Page 6 of Magic and Mayhem

Cool hands wrap around the back of my neck in a punishing grip, throwing me to the floor.

“Curl up and sleep tight, Ev. You’re going to be here a while.”

I do as he instructs, wrapping the thin blanket around my shoulders and vowing to myself that I will find a way out of here, even if it’s the last thing I do.

I jerk out of the memory violently, causing my feet to tangle in the rugs before my body smacks into the ground. My chest heaves at the echo of my misery, tears springing to my eyes. Not out of fear, but of utter relief.

I got out. I achieved what I had promised myself.

My body feels heavy as I untangle my feet, and a blanket falls to the floor at the end of the bed. I don’t know why Ireach out for it but I do, bringing it to my face to inhale.

More tears fall, and I struggle to keep my eyes open. Because, for the first time since I can remember, I feel at peace. Safe and warm and… whole?

I can’t tell myself to run anymore as my eyes flutter closed, my head gently meeting the floor as I curl into myself.

‘Safe’ that little voice murmurs.

‘Thank you’ I say back. I asked for a way out and was given one. Maybe that voice did help me. Maybe, for once, I don’t have to be afraid anymore.

With that thought, I drift into a dreamless sleep. The last thing I see are those violet eyes, and then, darkness.

Chapter 2

“What the Hell was that?” my half-sister Lilu asks, storming towards me after I’ve managed to get the flames in my palms to surrender to my will.

I’ve never lost control of them before and have no idea what caused it just now. All I saw were eyes that looked like a violet Milky Way, entrancing me before everything went to shit.

“How many souls did you just consume without them offering first?”

I swallow thickly as Chaos, one of my sister's mates, comes to her side. He places a hand on her shoulder, not to comfort her, but to let her know that he has her back if she wants to smite me right here for what I just did.

“Eighty-six,” I say, staring at my hands as I try to figure out what happened before waving them over my face to dispel the skull paint I put on for my performance.

Lilu sighs heavily, tilting her head back, and all too soonher four mates surround her. They each brush an arm against her skin, and I watch as her expression softens.

I think the four of them are trying to have my back here because one way to help Lilu calm down is to have all of them touching her at once.

“What happened?”

Her voice is dominant, and I have half a mind to remind her that I am the older one. But she is mated, which means that she has more power than I do. So, despite the fact that she’s younger by three hundred and forty-seven years, she is the one in control of our little slice of Hell on Earth.

“I honestly have no idea.” Rubbing at my chest, I can’t shake this feeling that I need to be somewhere, that something has happened. “Something feels…off.”

Lilu tilts her head, surveying me. “Go rest.” Her normal, gentle demeanor returns instead of the vengeful side that reminds me so much of her father.

I follow her orders, heading back to my room as I filter through my thoughts. My circus tent was more full than normal tonight, but it always gets this way when we get close to Las Vegas. Those with bad intentions float to my tent in a daze and can choose to offer me their soul.

We are never supposed to take it without giving them a choice, but occasionally accidents happen. Their souls give me power, and when offered willingly they taste sweet, like hot apple pie with a slice of vanilla ice cream on the side.

When I strip souls by force, it’s like taking a shot of hot sauce. It doesn’t just burn, but it lingers in the back of my throat for hours.

I lift the curtain into my quarters, and the first thing my heightened senses notice is the scent of blood in the air.Being a demon prince born to Lilith and Hades, I have a few unique gifts.

My mother gave me the gift of seduction and powerful demons like myself can also control the ether within the realms. The mist like substance has the power to do many things, such as heal humans or even demons from the inside out.

Ether travels through the earth as a part of us and allows us to bend parts of nature to our will. That, and it makes for an intriguing show.

My parents are some of the strongest beings in Hell, which is why I wield the more controllable violet ether as opposed to the wild flames of my father. Tonight is a perfect example of my fire being too volatile. I just wish I understood why.

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