I hadn’t had a chance to tell Jessica yet, but over the years, I’d come to suspect that she and her sister were half archdemon. They never knew where their parents hailed from, and the fact that both of them were so powerful, often resisting my ability to read minds and were completely insusceptible to the magic of the crown just reinforced my theory. So at least Abaddon couldn’t force Jess as easily as brandishing the crown and commanding her.
At least, so I prayed, and I wasn’t a praying man.
But she was human now. With no wings, she hadn’t the ability to shift and let loose the demon spirit inside her. She’d be weaker. She’d have to use her cunning to stall him and lay all hope on me catching up with them in time.
Smashing the button on the elevator, the doors peeled open with a crisp ding. Stepping inside, I gave pause and closed my eyes, probing the bond that had been reforged between us.
Now that we were mated once again, she bore my mark.
The scent of the devil.
The connection between us was like an invisible cord, one end threaded through her heart and the other end through mine. I’d missed that sensation, the feeling that she was always with me even if she wasn’t.
For other males, the mark upon her would serve as a warning to stay away. For me, the scent would help me track her, even if she was halfway across the world. There that mark would be seared into her flesh until another male mated or murdered her. In Abaddon’s case, he’d likely try both.
As I expected, I could sense they hadn’t left Hell. Yet.
Thinking about the ways she might be stalling him made my stomach heave. Whatever her plan, I was glad for it. There was still a chance to catch up with them in time.
Nyx slapped a hand on the elevator door, keeping it from closing. “Sire, may I come with you? I might be able to help. Abaddon was strong enough to overpower me physically, but I can resist the power of the crown.”
I gave a grave shake of my head. “I’m sorry, Nyx. But your sister made a great sacrifice in rescuing you from Abaddon’s clutches. We don’t want to risk you getting hurt, else she will feel as though her actions were made in vain.”
“Very well, Sire. I understand. But can I ask you something before you go?” the demoness queried on a sharp exhale as if keeping in her question was physically paining her. “Do you think this is the will of The Fates? Do you think they planned this to test us?”
“It’s impossible to say for sure, old friend. As mysterious as they are, they are your daughters, and they love you. For that, you are lucky. I’m sure they would never plan for their own aunt’s demise. Not when this kingdom sorely needs its queen back. We all need Jessica back. But I don’t need to know the will of The Fates to know one thing.”
“And what’s that, My King?”
“This is Abaddon’s final hour. Of that, I am certain.”
2
My body swayed, and my knees threatened to buckle beneath me, but Abaddon’s bruising grip on my arm held me up. His bare skin against mine made my stomach churn in repulsion, and when I jerked in vain attempts to free myself, his cavernous chuckle filled the elevator, making my bones rattle.
“Struggle all you want, My Queen. Now that you’ve got all your memories back, you know I like it when you fight me.”
My skull split with excruciating pain as my beast clawed at my insides, desperate to free herself so she could kill this fucker.If only I’d given into her all those years ago in the Fourth Circle, when Abaddon was on his knees before us with his guts wrapped around our claws.
But regrets sat in the pit of my belly like stones.
It all made sense now, why the tattooed behemoth called me his queen, the mocking bite of his tone, the way his gaze always followed me, hot and heavy on my skin.
Once-upon-a-fucked-up-time, Ihadbeen his queen. In his mind, I’d belonged to him. Didn’t matter that he had claimed me by force. I was as much his possession as the crown that now hung at his hip.
I hadn’t been ready for any of this. I hadn’t been ready for the blast of memories from another life to drench me, leaving me stinging and cold like I’d gotten doused with a firehose. I hadn’t been ready for Lucifer and everything that came along with him. The magic between us had been disorienting. Everything from the way he looked at me, how the warmth in his eyes took away the edge of his sharp features, how his cold and imposing exterior melted whenever he touched me, was disorienting. He had felt so wonderful. So safe. Strong and masculine. A huge step up from the college-age twats I normally ended up in bed with. The King of Hell felt like absolute fucking heaven inside me. Who needed the real thing when I could have paradise in a package like the one between Lucifer Morningstar’s legs.
Even though some of my memories had yet to come back to me, I knew he was who he said he was. I’m his fated one. The magic between us was a testament to that.
While I hadn’t been prepared to fall in love with the devil over what was supposed to be a relaxing weekend filled with drinks with Mel and maybe a baseball game with dad, I definitely wasn’t ready to sacrifice myself to my abusive ex-husband.
As soon as the elevator doors snapped shut and Abaddon pressed the “L” button to take us up to Limbo, it was all I could do to keep my shit together.
As crazy as it was to say, I couldn’t let him take me out of Hell. As soon as he did, it was likely that Michael or the celestials working for him would be there to haul me off, ready to murder me a second time.
Think, Jess. Fuckingthink.
“That’s why you didn’t take me to Michael when you picked me up from my place to take me to Canlis, isn’t it? You wanted me to remember you before the celestials kill me.”
