I watched him disappear through a door on the far wall—one swallowed in black, the kind of dark that made your bones scream danger.
He grinned and slinked back into the void.
I gripped the bars harder, knuckles aching. “I’d rather split an ogre in half.”
My stomach growled loud enough to echo, and I swallowed hard. Hunger was going to be a problem soon—especially if the Devil left his domain.
“Damn it,” I muttered.
Pushing open the door, I took two steps. My sword materialized in my hand before I even finished blinking. Good. It felt solid. Familiar. He hadn’t stripped me of all my power—not yet, anyway.
“Are you coming?” the boy’s voice echoed from the corners.
I snapped my head around, trying to track the sound.It’s okay, I told myself. Freaking out would only make my host happy.
“Light some candles! Why is it so dark in here?”
Still gripping the sword, I crept forward, staring into the blackness ahead. A part of me wanted to slam the cell door shut and pretend I hadn’t seen anything. But that wouldn’t help. Not like letting some creepy hell child terrorize me would either.
Something brushed against the back of my shirt. I spun around so fast I nearly fell over.
“All right,” I muttered, steeling my nerves. “I’d rather see your ugly mug for what it is instead of some possessed kid.”
Honestly, I’d face every demon in the Underworld before hearing another one of those giggles.
“Are you sure about that, Kitten?” the Devil’s voice slithered through the air from the doorway.
As I turned again, this time catching only the last bit of his tail disappearing into the dark.
Ew. I couldn’t decide what was worse. The tail or the kid.
“What food are you offering?” I asked, raising my chin.
“How about you for breakfast, lunch, and dinner?” The little boy’s voice came from behind me.
I knew better than to look but I did.
A knife glinted in his hand, the blade catching the low candlelight. His eyes had gone blood red. And then he charged.
My heart felt like it literally jumped out of my chest. I screamed and bolted through the door. A loud thud echoed behind me. The boy’s thundering steps were gone, but so was any sense of direction. Even with my enhanced Reaper vision, I couldn’t see a thing.
The door I came through? Gone.
I ran my hands along the cold brick wall, searching for any seams or cracks. Nothing.
Then, a faint glow appeared in the center of the room.
A single candle flickered to life, casting trembling shadows like something had exhaled across its flame. I squinted. It sat on what looked like a table?
Two candles blinked into existence. The scene expanded revealing a plate of food—meat and vegetables, perfectly arranged.
And then I smelled it. Immediately, my mouth watered.
Hades.
Something big and warm twisted around my leg. I stiffened. I already knew what it was.
The Devil’s tail.
