Page 115 of Bad Demon

“What?” I choked out.

“Your mother’s coven found out we’d mated, and they captured me. Erwin was hired by your coven. At first, their goal was to take out Lucifer and bring about the apocalypse. It’s written in ancient texts that Faron and I are the only two who know Lucifer’s one true weakness, and with that knowledge, he could be destroyed. So, they held me and tortured me, and when I wouldn’t tell them what they wanted to know, they brought you here to force my hand. They starved me until I didn’t know what I was doing or who I was feeding from … and then they’d bring you in. Afterward, Erwin would show me what I’d done, who I’d hurt.” He shook his head. “I wanted to save you. I wanted to make it stop. I wanted to stop them from hurting you, but even if I could get free, my choice was saving my daughter or bringing about the end of times.” He leaned more heavily against Rome. “I don’t expect you to ever forgive me, daughter, and I’ll never forgive myself for what I did to you either.”

I held Relic’s hand tighter. “And when he realized you’d never talk, he focused on developing a magical virus that would kill us all instead,” I choked out.

“Yes.”

“Is Faron here as well?” Rome asked him.

Lukan nodded. “When I was moved, I had a moment where the hex knot slipped. I was too weak to escape, but I reached out to Faron. He came for me, but that little fuck, Grady, was ready. He’d let the knot slip on purpose. He knew I’d call for my brother, and I fell for it like a fucking fool. I guess they thought they could make him talk since I wouldn’t and they’d lost you. He’s being held here, but they’ve kept us apart.”

His gaze came back to me, and I couldn’t look away. My father was one of the lords of Hell.

“Sutton needs a healer,” Jag growled out.

I snapped out of my shock. “And Phoebe—she’s hiding in the closet in the other room. There are others locked down here as well.”

Everyone jumped into action, freeing the others in the coven, who were thankfully unharmed, and like I’d thought, they’d been magically gagged by The Chemist so they couldn’t eject him from the house.

Grady had followed us when Sutton and Phoebe dropped me off to see Relic at the clubhouse, and then he snatched them, and he and The Chemist had forced them to grant access to the coven’s house.

The hounds found Faron in one of the other rooms, bound by a hex knot as well. He was thin and pissed off, but he was fine.

Healers were brought in to come and take care of Phoebe and Sutton, and the hounds stayed here to guard the house.

Only then did I let the exhaustion set in.

Relic hauled me into his arms and headed upstairs, knowing I wouldn’t want to leave my friends—not yet, not until I knew they’d be okay.

He pressed his mouth to my hair. “You’ve done everything you can, baby. Now, it’s time for your mate to take care of you.”

“I’m okay.”

“Well, I’m fucking not. After today, I’m far from okay, Tinker Bell. So, you’re going to let me take care of you before I lose my fucking mind.”

“Okay.” I wrapped my arms around his neck and pressed my forehead to his. “I think, after everything, I need that as well. I need my mate to hold me and not let me go.”

“Never,” he growled.

ChapterThirty-One

FERN

My phone lit up,and when I saw Sutton’s name flash on the screen, I snatched it up. I rushed to the bathroom so as not to wake Relic and shut the door. “Sutton?”

The sound of her breathing echoed down the line. She was having another panic attack.

“Breathe, babe, slow and steady. You’re okay. He’s gone. He’s dead. You’re safe now.”

She didn’t reply, just whimpered, then hissed. I felt her fear, followed by her anger, and there was nothing I could do to make it go away. Her breathing finally slowed.

“T-thanks,” she whispered down the line. “Fuck … sorry.”

“I’m here for you, day or night. You don’t need to apologize to me, not ever.” I shook my head and sat on the edge of the bathtub. “If I hadn’t—”

“Don’t,” she said. “Don’t you dare blame yourself. You did nothing wrong, and neither did I. That twisted fucker did this. This is all on him.”

“Yeah,” I whispered back.

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