Page 56 of Hell Raising and Other Pastimes (Grave Concerns 2)

“Thank you, sweet,” Hunter told her.

Someone called her name, and she stuck her bottom lip out in a pout. “I have to go. Do try to stay alive.”

When she left and Hunter turned toward me, he was met with one hell of a glare.

He opened his mouth, but I cut him off before he could speak. “Don’t youshadow-girlme.”

“Well, at least if we’re killed in round one, I won’t have to worry about her castrating me in my sleep,” Hunter said.

Kase shook his head before turning toward me. “Has Lucifer told you anything? Given you any idea as to why he summoned you?”

“Nothing. He said everything in good time and made it clear he didn’t appreciate me asking.”

“How did he even grab you?” Troy asked.

“Well, technically he didn’t. I saw that kid—”

“Please tell me you didn’t ignore me and follow him?” Grant rubbed at the bridge of his nose.

“I can tell you that or I can tell you the truth but not both.” After he sighed, I went on. “The kid was working with Jerrod, who decided I looked too tasty to ignore. Before Jerrod could do anything to me, though, Lucifer showed up.”

“I never thought I’d be thankful to Lucifer,” Grant said, his annoyance from earlier gone.

Hunter reached for me, but I pulled away. It was a reaction I couldn’t help, but it was one born from Jerrod’s words, from recalling what he’d told me about what Hunter and he had done. Seeing him had surprised me enough for me to forget, but after mentioning Jerrod and what he’d tried to do to me, what he’d said about Hunter came back to me.

Hunter let his hand drop, a question in his eyes he didn’t voice.

And one I didn’t want to give life to.

“So you’re going to fight in some stupid competition? Then what?”

“We win,” Grant said with a shrug. “I mean, we discussed losing, but since that would mean we were dead, it seemed counter-productive.”

“This is one of those you-win-or-you-die things?” My stomach sank.

“Pretty much,” Hunter answered, thought his voice had lost some of its humor. “They drop in a big bad beast of some sort—or a bunch of smaller ones—and see who’s standing once the critter is dead. Teams usually take one another out, as well. Rounds keep going until there’s one team left and they face whatever Lucifer has up his sleeve for the ending. People can back out between rounds, like if they lose too much of their team and don’t want to keep going. Winner takes all, or in this case, one open-ended favor from Lucifer. Anything he has the power to grant, he will give.”

“A favor can’t bethatuseful.”

“I’m sure you’ve heard about a deal with the devil, haven’t you?” Grant gestured toward Lucifer, who stood across the courtyard talking to someone I didn’t recognize.

Not that I recognized many people…

“Well, Lucifer has a lot of sway. He can make lifeverycomfortable for someone here and could even orchestrate a ride out of this level, to somewhere else, to a better area of the afterlife. People have been lining up to fight and die for these favors forever.”

“So what would you ask for?”

Before anyone could answer, a loud, low sound reverberated through the courtyard. It rattled up through the floor, into my feet. I covered my ears, the sound so deep it felt as if it could throw off the steady rhythm of my heart.

When it stopped, I turned to find Lucifer looking directly at me, at all of us.

“That’s our sign,” Grant said.

I caught Troy’s hand, the fear becoming real. “Don’t go. “

“Don’t really have a choice,” he said, turning his hand over so he could grasp my wrist in return. “We’ll be fine.”

“You better be,” I responded.

Grant snorted. “We’d better do as she says. Normally women can only make our lives miserable as long as we’re alive, but with this one? Well, death doesn’t seem to have much on her. Pretty sure she’ll make eternity a bitch.”

Hunter chuckled, and despite the seriousness of the moment, I could havesworneven Kase and Troy grinned as they followed Grant.

“What if that’s the last thing you ever say to me?” I called after them.

Grant turned back toward me and held his arms out. “Then you’ll know what a pain in the ass you are. I’m good with that.”

All I could do was watch them walk away, and hope Grant’s stupid joke didn’t come true.

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