10. Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

Rayven

Asmodeus’ words were terrifying, but what scared me most was Mammon’s laugh.

“You’re disturbed, As,” he chastised, but it sounded more like praise than anything else.

I rounded a corner so fast, I skidded on the rug and nearly crashed into the wall.

“Oooh, careful lovey,” a voice said with the sound of clinking porcelain in every word. I looked down to see the frog-shaped teapot sitting on a small table next to a flameless candlestick. I’d run into them my first day in the castle.

My heart lurched into my mouth as I launched into a full sprint down the hallway.

I’d been in this section of the castle before, and it was almost familiar. If I wasn’t mistaken, this was the floor with Belial’s study. Maybe he’d be there.

When I sped past Catherine’s portrait, I remembered the dagger still clutched in my hand. I held it up, hissing, “Any help would be appreciated. You know this place better than me. How can I get away from them?”

When the dagger didn’t respond, I shook it and held it to my ear. “Hello? Anyone home?”

I would have felt ridiculous if it wasn’t for the fact that I was being chased down by demon lords in a magical castle with shifting walls and sentient furniture.

“Let them catch you,” Catherine’s voice finally whispered, faint and almost impossible to hear over my labored breathing. It wasn’t nearly as clear as the first time she’d spoken. “It’s your chance to escape this place.”

Okay, so Catherine wasn’t going to be any help.

She didn’t know shit if she thought Belial’s brothers were the lesser evil…

I didn’t know if any of them would actually hurt me. I’d gotten the impression that Belial was their ruler—or at least, he had been. Maybe there had been a time when they’d listened to him and obeyed. But if he’d been depriving the other lords of souls, hoarding them here in his realm, would any of them fear him enough not to kill me?

Maybe they’d do it just to prove a point. I wouldn’t put it past them if it meant Belial resuming his duties and restoring order in hell.

I swallowed hard and turned down another hall, unsure of how closely the brothers were following me. Were Leviathan and Belphegor involved? Were they hunting me now, as I tried to lose the other demon lords in the labyrinth of corridors?

A figure slid into view at the end of the hall, and I stumbled to a stop. He was dressed all in black, snakelike eyes gleaming behind a horned emerald mask with scale-like spikes. The parts of his skin that I could see were green and scaly. Seeing him was the most surprising of all; I thought of all Belial’s brothers, he’d gotten along with Leviathan the most. Now, it seemed he was a snake too.

“Don’t be afraid,” he said. “I won’t hurt you—much.”

“Kiss my ass, you creepy motherfucker.” I turned to dart back down the hall, but Asmodeus was already making his way toward us.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

I needed help. As much as I hated to admit it, I needed Belial.

My fingers instinctively went for the dagger that would summon him, but my hopes were dashed in an instant as I remembered I didn’t have it on me.

“Belial!” I screamed just as the wall next to me opened up. I dove into the new hallway and screamed his name again, finding relief in the way it echoed off the walls.

Surely, he’d hear me.

I ran, getting even more lost in the maze of halls before checking over my shoulder for my pursuers. To my surprise, they’d disappeared, but I knew better than to assume they were gone. They were probably regrouping, working out a plan to corner me. I couldn’t outrun them forever.

Hiding was probably my best bet at losing them. Belial would be able to find me whether I hid or not, but his brothers? Maybe they’d give up and fuck off.

The first door I came to was unlocked. After checking the hall again, I slipped inside and gently closed it behind me. Light from the crimson moon crept in through a window on the opposite wall, illuminating the room in a bloody glow, just enough to see the layout. It looked like an old study that hadn’t been used in centuries, everything sprinkled with cobwebs. Bookcases and a small desk were covered in a thick layer of dust.

There weren’t any places to hide except beneath the desk, so it would have to do. I couldn’t risk going back out into the hall again.

I crawled under the desk, tucking the huge bell of my skirts around me, and tried to slow my frantic breaths.

Belial will save me . The words played in my head like a litany, over and over again, until I really believed them. Belial will save me.

He had to. I belonged to him.

For the first time, that didn't seem like such a bad thing.

I’d take the crown made of Mark’s bones over this shit. Over running scared. Over being hunted by awful, deplorable demon lords who wanted to do who knew what with me.

Something shifted outside the door. I held my breath, even though my chest hurt.

Had they found me so quickly? Had Belial finally caught up?

The doorknob clicked, and the door swung inward with a groan.

“You can’t hide from us so easily, human,” a soft, delicate voice danced through the air, making my blood seize. “You reek of mortality. Your blood calls to us demons like a beacon in the night.”

Fuck. I was stuck with no way out.

I clutched the dagger for dear life, my fingers aching. If I couldn’t run or hide, I’d have to fight. What else could I do?

Fear left me frozen, perfectly still as the footsteps grew louder.

Maybe they’d change their mind. Maybe they’d go away.

Maybe Belial… Maybe he’ll come for me in time.

“Come out, come out, little human.” A demonic hand tipped with vicious claws reached beneath the desk, locking around my wrist, and dragged me out of my hiding space kicking and screaming. I fought before I even made out the white-blonde hair and little black dress, swinging Catherine’s dagger at Belphegor’s exposed skin. I managed a cut across his chest, which instantly bloomed crimson, but he hardly seemed fazed.

“You’re a feisty little bitch,” he snarled, grabbing my other wrist with impossible strength. He squeezed until the dagger clattered to the floor. He might have looked dainty in his female form, but his strength was obvious as he snatched my arms behind my back and bent me over the dusty desk. “I’m gonna have fun breaking you.”

He pressed close behind me, and everything in me froze as I prayed to whatever god was listening that he didn’t shift and…

“Fuck off, Belphegor,” Asmodeus said, stepping into the room. “I called first dibs. Wait your turn.”

He stepped up, coming to stand on the other side of the desk, a smug smile on his middle face as he dragged a claw down my jawline and over my collarbone. I cringed, fighting the urge to gag. I didn’t want his filthy hands anywhere near me.

“Fuck you, you ugly bastard.”

“I can see now why Belial likes you so much,” Belphegor snickered in my ear. “I wonder what else that filthy mouth can do.”

The thought of my mouth near any of these demented fucks turned my stomach, and bile burned the back of my throat.

“I’d rather die,” I huffed, fighting in vain against Belphegor’s hold.

“That can be arranged.” Mammon appeared in the doorway, a dark smile on his face.

“I can arrange to cut your dick off. How about that?” I spat.

In a blink, Asmodeus grabbed the front of my collar, wrenching me up onto my tiptoes. A nauseating grin broke across all three of his faces as he laughed. “I’m going to enjoy every second of you, little slut.”

“Belial will slaughter you all.” My nose flared at the threat. I could already see the Lord of Bones kicking in the door and ripping them apart with his bare hands.

“If my brother wants you back in one piece, he’ll do his fucking job. And if not…” His fingers wrapped around my throat, squeezing until I whimpered against the pain. “...he won’t get you back at all.”

I opened my mouth to fire off another retort, but something heavy bashed into the back of my skull, and everything went black.