23. Damon

Chapter 23

Damon

L orna and I stood in the open archway of the castle's main dining room. Her sharp intake of air mirrored my own. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Even though my senses confirmed that I couldn't be wrong, I still couldn't believe it.

Every seat in the room was taken. Half of them by demons and the other half by human females. Not just humans—dhampir. I'd been around Lorna enough to recognize their aura and their black irises. They sat together in pairs. One dhampir with one demon.

My mind struggled to understand. Were the demons feeding the dhampir and creating their own army? No, that didn't make sense. Demons received no benefit from sharing blood with a dhampir. Regardless, we were already the strongest force in all the realms.

"Come in and take a seat," Lucifer said, strolling past me. "Everyone, please welcome Traz'damon and his soulmate, Lorna Cross."

Murmured echoes of welcome jolted me into motion. I pressed my hand against Lorna's lower back and nudged her forward. The only empty seats were at the opposite end of the room. Three chairs waited for Lucifer and his guests.

I scowled, hating that he'd anticipated my early arrival. I couldn't hold onto my hate, though. My curiosity overrode everything else.

I glanced at the dhampir as we strolled by. Where had they all come from? They didn't appear distressed or fearful. In fact, several of them smiled at me and nodded. Many of them sat very close to their demon partner, making it obvious who was together. None of them appeared to be here against their will.

Every one of them wore an amulet exactly like the one that Lucifer had given to Lorna.

As soon as we settled into our seats—I put myself between Lucifer and Lorna—several Twelfth Order demons started bringing out trays of food. They were taller than the average human, standing just over six feet tall. Their long arms and longer legs were disproportionate with their slender bodies. Their tail split halfway down its length to give them extra balance to counteract their unbalanced bodies.

Despite their awkward appearance, they were extremely agile and more graceful than most of the other orders. Being the weakest demons in the realm, they were typically servants. They weren't monitored the way the upper order demons were because they weren't privy to Lucifer's secrets. Most demons from the Twelfth to the Sixth Orders were allowed to live their lives with no restrictions.

A Twelfth Order demon had to be the one to make a deal with the fae in exchange for their DNA. They were the only ones who were just as much flesh as magic. Had one of the servants in Lucifer's court betrayed him? Or had they done it for personal reasons? I might never know, and I wasn't sure it mattered.

"Damon," Lorna whispered, pinching my thigh. "I have no idea what to pick. "

I shook away my thoughts and focused on my mate. Of course she didn't know what to eat. Everything on the table was from the Underworld.

"You'll like the roasted meat." I pointed at a platter diagonally to her left.

"All of the fruit is sweet and delicious." Lucifer leaned forward to peer around me. "Some of your fellow dhampir like the root vegetables, but they can be … what is the human word? Spicy?"

Lorna looked at me and raised her eyebrow, like she waited for me to confirm his opinion. I nodded, and Lucifer laughed.

"Eat, drink, and be merry!" He waved his hand at the glutinous array of food. "That is the human phrase, correct?"

His merriment didn't seem forced, but I didn't remember Lucifer being so open and carefree in the past.

"Yes, my lord," the female next to him replied.

Lucifer gazed down at her with a look I'd never thought I'd see on his face. Tender admiration. She blushed and looked away, adding a helping of food to her plate. I studied the woman more carefully. She was definitely dhampir. I couldn't detect more than her humanity, unlike Lorna whose fae half was obvious to anyone who could sense magic.

So why did he look at her like that? She couldn't be his mate.

Lorna selected some of the entrées from the nearest platters and started eating. She had to be hungry. She'd barely touched her breakfast earlier because of our conversation during the meal. At least she'd have time to enjoy this one. Lucifer wouldn't voice his demands with this many witnesses.

My own thoughts wouldn't allow me to eat, though. The ceremony to present a soulmate included all of Lucifer's court. If the Lord of the Underworld had known I'd show up early, why hadn't he invited his court? While some of the court demons were present, this was not what I expected.

"I can almost see your mind trying desperately to figure out my intentions. "

I gave the Lord of the Underworld my full attention. He was right. I couldn't figure it out.

Lucifer smirked and set his utensils on his plate. "When the Prince of the Summer Court destroyed the Winter Queen's research facility, I was forced to take notice of their plans. One of my demons—who was not supposed to be in the fae realm—admitted to the deal they'd made with the fae. Normally, I would just ignore the fae and their petty deals, but this one made me pause. Why would the fae be interested in DNA research on the dhampir?"

His smile faded, and a spark of fire lit his eyes. I suspected he'd consumed the demon's magic along with its soul.

"We found two more facilities in the fae realm." He lifted his chin and looked around the room. "Most of the dhampir we found were babies. We relocated them to a safe place until we could bring them here. They've spent their entire lives in my kingdom. Treasured, as they should be."

"You're all dhampir?" Lorna asked, but I could hear Mir's edgy voice in the mix.

I turned to my mate, but she was looking at the numerous faces watching us—both demon and dhampir. The dhampirs' eyes never transitioned from black to any other color. Apparently, they were very comfortable being themselves in this environment.

"Obviously, not all of us." The Fourth Order demon directly across the table winked at Lorna.

I worried she'd be afraid of him. The only humanoid thing about him was the shape of his body. His red skin, black eyes, and the tiny horns growing from his bald head were all demon.

Lorna laughed, and a slight blush crept up her neck. I would've been jealous, but she was projecting her embarrassment, not arousal .

"Sorry," Lorna said. "I have so many questions. I honestly thought I was the last dhampir. I never imagined …" She waved her hand at the room like I'd seen her do so many times.

"You are welcome in my home anytime, Lorna," Lucifer said, surprising me even more than I already was. "I would encourage you to come back and ask as many questions as you'd like. But I will require your oath to keep our secret. I don't think I have to explain why."

"You have my oath to keep their presence a secret from everyone except my mates, of course," Lorna said immediately. "And no, you don't have to explain. If anyone else knew they were here …" She shuddered. "I already know what will happen."

"Indeed. When you're finished eating, we'll go to my office and discuss Damon's new assignment."

Lorna didn't finish eating. She immediately started talking to everyone around her, like she was worried that we wouldn't come back. Of course I'd bring her back. She wasn't the only one who wanted to find out more about the dhampir here in the Underworld.

It looked like my life was about to turn in a new direction. Not that it hadn't when Lorna arrived, but I had a feeling that Lucifer's assignment would change everything.

An hour later, Lucifer led us to a large room with a balcony that overlooked the fields behind the castle. He strolled straight through his luxurious office and took a seat in a wicker lounge chair that I'd swear he'd gotten from a local box store in New Orleans.

I couldn't believe Lucifer chose to sit on the balcony. All the time I'd known him, he always forced his audience to stand in front of his oversized desk while he lounged in his oversized chair. Something had changed about the Lord of the Underworld.

"Stop gawking and sit down, Traz'damon," Lucifer commanded. He was clearly done being nice. Had it all been an act for the dhampir? That didn't sound right, either. Too many demons in the room seemed genuinely happy with their partners.

I dropped onto one of the two benches near the railing. I would have to take to my human form to be comfortable in one of the wicker recliners, and I had no desire to release my demon. The longer I stayed in the Underworld, the more of its magic I could soak up.

Lorna stood next to me, looking out over the acres of farmland that stretched as far as she could see. The look of wonder on her face made me smile.

"As you can see, I'm providing refuge for the dhampir," Lucifer said, wiping the smile off my face. "I'd been collecting them for ages, well before we discovered the fae research facility. Vampires are vicious creatures who shouldn't be allowed to procreate," he said, snarling. "The fae aren't much better."

Even though I disagreed with his stereotype, the vampires who created dhampir were disgusting creatures. The fae who'd willingly experimented on the innocent were just as evil. Maybe even more.

"The only reason Earth has not seen a resurgence of dhampir is because I continue to eliminate the vampires trying to create them," Lucifer continued.

Luckily he was watching Lorna, so he didn't see my surprised expression.

"I need you to pay attention to the vampires." He pulled his eyes from my mate. His stern look made me uneasy. "You are in a unique position to watch for those vampires who would express undue interest in human females."

"Yes, I am," I agreed. "What would you have me do if I find any?"

"Report to my High Commander."

Just as I'd done when I asked for help from the High Commander.

"How does this new assignment affect my exiled status?" I asked.

Lucifer shook his head. "You were never exiled. I offered you a place in my court, and you chose to leave."

I ground my teeth together to stop the retort on my lips. Yes, he'd offered me a place in his court as an errand boy. Me! A demon of the Second Order! Of course I'd refused. Even now, I did not regret my choice. Going to Earth gave me freedoms I'd never known existed.

"So I am free to come and go without worrying about being attacked by your First Order Patrols?"

Both of Lucifer's eyebrows rose. "They never had my permission to stop you from returning. I'll make sure there are no misunderstandings about your presence in the Underworld."

It was hard to believe that his surprise was genuine. I'd been sneaking into my home world for centuries, barely avoiding the First Order demons. The handful of times they'd seen me, they always attacked without warning.

But they hadn't been aggressive when we arrived at the castle today.

I nodded. "I'll bring Lorna back with me. Her curiosity is insatiable, and I can almost hear the hundreds of questions tumbling through her brilliant mind."

She spun around and glared at me. I smiled back and rose to my feet, trailing my finger along her jaw. Her frown vanished. She leaned into my touch, her eyes flickering from blue to black. Between her and Mir, I couldn't imagine the questions they had.

"Then she is no different than the others." Lucifer stood as well. "I've learned to curb my impatience with their nonstop questions. Having an engaged audience has actually been refreshing. The demons in my realm just nod and agree with everything I say. "

"I'm sorry if this sounds offensive," Lorna said. "But they're all here of their own free will? Their demon partners aren't forced on them, are they? No … they wouldn't be. The demons don't benefit from swapping blood." She murmured to herself—or Mir—for several seconds. "Why would the demons agree to feed them?"

Lucifer smiled at her. "No one is forced to do anything. We didn't realize it until later, but my demons do benefit from offering their blood to the dhampir." He glanced at me for a moment before turning back to Lorna. "If the partners are swapping blood and not just feeding the dhampir, a bond is created between the two. It's not as strong as a soulmate bond, but it's personal and intimate."

Lucifer's eyes took on a faraway look. Had he shared that bond with the female who'd sat beside him during our meal?

"Oh." Lorna laced her fingers through mine and squeezed my hand but didn't look away from Lucifer. "Thank you for explaining."

"Of course," he said. "Return whenever you like. Be sure you're wearing the amulet, though. We wouldn't want the Underworld's magic to reveal that you have a tail."

Lorna's eyes widened, and Lucifer smirked. I growled, but it had no true heat. What if she did have a tail? Twelfth Order demons had tails.

"Would I truly have a tail?" she asked. "If I take off the amulet, I won't immediately die, right? We could find out, right?"

Lucifer laughed and strolled into his office, leaving Lorna and I alone on the balcony.

"Do you really want to know?" I asked.

"Is it possible?"

"Anything is possible." I released her hand and slid my fingers around the amulet at her neck. "The demons who served our meal are Twelfth Order. They're the only ones who could've contributed DNA to the fae."

"Their tails were really cool," she whispered. "Not that yours isn't. "

I laughed and tugged at the amulet. "Yes or no?"

I was a little nervous about removing her protection, but I knew the Underworld's magic wouldn't just strike her down. I'd have time to take her back to Earth before it hurt her. And I did want to know if she'd develop any demon traits.

She frowned. "It would be good to know how the magic here affects me. Not just the tail, but I should know how it makes me feel."

"I agree." I reached around her neck and unclasped the necklace, then tucked it into my palm.

She sucked in a sharp breath, and her eyes turned black. She slowly exhaled, then inhaled, then shivered and squeezed her eyes shut. I forced myself to remain still and not immediately take her back to Earth.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

"Yep," she replied, slowly opening her eyes. "Nothing hurts. It just feels weird. Dark and heavy, almost like I'm breathing magic rather than oxygen." She twisted around to look at her backside. I chuckled at the disappointment on her face. "No tail."

"Let's go home," I said, extending my hand to her.

She wrapped her arms around my waist and kissed the mark on my chest. My scales prevented me from feeling the warmth of her lips, but my mind remembered it well. My body didn't hesitate to respond, especially when her dhampir whispered, "Let's go home."