The Devil made me…

I’m Lilith Straight, the Devil’s servant. You’d think that it would be straightforward, wouldn’t you? Carry out the Devil’s work, that’s all: wreak havoc and cause carnage on Earth…

The problem is, I still have a conscience. Which makes life just a little bit tricky in Hell, as you might imagine. And when your sister actually belongs in Heaven, the hot man in your life has his own devilish agenda and the rest of your family won’t stop meddling in your unfinished business…well, let’s just say it’s complicated!

No one ever plays by the rules in Hell, so maybe it’s time to make up my own!

Also by Michelle Scott:

Straight to Hell

Straight to Heaven

Straight by the Rules

Michelle Scott

Copyright

HQ

An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd.

1 London Bridge Street

London SE1 9GF

First published in Great Britain by HQ in 2015

Copyright © Michelle Scott 2015

Michelle Scott asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.

E-book Edition © October 2015 ISBN: 9781474045889

Version date: 2018-10-30

MICHELLE SCOTT

has been a fiction junkie all of her life. Although she’ll read everything from literature to mystery to modern classics, she has a special penchant for urban fantasy. She is also a huge nerd and an unapologetic Doctor Who fan, preferring Tom Baker above all others. In college, Michelle earned her BA in psychology and met the guy of her dreams. Thirty years later, she has never once used her psychology degree, but is still married to Mr. Right, which proves that a good college education is worth every penny. Currently, she is a straight-laced community college English teacher by day, while at night, she stalks supernatural beings in her hometown of Detroit. Michelle lives with her husband and three children, all of whom are addicted to Doctor Who (and urban fantasy) as much as she.

A huge thank you to everyone who helped me with the latest Lilith Straight installment. First off, to my loving and patient family. Next, to Nancy Fulda and Maria Schneider who were invaluable as beta readers. Then to my friend and writing buddy, W. G. Garvey. Finally, an extra-special thanks to my HQ Digital editor, Charlotte Mursell, for helping to turn this raw material into a polished gem. I hope that every writer is as lucky as I am in having such a wonderful, supportive group of people.

To my ever-supportive family

Contents

Cover

Blurb

Book List

Title Page

Copyright

Author Bio

Acknowledgement

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Three

Excerpt

Endpages

About the Publisher

Chapter One

For the first time since being forced into service as the Devil’s temptress, I’d reached a doorway in Hell that I couldn’t enter.

With its industrial gray paint and silver knob, the door was nearly identical to every other one in Hell, yet it made me pause. It had been labeled ‘Authorized Personnel Only,’ and mounted above it was a single, red light bulb in a metal cage.

For the most part, the Hell I traveled appeared like a dreary office building. With its endless corridors, flickering fluorescent lights, and scuffed walls, Hell was more depressing than intimidating. But I wasn’t fooled. Ever since I’d been hit by a car and died seven months before, I’d seen enough of the place to know a nightmare lay underneath the façade.

My mind went back to the final moments of my life. Even after all this time, I relived those seconds over and over again. As I crossed the street, my eyes were glued to my cell phone screen and the dirty picture that I was texting my stepsister. A flash of white caught my attention, and I glanced up to see the Volvo speeding towards me. It was too late to run, and to my horror, the car never swerved. A second before it hit me, I got a look at the driver – a grim-faced man dressed in white. Then my feet were knocked out from under me, and I flew up and hit the windshield. It was like being run over by a charging elephant. The impact knocked the shoes off of my feet and my soul out of my body. One minute, I was walking on Earth, and the next I was deep in the bowels of hell.

Now, I was facing a door that I couldn’t open.

Afraid that I’d made a wrong turn, I looked to my succubus for help. My succubus was the demon who had possessed me since I’d been forced into service for the Devil. How do we get past this door? I asked her. She doesn’t speak to me directly, but sends me mental signals. Right then, she was begging me to run away.

“We can’t leave,” I said, irritably. As much as I didn’t want to tempt someone into doing the Devil’s dirty work, I also didn’t dare not do it, either. If I disobeyed Helen Spry, my demon overlord, she wouldn’t hesitate to show me how awful the real Hell could be.

I blamed my great-great-great-great-great grandmother, Sarah Goodswain, for getting me into this mess. Back in the 1700s, she had made a deal with the Devil to get out of being hanged as a witch. The deal had included not only her, but all of her female progeny as well. Now, I was stuck serving the Devil until I could find a way out of that contract.

Despite the door’s ominous vibes, I put my hand on the doorknob and prepared to turn it. My succubus panicked. She yanked hard on her reins, and my hand swiped to the left.

“What’s your issue?” I demanded. Normally, doing the Devil’s work thrilled my inner demon, but something about this door upset her. In fact, she was more agitated now than she had been on those occasions when we’d gone into Heaven. Because Hell boosts her strength, she once again took control of me. Despite my efforts to move forward, I was forced back a few steps. When she begged me to leave a second time, I agreed. If she was so concerned about that doorway, then something must be wrong.

I double-checked the note that Delilah, Miss Spry’s new assistant, had given me. My job was coaxing people into doing the Devil’s work, and Delilah’s was to come up with the names of those people and make appointments for me. Because I’d been complaining that I couldn’t read her writing, she’d taken special pains to print clearly. She’d also added a hand-drawn map. Even so, I couldn’t find my client.

Not that it mattered now. The appointed moment had already passed. These temptations were always timed down to the minute since it was crucial to approach the victims when they were most vulnerable to temptation. Even being a few seconds late could result in a missed opportunity.

Frustrated, I crumpled the note and shoved it into my pocket. Missing the temptation didn’t upset me, but Miss Spry was not an understanding or forgiving demon. Even though the bungled assignment wasn’t my fault, she’d use it as an excuse to punish me just as she had in the past.

Although it was probably pointless, I decided to pay a visit to Delilah and see if we could salvage the job. I left the ominous door and retraced my steps. The identical hallways made Hell labyrinthine, but luckily, my succubus worked like a supernatural GPS system, and within minutes, I found Delilah’s office.

I knocked once, then walked in. Delilah glared at me from behind her desk. A large woman with dark skin and dreadlocks, she was far different from Patrick Clerk, the man she’d replaced. Today, she wore a bright yellow dress and, as always, armfuls of silver bangles. “Don’t tell me,” she said. “Something went wrong.”

Delilah’s bad mood most likely resulted from her impossible job. Mr. Clerk, Miss Spry’s assistant for many years, had become an expert at reading the complex blueprints mapping out each human’s life. Delilah, however, had been working for only a few weeks. Her nerves must have been frayed.

“I couldn’t find the right door,” I said.

“I drew you a map.”

“I know, but it led me to a door that said ‘Authorized Personnel Only.’”

She looked alarmed. “You didn’t try to open it, did you?”

“My succubus wouldn’t let me.”

She sighed, relieved. “Good.”

Asking questions in Hell was frowned upon, but curiosity drove me on. “Why? What’s behind it?”

“Nothing you need to worry about,” she said sternly. “If Miss Spry marks a door as Authorized, then stay away from it. Now, let me see that map.”

When I handed her the paper, her face sagged. “This note wasn’t meant for you.” She shuffled folders and notes on her desk until she uncovered another slip of paper. “This was the one you needed.”

“It’s okay,” I said, sighing. “Don’t worry about it.”

Her expression tightened. “No, it’s not okay. Making a mistake is understandable, but making a stupid mistake is just…stupid.” She met my eyes. “I am not a stupid person.”

“I know you aren’t,” I said. “This job is overwhelming. That’s all.” Mr. Clerk had left abruptly, and Delilah had been dumped into his position without so much as a how-to manual or employee orientation.

“I don’t need you to tell me about my job,” she said. “Besides, this job is only part of the problem. Miss Spry also wants me to schedule her appointments, write her letters, and even make her damned tea!” Delilah’s jaw muscles bunched. “I think I’m doing pretty well considering.”

In reality, Delilah’s success rate hovered at twenty-five percent, but I didn’t mention it since I was determined to stay on her good side. The more friends I could make in Hell, the better. “Don’t worry. You’ll get the hang of it eventually. Besides, things could be worse. Hell does have nice accommodations.”

Delilah had transformed the former assistant’s austere office by adding wood paneling and black leather furniture. A stunning sepia-toned photograph of a thunderstorm rolling across an African savannah took up one wall. Another had a window overlooking a cityscape. If you believed the illusion Delilah had created, we were several dozen stories up in a downtown skyscraper.

Delilah finally laughed. It was a tired, unhappy laugh, but it was better than her typical glare. “Decorating your office in Hell is like painting a gallows pink.”

“Maybe you should get a computer,” I said.

“How would that help?” She went back to cranky. “What software am I going to use? I’m pretty sure Microsoft doesn’t make a program for finding the best way to make people sin.”

“I only wanted to help,” I told her.

“If you want to help, explain to the boss lady about what happened. I can’t deal with her right now.” We both glanced at the door leading to Miss Spry’s study. Since taking on Delilah as her assistant, Helen had also changed the layout of her office. She and her former assistant used to work next door to each other, but now Delilah also played the part of receptionist.

No one liked to deal with Miss Spry, but I decided to give the overwhelmed assistant a break. “Okay. I’ll go.”

Delilah picked up her phone and pushed a button. “Lilith Straight to see you,” she said. “Go right in,” she told me, hanging up the phone.

Taking a deep breath, I went to face the woman whom I feared more than anyone else on Earth or in Hell.

“Lilith!” Miss Spry greeted me like her oldest and dearest friend, but I wasn’t fooled. The old she-demon hated me as much as I hated her.

“Hello.” As I took one of the chairs in front of her desk, I glanced at her couch, searching for the bloodstains I’d tracked in a few weeks before. Luckily, they’d been cleaned up. Once again, the place was quiet and elegant. Miss Spry looked glamorous as well. Her herringbone trousers, white shirt, and cardigan gave her a Katharine Hepburn style that was both mannish yet very feminine. She even pulled off the short, overly permed hairstyle.

A tea tray sat on Miss Spry’s desk, and when she offered me some, I accepted. Ordinarily, I’m a coffee drinker, but I could never resist her tea. “Can you tell me where you get this?” I asked. My dad, the tea expert, had a birthday in a few days, and the tea would make a perfect gift.

“I’ll be happy to send you some,” she said.

I regarded her warily. “In exchange for what?”

She lifted her eyebrows in surprise. “In exchange for nothing. I like to keep my employees happy.”

Yeah, right. We both knew nothing in Hell was free, and that Helen loved it when her employees were miserable, not happy.

“Never mind,” I told her.

Her smile was sly. “Tea doesn’t require a contract with the Devil.”

I didn’t believe her for a second.

Helen made a notation in her day planner. “I’ll send Delilah out for some later on today. And speaking of Delilah…” she leaned back in her chair “…let me guess. You’re here because my new assistant once again ruined your assignment?”

I shrugged. “Not on purpose.”

I’d expected my boss to go into a demon-powered rage, but she didn’t. “Delilah is taking longer than I hoped to get up to speed on the job. I may have to reassign her.” Miss Spry tugged thoughtfully on her pearls. “Perhaps she’d do better in maintenance. They’re always recruiting help. After all, those torture chambers can get very messy.”

I blanched. Delilah was a prickly person, but cleaning bodily fluids from the insides of iron maidens was a harsh punishment. “All she needs is a little training. Maybe you could bring Patrick back to help,” I suggested. A few weeks ago, I’d been furious at Mr. Clerk because I’d discovered some of the dirty things he’d done to me, but now I missed him. I hated watching Real Housewives by myself. Plus, I’d bought a new dress that I was dying to ask his opinion about. For the past seven months, Patrick Clerk had been the closest thing I’d had to a girlfriend. Which was pathetic since, during that time, he’d tried to kill me. Twice.

Miss Spry’s lips twitched. “I doubt Patrick will be returning.”

That sounded ominous. Since learning of his disappearance, I’d feared the worst. I’d been making discreet inquiries about his whereabouts, but to no avail. The only thing I knew for sure was that he hadn’t been lost in the wager Miss Spry had made with God earlier in the summer. I, personally, had made sure she’d won.

Which reminded me. “What did you win in your bet against God, anyway?”

Her eyes sparkled, and she pointed to a side table next to her couch. Sitting under a glass dome was a brown lump. “Isn’t it wonderful?”

It looked like a woodchip that had been stolen from someone’s flower garden. “Sure, I guess. What is it?”

“It’s a piece of the true cross. A holy icon here in Hell!” She smiled at it lovingly. “The irony is so delicious. It reminds me of the best three days of my life.”

I didn’t remember a lot from Catholic school, but I knew that story well enough. “Weren’t those the days when all hope on Earth died?”

“Exactly.” Her smile widened, making me shudder.

She turned her attention back to me. “Now, as far as your assignments go, do the best you can. Delilah is still on probation, but if she errs again, let me know.”

I nodded but decided I would not rat out Helen’s assistant. The visual of poor Delilah cleaning up after the torturers was too much to stomach.

Figuring our meeting was over, I drained the rest of my tea and stood. Helen stopped me. “I’m glad you showed up today because I have something we need to discuss. Girl to girl.”

I tensed. There was nothing remotely girlish about Helen Spry. “What is it?”

She pushed several pamphlets across the desk. “I want you to read these, choose one, and make an appointment. I’ll cover all of the costs, of course.”

I sat down and hesitantly picked up the first brochure, which displayed a full-color photograph of a sleeping baby and the caption, “Your Family. Your Choice.” I frowned and opened it. The first paragraph to catch my eye began, “Now that you’ve decided to experience intrauterine insemination…”

Intrauterine insemination? What the hell? The next paragraph answered my question. My jaw dropped, and I met Miss Spry’s cruel smile. “You want me to get pregnant?”

“It’s written in your contract, my dear. One generation must follow another in service.”

“You say that about everything!” I argued. Helen loved to quote my contract, but I’d never read it myself. Half the time, I felt that she was making up the rules as she went along.

She gave me a wicked smile and waved her hand. An immense book dropped from the ceiling and fell on her desk with a bang and a cloud of dust. She flipped through several pages. “It’s right here in black and white. See for yourself.”

I took the magnifying glass she handed me and bent over the massive tome. Sure enough, I read: “If, at any time, a descendent of Sarah Goodswain fails to produce progeny, or if a descendent is unable to serve for any reason (e.g. death), the Devil shall use any means necessary to reinstate the line.”

“Since you won freedom for your sweet, little Grace, you are obligated to have another daughter. After all, someone must follow you into the family business.” She spoke casually, as if we were back to discussing tea.

My mouth was paper dry. “No.”

Her lips twitched. “What?”

I would not bring a child into the world for the sole purpose of being Helen Spry’s slave. My voice grew firmer. “No.” I shoved the brochure across her desk. “I will not do it.”

“Do you think you’re the first woman in Sarah Goodswain’s line who has tried to thwart me like this?” There was not a speck of mercy in her eyes. “I will give you the same choice I gave your mother when she refused to get pregnant. You either find a way to get yourself with child, or I will see that you do. I am happy to provide a civilized solution, but I will take harsher measures if necessary. And believe me, my way will not be pleasant.”

I knew my mother had been ordered to become pregnant with me, but I’d thought she’d done it willingly. But what if she hadn’t? Dark thoughts crept into my mind. If Helen wanted me pregnant, she would know men who were willing to do the deed. With or without my consent.

She leaned back in her chair, her fingers steepled under her chin. “Why must you fight your destiny so hard?”

I stared woodenly at the picture of the baby on the brochure. “Leading innocent souls into Hell makes me sick.” This was the literal truth. Since becoming a succubus, I’d suffered more sleepless nights and upset stomachs than I had at any other time in my life, including the months I’d been embroiled in my divorce.

Helen laughed. “Innocent souls? Did I just hear you say innocent souls? What makes you think any of those are innocent?”

“Okay, so maybe they’re not innocent,” I amended, “but they’re not monsters, either. They don’t deserve Hell.”

A mocking smile tugged at her lips. “So those men who kidnapped you at gunpoint a few weeks ago…they don’t deserve to be punished?”

Gunpoint. I shuddered. The memory was fresh in my mind. Tied to a chair, I was helpless against the crazy man who pressed the cold muzzle of a handgun against my head. He was drunk and angry, two factors that made him unpredictable. My inner demon shouted at me to fight back, but I was sick and dizzy from a blow to the head. Concentrating was difficult. The man’s partner was setting up a camera, ready to film whatever was in store for me. I wanted to plead with them and let my succubus talk her way out of this mess, but duct tape sealed my lips. The man with the gun faced the camera and began to rave against the government. He gestured wildly with his free hand, but he kept the gun pointed at me. It was only a matter of time before he pulled the trigger. If I didn’t do something, I’d never make it out of the basement alive! Pushing aside my nausea, I struggled against the restraints. All I had to do was reach the otherworld doorway at the top of the steps. It was so close, yet so far away. Just when I thought that I was headed for an unmarked grave, my succubus came up with a plan. A plan that saved my life.

I realized that Miss Spry was still waiting for my answer. “Well, yes, they do deserve to be punished,” I admitted, “but…”

“But what? Do you want to overlook bad behavior? Let every offender get off scot-free?”

“No, of course not…”

She raised her eyebrows. “So what’s your objection?”

Miss Spry’s logic always twisted my brain. As I struggled to come up with a good rebuttal, she asked, “Did you think the names I give you were picked at random?”

I had, actually.

She smiled grimly. “Those names are given to you for a reason. If a human is being tempted, it’s because he deserves it. Heaven delivers rewards, and Hell delivers punishment. You may not like your job, but I assure you, it’s necessary.”

She was a liar, but a good one. I sensed there were flaws in her arguments, but I was too overwhelmed by her order to get pregnant to refute them.

“Now, I’ll give you some time to decide how you want to proceed with your insemination. But if you continue to stall, we’ll do things my way.”

In the short time I’d known her, Helen Spry had threatened my family, stolen my daughter, and nearly killed me. She’d spent the last nine months terrifying me, and as a result, I’d caved in to her demands over and over again. But like I’d promised Patrick Clerk, I was done being Helen’s toy. I’d won a reprieve for my daughter. I’d win this battle, too.

Feeling far less brave than I sounded, I lifted my chin and said, “I will not get pregnant for you. Helen.”

I’d never before used her first name to her face, and she blinked. “So it’s Helen now is it?”

“Yes.”

She smiled nastily. “Feeling powerful are we?”

It’s a good thing I was sitting down because I’d started to shake. I gripped the arms of the chair with sweating hands.

She came around to my side of the desk and sat on it. “Before you do something you’ll regret, let me give you some advice. I’ve seen seven generations of your ancestors pass through my office. At one time or another, each of them tried to grow a spine and defy me. When that happened, do you know what I told them?”

My mouth was too dry for me to speak, so I shook my head.

“I reminded them that I owned them body and soul.” As Helen became more and more angry, the forties-era glamour disappeared. Her demon took over, and her eyes grew hot. “I can do with you whatever I want. I can hurt you in ways you could never imagine. I can drag you to levels of Hell so terrible that a rational woman would go insane simply hearing about them.”

I began to sweat at my hairline. A trickle of moisture ran from my temple.

“I know more tortures than any other creature in the human universe, and I show no mercy. Try to cross me, and I will instantly have you cursing your own name.” Her neck stretched, becoming long and sinewy like a snake, and she put her face very near to mine. “Do you understand?”

It was all I could do to look at her terrible face. “Perfectly. Helen.” I squeezed my eyes shut and braced myself, trying to prepare for whatever she sent at me next.

She laughed. “Oh, Lilith. You do amuse me, you poor, pathetic creature.”

I opened one eye, and when I saw that she no longer appeared monstrous, I opened the other one as well. She put the brochures back into her desk drawer. “I’ll give you some time to make a decision,” she said. “But don’t take too long.”

I hadn’t bested Helen – I certainly hadn’t expected to – but I’d held a measure of ground against her. That tiny victory had to count for something.

When I left Helen’s office, I found William Benedict sitting on the corner of Delilah’s desk.

William, my incubus counterpart, was as seductive as only a demon could be. Dark hair, dark eyes, strong chin, broad shoulders – these were only a few of his alluring features. Most of his charms had to do with his incubus. Because of his demon, William could play to every fantasy. Over the time I’d known him, I’d seen him act strong and silent, dark and brooding, humble and helpless. The man had literally seduced angels out of Heaven.

Seeing my ashen complexion, William said, “It looks like someone was taken to the woodshed.” His tone was jocular, but his eyes expressed concern. “Are you all right?”

“Helen and I had a little disagreement, that’s all.” I forced myself to smile.

William quirked his eyebrow at my use of Miss Spry’s first name, but said nothing.

Deciding the drama was over, Delilah turned her attention back to William and said, “Don’t you have somewhere to be right now?”

Over the past few weeks, William had been using all of his charms on Helen’s new assistant, hoping to melt her layer of ice. Every day, he sent her bouquets of flowers along with boxes of candy and other treats. He chatted with her, complimented her, and asked questions about her life before death. Delilah, however, must have had an entire glacier surrounding her because she barely gave him a smile.

“I’m free for lunch,” he told her. “Care to join me?”

She glowered. “Get your damn butt off my desk.”

William stood up. “Most women love my damn butt. Isn’t that right, Lil?” He winked at me.

“Don’t kid yourself, William.”

He stopped smiling. “You are a coldhearted she-demon.”

“It’s better than being an egotistical, condescending know-it-all,” I retorted.

“Stop it!” Delilah glared at both of us. “If you two are going to start fussing at each other again, then get out of my office!”

William, sulky, left without saying goodbye. I waited exactly five seconds before following him.

Just as I’d hoped, he was standing around the first bend in the hallway. My heart lit up when I saw him, but I couldn’t let my affection show. Not here in the middle of Hell where all could see it. If Miss Spry ever found out my true feelings for William, she’d take him away from me just to laugh while my heart broke.

“‘Egotistical know-it-all’?” William said. “That was harsh, Lil. Very harsh.”

“What about ‘coldhearted she-demon’?”

We began walking. I let the backs of my fingers brush against his and wished I could hold his hand. “Technically, you are a she-demon,” he said. “Whereas I am not a know-it-all.”

“Says you.”

We entered yet another, much longer, corridor. This one was lined with dozens of doors. In front of one lay a small backpack, the kind a day hiker might use on an outing. William stopped and picked it up. “Did you get my note?”

“I did.” In fact, I’d tucked it under my pillow so I could fall asleep dreaming about him.

He was trying very hard not to smile. “And are you wearing comfortable shoes this time?”

The last time I’d ignored his advice, I’d ended up playing eighteen holes of golf in high-heeled wedges. “Of course.” I lifted the bottoms of my jeans to show off a pair of hiking boots.

“Good!” He put the backpack over his shoulders and opened the door. “Ordinarily, I’d say ladies first, but this one could be tricky. Be careful.” He stepped through, then took my hand and helped me cross from Hell into a magical place on Earth.

Chapter Two

The corridor had disappeared, and we now stood on a footpath in the middle of a woods. The air was bracing and fresh, a welcome relief from the stale hallways of Hell. The trees, mostly spruces, were randomly dotted with quarter-sized balls of brilliant colors – gold and tangerine, and even a few shimmering turquoises. To my surprise, the balls were actually slugs. The creatures’ sliminess gave them a strange luminescence too beautiful to be disgusting.

William took my hand and gently kissed it. “Are you sure Helen didn’t hurt you? You seemed upset when you came out of her office.”

William’s concern touched me, but I couldn’t discuss the terrible thing Helen wanted me to do. The pain of it was too fresh. Instead, I said, “I’m fine.”

“Good.” He flashed his brilliant smile, the one that always made me weak in the knees. “I’ve been looking forward to this.”

I had too. In fact, it was all I had thought about for the past two days. Since he’d come to my rescue a few weeks before, I’d been falling for him. Hard. Barely a moment passed that I wasn’t thinking about him. I wanted him so badly, yet I was afraid to show it. It wasn’t only because of Miss Spry; it had to do with William as well. He was an incubus, a master of seduction. As much as I wanted to trust him, I worried that he was intending to make me another of his conquests.

William’s eyes twinkled as he led me up the trail. “You’re going to love this, but you’ll have to work hard to earn your reward.”

“Bring it on,” I told him.

His smile widened.

The narrow path made it impossible to walk side by side, so he went on ahead while I followed as best I could. It wasn’t easy. The rutted trail climbed steeply. Even with the added benefit of my demon’s strength, I was winded. When we reached the third switchback, I had to stop and rest. Sweat soaked my T-shirt, and my leg muscles burned. “I don’t think I can make it,” I confessed.

“What’s wrong, Lil?” William teased. “Do we have to work on your endurance?”

I glared at him. I hated when his arrogant demon came to the forefront. I started up the trail again, determined to go the distance.

I almost lost my resolve when we scrambled up several immense boulders. The sheer drop made me worry about plunging over the edge. Seeing my uncertainty, William grabbed my hand and helped me up. “Don’t worry. We’re almost there.”

Sure enough, we soon climbed above the tree line and crested the mountain. The level spot was as naked and alien as the face of the moon, but the view was magnificent. The swells of distant mountains stretched away for miles. A gray ribbon of highway lay far below. “It’s beautiful,” I breathed.

He put his arm around me. “I had hoped you would like it.”

I leaned against him. “I feel like we’re on top of the world!” He was right; it had been worth the climb.

We sat on one of the rocks, and William handed me a bottle of water and a granola bar from the backpack. Clouds rolled in, and a clammy mist settled over us. Seeing me shiver, he took off his fleece jacket and put it over my shoulders. I buried my nose in the fabric, drinking in his smell.

I hadn’t been this besotted with a man since meeting my ex-husband. But because Ted had turned out to be a cheating bastard, I worried about getting my heart broken all over again. Still, it was growing harder and harder to resist my attraction to William. He had woken a part of me that had been asleep for a very long time. Now, that part bubbled up like a spring, filling me with so much joy that it scared me. Placing my heart in the hands of a demon was worrisome. Especially since demons were not allowed to love.

We sat in silence until he touched my cheek. “You seem pensive.”

“I miss Grace.” My ex-husband had taken my daughter to France for ten days, and there were seven more until she returned. At times, my heart felt like a stone in my chest. If I hadn’t been able to use the otherworld doorways to peek in on her, I don’t know what I would have done.

“She was fine this morning,” William said. “I think they’re going to the Louvre today.”

“You checked on her?” I asked, shocked.

He shrugged, embarrassed. “After you told me about your cad of an ex-husband, I wanted to make sure your daughter was all right.”

The William I’d first met couldn’t be bothered to remember that I had a daughter, much less check on her wellbeing. But ever since he’d rescued Grace from a berserker demon, he’d been paying more attention to my family.

Since he was showing me his softer side, I decided it was time to have the talk I’d been rehearsing in the mirror every morning for the past week.

I took a deep breath. “William, I have a request…”

“Slip out of those clothes, and I’ll do anything you want.”

Okay, so maybe he hadn’t changed as much as I’d hoped. “Be serious,” I said.

“I am serious.” He smiled seductively and caressed the back of my neck, sending pleasant shivers down my spine. “We have the mountain to ourselves.”

As much as the invitation tempted me, I pulled away. “If you’re not going to be a gentleman, then I’m ending this conversation.”

He sighed. “I’ve been a gentleman for weeks.”

“A few weeks is a tiny span when you’re over a hundred years old,” I reminded him. “Now, are you going to listen to me or not?”

He nodded and looked adorably contrite.

“Would you come to dinner tomorrow night?”

He blinked. “At your place?” When I nodded, he said, “Are you introducing me to your family?”

I did want William to meet my family, but not yet. I needed him to understand that I wanted a connection with the real, human William, not a lust-ridden one-night stand with his incubus. If he wanted me as badly as he claimed, he could wait a little longer. As could I. “No, it will only be the two of us.”

He frowned. “What about that convalescent who lives with you?”

William meant Tommy Lefevre, my – well, since there isn’t a single word in the English language to describe our complicated relationship, I’ll go with friend. William never hid the fact that he didn’t like Tommy. Not only did Tommy’s spirituality disgust him, he also hated that the two of us had once been intimate. “Don’t worry,” I said. “I’ll make sure he’s out of the house, too.”

William’s impish smile returned. “So the two of us all alone and unchaperoned? Why, Ms. Straight, what are you proposing?”

“Chicken Florentine.”

“Are you certain that’s all?” His eyes sparkled. “In my experience, when a woman tells a man she’s cooking for him, she’s planning on sharing a very sweet dessert.”

“Well, be prepared to have a new experience because the bedroom door will be staying shut.”

He sighed, resigned. “Okay, dinner it is.” He put his arm around me. “Patrick always said you were a good cook.”

I was about to tell him what time to come, but the sound of footsteps cut me off. A young man wearing a sweatshirt, shorts, and a pair of wraparound sunglasses climbed up the trail. He was in his early twenties and was clearly a veteran hiker. His boots were good quality, but well worn, and his shorts showed off his muscular calves. He carried his bulging backpack like it was filled with feathers.

A moment later, another hiker followed him. She, too, appeared experienced. Her tank top was soaked with sweat, and her face was red with exertion, but she smiled widely as she crested the mountain. She pushed her bangs out of her face and touched the young man’s arm. “This view is amazing!”

Her companion nodded and walked back to where the trail disappeared. “Jenny! You coming?” he shouted.

The young woman frowned. “Jenny’s holding us back,” she said. “We’re going to have a hard time making the shelter before dark if she doesn’t get it in gear.”

The man shrugged. “It’s her first time. She needs to find her rhythm, that’s all.” He cocked his head, listening. “You hear her yet?”

“No.”

My succubus pricked up her ears at the hint of jealousy blowing in from the young woman. Dark emotions always interested my inner demon. Settle down, I told her. This doesn’t concern us.

A few minutes passed, and still the missing hiker didn’t appear. “Why don’t you go on ahead,” the woman said. “I’ll wait for Jenny.”

The young man rubbed his chin, thinking. “Maybe I should wait, too.”

The woman shook her head. “No. If you get to the shelter first, you can start the fire.” Once more she touched his arm. “You’re the expert fire maker, after all.”

Finally, he smiled at her. “Okay.”

For a human, the girl was a darn good seductress.

Once the man had disappeared, William glanced at his wristwatch. “Show time,” he told me and stood up. “I’ll be right back.”

He approached the woman. “Gorgeous view, isn’t it? My companion and I have been enjoying it very much.”

At first, the woman narrowed her eyes suspiciously, but when William fired up his incubus demon, she began blushing and smiling.

The realization that William was on assignment and once again doing the Devil’s dirty work took the shine off my afternoon. A few minutes before, the mountaintop had felt special, almost holy, but suddenly, Helen had me back under her thumb. I shouldn’t have been surprised – after all it was William’s and my life’s work to tempt human beings – but I was disappointed. Our time together had been spoiled.

I folded my arms over my chest as I watched William work. The Devil had picked well when he’d chosen William to be an incubus. William was the embodiment of temptation. He acted as if the hiker was the only woman on the planet who interested him. When he said something, she threw her head back and laughed, making me want to strangle her with her own sweat-stained bandanna.

William never looked in my direction, but he knew I was watching. When his victim moved closer to him, he stepped away, mindful to maintain a proper distance between them. When she touched his arm, he gently removed it. He was on his best behavior, but it didn’t stop the incubus from doing its dirty work.

The woman offered William a small bag of trail mix. He accepted it, quickly ate the contents, then threw the wrapper on the ground. The hiker stared at the litter. All the goodwill drained from her face. Seeing this, William went into full tempter mode. What had happened before was a build-up. This was the main event.

I had stopped listening in on them, but now I used my demon’s heightened sense of hearing to eavesdrop. “…want to do something naughty once in a while?” William asked. His eyes were alight with the devilish fire I’d come to know so well.

The hiker glanced at the foil wrapper on the ground.

William revved up his charm a little more. “Don’t get me wrong. I tread lightly on Mother Earth. My carbon footprints are almost nonexistent. But…” he sighed as if he couldn’t bear the weight of so much responsibility “…I’m only human. I mean, I can’t be expected to carry every bit of trash for the entire length of the Appalachian Trail.”

I’d seduced plenty of people over the past year, and I’d even been at the mercy of William’s incubus a few times, but I’d never before watched a tempter in action. It was both fascinating and horrible. I could feel William’s demon assess the victim and search for weak spots to exploit. William’s incubus made him seductive and charming, but deadly as well. If the hiker knew how poisonous William’s demon was, she would have run away screaming. However, he’d trapped her with his otherworldly allure, and instead of fleeing, she was moving closer.

The hiker’s eyes fixed on William. “I know exactly what you mean,” she finally admitted. “I’ve been wanting to burn our trash at night, but Austen won’t let me.”

William beamed at her. “Exactly! Sometimes, we have to cheat. Just a little.” He nudged her. “Your pack is probably heavy enough as it is.”

When I saw the flicker in her eyes telling me William’s devilish mission was nearly completed, my paralysis broke. I couldn’t remain silent while this poor woman did Helen’s bidding. Even though Helen had sent a berserker demon after me the last time I’d disobeyed her orders, I couldn’t hold myself back.

Unfortunately, I’d waited too long. Before I could stop her, the young woman grinned evilly and threw her wrapper on the ground. Then she went the extra distance by taking a few other wrappers from her pack and tossing those as well.

Seeing that the damage was already done, my protest died in my mouth. Littering was a very small sin, of course, but those little acts opened pathways to larger and larger transgressions. Patrick Clerk once told me he’d watched saints turn into monsters all because they’d refused to answer a cry for help. Now that the woman had fallen for William’s temptation, who knew where she’d end up.

“Lightening the load. That’s all you’re doing,” William said.

The hiker smiled wickedly. “Tonight, I will burn the trash.” She glanced down the trail. “And I know who I’ll blame for it.”

Jenny finally trudged into view. Unlike her friends, she struggled under the weight of her backpack, and her legs trembled with exhaustion. She shrugged off her pack with a grunt of relief and collapsed on the ground.

The first woman crossed her arms over her chest. “We’re behind schedule. Austen already went on ahead.”

Jenny looked crestfallen. “Was he mad?”

“He wasn’t thrilled.” The woman smirked. “He thought you’d be able to keep up, but now he thinks we may have to cut our trip short.”

The little liar! Already, William’s temptation was taking root. If those dark thoughts continued to spread… Well, she might do worse things than blaming Jenny for burning trash.

When Jenny reached into her pack for a bottle of water, the other woman scolded her, “You don’t have time for that now. Let’s go!”

With a grunt and a sigh, Jenny stood, resettled her pack on her shoulders, and began plodding down the trail once more.

When the women were gone, William rubbed his hands together. “Delilah is getting better! She had the time and the place spot-on. Of course, she couldn’t pinpoint the temptation, but it all worked out in the end.”

Without a word, I stalked over to where the trash lay, picked it up, and stuffed it into my pockets.

“That’s unnecessary,” William said. “The damage has been done.”

“I know, William,” I said.

“You’re upset.”

He tried to put his arm around me, but I pulled away. “Of course I’m upset!”

“Is it because I had to combine work with pleasure?” he asked, worried. “I didn’t want to, but Helen’s been keeping me so busy that I would have had to cancel on you otherwise.”

“I know.”

He continued to study me. “You do realize that I wasn’t attracted to the young woman, right?”

I nodded. He had been completely professional. “Let’s just go,” I said. I headed down the trail.

“Lil, wait up. Lilith!” He caught up to me and touched my shoulder. “What’s going on inside your head? Talk to me.”

I was nearly in tears. “It was watching you in action.” I felt the stab of emotion again, but it wasn’t jealousy. “You made the hiker believe that you were her best friend. You tricked her.”

He reached for me, but I stepped away. “You and I can’t escape who we are,” he said.

A few tears spilled over. “But you’re so good at what you do. It comes so naturally!” Finally, I identified the emotion. “If you can fool her into loving you, then maybe you would fool me, too. How would I know the difference?”

His face fell. “Oh, Lil. Is that what you think? I would never do such a thing.”

I certainly wanted to believe him, but at the same time, I didn’t dare. William lied so well and so often it was possible he no longer recognized the truth.

“How can I make you stop worrying?” he asked.

I met his eyes. “I want you to swear to me that you’ll always tell me the truth. Always.”

If he’d answered me right away, I wouldn’t have believed him. But he didn’t say anything for a long time. Finally, he took my hands. “The truth can be painful, and I don’t want to hurt you.”

“I’d rather be hurt by the truth than a lie,” I said.

He sighed. “Okay. I promise to always tell you the truth.”

“And I’ll do the same for you.”

All this seriousness was too much for him to bear. His eyes twinkled and he lifted a lock of my hair. “So tell me, is this your real color?”

I shoved him away. “You’re incorrigible.” I couldn’t help but smile, though.

He checked his watch. “I’d love to stay, but I have another appointment in about ten minutes.”

I glared at the ground. Helen really was keeping him busy.

“How are you going to get back in time?” I asked. It had taken nearly two hours to get to the top of the mountain.

“Follow me.” He led me back up the trail and past the boulder we’d been sitting on. Behind it stood an otherworld doorway.

I punched his arm. “Why did you make me hike all the way up here when we could have used this door?”

He rubbed his shoulder. “Because the effort it takes to climb up here makes the view even more spectacular. You wouldn’t have appreciated it nearly as much if you’d cheated to get to the top.”

I had to admit he was right.

“Besides, it was the only way I could see how beautiful you look when you’re flushed and sweating.” He grinned, his incubus back in full force. “I love to see a woman glow after a really hard workout.” Before he left, he kissed me. “Keep that bedroom door open tomorrow night.”

Maybe I would. Not that I’d tell him.

Chapter Three

Back when I was fully human, I hadn’t realized how closely the physical, earthly realm connected with the spiritual one. Now that I could see the supernatural doorways, however, I understood that the world I’d been familiar with – the one involving mortgage payments and homework and television reality shows – was completely entangled with the otherworld. There are doorways, both Heaven’s and Hell’s, everywhere. Sometimes, it was impossible not to stare at them, especially when I caught sight of a supernatural creature exiting or entering. While bargaining for vegetables at the busy, downtown farmers’ market a few days before, I’d dropped a carton of eggs because a small, horned demon had surprised me by crawling out from behind a display of watermelons.

No, I didn’t trust those doorways because they gave Helen ready access to me. Weeks before, when Helen had found that I’d tricked her by getting my daughter out of the contract, she’d been furious and sent that berserker demon after me. The beast had turned my nice, suburban home into a pile of rubble. Now, I was wary of living anyplace containing an otherworld doorway. Unfortunately, finding an apartment, let alone a house, without such a gateway was impossible. Every place I looked contained at least one supernatural entrance. Some had as many as five.

I compromised by renting the top floor of a subdivided mansion on the east side of the city. Although I counted six otherworldly doorways in the building, only two opened up inside my flat. The first stood in the middle of the living room wall, and I had barricaded it with the most immense flat-screen television I could buy. The TV wouldn’t stop a rampaging berserker, but it might stop other unwanted pests. The second doorway was in my bedroom. This one I vowed to use only for emergencies since I didn’t want anyone catching me appearing or disappearing into thin air.

After leaving William on the mountaintop, I avoided the convenient doorway in my bedroom. Instead, I used the one that opened up in the cramped, dreary basement next to the washing machine and dryer we shared with our downstairs neighbor.

The dryer finished tumbling the moment I stepped into the human world. I put the still-warm clothes into a basket and headed up the two flights of stairs to my apartment, which, once again, had become very crowded. Although my daughter was out of the country, Tommy, my niece Ariel, and my stepsister Jasmine now lived with me as well.

Tommy, propped up by several pillows, lay on the couch and stared listlessly at the TV. When I walked in, he eyed me warily. It was an unspoken agreement that we were never alone in the flat together. Because I had once seduced him in order to make Helen happy, Tommy had a reason to be cautious. And although I vowed never to do such a thing to him again, I couldn’t say the same for my succubus. To her, seduction was as natural as eating and breathing were to me.

To my relief, Jas walked into the room. When my dad had married Jasmine’s mother, they’d produced a perfectly gorgeous daughter. My stepsister had inherited the best parts from each of her parents: caramel-colored skin, hair like black silk, and exotic eyes from our father, and high cheekbones, long legs, and a perfect figure from her mother. All her life, Jas had acted like a spoiled beauty queen, but since Tommy’s accident, she’d become responsible. In fact, she took such good care of him that I didn’t need to do anything. Which was exactly how she wanted it.

“Time for your walk,” she told Tommy cheerfully.

“Not now,” he said. “I’m exhausted.”

“Dr. Cantor said you should get some exercise every day. It will help you heal.”

“I’m healing as quickly as I can, believe me.”

“I know you are, babe.” She leaned over the couch to kiss him on the lips, but he turned his head so that she got his cheek instead. Jas hid her disappointment by becoming brisk. “Let’s go. You need to get some sun. You look like a ghost. Doesn’t he, Lilith?”

Maybe a tall ghost with a football player’s build, a bald head, a dozen tattoos, and a line of metal studs in his forehead. But Jas was right; Tommy did look thin and pale. Not surprising considering that berserker demon Helen had sent after me had killed him instead. In fact, if I hadn’t rescued him, Tommy would still be in Hell’s waiting room.

“I’ll go for a walk later, Jas. I promise,” Tommy said. Even though he’d returned to the land of the living, his injuries had been severe. In the past three weeks, he’d undergone two surgeries to repair the damage. Most days, he lay on the couch, too sore to do anything but draw tattoo designs in his sketchpad.

“Well, let’s at least change your dressing,” she said.

Tommy sat up carefully, cringing at the pain. “I can do this myself, you know.”

“I don’t mind.”

She lifted his T-shirt, exposing his belly. When she tried to lift it higher, he clamped the material tightly against his chest. Since he’d last lived with us, Tommy had become very modest. Carefully, Jas removed the stained dressing, revealing a badly mangled tattoo and healing sutures. A little something to remember the berserker by.

I set down the laundry basket and began clearing Jasmine’s latest drugstore purchases from the cluttered coffee table. When I picked up a bag of cotton balls that had fallen to the floor, I noticed a strange bubble of energy beside the couch. Like the doorways leading into Hell, the energy had an otherworldly shine. Curious, I poked a finger into it, feeling the same, subtle shift that I did whenever I crossed Hell’s threshold. This thing was a micro-door. Something so small that only a mouse-sized demon could have crawled through. Wondering if I could plug it, I shoved several cotton balls inside, but they disappeared as if the little door was a mouth, eager for whatever I fed it.

“What are you doing?” Jas asked, interrupting my exploring.

“Nothing.” I got to my feet and dusted my knees. I’d keep my eye on that hole. Even a doorway that small worried me.

I went into the kitchen to throw away the trash, and Jas followed me to pour Tommy a glass of water. My eleven-year-old niece, Ariel, sat the table creating a triple-decker, peanut butter sandwich. She offered a smile that contrasted with her dyed black hair and ghoulish makeup. Now that it was summer, I’d tried to get her to wear something other than her black T-shirt and jeans, but she refused. She clung to her Gothic persona the way other kids clung to their teddy bears.

“I have a favor to ask you,” I said to Jasmine. “I’d like the apartment to myself tomorrow night.”

“Why?”

I had to broach this carefully. I didn’t want Jas jumping to conclusions. “I’ve invited someone over for dinner.”

“It’s not Corrine from downstairs is it?” Ariel asked. “Because I don’t like her. She wears too much perfume and is always trying to get me to wear pink.” She took an enormous bite of her sandwich.

“No, it’s not Corrine. His name is William.”

Jasmine’s eyes lit up. “Lilith! Are you serious? You actually have a date?!” She and Ariel high-fived one another. “What’s he like? Where does he work? Is he cute? How long have you been seeing him?”

I cringed under Jasmine’s rapid-fire questions. This was exactly what I’d wanted to avoid. “We’re not exactly seeing each other,” I said. “It’s more like we’re good friends.”

“Friends with benefits?” my niece asked around a mouthful of sandwich.

“Ari!” I said, shocked. “No, definitely not. We’re just friends.” Although, that wasn’t quite the right term for a man who made my stomach flutter pleasantly every time I thought of him. “We want to take things slow.” Or, rather, I did. If only to prove to myself that William cared enough about me to wait.

“Well, I’m glad for you,” Jasmine said. “You deserve to be happy.”

She was right; I did deserve it. After I’d walked into my bathroom and found the model/actress who my ex-husband was banging taking a bath in my bathtub, my life had fallen apart. It was about time that I had a little happiness. And William certainly made me happy.

The alarm clock on Jasmine’s cell phone rang. She went back into the living room. “Time for your meds,” she told Tommy brightly. Now that Jas had made it her mission to take care of him, she lived by her alarm clock. In fact, his meals, appointments, and medications were so strictly scheduled it sometimes seemed like he was in prison. “Then after your meds, we’ll go on a walk.”

“Not today, Jas,” Tommy pleaded. “I’m not up for it.”

“He looks exhausted,” I said. “Let him take a nap.”

Ariel wandered in, a book under her arm. “I wanted to read to him.” Although she was eleven, Ari read at a third-grade level. Over the summer, Tommy had challenged her to improve, and to please him, she’d been painfully working her way through The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. It could take her almost an hour to finish three pages, yet somehow, Tommy always listened to her without becoming impatient or falling asleep.

“You can read to him later.” Jasmine sat on the arm of the couch and kneaded his shoulders. “And he doesn’t need another nap. He needs exercise. Dr. Cantor said…”

I groaned. “Enough with Dr. Cantor, already!”

“You aren’t the boss of him.” Jasmine glared at me. “I said I’d take care of him, and I’m doing that.”

“He’s a grown man and not a little kid,” I said. “Let the poor guy rest if he’s tired.”

“I’ll read him to sleep,” Ari offered.

Jasmine marched over to me. “Listen! I’m only doing what the doctor told me to do, and you’re not helping. You’ve even been giving him coffee, haven’t you? Coffee, Lil? Really?”

“He asked for it so I made him a cup.”

“You shouldn’t have given in. This is for his own good!”

“Stop smothering him!”

“I’m not smothering him!”

“Ladies!” Tommy had gotten to his feet and stood next to the couch, leaning on it for support. We all fell silent. “Look, I can’t take all of this attention anymore. I’m starting to feel like your pet boy.”

I wanted to argue that he wasn’t our pet, but thinking about how we fed and watered and coddled Drinking Tea, my cat, made me realize we’d been treating Tommy exactly the same way.

Jasmine, chagrined, carefully put her arms around his waist. “I only want you to get better.”

“I know. And you’ve been doing a really good job of taking care of me, but I need some space. That’s why I’m moving in with Neil for a while. He’s picking me up tonight.”

I’d met Tommy’s best friend Neil a few times at the hospital. He owned a tattoo and piercing parlor called Midtown Ink.

“You can’t stay there!” Jasmine protested. “Where are you going to sleep?”

Neil was married and had three kids. His family lived in a tiny, two-bedroom house near Midtown.

“There’s a couch in Neil’s office. I can crash there,” Tommy said.

“You’ve only been out of the hospital for a few weeks,” Jasmine argued.

“Yes, but I’m going crazy here. No offense, but all of this sacral energy is getting on my nerves. I need some time to rebalance my chakras.”

I didn’t understand the spiritual gibberish, but the bottom line was clear. He was suffering from estrogen overload.

“You hate us,” Ariel said. Tears shimmered in her eyes.

He touched her shoulder. “Of course I don’t.”

Jasmine crossed her arms over her chest. “If you live at Midtown, you’ll be tempted to get another tattoo. I just know it.”

He avoided her eyes. “I won’t.”

“You will! You’ve been drawing in your sketchpad again, and I know what you’re thinking. But you heard what Dr. Cantor said: no more tattoos or piercings until you’re fully healed.” She touched his arm. “Please, you need to get well first.”

“She’s right,” I said. “Let your body heal one thing at a time.”

He held up his hand Boy Scout-style. “I swear to you I won’t get another tattoo until I’m fully healed.”

I wanted to believe him, but even when he crossed his heart with his index finger, his eyes wandered to his sketchpad.

That afternoon, while Tommy napped, and Jasmine and Ariel watched an old horror movie on TV, I retreated into my bedroom. From my nightstand, I took out a small notebook that Grace had given to me at Christmas. On the cover was a picture of a tiny kitten meowing in the face of an immense German shepherd. Written below were the words: “Don’t Let Nobody Stand in Your Way!” An appropriate message since I was using the notebook to map my way out of Hell.

On the first page, I’d written:

My Goals

– Keep Grace safe

– Get out of the damned contract

– Destroy Helen Spry

I had crossed out the first item weeks ago when I’d finally rescued my daughter from Helen’s clutches. However, accomplishing my next two objectives was proving problematic.

Obviously, the third one was ridiculous. Destroy Helen Spry? That was absurd. I barely had enough courage to call the demon-bitch by her first name let alone attack her. She was older than I was. Stronger than I was. More wickedly clever than I ever could be. Plus, she had all the resources of Hell at her fingertips.

As I chewed on my pen, I briefly considered using Helen’s trick and hiring an assassin to take her out. Almost immediately, however, I rejected the idea. In order to find demon assassins, I’d have to confess who the target was, and I couldn’t trust a demon to keep his mouth shut about it. If word spread that I was plotting to have Helen killed, she’d incinerate me where I stood. Sighing, I crossed out ‘Destroy Helen Spry.’

Now, I was left with only one goal, but it was no less outlandish. How on earth could I get out of the contract? The thing was larger than a Detroit metropolitan telephone book, and as far as I could tell, completely ironclad. Although I’d gotten it amended once, I didn’t think I would get a second opportunity to change it.

Defeated once again, I closed the book. I swore to myself that I would not give up until I found a way out. I would free myself and make sure that not another one of Sarah Goodswain’s progeny ended up in Helen’s clutches.

The otherworld doorway next to my bed shivered, and I shoved the little notebook under my pillow. If Helen caught me plotting to destroy her, she’d destroy me. I prayed that whoever was about to come into my room wouldn’t find out what I’d been doing.

Chapter Four

To my relief, it was William who stepped through the doorway. He still wore the tight T-shirt and snug jeans that he’d worn on our trip up the mountain – things that made him ruggedly handsome. A pleasant tingle spread throughout my body. How was it possible that every time I saw him, he grew more attractive?

Seeing me sitting on the bed, he threw me an impish smile. “I’m glad to see you ready and waiting for me.”

“Stop it!” I scolded, my cheeks heating up. I longed to grab his hand and drag him onto the bed with me. Then that tight T-shirt of his would wind up in the corner of the room along with my bra and panties. Someday, I thought, drawing in a deep breath. Someday, I’d have my way with him. But not yet.

He sat on the edge of the bed. The mischievous light in his eyes softened, becoming more affectionate. “I’ve been thinking about what you said on the mountain. I know that you’re worried that I’m treating you like one of my marks, but it isn’t true.” He took my hand and stroked my fingers. “You mean a great deal to me. I’ve told you that before, and I mean it. You’ve found your way into my heart.”

My chest swelled with affection. William was seldom serious, but when he was, it was like I could see a sliver of his soul. I loved that he made himself vulnerable to me. No doubt, I was the only woman in the world who had ever seen this side of him.

I ran my fingers along his jaw, stroking the sexy bit of stubble that he’d left there. I could take this man to bed for days at a time, feasting on nothing but him. “I’m sorry that I’m so insecure,” I said, “but the way you looked at that hiker – ”

“ – was only part of the job,” he finished. “I seduce women. It’s what Helen forces me to do.”

“And do you like your job?” I asked softly.

“I used to,” he admitted. “In fact, nothing pleased me more. Making conquests was my only goal in life.” He moved closer to me and brushed a lock of my hair away from my face. “But since I’ve met you, things have changed. I only want one woman in my life now.”

If only it was that easy! Even if I trusted him to continue being the human William that I wanted and not the lust-ridden incubus that I hated, there was still the matter of our contracts. Helen had made it very clear that neither of us was to fall in love. If we did, we would suffer the consequences, all of which were all spelled out in fine print. “Have you forgotten our contracts, William?”

“I don’t give a damn about the contracts,” he growled. “I want you, Lil. I’ll deal with Helen in whatever way I need to if it means that I can have you.”

Having him say that boosted my courage. I didn’t think I’d be able to defy Helen on my own, but with William’s help, I might stand a chance. I decided to let him in on my plan. I slipped the little notebook from under my pillow and showed William the page where I’d written my goals.

“You shouldn’t put anything in writing,” he said seriously. “If Helen ever found this, you’d end up in a world of trouble.”

“Writing helps me think,” I said. “It’s like brainstorming.”

“She has spies everywhere.”

Good point. Still, she wouldn’t bother me as long as she thought I was playing by her rules. She had other things to worry about, like her new assistant’s inability to get our assignments right.

I returned the notebook to the drawer in my nightstand. “I just wanted you to know that I’m serious about this.” I stuck out my chin defiantly. “I am going to get out of that contract!”

His luscious lips turned up in a smile. “I’ve heard those same words from the other women in your line, but you’re the only one who made me believe it. You’re a rare woman, Lilith.”

He pulled me to him and dipped his head towards mine. His perfect lips were slightly parted, and I met his kiss eagerly. This was what my body had been craving all along. His touch. His taste. How could I refuse him when I so desperately wanted it?

“Aunt Lilith!” Ariel called from the other room. Footsteps pounded down the hallway. “Aunt Lilith!”

In a heartbeat, William was off of the bed and through the otherworld doorway. Before he disappeared into Hell, he gave me a wink and a smile. “I’ll be back,” he promised.

Neil came over a few hours later to pick up Tommy. Tommy’s friend was small and ratty and wore his dark hair slicked back against his skull like he was auditioning for a role in Grease. He stank of cigarettes. He had less metal and more ink than Tommy. Both of Neil’s arms were covered with so much color that he looked like the Sunday comics. Ariel couldn’t take her eyes off of him.

“Cool tats,” she said, awed. She now had a few of her own. To fill his empty hours, Tommy had begun drawing henna tattoos. He’d made several on Ariel’s face and arms. Her favorite was a cat sitting upright with its tail curled under its chin. “See?” She lifted the sleeves of her T-shirt to show Neil. “Tommy did this.”

Neil flicked his eyes at the tattoos. “Uh, great. Tommy, you ready to go or what?”

Ari grew tearful. “Don’t leave!”

Tommy hugged her. “I’ll miss you, too, but I’ll be at Lilith’s birthday party on Sunday. Isn’t that right, Jasmine?”

Jasmine’s mouth and eyes tightened as she struggled to hold back her tears. “Okay. Sure.”

He brushed his lips against her cheek. “You know I’m not going back to India,” he said. “Only Ferndale, right?”

She nodded then turned to Neil. “Tommy takes his meds every six hours, and he shouldn’t be drinking coffee because it upsets his stomach. Also, he needs his sleep, so none of your all-night Xbox parties. And for God’s sake, don’t let him get another tattoo!”

“I can see why you wanted to leave,” Neil muttered.

Tommy and I hugged so awkwardly that our bodies hardly touched. “Take care of yourself,” I told him.

“You, too, Lilith.”

Neil blinked. “Wait, you’re Lilith? The Lilith?” Suddenly, he was more interested. I was dying to ask what Tommy had been saying about me, but with Jas and Ari in the room, it didn’t seem like a good idea.

Neil picked up Tommy’s battered duffel bag, then with a final look at me, he and Tommy left.

Ariel burst into tears and ran to her room, slamming the door behind her. Jas sniffed a few times and wiped her eyes. Already, the flat seemed too empty.

“I promised to take Ariel to the Coney Island for dinner,” I said. “Do you want to come along?”

“I can’t. I have a job interview.”

I hadn’t heard news so shocking since I’d found out that I was to become a succubus. “Are you serious?”

Jas nodded. “It’s only a waitressing gig in Greektown near the casino, but a friend of mine works there, and she says the tips are pretty good.”

“Jas, that’s amazing! What brought this about?” For the past three years, my dad, Jas’s mom, and I had been nagging my stepsister to find a job.

She shrugged and folded the blanket that had been lying on the couch. “I want to get my own place.” She held the folded blanket to her chest. “I was hoping Tommy would move in with me if I did.”

I’d never thought of Jasmine as the type to settle down with a guy. Especially not a guy as decent as Tommy. I hugged her.

When I let go, she slowly sank onto the couch. Worry lines furrowed her forehead. “I don’t know if he’ll do it, though. Move in with me, I mean. I’m not sure if he’s into me.”

I had no doubt that he loved her. “Honey, he crossed three continents to keep you from marrying Karl!”

“True.” She smiled sadly. “But now he’s so distant.”

I didn’t let on that I’d noticed. “He’s still not feeling well,” I said. “Once he’s better, things will change.”

“Maybe.” Jas pressed her face into the folded blanket for a moment. When she resurfaced, she said, “The worst part is that he sends me mixed messages. I mean, he hardly ever holds my hand, and he won’t kiss me, but he spends all this time drawing tattoos on me.”

“He does the same thing for Ariel,” I said.

“No, you don’t understand. This is way different from those cats and stars he puts on her arms. Look.” She turned around and lifted the back of her shirt. Inked in henna between her shoulder blades was an intricate mandala, one of the most beautiful designs I’d ever seen. “He drew it the other night. He lit candles and played this CD of chants that he’d picked up in Tibet. And the way he touched me! There was nothing innocent about it, believe me. I lay there for two hours feeling his hands brushing against my skin. Two hours!” She shook her head. “Do you have any idea how sexy that was?”

I imagined lying on my bed while William lovingly drew patterns on my naked back. I started to feel warm. “Yes, I can imagine.”

She lowered her shirt. “He’s driving me crazy! If he doesn’t do something about it soon, I swear I’ll…” She screamed into the blanket.

While I patted her shoulder and consoled her, I wondered where I could get my hands on a CD of Tibetan chants and some henna paste.

Only the promise of a Coney dog lured Ariel out of her room. We went to East End Coney and sat at our favorite booth by the window overlooking the broad expanse of Lake St. Clair. From here, we could see the yachts and fishing boats traveling the famous, nautical mile.

With Grace gone, Ariel and I were spending a lot more time together. To my delight, Ari had not only warmed up to me, she had also lost her habitual scowl. She’d even started smiling at people.

I’d also found out some surprising things about her. Like the fact that she enjoyed eating French fries with mayonnaise instead of ketchup (something she had learned from one of her mother’s many boyfriends), she loved lions (which was the reason Tommy had started her on The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe), and she was surprisingly good at basketball (despite her small stature). I’d signed her up for a three-week basketball camp so that she could make friends before the school year started, and the coach had taken me aside to remark how well Ari could pass and dribble.

Ariel ordered her usual: two chili dogs with no onions, fries, and a Coke. I ordered a gyro and a small Greek salad.

“Where should we go for your birthday?” I asked. My stepdad and I had consecutive birthdays, so every year we shared a party. This year, Ariel would be a part of the tradition as well since she was turning twelve in less than a month. I wanted to throw her a real party since I didn’t think she’d ever had one before. I planned to invite the girls from the basketball camp. “Have you ever been to the zoo? They have lions there.”

Ari seemed less enthusiastic about the party than I thought she’d be. “Yeah, okay.”

“Or we could take everyone to play miniature golf,” I offered.

She shrugged again. The waitress brought over our drinks and Ariel sipped her Coke thoughtfully. “Do you think Tommy would want to date my mother?”

I nearly spilled my iced tea. Ariel’s mother was currently in jail for child endangerment, possession of narcotics, and drunk driving. There was no way in hell I’d introduce her to Tommy. If my sister-in-law saw what a good guy he was, she’d cling to him like a leech. “I think Tommy’s got his eye on Jasmine,” I said.

“Oh.” Ari slumped in her seat.

“You’re very special to him, though,” I said. “Like a little sister.”

She continued to look disappointed. “I wish he was my dad. My real dad.”

Instead of pointing out that Tommy would have had to father Ariel when he was twelve, I said, “I know what it’s like. Growing up wondering who your dad is.”

“But you know who your dad is.”

I frowned. “I do?”

“It’s Simon? Hel-lo?”

“Simon’s not my real father.” It amazed me that she hadn’t figured this out on her own. “He’s Japanese. I’m not.” Simon hadn’t even adopted me since my mother had never been around long enough to sign the papers.

“Oh, good point.” Ariel mulled this over while she drank her Coke. “Did you ever want to find your real dad?”

The difficult question made me shift uncomfortably. When I became an adult, I’d given up fantasies about finding my sperm donor, figuring I was better off without him. However, once I’d discovered that I could not only see Heaven’s doorways but enter them as well, I’d become curious again. Maybe my father had been one of the many humans my mother had slept with. Then again, maybe he’d been supernatural.

To answer Ari’s question, I settled on a compromise. “I used to want to find him, but after a while, I realized that Simon was the best dad a girl could have. Just like you’ll realize that Tommy is a really good substitute big brother.”

“He is a good big brother,” she said, “but he’d be a really great dad.”

I couldn’t argue with that.

Midway through our meal, Ariel got up to use the bathroom. The moment she left, someone slid into her seat. It seemed that the otherworld had caught up with me again.

Chapter Five

Harmony, the guardian angel who had been sent to protect my last client, gave me a grin. Even though the two of us worked for opposing camps and had once fought over a human’s soul, we generally got along.

Like me, Harmony appeared fully human even though she was a being from the otherworld. She had sensual lips, a thin frame, and wore her blonde hair short and parted on the side. Like all angels, she had unnaturally, brilliant blue eyes. Without waiting for permission, she took a French fry from Ariel’s plate and dipped it into the puddle of mayonnaise. “Mmmm. Mayo is much better than ketchup.” She added some salt.

“Go ahead. Help yourself,” I said dryly.

She took another one. “Don’t mind if I do.”

I hadn’t seen Harmony since she’d visited my flat a few weeks before to deliver a housewarming gift. “To what do I owe the honor?”

Her clear, blue eyes met mine. “I came here to warn you.”

I tensed. “Warn me about what?”

“About the fact that there isn’t a single doorway to Heaven in your flat. Without a portal, the angels guarding your family won’t be able to do their jobs properly.”

I let out my breath, relieved that her warning was no threat at all. “Why do you think I picked that apartment in the first place?” I asked her. “It’s bad enough that Helen has access to my home. I don’t want God poking his nose in there as well.”

“Don’t make light of this, Lilith.” Harmony had that stubborn look in her eyes, the one I remembered from our tangle a few weeks before. “When Helen sent the berserker into your house, you nearly lost everyone you love, remember?”

Her self-righteousness annoyed me. “Yes, but I kept them all safe without any help from an angel. Remember?”

“But you couldn’t save Tommy Lefevre.”

I sat back as if she’d slapped me.

Her eyes widened, and she clapped her hand over her mouth. “I’m so sorry!”

“You should be.” I glared at her. “Besides, I did rescue Tommy! And I helped Helen win that bet against God.”

Her blue eyes blazed. “Big deal!”

“We took a holy relic out of Heaven,” I said, wanting to rub it in.

She rolled her eyes. “Whatever. We’ve got scads of that stuff lying around. Pieces of the cross, the robes of the apostles, Moses’s staff – angels recycle it into artwork all the time. I swear, Heaven’s full of crafters.” She dipped another French fry. “I used to own this little pillow filled with frankincense that one of the wise men gave to Jesus. Oh, and did you know that in our Alpine room, there are a pair of bookends made out of precious stones from Solomon’s temple?”

I remembered seeing them on the day I’d barged into Heaven and found the angels all drinking hot cocoa around a roaring fire. Those bookends were quite possibly the most garish things I’d ever laid eyes on.

“Patrick Clerk once told me that Heaven was where good taste went to die,” I said.

At this, Harmony’s shoulders slumped, and her eyes brimmed with tears. “I’m sorry,” I said, alarmed. “That was a mean thing to say.” I’d never expected angels to be so sensitive about their tastes in decorating.

She shook her head. “No, that’s not why I’m upset. I’m worried about Patrick.” According to Harmony, she and Helen Spry’s former assistant had been close friends. “There’s a rumor floating around that Helen sent him deep into Hell as a punishment.”

Now, I was concerned. “Helen keeps insisting she doesn’t know where he is.” I bit my lip, thinking. “Do you suppose she reassigned him to maintenance? Today, she said that she needed more people to clean out the iron maidens.”

Harmony’s worried eyes met mine. “I’m afraid that she’s put Patrick inside one of those things.”

I hadn’t wanted to consider that possibility, but Harmony was right. Helen loved to torture people, especially people who had crossed her. And Patrick had upset her when he’d come to my rescue a few weeks before… I shuddered. I couldn’t bear the thought of him being tortured. “I’ll try harder to find out where he is,” I promised.

“Go ahead if it makes you feel better,” Harmony said. “But in the meantime, I’ll intercede on his behalf, and ask the higher-ups to investigate his case.”

I was astounded. “Would Heaven really spend resources to rescue a fallen angel?”

“Are you kidding me? Saving souls is what we do. Trust me, once I put in the intercession, they’ll get Patrick back.”

“I wish I shared your optimism.” I’d tangled with Heaven enough to know that nothing worked that easily.

She looked hurt. “I know you don’t believe me, but it’s true. Have a little faith.”

“What you call faith, I call wishful thinking.”

She shook her head. “No. Wishful thinking is empty dreaming. Faith is about trusting that the Master of the Universe knows what He’s doing.”

I laughed harshly. “Spare me! I don’t think that Heaven’s propaganda is going to do Patrick any good.”

“It’s not propaganda!”

So we’d gone back to our opposing camps. It figured. From the way the two of us fought, you’d think we were related. Still, I admired Harmony’s calm assurance.

I relented. “Okay, I’ll have a little faith. But only a little.” Then I grinned evilly. “Although, are you sure that you’ll have enough time to make that intercession, what with your busy schedule of sewing pillows and eating French fries and all?”

She narrowed her eyes at me as she fought not to smile.

When Ariel came back to the table, she stared at Harmony, her eyes huge. “What kind of thing are you?”

Harmony and I exchanged surprised looks. I knew that my niece had a sensitivity to the otherworld, but I hadn’t realized her perception was strong enough to tell an angel from a human.

Ari’s amazement only lasted a moment, however. When she glanced at her plate and saw that Harmony had eaten all of her French fries, she said, “Hey! I wasn’t finished with those.”

“Well, thank you for sharing.” Harmony wiped her fingers on a napkin and stood. Before leaving, she patted Ariel’s head, getting a glower in return.

Ari regarded her empty plate. “That thing has some nerve!”

“She’s not so bad once you get to know her,” I said, smiling.

Although I’d promised Harmony to have faith in her intercession, I couldn’t sit back and wait for something to happen. Instead, I spent Saturday morning investigating on my own.

I had hunted for Patrick before. Several times, in fact. However, each search had ended in failure. My succubus, who could normally locate anyone with whom I’d made a connection, couldn’t find Patrick anywhere. She always started out eagerly, but she soon got confused, like a bloodhound who had lost the trail. We’d end up pacing up and down the same hallway in Hell, unsure where to go. This time, however, I had a new plan. It wasn’t one that I was keen on, but if it led me to Patrick, I was ready to try it.

Getting to my destination, however, proved to be a problem. Although my succubus willingly brought me into Hell, she refused to lead me to the door with the red light bulb over it. “We don’t have to actually go inside,” I finally told her. “I just want to look at it.”

She hesitated.

“Please! One look. That’s all.”

Reluctantly, she led me forward, and within a few minutes, we’d reached the door with the ‘Authorized Personnel Only’ sign on it. Without stopping to think, I grabbed the doorknob and twisted. My demon shrieked, furious that she’d been fooled, but it was too late. The door was open.

A narrow stairway carved from rock descended at an alarming angle. A series of red light bulbs lit the entrance, but a few feet from the door, the passageway fell into darkness. The smell of sulfur wafted up, making me gag. From far, far below came the churning of heavy machinery, as if all the engines that created Hell were hard at work.

As much as I wanted to rescue Patrick, I couldn’t force my feet down the steps. Fear tightened my chest, and the door handle felt greasy under my sweating palm. “Is he down there?” I whispered.

My terrified succubus leaned forward, as if scenting the air. A moment later, she gave a quick mental shake of her head. No, Patrick was not below.

“Are you sure?”

When she remained adamant, I shut the door. Delilah had been right; doors marked with Authorized Personnel signs were not meant to be opened. “I think that’s enough exploring for one day.” Maybe having faith in the other side wasn’t such a bad idea after all.

Giddy with relief, my demon guided me back home.

That afternoon, anticipating my evening with William, I went to the salon for a head-to-toe makeover. When I returned home, Jasmine took one look at me and said, “You’re going to a lot of trouble for someone who’s just a friend.”

“He is just a friend,” I insisted. True, I wanted something more from him, but it would make my life less complicated if Jas didn’t know that. “We aren’t a couple.”

My sister wasn’t fooled. She knew date-night prep work when she saw it. She followed me into my bedroom. “How long have you known him?”

“About seven months.”

“And you haven’t hooked up with him yet?!”

“Jas, please.” I considered the clothes in my closet. If I wore a dress, it might seem like I was trying too hard. On the other hand, I couldn’t show up in shorts and a tank top.

“What are you going to do with Ariel tonight?”

“I’m sending her to Kate’s.” Kate Popinjay was my on-call babysitter for Ariel and Grace. I depended on her quite a bit since succubi didn’t hold nine-to-five jobs.

Jas sat on my bed next to Drinking Tea and rubbed his chin. “I’m glad you’re having this man over for dinner, but you should think about making your relationship more serious. You need to get over Ted.”

“You do realize that this is none of your business.”

“I’m worried about you is all,” she said.

She was worried all right, but not necessarily about me. Although I’d repeatedly told her that my one night with Tommy had been just that – one night – she wanted me safely paired up with someone else. “I’m fine, Jas,” I promised.

“Okay. Whatever.” She stood. “But just so you know, I’m visiting Tommy tonight, then I’m sleeping over at Mom and Dad’s, so I can help with the party tomorrow. You’ll have the place to yourself.”

That was a relief. Now, if I could keep Corrine from downstairs or any other unwanted visitors at bay, I had a chance for a marvelous Friday evening.

William was due to arrive at six. At five o’clock, I poured myself a large glass of chardonnay to calm my nerves and then I went to dress. I started with black jeans and an azure Diane von Furstenberg off-the-shoulder blouse that I’d been saving for just the right occasion. Then I added a necklace and earrings. All the while, I kept my eye on the clock.

As I nervously re-fluffed the pillows on the couch and straightened the magazines on the coffee table, I realized that the otherworld mouse hole I’d discovered the day before had grown larger. Now, it was the size of a dog door. Worried, I crouched down for a better look. I almost put my head through it, but decided that was beyond stupid. Instead, I took a broom and stuck the handle through. Nothing happened.

Then another idea struck me. I fetched my handheld mirror from the bathroom and put it through the entrance far enough to glimpse the reflection from the otherworld. I wasn’t surprised to see industrial carpeting, gray walls, and fluorescent lights reflected back at me. This portal was exactly the same as every other supernatural doorway. Except that it was growing.

Having an otherworld doorway spontaneously appear in my apartment deeply disturbed me. If this kept up, my home would be overrun. I needed to ask William about it when he arrived.

As I was checking on the chicken Florentine in the oven, I felt a shiver in the air that told me an otherworldly visitor had arrived. Trying hard to suppress my eager smile, I flipped my hair over my shoulder and turned to greet my guest.

It was the wrong guest.

Delilah stood in my kitchen doorway, a paper bag in her hands. She looked around warily, as if expecting a nasty surprise. “Something smells good,” she grudgingly admitted.

“Thank you,” I told her.

She looked over her shoulder at the flickering candles on the dining room table. “Are you expecting company?”

“Yes, actually.”

“Well, I’m sorry to hear it because you have an assignment in five minutes.” She didn’t look one bit sorry.

I was horrified. “What? Now! Can’t it wait?”

She shook her head. “Miss Spry said you are not to miss it.” I could sense Helen’s hot-eyed glare behind Delilah’s frown. “And she said to give you this, too.” She handed me the bag.

It was the tea I had wanted for my father. I could smell the smoky aroma through the paper. Getting the tea didn’t soften my temper, however. “Are you sure you can’t change that appointment?”

She glared at me. “I’d thought you’d be happy to go do your dirty work. Isn’t that what you succubi like to do?”

“No, it isn’t what I like to do,” I said. “Helen forces me to.”

Delilah blinked. “Forces you? You mean, you don’t want to sleep with all those men?”

“I don’t sleep with men. Wait – have you been reading Wikipedia?”

“Maybe.” She hesitated. “Yes.” She sat down on a kitchen chair that groaned under her bulk. “I thought that you and William had signed up for your jobs.”

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