Ruby Shadows (41 page)

“
It makes perfect sense to
me,” I said coolly, taking my hand off his arm. “Laish knows I
don’t want to stay in Hell.”

“
Yes, yes, but…” He tugged
at his long gray beard. “How can I put it? It would be like you
putting yourself through a great deal of pain and agony simply to
feed a pet ant which you knew would be dead in a couple of
days.”

“
So now I’m his
pet?”
I was really angry
now. “I don’t think so!”

Belial made me a sweeping bow which looked
awkward and uncomfortable with his humped back.

“
Please, forgive me if I
offended you, my dear—it was not done intentionally. I was
simply…surprised. That’s all.”

“
Surprised that Laish
could care for a mortal?” I asked stiffly.

“
Well, yes, to be candid.”
Belial shrugged his hunched shoulders. “Then again, one thing I
have always liked about Lord Laish was his ability to violate my
expectations. He has always had a mind of his own—even when I first
found him and he was new to our realm.”

I didn’t know what to say to that. I wasn’t
exactly ready to accept his apology about the whole “pet”
thing—which was pretty freaking offensive—so I just nodded. We left
the library and retraced our steps to the top of the spiral
staircase where the carpet began in the right hand hallway.

“
This half of the Citadel
is reserved for Lord Laish’s private living quarters,” Belial
explained in a subdued voice. “Please make yourself at home and I
will have a selection of bathing products sent up to you
presently.”

“
Thank you,” I said
shortly. Then, feeling bad because he looked like an old dog that
had been kicked I added, “And thank you for the tour. It was very
interesting.”

The old demon brightened up a little
bit.

“
I am so glad you enjoyed
it. I do love to show people around the Citadel. And…” He hesitated
for a moment. “And I
do
hope you’ll find it in your heart to forgive my
ill chosen words about your mortality. After all, if Lord Laish has
chosen to open himself to you and offer you the Sacrifice of Blood,
I am certain he has a good reason for it.”

“
Thank you,” I said again,
a little more warmly this time. “I, uh, hope you’re
right.”

“
I am certain that I am.
You must be very special to him.” Belial nodded again, smiling and
then made a motion with his hand. “Please enjoy the
facilities.”

“
I will,” I said. I
watched as he began climbing laboriously down the spiral bone
staircase, clutching the railing with one bony hand, before I
turned back to open the door into Laish’s living area. I only hoped
the bathing pool was as wonderful as it sounded. I needed someplace
relaxing to rest and process everything Belial had told me…and
everything he
hadn’t
told me as well.

Chapter
Twenty-six

Gwendolyn

The bathing pool was everything I’d hoped
for and more.

It was a long, rectangular
tub set right into the floor—which was made of indigo blue tile
with golden streaks running through it—and it really
was
a pool. By which I
mean, I could have done laps in it if I wanted to. There was even a
deep end and a shallow end—I couldn’t wait to get in.

I started the water running and went to
explore the rest of the area. There was a bedroom with a big four
poster bed and a white spread. I wondered if Laish had ordered the
white spread just for me and then decided that was silly. Still,
the rest of the room was done in black—black carpet… black curtains
in the single eye socket-window. It did have white walls though so
maybe he just had a black and white theme going on.

There was another fireplace across from the
bed, though it wasn’t as large as the one in the library, with a
single black armchair in front of it. There was a crackling fire
already going in the grate and I took off the white fur coat and
draped it over the back of the chair. Eryn fluttered up from my
shoulder briefly and then settled on the coat—maybe she liked the
softness of the fur.

“
That’s right—you stay
there, little girl,” I told her. “You’re better off, especially
since I’m going to get a nice long bubble bath—if they ever bring
up the bath products Belial promised me.”

Just then, as if in answer to my thoughts, I
heard a soft tapping at the door.

Remembering what had happened at the Hotel
Infernal, I went across cautiously and called, “Who’s there?”
without opening up.

“
Just me, my lady,”
squeaked a little voice.

I cracked the door just a tiny bit and saw
the little imp who had greeted us so excitedly when we first rode
up on Kurex. He was a tiny little guy, no higher than my knee, with
red skin and sharp little horns growing out of the curly black hair
on his head. In his hands was an immense silver tray filled with
all kinds of bottles and jars. It looked much too heavy for him and
indeed, he was sweating and trembling under its weight.

“
Compliments of Master
Belial,” he panted. “Please, my lady, would you like me to bring
them in?”

“
No, you can just leave
the tray there,” I said firmly. He seemed harmless enough and Laish
had said I was safe here but I was still a lot more wary than I had
been in the past. After everything that had happened lately, who
could blame me?

“
As my lady wishes,” the
little imp squeaked. He put the tray down carefully to one side of
the door, so that the glass bottles and jars only clinked together
a little. Then he bowed so deeply the tips of his horns brushed the
deep blue carpet that covered this half of the hallway.

“
Thank you,” I said,
smiling a little despite myself.

“
Anything I can do to
serve. Your servant, my lady,” he replied, attempting to straighten
up. I say “attempting” because he couldn’t quite manage it. Looking
closer, I saw that his sharp little horns had gotten tangled in the
loops of the Berber-type carpet. He was stuck, bent nearly in half,
as he wiggled and struggled to get his head up again. But the more
he struggled, the more entangled his horns got in the carpet. “Oh,
oh!” he squeaked. “Oh, dear!”

He was such a comical sight that I couldn’t
help laughing, though I tried to smother the sound and turn it into
a cough.

“
Are you all right?” I
asked, forgetting my wariness. “Do you need some help?”

“
Oh no, my lady,” he
gasped, panting for breath. “A bit of a kafuffle is all. I
shall…shall be all right presently.”

“
Don’t be silly,” I said.
Taking a chance, I knelt down and reached out the door. Gently, I
untangled his horns from the carpet.

He must have been straining very hard to
stand up because once he was free, he popped up so quickly that he
toppled over with his little cloven hooves pawing the air
comically.

This time I really couldn’t help laughing
out loud though I didn’t want to be unkind. I covered my mouth and
tried to hold it in but the first giggle got out before I could
stop it.

The little imp got up on his feet, looking
very red in the face—which was saying something since his skin was
already red.

“
I do thank you, my lady,”
he said earnestly, looking up at me. “It’s very kind of you to free
me from the entanglements of fate.”

Or the carpet,
I thought but didn’t say.

“
Of course.” I tried to
smooth out my face and nodded at him seriously. “And it’s very kind
of you to bring me all this wonderful bubble bath.”

“
Merely doing my job, my
lady. Is there anything else you require? Anything I can bring
you?” he asked, looking up at me earnestly.

“
Not right now. Thank you
so much.” I smiled at him.

“
You’re very welcome. I’m
at your service for as long as you are here in the Citadel, my
lady.” He started to bow again and then stopped himself, eyeing the
carpet warily.

On impulse, I leaned down and put out a hand
for him to shake.

Uncertainly, he took it. His little hand was
as small as a child’s but he had a surprisingly firm grip. His skin
was also quite hot.

“
Thank you, my lady.” He
looked both surprised and gratified that I would shake his
hand.

“
I’ll see you later…?” I
let the question hang in the air, wondering if he was allowed to
give me his name.

“
Bobbin, my Lady. I’m
Bobbin—that’s me.” He flashed me a quick little grin that showed
very white teeth and nodded at me in a friendly way.

It didn’t sound like a demon’s name but
then, he didn’t seem to be the typical demon, either.

“
Well, Bobbin, I’m
Gwendolyn. You can call me by my name—you don’t have to keep saying
‘my lady.’”

“
Oh no, my lady!” He
looked shocked. “I couldn’t possibly call the consort of Lord Laish
by her proper name! He’d have me skinned alive and thrown into the
Lake of Fire, so he would!”

“
No, he won’t,” I promised
him. “I wouldn’t let him do that to you. But if it makes you feel
better, why not call me ‘my lady Gwendolyn?’ I mean, it makes me
sound like somebody at the Renaissance Festival but if it makes you
feel better…”

“
It does. Thank you, my
lady Gwendolyn, for your great kindness to Bobbin.” He looked up at
me shyly. “You…you’re very pretty you know. I can see why Lord
Laish is so taken with you.”

“
Well, thank you, Bobbin.”
I smiled at him.

“
I speak only the truth.”
He ducked his head and kissed the back of my hand quickly with his
hot little lips. Then he straightened up, his face red again, and
scampered off down the hallway as fast as his stubby legs could
carry him.

I watched him go with a grin on my face.
Maybe everyone in Hell wasn’t horrible. I was glad we had a little
time here to recover before we headed out on the road again.
Leaning down, I picked up the tray and took it inside—I wanted a
bubble bath worse than I’d ever wanted anything in my life and I
was finally going to get it.

~~~

I must have drifted off in the tub because
the next thing I remember were hushed voices outside the bathroom
door.

“…
simply cannot understand
why you would do such a thing,” a voice that sounded like Belial’s
said.

“
I told you,” Laish
replied. “I had no choice but to abandon my wyrm form—there were
too many Skitterlings to contend with.”

“
But you didn’t have to
give up your second most powerful form, my Lord! It took you
centuries
to cultivate
it!”

“
My only other option was
to give up Gwendolyn to them,” Laish said coldly. “And I was not
about to do that.”

“
But why not?” Belial
asked earnestly. “Truly she is a charming young woman but she is,
after all, only a mortal. I could understand if you were intent on
keeping her here with you for eternity but you are going out of
your way
not
to
damn her.”

“
And what makes you think
that?” Laish demanded.

“
Because of what she told
me—that you are making the Sacrifice of Blood for her every time
you feed her. Quite apart from the pain you must be enduring for
her sake, may I remind you, my Lord, how very dangerous that can
be, especially to one who hangs in the balance as you do
yourself?”

“
You need not remind me of
anything, Belial.” Laish’s deep voice cracked like a whip. “I’m
well aware of the consequences of my actions.”

“
But my Lord, I do not
understand
why.”
The old demon’s voice sounded almost plaintive now. “Why put
yourself through pain and trouble and suffering for a single mortal
girl?”

Laish sighed and I could almost picture him
running a hand through his hair.

“
To tell the truth,
Belial, I do not quite understand why myself. Gwendolyn has a hold
on me—I can explain it no better than that,” he said in a low
voice.

“
But my Lord, there must
be
some
reason.”

“
Belial…” There was a
warning in Laish’s low voice but still the other demon
continued.

“
Is it that you wish to
sample her soul? You never had a taste for them before but I can
understand if you’ve developed a liking. Maybe hers has a special
flavor? Are you taking it little by little so that she doesn’t even
feel the loss?”

Ugh—what an awful idea! I hadn’t even known
such a thing was possible. Laish’s next words only made me feel a
little bit better.

“
I have not tasted her
soul…yet,” he said.

Yet? What the hell is that
supposed to mean?
I thought angrily.
Hadn’t he told me he wasn’t interested in my soul? Had he lied
about that? And what else had he lied about?

“
Is it that she feeds your
power? Is her lust stronger than most?” Belial demanded
relentlessly. “Is it magnified by her witchcraft? Or is it her
innocence you seek? Surely with such power as you gained from
reaping that you could regain your wyrm form or perhaps even
cultivate an even more powerful one.”