“So, Trukun has requested this meeting?” I question as we pour over the ancient map that has been positioned across the wooden table in the throne room.

Twenty-four hours later and I’m finally in the right head space. I feel cleansed of the destructive forces I almost gave into. There’s still a lot I know I am going to have to deal with. That will come in time. But for now, I have the breathing space I need to think clearly.

Lucifer nods, but doesn’t look up from his musings. “Indeed, she has.”

“It’s more than likely a trap.”

“Of that I have no doubt.” With that he gives me a hint of a smile. Since our threesome in the kitchen with Raziel, he seems to have mellowed. Maybe he needed to fuck out his tension too. I’m not a hundred percent sure, but it’s intriguing to see another side of him.

“The Hell dimension we are in right now is the centre of my Kingdom. The one she has chosen is on the furthest reaches of my domain. A world of frozen forests and unforgiving mountain ranges.”

“She’s chosen it tactically.”

“I would say it’s where she’s been hiding. It means her full forces are hidden there waiting to spring an attack.”

Scratching my chin, I take another look at the map and the battleground that has been picked for our final show down. “How the fuck do we get your army there without her knowing about it?”

That earns me a devious smirk. “I have my ways. None of my Generals saw the true extent of my powers or what I am capable of. Never show all your cards. Not even to those who are supposed to be your friends.”

“Good thing our troops have been practising in these freezing conditions or we might not fare so well.” Raziel cuts in, bustling into the room with Leo, Snatch, and Cassandra in tow.

The trio are chatting among themselves excitedly. Cass seems to be more lucid than she’s ever been before. I guess being home helps.

The conversation I had in the kitchen with Raziel before we were interrupted plays through my head. How the fuck did she grow up in Hell? She was raised by evil, yet Cassandra is anything but bad. It leaves more questions than answers.

Out of the corner of my eye, I catch Lucifer staring at me intently. Studying my expression so avidly it’s as if he’s waiting for something. Maybe he senses my curiosity over the girl.

Turning back to meet the full force of his gaze, I give him a smile. “Is there no news from Cade? He told me he was hunting down the artefacts that activate the seals before someone else does.”

“We’ve heard nothing.” Prowling to his throne, black shadow robes swirling as he moves, he takes his place upon it. “It was Fritz’s plan which Trukun took over when we killed him. She still thinks by unleashing all the damned souls in my Kingdom it will give her power over the Earth.”

“Gabriel told me that it would destroy here and there.”

Crooking his finger, he gestures for me to draw nearer. “He is correct. The force of so many would rip reality as we know it apart, obliterating everything we know.”

Taking the two steps up, I stand before him, looking down into his handsome devious face. “Maybe you should send someone to check on Cade.”

It’s not like Cade not to check in. God knows what he’s up against. Going alone was not his brightest idea. Yet something was driving him when we last met. Something to do with whoever was his adversary.

Large, confident hands curve over my hips. Tugging me forward, he lifts me up to cradle me securely on his lap. “We don’t have the resources right now. After Trukun has fallen I will redirect efforts there.”

The awkward silence that follows makes me blush.

“What?” I snap defensively, looking over at the others who are standing with their mouths hanging open. Only Cassandra doesn’t seem shocked.

Trying to hide my own stunned emotions, I shift, getting more comfortable. I’m sitting on the Throne to Hell on Lucifer’s sexy lap. Something I never imagined happening. No. Not in a million years. What it means, I don’t have a clue. Is he softening to me? This, after all, is a show of affection. I know I shouldn’t hold out hope. Trukun’s words are something I haven’t been able to forget. He manipulates. Uses any trick in his arsenal to get what he wants. Is it bad that I wish he really did care? He’s like a virus who’s already infected by heart. Loving someone doesn’t make you right for them. Just as Lucifer, in the end, will never be right for me.

Raziel is the first to clear his throat. “Gabriel is requesting an audience with you.”

“Allow him entry.”

I feel a moment of anxiety. “What’s Gabriel doing here?” I whisper in Lucifer ear.

Tilting his head, he examines every inch of my features. “We all play a part in the grander scheme of things. Angels have always been bathed in blood. Who do you think God sends to do all his dirty work, so he can remain the ever loving Father? Their savage creatures. They have come to join the battle.”

Here sits the king of Hell. The killer I only had glimpses of. There’s a cold empty hardness in his emerald green eyes now, all softness gone.

“And me,” I remind him.

“This is my domain. No one leaves unless I allow it and your work is not done.” Warm hands cradle my cheeks. “Your potential is endless. Do what you were created to do.” Lips brush mine coaxing, soft. “My beautiful thorny rose. You will take your revenge. Show everyone just how brightly you can shine.”

I fall into the powerful and consuming kiss. It steals my breath when his tongue invades my mouth with an expert ease. His burgeoning erection pushes against my arse, making me squirm.

Resting his forehead against mine, he keeps his fingers tangled in my hair. “I would fuck you right here if we had more time, but alas, it will have to wait until later.”

The sound of coughing interrupts us. Standing with comical expressions of disbelief are Gabriel and an entourage of heavenly battle harden hosts. They seem to be having a hard time accepting what their eyes are telling them. Regaining their composure quickly, they once more resume their blank looks.

Lucifer smirks cunningly. It’s then I wonder if he’s just played out this scene knowing full well they were on their way. Slipping from his lap, he doesn’t try to stop me.

Son of a bitch. Swallowing down a jolt of anger, I refuse to look back at him.

“Lucifer.” Gabriel greets.

Resting idly back, he regards them speculatively. “You’re late. I thought you were coming over an hour ago.”

“Things have been tense around Cease Fire. I had to give some assurances before I could come.” Gabriel glances my way briefly. “I also had a team member to arrange a burial for.”

Caesar.

Closing my eyes, I can’t escape the image of Trukun with her hand through his chest. His screams as she gutted him before me. I shut the memories down before they can affect me, but the damage is already done.

Pushing up off his throne purposefully, Lucifer stroll toward the table where the map lays abandoned. “We need to move quickly if we are to catch Trukun by surprise.”

Gabriel moves decisively to join him. “We’re here now. Point us in the right direction and we’ll get started.”

Unnoticed by either, I wander to the fireplace in desperate need of the heat to chase away the chill that has suddenly gripped me.

“We’re going to join the fight.” Snatch informs me as he and Leo sidle up beside the hearth.

“Oh no, your arses are staying here with Cassandra.” I tell them, trying and failing to not grind my teeth. I won’t risk anyone else. Won’t watch them die at the mercy Trukun’s demonic forces like Caesar did.

Leo’s arm comes around my shoulders, tucking me in close. “Mavi, we are coming with you and that’s not negotiable.”

“They have to go.” Cassandra assures me, plonking he arse down on a bean bag she’s dragged out from a corner I haven’t noticed before. “Your destinies are linked. Only through the darkness that is coming will you ever truly be free and know the truth. This has been cast in stone long before any of us were born and it must come to pass.”

Leo rolls his eyes at the girl. “Mavi, you still have one General left to kill after Trukun. That’s the deal you have before getting your soul back. From tall, dark, and brooding over there.”

My soul. I regain my freedom once I’ve finished. A contract is a contract. Lucifer has to fulfil his end of the bargain. I can walk away, no longer the Devil’s plaything. No longer his executioner. Get my life back no matter how fucked up it might be.

“The Devil has your soul?” Snatch asks, playing with a loose thread from his oversized sweatshirt.

“You didn’t tell him?”

Leo shakes his head at my question. “No.”

Sighing, my gaze strays back to the table where Lucifer and Gabriel are deep in conversation. “It’s a long-complicated story. I’m sure Leo will get a kick out of telling you while we wait.”

Tuning them out as he begins to do just that, I’m tempted to ask Cassandra the outcome of the future. But do I really want to know? Will the knowledge affect my action in a positive or negative way? It would be like opening Pandora's box. Make me question every move. It could turn out to be a curse rather than a blessing. Ultimately, I decide I would rather not know.