Hellbourne (14 page)

“Your father won’t be easily persuaded to return you to this realm. From what you tell me, he is eager to have you stay. Keep the guitar as close to you as possible at all times, it could be your salvation.”

Luc shrugged and took the guitar. It glowed brightly in the lamplight. The instrument was a gift to Luc on his eighteenth birthday by the angel Gabriel. Every year he took it to hell and every year he brought it back. Luc smiled when he stroked the golden instrument. The guitar was made from some extinct tree that Luc had long forgotten the name of.

“Promise me,” Michael’s deep voice demanded.

“I promise.” Luc slid the strap over his head. “They’ll be coming for me soon. Don’t forget
your
promise.”

Michael’s large hands clasped Luc’s shoulders. “I promise to sever your link to Bran if it looks as if you won’t be coming back.”

“And if I come back tainted?”

The chill in Michael’s eyes was both reassuring and frightening. “I will destroy you so completely that even your father can’t bring you back.”

Luc let out a breath he hadn’t realised he was holding. “Thank you.”

Michael placed a kiss on Luc’s forehead. “For luck.” He glanced over to where Nikko was still sleeping. “What do you want me to do about the vampire?”

Luc shrugged as he stepped back from Michael’s embrace. “Nothing. I think he’ll be fine without me.”

“You don’t believe the two of you are mates?”

Luc’s gazed at the master vampire. Nikko’s gorgeous body was only partially covered by the sheets, leaving a great deal of smooth, silky skin exposed. “I think he wants a mate so badly that he’ll take the first person he feels a connection to. But no, I don’t think we’re mates.”

“Then you’re wrong.” Michael’s eyes glowed as if he was looking into Luc’s soul. “You are mates but not in this time. The three of you are joined souls, but souls only properly linked in twos. Now is the time for you and Bran. Once Bran’s place on this earth is through, your soul will link with Nikko’s until Bran’s soul is reincarnated.”

Luc held back his tears. “So I’m going to continually lose my lovers and have to find them again?”

Michael placed a finger beneath Luc’s chin and lifted until they were eye-to-eye. “No relationship can last centuries without change. You are lucky enough to have the two mates of your heart forever. You were never meant to meet Nikko during Bran’s lifetime so it makes me wonder whose hand is dabbling in your life.”

Luc sighed. “It doesn’t matter because we met and now he thinks he should have part of me.”

“Get through your punishment in hell, and I’ll see what I can do on this end. Make sure you come back whole.”

Luc nodded. “I’ll do the best I can.”

With a final kiss on his forehead, Michael vanished in a cloud of dust.

“He always knew how to make an exit,” a deep voice said from behind Luc. He spun around to see Bran standing in the doorway with a tray of food.

“You could’ve come in instead of lurking by the door.”

Bran shrugged. He brought the tray to the living room table before giving Luc a light kiss on the lips. “I didn’t want to interrupt in case he came to give you information to help with your ordeal. Interesting thing about the vamp.”

Luc nodded but he could feel sadness choking him, a ball of tears clogging his throat. He didn’t know if he wanted to survive incarnation after incarnation of his beloved wolf. He was greedy and wanted to keep the one he had.

Bran took Luc into his arms, holding his lover close. Luc inhaled. The scent of his lover filled his lungs. Even in the depths of hell, he knew he would remember that intoxicating combination of wildness and spice.

“He can have you in the next life. In this one, you’re mine,” Bran said before taking Luc’s mouth in a perfect kiss. It was the kind of kiss that only appeared in dreams.

The slow slide of the werewolf’s tongue sent spikes of desire through his body. They didn’t have time for any more sex, but he cherished the warm flood of desire flowing through his body. When the alpha pulled back, Luc knew that if that was the last embrace he would ever have, it was perfect.

Luc knew his brother had arrived when he felt the flash and fire heating his backside.

“Greetings, Galthine.” He didn’t need to turn around to know which of his brothers came to fetch him. Galthine was the only one of his brothers powerful enough to punch a hole through dimensions.

Luc could do it at the age of five. Another reason his brothers hated him.

Bran’s chest vibrated, a deep growl growing inside.

“Down, puppy,” Galthine taunted.

Luc placed a tender kiss on his lover’s cheek. “I’ll see you later.”

Bran gripped Luc’s upper arms, giving him a gentle shake until Luc met the were’s eyes. “I
will
see you later,” he demanded.

Breaking away from his lover’s embrace, Luc turned towards Galthine. The demon stood before an open doorway awash in flames. Giving one last longing look at his lover, Luc walked through the portal.

He emerged in his father’s throne room. Four of his five brothers stood around Lucifer—Stiln, Tavo, Lain and Freen stood two on each side of the devil’s chair of bones. Some people thought the chair was made from the bones of humans who annoyed Lucifer, but Luc knew the horrible truth. They were the bones of the other angels who’d fallen with him.

The only way to ensure you were king of hell was to get rid of the competition.

So Lucifer had killed his brethren and magically enchanted them into the throne so they could never reassemble and challenge him for hell. If you looked closely on the back of the chair you could see the bones of their wings.

Luc was careful to never look at it directly when his father wasn’t sitting in it.

“Greetings, Lucifer,” the devil said with an evil grin.

Luc looked up at his father. Despite the pleasant smile on his stunning face, Lucifer’s eyes told the real story. His father was determined to keep him here. Leaving this time would take a lot more effort.

“Greetings, father.” Luc gave a low elegant bow. One always bowed to the devil especially if you didn’t want to.

Lucifer kept a jar of ashes by his throne. They were the remains of those who refused to bow before him. Their screams often filled the throne room until it drove petitioners mad.

One of Luc’s goals in life was to never give his father a reason to add him to the ash jar.

“I’m giving you one more chance to voluntarily agree to join my ranks as my right hand man.”

Luc kept his head down and his eyes on the black marble floor. He could feel the glares of his brothers searing into him. They slaved for their father to gain the attention and respect Luc got just by being alive.

“I respectfully decline.”

Lucifer’s laugh was enough to chill Luc’s blood. “Respectfully?” The devil laughed again. “You are such a sweet boy. It’s a shame we have to break you before you can be my top hell lord.”

The devil’s voice was filled with remorse. Luc would’ve believed him if he didn’t know the blackness of his father’s heart.

“Let’s see.” Lucifer tapped his chin as if he were thinking things over. “Let’s go by age, youngest to oldest. Stiln first, then Tavo and Lain, I know how much they enjoy torturing together, then Freen and we’ll save Galthine for last. You each have one hour to persuade him. That good for you, boys?”

The five agreed. Luc rolled his eyes. It wasn’t as if any of them would dare to disagree. Stiln headed down the marble stairs, his one eye flickered with an unnatural light as if there were fireflies trapped in his pupil. Luc shivered with unease. Stiln was usually the easiest on him, but he didn’t think it would happen this time.

“Let’s go,” the demon said, reaching Luc’s side. Of all his brothers, Stiln looked the most like Luc and Lucifer, but his brother’s hair was more white than gold and his skin was bronze.

Rumour was that when he was born, Lucifer was annoyed with his imperfections and said that if he was going to have a bad copy he wanted it to be completely ruined. It was a miracle that he wasn’t killed at birth. Luc knew that his own looks were a source of anger for his brother.

Sighing, Luc turned to follow Stiln.

“Just a moment, Luc.”

Shit.
Reluctantly, he turned to face his father again.

“Just to make things interesting this year I’m removing your healing powers. Your brothers won’t have to work so hard if they don’t have to redo everything their predecessor did before.”

Luc paled. The only thing that kept him surviving each year was his ability to heal all the damage done to him from brother to brother.

Before he could say a word, Lucifer waved a hand and Luc felt something drift away from his body. Feeling increasingly vulnerable, Luc turned to see his brother’s wide smile.

“Come, baby brother, and let’s have some fun.”

“I have a feeling my idea of fun and yours are not the same,” Luc said.

“Luc.” His father’s voice stopped him right in the entryway. He didn’t bother to turn.

“I really like your shirt.”

“Thanks.”

Luc followed his brother through unfamiliar hallways with stone walls and marble floors. “Redecorated since I left?”

“Hell hasn’t reformed for you yet,” Stiln said as they continued their trek.

Luc stumbled on a jutting rock. “What do you mean?”

“It reforms every year when you come.” Stiln stopped and looked back at his brother. “How could you not know that?”

“I thought it liked that shape. I didn’t think it had anything to do with me.”

Stiln gave a bitter laugh. “Didn’t you know everything has to do with you?”

“Stiln,” Luc started.

“Forget it, Luc. Let’s get this over with. I have other things I want to do today, but if I don’t give my best effort, Father will hear of it and take my other eye.”

His brother lived under the devil’s threat to blind him at any time. Luc would’ve felt more sympathy for him, had his brother avoided torturing him every year. When they were children, they had played together, but Lucifer never let Stiln forget he was an imperfect copy. Eventually his brother’s anger drove a wedge between them.

They ended their walk in a cool, white chamber. It was completely empty with a white concrete floor and blinding white walls. It was as if he was in the middle of nothing.

“So shiny,” Luc smirked.

“Just for you, baby brother, just for you,” Stiln muttered an incantation. A platform rose from the floor and a pair of manacles descended from the ceiling.

For a moment, Luc thought of bolting, but he knew the repercussions of not taking his punishment. Holding back his sigh, Luc headed for the platform.

“Strip first.”

Nodding, Luc propped the guitar against one white wall before stripping off his clothing.

“What is it about you and that guitar? Is it a weapon?”

Luc shook his head. “It’s just a guitar.”

“Hmm.” Stiln gave it one more look, but didn’t mention it again. He waited until Luc stripped and stood on the dais. “Nice necklace. I’ll let you keep it on, it gives you a slave boy air that I find quite enchanting.” He quickly fastened the manacles on each of Luc’s wrists before stepping off the dais.

Walking over to one wall, he pressed a button Luc had missed in his first scanning of the room. The wall rotated. On the other side was a large assortment of torture devices. Covering the wall in a tidy array were whips, knives and blunt instruments.

Luc swallowed his fear, closing his eyes to try to centre himself. He could do this. He had to return to his lovers. Unfortunately, one of the rules was he had to keep conscious or he would forfeit. This was the first year where that was a real possibility.

“Father banned me from marking your face, so your eyes are safe.”

Over the years, Stiln’s favourite taunt was that he was going to take Luc’s eyes so that the devil could see a marred image of himself, but Lucifer always was careful to tell his sons that Luc’s face was sacred and any damage would be reflected permanently on the offender. It kept his face from total destruction, however the rest of his body was free for mutilation.

“Father told me you if I don’t punish you properly, he’ll kill my lover.”

Luc was surprised that his cold brother had taken a lover, but in hell you didn’t have to be a nice guy to get someone to fuck you.

“We both know you will come out of this just fine one way or another. Father won’t let you get killed, but he has no such problem with my lover,” Stiln said, snapping a metal tipped whip through the air. “It doesn’t mean I’m not looking forward to this.”

Luc fought his instinctive cringe when his brother slid the whip across the floor. The scrape of metal against the marble reminded Luc of all the other times he’d been the recipient of that whip.

He closed his eyes. Sometimes it was better not to see what was coming. That didn’t stop him from listening though. A whistling in the air warned him seconds before his skin was flayed. He felt the warm, wet trickle of his blood flowing down his back.