Lucifer (Book 3, The Redemption Series) (2 page)

Malcolm phases in at the other end of the hallway behind my mother, but as soon as he sees she's with Lucifer, he phases to her side.

“
Well, look what the hounds dragged up from Hell,” Malcolm says, eyeing Lucifer with undisguised revulsion. “Long time no see, Lucifer. Too bad your absence from my life couldn’t have lasted a lot longer.”

My mother doesn’t even flinch when Malcolm identifies the stranger who is her soulmate. Obviously, she knew who he really was the moment she saw him. Lucifer has an aura of strength around him that is unlike that of anyone else. I felt it the first time I saw him that night at the beach house, and I can tell my mother felt it too. You don’t have that sort of quiet strength without being someone extremely powerful.

“Malcolm,” Lucifer says with the same level of disgust, as he looks him up and down appraisingly. “How’s the leg?”

Malcolm scowls at Lucifer at the reminder of his pain. Lucifer just grins tight-lipped
, looking rather pleased with himself.

“
You might as well leave,” Malcolm tells Lucifer. “We’ve killed all of the changelings you had here. I guess you’ll need to find some other unsuspecting souls to harvest.”

“
Who says I haven’t already?” Lucifer taunts arrogantly. “You should know by now that you can never stop me. I am what our father made me into, Malcolm. In a way, you could say I’m really doing God’s work.”

Malcolm lets out a harsh laugh.
“You can delude yourself into thinking that if you want, Lucifer. But, you and I know that the only thing you’ve ever been interested in is gaining more power for yourself.”

“
As simple minded as ever, I see,” Lucifer says in feigned disappointment.

“
I just see you for what you are,” Malcolm replies. “Come on, Amalie. Our work here is done.”

Malcolm gently takes hold of my mother’s elbow, but she yanks it out of his grasp. Malcolm looks at her questioningly, but my mother’s eyes haven’t left Lucifer’s face. Malcolm looks between my mother and Lucifer and instantly realizes what’s going on.

“Oh, hell no,” Malcolm growls. “This is not happening. You’re coming with me right now, Amalie!”

Malcolm grabs my mother’s elbow more forcefully and phases them both away, but my mother simply phases right back
giving Malcolm no other choice but to follow her.

“
Amalie,” Malcolm implores, “you need to stay away from him!”

My mother drags her eyes away from Lucifer to look at Malcolm. She hesitates before speaking,
as if her next words are hard for her to say to him.

“
I’m sorry, Malcolm. I can’t do that.” My mother looks back at Lucifer and a slow smile lights up her face. “He’s mine.”

Malcolm’s scowl grows even darker. He looks over at Lucifer and demands,
“What the hell did you do to her?”

“
It wasn’t my doing,” Lucifer answers, unable to keep his eyes off my mother. “You’ll have to ask our father to explain Himself if you want an answer to that question.”

Malcolm turns to Amalie and grabs her by the shoulders, forcing her to look at him instead of Lucifer.

“Amalie, listen to me, please,” he begs. “Whatever it is you think you feel when you look at him, forget it. Lucifer will never be able to love you more than he does himself. He isn’t built to care for someone else like that. Don’t give him your heart. He’ll only break it in the end.”

“
For once,” Lucifer chimes in, “I agree with you, Malcolm.”

My mother looks back at Lucifer.
“You can try to reject what you feel, but since I feel it too, I don’t think you’ll be able to deny it for much longer.”

“
It doesn’t much matter what you feel for me,” Lucifer tells her, a note of regret in his voice. “When you learn of the things I’ve done in my life, it will be enough to make you want to stay as far away from me as you can get.”

“
Are you sorry for the things you’ve done?” My mother asks him directly.

Lucifer is silent for a
few seconds as he considers her question.

“
Some,” he admits reluctantly, “not all.”

“
Then I refuse to believe there isn’t a small bit of good left in you. Maybe that’s why we’ve been brought together. Maybe I’m meant to remind you of that.”

“
Good luck finding any good left in that son of a bitch,” Malcolm scoffs, releasing his hold on my mother as he turns to look at Lucifer. Malcolm points a finger at Lucifer and growls, “You keep away from her.”

“
Not that it’s any of your business,” Lucifer replies, “but that was my intention from the moment I saw her. Neither of us needs this complication in our lives. All I need is a goody two-shoes holding me back from the work I’m meant to do.”

“
As long as we understand one another,” Malcolm says, looking satisfied with Lucifer’s answer.

“
The two of you are talking to each other like I’m not standing right here,” my mother says in exasperation. “Don’t I get a say in how my life is supposed to go?”

“
No,” Malcolm and Lucifer say in unison, at least agreeing on this one thing in their lives.

“
Well, I hate to inform the two of you,” my mother says almost angrily, “but I’ve never been very good at doing what I’m told, especially when I know it isn’t right.”

“
You won’t see me again after tonight,” Lucifer tells my mother with so much conviction
I
almost believe it. “I have enough self-control to stay away from you. Can you say the same or are you going to prove to me that I’ve been right all these years in thinking humans are weak willed and minded?”

“
Don’t do that,” my mother says, shaking her head at him. “Don’t try to provoke my anger to prove a point. It won’t work with me.”

“
Stay away from me, Amalie,” Lucifer tells her, a warning in his voice. “Nothing good can come from us being together.”

Lucifer phases and the scene
fades away.

I look back at Lucifer beside me. The snow completely covers his sweater and hair now, almost making them
appear white.

“
How did she make you change your mind about being with her?” I ask him.

“
By being extremely stubborn,” he tells me, a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips as he fondly remembers my mother. “It didn’t help that I found myself inventing reasons to seek her out. The connection between us was stronger than anything I’d ever experienced before. The only other human I ever felt connected to was Jess, but with Amalie, it was…different, more intense. I began to like the person I was when we were together. She made me want to let go of my hate because her love for me was so all consuming. Your mother never doubted for one moment that we were destined to be together. Even though Malcolm tried his best to warn her to stay away from me, she refused to listen to him. There were times I wish she had. I knew I wasn’t good enough for her, yet she wouldn’t listen to me either.”

The blackness in front of us transforms into a mirror of the courtyard we’re sitting in.

My mother is sitting on an identical bench crying. Lucifer phases in and sits beside her. Without saying a word, he brings her into the folds of his arms so she can cry against his chest. He gently begins to stroke her long brown hair.

“
Amalie,” he says tenderly, “why are you crying like you’ve just lost your best friend?”

“
Because I think I have,” she says, sobbing even harder.

Lucifer lets her cry for a little while longer before asking,
“Can you tell me what happened?”

My mother sniffs before saying,
“Malcolm and I had a fight.”

“
About me I presume.”

My mother nods her head against Lucifer’s chest.
“He even brought my parents into it this time.”

“
And what did they think about us being together?”

“
My father took Malcolm’s side.”

“
And your mother?”

“
She just wants me to be happy. She doesn’t like you, of course, but she knows I’ll never truly be content unless you’re a part of my life.”

“
Neither of them is wrong, you know,” Lucifer tells her. “Malcolm is right in thinking I’m not good enough for you. And your mother is right in thinking you’ll never find true happiness without me.”

My mother leans away from Lucifer a little to look up at his face.

“Maybe if you removed the curse from Malcolm he would change his mind,” she suggests hopefully.

Lucifer seems to
take her suggestion seriously but ends up shaking his head. “I can’t do that.”

“
You can’t or won’t?” She questions.

“
Won’t,” Lucifer admits. “There’s too much that’s passed between Malcolm and me, Amalie. Even if I did remove the curse, it wouldn’t change his mind about us.”

“
I can’t let you go,” my mother says, snuggling her head against Lucifer’s chest. “I’d rather be dead than live my life without you in it. Malcolm will just have to come to terms with the fact that we’re meant to be together.”

“
I think you need to prepare yourself for the possibility that he will never accept that.”

“
And what about you?” My mother asks. “Are you going to stop fighting your feelings for me?”

Lucifer sighs and rests one of his cheeks against the top of my mother’s head.

“I don’t think I have any more fight left in me when it comes to you, Amalie.”

“
Good,” my mother says, Lucifer’s words finally stopping the flow of her tears. “I was getting tired of trying to make you see reason. Maybe this experience will teach you a lesson.”

“
And what lesson would that be?” Lucifer asks, sounding slightly amused.

“
That I’m always right,” she replies, as though the answer should have been obvious.

Lucifer chuckles and my mother
sits back to look at his face.

“
I think that’s the first time I’ve ever heard you laugh,” she says with a small smile of true happiness. “I like it. You should do it more often.”

“
Maybe I will,” he tells her, grinning.

My mother takes in a deep breath and says,
“I love you.”

I can instantly tell by the look of surprise on Lucifer’s face that this is the first time she’s said those words
aloud to him.

My mother’s gaze falls to
her lap as he continues to stare at her after her heartfelt declaration. I know what she’s waiting for. She’s waiting for him to say the same three little words to her, but he simply remains silent as he continues to gape at her.

“
I…love you too,” Lucifer finally tells her, the words sounding like they cost him a lot of effort to say.

“
You don’t have to say that just because I said it,” my mother tells him, obviously hearing the same hesitation in his voice that I did.

Lucifer reaches
out a hand and places it underneath my mother’s chin, gently lifting her head up until their eyes meet.

“
I love you, Amalie,” he says, his words sounding surer this time. “I’m sorry it didn’t come out quite right the first time. I’ve…just…never said them to anyone before now.”

My mother smiles shyly and leans in closer to Lucifer until their faces are barely an inch apart.

“Lucifer,” she murmurs, “kiss me…”

Lucifer hesitates for only a second before grabbing my mother to him and kissing her passionately.

I feel Lucifer take hold of one of my hands and instantly find myself sitting on the real bench back in Malcolm’s courtyard.

“
Why did you bring me back here?” I ask him, feeling cheated out of seeing more about my parents’ life together.

“
Because what happens after that kiss isn’t something a daughter should see her parents do,” Lucifer says sounding slightly embarrassed.

“
Oh,” I say, not needing any further explanation.

I feel Lucifer begin to pull his hand away from mine, but I grab it before he can.

“Please,” I beg, “tell me what you think will happen if I collect all the seals. I need to know.”

Lucifer stares at our conjoined hands, his face drawn with worry.

“You’ll change, Anna,” he finally says, sadness at the prospect of this eventuality in his voice. “You’ll become something you won’t be able to recognize anymore.”

“
How will the seals change me?” I ask, becoming worried for the first time since my mission began that maybe Lucifer was right about my quest.

Lucifer raises his gaze and looks me straight in the eyes.