A gasp explodes from my chest. Eyes snapping open, it takes a moment for my dazed brain to kick in. Lucifer’s bedroom. Soft furs caress my naked skin where I’m enfolded in the centre of the massive mattress. The Lord of Hell is nowhere in sight.

Sitting up slowly, I shove dishevelled black locks out of my face. All the bloodied sordid events of the last few days come flooding back.

My baby.

Where the fuck is she? A desperate need to find her drives me. Rolling off the bed, I find my clothes neatly folded and waiting for me on a chair. Dressing quickly in jeans and t-shirt, I shove my feet into the trainers.

Slinking from the room, I make my way down familiar stone corridors. A new inner instinct guides me. Silent, focused, I keep my steps light as I listen for any signs of life. Nothing stirs. Is this another game? A hoax? Seeing an open doorway my feet automatically move towards it. I stop dead in my tracks.

The room is spacious, light, and airy. Decorated along the walls, pretty pink wall paper is dotted with white, chubby, fluffy cartoon sheep. A tall dresser stands against the wall the drawers painted a matching shade. On the other side is a changing mat stocked with wet wipes and diapers. Stuffed toys of all shapes are exploding out of a wooden chest.

Hand rocking a white cot in the centre of the room, a blonde demoness kneels on the floor, humming.

I see red. This is too much. He’s gone too far. Every piece of me has been stripped bare. Now it’s time to cleanse myself. I’m not prepared to sacrifice anything more for him. Here, I draw my line in blood and pain.

Sensing a presence, her blonde head whips up. Eyes locking with mine, the bitch gives me a hiss. With purpose, I stalk into the room. Music floats through my head, darkly delicious and destructive.

Sliding a dagger free from beneath the cot, she scrambles to her feet to meet me. Does she really think she’s going to keep me from my child? I go for the brutal approach. Fast, hard. Blocking her pathetic attack with a forearm, I send a fist into her ribs. Pain twists her features.

I’m sure she’s had to defend herself in the past. Maybe killed rivals for intimidation, but I’m like nothing she has faced before. It doesn’t take much to disarm her.

Ramming the knife home, I send it through her chest with all my force. The damage is done. The metal has slashed a hole in the organ, pumping blood through every vein, now struggling to carry on.

Straining, fighting against my hold, strength quickly seeps from her frame. Breath laboured, her body desperately tries to hold on. I feel every spasm, each muscle jerk. Releasing my grip, she crumples to the carpet.

Crimson spreads, staining the front of her gossamer thin blue dress. With detached interest, I admire the way it soaks the material, turning it darker. Such a pretty shade. Blond hair spilling out across the floor, she stares up at me with glassy eyes, appearing peaceful for someone who just died in a ruthless way. Gripping the slick hilt covered in her blood, I rip it free. Wiping the blade clean on the dead female’s skirts, I slip it into its sheath before securing it in the waist band at the back of my jeans.

A gurgle breaks the silence. Attention snapping to the cot, my heart thumps a mile a minute at the sound. Calmness from my fresh kill spirals away.

This is too close to the fucked-up dream I had, but I have to look. She’s what I have been searching for and I can’t stop now. There is no avoiding this. Dread churns my stomach with tense cramps.

Creeping forwards, I edge closer until a pink woollen blanket comes into sight. One more slow step and I can see over to the occupant dozing inside.

Juliana.

Sleepy green eyes open to meet mine. Thumb wedged between puckered lips, she sucks furiously on the digit. She looks so peaceful. A miniature being in all her perfection.

Love. It spreads warmth in my chest along with awe and amazement. Reaching out, I marvel at the downy smooth softness of a pink cheek as it meets my knuckles. Tiny hand reaching up, fingers curl around one of mine.

Carefully as I can, I scoop her up to cradle her in arms eager to finally hold her, but at the same time scared I might break her. She’s like a doll. Fragile and precious. It makes me aware just how vulnerable my daughter is.

Nuzzling a tuft of dark fuzzy hair, I breathe in her newborn scent. God, she smells good. Like warm vanilla.

“It’s ok, sweetie. Mummy’s got you now,” I croon quietly. “And I’m never letting you go.”

Kicking her legs, Juliana becomes more active at my voice. Drinking in the moment, dampness fill my eyes. She’s more perfect than I ever could’ve dreamed of. I’m her protector now and for as long as I live I will love her until my last breath.

Chin trembling, the tears break like a dam, rolling down my face as I sob. Rawness colliding with hope. Every defence I have washed down by the new life I’m holding in my arms. A baby.

My baby.

Sinking to the floor, I rock her as she begins to fret, her own startled cry joining my own. It makes everything more real. Shoulders heaving with emotion, I inhale a recovering breath, struggling for control. This is not the place to break down. Not now. I need to take us somewhere safe. A place where no one can reach us.

Shakily getting to my feet, I gather a blanket from the cot, wrapping my child within its comfort. Quieting down, Juliana seems to sense my urgency. Not sparing the corpse on the marble floor a glance, I hurry from the room.

I have no clue how long it will be before someone discovers us gone. I need to be out of Hell and back on Earth before that happens. Corridors twist endlessly, changing the more I hurry down them. As if the building itself has decided to conspire against me.

Turning a corner in a jog, I find myself at the threshold of the throne room. Lucifer stands at the core, two demon whores crouched comfortably at his knee. The resonating sound of his voice reaches me across the distance as he talks to the others in the room. Before I have a chance to back up his eyes find mine.

“Where are you off to, my Flower?”

Flicking the bitches an insolent look, I add them to my kill list. Raziel flanks him on one side, Tiberius the other.

“I’m leaving,” I tell him coolly. “You’re nothing but treacherous motherfuckers and if you think I intend to stay, think again.”

“They all merely played their parts. Whose blood are you wearing so proudly?” He asks conversationally.

“You left a demon slut to watch over my child,” I seethe. “The whore you let suck your cock.”

Lucifer’s mild expression doesn’t change an inch. “She was there to feed her until you awoke. That was all.”

He should know better.

“Well now she’s dead.” Smugness drips from my tone.

Fear etches itself across the beautiful features of the females still crouched so devotedly by his leg like trained pets.

Tiberius dares to take a step towards me. “I hope in time you will realise that what I did was never a betrayal, but only a means to an end to aid you.”

Clutching Juliana closer to my chest, every instinct roars up to protect her. “Come any closer and I will have no problem severing your tongue before I slit your throat.”

The Devil chuckles. “Even now you have not lost your fire.”

Running is useless. He will hunt us down if I do. There is only one way I can end this.

“Raziel, if your value your wings, you’ll take my daughter to Gabriel and tell him to keep her safe. If I find out you didn’t, I’ll have fun un-attaching them and using them as wall decorations.” I tell the looming male.

“Boss, from Mavi’s expression it looks like she’s out to take your balls as a trophy.”

Lucifer’s lips quirk with amusement at my displeasure, eyes glistening with heat and lust. “Leaves us.”

“Come on, sweetheart, let’s get the fuck out of here.” The Nephilim croons, moving to take Juliana from my arms. “We’ll go check on your Aunty Cass and then go visit Great Grandpa Gabriel while your mummy and daddy sort out their differences, which will probably end in him being decapitated. Which, after what he let happen to Cass, I think he fully deserves.” In a flash of light they’re gone.

Tiberius bows low to both of us before trailing the demon bitches as they obey the command, scampering from the throne room. Lucifer’s gaze remains locked on mine, cool and domineering. It doesn’t matter that I once harboured an insatiable hunger for the Lord of Hell. He’s brought me nothing but a gauntlet of agony and ecstasy.

I spy the angel blade. Sheathed in a new jewelled encrusted scabbard. It’s been left leaning idly against his chair. Ascending the steps, I seat myself on the throne of bones, head held high.

Fury feeds me.

Fuels me.

Burns in my veins with such sweet rage I’m surprised it doesn’t melt the flesh that houses it.

I kneel to no one.

Not the demon spawn who fathered me or the Devil himself.

Cocking my head, I observe him from my perch. Can he see the empty abyss glittering in my gaze? The darkness he has unleashed? I’m finally what I was destined to be. Death will greet him with open arms before this day is through if I have my way.

“How fine you look up there on my throne,” he praises.

“My throne now, you mean? After everything I’ve done I think I deserve it.”

“Not a wise move, my Flower. You may not need me, but you will never be rid of me. We are kindred spirits.”

“This twisted game of shadowy chess is at an end. All your elaborate designs and schemes are through. My daughter is the heir to Hell and we will do very well without you.” Clamping my hand down on the hilt of the sword, I draw it with purpose across my lap.

Rules were meant to be broken. I will no longer be his prey.

“You’re not all hard edges even though you try to be.” He murmurs softly, but I can see the tension in his upper body.

The blade slips smoothly free. Its honed metal gleams in the light.

“You don’t know me at all.”

Rising, I stalk determinedly down the steps. I intend to finish this completely. Now it’s time for him to play my game. He’s a bad decision I won’t run from again. Instead, I’ll put him in the ground.

Palms outstretched like a magician, he plucks a sword from thin air. “You, my darling, are both breath-taking and terrifying. Deadly and divine. The perfect blend of Heaven, Earth, and Hell with no rules or boundaries to confine you.”

Closing the distance, I flick my wrist, raising the tip of my weapon. Hissing, Lucifer rears back as the metal slices through his forearm. It hurts. It should. He knows as well as I do what I wield destroys angels and even though he might be fallen, at his core, he’s still a celestial being. The corners of my mouth twitch upwards, gaze fastened on his blood dripping in quick succession onto the floor.

“I’ve burned enough for you. My family has bled enough for you. Now it’s your turn,” I spit as we both circle each other.

Anticipating my next strike, he parries.

“I’d rather have you naked, bound, and spread eagled on my bed while I pleasure you until you submit to me.” He purrs sensually.

Knocking his weapon momentarily to the side, I ram the hilt of mine into his forehead. Blood erupts from the point of impact. Recovering quickly, he backs away, smearing the red across his face with his free hand. Our blades clash again as I advance, but the fucker isn’t fighting back. He’s merely toying with me.

“You don’t have any power over me. Not anymore.” I tell him with a slash he barely dodges.

I’ve finally become the Devil’s match. I’m going to be his downfall as he was mine. A glint of fear flashes in his mesmerising eyes. They hold no sway over my will. I’m an unpredictable element in his chaotic order.

“Do you really think I still want you after everything you put me through?” I continue, voice brittle and harsh. “Everything you put Cassandra through, just for your sick amusement?”

“I gambled and I almost loss both of you. I am not blind to that. Cassandra foretold of your coming. A woman whose darkness would run deeper than any other female I had known before. She would strike down my foes in a river of blood which I would wade through to achieve a prize beyond all others.”

“You’re not having her.”

The distraction of his words costs me an error. He ends his pretence and shows his true skill. With the ease of a seasoned warrior crafted by millenniums of battle, he disarms me, throwing the weapon I have been wielding aside.

“You assume I speak of our daughter? She is merely a beneficial result of my plan, although she will be treasured. You, Mavi StClair, are beyond remarkable. It did not take long for you to capture my dark heart.” Lucifer’s voice is filled with certainty. Not backing down, he steps closer, crowding me with an air of dominance that forces me to back down.

A demented laugh bubbles from my lips. “You don’t love. You destroy.”

He’s dark and devious. This is just another piece to his evil plan.

“No, that word is too soft for us, isn’t it? What’s between us is more primal than that. What I feel for you goes deeper. It’s in my blood. My bones. My cock. I would burn the world for you if you wished it.” There’s no mistaking the passion or desire in his green eyes as he rids himself of his own sword which clatters loudly to the stone floor. “You think because I’m considered the embodiment of ultimate evil I can’t experience love? I, who once basked in the greatest love of all and precipitated with all the other Heavenly hosts before I was cast out because I dared to question.”

The fierce expression he wears stirs memories that arouse me beyond my control. He takes a hand to the back of my head, tugging me towards him and buries my face in his chest.

“What is right and wrong? Good and evil? Would you still know the difference if you hadn’t been taught them? Why must I shoulder the blame for all the evil mankind creates? They, after all, were given free will to make a choice. After everything I have done for you, are you going to forsake me too?”

Warm. Safe. I keep my cheek pressed to the firmness as I shake. “You used me. Cut my baby from my belly. Cassandra was almost raped because of you.”

Tragedy, turmoil, I’ve tasted them both since he came into my life.

“No. That was never my intention. Everything relied on Markaz believing you were nothing to me but a means to an end. It was the reason why everything played out the way it has, and then I made a mistake, and it almost cost me all of you.”

Freeing the knife from its hiding place in the back of my jeans, I jam it into his side, twisting it to cause the same pain I feel in my heart.

“I was nothing but your puppet.”

Hell has no fury like a woman scorned. As he will find out. I will skin him alive for his betrayal. Hissing through his teeth, he takes everything I give him. Jaw tense, he doesn’t retaliate.

“You want the truth? You’ve always been more than that, Mavi. From the first moment I set eyes on you nothing has been the same. I planned to use and abuse you. Yet, the more I got to know you, the more I saw a loneliness buried deep inside. One that mirrored my own. In a short time, I knew I could satisfy your every fantasy, every perversion, and make you mine. Every step you proved your worth by defeating my enemies.

“When I tried to take your brother’s soul to use as a bargaining chip it was glaringly clear he was inhabited by a demon. I only learned it was Markaz when he left you dead on the battlefield. We struck a deal that same day. I had you brought back to life. Used half breeds to guard you so your father would have no idea what you truly meant to me. I let him believe you were nothing more than a vessel for our child. Another whore I’d used and discarded. Yet, still, he tried to turn you against me.

“I took steps to have allies pose as foes; Gabriel, Tiberius, Raziel, and myself. Commanded my shadows to give you aid because I knew you were too strong and stubborn to ask for protection. I even united you with the half-sister you had no idea existed. If you were truly just a plaything, do you think I would have wasted my time in doing all of that?”

Steely eyes stare into my blue ones.

“You fought me every step. Turned every strategy I had in place to keep you safe on its head. Refused to stay where I could keep you from harm no matter how hard I tried. I needed time to find Markaz’s other offspring. I eliminated them to even the playing field. I couldn’t chance him escaping. You had to be the one to destroy him to fully emerge into what you have always been. My aim has never been to destroy you, but show you who you truly are.

“When I lost you, I could no longer deny what I felt or knew to be true. Cassandra’s prophecy spoke of a prize beyond value. It did not take me long to realise that was you.”

I see the tiny flash of vulnerability. I see his true self for once. The veneer he hides behind is lowered.

“It was inevitable that you would face Markaz. Taking our child from your womb was the only option for you to be at full strength and unhindered in your goal to keep her safe. I knew eventually you would win back your soul and be free of me. Our child binds us together forever. That is the only reason I impregnated you. Why I let you carve yourself a position in my court. So anyone who thought you were weak would know differently and think twice before moving against you. Against us.”

I bare my teeth. “No more lies. No more bullshit.”

Tightening his grip, he pulls me into his embrace. “The Queen is always the most powerful piece on the board. You have been the most important player in my game all along.”

He’s always full of lies. Yet somehow, I know this isn’t one of them.

“Your Queen?”

“I want you at my side throughout eternity. Everything you and Cassandra have endured I will make amends for. Whatever you need I will become. What you crave I will give you. Beyond my domain there is nothing else for you. This is where you belong,” he tells me softly. “I will spill the blood of anyone who gets in our way. I love you, Mavi StClair. You may not believe me now, but it is the truth. I will swear to it on a blood oath if I must. You have turned all my best laid plans upside down and I will not stop until I have you with me. Stop fighting me. I know I can satisfy you if you let me.”

His words startle me. The tender, regretful tone. Taking my mouth hostage, he gives me a sweet delicious kiss. I never craved attention until I tasted his. He’s shaped me into what he wants. Built me up just to tear me down. Why would this time be any different? Weak as I am, I have no more tears for him. Nothing left to give. He’s ruined me. The damage is done.

“You think I’m going to fall for your lies again? Bow gratefully at your feet like your whores?” I sneer, jerking out of his embrace.

Releasing me, he moves to retrieve the angel blade before stalking back towards me with purpose. The hilt is cold and hard as he presses it into my open hand. Grasping the rough material neckline of his robes, he bares his muscled chest.

“If you truly feel nothing for me now, cannot forgive me for everything I have put you through, for raising you above all others to make you my Queen, then end me and take it all— Hell, my throne, my very existence.”

Bringing the razor sharp tip up, I hover it over his heart. He’s asking for forgiveness? This being of death and destruction wants absolution. Can I show mercy? Should I take the chance? Can I open my heart to give again without the fear of it being crushed and left in the dirt?

He’s the only one to have ever made the blood sing in my veins. To burn me with sweet fire that only leaves me craving more. I bear the scars of his love. It’s written all over my black soul. He leaves me hungry for it all. Suddenly, I can see everything crystal clear. Meeting his watchful gaze, I smile.

The Devil’s answering smirk becomes a shriek as I work the metal through his tanned flesh bringing me both a sense of perverted pleasure and pain.