing I wasn’t picturing it quite so vividly and getting horny again. Darned pregnancy hormones!
“My turn!” Jess exclaims, drawing my attention. “So Belial was stopped, but there was still a rift to the human world somewhere.”
“Oh yeah, I forgot about that,” Lana murmurs, picking caramelized onions off her tiny sandwich.
“Liam was meant to go with a heavenly angel to find and close it, but he got injured, and I was the next Nephilim in line. But then, when my Sariel—”
“Ash’s adopted son,” Lana interjects with a full mouth.
“When Sariel saw who the angel was, he wanted to join,” Jess continues. “It turned out that Ithuriel was his long-lost friend. Sariel was actually in love with him in Heaven and fell rather than corrupt him.”
“Aww,” I croon, hugging a cushion to me.
“Yeah, but he changed his mind after a few centuries and wanted to punish him for not caring,” Lana deadpans. “He wanted to make him fall.”
I raise my eyebrows. “Less cute.”
“So, yeah, we went on this mission, and it led us through this super scary place called the Malebolge, where we had lots of sex and fell in love. All three of us.”
“Wow. Crazy.” And also hot.
“Meanwhile, Naamah and Kevin made a baby,” Lana says, not letting herself be left out of the storytelling.
“Yeah, we ended up in Marseille.” My heart squeezes at Jess’ mention of my birthplace, but I don’t say anything. “Lana, Aim, Kevin, and Naamah joined us, and we were at—”
“Oh, yeah,” Lana interrupts. “Turns out my old gay bestie, Mike, is actually a pureblood Nephalem, and check it, he’s the Devil’s grandson!”
“In a manner of speaking,” Jess corrects. “Nephithar is Satan’s created son.”
“Still,” Lana says, sticking her tongue out at her. “Anyway, Mike’s mom, a really awesome angel named Syriniana, told Naamah she was pregnant, and Kevin nearly passed out. It was hilarious.”
“I…” I rub my forehead. “So many people and events, and I still don’t know who Amy or Aim are.”
“Right, right,” Lana says. “So we had a fight with Andras. In Marseille.”
“And I nearly died,” Jess interjects.
“Mike actually died,” Lana says bitterly. “But I brought him back.”
I look at my former team leader with awe. “You did?”
Lana preens a little. “Yeah. I’m wicked powerful now with Ash’s juice inside me.”
I wrinkle my nose.
“I don’t think she means his baby batter,” Jess murmurs over the rim of her teacup before she takes another sip.
“Well, that too,” Lana says unrepentantly.
Despite the serious nature of the conversation, we laugh again.
“And then?” I ask through giggles.
“Yeah, and then Ash and the Council really wanted Andras found. So Ash sent Hell’s best spymaster and assassin, Aim, after him.”
“He’s also ridiculously hot,” Jess adds, fanning herself.
I give her a droll look. “Two boyfriends. Deux!”
Jess places a hand on her chest. “What? I can browse the menu. Doesn’t mean I’m going to order.”
I snort, feeling warm and fuzzy. All we need is some good wine or mimosas, but both will have to wait.
Lana picks up the story again. “So, while looking for Andras, Aim met Amy.”
“That’s so cute, how their names match.”
“Right?” Jess agrees.
“And then Andras took and killed Amy,” Lana says a bit forcefully, bringing the conversation back on the rails.
“That’s terrible!” I exclaim, my cushion falling to the floor. “What happened?”
“All our boys went after them, and Aim and Ashtaroth brought Andras and Amy to Lucifer,” Jess answers as she hands the cushion back to me. “There, Aim exchanged Andras for Amy’s life. They did a soul bargain—”
“Aim and Amy, not Andras,” Lana murmurs like I needed the distinction.
“And they lived happily ever after!” Jess almost yells over Lana’s words.
I sit, stunned, pondering everything the girls have shared. So much suffering, but also a lot of love and happiness. And sex. But it’s all so complex… All these people and battles…
“I’m not sure if I understood all of that,” I admit sheepishly, looking between them. “Can you start over?”