Bride of the Sea Monster - Eve Langlais Page 0,3

the Green Lantern. An interesting choice. “It occurred to me that we already have a few too many sea monsters down here. Charon’s been yammering on about culling the number because they keep knocking over the boats and eating my souls. Which isn’t all that bad because it means less paperwork for me. Sinning is a booming business, boy.”

“Yadda. Yadda. Get to the point.” My uncle flicked his hands in impatience. “Spit out what you’re trying to say.”

“What I’m saying is, we haven’t had a proper sea monster on the Earthen plane since we lost Lorax.” The sea serpent who’d sunk more ships than even my great-grandfather had in his day. “I want you to take over as scourge of the seven seas.” Lucifer beamed.

It had a nice ring to it.

The devil sweetened the deal. “All-you-can-eat buffet. Unlimited room. Sunshine, if you like that kind of thing. Mermaids to serve, and sea wrecks to plunder.”

Better and better.

My uncle scowled. “Don’t fall for it. He’s not mentioning the catch. The humans in this age have harpoons. And pollution. Not to mention submarines with missiles and other things to kill a kraken.”

“There are some risks,” Lucifer agreed.

“Then why would I agree to it?” I asked.

“What else are you going to do? Mope in the Styx?” He pointed at the dark waters. “Or live in paradise, your life full of purpose.”

“Doing your dirty work,” Uncle muttered.

I glanced out at the dark swells of the Styx and thought of my father who rarely surfaced from the deep. The male who might just try and kill me for territory like he’d murdered Grandad. Even if he didn’t, I knew of the battles amongst the other monsters over food and space.

“Tell you what, boy, don’t decide right away. Check out the place in person.” Lucifer held out his hand and, lying on his palm, was a brochure.

I snorted as I read the title. “Hold on to your pointed hat, witches, because Hell Cruise is offering an adventure on the high seas experience Earth side.’ You can’t be serious.”

“Don’t scoff. The Sushi Lover is about to go on its maiden voyage through the tropics. And I’ve booked you a first-class suite.”

My uncle blurted out, “Bullshit. You are too cheap to cough up that kind of dough.”

The devil flicked his cape. It got caught on the massive pommel of his sword. “I might have gotten a rebate on the trip once I told them who the ticket was for. Adexios is the captain.”

The mention had me chuckling. “You gave him a ship? We both know my cousin will probably find the only iceberg in the tropics and sink the vessel.”

“Which won’t hurt you one bit,” Lucifer remarked. “Think of it. A few days of rest and relaxation, scouting out a new place to call your own… There’s a bay of hot mermaids that might provide you with a little something-something.” The devil winked.

“Clear waters?” I thought of my pool covered by a dome to protect it from the sifting ash of Hell. How I loved seeing the plants I grew in there, the bright, darting colors of the fish.

“The clearest. Islands dot the area. There is plenty of coral and caverns. Why, you could have more than one lair if you want.”

“And I only have to sink some ships?” Kind of sounded fun. I’d not had many opportunities as my kraken self to destroy things. With the anger brewing in me, I might need an outlet to vent.

“You can’t be thinking of agreeing,” Uncle grumbled. “That’s just giving up.”

Lucifer snorted. “It’s called thinking ahead. Not something I always recommend because it leads to good things.”

Shax frowned. “I don’t like the idea of Killian going alone.”

“I would never think of it, which is why you also have a cabin.” A pair of tickets appeared in the devil’s hand. How convenient and predictable. Tempting, too.

“What if I say no?” I asked.

“Then in just over a week, you’ll be moping at the bottom of the river, wishing you’d taken me up on my offer of a last hurrah and the chance to be a master in paradise.”

I thumbed through the brochure. I wasn’t interested in the games or the shows, but I did eye the casino with interest. “It stops at Atlantis?”

“Yes, and no,” Lucifer hedged.

“Explain.” Shax crossed his arms. Must be nice to be old enough that you could disrespect the devil.

“Atlantis has a tendency to move. There one moment, sinking the next, then reappearing elsewhere.” Lucifer shrugged.

“But there’s a