Page 69 of Falling for the Devil

Well, fuck him and his jealousy. They were going to take down that bastard demon prince, then she’d ask Balfour to transport her home immediately. Lucifer could deal with the fallout by himself. He could pretend nothing happened between them, but every last angel there could sense the truth. Even if they didn’t, that snide smile and comments from Olivier ensured that at least one angel wasn’t going to let Lucifer off the hook. The Creator—if he didn’t already know—would soon enough.

The dense tree canopy obscured the sky from view. Not even a sliver of moonlight. With her keen tracking sense, Diana didn’t need light to see where she was or where she was going. Neither did the angels as not once did one stumble. It was a smidge disappointing. She’d relish hearing one of them smack into a tree in the dark.

Despite the onset of night, the heat and oppressive humidity swelled. They had to be close to the fiery mountain. If it was indeed an active volcano, she’d hoped a few explosions would catapult a magma blob right on top of Lucifer.

“Darling,” Puck’s soothing voice spoke into her head, “I can read your mind, but even if I couldn’t, I’d know what vile thoughts you were having by your facial expressions and body language. Cool it down or you’ll spook the uptight winged ones.”

A corner of her lips ticked up. He was right. She had to at least make it seem like she was on their side. Yes, she’d track down Asmodeus for them. If it came down to it, she’d slaughter him by herself just to end things.

MORNING HAD TO BE NEAR, but they were so deeply embedded in the forest, they’d never know. They’d squeezed through rocky crevices, had had their hair snatched by the overgrowth of thorny bushes they’d waded through, and crossed three more streams since they’d lost all light. Diana might be an excellent tracker, but this meandering trail to the volcano seemed a little too cautious, given their urgency. Sweat coursed underneath Lucifer’s armor in rivers making it uncomfortable in certain snug areas of his body.

He'd been shushed by his own general, Aquifas, the last time he’d tried to ask, “How much farther?”

Diana had avoided ever looking his way. The longer he watched her backside, the more his mind—and other body parts—raced with memories of how those perky cheeks felt against his palms. His cock had strained against his codpiece painfully, making walking difficult.

He was so lost in his misery, he slammed right into the back of one of the soldiers. He regretted he could never remember the lad’s name.

Everyone had stopped because Diana had her hand up, peering upward through the heavy foliage. No one dared to speak.

When she glanced back to the group, she pointed to her ear and then back to the sky. They waited. Not even a breath was heard. Then the ground shook underneath their feet, followed by a shrill whistle and an even louder boom in the distance.

The volcano was nearby, and it was active. Now, to find the hidden entrance.

He prayed it wasn’t flooded with molten lava. Angels were as close to invincible as a deity could get, but they’d never tested that theory against a volcano’s greatest weapon.

The next whistle and blast seemed to come a little closer. Diana jerked toward the sound in an effort to track the projectiles. Perhaps she could. He expected to at least see the fire of a lava bomb against the sky to lighten the surrounding area before one landed on his head.

Four fingers of her raised hand flicked forward, the signal to follow again. Knowing what he’d have to do once they reached their destination sent an icy shiver of apprehension through his veins. Facing a vicious demon prince was one thing. He wouldn’t bat an eye slewing his enemy. It was what else he had to do in order to lure the beast that had him anxious enough for him to walk away from the whole mess.

The ground shook intermittently, sometimes enough to rattle the trees to shower them with leaves from high above. Heat began to seep through his boots, warming the soles of his feet. They were close.

Without stopping, Diana motioned Aquifas to join her. Lucifer’s heart had leaped, thinking she was calling him forth, but she shook her head and frowned. Would she ever smile at him again? They exchanged words and few hand gestures, but he couldn’t figure out what they were saying.

A moment later, she waved everyone forward and to the left, through another stream—this one with bubbling water and steam rising from its surface. The pleasant aroma of pine and unspoiled earth had been replaced with a more pungent, acrid odor. Several of his soldiers covered their noses and mouths in a vain attempt to block it out.

Rounding yet another steep corner, they ran straight into the mountain’s harsh granite side, so steep that he had to crane his neck as far as it would go to see it transcend past the plush tree canopy.

“Over here,” Diana’s whisper carried over the rustling of the leaves from the latest blast from the volcano.

They skirted the cliffside until it gave way to a crevice just large enough for a single person to enter—as long as that person was slender. Diana and her rail-thin companion could squeeze through without an issue, but not any of the angels. With or without armor, they were too bulky.

Somehow, he’d have to get through. Their success depended on it. There was only one way he knew to make this work... He’d have to leave his physical vessel behind and then have someone shove it through the opening like a lumpy sack.

“Everyone knows their jobs, right?” Diana peered at each soldier until they nodded with enough confidence to at least make her believe they knew what they were doing.

They had the easy part—wait and when Asmodeus was sighted, give the signal. Of course, once the demon made it inside, it would be up to Lucifer to defeat him... unless all the soldiers shed their vessels to enter the interior of the rumbling mounting.

Diana’s hand came up to cover her nose and mouth. The foul odor was worse here; a brisk wind whistling out of the crevice carried the tainted air. With a smile of encouragement that didn’t agree with the narrowing of her eyes, she cocked her head to the side. “It’s game time, Lucifer. Do you think you can handle your assignment?”

Apprehension of the battle to come fueled the pounding of blood through his veins, but the long hike—and Diana’s bitchy attitude—had ignited a prickling sensation under his skin. At the same time, he wanted to throw her up against the mountain’s rock surface and take her without restraint in front of everyone until her voice echoed through the dense forest screaming his name. Or, the alternative being to smash her pretty little head against the same mountain until she lay in a heap at his feet.

What the... Lucifer took a step away from her. Where had those horrific and morbid thoughts come from? He cursed under his breath. Only one explanation fit.

“I think we have someone unexpected showing up.” Lucifer unsheathed his weapon. “Sathanas is also nearby.”

Everyone’s eyes grew wide. The angels knew the demon prince of wrath was an even more formidable opponent than Asmodeus. Individually, neither should be difficult for Lucifer to take down, but together... that could prove to be another story.

Puck’s thin eyebrows met over the bridge of his nose. “Who or what the fuck is a Sathanas?”

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