Page 113 of A Deal in Darkness
“Once Mordecai controls the damned, he will overthrow Lucifer and any of the Princes who stand in his way. He'll claim the throne of Hell and we'll all suffer.”
The Seer nods, and his bony fingers curl around a poisoned chalice. “Technically, you'll be lost in oblivion, so you'll be suffering a different torture, but none of us will like our fate. Even Heaven does not wish this to pass and they are prepared to assist Lucifer where possible.”
My eyebrow arches and I down another goblet of demonic wine. This one has a stronger kick than the first, and I need its fortitude.
“They'd break the conventions?” The Seer nods as I drum my claws against my goblet. “Fascinating. And Eva?”
“She is certainly working against you. Whether she is on Mordecai’s side is unclear and I’m afraid the mists will not reveal this answer, no matter how hard I try to clear them.”
“Byron?”
“Most certainly loyal. As much as a demon can be, given our nature. He is also strangely bewitched by the girl and you may wish to pay more attention to him when he is around her in the future.”
I nod, and my attention’s drawn by the shadows creeping along the ground. The darkness shifts and it changes mine, moving the magic I’ve let pour into this sacred space. The braziers catch fire again and more tinder spits into the room, hissing and cracking as it collides with the stone floor and the black tendrils moving over it.
“Tell me, old friend, why was all this obscure to you? Why did you need to travel here to reveal what you would normally find so easy to divine?”
The Seer smirks before he lets himself break a laugh so disgustingly revolting even I turn my head to the sound. It’s frightful and horrifying, and disturbingly the sound is made worse as it echoes around the bare chamber of the Inner Sanctum.
“I did not come here becauseIneeded this place, Amaymon. I came here becauseyouneed it. You require its gifts if you are to defeat the threat you face, and you would not come if you were asked. Only a potent temptation would lure you here, and now you have arrived, and things are as they should be.”
My hand crushes the goblet and the remnants of the wine spray with the shattered fragments that scatter like shrapnel.
“Amaymon, you are facing a threat so despicable that even you require help. Your pride prevents you from asking for it, but you know you cannot defeat Mordecai if he possesses the Power of the Damned. Not as you currently are.”
The fires spit, and the darkness draws closer.
Shadows dance over the sanctum walls, gleeful as they anticipate the Seer’s next words.
“You will need to draw on the fires of Hell itself, Lord. You know the price of such a gift. The Temple and the Oracle of Mammon do not give their favor for free and you will pay this, Amaymon.”
I shake my head and refuse, deciding the price they ask is too high.
“If you do not, she will die.” The Seer brings his fingertips together and taps them against each other. “I suggest you decide whether you would prefer her to be dead, but spared this debacle or alive and forced to endure it.”
“The price is mine to bear, Seer.”
“She wears your collar, Amaymon. The Collar of Ichor. You will perform the rites with her, or not at all. Defile her on the altar or her corpse will rot in the earth and you will mourn her loss.”
He gets up and his robes spiral like blood spurting from a fatal wound. The Seer’s steps sound like a death knell as he walks across the Inner Sanctum, pausing before he leaves.
“I’ll know when you decide, old friend—and then the Oracle will summon her and spare her the inconvenience of a trip through Hell.”
A door creeks and the Seer steps through it.
“Don’t take too long, Amaymon. She’s sleeping and Byron is watching her. He really does like her, and who knows where that might lead?”
The door slams and I close my eyes. Adriana won’t understand this, and I doubt she’ll do this willingly. I loathe the thought of hurting her, but the thought of losing her is worse, and I have no choice but to perform the rite.
With her.
And hope she forgives me for what I’m going to put her through. Because Hell has no fury like a woman scorned, and Adriana’s going to hate what I’m going to do to her.
34
ALL OF ME
ENZO
