“I did,” I say.
“You didwhat?” He is nearly shouting now, still crouched next to Blair’s body.
“She told me to. She wanted Mara out of her.”
He clicks his tongue. “The situation with Mara is unfortunate. We will need to coax her out gently so she doesn’t injure Blair.”
“How do you plan on doing that?”
“Worry not of my plans, Daxaddon. I have half the mind to rip your soul apart and set your corporeal body on fire in front of all of Hell to witness.”
I shut my mouth. Not wanting to upset him more than I already have. As I watch the way he looks at Blair, I see some resemblance. The dark hair, the brown eyes. If it were any other circumstance, I would ask him if his eyes change color too. It’s clear he loves Blair in his own way. I never met Blair’s mother, but it seems she gets her lack of patience for people from her father as well.
“Milcom, my lord,” Lilith says, bringing the large demon into the opulent bedroom.
“You’ve asked for me, my lord,” Milcom says, and he audibly swallows.
“Yes, well. Once my daughters wake up, we can discuss. Lilith, love. Will you get me some smelling salts?”
“Yes, sir,” Lilith replies, and I don’t miss the slight twitch of Lucifer’s mouth. Lilith’s small hand clutches the vial before handing it to her lord.
“Thank you, love. You are dismissed.” The petite female demon pouts, her bottom lip sticking out as she looks at the most powerful entity in Hell. “Now darling, what have I said about pouting? I’ll see you momentarily.”
“Yes, sir,” she says with sass, and Lucifer’s hand clenches. I wouldn’t doubt that Lilith’s ass is going to be paying for that later.
My hand cups the back of Blair’s head as it rests on my thigh. Lucifer brings the salt to her nose, and she quickly gulps a large inhale of air before sitting up and looking around.
“Are you going to destroy me now?” Mara asks, looking at Lucifer’s eyes.
“Do you know who I am?” he asks.
“The father who didn’t love me enough to protect me,” Mara says, shuffling away on her bottom, no longer in my arms and taking a defensive pose. It’s hard to correlate the fact that the person who is scared and shaking isn’t my witch. The person I want to comfort is deep down in there, I know she is. But Blair isn’t the one who is present right now.
All I want to do is shake this demon out of my girl and get out of here. This family reunion isn’t something I signed up for and frankly, I need to conceptualize that I’m falling for the king of Hell’s daughter.
“Sweet girl, no. I would never want to destroy either of my daughters. I want you both to be happy and whole.” I’ve never heard Lucifer sound and look so… human.
“But, why? Why did you visit Blair and give her magic to stay whole and you never visited me?”
“Milcom, would you like to answer that?” Lucifer says, spinning to look at the large demon, who looks terrified. It’s nearly comical, if the stakes weren’t so high right now I would likely be enjoying Milcom’s tongue lashing. Lucifer’s eyes are flaming red, and my question from earlier is answered when it comes to that particular trait.
“My lord, I’ve apologized. It was a mistake. I didn’t know.”
“Your mistake has caused both of my daughters harm. How can I let that slide, Milcom?”
“Please, my lord. I’ll do anything.”
“Yes, yes, you will.” The dagger I stabbed Mara with is still beside me, until Lucifer conjures it into his hand, holding it against Milcom’s neck. “The perfect sacrifice I need to create my darling Mara a body of her own.”
“No, please. I’m sorry.”
Lucifer tsks. “This is going to sting a bit.” Lucifer slashes his throat. “Daxaddon, be a dear and hand me that basin.” Immediately I’m on my feet handing him the crystal basin from the table. He holds it under his throat, collecting Milcom’s blood. I still have no idea what he plans to do. Mara and I watch in fascination as Milcom’s soul slips from his lips and his corporeal body crumbles to the floor. “I’ll deal with your soul later,” Lucifer says. Who knows if Milcom understands? He won’t be able to possess anyone in Hell, just another lost soul with no purpose roaming the fiery pits. He can run, try and hide in this dimension, but it would be a waste of time. Lucifer will find him and completely destroy his soul for his betrayal.
“Mara, darling. Please leave Blair’s body. I promise to give you a nice, new, shiny one of your own.”
“How can I trust you?” she says.
“I’m many things, Mara. A liar isn’t one of them. You are my daughter and I plan to make things right with you. I didn’t know you lived. I sent Milcom to Earth to see if any of my children held my gift. He came back and reported that you were completely human, with no magical ability. Lilith found Blair and told me about her. So every year on her birthday, I made sure her body was stable enough to handle the demon part of her nature.”
