Page 62 of Fear the Fall
She tsks. “You give me too much credit, daughter of God.”
“I’m no daughter of God. In fact, he’d probably smite you just for saying so.”
She laughs. “I was smitten long ago. I don’t fear God.”
She should. God is not to be underestimated. He could end Earth and Hell in one tantrum, if he so chose. His love for all mankind knows no bounds; otherwise, this earth would’ve been scorched long ago. He too has faith. Faith in the faithless. His belief in humans is unearned and unrequited in many ways.
“So, you don’t know what we’re up against?”
“Pure evil. If Lucifer doesn’t act, it’ll be too late.”
“You want Lucifer to succeed? Why?” I’m truly mystified by this entire conversation.
“Not everything is black and white, Victoria. There are things that not even you know about the inner workings of Heaven and Hell.”
“And you do?”
She shrugs. “I’ve heard whispers.”
“Care to share?”
“Some things are not for me to tell. This is a conversation you’ll have, and soon. But not with me.”
My lips form a thin line as I debate whether to take my chances and push or move on, knowing full well that Madame Solheim only shares what she wishes. I inhale and blow the air out hard.
“Who is the coven helping the demon?”
“A wicked lot.”
“Where can I find them?” I press, ready to start hunting witches along with demons.
“They’ve already moved underground. Ezekiel was too late. Whoever the creature, it’s protecting them for their service. Not even my coven can uncover their whereabouts.”
“Is Zeke in danger?” I don’t want anything to happen to him until he feels every ounce of the pain I’m going to inflict on him for his damn deceit.
She shakes her head. “He’ll be fine. He needs to worry about you more than anything.”
“Does he have any idea I know he betrayed me?” The words are spoken from between my teeth as anger takes hold.
“No.”
“I’m going to find him and tear him limb from limb.”
“No. Forget about Zeke. You need to go to Lucifer. He’s very worried about you. I can feel his distress.”
My nose scrunches. “Lucifer doesn’t care about me. I’m just another toy.”
“You know better than that, Victoria. You’re nothing close to a toy for him.”
I refuse to even dissect those words. Even Solheim can be wrong.
“This creature is determined to reign over Hell. Lucifer needs to be ready. The entire world depends on him sitting upon that throne.”
It’s worse than I feared. A rogue demon, creating an army to overthrow Lucifer. It’s a sad day when the devil isn’t even evil enough. He kept his demons in line, and one stepped off the path. Whoever is threatening his reign clearly has other ideas in mind, and it does not bode well for mortals.
“Thank you, Madame Solheim,” I say, turning to go.
“Victoria,” she calls, and I look back at her over my shoulder. “We all deserve to be heard.”