The night we opened hell

Part ten:The one hell remembered

Daemon's POV

At first, I was a little bit scared about whatever it was that lurked in the shadows.

I had no idea what it was.

And, honestly, I didn't particularly care to find out.

But then I remembered something.

My brother was the self-acclaimed King of Hell.

Whatever lurked in Hell wasn't my problem.

It was his.

I wanted to turn my back and go back to my keep, but then I remembered that she was still locked in the prison.

Nessa.

I stopped walking.

I didn't know why.

She was quite different from the others.

The others had spent most of their time crying, screaming, or begging.

Nessa did those things too.

But somehow, she still found the time to complain.

She complained about the prison.

She complained about the demons.

She complained about the chains.

She had even complained about the food.

I had never seen anyone enter Hell and remain so irritatingly confident.

It was almost impressive.

I thought about leaving her there.

I really did.

But then I remembered the thing lurking in the shadows.

I didn't know what it was.

And I didn't know what it wanted.

But I knew I didn't want to find out.

So I decided to break her out.

I didn't know if it was out of pity or just for my own amusement.

I just did it anyway.

I lifted my hand.

The chains around the prison door fell to the ground with a loud clang.

Nessa immediately looked up.

The moment she saw me, her expression changed.

"You."

I leaned against the doorway.

"Me."

"What do you want?"

I looked at her.

She had been imprisoned in Hell, yet somehow she still managed to look at me like I was the one who had inconvenienced her.

"You're coming with me."

She stared at me.

Then she laughed.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me."

"Why would I go anywhere with you?"

"Because I said so."

She stared at me for a few seconds.

Then she rolled her eyes.

"Wow. What a convincing argument."

I narrowed my eyes.

She folded her arms.

I had the sudden urge to laugh.

I didn't.

"Just come with me."

"And if I don't?"

"I'll carry you."

Her eyes widened.

"You wouldn't dare."

I smiled.

"Try me."

She immediately stood up.

"Don't you dare touch me."

"Then walk."

She glared at me.

I turned around and began walking.

A few seconds later, I heard her footsteps behind me.

I smiled to myself.

I had no idea why I was doing this.

There was something about her.

Something that made something inside me flutter.

I immediately frowned.

What the hell was I thinking?

I wasn't supposed to be thinking this way.

She was a human.

A pesky little human.

And I had far more important things to worry about.

My sole purpose was to reclaim Hell.

I didn't need any distractions.

Not even if that distraction was a beautiful, irritating human who seemed to have no idea when to stop talking.

Especially not her.

I used my powers to conjure up a place for her to stay at my keep.

The room was large and beautiful.

There was a huge bed in the center, and the walls were decorated with elegant designs.

Nessa looked around.

"Where are we?"

"My keep."

She turned to me.

"Your keep?"

"Yes."

"Why am I here?"

"Because I brought you here."

She stared at me.

"That doesn't answer my question."

I sighed.

She really did talk too much.

"You're staying here."

"Why?"

"Because I said so."

She folded her arms.

"Are you capable of giving any other answer?"

I looked at her.

"Yes."

"Then give me one."

"No."

She stared at me.

I almost laughed.

Almost.

She continued bickering.

And, strangely enough, she looked cute while doing it.

I immediately pushed the thought away.

Cute?

What the hell was wrong with me?

I was not supposed to be thinking this way.

I had a purpose.

I was going to reclaim Hell.

I didn't need distractions.

Not even if that distraction was a pesky little human.

I turned away from her.

But before I could leave, she spoke again.

"Wait."

I stopped.

"What?"

She hesitated.

For the first time since I had met her, she didn't immediately have something irritating to say.

"Where are my friends?"

I stared at her.

I didn't answer.

"Daemon."

I looked away.

"They're alive."

Her expression softened slightly.

"Are they okay?"

I didn't know.

I hadn't checked.

But I wasn't going to tell her that.

"They're being taken care of."

It wasn't exactly a lie.

At least, I hoped it wasn't.

She studied me.

Then she looked away.

I don't know why I noticed the sadness in her expression.

I don't know why I cared.

But I did.

And I hated it.

I turned away and left the room.

The moment the doors closed behind me, I stopped.

Something was wrong.

I could feel it.

Something was moving through Hell.

Something old.

Something that shouldn't have been there.

I looked toward the dark corridor.

The shadows moved.

I stared at them.

Then they disappeared.

I frowned.

I had no idea what was happening.

And I didn't like it.

Not one bit.

EVELYN'S POV

I woke up somewhere different.

At first, I thought I was still in the prison.

But the moment I opened my eyes, I knew I wasn't.

The first thought that came to my mind was that it was an illusion.

But the aura the place carried was different.

I tried getting up, but my head felt a little heavy.

I lay back down and looked around.

Everything was different.

And perfect.

The room was beautiful.

The king-sized bed was gorgeous.

The room was serene.

Beautiful.

Almost too beautiful for Hell.

There was a huge painting on the wall.

I stared at it.

It was a painting of death.

A dark figure stood in the middle of what looked like a dead forest.

I couldn't see its face.

But something about it made me uncomfortable.

I looked away.

If this was an illusion, I needed to find a way out of it as soon as possible.

I slowly stood up.

I was about to leave the bed when something—or rather, someone—appeared from the door.

She looked human.

But the aura she carried was different.

Before I could process what was going on, she spoke to me in a friendly but still authoritative tone.

"I'm Scally."

I stared at her.

"I'm a shapeshifter. I've been authorized by the master to take care of you and make sure you don't leave this room."

I blinked.

She smiled.

"So if there's anything you need, just snap your fingers twice and I'll be here."

"Thanks, Scally."

That was all I could mutter between breaths.

And in the blink of an eye, she left.

She was nowhere to be seen.

I stared at the doorway.

"Yeah. Wonderful."

From one prison to another.

I didn't even know how my friends were faring.

I didn't know what was going on.

I was too scared and confused to think about it now.

All I could do was rest.

And probably hope that this nightmare would definitely come to an end.

I sat on the edge of the bed.

My mind suddenly drifted back to what had happened.

I remembered the prison.

The demons.

The fear.

And then...

Lucian.

I remembered how he had carried me in his arms.

I remembered how close his face had been.

I remembered the way his expression had changed.

For just a moment...

I thought I had seen concern.

Even if it was only for a little bit.

I frowned.

Why had he looked concerned?

Was it real?

Or had I imagined it?

And by the way...

Who was that p*****t who called himself his brother?

Daemon.

I wondered what sort of relationship they had.

They didn't seem like brothers who got along.

But then again, what did I know?

I barely knew anything about this place.

I mostly wondered if my friends were okay.

Were they doing fine?

I was sincerely worried about them.

Especially Nessa.

How would she cope?

I closed my eyes.

Then something caught my attention.

A cold breeze moved through the room.

I slowly opened my eyes.

The painting was different.

I sat up.

I stared at it.

The dark figure in the painting was no longer standing alone.

There was someone else in the forest.

A woman.

Her back was turned toward me.

I frowned.

I was sure she hadn't been there before.

I slowly got off the bed.

I walked toward the painting.

The closer I got, the colder the room became.

I raised my hand.

My fingers touched the painting.

And suddenly—

The room disappeared.

I was standing in a dark forest.

The trees were dead.

The air was freezing.

I looked around.

"Hello?"

Nothing answered.

Then I heard a voice.

Soft.

Familiar.

Almost like a whisper from a distant memory.

"You finally came back."

I froze.

"What?"

I slowly turned around.

The woman stood behind me.

I couldn't see her face.

"Who are you?"

The woman tilted her head.

Then she slowly raised her hand.

I looked down.

My fingers were covered in blood.

I screamed.

And suddenly—

I was back in the room.

I fell backward onto the floor.

My breathing was heavy.

I looked at the painting.

The woman was gone.

I blinked.

I rubbed my eyes.

Then I looked again.

She was back.

But this time...

She was looking directly at me.

Her lips moved.

I couldn't hear her.

I slowly stepped closer.

Then I heard it.

A whisper.

So soft that I almost thought I had imagined it.

"You finally came back."

I stumbled backward.

My heart pounded against my chest.

I had never been to Hell before.

At least...

I didn't think I had.

Then suddenly, there was a knock at the door.

I froze.

"Scally?"

No answer.

Another knock.

I slowly moved toward the door.

"Who is it?"

Silence.

I reached for the handle.

The moment my fingers touched it, the voice from the painting whispered again.

"Don't open it."

I immediately pulled my hand away.

The room went silent.

Then someone on the other side of the door spoke.

"Evelyn."

I knew that voice.

Lucian.

"Open the door."

I stared at the door.

My heart pounded.

Then I slowly looked back at the painting.

The woman inside it was smiling.

And for the first time since I had arrived in Hell...

I wondered if the thing I should be afraid of...

wasn't Lucian at all.