“I’m going to use her to make another suffer.”
“Really?” His brows hiked into his blonde hairline. “Maybe you are feeling more like your old self after all. Give me the night to sort through my old store of souls. I’ll send her up.”
I turned away from the mirror to make my leave, when Asmodeus called out to me. “Belial, one more thing. Once you’re done torturing this soul, send her down to me so I can have a turn.”
I stopped abruptly. Sending souls to Asmodeus always filled me with a sense of loathing. Suggesting I send my newest toy to him? That possessive part of me I thought I’d buried with Catherine came to life. I slowly turned back to the mirror, enjoying the way Asmodeus flinched at what he saw in my eyes.
“No, you’re never sinking your claws into this one. She’ll never leave my realm. Even when the Hells crumble, when all other souls pass on, she’ll remain mine. Forever.”
Forever.Such a long time. Yet, when it came to my little thief, I had a feeling it wouldn’t be long at all.
Chapter6
RAYVEN
No matterhow many turns I took, or how long I wandered through the castle corridors, everything was the same. The same dusty furniture, the faded paintings, threadbare rugs, the same peeling wallpaper. Because itwasall the same.
This place was alive, silently mocking me as the walls slowly shifted, leading me right back where I started at that damn painting. After what felt like hours, I finally gave up and collapsed into a sitting chair opposite the painting.
I stared up at the woman, taking in certain details I hadn’t bothered noticing before. Her pale face was pinched with pain, like someone had forced her to pose for the portrait. With the letter opener still firmly clutched in one hand, I reached into my jacket pocket with the other and extracted my phone.
The battery would die soon, not that it mattered. There was no service here. Sighing, I shoved the cell back into my pocket and lifted my gaze to the woman in the portrait. “Did he kidnap you too?”
My stomach dropped when I registered the glittering skull amulet around her neck. It was the same one I’d stolen from that crypt. Had it been her grave I’d robbed?
“The Lord has always had a terrible thirst for dark-haired maidens. Especially ones with warm flesh on their bones.”
Jumping at the voice, I swiveled my head in search of its owner. I glanced up and down the corridor to find no one. “Down here, love.”
I looked down at the side table next to my chair to find a porcelain teapot in the shape of a fat toad, sitting on a stack of dusty books. No, there was no way a teapot had just spoken to me. I shook my head with a nervous laugh. “I’m going crazy.”
The toad blinked, one eye first, then the other. “Already? My, that’s fast, even for these halls.”
I nearly fell out of my chair. “U-um. You’re a talking teapot.”
“Am I? That’s funny. Last I checked, I was a baker.” A bit of dust blew from her spout with a huff. “Or was I a candlestick maker? You know, I can’t recall.”
I leaned toward the teapot, intense curiosity pushing out my next words. “What is this place? Is this…” I almost didn’t want to say it. “Hell?”
“It’s the land between. The realm of lost souls, awaiting their audience with the Lord of Judgement.”
“The Lord?”
“The King of Limbo. Death incarnate. The Lord of Bones. He has many names, yes. Many. You can run away, like the Mistress. But he’ll always bring you back.”
I found my gaze drifting back to the sullen woman in the portrait. “Who was she, exactly?”
“The queen who never was. The beauty cursed with the love of a beast.”
I pushed to my feet, my legs going weak. All this was a lot to unpack. “H-how do I get out of here? How do I go back home?”
The teapot’s lid rattled, and she blew out another cloud of dust. “Oh dear. You don’t. There is no escape from this place. Not unless the Lord wishes it. You best return to your room. He won’t be pleased to find you here.”
“He’s coming.” Several voices whispered from various nearby objects at once, their urgent tone making the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.
“Don’t bother running. He’ll find and capture you either way…” a candlestick holder on the table warned. “There is no escaping the demon lords. They will use you up until they grow tired of you and pass you onto the next.”
I ran. I didn’t care if they said it was pointless. No matter how scary this place was, or how far-fetched my escape was shaping up to be, I wasn’t going down without a fight.
