Page 52 of The Little Shop of Curiosities, The Music Box Part 2

His eyes snap to mine, and I can tell he’s thinking the same as me. After telling him about Cordelia and the dreams earlier, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out who this demon trap is connected to.

Sam clears his throat, his gaze briefly flickering to the others. It’s obvious none of them have the same information we do. “A demon…what now?” he says for their benefit.

“What the fuck is going on?” Danny glowers.

“That’s what we’re trying to figure out.” Tristan takes his hand. “Lucien, this is Danny, my fiancé, and our friend, Sam.”

Lucien nods in greeting.

“Danny, Lucien was sent here by Mr Hadley,” he explains.

“Did Hadley know about all that?” Danny’s eyes track back to the trap.

Lucien shrugs. “I think he suspected, which is why he called in a favour. So here I am.”

“So you don’t actually work for Hadley and Mason?” Sam asks.

Lucien shakes his head. “Let’s just say I’m on temporary loan.”

“Okay, I’m back! Oh holy fuck, what did I miss?” Dusty gasps as she takes in the giant man, the glowing floor, and Danny and Sam looking very belligerent as they stare at the stranger.

Lucien does a double take at the new arrival now standing beside Bruce. It’s not every day you see a dead six-foot drag queen.

“Apparently, we’ve got a demon trap on our hands, complete with demon,” I say to Dusty and point to the floor.

She scowls. “Fuck.” Then her eyes narrow. “Wait a minute. Demons are all supposed to be confined to Hell, where they were banished by the archangels, so what’s that one doing here?” She stares at the floor. “How did it get down there?”

“And now you’ve pretty much caught up to where we are,” Sam says.

“Hang on.” Dusty holds up her hand and sniffs the air, much as Lucien did when he first walked in. Looking confused, she turns her head and sniffs again. Her gaze falls on Lucien, and she leans in close to him, inhaling tentatively. Suddenly, her eyes widen and she takes a step back, sucking in a sharp breath.

“You’re not human,” she whispers in shock. “You’re Hell-born.”

I look at him in surprise. That explains the impression of smoke and ash I got when I shook his hand. It also explains why his skin’s so hot, but I haven’t really got a clue what a Hell-born is. Beyond, of course, what the title would suggest—that Lucien was born in Hell.

“Perceptive, aren’t you?” Lucien grins.

I’m aware of Sam moving closer to me, and I’m so tempted to lean forward and breathe in the sexy scent of him, which is really inadvisable. I’m pretty certain that will only lead to a live-action replay of last night in my head, and my sore arse is enough of a reminder without me sporting an inconvenient erection to match.

“You’re not a demon, are you?” Tristan tries to push Danny aside so he can see.

“No, I am not,” Lucien says indignantly. “Just because I was born in the Hell dimensions doesn’t automatically make me evil. It’s just like Earth.”

“Sorry, come again?” Sam blinks in confusion.

“Humans are born on Earth, but they’re not all born equal,” Lucien replies. “You’ve got your pure of heart, your do-gooders. You know, people who donate kidneys to strangers, devote their lives to the betterment of others, give expecting nothing in return. Then you’ve got your pure evil, your serial killers, politicians, bankers…those people who leave the cap off the toothpaste and squeeze the tube from the middle. My point is you can’t stereotype someone just based on where they come from. It’s the deeds that make the person, not the circumstances.”

“He has a point,” Sam concedes.

“Are we just supposed to trust you?” Danny squints at Lucien. “For all we know, you’re the one who killed Viv.”

“Viv?” Lucien tilts his head thoughtfully before pointing to the photos still out on the desk. “I’m guessing that’s Viv?”

“Didn’t Mr Hadley explain everything to you?”

Lucien shrugged. “He gave me the basics. From what I understand, Hadley and Mason have had some suspicions about a devil’s trap for several decades, but they were unable to confirm, and the owners of the property were being quite tight-lipped. For someone like me, who’s from the Hell dimensions, recognising demon activity is pretty easy.”

“And you definitely can’t read the symbols that were used on Vivienne?” I clarify.