Something Wicked (21 page)

However, he’d fallen in love with her and refused to take her soul. Darrak had thought it humorous and rather pathetic at the time. Theo had changed into a puddle of very humanlike emotion, if only for a brief time. When news reached Lucifer of Theo refusing to follow through with a direct order, he’d sent another demon to finish the job.

Theo had had a choice—fight the demon and Lucifer’s orders and risk being destroyed, or let Kristina’s soul perish.

It hadn’t been pretty.

Theo ultimately chose self-protection. Kristina was destroyed, and her soul was consumed by hellfire. And Theo had become very focused when it came to getting ahead in his career as a demon. He never mentioned Kristina again. Not until now, anyway.

He might hate Lucifer even more than Darrak did.

“Feeling anything toward a human is a bad idea,” Theo said. “It’s a risk we take in this business, but one that must be controlled.”

Darrak’s jaw was tight. “All I feel is pathetically dependent on her in my time of neediness. If I feel anything else, it is because of my curse, and as you said before, it will disappear once we take care of it.”

“You really think so?”

“Of course.” It was the truth.

“Good.” Theo indicated to the waitress that he wanted another drink. “You know, she doesn’t seem like a black witch to me. She’s so . . . uptight. Witches I’ve dealt with are always ready for a party.”

“Eden’s different.”

“So I’m gathering.” The waitress returned with two glasses of wine, which she placed in front of either demon.

Darrak tried not to worry, but he couldn’t help but feel a bit uneasy. He wanted to trust Theo, but he had some questions that needed answers.

“I want to know what the plan is today,” he said. “Where are we going to get this weapon you told me about?”

“It’s not far from here.”

Still vague. Deliberately, it seemed. “And you promise this will bring no harm to Eden.”

“Wouldn’t dream of hurting your delicate little witchypoo.” Theo leaned closer. “What I want to know is if you’re still interested in being a part of my master plan and taking over Hell, starting with Lucifer’s throne?” When Darrak didn’t jump up and down with glee right away, he continued. “Come on. Netherworld dominion. Seven lords. Seven thrones. Two demons with ambition. Sound good?”

He wouldn’t speak so freely if Lucifer had any chance of hearing. Luckily for everyone involved, the Prince of Hell didn’t come to the human world since he had no power here. His power had been blocked here after his fall from Heaven because of his timeless hatred of humans.

That was why he needed demons like Darrak and Theo to do his dirty work. The dirtier the better.

In Hell, Lucifer was all-powerful. But here? Not so much.

It was the only thing that helped relax Darrak when it came to the subject of his former boss’s demise.

“Is there a problem?” Theo asked. “You seem . . . distracted.”

Darrak shook his head. “Something happened last night that I’m having a hard time getting out of my mind. A problem with the Malleus.”

“The Malleus,” Theo replied distastefully. “What is that human scum up to now?”

“Eden knows someone . . . he’s a new recruit, apparently. He almost got her killed last night.”

“And that would be so bad?” At Darrak’s sharp look, Theo laughed. “What’s this do-gooder’s name?”

“Ben Hanson. He’s a cop, too. Thinks he’s Mr. Perfect.”

“Somebody sounds jealous.”

“Oh, I am. Insanely. I could never have hair that perfect and blond. He’s like a Ken doll.”

Theo blinked and ran his finger over the edge of his wineglass. “Huh?”

“Barbie’s boyfriend,” Darrak clarified.

“Still not understanding.”

“Teenage model.”

Another blink.

Darrak sighed. “In any case, I can’t compete.”

“Why would you even want to?”

Darrak pushed the menu away from him, feeling anger toward the cop welling up inside of him again. “That son of a bitch is going to make the wrong decision in his quest to fight evil, and it’s going to hurt Eden.” Realizing how that sounded after his claims of disinterest, he clarified, “Which would affect me, of course.”

Theo leaned back in his chair. “Sounds like an angel to me.”

“It does, doesn’t it? All self-righteous, squeaky clean, and self-centered.”

Theo’s expression turned thoughtful. “The best way to deal with an angel is to rip his wings off and enjoy his screams of agony. Remember that time in Paris during the plague?”

It had seemed like a fun afternoon at the time when they’d cornered an unsuspecting angel minding his own business. Now, the memory made Darrak cringe. Damn humanity bringing with it an unhealthy dose of guilt. “Good times.”

“Totally.” Theo downed his second glass of wine. “This Ben guy is only human, right?”

“He is. But now that he’s with the Malleus, he’s probably all supercharged and ready for a good fight.”

Theo waved a hand. “An insect waiting to be squashed.”

“The guy’s a serious pain in my ass. If I was half the demon I used to be, I’d hunt him down and gut him like a fish. That would keep him away, wouldn’t it?”

“It would indeed.”

Darrak shook his head to clear it of thoughts of the cop. “Enough about him, let’s get back to your plan. Destruction to Lucifer?”

“Can I get a hallelujah?”

Darrak snorted. “Hallelujah.”

The plan sounded good centuries ago. Even worth risking his very existence for. Power, endless power. The chance to have anything he wanted, whenever he wanted it.

Lucifer was a bastard. Not literally, of course—much like Darrak, he didn’t have a mother and a father as a human would. He was the original angel cast out of Heaven because his pride refused to allow him to bow at the feet of humans. He’d become the ruler of Hell. The head honcho. The numero uno. The six other lords had nothing on him, power-wise.

Lucifer was no angel anymore. He was a sadistic, selfish demon who could torture another—demon, human, or angel—with a mere thought.

He owned Darrak. He’d created him and could destroy him at will. Darrak had worked for him for centuries as an incubus, helping to stock Lucifer’s harem. As the Lord of Pride, he didn’t have a particularly lustful nature. It only occurred to Darrak later that the human souls probably weren’t all meant for sex. Human souls also made for a tasty, high-protein snack for a hungry demon. And the Lords of Hell had very big appetites.

Beings like Lucifer made archdemons like Darrak in his prime look like big, friendly, fluffy bunnies.

Despite Darrak’s loyal—if occasionally conspiratorial—service to the Prince of Hell, Lucifer had removed his protection over him at the first sign of disloyalty with Asmodeus. And it hadn’t even been true. Had he not done this, Darrak never would have been summoned by Selina. He wouldn’t have been cursed by her, and he wouldn’t have needed to possess humans for the past three hundred years.

It had been sheer torture—a jail sentence with no end.

And it was the reason he was now conflicted about every damn thing in his existence, including Eden. Lucifer was to blame for this unwanted, and hopefully temporary, infusion of humanity.

Darrak hated Lucifer.

And now Theo was ready to step forward and destroy the prince. He’d apparently found the means to do it. Going with him today to get that weapon would ensure Theo’s help in finding a way to break Darrak’s curse and save Eden from certain death.

And when the curse was broken, Darrak wouldn’t feel conflicted or guilty or overly emotional about anything anymore. He’d be restored to his former self, more than ready and willing to do whatever it took to gain more power and prestige. The lowly incubus had the chance to become a lord, and Eden would only be a distant, fleeting memory, much as Kristina was for Theo.

“So are you ready for the ride?” Theo asked, eyeing his friend cautiously.

Darrak grinned. “Giddy up.”

Eden gripped the sides of the sink and tried to calm down. It wasn’t easy.

She hadn’t made a stellar impression on Theo so far. And did she care? Not really.

She had to pull it together, though. Sad but true, he was their only hope at the moment.

She was a little surprised Ben hadn’t shown his face today. Where was he? Was the Malleus planning another little intervention? She really didn’t want to use her magic again, but she would if she had to. She tried not to look at her amulet, but the color had darkened enough to be noticeable. Was there a way to recover—like a washing machine for graying souls—or was this only a one-way street?

Lots of fun questions. And mixed metaphors.

She frowned at her reflection and parted her hair, peering closer at it. Her bright red roots were showing again. She was overdue for a trip to the salon to get them back to the dark auburn color she preferred.

The bright color helped remind her of the man who’d come to visit her as a child when she’d been playing out back of the townhome in Reno her mother rented at the time.

She remembered a bright smile. Green eyes. Red hair.

“Hello, Eden,” he’d said warmly.

“Who’re you?” She’d been wary, even as a little girl. Some things never changed.

He crouched down beside her. “I’m your father. I’m very happy to get the chance to meet you.”

It was a hazy memory since she’d been so young. They chatted for a bit longer, but she couldn’t remember about what. She’d liked him. He’d seemed . . . nice.

It had been the only time she’d ever seen him.

When he left, she went inside and told her mother about the man with the same color hair and eyes as her.

“Don’t talk to strangers” was all Caroline Riley had said about it. She’d seemed disturbed by this alleged visit. “They’ll hurt you.”

Words to live by. And Eden had tried very hard to stick close to that philosophy in the years that passed, but sometimes it was easy to forget. Trusting strangers or boyfriends or friends or mothers had inevitably led to Eden getting hurt—either emotionally or physically.

She didn’t trust easily anymore. Which was one of the reasons Darrak stealing her body had bothered her so much. She
had
trusted him.

Did she still?

Not completely.

But did he mean her harm? Was he using her?

No. She didn’t believe that.

So she didn’t trust him. But she didn’t
not
trust him.

Complicated.

She waited a bit longer until she felt calm and courageous enough to return to the table. Just as she took a step toward the door, she felt a pain in her gut. The next moment she doubled over, gasping in pain, as the tearing sensation increased. Perspiration broke out on her forehead, and she clutched at the wall to try to remain standing.

No, not again. Tears welled in her eyes. She couldn’t handle pain like yesterday again. It was too much.

But the next moment the pain disappeared completely. She braced herself for its return, but it didn’t.