“I don’t know, but it looks like the guards haven’t been nice to you.”
“That would be an understatement.”
Justin nodded once. “My mother ordered them to beat you?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t seen her since she ordered the guards to stick me in the cell. Shouldn’t you know? You’re her son.”
Justin grimaced. “I guess I am, but I’m starting to see that it might not be a good thing.”
Mynor had no idea what Justin’s goal was. Was he here to get information on Alphan and the rest of their operation? It would make sense, but why would Anya think that Mynor would tell a stranger about that, especially a stranger who was her son? She might think that Mynor hadn’t heard about him, but the whole palace had, including the cockroaches who shared his cell with him.
“Is there anything I can do to help?” Justin asked, which was ironic considering it was his mother who had put Mynor where he was.
Wasthere anything Justin could do to help, though?
Justin wantedto help the demon in the cell. He didn’t know why the demon was there, and maybe there was a good reason, but somehow, he doubted it.
He hadn’t been that surprised when he found the dungeons, and he’d been even less surprised to see cells and prisoners. That probably said something about the way he viewed his mother, but it wasn’t something he wanted to think of now. He had complicated feelings toward Anya. Part of him desperately wished she were a good person and that they could have a relationship and keep in contact when he went home, but another part knew that wouldn’t be the case. That part knew that she wasn’t a good ruler. She might be the queen, but something told Justin that it wasn’t because the people wanted her to be.
So maybe he was taking a risk, talking to this demon and wanting to do something for him, but it didn’t matter. Maybe it would push the demon to tell him what was going on and what his mother was up to. Justin should have come to Hell with a plan, but he’d thought it would be as easy to find someone to open a portal for him as it had been in the human realm. He’d thought he’d have to look a bit, but eventually, he’d be going home. In the meantime, he wouldn’t have to think about Caitlin or his brothers fighting.
He wasn’t sure about that anymore. He wasn’t sure about anything except that he needed out. The problem was that he didn’t know how. He’d have to find a solution, but he could help people as he did so.
The demon squinted. “Why would you help me?”
“Why wouldn’t I?” Justin asked, even though he knew why the demon was asking.
“You’re Anya’s son, aren’t you?”
“I am.” As much as he wanted to, he couldn’t deny that.
“She’s the one who put me here. Shouldn’t you be supporting her?”
“I might if I didn’t suspect she put you here for no good reason.”
“That’s what you think?”
“I don’t know what to think.” Justin didn’t want to get emotional when he really had no reason to be. The fact that his mother seemed to be evil wouldn’t change anything for him. He might be biologically related to her, but Caitlin had been a better mother than Anya ever could be. From the little he’d managed to gather, Anya hadn’t even tried to find him. He still didn’t know why she’d left his father and him. He didn’t know if she’d ever cared about them.
Something told him he knew the answer to that question, but these were feelings he’d have to deal with once he was back home, when he was safe and surrounded by people who cared about him. He imagined that his brothers would tell him that he’d been an idiot, but also that they loved him, maybe that they’d missed him. He just needed to find a way to get back to the human realm. He missed them, even Yancey and his stupid stubbornness. He missed Shelby’s snark and Calyx’s sweetness. Coming here had been a mistake, and he was going to have to rectify it.
He looked around the cell the demon was stuck in. There was nothing in there except for a plate of what looked like moldy food that would start crawling any day now. Was that what the demon was supposed to eat? Justin was horrified. He still wasn’t sure how useful he could be, but this, he could do.
“I’ll be right back,” he told the demon.
The demon didn’t tell him to stop. He just watched as Justin left the room. Justin could feel it on his back.
He really hoped he wasn’t about to get in trouble, but if someone saw him, he had a good alibi now. He’d tell whoever it was that he’d been hungry and was looking for food.
Luckily, it was pretty easy to find his way out of the dungeon. Since he was already in the part of the palace that was dedicated to what happened behind the luxury, he suspected he could find the kitchen quickly enough. He was afraid of opening doors, but he shouldn’t have been, because the kitchen didn’t even have a door. It had an open arch, so he saw he was in the right place from the other side of the hallway.
He did his best not to disturb anything, but someone would probably notice he’d taken food. It would be a mystery because he wasn’t about to confess to anyone unless he didn’t have a choice.
He rooted around the cabinets, looking for food that would remain edible for a few days and a first-aid kit. He found soft bread, a box of what looked like homemade crackers, and a small container of fruits he’d been confused over initially because they were spiky and orange but tasted like olives. He also raided the fridge, grabbing stuff for right now. The demon could have a little meat. Anya wouldn’t notice it missing anyway.
The demon was still there when Justin returned to the room. Of course he was. He was behind bars, and there was nowhere for him to go.
For a moment, Justin watched him. Then, he set to work because he needed to get the food into the cell. He couldn’t open the door, even though he could see keys hanging on the wall, but he didn’t have to since one side of the cell was closed off by bars instead of a wall. He didn’t have time to try all of the keys, even though he wanted to. He was already at his limit. Every second longer he spent there meant that someone could find him, and if he wanted to help, he couldn’t afford for that to happen.
