Fashionably Dead Down Under (31 page)

“Oh my, Astrid.” Dixie slid into Ethan’s seat
and gripped my arm in distress. “Are you okay?”

“Why wouldn’t I be okay?”

“The last four Demons Cole fought with are
damaged,” she whispered. “Permanently.”

“Did he cheat?”

“He doesn’t have to. He’s a weapon even
without his magic.”

I rolled my neck, pulled my legs up to my
seat and sat crisscross applesauce. Dixie gaped at me with
concern.

“Astrid, this won’t end well.” She was a
wreck and I felt bad for her.

“You’re right Dixie,” I told her. “It won’t
end well. Watch.”

The sex gods bowed to Satan and began slowly
circling each other. Ethan’s perfect body was completely relaxed
and excitement coiled in my stomach. Everyone, including the Devil
sat forward in their seats.

Ethan refused to make the first move and
waited patiently for Cole. Cole was stupidly cocky. He took Ethan’s
inaction as fear. Mistake number one . . . He smirked at the
Vampyre
and made his move. It was the most violent balletic
battle I’d seen. They were well matched and utterly focused. A bomb
could have detonated and they wouldn’t have taken their eyes from
one another. It was a mixture of martial arts and pure brute
strength. Ethan was the deadliest fighter I’d ever seen and I hoped
he didn’t accidently kill Cole.

They parried, each getting kicks and punches
in. Ethan deflected most of what Cole dealt out, but it was
inevitable that he would come out scathed. My beautiful man was
getting bored. Cole’s moves, while powerful and potentially deadly,
were predictable.

“You have nothing more than that?” Ethan
asked in a disinterested voice. Cole sucked in a furious breath and
attacked.

Ethan ducked to his left and Cole went
tripping forward. His roar of fury made the hair on my neck stand
up. Dixie’s grip on my arm was going to leave a mark, but I didn’t
have the heart to peel her off. She was a mess.

Ethan was over it. As Cole charged, Ethan
gave him an upper cut that sent him reeling backwards. He then
aerial cartwheeled forward and scissor kicked his neck, dropping
him to the floor. Cole jumped up and did a back tuck, aiming to
land a foot on Ethan’s spine to break it, but my lover was too
fast. The crowd cheered and hissed. Cole came down so hard and fast
on the mat that his foot, meant to maim, twisted beneath him. He
grunted in pain and slashed out with his fist catching Ethan near
his eye. It swelled shut almost immediately, but Ethan’s reply was
devastating. With right-left upper cuts, I heard Cole’s jaw shatter
and his nose crunch. The blood spatter would have been comical if
it hadn’t been real. The Demons gasped and chattered with glee.

Bleeding and broken, Cole refused to give up.
Ethan had taken his fair share of brutality, but he was nowhere
near the broken man that his opponent was. Cole came at Ethan like
an out of control train. His wreck was imminent and I clutched
Dixie in fear for Cole.

“
Don’t kill him
,” I told Ethan.

“
Don’t worry. He’s a Demon. He’ll
heal
.”

“
Of course he’ll heal
,” I snapped.
“
Unless you kill him
.”

“
Fine
,” he huffed. “
Shall I knock
him out and end it
?”

“
Yes, but DO NOT use the death touch. I
know it doesn’t work on Vamps, but it might kill a Demon.
”

“
Good point. This is why I love
you
.”

“
Not for my boobs
?”

He laughed aloud at my last transmitted
message and I was sure everyone in the room thought he was insane.
He wasted no time and Cole probably never knew what hit him. With
Vampyre speed and the precision of a surgeon, my mate destroyed the
finest Demon warrior in Hell. I idly thought these Demons needed
some lessons, but I realized in battle they most likely used their
magic. Ethan doled out punch after punch and kick after kick until
Cole went down. The blood pooled around Cole’s body, but Ethan had
quite a bit of his own to wipe away as well.

The bell rang and the room went silent.

Oh shit. Were we about to get attacked by
every Demon in the room? I rushed to Ethan’s side and the noise
started. Whistles and shouts bounced off the walls of the training
room. The screaming and cheering made me want to cover my ears.
Ethan nodded once to Satan, took my hand and walked back to our
seats. He pulled his shirt back on, much to the sadness of the
women in the room and took a seat. My instinct was to attend to his
wounds, but I did nothing. Showing weakness was not an option. I’d
fuss over him like a mother hen once we were alone.

“Impressive,” Satan said as the crowd
quieted. Several guards tended to Cole and took him from the room.
“I was going to offer to fight the winner . . . ”

“It would be my pleasure,” Ethan said flatly,
not fucking around or playing games. “We can go right now.”

The Devil’s eyes widened for a brief
second—so quickly, I wasn’t sure I saw it. He was scared. Oh my God
. . . Satan was scared.

His gaze narrowed and he stepped forward
menacingly. His words were for Ethan only, but I was a Vampyre and
heard everything. “You may be able to take me with your fists, but
I could destroy you with a finger,” he whispered.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Ethan replied
cheekily.

“Do that.” Satan turned to his minions with a
beautiful smile on his face. “Please make yourselves comfortable.
Refreshments are being served in the dining room and the concert
will begin in an hour.” He gathered a pale Amanda to his side and
left the room.

“Bedroom?” I asked my bruised and bloody
mate.

“Yes,” he replied.

As we made our way out we were given a very
wide berth. Demons whispered and pointed. Several bared their
teeth. Awesome. We had clearly become the new Power Couple in Hell.
Unsure if that was good or bad, we held our heads high and walked
out.

“I think everyone wants a piece of us,” I
muttered as I avoided the wet blood on the floor.

“Yes, I believe you’re correct. Just
smile.”

“Will do.” I smiled and nodded as we made our
way through the throngs of Demons. The rest of the day would be
tricky, but then again . . . what the hell in Hell hadn’t been?

Business in the front and party in the
back.

“What did you say?” Ethan asked as we entered
the ballroom. It had been converted to a concert venue for the
evening.

We had rested and changed after the fight
exhibition. General George had returned with my Baby Demons and
they loved and kissed on Ethan until he insisted we lock them in
the bathroom. They were unhappy, but found the tub to be an
excellent pool. I left them splashing, screaming with joy and
diving off the showerhead. I’d fussed over my Vampyre and made him
drink a good amount of my blood. The only remnant of the battle was
a slight purple bruise along his cheekbone. Vamps had amazing
healing power.

“I didn’t say anything. Wait, were you in my
head?”

“Maybe,” he answered cagily.

“Get out of my head,” I snapped.

“Astrid.” He stopped me on the side of the
room, out of Demon earshot. “When you let me into your thoughts
yesterday, something happened. I’ve been able to see inside you
ever since. Completely inside.”

My first reaction was anger, but I had let
him in. Would I have done that if I knew he’d always have access,
even without permission? In a moment of ridiculously mature adult
clarity, I realized I would. My fear of rejection didn’t exist with
him and I wanted him to see me.

“This could be an issue on birthdays and
Christmas.” I grinned and he relaxed.

“I promise to stay out during the
holidays.”

I nodded and pressed a quick kiss to his
lips. He looked mouthwatering in his black jeans and icy blue long
sleeve t-shirt. I loved the casual dress code in Hell. It was in
direct opposition to the décor, but I wasn’t going to complain. I
was deliriously happy in jeans, Doc Martens and a black fitted tee
that hugged my body in all the right places.

“So business in the front and party in the
back?” Ethan arched a brow for explanation.

“The mullets.” I pointed to the cover band
setting up on the stage and bit back my laughter. “Do you see how
their hair is short in the front and long in the back?”

He nodded and winced.

“That’s a mullet. Actually, those are some of
the most spectacular mullets I’ve ever seen.”

They were works of redneck art. One of the
band members literally had a blond crew cut in the front and
stringy long black locks down to his ample bottom in the back.
Another had a short spiky red style going in the front and permed
purple curls flowing half way down his back. The boys were also
tatted and pierced within an inch of their lives.

“Words escape me,” Ethan muttered and shook
his head.

“Would you get a mullet if it turned me on?”
I teased.

“No, I would not.” He grinned and copped a
feel of my ass as we seated ourselves along the outside wall. We
wanted to be able to scan the room and watch for unusual activity.
Sword stealers seemed to like an audience and this was a big
event.

“The crowds have gotten bigger,” I said as I
searched for trouble. There had to be several hundred Demons
here.

“Yep,” Ethan agreed. “What game is he
playing?”

I wondered the same thing myself. “Do you
think it’s a metaphor?”

“Come again?” he asked me, although his eyes
were still on the crowd.

“The Sword. Is there an actual Sword or does
it mean something else entirely?”

Ethan was quiet for a moment. “If it’s a
metaphor I will kick his ass.”

“You won’t have to—that ass will be
mine.”

As the room continued to fill with beautiful
people I was relieved to notice that the dampening spell had been
removed. My magic was alive and tingled with the need to come out.
Satan arrived with his entourage. He was dressed in jeans and a
Journey concert tee. I slapped my hand over my mouth and swallowed
a laugh. No one was going to believe this. No one.

Amanda and the Sins, with the tagalong Dante,
made their way to the front. I was surprised to see Cole. He hadn’t
healed nearly as well as Ethan, but he was able to walk and
function. He shot a glance of pure hatred our way and Ethan
waved.

“Are you trying to turn the concert into a
brawl?” I asked as I elbowed him in the ribs.

“Just being neighborly.”

That reminded me that Mister Rogers and
Hemingway would be back for lunch with God tomorrow. Was it
possible that one of them had taken the Sword? My brain hurt with
all the possibilities.

“Let the concert begin,” Satan bellowed
joyously and held a lighter over his head. The crowd pulled out
their lighters and fired up. Crazy. This was crazy.

The band was actually great. Blondie in the
front with the black stringy locks in the back and the big booty
was the lead singer. While no Steven Perry, he was really close. If
I closed my eyes and blocked out the heinous hair, it was truly
enjoyable.

“Movement,” Ethan said. My eyes shot open and
I stood.

Cole was moving toward an exit on the left
side of the room. Greed and Dante were heading to exit the way they
had entered. Shit, were they running off for more kinky icky? Their
vibe was different and I didn’t like it.

“I’ll take Cole. You take Greed and the ass,”
he said, already moving.

“Yep.” I slipped out behind them and quickly
cloaked myself so I could stay close. They were headed to the
library. I’d passed it several times, but had never been in.

“
Cole was a dead end
,” Ethan’s voice
rang in my head. “
I’m back in the Ballroom.
”

“
Roger that
,” I said and giggled. If I
was going to play a cop, I was going to use the lingo. I could feel
Ethan’s eye roll. “
Over and out
.”

Greed and Dante were making out in the
stacks. I was grossed out and out of here. I moved away slowly
running my fingers along the spines of the books. The library was
as massive as the rest of the Palace, but I felt more comfortable
here. The magic was different, more creative, sillier, deadlier . .
. Deadlier? WTF?

Still cloaked, I hightailed it back to Greed
and Dante. Greed lay in a heap on the floor and Dante was nowhere
to be found. I let my cloaking fall away and squatted by my cousin.
She had a pulse, but there was a nasty gash on the back of her head
and she was out like a light.

“Greed?” I shook her and her eyes opened
slightly. She moaned and huge tears fell from her gorgeous
eyes.

“I fucked . . . ,” she whispered.

“I don’t want to hear about your sex life,” I
said, searching her body for other wounds.

“No,” she choked out. “I fucked up. He has
the Sword.”

Dante of big nose and dick had the Sword?
“How?” I ground out. I was pissed and waited impatiently for her
reply.

“He didn’t believe it was real,” she panted
and winced in pain as she tried to sit up. Why wasn’t she healing?
“He told me to prove it and he would be mine.”

It was still a mystery why she wanted him,
but there was no time to go into that right now.

“What is he going to do with it?” He was a
human. An angry dead human with no magic . . . how bad could this
be?

“I don’t know,” she gasped as her bleeding
increased.

“What the hell is happening here?” I asked
her as I pulled my T-shirt over my head and put pressure on her
gushing head wound. Thank God I’d worn a bra . . .

“I gave him my power.” She cried even
harder.

“What the fuck did you just say?” I yelled.
So much for it not being bad.

“It’s only for a half an hour. He promised to
use it to make me come so hard I saw stars,” she blubbered.