Page 71 of Hell Bound

He was still far enough that I could’ve slipped out the window—but it was broad daylight, and he was too close for me to leave by the door.

I yanked the door open and Lilith’s hands shoved at my back.

“Get in, get in, get in!” Her voice was high-pitched with panic. “Stay in there, and no matter what he says or does, don’t make a sound!”

I gripped her hand. “You have to stay calm. Don’t do anything to provoke him.”

She feverishly adjusted her dress, raking her hands through her hair. “Shh! I swear to god, Lucifer—not a sound out of you.”

Lilith slammed the wardrobe door shut, leaving me in darkness. Only a second later, the door to her room banged open as the king barged in.

My ears caught everything, playing out the scene like I was standing right there.

Asmodeus’s footsteps grew louder as he stepped into the room. “How strange. I half expected to find my wayward commander here.”

I heard Lilith swallow with nervousness.

“Why would you expect him to be here?” Despite her panic, she fired off her words like they were bullets aimed at Asmodeus. “You keep me so busy with your bullshit, it’s not like I have time to sit around and entertain.”

Asmodeus let out another cruel chuckle. “Is that so?”

A footstep—a gasp of pain…

I forced down a growl, my skin rippling as the wolf threatened to burst free…

“You look a little…disheveled, my dear Lilith. Are you sure you have no idea where he might be?”

I caught the rough grind of her teeth… the sound of an arm jerking out of a tight grasp…

“There are a thousand other things I’d rather do than keep tabs on your wolves for you. I haven’t seen him, and sadly, yours is the only face I’ve seen today.”

“Then aren’t you the lucky one? Other demonesses are denied the pleasure of my face, even though they deserve it far more than you do.”

A soft snort. “You sure are a cocky bastard, aren’t you? But you know what? It doesn’t even matter that you’ve got a pretty face, everything else about you makes you hideous. All that cruelty inside you gives you a face not even the Crone could love.”

His silence spoke volumes, and my entire body tightened in fear.

Asmodeus’s voice grew thin with annoyance. “You’re in lively spirits today. I have just the thing to remedy that.”

Lilith’s gasp had me fighting to remain silent, as did the sounds of scuffling as he dragged her out of the room.

Their noises had barely faded before I eased the wardrobe door open, and hurriedly stepped out of my clothes, shoving in the back of the wardrobe before I shifted. I couldn’t risk leaving any evidence out in the open for anyone to find.

It was much easier to follow their footsteps on silent paws, the tang of Lilith’s fear and the acrid edge of Asmodeus’s anger providing me a clear trail.

My heart sank as I followed it down the hall to a winding staircase, down broad stone steps…

To the door Lilith had always hated. She’d refused to come anywhere near here in her past life.

I prowled through it, exiting not onto the training courtyard, but into a walled-off garden hidden in this desolate corner of the palace.

Dark trees stretched overhead, their spindly branches like skeletal limbs, and I slipped easily behind a thicket of them.

The garden was sprawling, but the two figures were easy to see: Asmodeus yanking Lilith down the paved pathway.

She stumbled on a loose brick, but he kept pulling her along, dragging her several feet down the path until she got her legs under her again.

It was painful to hold back the snarls, to not lunge out and try to get his throat in my grasp.

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