Page 48 of Prayer of the Damned
“Why are you asking about that? What's it to you?” I practically growl.
“Is that what got Prof. Sapienti in trouble?”
“I don’t know about his return to the creator. But I know that anyone asking questions about theology usually doesn’t stay on this Earth for very long.”
The harshness in my voice frightens her, and she stands up in order to escape. I curse myself for letting my emotions get the better of me, and decide to stop her.
“Sit down at once, Bellcolor, we’re not done yet!” I command her, and she recoils.
“How do you know my name? I didn’t tell you.”
“The Dean of the University briefed us all about your situation, you must have known that.” I try to put as much coldness as I can gather into my voice. It’s absolute nonsense, of course, but anything goes.
“So… have you run into a case similar to mine, Barty?”
I chuckle. It’s been too long since anyone’s called me that. “Barty?”
“I thought it was appropriate, since we’re already on a first-name basis.”
“What makes you think I’ve encountered a case similar to yours?” I lean back and continue drumming with the pen, this time on my cheek, continuing to test her nerves.
“Aren’t you a historian?” She raises an eyebrow.
“Among other things.”
“Well, if you’re not going to answer any question of mine, I think we’re done here after all.”
“You’re not asking the right questions, Bellcolor.” I fake a smile, and it seems she’s exposed me.
She offers no less of a fake smile and says: “I prefer Belle.”
“Well, Belle, if you ask the right questions, I might be able to answer them.” I was always good at laying traps, and it seems innocent Belle has walked right into them. I feel her eyes following the pen as I toy with it, and a blush colors her pale face. We’ll see if this game will be as enjoyable as I think it will.
She stands up and straightens her dress. “I’ll have to get back to you on that,” she says, and leaves my office.
I don’t hesitate for a moment, removing a mirror from the first drawer in my desk and examining my eyes. Indeed, my left eye has returned to its original blue color.
Fuck. That was careless of me. But in my defense, I hardly expected her to just fall into my office before I even started looking for her.
I thought it would be harder. And not only had she popped up here out of nowhere, she’d walked right into the trap I’d set for her.
I realize I’ll have to go through the whole loathsome procedure again. It’s not the pain that bothers me, it’s the desecration of my body, which no longer belongs to me.
I’m tainting God’s sacred property. Finding myself in Hell is surely my punishment for that.
Chapter Twenty-One
Bartimaeus
Bellcolor is a despicable creature. The more I watch her, the more I can’t understand why it’s her of all people. Why did Lilith choose this pitiful child over every other demoness running around like the world’s in the palm of their hands? She’s so weak, so pathetic, that sometimes I feel a little sorry for her. The poor thing has no idea she has enough power in her little finger to destroy the world as we know it. I make it a point to lead her to discover what’s been kept from her so far. I’ll lay a trail of breadcrumbs until she reaches the whole truth, that the witch at the end of the trail is actually her, and that of all the evil around her she should be most afraid of her own shadow.
But I can’t do that as long as other demons circle her. The first rule of the hunt is isolation, and I put all my efforts into isolating her from her pack, one by one. The rich demons are the worst. And the demonesses? Treachery, thy name is woman.
I planted the first seed during my initial meeting with the Dean. I had to get Belle to the library, but I knew I had to do so in the form of a punishment she’d receive from him. Teens todaydon’t read books willingly as they once did. And one look at the teens in this place was enough to let me know this was true.
The first time I met the trio, it enflamed my corrupted blood so powerfully that I almost lost control of myself. I hate giving him that power over me, and warring against him is probably the hardest thing I’ll have to deal with. They’ve managed to corrupt their hearts to the extent that I couldn’t recognize any innocence or purity in their despicable eyes.
I learned that the girl who was always hanging out with them was Valentina, meant to be Bellcolor’s best friend. How easy it was to change her behavior. It was just ridiculous. When I saw her turn towards the soccer field I whispered the talismanic incantation in her ear, but it wasn’t enough. I was lucky to see her again as she fled the dorms, her eyes haunted, panting like the Devil himself was after her. All it took was the light touch of my finger on her forehead to plant the divine seed in its entirety, disrupting her memory.
