Renegade (58 page)

“Let’s leave them. See how Beelzebub likes being chained with a bunch of dead,” Sam said, surprising me with his callousness.

I glanced at him and he shrugged. “After everything this guy has pulled”—he held up the backpack that held a struggling dark soul—“he deserves worse.”

In the end it didn’t really matter. The decision was made for us. “Look,” I said, pointing to where the gold dust glittered on the ground. We watched as it faded away, sparkling no more, and turned gray and lifeless like the rest of hell. Just as the last of it blinked away, all the leftover demon bodies turned to dust and disappeared.

“We need to do something with him,” Sam said. “This bag isn’t going to hold him much longer.” The backpack was being pummeled from the inside out, swinging around in Sam’s grip as Beelzebub fought against the thick fabric and zipper.

Behind me the souls grew restless. I could feel their sorrow and sudden unease. I glanced back at them, noting the way they trembled. “I need to get them out of here, like
now
.”

“Go,” Sam said. “Riley and I can handle this.”

The idea of splitting up wasn’t really in my plans, but I knew they could handle it. I felt a rueful smile tug my lips. “You do realize
you
just suggested that I go off in hell,
alone
.”

He smiled. “You don’t need me to protect you anymore.”

He was right. I didn’t. I hadn’t needed his protection for a long time. I needed something more important from him.

You’ve got that too, Hev.
His voice floated through my mind.
My heart’s been yours from the day I first saw you.

I smiled.

Riley sighed dramatically. “If you two don’t stop I’m going to let Beelzebub out just to avoid puking.”

I laughed. “I’m going.”

 “Be careful,” Sam called as I climbed on the back of the Devourer.

“Meet me at the fountain in Portland,” I called and gave them a wave as we took off into the sky, the souls trailing behind me like some weird parade.

I swear some days my life was just a little too hard to believe.

“To the InBetween,” I told the Devourer as we soared through the sky.

It was the only place I knew to take them, a place where they would be safe and could cross over into heaven.

I just prayed Airis wouldn’t take one look at me and refuse them all entry.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Sam

I watched her fly off into the depths of hell on the back of a dragon with a group of souls following behind. Even when I shifted the very first time, when I burst out of the kitchen and into the backyard, I never imagined all this. I don’t think anything could have prepared me for what the next few years of my life would bring or the kind of things I would willingly do to protect the people I cared about most.

But I didn’t regret any of it.

As I stood there in the worst place that ever existed, holding on to a bag filled with a dirty, stained soul, and watched the girl I loved more than anything fly off to finish this once and for all, the only thing I felt was proud.

“Are we gonna do this or what?” Riley asked, but when I looked at him he, too, was staring after Heven as she disappeared from sight.

“Yeah. Let’s do this.”

“So how does one chain a soul to the floor of hell, exactly?” Riley wondered.

“We’ll just use one of the chains,” I said, stepping forward to reach for one and then stopping. “Where the hell did they go?”

“Turned to dust with the bodies,”

Fantastic,
I thought, tightening the grip on the bag as it swung around.

“Someone’s getting angry,” Riley sang.

“You actually did it,” a voice from behind called.

Riley and I turned to face Lucifer, who was standing a few feet away looking out over the empty graveyard. “What a shame. I was hoping you all would end up dead.”

Really. What did you expect to hear from the Devil?

“Sorry to disappoint you,” I said dryly.

“Where is Beelzebub?” he asked. “Did you manage to fail at something?”

I held up the bag. “Nope.”

“I’m impressed,” Lucifer said, raising his eyebrows.

“I know you’re the Devil and totally vile and all,” Riley said casually, “but do you think you might give us a hand in chaining him down?”

Lucifer sighed. “I might as well. I do need some source of power down here until I can build up a collection.”

He said it so reasonably. Like stealing and feeding off souls was ordinary. I guess to him it was.

He came forward and reached for the bag. My eyes narrowed and I pulled it back.

“Please.” He rolled his eyes. “Like you could stop me if I wanted to take it.”

He had a point.

Damn it.

I handed over the bag and watched as he released the very angry soul of Beelzebub. He shot up into the sky only to be pulled back down by some unseen force that Lucifer wielded, until he was low to the ground and struggling against the invisible binds.

“I really need to get some of that invisible magic stuff,” Riley muttered.

We watched as the soul was dragged into the middle of the graveyard and black chains pushed through the granite floor, growing like slithering vines and shackling themselves around the soul, rendering him useless.

“I warned you against your greed,” Lucifer said in a commanding tone. “You thought I wouldn’t realize what you were trying to do? You thought I would allow you to come in here and take the very place I have built! I condemn you to the graveyard. Let you serve as an example of what happens to those who go against me!”

And then he turned away from the lonely, confined soul and looked at us. “Are you sure I cannot convince you to join me?”

We both shook our heads.

“I could kill you for refusing.”

“We had a deal,” I said, reminding him. “We do this and you let us be for the rest of our lives.”

“There is that,” Lucifer allowed. “What a pity. We could have created beautiful chaos together.”

“I’m sure you’ll manage on your own,” I said, knowing there was nothing I could do to stop him from continuing to spread anarchy.

“Yes, now if you’ll excuse me, there is bedlam to be had.”

And then he disappeared.

“Funny, I thought he would kill us,” Riley said.

“Let’s get out of here,” I replied, not wanting to hang around to see if he’d come back.

“Fine, but you’re getting a marble. I’m done with that black sludge.” He said it in a way that made me wonder what made him so tired of it.

“Fine,” I agreed as we walked toward the nearest river of nasty.

“So where did you get that convertible anyway?” Riley wondered.

I shrugged. “Stole it.” I tried to remember, but the memory was hazy. All the time I spent without the Mindbond was.

“What happened to the truck?”

“Gone,” I said, wondering what kind of mess I was going to have to deal with when we got back to Earth. I vaguely remembered Kimber doing whatever she did to cover it up, but I had no idea if it worked.

That problem didn’t seem very big, all things considered. I would deal with it when this was over.

“Think Heven’s okay?” Riley said, looking up in the empty sky.

“Yeah, I do,” I said, not needing to reach out through our Mindbond, but trusting enough with my heart that she could take care of herself.

I got the Marble and we made it back to the fountain in Portland, my eyes searching for Heven but seeing she wasn’t there. Doubt began to creep in, fear that something happened down there and she needed me.

I was pondering the fountain, thinking of jumping back in, when Riley slapped a heavy hand on my shoulder. “Give her five,” he said. “If she isn’t back I’ll help you rip up hell.”

I nodded and turned to face Riley, the guy I used to hate. “Thanks for everything, man,” I told him. “I guess you aren’t so bad after all.”

“This isn’t some sappy chick flick, dude.”

I snorted and held up my fist. He bumped his into mine.

That was the closest to a declaration of friendship Riley and I would ever have.

But it was enough.

I glanced back at the fountain, waiting for Heven to arrive. Waiting for all this to be over. Almost there, this was almost over. Another minute dragged by and still I waited.

We haven’t come this far too lose it all, have we?

Heven

In my haste to get the souls to safety and into the InBetween, one slight detail slipped my mind. The fact that in order to cross through the gate of hell you had to cross through a wall of fire and a body of water.

As we approached the solid wall of flames, I realized even though I could pass through without being burned to death, the souls might not have the same luxury.

But we hadn’t come this far to turn back now.

It seemed I was facing one of my greatest challenges. Could I do it? Could I control that wall of fire long enough to extinguish the flames for us to pass? Starting fires wasn’t a problem for me, but putting them out… that was a challenge. And since I didn’t even start this fire, I had no clue if it would even listen.

But fire was fire, right?

I hoped so.

Cause if I failed this, the souls would be lost.