Page 139 of A Deal in Darkness
And I haven’t got a fucking clue why they’d take her other than to get to me. She’s too weak to be useful and too stubborn to cooperate. She’s more of a burden than anything else and she doesn’t possess one single attribute that would make them stronger if they stole it from her.
The only reason to take her is to get to me—except it very clearly isn’t the only reason Eva took Adriana. My mind’s driving itself insane thinking of all the reasons for them to take her and imagining all the things Eva could be doing to her. Unpleasant things. Deeply unpleasant things.
Eva’s a fast learner and I’m an expert at torture. I’ve taken more than my fair share of pleasure from the screams of those I’ve mutilated and tormented, and now my sins return to haunt me. I’m inventive too, and Eva’s learned more than a trick or two from me over the years—and now Adriana’s at her mercy.
And there is no mercy in Hell.
I can heal her physical scars and Lucifer can repair any I cannot. I’ll damn well make him fix her perfect little body as payment for services rendered, and I’ll make fucking sure he delivers. But the mind is harder to fix and once that’s broken, it’s almost impossible for anything to be the same again. Some scars run deeper than the surface, and they’re the harshest ones of all.
I should know. I enjoyed inflicting anguish on the souls of the condemned as I brutalized their minds.
Elgios watches as I pace and I’m sure he’s thinking the same thing I am. This isn’t the time for self-indulgent wallowing or hedonistic self-pity. Adriana is suffering and we’ve got to get our shit together and we don’t have long.
“You good?” he asks.
“No,” I reply. “I’m fucking livid, and I’ve never been less fucking good in all my goddamn life.”
Elgios grins and the temperature drops, as he pulses enough ice into the world to send a shiver down my spine.
“I’ll gather all my warriors, Amaymon. We’re going to fucking need them if we’re going to get to the fucking Temple, let alone to the altar.”
My fist clenches as I stare out at the boats again, wondering what Adriana sees in the damn things. They’re too sedate and serene for my taste, but she fucking loves them, and when this is done, I’m going to buy her one. A fucking big one. Or a horse. Because girls love horses. Maybe I’ll buy her both if that’s what’s needed to make her happy.
“Focus, Amaymon. You won’t get her back unless you do,” Elgios snarls. “What the fuck’s gotten into you?”
“I was strategizing.”
I fucking wasn’t and we both know it.
“I’ll round up every demon at my disposal and call in all my favors. I’ll send Byron to try to persuade some of the others to ally with us, although Eva’s probably got there first.”
I bet the bitch has got there first, but Byron can be persuasive and it’s worth a shot. Anything’s worth a shot at this point because the odds of us getting through this look slim to fucking none.
“Do you still have an alliance with Morgana?”
“We’re about to find out.”
We’d better fucking do, or I’ll skin the bitch alive and then I’ll hunt down every single one of her coven and I’ll let Byron decide their fate. He’s been itching for an excuse to go on a witch hunt and my temper might provide him with the cover he needs to feed the earth their blood.
“I need to know you’re going to keep your shit together.”
I’m not.
“I’ve got this, Elgios.”
“I fucking mean it, Amaymon. I don’t care if your rage annihilates anything that stands in your way and I’ll revel in the bloodbath you’ll cause. I’ll be right behind you, if not in front of you, leading the way.” The asshole smirks and I let him score a cheap point, if only to keep him on side because I fucking need him. “But you’ve got to get your fucking head in the game, and I need to know you won’t do something fucking stupid.”
“Like what?”
My voice is a snarl of fury, and the world falls silent.
“Like sacrifice all of us to save the girl. No fucking heroics. I’m not going down in a blaze of glory for you and that girl.”
He fucking will if that’s what’s needed to save her.
“I know.” I lie.
“And there’s the matter of our agreement, Amaymon. I want the kill. I fucking mean it. I’m not having you steal my chance to take revenge and gain a throne under Lucifer.”
