“Wait.” Fame called out, “What if we are unsuccessful?”
Lucifer suddenly popped up an inch away from Fame; shadows and darkness danced on the planes of his face as his eyes grew menacing and hard. “Your body may be unbreakable, but I have hadthousandsof years to come up with inventive and effective ways to torture a being. Don’t fuck this up or you and your brothers will be sharing a much different cell together, and mine are not as nice as theirs.”
As soon as the last word left his lips, his face transformed back into the jolly silly man we all were used to. He patted Fame’s stiff cheek softly, “K’ pumpkin.” Then he turned and walked through, calling over his shoulder, “Well, have fun with it, boys. Make a game out of it or something. You got enough portals. May the best man win!” He chuckled as he fanned his fingers to wave goodbye with flare and crossed over. The fiery portal closed behind him.
“What. The. Fuck?” War spoke the words we were all thinking.
I was just thinking life was getting boring, so I felt like it was a little bit of my fault for putting this out into the universe. I watched Fame pick up two of the portals and my lips quivered, fighting the smile I was sure was in my eyes. I knew that his competitive side couldn’t resist.
“I will take the extra for safe keeping. Once I have a full file on her, I will distribute copies and we can head over to get this done. I’m hoping this only takes us a week, but we all should make arrangements with our jobs that we will be gone for two, just in case.” He swiveled towards me. “Con, can you find us living quarters in LA?”
I nodded as I picked up my portal key and slipped it into my pocket.
“You got it.” I wink.
The others picked up their keys, and we all headed to our rooms to plan.
Let the games begin.
Chapter 2
“Awwcomeon,Lil,for old times’ sake?”
I rolled my eyes at the greed demon on the other end of the phone line. God, I hated dealing with them. Give me a vanity demon or a pride demon any day of the week, but a greed demon… Ugh. They always tried to nickel and dime you for everything, and on top of that, they wanted a smoking deal. I’m running a business, not a fucking charity.
“Old times? You mean that one time I fucked you when I was too drunk to care at that gala two years ago?”What the fuck? Was this demon for real?
“Come on! You know you had a good time.” He tried to whine, but we both knew that he wasn't capable of that, so I called him out on his shit.
“By fun time, are you talking about the time you took but never reciprocated?” I said in disgust, because that moment had been a particularly low point in my life. I wouldn’t let shit like that fly now. We also both knew that he’s not able to be a good lay, being a Greed demon and all. What’s greedier than taking and never giving? And that's precisely why I think it's hilarious that he had the gall to bring it up in a contract negotiation meeting.
“In fact, I think you need to paymefor that time. I fucking made you cum twice. How does a cool million sound?” My voice grew cold as my insides heated in anger.
My magic called on me to make this demon bend to my will, burning to put him in his place, but I couldn't. Not without accepting a throne I didn't want. One I was never going to claim, no matter how much the magic burned to be used.
He sputtered, trying to find the right words for this deal but unable to.
“Tell your client to sign the document, Balizar. It will be much easier on you, them, and me.”
He grumbled but finally barked out, “Fine.”
He grunted after he spoke, his words sealing the deal between us demons. I felt the vibrations of my demon magic seeping out, sucking in the acceptance of the deal and settling that transition of power under my skin as my body greedily sucked it up. I could never have too much; my magic was like an eternal void inside of me, always wanting to be fed. I would have a tougher time if I weren't a powerful half breed.
Being half devil and half angel had its advantages. I could feed off both demonic and angelic magic, so I was never truly starved, but because of the high level of my parents’ power, I was never truly full either. The two of them combined made me a powerhouse, which was why it was forbidden to happen again.
“Pleasure doing business with you, Balizar. You and your client won't regret it.” I hung up the phone and sat back in my chair in awe. I did it. Other than some legal stuff, I got the deal I had been hoping for for years.
I popped out of my seat, practically skipping to my celebratory custom liquor globe. The center had a full decanter of my favorite mixed drink,because straight liquor was gross, with a pair of custom etched glasses inside that said,Winner’s Liquid. I poured myself a drink up to the brim and took my first gulp.
The Redbull and vodka running down my throat had a sweet burn that made me feel like I was flying high. It was the mixture of an upper and downer that both calmed my nerves as well as got me excited. What an amazing way to start a Monday morning!
It had been a while since I celebrated a deal. I made so many these days that it was hard to keep up the celebration, but this one was special. Signing on a new client was always an uphill battle, but signing one of the biggest pop stars with a multi-million-dollar media deal that spanned the duration of their life was another. It meant that any clients I signed on for the next couple of years were just extra income, which was nice because now I wouldn't have to work so hard. Maybe take a vacation?
Ha! Never! I couldn’t stop. Not until I made my kingdom here on the human plane.
When I left Hell, that was one of the things that my dad had tried to throw in my face, the fact that I was giving up my birthright, my kingdom. So, I’d told him that I would make my own kingdom. I remember yelling at him over my shoulder, telling him that I was going to go to LA—one of the most demon-populated areas on the human plane—to make it my kingdom from the ground up. Be the queen among demons and humans without the Morningstar name. Then I hadn’t left anything behind. I was making my own path and sealing my fate my way.
This deal was the cornerstone to making my empire. Ensuring that I built my business on a solid foundation. The little nice side of me, the one I did my best to ignore, also chirped in:It also meant that my company and employees would be taken care of. They would have the confidence that they were with a company that wasn't going anywhere. Iwashalf angel too and occasionally had these thoughts and feelings, so sue me.
