“And so you came to one of the finest creations of the Almighty to get to His divine wastebasket?” She said that, seemingly not as a compliment to herself, but an acknowledgment of the absurdity of such a proposition.
“I know, as peacemaker, you were given free rein to move through all the realms while working on your propositions, so I imagine you can help me get there.”
Her expression shifted wildly as she chuckled, her eyes alight with an enthusiasm Treycore thought may have been present when she’d confronted Dissapha and Tekker in all her confusion.
She rested her palm on her ample chest, settling her outburst. She raised it again to remove a tear from just beneath her eye. As she relaxed, she turned and sauntered toward the fountain. “It’s true,” she said, strolling around it, her dress trailing behind her. “I was granted access to all the realms, and I do know how to reach Hell, but there are so many issues with me assisting you… the first, of course, being that I have no reason to help you. What reason could I possibly have for assisting the lover who deserted me with reaching his desired destination?”
She sat on the other side of the fountain and leaned back, looking over her shoulder, peering around the wing of one of the dove statues, one of her fine eyebrows arched far higher than the other.
“Because there was a time when the Eilee I knew would have done anything for me, and I’m hoping a part of that creature still exists.”
Eilee’s playful expression transformed to something serious, something cold.
She turned away from him, to a wall of shrubbery before her.
“She did exist, yes. But something terrible happened to her at the hands of her love. He abandoned her, and hurt her in ways she could never recover from.”
She sat in silence. He imagined the sort of sad, pathetic expression she was likely making away from him, fearing he may see her in a most unpleasant, uncalculated moment.
She cocked her head and rose to her feet, continuing around the fountain. “But let’s set her desire aside for a moment. Why does the great Treycore need to venture to Hell? What business does he have there? Was I right about him needing to meet with the temptress?”
“I guess you’ve been disconnected from immortal gossip for some time.”
“How so?”
“I left Vera.”
The light reentered her gaze.
“Really?” she asked.
She approached him swiftly, frighteningly so. He backed away until his shoulder blades hit a bush behind him.
“You don’t need to be frightened of me, Trey. How have I ever hurt you? If anyone should be afraid, it should be me of you, because you have hurt me so much… far more than any other creature is capable of inflicting pain on me.”
She set her hands on his arms and caressed them. Her gaze transformed to something familiar, like the gaze he’d once seen. For a moment, they transported him to the early days, when all was well in Heaven, and he and Eilee were in love.
“Come, Treycore. There’s been too much war as it is. We can end all this. We can make peace where the rest of the realms have created strife.”
“No, we can’t,” Treycore said, snapping out of her spell.
She tilted her head the way she might have had she not understood the words he’d spoken.
“Because I don’t love you, Eilee. And the reason I came here is because I have to get to someone I do love.”
Her white face flashed scarlet. Her features trembled. She turned away from him sharply, then turned back and slapped him across his face. As her hand made contact with his cheek, she curled her fingers, digging her nails into his face.
“And I’m supposed to assist you?” she asked.
Treycore grabbed his wound and took a breath, regaining his composure.
“Who is it now? Another fallen? Do you even know what the higherlings say about the beauty who was left for the mud-faced tramp? Did you even consider how mocked I would become because you found something so marvelous in that wicked maggot?”
“Please. I need to get to Vera’s.”
Her face grew even redder. She struck him again. He pulled away so not to catch her claws as he had before.
“Do you mock me, Treycore? Do you think I’m so beyond my reason that I can’t see your little trick? You think I don’t see what’s happening? You and your slut have fought and now you ask me to carry you to Hell so you may win her back. The gall it must have taken for you to approach me with such a selfish request. How dare you? You would have better luck asking the Leader to reconcile with the Almighty.”
