Revealing the Monster by Amelia Hutchins
Chapter One
And so it has begun. The beginning of the end. ~LB
Lucian
I peered out over the piles of burning bodies, left as a warning to the mortals. Most humans had hidden from the destruction unleashed on this world, slinking into the shadows. It was a total shit-show here, with demons and monsters that had no business running unchecked. There were more corpses than breathing people in this once-bustling town on the Idaho/Washington border.
The acrid scent of sulfur and death fought for dominance in the air, the tang of blood a soothing undertone. Another smell loomed just beyond what human senses could pick up—dark, wicked magic that clung to the city. Something was here, something that wasn’t supposed to be in this world.
Turning toward my men, I watched as they dispatched the few demons in our vicinity. Lucifer had gone to ground, hiding beyond the veil between here and Hell. He’d relentlessly started hunting Lena, pulling her to him the moment her mind slipped into stasis to rest. I intended to find the prick and rip his spine out through his mouth.
Spyder swung his blade wide, severing a giant demon into three chunks with the speed that the fuck head hadn’t seen coming. Snorting, I grinned as Spyder tilted his head at the horde of demons moving closer. It was an endless task, dispatching these sorry pricks back to hell. Lifting my hand, I closed my fist and watched with satisfaction as they imploded. Pieces of their bodies sprayed into the air, becoming red mist, painting the ground beneath our feet, but the five seconds of pleasure it took to slaughter them were short-lived. This was the fifth horde we’d removed from the streets of Spokane today.
“You know, when you do that shit, it’s no fun. They die without feeling a damn thing,” Spyder complained, frowning like he’d been denied a good fuck.
“We’re wasting time here. I promised Lena we’d find Makenna, and there’s been no sight of her for weeks. Lucifer is hiding, and I want to know where. I want to end this problem and the issue he poses for Lena. For fuck’s sake, Erie had the Prince of Lust in her fucking freezer, and she let his ass out to steal Lucifer’s army. I want scouts out looking for the prick and his brothers. If anyone knows where to find Lucifer, it’s his generals and the minions he’s kept on a tight leash over the centuries. Lucifer’s a creature of habit, and he couldn’t be too far away if he’s able to pull Lena to him when she enters stasis.”
“You told Lena what we are?” Spyder asked, wiping his blade down, even though the flames burned the blood, cleaning the dagger of the filth left from the demons.
“I did.” Eyeing Spyder, I cracked my neck, exhaling, remembering Lena’s shock at learning exactly with whom she’d fallen in love.
I didn’t doubt how she felt about me, because Lena had proven it to me. She’d sacrificed her life and that of our child to protect me and her world. Lena was a storm that I hadn’t even sensed coming until I’d been standing in the eye, unable to escape. That little witch had knocked me on my ass and shown me what true love was without ever having to say the words. I both resented and respected her for it, which sat like a boulder in my chest.
“How’d she take it?” Spyder cocked his head to the side, studying my expression. The smirk playing on his mouth pissed me off. But I let it go because he’d been beside me since the forging of this world through the blood of the gods.
“First, there was screaming and then denial. After that, Lena wouldn’t stop staring at me, and she babbled incoherently for a while. I’m certain she’s reconsidering whose dick she’s been riding. Lena is a rare breed though, we both know that. She is coming around and hasn’t tried to remove herself from my dick yet, so that’s a good sign. Not that I’d allow her to get off of it.”
“So, she took it well,” Spyder laughed sinisterly, noticing Vlad, who moved out of the shadows, heading straight for us. “Vampire, good to see you’re not dead yet.”
“Here’s the information you requested, Lucian. It isn’t much, but we got a few demons to admit that Lucifer is in the veil, just no specifics on where he is hiding. I’m not sure even they know where he actually is anymore.” Vlad’s swirling silver eyes moved faster than normal as he folded his arms over his broad chest, tilting his head to the side. “I’m not confident it’s enough details to help you find Makenna, though.”
“There’s been no confirmation that the child lives,” I muttered, glancing down at the ramblings of notes containing information that Vlad’s girls had got from their clientele by fucking them. Sex clubs had perks, and most of them came from the mouths of men or creatures not thinking anything of a woman riding a cock, asking questions. It was one reason I’d opened up several sex clubs from coast to coast, collecting intelligence on my enemies. My clubs allowed me to enjoy the best of both worlds, making it easier to slip my world into this one. “I hope Lucifer has some fucking heart left. If not, Makenna might already be dead. It would destroy Lena if that were the case.”
I’d forced the furies to return the full function of Magdalena’s emotions, even though Nyx and the other soulless beings told her she didn’t have them. Lena hadn’t completely lost all of her emotions, probably because she had managed to keep a sliver of her soul, which Hades had ensured upon her death. The rest of that soul was in my possession now, but with the seal still within Lena, she wouldn’t be able to hold any more than a tangible piece of it.
“I fear that, too. Lena has had enough people taken away from her in a very short time. We all have. Fucking wars are bloodbaths, and I know we’re still in the midst of one. Kahleena remains missing, and Syn has started hunting for her, even in her pregnant state. Luckily, Ryder and Zahruk are searching as well, never leaving Syn alone in her precarious position. I just hope that they’re having more luck than we are,” Vlad stated, pushing his fingers through his dark hair. “Any luck finding information about their daughter on your end?”
“I have my people looking for any sign of Kahleena and Makenna.” I’d promised to keep my ear to the ground for any news about Ryder and Syn’s daughter. No one inside this world would be stupid enough to fuck with Kahleena, let alone brag about stealing the High Princess of the Fae. Luckily for us, I had enough connections that there wasn’t anywhere I couldn’t reach for information, not even Hell.
“Do you think Kahleena is in this world?” Vlad asked, studying me.
“I think she might be in Hell,” I admitted as he exhaled. “That was my thoughts exactly on the matter. I have heard whisperings that one of the dark princes stole a princess, but not whom or why they did it. Until I confirm the rumor, I wouldn’t tell Ryder. He and Synthia have lost enough, and the fae don’t belong in the Underworld, searching the dark corners. I have men looking into it, and the moment I hear back, Ryder and Syn will know what I do.”
“I never thought that you showing up here would be a blessing, Lucian,” Vlad scoffed, sliding his gaze to Spyder, who had crossed his arms over his chest, watching us. “Still don’t, assholes. I’m just glad you guys ended up on our side. If I learn anything, I’ll holler.”
“Have you seen Erie lately?” Spyder asked cautiously.
“She was here about an hour ago. She created that pile of bodies and then left before Callaghan showed up on her heels. His people have begun showing signs of the sickness, believed to be tied to the curse. Some have died already. Callaghan is getting desperate, and Erie is enjoying the fight more than anything else.”
My attention shifted to the corpses Erie had placed in sexual poses. Snorting, I shook my head. Crazy bitch. She’d fought beside Synthia with nothing covering her naked breasts, never missing a beat, as if the world hadn’t changed around her. Lena had stopped mid-battle, studying Erie before peering down at her leather-clad body in the armor I had made for her. The idea of Lena doing the same as Erie made my balls tighten. Then I’d noticed the crowd of men watching Erie and pushed that need aside before baring my teeth at the bastards. Erie may not be mine, but she was like a fucking sister to me. A crazy sister, but we went back past this world and others.
“I’m returning to Lena. No offense, but I prefer her company to yours, Vampire.”
“I agree, Lucian. I’d fancy her pretty face to yours any day of the week.” Vlad bowed his head before heading back to Shadowlands, the only club left in Spokane that still stood untouched. He had Synthia and Erie place magical wards around it, creating a moving sanctuary for those in need. If humans or anything close to it tried to enter, Vlad would send their asses to Alden, and he would put them into training for the newly opened guild.
I vanished, appearing in the shadows, noting that Lena had changed out of her armor. Her caramel-colored hair was up tonight, and a few stray strands framed her heart-shaped face. Wide blue eyes with tiny flecks of green peered up at the ceiling of Club Chaos, which mirrored the night sky just for her. Lena wasn’t simply pretty; she was ethereally gorgeous. Her ample breasts pushed against her tight shirt, complementing the thin skirt that outlined her narrow hips. There was still an emptiness to her that wouldn’t be filled until I righted her world, and I fucking would. There was no universe where Lena didn’t get everything she wanted, not after everything she’d given up. I wished I could tell her about our son, but I had to be cautious, keeping my cards close to my chest to play out carefully. I wouldn’t chance to lose her over how I’d obtained him.
Harbinger was tiny and perfect, just like his mother. Lena needed to give him a suitable name that didn’t represent what he was foretold to become. He may have been born to be the harbinger, but that didn’t mean he would fulfill the prophecy.
War created monsters, and the most evil of beings became that way because of something that triggered them. Lena was the mother of my child, and I didn’t think for one moment she could create anything evil. She was pure and untainted by hatred, even after everything she’d endured. Nah, Magdalena Fitzgerald wouldn’t allow her son to become the end of this pathetic fucking rock, because this was her home. She’d get the opportunity to raise our son right, and she’d love him no matter what type of monster he was or could become.
Harbinger was in my world, waiting for us to bring him his cousin, whom he would call sister.
The thought of Lena being in my home caused my chest to tighten with unfamiliar emotions. Lifting my hand, I pressed it against my chest to still the pounding of my heart. Turquoise eyes slid toward me, and I smiled. Lena still needed some time to adjust. It wasn’t every day you learned the man you were with wasn’t even close to being human.
“Creeper,” Lena called to me, her attention moving back to the night skies. “Find anything?”
“No, but we’ll find Makenna. If I have to bring Hell to its knees and turn it inside out to get her back, I will,” I murmured against Lena’s ear, appearing beside her with a mere thought from my mind. She leaned back, melting into my body. “I missed you.” Blowing out the air she’d been holding without realizing it, her fingers slid through mine, clutching me against her.
“I know. I felt you.” Lena angled her head to the side, looking up at me. “How’s Spyder?” Her heartbeat echoed, rising to a rapid beat with her question.
“He’s in pain because of the bond he still carries, but he’s adjusting. He’ll come around, eventually.”
That fucking bond haunted me. Spyder was suffering, and we’d found no way to release him. It seemed the more we tried to break it, the worse it became. Lena had cemented the bond between her and me. In doing so, she’d mated me, and through the bond, she’d unknowingly claimed Spyder, cursing him to an endless cycle of pain.
Did I want them together? No. But through the bond, Spyder was cursed to feel us every time I was with her. I wanted him beside me. Instead, he spent his nights away from us, getting drunk and cursing the magic that continued to bind us all together. There were ways to break the bond without physical contact, but they were iffy. And on the flip side, Lena wasn’t into being shared.
Lena felt Spyder as much as she felt me, which meant there were three of us in this relationship, and worse, he wore the same fucking claiming mark I had from her. Poor bastard couldn’t even fuck someone without killing them because of the bonding. Lena had unknowingly claimed the fucker as her mate, just as sure as she’d claimed me, and neither one of us wanted her to know it yet.
Telling Lena wouldn’t fix the problem or change what she’d done. She hadn’t even realized she was claiming me. Claiming both of us through the bond with her dark magic wasn’t something that had ever been done. Furies didn’t mate, nor did they ever wish to be tied to one partner. They were sexual beings, just like the demon that had created them. We’d changed their history to prevent anyone from figuring out what the three original furies held within them and represented.
“We have to fix it. Whatever it takes, Lucian, both Spyder, and Makenna. Kendra’s soul is in limbo, and that’s because of me. She never thought I’d fail in protecting Makenna. I’ve already lost one child. I cannot live with losing her daughter too.” Turning toward me, Lena pushed up on her toes to claim my lips, sending a coil of need racing to my stomach and balls. Her hands twisted and clung onto my suit jacket as she rested her head against my chest. Placing a soft kiss on the top of her sweetly scented hair, I smiled at the innocent gesture.
Lena had a way of making the simplest action into something sexual. Both parts of her, fury and woman, were sexual beings. Together they were sin wrapped in a delicious package I wanted and needed to consume. Lena had given up on shying away from her sexuality. It was as if without a soul, she no longer clung to her human moral code.
“We’ll figure out how to find Makenna and fix Spyder, too. You’re mine now, and that means Makenna is mine to protect as well. No matter how hard it is, we will do what we must so that we’re all spared the pain. I want Spyder with us again and for him to be over you. I’m tired of sharing you with him, Lena. I’m also done playing with Lucifer. When I find him, I will cage him. You will be the one holding the key and will decide his sentence.”
“I wish we could kill him,” she admitted, and I growled in approval at the softly whispered bloodlust filling her words. I lowered my hands, settling around her waist to grind her against the growing erection her savagery created within me.
“If there were a way to do it and fix Heaven and Hell, I would rip that asshole to pieces and eat him just so I could shit him out,” I admitted.
“I don’t know why, but that was really sexy,” she chuckled, wrapping her arms around me and squeezing. My arms tightened around her, and I peered up into the galaxies of stars exposed through the club’s vast, newly built ceiling.
This woman was my world. Lena claimed me with a kiss and a firm tongue lashing that had pissed me off. She’s put me in my place from the moment I’d met her, never faltering in her conviction of what she deserved. She’d been this fierce, tiny witch with so much attitude that I’d wanted to fuck it out of her.
I’d only planned to taste her once, but deep down, I knew it wouldn’t be enough, and I was right. Creatures like me didn’t fall in love, but with Lena, she’d rocked my very foundation. She’d walked right in and crumbled the walls I’d placed around my world like some fucking wrecking ball.
Then she’d fucking died, and my entire world stopped turning. I was empty without her. For the first time since my creation, I felt at a loss for what to do. I’d wanted to destroy the entire world, to leave it an empty, lifeless void matching how I’d felt without her shining turquoise eyes or sweetly scented body next to mine. I’d felt weak, and I’d never experienced that before meeting Lena.
Now, she held my heart in her palm, and I never wanted it back. Inhaling her scent, I relaxed into the soothing fragrance of midnight mixed with magic. Fucking witches, they tended to grab you and hold on to your throat, burrowing under your skin until nothing else mattered, and nothing else ever would.
There was no world where Magdalena Fitzgerald wasn’t mine, not even when she figures out what I had done to save our son. If she tried to leave me, it would be a fight to keep her. I’d destroy the world she loved, forcing her to come with me to be mine.
Whatever it took.
Whatever I had to do, I’d do it twice.
I’d pay the price, and she and my son would be mine until the end of time.
I released Lena, watching as she moved toward a booth, realizing that pain was rippling through her once more. How would she handle the knowledge that I was the one who had allowed her entire bloodline to die? That I’d stood idly by, knowing death was coming for them? Her tiny frame slipped into the booth, and her arms folded onto the smooth surface of the table before she lowered her head, resting her cheek on it to look over the empty club. I studied her for a few moments before turning to Bane, giving instructions for the upcoming reopening of Club Chaos. He listened, but his eyes were glued on Lena, too, scenting the sulfur that filled the space around her the moment her eyes had closed.
“Lucifer is at her again,” Bane snorted, tightening his hands into fists at his sides. “That fucking bastard needs a new hobby.”
None of us liked it, but if we intervened, it would only hurt Magdalena. Lucifer couldn’t really harm her in stasis, but he could make her believe he would. I wanted to find him and murder the prick for even thinking he held any power over her.
“Lena’s safe from Lucifer,” I muttered as her chest rose and fell in the sleep of our kind. “He doesn’t want to scare her. He’s still trying to make her think he’s not the bad guy here. Hopefully, she’ll learn something about Makenna this time.”
“You do know he wants her in a totally sexual way, right? I say we take off the gloves and place a bounty on his head. It’s enough that he thinks he can take her from you, but this can’t keep happening—not to you or her. He’s toying with her mind. Eventually, it will fracture. All Lucifer has to do is convince Lena that he’s her savior. She isn’t happy with what she’s become.”
“I know that, prick. Magdalena may not like how she was reborn and what she has become, but she doesn’t want to die, either. Lucifer can only offer her Hell, and she’s not the type of woman to accept that. She’s a storm, one he has no idea how to handle. She’s mine, and he knows it. It’s why he wants her.”
I moved closer to Lena, seeing the way her lips tugged into a tight line. Her unique scent warred with the vile smell of Hell and Lucifer’s dark magic. I pushed the hair away from her face with my fingers, and she sighed, sensing me close. Lucifer didn’t understand shit about Magdalena Fitzgerald, because if he did, he’d know she was a fighter to her fucking core. He’d know that when she loved something, it became everything that mattered to her. She would put everything she had into loving it, no matter the cost. He’d learn how hopeless his task was because she’d never be his.
