Page 28 of Princess of Hell

Silver bent over, looking for something in the grass. Drae rushed over to her because she was the nicest among us.

“Is she car sick?” River leaned against the hood of her Mercedes.

“No. At least, I don’t think so.”

“Do you think she has to pee?”

I looked at my brother and we both laughed.

“Well, if she doesn’t, I see some nice bushes back there.” River walked over to them there.

I snort-laughed.

Silver returned with a huge lizard in her hands. The poor creature thrashed about.

“What in the sweet hell?” I muttered, exchanging a glance with Drae, who held another lizard in his maw. He looked as if he had played an active role in catching that lizard. My brother had shifted and hunted down a lizard down for her. He shifted back. I couldn’t hold back a chuckle because the lizard was still alive and fought to escape from between his teeth.

Drae took the lizard out of his mouth and handed it to me. “I did my part. I never believed I’d hunt a lizard.”

“Why are you giving it to me?”

“I have to get dressed. Being naked is a bit awkward, don’t you agree?”

River walked from behind, a massive grin on his face. “I’ll hold your lizard, bro,”

We all laughed. Silver opened the trunk. She held her lizard with one hand while unwrapping something with another.

“Can someone please hold this lizard for a second?”

Me and Drae, who was now fully clothed, looked toward River.

“Coming, love. I’m already holding a lizard, so what’s a second?”

Drae and I could barely contain our laughter. River had such a dignified attitude with a lizard in each of his hands.

“Lizardman.” Drae said it, but I was thinking it.

Silver unwrapped what looked like a stone bowl. A dirty, old, stone bowl. She took a long dagger wrapped in velvet and asked for a lizard. Holding it in one hand and the dagger in the other, she cut off its head in one fast, fluid motion. The blood of the small reptile covered her fingers and the stone bowl. Silver started to recite something, though I couldn’t understand one word off what she said. A light shone from the bowl and a voice replied.

* * *

Silver

I sensed that Uncle Chris wanted to talk to me. He told me when I left home he would try to get in touch with me if he had news. That’s why I carried a unique ritual stone bowl and a ritual knife. Like with everything magic, there’s a price to be paid. There always is. This was merely a phone call, which is why lizard’s blood would be good enough. I don’t enjoy spilling blood, especially the blood of a creature that didn’t do anything to me.

The weird creatures that attacked us yesterday still haunted me. If Uncle Chris wanted to talk to me, maybe he knew something. Just thinking about Chris, who isn’t really my uncle, made my insides clench. It was a mix of joy and something I didn’t want to name.

When the bowl cleared and I saw Uncle Chris’ handsome face, my heart leaped, thudding so hard in my chest it almost hurt. Damn, he was handsome. As a teen, I noticed his good looks. His chiseled jaw and full lips, the way his dark skin made his golden black eyes sparkle.

“Silver, my love.” A week had passed since I left Hell, and I missed his warmth. “How are you doing, my love?”

I bit my lip and took a deep breath.

“Uncle Chris, I want to ask you something. I encountered something that scared me. Mutated werewolves attacked us and ate an Incubus.”

“Were you harmed, love? Did they bite you?”

“No. Did you know about them?”

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