“I’m no longer a goddess,” I whisper.
“Welcome back to the land of the mortals,” Zee grumbles.
Lucifer eyes me up and down. “You are still hanging on to the last vestiges of being immortal.”
I tug my tank down and shrug my leather jacket over the top. “Let’s go, I don’t want to be here when that happens.”
We slip through and creep around the inner wall towards the rear of the mansion.It’s a monstrosity of architecture. It has hard lines and turrets, as if a 1970’s house clashed with a medieval castle. Its walls are the color of pale vomit, its windows darkened so we can’t see inside. I wouldn’t be surprised to find the interior decorated with shag carpets, orange wallpaper, and cast iron candle holders.
Lazy and complacent guards line the perimeter wall, missing our approach as we dart between the various ornaments and figurines. We reach the house and I tug on the handle of the sliding door, breathing a sigh of relief when it glides open. We pile into a dining room, black-and-white tiles decorate the floor, whilst various portraits of Lawrence in gilded frames dot the walls, showcasing both his demon and human form. A throne the Queen of England would be jealous of sits at the head of the table. I roll my eyes. He was compensating for something.
Lucifer waves us forward and through an open archway, leading us to an empty kitchen big enough to cook for Hell’s elite. Various dishes sit on the countertop with an assortment of food. I spy a cake; layer upon layer of sponge, chocolate, and cream screamseat me. My stomach growls.
“Don’t even think about it,” Archan warns.
I pout. “But I’m hungry.”
Jed snorts and nudges me forward. “When we get to Treachery, we can grab some food. Pausing for a snack in Violence is asking for trouble.”
“Fine, promise me a sandwich and I’ll not molest the cake.”
“Deal,” he agrees.
“Dessert too,” I push.
“I’ll give you dessert,” Archan mutters, making everyone laugh.
I roll my eyes. “You can’t compete with a layered dessert.”
He spins to face me, leans in, and runs his tongue up my throat, making me shiver. “Is that so?”
I bat my eyelashes. “Perhaps we can combine the two?”
He shakes his head and grabs my hand, tugging me behind him as we dart down a hallway. The house is too quiet.
Lucifer disappears down a set of stairs and we follow on his heels, sinking below the foundations of the mansion into the dungeons. He pushes open a heavy wooden door, revealing a dank corridor, musky dampness hanging in the air. The walls glisten like they are sweating from the torment meted out in the cells.
My heart pumps faster, and my palms grow damp as we make our way down the corridor. I pause outside the familiar cell and scan for the evidence of the piece of my heart that broke down here. You expect such an event to leave a physical mark, like a crater or a burn mark. Lucifer spins around and his eyes soften as he follows my gaze. He’s seen me at my lowest, protected me when I was vulnerable. He picked up the pieces of my soul and forced them back together so I might face my fears. He might be a monster, but he was my monster.
“Natia,” he steps towards me.
I dive forward and wrap my arms around his neck, pulling him in tight. “I forgive you, Lulu.”
He squeezes me tight against him.
“What are we missing?” Zee asks.
“This is where Lawrence held Natia, and Typhon tormented her with you, Duncan, and Archan abandoning her. A demon posed as her grandmother, who also rejected her. Then Jack showed up,” Lucifer explains as I bury my face in his shoulder and let a few tears fall. They are cathartic, as if they needed to spill here to gain back a piece of my heart I’d lost.
“Well, well, isn’t this cozy?” Zeus booms from behind us.
I release Lucifer and spin to face our enemy, The Duchess, an ever present apathetic partner at his side.
Zeus’s eyes narrow on Marsha. “How did you get out of your cell?”
The Duchess’s eyes dart to me.“You received my message?”she asks in my mind.
“I did. Why should I trust you?”
