Execution (The Divine Book 6) (14 page)

"This is my realm," Cain said again, clearly on the defensive. He spun around, trying to shake Alyx loose. She kept her claws dug into him, holding tight.

"You should have made a deal," I said. I used my power to keep my balance, coming to a crouch on Alyx's back before sending myself forward in a leap. I reached up and grabbed one of Cain's horns, using it as leverage while I stabbed him in the eye.

He howled in pain, stumbling back and falling over. Alyx was relentless, her teeth tearing chunks of his throat away, her claws cutting his chest to ribbons. He was healing from those wounds, but the spatha was another story. His eye steamed and hissed, the angelic scripture active on his flesh.

"No," he shouted, gathering himself. He grabbed Alyx but the shoulders, lifting her and throwing her back. She flew through the air, landing hard on the ground, yelping as she did.
 

She didn't get up.

I rushed Cain as he tried to get back to his knees, his throat closing up, his body healing. I came at him with everything I had, using my power to knock him off balance while leaping back at him with the sword. I jammed it into his neck. Once. Twice. Three times. The wounds all steamed, but he was more powerful than that. He was in Hell, and he was able to overcome the poison.

"I've got this."

I had heard Zifah before I saw him. He appeared on top of Cain, right next to his ear, his tiny needle in hand.
 

"Maybe they'll stop laughing now," he said, jamming the small point of it into the demon's cheek.

"Zifah?" Cain said, even as his ear dissolved to nothing. "You?" His eyes grew wide with fear, his face beginning to crumble.

"My apologies, brother," Zifah said. "But you had this coming for a long time. You should have been more careful who you made enemies with. Or at least, who you refused to make friends with."

Cain tried to say something else, but his lips turned to dust. His head was gone a few seconds later, and I started running toward Alyx before I saw the rest of him die.

His power gone, the palace reappeared below my feet. Alyx was crumpled in the corner, having changed back to her human form.

"Alyx," I said, kneeling down next to her.

She was breathing shallow, but she was awake. "Did we win?" she asked.

"Yes."

She smiled. "Good. Did you mean what you said?"

I looked at her. I had never been happier than I was to see she was going to be okay. "Yes."

Her smile grew larger. "Does that mean we can mate now?"

"Not now. Maybe once we've saved the mortal world from Abaddon."

"Will you kiss me at least?"

I leaned in, putting my lips to hers. She tasted of salt and sweat and blood. She returned the kiss eagerly.

"Ahem," Zifah said, appearing at my side. We both looked at him. "Got any of that action left for the one who actually destroyed Cain?"

"Come here," Alyx said.

I started to protest, but she put her hand to my lips. Then she leaned forward and kissed Zifah on the cheek.

"Thank you."

I had never seen a demon blush before.
 

"You called Cain, brother," I said.

"Yeah, because we have the same father. Beyond that, it's complicated. The point is that I never liked that asshole."

"What will happen to him?"

"Lucifer will give him a new form and he'll be bad as new in a few days. I recommend getting out of here."

"I couldn't agree with you more. Let's grab the FOG and go."

I reached out and helped Alyx to her feet. Then I returned to the pile of ash that was Cain and retrieved the pendant he had said could control the armor. We left the bedroom and headed for the laboratory.
 

The Fist was mine. Alyx was mine.
 

It had been a pretty good day.

We made our way from Cain's bedroom down to the laboratory. The demons had known the moment we destroyed Cain, and they scattered out of our way as we entered, abandoning the Fist of God.

I approached it with a measure of disgust. Adam's creation had caused more trouble in the last few weeks than I had been weighed down by in years.

Of course, it had also led me to Alyx, so it wasn't all bad.

I couldn't use my power on it directly. Instead, I enhanced my strength, climbing onto the table and lifting it from its hooks. I lowered myself gently, holding the large machine over my head. It had to weigh at least a thousand pounds. Probably more.

"Let's go," I said, taking the lead from the room.

I carried the FOG through the corridors and out to the large foyer. We only saw a few demons en route, and they were all fleeing from us as fast as they were able.

"Do you think Lucifer is going to be pissed at me?" I asked.

Zifah had taken a seat on Alyx's shoulder. He shook his head. "No. He probably thinks Cain deserved to be cut down a notch. He's been plotting to murder Lucifer for years."

"He probably thought he could with the help of the Fist," Alyx said. "Especially if he had managed to get you inside of it."

"Yes," Zifah agreed. "Or if you had put Abaddon into it for him."

I tripped a little bit on my next step, my Divine spider-sense going off at the comment.
 

"You know about that?"

Zifah could tell he had made me wary. He laughed it off. "I told you, Landon. I can go anywhere without being noticed. I heard you talking to Cain about it in the lab."

"You told me you found me in the dungeon, not that you followed me."

Zifah's laughter faded. "Okay, so I lied a little bit."

Alyx reached up, grabbing the demon in a suddenly larger, sharper hand so that only his head stuck out beyond her fingers.

"Why?" she asked. I could almost feel her protective instinct.

"I didn't want you to know that I knew. Oh, but I messed that up. I helped you beat Cain, doesn't that earn me any credit?"

"Not enough," I said, growing warier. "Are you working with Gervais?"

"Who?"

"Don't tell me you don't know Gervais. He isn't exactly an unknown quantity around here."

Zifah was silent until Alyx squeezed him a little tighter.

"I can smell your fear, little demon," she said.

"You're crushing me to death. Why wouldn't I be afraid? Fine. I know Gervais. And yes, I've seen him recently. He offered to bring me out of Hell if I helped him find a way to get the armor from Cain. I was the one who suggested sending you down here. But I didn't do it for him, I did it for me. I want out of this place; you know that. I don't want to work with him, though. There isn't a demon in the universe that trusts him."

"So you were using me?"

"We all use each other. That's how all this poop works. Especially down here."

He had a point. And I couldn't ignore the fact that he did help me escape, and he was the one who had killed Cain. Sure, he had ulterior motives. Didn't they always? The only thing that was bothering me was that Zifah knew Gervais. More than that, they had discussed the very thing I had just done before I ever knew about it.
 

Which meant the demon knew someone had been summoning Abaddon while he was still here in Hell.
 

"Who summoned Abaddon?" I asked.

"What?"

"You heard me, Zifah."

"Randolph Hearst. I'm sure you already knew that."

"I do. I also know he had help. What I don't know is who helped him?"

"Why do you think I know?"

"Because Gervais told you what was going down before it went down. Gervais said he doesn't know who the other player is, but he doesn't have your ability to sneak around down here where the action is. Summoning Abaddon from Hell without inside help? I don't buy it."

Zifah released a long, low sigh. "Okay. Yep. I know who his partner is. No, I'm not telling you until you bring me to your plane. If I do, I've got no leverage to prevent you from leaving me here."

"Does Gervais know this mystery demon?"

"No. Like you said, he doesn't have much clout down here. He's persona non grata since he sided with the Beast. That's why he keeps going back to you. Any demon with any self-respect doesn't want anything to do with him."

"So you're saying you have no self-respect?"

"I'm saying I'm desperate. I can't tell you how much I hate it here, and I've been stuck here for almost four hundred years."

"Are you saying I have no self-respect?"

"I'm not judging you, but if I were in your shoes, I would stick that sword of yours in his heart as soon as possible."

"I'd love to, but he's already indicated Lucifer will just send him back up. Do you know the saying, 'keep your friends close and your enemies closer?' I'm better off knowing where and who he is."

"I can't argue that. So, are we good?"

"As good as we're going to be. I still don't trust you."

"I wouldn't expect you to. Say, can you let me go now?"

Alyx looked over at me, and I nodded. She opened her hand, and he landed gracefully on the floor. We were nearing the front doors of the palace, and I could see the Desolation spreading out beyond it.

"I hope you know how to get back to the train from here."

Zifah did know how to get back to the train. He explained the entire process while we walked, but I was tired and didn't pay much attention.
 

Alyx was kind enough to change to demon form once we had left the palace, and she carried everything on her back across the broken landscape without complaint. I took a position up near her head, stroking her fur and being affectionate. I had admitted to what I felt almost from the day we met, and it felt liberating.
 

Yeah, she was a monster. But she was my monster.

We arrived back at the train in plenty of time. Many of the demons who had fled the palace had wound up here, and they scattered once more at our approach. I used Zifah to tell them I wouldn't hurt them as long as they didn't try to hurt me, and we somehow wound up managing to blend into the mix by the time the transportation arrived. Sure, we looked strange carrying the Fist of God up onto the train, but none of the demons were about to comment on that. I was sure the word was spreading in a hurry about what I had done to Cain. I had earned their respect and fear, and I liked it.

The return trip to the Kitchen was going to take two hours. I decided to use the time to rest, putting my arm around Alyx while she nestled her head against my chest. Zifah wandered off at some point, leaving us alone with the FOG spread across the seat in front of us. We didn't need to talk. Not right now. It was enough to have her near.
 

I closed my eyes. Immediately, I saw Charis in my mind. We were back in the Box, and she was telling me how tired she was of being part of the war between Good and Evil. I could see it like it was still happening, and while I was tempted to release myself from the memory, I decided to remain. Old emotions swelled up again. It was love, but it was a different kind of love than I was feeling for Alyx. It felt old and comfortable, as though it had been pre-ordained. Maybe it had been. We were two of a kind, and shouldn't like attract like? To forgive a pun, Alyx was more of a youthful puppy love. An infectious love like we were a pair of newlyweds. It was different from what I had known, and I was drinking of it without reservation.
 

I had earned that much, hadn't I?

I held her close and told her I loved her. I brought her from the Box with me, and I released her to the stars. If you love something, you have to let it go. So I did. It was hard not to feel like I was betraying her to love someone else. I didn't want to, but there it was.
 

"Are you okay?" Alyx asked me, somehow noticing my distress. Was it my heartbeat? A smell of salty tears?

"I was thinking about Charis."

"Was she your mate?"

"Kind of. She had died before we were ever close like that, but I loved her, too."

"Why does that make you sad?"

"I feel guilty."

"Why? It is not improper for an alpha to have multiple mates. It is only natural that the strongest will produce the best offspring."