Page 30 of Unholy Night
“Ah, the better way to explain would be to say he does it all in one night tomakemagic.” He leads her to where I’m still sitting in the sleigh and offers a hand to help me out. I let him help me down but before I can take my hand back, he laces his fingers with mine. He gives me a quick, questioning look, and I offer a small smile in return. I was feeling bold and sexy earlier, but now I feel like a girl holding hands for the first time.
“Santa makes the magic? All in one night?” Awe fills Mandy’s voice.
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” Lucifer grunts. “He makes magic, but not all of it. Of course, he does contribute a great deal.” His voice is grudging as he adds that last part.
“I’m sure a lot of magic is still alive because of you,” I say. Santa’s Village is one of the saddest things I’ve seen in a long time. But Hell? It’s full of magic.
“Thank you, but fear is a lot stronger than pure belief.” His voice shifts just enough that I can tell he dislikes that fact. “It’s the reason I was asked to speak at the Summit,” he says. “My realm is one of the few that still has power.”
“Your job is important.” I tighten my fingers in his and look at all the drifting lights around the trees--souls waiting to try again. “You are needed.”
He stops walking and looks at me. Slowly, so slowly I can stop him if I want to--but I don’t, he raises our joined hands and presses a kiss to my knuckles. His lips are warm and gentle. Heat roars to life, flooding my body, but it’s the gratitude in his eyes that makes my heart thump loudly.
“Thank you.” His husky voice makes me want to lean into him, for him to let go of my hand and wrap his arm around me instead. I don’t trust myself to speak, so I smile instead.
“Whoa,” Mandy whispers and takes a step closer to us.
I look up and immediately understand why Mandy is nervous. A… horde… of demons are advancing in our direction. As different as the three demons we met earlier, all of these differ in many ways. Some are huge, with horns the size of elephant trunks. Some walk on four feet or have three arms. They come in every variety of color you can imagine and have entirely unique body shapes and sizes.
“Don’t worry. These are my friends.” Lucifer releases my hands and wraps his arms around Mandy’s shoulders. “They will never hurt you.”
In fact, as they get closer, I realizetheyseem nervous. Some of the demons are whispering amongst themselves and pointing at Mandy. A few throw looks in my direction, curiosity evident, but it’s definitely Mandy who holds their attention.
“Why are they all looking at me?” Mandy asks, a slight tremor in her voice.
“They’ve never seen a child before,” Lucifer replies.
I look up at him in surprise. I shouldn’t be surprised. Of course there are no children in Hell. Not with someone like Lucifer in charge.
“Are they scared of me?” Mandy cocks her head back so she can see his face. “Some of them look scared.”
“Hm. Remember when you met Dan?” Mandy nods her head. “He was different, so you were scared.”
“But I’m not scary! I’m nice!” Mandy looks shocked.
“And so is Dan, but you didn’t know that at first.” He pats her head. “They just need to get to know you.”
A couple of demons edge a little closer, curious but cautious. Mandy contemplates them for a minute before putting on her brightest smile and waving.
“Hi! I’m Mandy!”
A few of them flinch at her loud voice and several more make sounds similar to chuckles. One of the demons walking on four legs lumbers closer and takes a sniff of Mandy’s outstretched hand.
“See? I’m nice!” She steps out of the circle of Lucifer's arms and holds her other hand out to another demon. “We can be friends!”
My mom instincts are screaming that I should grab Mandy and run, but the fond look on Lucifer's face weighs against those and I take a deep breath. Instead of grabbing my daughter, I step forward and offer my hands as well.
“Hi, I’m Lyla.” A small, green demon the size of a cantaloupe walks forward and looks at me with three big eyes. “What’s your name?”
“Gurch.” I’m not sure if he answered my question or burped, but I’m going to roll with it.
“It’s nice to meet you.”
Gurch scrambles closer, his little feet moving quickly, and takes a deep sniff. Before I know what’s happening, he’s scrambling up my side and sitting on my shoulder. The smell of sulphur is stronger with him so close, but not overwhelmingly so. I’ll take this over peppermint any day.
A deep growl reverberates from Lucifer and I look to see him glaring at the tiny demon.
“I’m going to stuff stockings.” Gurch apparently isn’t worried about Lucifer. “You smell interesting.”