“The murder or the enslavement of innocent bystanders?”
“Both.”
Lucifer smiled. “I knew you were a smart one.”
“Not all of the enslaved are innocent, though.” I shrugged. “But I suspect unless any of the crimes were particularly dastardly, things like petty theft will be written off as fully punished in the eyes of the law.”
“You’re catching on. And to think Bailey was getting so upset her precious rider would crack when the darker realities of being in law enforcement came crashing down. I tried to remind her you’d already seen the realities of it, but she was wearing her blinders while sticking her fingers in her ears.”
“There is nothing dark about accepting somebody has paid a far larger price than they should have. And anyway, if you ignore the human rights violations at play here, isn’t this like community service, but worse? It shouldn’t be hard to suggest to the right people that adding to their hardships may not be the right choice.”
The Devil patted my shoulder. “For that, I’ll make sure you have a nice dinner brought to your hotel so you can attend to your cadet properly. And I’ll even live up to my name of the Lord of Lies and make sure all of my devils and demons know to tease you about your virginity long after you’ve ditched it for more pleasant pursuits.”
I snickered at that. “Even your nephew?”
“Especially him. I’ll ask him to keep his mouth shut. He’ll cooperate because his wife becomes exceptionally entertaining when she realizes he’s played her. He so rarely plays her like that, and it revs her engine. Tell me, do you like fish?”
“Apparently, I do. Why?”
“Some of these fish are better off in loving homes where they won’t show back up in the environment, and they would not thrive in my many hells. Their natures are simply too gentle, and it would be difficult to buffer them from the miasma. Most beings can adapt, but not these gentle spirits.”
Ah. I’d heard about the Devil’s soft side for animals, something that created many problems, as mortal animals tended to shy away from the Devil until they had a chance to adapt to his devilish energy. The work dogs all needed a week or two to get used to him, and while he tried to hide it, I’d noticed his distress.
At heart, Lucifer remained an angel, albeit a twisted one.
“You understand. They would be sickly in my care, but as neither you nor your man have devilish ancestry, you will be good caretakers for them. I’ll help set up their habitat for you, and I will mask my energy when I come to see them with some help. My secretary has been practicing for when we have to handle delicate species.”
“You’ve been avoiding their section of this aquarium, I take it?”
“I have all but smothered my presence here.”
I nodded. “I don’t mind taking care of some fish as long as I’m taught what I need to do, especially if they can’t go back into the wild.”
“They would not live for long. Their habitat is long gone, and there is no place for them in the wild. But, perhaps with time they can be a beloved species bred in captivity, a beautiful jewel of the waters humanity can enjoy, thanks to the compassion of an evil man.”
“I wouldn’t normally associate evil and compassion,” I admitted. “But at least he isn’t yet another psychopath with a history of a poor childhood and known to hurt animals.”
“He didn’t have a bad childhood, and he’s always loved animals more than people. But that’s what led to here. People never had value to him. Animals did. Humans are delightfully varied. I will give you some free information, however.”
“Oh?”
“If you don’t tell someone you are going to your hotel, you will not be leaving from here. The FBI and CDC will bring in the evening shift to help deal with this place, keep it running, and learn what is needed to keep all of the residents alive. Oh, and when they ask about the otters, shrug.”
“Otters? What otters?”
“The ones on the other side of the complex that I will be stealing.”
“Lucifer, you can’t steal the evidence,” I scolded.
“Like hell I can’t steal the evidence!”
“No.”
“I’m taking the otters.”
Arguing with the Devil wouldn’t result in anything, so I grabbed my phone, dialed his wife’s number, and listened to the ring tone.
“Hello?” Darlene answered, which warned me something held her attention.
