Page 60 of All's Hell That Ends Well

Limping back to me, my trusty hellhound plopped down at my feet, her body so large that I could just barely look over her back even when she wasn’t standing. Blood glistened on her black fur.

“Oh, God, I hope that’s not yours,” I whispered. I ran my trembling hands over her again, trying to see if there were any deep wounds. My heart drew tight. “Please be okay. You did so well. You’re the best doggie ever. You’ll get so many treats. And all the belly scratches.” My voice cracked, wet heat filling my eyes. “Please be fine. You have to be.”

“What happened here?”

The drawled question pulled my attention off Vengeance. Pivoting, I scanned the hallway, my gaze snagging on the demon who stood a few feet away, surveying the scene, his blood-red eyes noting the evidence of a fatal fight.

Silver-white hair gleaming in the light of the candles, Samael looked at me and raised a brow. “Did you just kill five demons?”

CHAPTER 18

Shit. Fuck. Dammit.

A tremor ran through me, and my head felt dizzy. “They attacked me,” I said numbly. “She just defended me.”

His eyes flashed as he looked past me at Vengeance, who had heaved herself up again and was looming over me with bared teeth and a warning growl toward Samael.

“So your hound snapped and went on a rampage,” he said coldly, and behind him, several more demons appeared, two of which I recognized as his buddies from the first time I’d run into him.

God, but he had an unsettling way of showing up around me.

“Didn’t you hear me?” I asked through gritted teeth. “Those demons ambushed me, they were trying to kill me, and Vengeance defended me, as is her right.”

Venny’s snarl underscored my statement.

“And do you have proof of that?” Samael tilted his head.

“What?”

He made a sweeping gesture with his hand. “Do you have any witnesses? Is there anyone who can corroborate your statement?”

“I—” Glancing around, my heart sank. We’d been alone, and I was the only one left alive from the fight to give a report on it. “No,” I said quietly. “But why would I lie?”

He shrugged, the movement inhumanly fluid. “The way I see it, you weren’t in control of your hound, and it resulted in five demons dead, and now you want to claim that this lethal force was justified by making up some tale about someone attacking you.”

“No, that’s?—”

“It makes no sense that a group of demons would ambush you,” Samael interrupted me. “If this had been a challenge for rank, then it wouldn’t have been an attack by several demons. Quarrels with regard to hierarchy are always one-on-one. And fights to avenge a slight or offense are also between the involved parties only, unless one of them declares war.” He tilted his head and gave me a condescending look. “Has anyone declared war on you, Zoe?”

I shook my head, opening my mouth to say something, but he continued before I got a word out.

“Contrary to the impression you might have been given, this isn’t a lawless place. We have rules we live by. And according to those, we don’t use sneak attacks, or ambush a single demon with a group of attackers, especially not to try to kill that demon. Even in the case of a military conflict, we try not to use lethal force. If you haven’t heard yet, killing someone here is frowned upon.”

“I do know that, you presumptuous ass,” I snapped.

His features tightened. “Bold of you to insult me. You should be mindful of the consequences.”

“What, like you’ll challenge me to avenge your honor?” My blood was boiling, my magic snapping at its leash. “Go ahead. Let’s have a repeat performance of when I punched you through a wall.”

“Oh, there’s no need for that.” His chilling tone gave me pause. “I’ll simply seize your hound to be executed for killing five demons without cause.”

He summoned a long staff in his hand, and his cronies behind him did the same. I recognized those things from the time I’d collected Vengeance at the palace borders. They were used to corral hounds.

The blood froze in my veins.No.

“You can’t do that,” I breathed. “Hounds may not be killed.” Mephisto’s words came back to me, and I clutched on to them. “The owners have to pay for any damages incurred, and then the dogs are sent back?—”

“That only applies to dogs who escaped their territory.” The red in his eyes deepened. “You belong to this territory, and so does your hound. She got violently out of control without actually running away, and she is clearly dangerously aggressive and does not heed your command. As you are in service to the master of this territory, all your possessions ultimately belong to your liege, and it is within the purview of the territory’s authority to have an uncontrollable hound put down before it kills anyone else.”

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