Page 18 of Magic and Mayhem

“What are the others?”

“Chaos and Rogue, twins of Anubis, feed off of strife and addiction. They have a gambling act that ensures no sides win and that everyone stays until they bet their final dollar. Ruhn and Onyx, Hel’s twins, feed off of conflict and fear of imperfection. They have their audience walk through a hall of mirrors to get to their stage and then do a comedy skit where they ask a lot of political questions in order to create strife under the guise of humor.”

Well, that all sounds complicated but somehow makes sense. They can all pretend to be putting on a show while stealing parts of the audience for themselves. It sounds twisted, but I have a feeling it goes deeper than that.

“Do you read?”

Eryx tilts his head at that question, clearly not having expected the turn of my thoughts. “I do.”

I play with the bubbles, loving the way they feel against my hands as I relax. Eryx’s presence makes me feel calm, and his honesty is endearing. I feel like I could sit here all night just talking to him.

“So, could you tell me, are you demons morally black or morally gray?”

I smirk at him and he returns it. “Well, that depends on the demon. However, I do believe what Lilu has created here for us is more on the gray side. She draws in children who have no place to go and feeds them, allows them to ride the rides and escape their lives for a little while. The adults who sit in our shows are rarely innocent, and we usually find that those with pure intentions are just following their partners here.”

“What do you do with the innocents?”

“The twins of Anubis have a gift where they can changethe narrative in people’s minds. They leave believing that this was a date of some kind, but they also plant seeds to help them see if their partners have a hidden evil inside them.”

Smiling to myself, I relax back and close my eyes. Something within me told me that Eryx didn’t seek to destroy innocents. After all, that’s not what created Hell in the first place if the stories I’ve been told are true.

The next question takes me a moment to think up, trying to sift through everything to decide what is most important to ask.

“Why is everyone a twin?”

“Twins are born to true mates or crafted with a mate bond and dark magic. They’re a sign of power and love that can defy true evil.”

“If Lilith and Lucifer are mates, why isn’t Lilu a twin too?”

“Because I hold that other power. Lilith gave part of herself to me when I was in her womb, and that prevents her from having twins. So long as I exist, she cannot have another child.”

Twins. Mates. Hell. Kings. Lords. So many things in my life feel insignificant now. I knew the world was larger than the compound, but I had no idea it was quite this big. It’s overwhelming and definitely terrifying.

“Why are you afraid?” Eryx asks, leaning forward.

My eyes shoot open, turning to him. “How do you know?”

“I can smell emotions, we all can.”

Blowing out a long breath, I reach for a bottle of what looks like soap and begin to lather it between my hands.

“Maybe it’s just the weird smell coming from me,” I joke.

His brows pinch. “And now you are lying to me. Why?”

I turn so my back is to him as I clean myself off. My breaths start to come faster, and tears spring free from my eyes that I try to mask by tipping my head under the water to rinse my hair.

When I come up, Eryx is there, worry clear in his gaze.

“Evolet?”

My lips wobble, but I make it stop through sheer power of will. “It’s just a lot.”

Curling in on myself, I bring my knees to my chest so I can rest my chin on them.

“You do not need to fear me.”

I give him a small smile, but it is genuine. “I don’t fear you, Eryx.”

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