Page 14 of The Misfit Mage and His Darling Demon

I clicked the red button again. Dammit. “Telephone off.”

“Listen to me.” She moved closer, like making direct eye contact would somehow hold my attention.

“Off telephone.” These things were so much easier to handle when they had hook switches to slam.

“Diabolics have been going missing as of late,” Mora said, all the playful banter lost from her voice. “Mostly younger demons, but enough for the news to travel.”

“What the fuck do I care about missing Diabolics?” I pushed the red button again but somehow pulled up photos I’d taken, or the ones taken by my pocket most days.

“Rumor has it, a group of Fae was seen in Bael’s realm wrangling lesser demons,” she said her devil’s name with contempt. This must be serious since Mora despised all things in relation to her Hell dimension nearly as much as I did my own. “Everyone knows Bael’s a boring, lazy ole devil who leaves his doors open for his demons to come and go as we wish, but how’d Fae find their way through? Under his nose? Undetected?”

“Okay. The Fae is controlling demons to jump realms. You suspect the one running last night’s performance?”

I knew he was foul. If he dabbled in Diabolic bonds, then chances were, his only intent of grabbing Wally was to determine the strength in our bond, how to fracture it, and possibly claim a devil for himself. Undoubtedly. I’d learned all too well that fools who didn’t fear devils sought to control them in one form or another. The arrogance.

“Why not just kill him and leave me out of your plots?” I asked.

“It’s not that simple.”

“Dear Mora, don’t tell me you’re concerning yourself with the lives of whichever demons were pathetic enough to end up bound to some snooty Fae nobleman?” I snickered. “Fine. Beingever the gracious friend, I’ll kill him and his little Fae entourage on your behalf.”

Wally couldn’t fault me for that. After all, he trusted Mora’s judgment for work, so obviously, this was a rational, well-thought plan.

“It’s more than that,” Mora said because it could never be simple. “No one can contain more than one demon’s essence in them without succumbing to illness and death. More to the point, no demon, commanded or not, can walk through a barrier leading into a Hell realm, especially bringing someone not of a Diabolic nature through. Bael might leave the door open, but it’s still too intense for Mythics or mortals to cross the dimensional threshold.”

I sat in contemplation, watching the inquisitive playfulness cross Mora’s face once more, returning true to form.

“How’s this Fae getting himself and a horde of fairies through? What’s he planning? And Bezzy, the question I’m most curious about is if he’s found ways for Mythics to cross open doors to Hell, how long before he’ll find a way to unlock closed Hell realms?”

My chest tightened, mind jumping in a thousand directions. I dropped the phone as Mora prattled on about hypothetical questions I didn’t fucking care about. She knew it, too. She’d struck a chord with one already.

What would happen if some Fae entered Beelzebub’s realm? The true Beelzebub. Could they enter it? Would they find an enraged devil who awaited a chance to leap out of his realm to retrieve his missing essence? Essence I stole. Would they find a collection of reigning demon lords ruling in the devil’s stead? Demons I abandoned. Would it be a mere abyss of ruin indicating a devil’s demise?

Any of those would expose my false identity, revealing I’d taken on the guise of Beelzebub to ensure I never needed to fearthreats from anyone. This could compromise my safety. Wally’s safety. The Collective didn’t like us skirting their rules, but they avoided us as much as we avoided them. Safer all around. They didn’t want a wrathful devil to contend with, but if they knew I was nothing but a phony, feeble demon, they’d hunt Wally and me to the ends of the world. This one or any other we escaped into.

“Bez. Bez. Bezzy,” Mora called out, her voice becoming shriller with each shout of my name. “Are you even listening to me?”

I retrieved my phone, glaring at her.

“Why Wally?” A ridiculous question. It was because of me. This Fae likely sought the essence of a devil to assist in his scheme for tearing through dimensional realms. He’d end up sorely disappointed if harnessing my essence was a required ingredient to unlocking closed doorways.

“I’d have sent Kell—tried to, in fact, but Baron Novus is extremely picky in the lesser beings he works with. Extensive research, consideration, long waits that can last the better part of a century just for him to reject someone for a position. But rumor has it, the noble has some hard-on for Walter Alden. Apparently, a lot of Fae do since your little mage is all the buzz among their Court right now. Their equivalent of fifteen minutes of socialite fame or whatever.” Mora shrugged. “Point is, Wally is in.”

“No.” I clamped my jaw.

“You should be proud. I’d be honored if the Fae looked at Kell in such a way.”

“Before or after you ripped out someone’s eyes?”

“Never. Anyone is welcome to admire Kell’s beauty. It’s their tongues I take when their mouths overstep with flattery.” Mora grinned, mischievous as always. “Let Wally take the job. He can snoop about and discreetly find intel. Once we know how it’sdone and if he’s shared this knowledge with others, then we can kill him. Heck, I’ll even let you have the honor, Bezzy.”

If I did nothing, I’d ensure Wally’s safety from this sinister Fae. But I’d risk an arrogant Mythic learning how to navigate the realms of Diabolics, something that shouldn’t be possible, which could unravel my secrets.

Fuck.

“I should’ve known your interest in my anniversary had a nefarious plot behind it.”

“That’s unfair,” Mora said with a dramatic, whiny lilt. “I love love and wish you many more celebrations. In fact, I’ve heard about—”

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