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I stared at the phone and then met her dark and frightened gaze. Naomi shifted behind me and I stepped forward, taking the handset from Valerie. I tried to swallow, but my mouth was devoid of saliva and my shoulder still throbbed where the bullet shattered the bone.
“Hello,” I managed and the chuckle on the other end of the line bit under my skin. I snapped my gaze to Naomi.
“You took something that belonged to me,” Lucifer said, his voice holding a measure of anger along with a mocking joy. “I want the girl in exchange,” he said.
“Not on your life,” I growled.
“What about her parents’ lives?”
“That’s a joke, right?” I said and he chuckled, making sucking sounds that disgusted me with their familiarity. I could see the still beating heart he clutched and the monument of my failure hit. “You’re a bastard, you know that?” I whispered and met Naomi’s gaze.
“Is my original meal still alive?”
“She tasted better than anything on this earth,” I said, speaking the truth and knowing Lucifer would take that as a no.
He laughed. “So you’re not only running from me, you’ve got Michael on your ass, too?”
I remained quiet.
“And now with another of his descendants dead, I’m sure he’s going to step up his game.”
“Probably,” I conceded. There was no reason to lie. Michael was going to be fired up, even with Valerie still breathing.
“I’ve got a bounty out for your head,” he snickered and I looked at the floor, taking a deep breath. “You won’t get out of that house alive and I’ll have my pure virgin heart that I’ve waited so long to taste.”
“Fuck you,” I whispered and disconnected the call. I put the phone down, trying to frame a way to tell this sweet girl her parents were dead and it was my oversight that caused it. I should have never had them so close, but I figured I could keep them safe in this remote setting.
What a fucking joke.
“Damian?” Naomi asked.
I sat on the couch and ran my hands into my hair, resting my elbows on my knees while I grappled for words. When I came up empty, I just shook my head without bringing my gaze to either of them.
“What’s he saying?” Valerie asked and I kept my gaze locked on the floor.
“He’s saying they’re dead,” Naomi answered and I nodded.
“What do you mean, they’re dead?” The hysterics in her tone brought my gaze to hers. Naomi had moved to her side and wrapped her arm around the girl.
“Just like my grandfather,” she said meeting my gaze.
I nodded. “And Lucifer has issued a bounty for my head.”
“Lucifer?” Valerie’s voice rose. “As in the devil?”
“Yes,” I said straightening my back. “You’re a delicacy to him.”
“Why?” she asked in a voice filled with pain and sorrow.
“Because of your lineage,” Naomi said, taking over the conversation. “But neither Damian nor I will let anything happen to you.” She led Valerie to the overstuffed chair. “I know this all sounds crazy and unreal, but we won’t let your parent’s sacrifice be in vain.”
I laughed and stood, turning my back on their surprised gaze, surveying the landscape. The buildings were protected from angels and demons, but that’s not what he was sending to collect. He was sending his hybrid monsters to bring back his bounty.
Her hand on my arm pulled my attention away from the darkness.
“What is it?”
“He knows where we are,” I said. “And he knows how to kill me.”