Chapter 3

The Plan

Lu didn't know when he had become a matchmaker. When he'd been with the gods, he had given them a hard time about their matchmaking tendencies. Maybe it was contagious because he kept an eye on Gloria and Abe, and a few other potential couples. At the moment, Gloria and Abe had most of his attention because he could see they were close to committing. The only thing holding her back was that she thought her sister was a burden and didn't want to burden anyone but herself.

He thought her sister was a lot of fun. She was young and fresh, and some of the things she had said or done had even led him to songs that had been very popular with the younger fans. It wasn't easy for him to write for them because his childhood and his teenage years had been horrific. That made it hard for him to connect with the issues they thought were horrible. If only they knew what life could have been like for them had they been born demons. Not that he wished any ill on anyone except for those evil ones in Origin.

Even those awful people would not be tortured by him, maybe by each other. Still, he wanted them to suffer for what they had done. They had managed to take a lot of their money away, and most of them were not living the wonderful lives they had lived before. But was that enough with the horrible cruelty and the murder they had committed? Lu didn't think so. Some had found a way to continue pursuing the horrible things they were doing with some gods and demons that had not yet been found. That's what this trip was about. Some more had been found, and they would be freed.

None of them had wanted to go on another trip, especially so soon after the last one, but they owed their brothers a chance at the same life they were living. Some demons work positions that could be switched off whenever they wanted to, but the main band and those who got them ready could not. They all needed to be on this trip, but not all knew why. He was sure that some of them were thinking, didn't they just say they would cut back on their trips? They are going to burn out if they keep doing this.

He couldn't disagree with them, but the need to free others of their kind was too strong for them not to do it. No price was too much to pay. They knew they were risking their lives, and they did not care. They had no idea who was being kept, only that some were. Lu was also sure they were not being treated well. He was thankful for the medical personnel that they had that could sometimes bring one of them back from the very edge of death. It was not unusual for Origin to keep them at that point, but this was both a punishment and a way to keep them under control. Sometimes, they pushed them too close to the edge, and then they were gone.

"Are you all right?" Stef asked.

"I worry about what we'll find when we get to the facility. It's hard to take a day for travel and another day to put on a show while they are waiting and feel they have no hope left."

She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him in tight. "If we just ran in there unprepared, they may kill them all before we could get them. We are all doing the best that we can."

Hell, he knew that, but it didn't matter. They were still waiting, and he felt like he was wasting time. The fact that he usually enjoyed putting on these concerts only made him feel more guilty. He knew he could do nothing except wait until it was time and then do his best job to free his brothers and get them to a better life.

He and Steph made their way over to where Abe and Gloria sat.

"Are you ready to tell me what you need me to do?" Gloria asked.

"Yes, I need to be in on this meeting that's going on the day after the concert, so I need you to run the fun day for the other girls."

"I don't know what to do."

"I sent you a list of places you guys will go and what you will do. There's also a gift card to use to pay the tips. Other than that, you must have a lot of fun and ensure everyone else does," Stef explained.

They had wondered if they would try to save some of the prisoners that Origin had. If so, why would Stef be going? Then again, Stef had been in the military, so maybe she was tougher than she looked. Sometimes, pretty girls were. All she knew was that it terrified her to try to oversee something. That wasn't something she had ever done. It wasn't the same as doing your job and not worrying about anyone else doing theirs. She knew she owed Stef a world of favors that she had done for her over the years. She nodded and hoped that would be a good enough answer because she couldn't even speak right now. Somehow, she would get through this. Maybe the concierge would help her? Wasn't that what they were there for? At least, she hoped it was. Gloria made her way back to her seat.

"Don't think so hard. You'll be all right," Abe offered.

"You knew she was going to ask me?"

"Suspected, but I wasn't sure."

"I always seem to be the last one to know anything. Even those things that I'm involved in," Gloria observed.

"Not true. You know more than most. Only those at the highest level, no more than you do. Management tends to be that way."

Gloria would be a wonderful mate, and having her sister around would be no hardship. Abe wasn't sure how to convince her of that. His woman was stubborn. She refused any step past friendship that he tried to make. All he could do was try. He needed to get his head into the game because as talented as his band was, it still required effort to make the concert great. Once the concert was over, they needed to prepare for the rescue mission. That would require even more effort and talent to get their people out without anyone dying.

Abe didn't think that Gloria would be interested in going on a mission like that, and he had to admit that he was glad about it. Stef would be going, and he didn't know how Lu handled that so well. Risa would be staying in whatever they used for transportation because she was expecting, which was not a risk she should take. Normally, she would be right in there with Stef. But everyone agreed that there was no way she should be doing something like this under those circumstances.

"Let's dance," Abe suggested.

Gloria nodded, and he led her out to the dance floor. The song was not one of those slow dances he lived for. It was a faster dance. It wasn't that he couldn't do it. He preferred having his woman in his arms when he danced. This dance was just for distraction, and it seemed to work because Gloria's mind was on her dancing instead of what would happen in two days. She enjoyed dancing. Often, they'd had dancing events back home. In general, demons loved to dance, and he was no different, but now that he had discovered slow dancing and had a woman he wanted to hold, that was what he wanted to do.

"I think you're trying to distract me," Gloria accused.

"Is it working?"

"Yes, darn it. It's hard to worry when you're having fun. You are such a good dancer and so sexy."

Abe grinned at her. He loved it when she said nice things to him. Why didn't she just give in and let him move the relationship along? While he wasn't perfect, he would do everything he could to be exactly what she needed. All his brothers told him that Gloria was so much happier when she was with him than when she wasn't. He got along with Kiki. Of course, all the demons did. He had a good job and a great place to stay, and he could support her in anything she wanted

.

Their life would be perfect if she wasn't so stressed about being a burden because she came with her sister. She'd admitted to him that she'd like to take a trip a year to somewhere in the world that she'd never seen before. She also loved her job and wanted to do it until she was too old and frail to continue. Sometimes, he found Gloria very amusing. He wasn't too sure about her parents. They dropped something on her that they knew she would consider a burden and a responsibility. His woman had gotten lucky because she had ended up where the demons had loved her sister, and her sister was settling down. Abe suspected Kiki had wanted attention and love and hadn't felt like she was getting that at home.

After her parents had Gloria, they decided one child was plenty and didn't want another, but they hadn't found a permanent solution. When Kiki made her presence known, they were shocked and appalled. He suspected they had told her in small ways that they didn't want her. When she had become a problem, they'd basically palmed her off on Gloria and made her feel like she owed them because they had given her life and raised her. That could have turned out so badly, but it hadn't, and she needed to understand that the demons loved Kiki, and they loved her. They were happy to have both of them in their lives. How could you convince someone of that if they refused to see it?

Tomorrow was a concert. The next day was their mission. The day after, there was another concert. Then, they would get home as quickly as they could. Concerts were not so bad in themselves, but combined with the mission, they were very tiring. Origin had to be down to only a few facilities, but they were creative. They always found ways to make money to support their nefarious activities and occasionally added new ones. As long as they continued to add new ones, he wasn't sure if they would ever see an end to this.

Every god or demon swore to continue as long as they knew there was a single god or demon out there needing to be freed. Most would be freed because everyone could remember how horrible it had been to be in Origin's clutches. It was not somewhere they would want to leave anyone, human, god, or demon. Few people were aware of it, but Origin had begun imprisoning humans when they ran out of money to pay for females to carry out their latest experiments. They had always imprisoned a few humans for specific purposes, but not usually for that.

The problem was that when you imprisoned enough humans, you caught the attention of the police. They had always tried to avoid that, but now they didn't seem to care. He was sure when they got to where Origin held the demons, they would find humans and some gods. Hopefully, the humans would know to stay out of the way and not get shot. Their problem with Origin was that they didn't care who they had to kill to get them out of their way. The quality of their guards were scraping the bottom of the barrel.

"Come on, sweetheart, let me escort you to your room," Abe said when he suddenly realized how late it was.

He wished he could invite himself to spend the night but knew that wouldn't happen. At least, not anytime soon. After dropping her off in her room and giving her a good night kiss, he headed to the room next door, which was his.

Abe tried to keep his mind off Gloria because he would never get to sleep if he didn't. He needed his rest. Giving concerts was hard work. No matter how much he loved the job, work was still involved.

Gloria was a hard worker, and he was amazed sometimes at the results she got. Sometimes, the song just called for something special or different, and she always pulled it off. Sometimes, they stepped out on the stage, and the crowd would go wild. There was one song that they would probably do tonight where she made them up to look like vampires. They weren't ugly vampires, either. The look was very sensual even though they did look scary. She'd made them pirates before and even given them animalistic characteristics. It depended on the song or songs. Sometimes, she changed their makeup and costumes several times during the concert. Her work was hard, too, but he was glad she enjoyed it.

Lu had talked about getting her an assistant to make things easier for her because sometimes when they had a lot of changes, it was very difficult. Stef had planned to put an ad for helpers in one of the papers. He wasn't sure how that would work out, but he hoped it would. If they knew someone or if one of the demons was interested, they would have used them instead. The word had gone out, and no one had shown any interest, so now they were looking for outside help.

Stef was getting applications, and she said she hoped after they got back to talk to Gloria and give her five choices. Gloria didn't know about it yet, but they all thought it would be a good surprise. Most applicants seemed to be women, but a couple of guys were interested. The final choice would be Gloria's. She had to work with them. He really hoped that she would be happy with the surprise. He had noticed that sometimes humans weren't logical, but surely Stef knew her well enough that she was sure she would like it.

It was time to sleep, but sleep wouldn't come easily. There were too many things to worry about, even if Abe could do nothing about them. Someone else would decide on the details. That was tough because they had finally gotten to where they could write their own stories, but others played a large part in them. Abe finally got to sleep, but it seemed like moments later when he woke to the alarm. Today would be busy, and tonight would be even more hectic. Concerts were always crazy, no matter where the band played.

Abe rubbed his chest and then rolled out of bed. He slept nude, so he went to the bathroom and straight into the shower. Abe should have showered last night because he caught the smell of smoke in his hair. None of the demons smoked, but it wasn't because they weren't allowed. It was just their choice. Most of the demons drank but rarely to excess. He finished cleaning up, stepped out of the shower, grabbed a big thirsty towel, and began to dry off. What he wore wouldn't really matter because it would not be the same thing he would wear to the concert. Gloria always had something interesting, whether he liked it or not, for him to wear.

He pulled on jeans and a band T-shirt, put on socks and boots, and was ready to go. Abe went to the door next to his and knocked. Gloria opened the door. She was ready to go, too.

"Where are we going to eat breakfast?" Gloria asked.

"We are all meeting at the main restaurant just off the lobby. I hear they have an omelet station and cook steak for breakfast."

"That sounds wonderful."

"I thought so, too," Abe replied.

They reached the restaurant, and about half the people were waiting. Maybe it would have been better to say they were there. Everyone seemed to already be in the process of getting their food or eating. The stagehands had just finished and were leaving as they entered, and they nodded to them. It was probably best that everyone was not eating at the same time because he wasn't sure that the restaurant could easily hold all of them and the other guests that happened to be there at the same time. Gloria went straight to the omelet station and ordered both their usual omelets.

Abe went to the grill where they cooked steaks and other meats and got them each something. They had been friends long enough that they knew each other well and knew what they would like. His was quicker, claiming a table and then getting each a drink. There was also a bar with fruit and vegetables and another with other foods. Milk, cereal, yogurt, and several baked goods were sitting on a counter. They had an exceptional breakfast food bar, and he would enjoy every bit of it. Demons had a hell of an appetite. It was amazing how quickly they replaced the food that was eaten.

Gloria had times when she had a good appetite but couldn't eat a third of what he did. This was no average day, and he needed fuel for what was coming. They gathered their food, sat down together, and began to eat.

"This is amazing. You think this is what the place back home will be like once they get it going?" Gloria asked.

"I hope so. It would be a pleasure to eat like this every morning."

"If they let everyone eat there every morning, they would be overwhelmed."

"You're right, but we would still be able to go as paying customers. I wonder how expensive this would be?" Abe questioned.

"You're famous, and you probably don't have to worry about this like a poor working girl does."

Abe chuckled. "I didn't mean it that way," Gloria exclaimed.

She was so sweet and naive that he was sure she didn't. He would have thought nothing of the working girl reference if they hadn't been warned that even here, there were some. That was something a god wanted to avoid because there were complications. Lu didn't want to find out that it might hurt their popularity. Abe thought it would increase their popularity, especially since they had a bad boy theme. Some of their songs even referred to that bad boy image. Lu had one song about how he looked like a bad boy, but inside, he was sweet and just wanted a good life for himself and his family.

He doubted that anyone believed it, but it was true. That was all any of them wanted. While they enjoyed playing songs, they commercialized their songs to have money to survive. Lu was doing a good job of reinvesting most of the money into making their island a haven for tourists and fans. A small part was invested in the stock market, and their boss seemed to have a way with those because it was making a ton of money, too. The demons were running it almost like a tribe, except that everyone got a percentage if they were a registered demon. That was in addition to the wages they paid for any jobs they might do. The pay was based on a predetermined scale.

Their mates and children also became registered demons. They had managed to buy the whole island they were living on and renamed it Demon Island. Abe had no idea how Lu managed that, and he didn't care. It was just cool that he had. Once the construction was complete, they would have room for every demon that wanted to come and a few gods if they wanted to join them.

That did not include the huge resort with guests constantly in and out. It was a grand plan for the band to play with other bands in the huge amphitheater they were building next to the hotel. The restaurant he and Gloria had spoken of would also be close to the motel. It would be within walking distance for most people. A water park and Recreation Center would be next to the hotel. Lu didn't do anything in a small way. He even planned another restaurant on the hotel's roof, enclosed in glass. Expensive? Yes! But damn well worth it. It would serve gourmet cuisine from around the world. There would be an area for dancing, and a small band would play.

Since it would be difficult for most people to get cars in, there would only be a small parking area. The beach was nearby, and snorkeling, diving, surfing, and other water activities would be available. There would even be rental boats to go deep-sea fishing. The resort would be more of a family destination, but there would be romantic things available for those who came as couples. There were already agreements with cruise ships to stop for the weekend and allow people to go to a concert or partake in other activities, like the small casino they were building. When it was all done, it would be like a small city.

It would have to be a small city because space was limited, but other things were possible now that they had the whole island. Fans could run into one of the band members in the restaurant or anywhere else around the property. They would also set up activities where fans could get items signed, and the gift shop carried an unbelievable number of items. They were in it to win it. It was not just for the band. The island was for all demons, and they intended to prosper as a group. No individual would be more important than the others.

He was certain that as the numbers increased, they would add more properties than other locations around the world, just as the gods were doing. Abe suspected that some of the money that their fearless leader was putting up was for property in Vegas. He didn't have his eye on anything yet, but you never knew when something would come up. New York was another possibility, and eventually, maybe Orlando or Los Angeles.

Lu wouldn't limit his thinking to big tourist areas. He also looked for places in big tourist areas. There were also a lot of areas in the world beyond the USA. He wouldn't be limited, and there was no imagining what he might come up with. Could you imagine a demon theme park? They were considering it.

"We should finish and meet the others," Gloria suggested.

While lost in his thoughts, he had nearly cleaned his plates. "You're right. We need to find out when we're leaving so we don't miss the bus."

Moving around with so many people and all the supplies they needed wasn't easy. That was why they always rented a bus for extended trips. They could move to and from the concerts' locations. Even though they were leaving a few people behind, the ones who didn't want to go to the concert and didn't need to work it, they would need at least two buses. He was sure that was what they had rented if not three. While sometimes they used items already at the location, that wasn't always true.

In this case, where they were having the concert, they usually had sporting events. The stage would have to be built. So, they brought the items for that. Abe felt bad for the stagehands because they often had missing items and went a little crazy at the last minute trying to get things ready. Everyone had their own issues that they had to deal with. They left the table and headed down to the large meeting room that Lu had secured. He went over all the information about that night

's concert.

It would not discuss the next day's mission. Only an exclusive group would gather to hear that information before they left. The mission was why they were here, but the concerts had to go on like clockwork because they were the cover story. Origin didn't realize that a third of the attacked facilities were in cities where the demons had concerts. They must not be very bright. How did they miss that a facility was liberated whenever a concert was nearby?

Abe had always thought Origin employed smart people because of what they had managed to do. Maybe many things were done by people no longer in Origin. Those left behind weren't bright, but they made up for it with horrible cruelty.

"Have we covered everything?" Lu asked.

It seemed Abe missed most of the discussion. Looking around, he saw he wasn't the only one.

"Who is in charge of the gear I brought?" Gloria asked.

"Arnie is in charge. He says it's all here and will be loaded when we arrive."

He could see that she felt relief because Arnie was good, and he was responsible. He loved the concerts and enjoyed putting on a show, but he wanted to be a movie star, and that wasn't something that they could do. His demon's name had been horrible, and he had changed it to Arnie after a movie star that he loved. Stef had suggested they make some videos and give Arnie a part in them. It could even jumpstart his career, depending on how things turned out. They were all willing to give it a shot, and it was a good idea to have videos occasionally. They only needed to decide which song for the video's focus.

"I will admit I was worried. Lu usually mentions the gear type by type, but this time, he didn't, " she admitted.

"I understand your concerns, but everyone does a good job. They are beginning to load the buses. Do you have anything you need to do before we go?"

"No, I'm ready to go. How long is the trip?"

"An hour if there are no problems."

"All right. We'll have plenty of time to get everyone fixed up. Lu wanted to highlight one of his songs. It's out of this world, and you guys get to be aliens." Gloria chuckled.

There was no point in worrying because she would want to do whatever she already had planned. While Abe was sure they would look good, he was worried about what they would have to deal with. Hopefully, it won't be too irritating. Was he kidding? He'd probably do more than she expected if she asked. The other guys probably would, too. Lu had squirmed at the idea of wearing makeup, but eventually, he wore something for every concert. Stef had told him it made him look pretty. That didn't sit too well, but he did it anyway.

There was chaos in the parking lot as everything was loaded onto one bus and people got onto the other. Their third bus had people lined up to load after the first one was full. Abe was trying to decide which bus would be the best one to ride in. Then he decided it didn't matter because both would be packed. The stagehands were probably the best off because they would be riding with the materials they needed for the stage. In Abe's estimation, that was about half of a bus full, and the stagehands would fill the rest.

The bus drivers were usually stagehands, too. They stayed in line for the first bus, and it was surprising how quickly they got on.