elbow so tightly, he hits the nerve in it, making me squirm.
“We have much to discuss,” Lucifer says. “Come.”
His fingers tighten on my hand, and in the split second before he flames out with me, Xavi grabs onto the belt hook of my jeans. Wherever Lucifer is taking me, War and Pestilence have followed.
As I look around at the previously undiscovered cavern, deep in the bowels of Hell, I’m suddenly glad to have them at my side.
Chapter 32
Aleister
“Where has she gone?” Axelle shrieks in a voice so loud, I wince. “Where the fuck is she?”
“We’ll find her,” the former Devil says to his wife, crushing her to him in a kiss so erotic, everyone looks away.
Except me. I’m still staring at him, a bit shocked that he is here again when he was supposed to be dead. I knew it, but I don’t think it processed until just now.
“Find her,” Axelle shouts, pulling away from Luc. The former Hell Queen is making the ground shake underneath us in her agitation and fury.
“I can’t sense her,” Shax says.
“He’ll have cloaked her,” Luc says and then stumbles back as Drescal swoops over to him, giving him a manly embrace, where they bang each other on the back.
“It’s good to see you, old friend,” Drescal says.
“You too,” Luc says with a smirk. “I see you got your wish?”
“I did,” he nods, returning the grin.
I’m slightly envious. Not of Luc but of Drescal. They are clearly close. I wish that I had been. Annabelle worships her dad, that much is clear. I want him to accept me.
“Killian and Xavier are with her,” Luc says, turning back to Axelle. “She will be safe.”
“She can kick Lucifer’s ass herself,” I state, defending her.
Luc’s sparkling blue eyes land on me. “Aleister,” he says. “You know my daughter?”
“Uhm,” Axelle murmurs. “All of these males are hers,” she adds quietly.
Luc’s eyes harden as he turns back to her. “She followed you?”
Axelle nods.
“Fuck’s sake, woman. I gave you one job!” he snaps. “I told you to get her hooked up with Drescal. That did not include all of these other fuckers.”
Axelle presses her lips together, trying not to smile under the circumstances.
“She is her own being, dear. There was fuck all I could do about this.”
He looks like he is about to shoot through the roof in rage, but then he sighs and shakes his head.
“I will go and find her,” he says. “You,” he says to me. “You are loyal, at least you have that going for you. You will come with me. The rest of you scatter. Scour Hell until you find her.”
I nod.
He grabs my arm, but then Axelle makes a muffled noise and clutches her stomach.
Evan is at her side in a heartbeat. “Is everything okay?” he asks.
“Mm-hm,” she mutters, but her face tells a different story.
“Go with them,” I say to Luc. “We’ve got this. We will find Annabelle, I promise you that.”
His eyes bore into mine. “Are you willing to bet your life on it?” he asks.
“Yes,” I state, knowing that even if we don’t find Annabelle or Lucifer has hurt her, my life will be over anyway.
“Go,” Drescal says.
After another pause, he nods. “Fine. I will hold every single one of you responsible if he hurts even a hair on her head.”
“No!” Axelle says, panting. “Go with them.”
“Axelle, we’ve got this,” I say quietly.
Her panicked look meets mine, but I give her a reassuring smile.
I feel she is about to protest further, but a rush of blood floods down her legs, causing us all to take a giant step back and avert our eyes.
“Go!” Drescal says and they don’t need telling again.
“Uhm,” Devlin says, finally coming out of his stupor. “What did you do with Gregory?”
“I put him in Annabelle’s room with Sid. He’s awake by the way. Musmortus is guarding the door.”
“From the inside?” I venture with a frown.
Drescal gives me a withering glare. “No, the outside. Not that it makes much difference. If she wanted in, she’d get in.”
Elijah snorts his agreement, but then sobers quickly. “We need to find Anna.”
“I’m guessing he’d have taken her to the caverns,” Shax says, sidling forward to our group. “However, Belle and I have barely discovered a fraction of what is down there. It could literally take us weeks to find them.”
“Great,” I mutter, but then pull it together. “I know that I can’t get to the caverns. Anyone else?”
Everyone shakes their head, so we look at Shax. He holds his hands out grimly.