“Eden is neutral territory,” I reminded her as I wondered if I was going to have to throw my bedding away. I suppose I could take it outside and beat it before I washed it.
“Neutral won’t mean anything to pure evil. They will come,” Carl said, getting off my bed and putting on a t-shirt. Why in Satan’s name couldn’t he have covered the hair rug on his chest before he shed all over my bed?
“He’s right,” Janet added disgustedly. “True evil plays by no rules.”
“Everybody off the bed,” I instructed. “I don’t want to set any of you on fire.”
“What in the Hell are you going to do?” Myrtle asked, wasting no time removing herself from my bed.
“I’m going to use Black Magic to get rid of the massive gift from Carl that’s covering my sheets and making me want to hurl.” I eyeballed Carl who sheepishly grinned. "If I'm gonna save the world, I'd better be able to clean a comforter."
“Holy Baby Beelzebub.” Janet was in a panic. “Be careful and don’t blow up the house.”
She plastered herself against the wall and began inching her way towards the door.
“Janet, if you try to leave this room I will freeze you and zap you bald,” I calmly informed her.
She stopped and gave me a guilty smile. “Sorry,” she whispered contritely.
“No prob.”
I closed my eyes and began to chant, but this time it was different. I narrowed all the thoughts in my mind to encompass exactly what I wanted to happen. I let myself completely relax. . .I trusted myself.
I continued to chant and tried something else new. I opened my eyes. Maybe if I watched what I was doing, it might go a little better.
A glittering black mist mixed with lavender and gold engulfed my bed. It smelled of citrus and wind. It tickled and I scrunched my nose to stifle the sneeze that was threatening to escape. Myrtle, Janet and Carl’s eyes were wide with anticipation and a healthy dose of fear. I laughed with delight and reached out to run my hands through the mist. It was warm and silky.
I felt right and strong and joyous. I closed my eyes, raised my arms and stopped chanting. As good as I felt, I hesitated to open my eyes.
“Is it gone?” At the very least, I knew I hadn't blown up the house. I would have heard that.
“Yeth!” Carl shouted, tackling and tickling me.
I opened my eyes and screamed, trying to swat Carl away. Janet ran across the room and started bouncing on my clean hairless bed. It was utter chaos and I loved it.
“I’m so proud of you,” Janet trilled, jumping so high she touched the ceiling with each bounce.
I glanced over at Myrtle. She stood quietly against the wall, arms crossed with a wide, open smile on her pretty face. “You done good, my friend.”
Satisfaction and pride burst through me. I was happier than I’d been since coming to Earth.
"Myrtle, are shifters immortal?"
"Not sure. Why?"
"I was just curious."
“We can teach you many things.” Myrtle approached the jump-fest on my bed. “But the trust part is all you. This may seem small,” she said as she referred to the hairless bedding. “However it’s really quite monumental. You can do what needs to be done as long as you trust yourself and believe.”
The room quieted and my friends curled up with me. A cool calm floated through my mind and for the first time I knew I could do it. Do what? I still had no real clue, but it was coming and I would be waiting. And I would win. Maybe Dad had picked the right Demon. . .
Eventually the Rogue Demons would arrive and wreak havoc. They wanted to kill God and Satan. They were currently in possession of the Sword of Death. That was going to change.
The Balance of Chaos was still a mystery to me. Was it a thing or a person or a state of mind? Maybe killing the Rogue Demons would restore the balance between good and evil. Could it be that simple? Not that killing Rogue Demons would be easy. . .And Cole? He was a sneaky fucker and I was sure he wasn't clean. Elijah? Another problem along with Miss Evelyn and Rhonda. They were part of the puzzle. But first things first.
"I have to go see a girl about a dog," I said as I eased off the bed and headed for the shower.
"Are we supposed to understand that?" Janet asked.
"Nope." I grinned. "It's my turn to be cryptic."
Chapter 29
She was easy to find as she flitted from the English building to the science labs. I wondered where her minions were, but it was far better to catch her alone. She adjusted a huge banner advertising the upcoming dance. "
Get
your boogie on at the
Heaven vs Hell on Earth Dance"
was block printed in black and red. I rolled my eyes at the utter unorginality, but what did I expect?
Most of the students had cleared the area and gone to class. Instinctually I scanned the grounds for danger. I was expecting a visit from Elijah soon. There was no way he wasn't going to show himself again. The campus was calm and I quietly approached Lucy from behind.
"Hey Steve," I said. "How you doing?"
Lucy froze.
"I was wondering if you had a moment,
Steve
."
She turned and grinned. "Took you long enough," she said as she looped her arm through mine and led us away from campus to a clump of trees.
I shook my head and removed her hand. "Were you going to tell me?"
"I was a little afraid because of the turning to dust rumor," she said as she plopped down on the ground at the base of a tree.
"That one's a bitch," I agreed. "Where are the Things?"
"Things?"
"Your fan club."
"Oh my God." She burst out laughing. "You named them the Things?"
"Yes. I did. It was far too complicated to remember their actual names. Where are they?"
"Well," she said, still laughing. "They found some tiny people and went car shopping."
My stomach descended to my toes. I dropped down to the ground next to Lucy and grabbed her by the shoulders. "What did the tiny people look like?" I demanded.
"Um. . .they were very cute in a hideous way. I'd have to say they looked like some of the characters from that show
Friends
. The other two looked like Abe Lincoln and Beyonce."
"Shit," I yelled. "Text the Things and tell them under no circumstances can they go to a car dealership or a strip club."
"Why?"
"They're baby Demons and they like to eat car salesmen," I snapped. I'd forgotten about my cousin's little friends. This was bad. Lucy quickly and frantically texted the girls to explain.
"Done. It's fine." She heaved a huge sigh of relief. "And just so you know there are no strip clubs in Eden.”
"How is it fine? How in the Hell will humans understand salesmen-eating baby Demons from Hell?" I stood and paced a tight circle around the tree. Astrid was going to have my butt. However it was good news to know I didn't have to worry about strip clubs.
"They're not mortal. Most of us in Eden are not human."
That stopped me.
"You're all shifters?"
"Yep. And you're a Demon."
"Can you tell by scent?" I asked her.
"No. It was when you saved my life."
"You knew I was in the room with you and your dad?" What kind of
sight
did these shifters have?
"No. No, I didn't know you were there. It was outside the shop when I had shifted to my wolf."
Hades, so much was making sense now—her healing and my feelings of paranoia about her knowledge.
"Dixie, you did save me."
"I just screwed with your father," I muttered. "He's a real asshole, by the way."
"True, but that's not what I meant," she said quietly.
The click was fast and it was painful. Hayden hadn't come for a wolf at all. He'd come for Lucy and he let me have her. Why did he let me keep her if it was her time to go?
"Lucy, if Hayden—I mean the Angel of Death, let you stay it means I need you."
"I figured—that's why I've kept following you. What's happening?" she asked as she paled a little. "That hot dude you crashed into the other day was an Angel, wasn't he?"
"Yep. And the dude who let you stay was an Angel."
"And your boyfriend?" she asked with raised brows and a smirk.
"Something like that," I admitted.
"Angels are hot. I would so date an Angel."
"Beware of what you wish for," I told her. "Can I ask you something else?"
"Sure."
"Why did you hate me so much in the beginning?"
"I was jealous. . .not of how pretty you are or anything so superficial. I'm not even sure I can find the words to explain. It was deep and it hurt. I still don't understand it."
I watched her inner struggle and I believed her. We were connected and I was going to find out how.
"Have you ever fought a Demon?" I asked. What good would she be to me if I got her killed?
"I'm not just a pretty face," she snapped and tossed her blonde hair. "I've never had the opportunity to fight a Demon, but I'm deadly around Rogue shifters."
"Are there Rogues in every freakin' species?"
Of course there were. That was how balance was met. The problems cropped up when evil or good outweighed each other. My guess was that evil was winning at the moment. . .but why?
"Looks that way," she said as she stood and shifted back and forth on her feet. "What's next?"
"Do the Things know about me?"
"No. For some reason I told no one about you."
"Good," I said as I grabbed her arm and led her to my car. "Let's pay a visit to your owner."
She blanched and violently pulled her arm from my grasp. Damn she was strong. "I won't go to my father. Never again."
"I wasn't talking about your father, I was talking about Miss Evelyn and Rhonda."
She paused and tilted her head to the side. "I only met the old ladies two weeks ago when they showed up. They don't own me."
WTH? Just when things start adding up they begin to fall apart. Shit. "But I assumed. . ."
"Don't assume—makes an ass out of you and me." She giggled and punched me in the arm.
"Oh my Hell." I groaned and punched her back. "You're a dork. Why did you go to them then? I wanted to keep you."
"I can leave them and shift back to my human version. I wouldn't have been able to do that as easily with you. You seemed kind of needy." She grinned and shrugged. I wanted to deck her, but she was correct. "Plus, there's something about them that I'm wildly attracted to. Especially Miss Evelyn."
I was wildly attracted too.
"She has two daughters," I mumbled and then grabbed my head as the headache blossomed quickly.
"Are you okay?" She gasped as I dropped to my knees.
"Been better," I shot back sarcastically as the pain in my head slowly receded.
"How do you know she has two daughters?"
"She told me."
"And you think we. . ."
"Yes, I think," I hissed. "And if there was any doubt the explosion in my cranium has put it to rest."
"Oh my God. You're my
sister
? Who's your dad?"
"Satan."
She paled considerably and I laughed. "According to most he's really hot and he's not as evil as reported. Oh, and while we're dissecting family trees. . .my other sisters are the Seven Deadly Sins."
"Fuck to the no," she choked out. "I'm related to the Seven Deadly Sins?"
"Technically no, but you can certainly have them if you want them. They're a pain in my ass."
"This is a lot to take in," she whispered.
"Yep." I grinned. "And that's only the beginning."
Chapter 30
"She left? That's impossible," I told the little chicken-eating senior citizen, Miss Sally. "She didn't say goodbye."
"Oh sweetienumnum, I'm so sorry. Was she your grandma?" she asked kindly.
"No. She was just someone I think I used to know."
What did I do now? Lucy stood trembling beside me.
Was she going to cry?
"Did Miss Evelyn or Rhonda leave a forwarding address?" she inquired icily. She wasn't going to cry. She was furious.
"Um no, little one. I'm afraid she didn't," Miss Sally said, either ignoring Lucy's ire or not noticing it. "I have to go to pottery class. Would you pretty gals like to join me?"
"No, but thanks. We have to go."
"Well, come back and see me, Dixie." She sighed and shook her head. "Such a tragedy. That little girl died too young."
"She's nuts," Lucy hissed in my ear.
"Isn't everyone?" I shot back. As Miss Sally wandered away, I called out to her. "How did little Dixie die?"
"She was taken by Angels—two of them. I saw it. They fought with each other like the Devil himself. The golden winged one beat the black winged one. The golden Angel won and he flew away with her. No one believes me, but I saw it."
"What the fuck?" Lucy mumbled and I elbowed her.
"Was the child scared?" I asked.
Miss Sally considered me for a moment to decide if I was making fun of her. She shook her head in confusion. "No. She wrapped her little arms around his neck, kissed his cheek and laid her head on his chest. Her poor mother saw the whole thing. She stood there paralyzed and cried. Eve was a good woman. She just broke after the Angels took her baby."
Miss Sally gave us a wave and walked away. My heart constricted and black spots danced in front of my eyes. I'd bet my Immortal life that Elijah had black wings and that Hayden was the Angel who took me to Hell. And my mother was Eve. Eve was one of the True Immortals. Was she
that
Eve?
"Your last name?" I asked Lucy.
"Adams," she said slowly.
"Coincidence?"
"I don't think so," she ground out as her body continued to shake. "Why would she leave me with that monster? Screw her. She left me and let some psycho Angels steal you. Fuck her." Her tears flowed freely and I realized I was missing a piece of Lucy's puzzle. I wasn't ready to deal with the abstract of our mother's abandonment of us, so I'd stick to fact finding.
"How old are you?"
She looked at me like I was nuts. "In the upper thousands somewhere. I lost track hundreds of years ago."
It was hard to throw me, but she did. "You've lived in Eden for thousands of years?"