“That was amazing.” Azazel sat Sybil on his bed, after taking them from the hospital to his home. She'd bespelled the doctor without a second thought and the human had listened to her.
She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Her face pinched in pain as she tried to scoot back on the bed. He put a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Let me get Dey. She can heal.”
Sybil stared at him for a second. “An imp that can heal?”
He nodded. “She's very useful in hell for torture.”
Sybil paled.
“I'm joking. She's my accountant and secretary. Every imp has some sort of special talent. Hers is healing.” He walked to his door and opened it. “Dey?”
She appeared inside the room. “You called?”
“Can you heal Sybil, please?”
Dey nodded. “Figured we'd do it as soon as we got here. Either of you see anything when we disappeared?”
Sybil nodded. “Morrah was at the doorway. We got out just in time.”
Azazel paced the room while Dey laid her hands on Sybil's leg cast. The cast fizzled away, leaving a pile of dust on the ground. Sybil kept her eyes downcast at the dust pile while Dey pressed her palm against the broken leg.
Morrah was relentless. He would keep coming after Sybil until she couldn't run anymore. Azazel glanced back over at the witch. “We have to get you somewhere safe.”
“Describe safe? My store blew up. My house is still warded, so that's an option.” She bent her leg back and forth and smiled. Dey put a hand on Sybil's shoulder.
Azazel nodded. “Your ward is pretty strong, so I think that will be okay. For now. But Morrah needs to be taken care of, and whoever blew up the shop needs to be found.”
“It wasn’t Morrah?” Sybil’s voice pitched up a little.
Azazel shook his head. “No. It wasn’t. Morrah wants you alive. The explosion could have killed you. Do you remember anything about what happened before it?” When Dey finished healing her, he sat down next to Sybil and ran his fingers through her hair.
She closed her eyes and turned her back to him. “I was opening the store. I'd just put the till into the register, and I felt magic. Powerful magic. I knew I needed to get out of there.” Her voice shook.
Azazel slowly combed his fingers through her hair, dividing it into three strands. “It's okay, keep going.” He moved each strand over the other to create the braid.
“I was trapped. The doors were locked, and I couldn't break the window.” She took a deep breath. “Then the explosion happened, and I remember being thrown out the window. The barrier was gone.”
He tied off the braid with a band. “The barrier failed then.”
“That's what I would assume.” Her voice quieted down. “I guess I can go home.” She pulled the braid over her shoulder and started playing with the end.
Azazel waited for a moment and looked at Dey. Dey raised a brow and motioned to Sybil.
“Um, look, why don't you stay here? Hell, it isn't so bad. We're like a quiet, dark village, and no one here is going to bother you.”
She smiled. “That's a lovely offer. Maybe for a couple of days? But I need to get Billie and let Chrissy know I'm okay.”
Dey smirked before she disappeared, and Azazel nodded. “Okay, cell phones work down here, so you can call Chrissy. We'll go get Billie soon.”
She fumbled for her phone and hit a few buttons. He stood and left the room to give her a bit of privacy. Part of him thought he was crazy for letting her stay in hell. She was a witch, a human. She belonged on the surface, not in the darkness. No, she should be on the surface in the light, surrounded by friends and family.
He paused at that thought. She'd shut down pretty quick when she was talking about her family. He noticed she mentioned needing to let Chrissy know she was okay and no one else.
He spun around at the sound of footsteps and found Sybil standing there. “Did you speak with Chrissy?”
“Left her a message telling her they released me early and I was staying with a friend for now. Told her the owner would call to speak to her about the store.”
He laughed. “I will as soon as I know what is going on. Hopefully, my people can get it back up and going quickly.”
“She'd shit herself if she realized you were a physical being and not just a deity that we worship.”
“Yeah, well, I like to be low key,” he muttered and the put a hand on her back. “Let's give you a tour.”
She smiled and followed him through the house. He showed her the fully stocked kitchen, the entertainment room, and his office, bathroom, and back to the bedroom.
“It's small, but it's home. I have an office both here in hell and in the human world. Until I know what to do about Morrah, I'd like you to stay below the surface.” He met her gaze. “I don't want you hurt.”
She nodded and tucked her feet up on the bed. “I don't want to be a burden. I'll stay as long as I can, but we both have lives we need to get back to.”
“You aren't a burden.” And he didn't want her leaving the bed, never mind the house or hell. He pressed his lips together. “Um, let's go get Billie and some things for your stay here.”
“Yeah, that's probably a good idea.” She untucked her feet and looked down at her hospital clothes. “Yeah, clothes are a good idea.” She went to her bag and rummaged around, pulling out her keys. “Let's go.”
They appeared in front of her house, and Azazel pushed Sybil behind him as he scanned the street. “Okay, safe.”
Sybil walked into the gate with Azazel on her heals. She could feel how tense he was at her back, and it was making her nervous. Her hand shook a little as she unlocked the door. When it swung open, Billie started bleating and Sybil relaxed. Billie was okay, the house was still secure, and that was good.
Azazel gently urged her to get into the house, and then shut and locked the door behind them. “We don't want to stand in the doorway. Your house maybe protected, but we don't want to stand there like sitting ducks.”
He had a point. She hadn't tested the barrier against things like guns or flying projectiles. “Okay, let me just grab a few things.” She paused. “Do I have time for a quick shower?”
He searched her face, and she tried to put on her best puppy-dog eyes. He sighed. “Real quick.”
“Thank you. I just want to feel clean.” She darted to her room, expecting him to follow, but she heard him talking softly to Billie and then the back door opening.
Never had she felt so easy with a stranger. All of her warning systems should have been going off, but here was a fallen angel that came into her life only a couple of days ago. And here he was, guarding her back, taking care of her goat, and allowing her to stay in his home until he took care of the problem. She snorted. If the problem could be taken care of.
Stepping into the shower, she tried to shake off all the worry. Morrah would give up again, for a bit, and she'd be safe to go about life. Until he came back and forced her to move elsewhere. Again.
Hopefully, with fewer people dying this time.
She swallowed at the thought. What if she got Chrissy killed? Or Azazel? Could a fallen angel die? This was why she didn't have friends. Because Morrah always returned. Always found her, and always destroyed her life.
“Sybil?” Azazel's voice came through the door. “You okay? You've been in there for forty minutes.”
She hadn’t realized she'd been in there so long. “Yeah, I'll be out in a moment,” she called. She washed quickly and shut the water off. Her thoughts had consumed her mind and time had just slipped by. She dried off and got dressed before leaving the bathroom.
“Sorry, I got lost in my thoughts.”
Azazel stood there with his arms crossed. “I was starting to think you fell asleep.”
She raised a brow. “In the shower?”
He shrugged. “I've seen stranger things.”
“I was just thinking, is all. Did Billie come back in? I need to get her on her leash before we go.”
He stepped up and curled a piece of her wet hair around his finger. “Mm, brush your hair first and get your things. Let Billie enjoy outside.”
Blush crept up her face, and she stepped back. When he stood so close, it seemed to affect her thoughts. “Right, hair first, stuff, then Billie. Is there even an outside at your house?”
“Yes, you'd be surprised how nice hell cleans up.” He smirked. “Some of its citizens have pets. Billie will feel right at home.” He crossed his arms. “Go.”
She scooted back into her bedroom to grab her brush and made quick work of her hair. She couldn't believe that she'd agreed to stay in hell. What was she thinking? It was no different than being trapped at home. She pulled her hair up in a messy bun before pulling out a bag to gather some clothes.
She felt Azazel in the room before she heard him.
“Have you heard from Chrissy?”
Grabbing her phone, she checked for any messages. “No, nothing. But she's pretty private on her days off. She'll get to my message at some point.” She put her phone down and went back to getting a few changes of clothes.
Something made a noise outside. There was no way of explaining what exactly it was. A scream mixed with the sound of something crunching. Sybil darted toward the bedroom door and Azazel caught her. “Stay here.”
“That might have been Billie!” she screeched at him and tried to push him away.
He grabbed her hands. “If it was, you don't want to see it. I know you love that goat, but she is not worth your life.”
She had to think through the panic of it. He was right. She swallowed and nodded. He led her to her closet. “Hide here. Stay low. I'll be back in a minute.”
Sybil sunk down to the floor of her closet and he shut the doors, leaving her in the dark. There was never a reason for her to hide in her own house before. Her body shook as a memory tried to flood over her.
“No, not right now. It's okay. It's okay,” she whispered. A thunk sounded, like something hit her bedroom window. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to think of something happy, of being somewhere else other than squished into her closet.
A slimy feeling slid through her body, and she knew her magic was sliding from the house. The barrier was falling. Something was bringing it down.
She growled. Like hell she was losing her safe place.
Muttering a spell, she placed her hands on the floor of the closet. Magic crawled from her palms through her fingers and outwards, challenging the magic that was trying to pull down the barrier.
This was her home, and she was not losing it without a fight.
Azazel stepped into the backyard, looking for the damn goat. Something was wandering outside Sybil's protection, and he was going to find it, but first he needed to check on the goat. “Billie?”
There was no bleating or anything to indicate that the goat was still in the backyard. Fuck. Either it was gone or she'd gotten out. Either way, it wasn't a good thing. He stepped back into the house to hear a thunk coming from the bedroom. He rushed to the room, afraid he'd find Sybil hurt, but there was a bloody smear on the window and Sybil's magic was leaking from out of the closet.
He appeared outside the house to see what the cause of the bloody smear had been. He turned to find half of Billie's body laying against the house. His heart pounded. What on earth would snap a goat in half?
No, not on earth.
Turning back around, he looked to see what stood outside the barrier, trying to take it down. A woman with wild long hair stood there. Leather straps crossed her body, coving just enough. She held out her hand with long nails, dripping with blood. She laughed as her magic swirled around her. “Tell your little witch to come out and play. My master wants to see what she can do.” She let out a long shrill laugh, and the magic crashed over the barrier.
Azazel was about to say something when Sybil came out the front door. He turned to tell her to go back, but the look in her eyes told him she wasn't there.
Her gaze looked glossed over as she came strutting toward the creature at the barrier. “You killed Billie.”
“I sacrificed your goat to our creator,” the woman said easily.
“Billie was not a sacrifice and we do not share a creator.” Sybil snarled. “You may be of magical descent, but you do not serve the same person I do.” Sybil stopped at the gate and looked at the woman. “Serving Morrah will get you nothing.” Sybil's hand shot out and grabbed the witch by the throat. The woman shrieked and flailed around, scratching at Sybil's wrist, but Sybil didn't notice.
Power shot out from Sybil, wrapping around the woman, absorbing any power she tried to use. Azazel stood frozen as he watched Sybil pull the other woman's magic out and then into herself. She dropped the woman and then collapsed on the ground.
The woman slowly stood. “So it is true. She's the one.” She looked up at Azazel. “You've created a monster. She stole my magic without hesitation, without a second thought. What kind of creature have you made?” she yelled.
Azazel picked Sybil up and tried to keep the concern off his face. The stranger was right. Sybil was his monster that he'd created long ago. Born from a bloodline to do exactly what she had just done. Steal magic. “Begone.”
He told the woman.
She stood there for a moment, looking lost and confused. “Morrah?” she called, and Azazel tensed, waiting for the angel to appear. Nothing happened. “He's abandoned you. You're no longer useful to him.”
“He wouldn't do that to me.” She stared at him. “He wouldn't leave me at your mercy.”
Azazel smirked. “I don't have mercy.” He disappeared with Sybil in his arms.
He reappeared in his home and laid her on his bed. She seemed to spend more time unconscious than awake right now. He pulled the blanket over her as her body shivered. Could she be sick? Was the magic she pulled into her making her cold?
He pushed back the hair that had fallen from her bun. This was what he'd wanted when he’d created her bloodline, a fail-safe to take the magic from the humans if they misused it. This was his fault. How many people had she taken magic from? How many times had she defended herself in that way?
She settled into the blanket, and he let out a sigh.
His phone rang, and he answered it. “What's up Dey?”
“Where are you? I thought you were at Sybil's house.”
“We were, but someone attacked. I brought her to my house because I wasn't sure if her barrier was still up or not.”
“Oh, it's not. I'm standing in her yard looking at the corpse of a goat.”
Billie. He rubbed his eyes. “Yeah, okay. Go in and grab the bag she was packing, please?”
“Of course, boss. I'll see you in a few. I'd like to go over some new investments with you.”
He disconnected the call and look at Sybil. “Rest up, my witch. That was bad-ass, but it seems we have to work on some control.”