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“Uncle Luz?”

She was on the verge of passing out from exhaustion. The energy Alesandro had given her to Cleanse Antoni Barros was nearing depletion. She needed sleep she hadn’t gotten on her five-day getaway to settle the mark. And she needed food.

But his next words turned her entire world upside down. “Actually, it’s great-grandfather Luz.”

Suddenly, she was as awake as she was confused.

He began a trek into the cabin.

“What do you mean?” She called, following through the front door right into the kitchen.

“Knew you were hungry.” He mumbled as he made his way to the fridge.

“Uncle, Luz!”

“Great-grandfather.”

“Demons and divine creatures cannot procreate.” She slammed her hands on her counter. “I’m a succubus. You’re an angel!”

“It wasn’t a traditional creation.” He pulled out her carrot cake and opened the lid. His eyebrow rose at the sight of the spoon inside. “This is concerning.”

Rowan snatched the cake and picked up the spoon, pointing it at his chest. “Concentrate.”

He let out a heavy breath and raked a hand through his long, blonde hair. “You’re right. It shouldn’t have been possible. But Lilith has never actually listened to the rules, has she? She refused the role she’d been created to fill. She refused to let the endless hells cage her as they were supposed to. And she did it once more when she created our daughter, Ellanora.”

“Created? Alone? Auntie Lilith can’t be a god.”

He let out a scoff and a laugh. “No. If she ever became a god, the world would most assuredly come undone. But her intelligence allows her to skirt the expectations of the magical world. You’ve inherited that quality. Look at what you’ve done here. Look at what you did last night.”

“How?”

“The same way she created the original succubi. Though, this time she used my genetic make-up, not Adam’s. She disappeared for a year. I-I thought she’d had enough of my darkness and self-inflicted imprisonment in our castle. Then she showed up with a girl, just a year old. Golden-haired like me, violet-eyed like her.”

Disbelief exploded in Rowan. She’d always known her godmother was self-serving, with little regard to anyone her decisions might affect. The only softness the woman ever showed was for Annabelle, Annabelle’s family, and Luciferhimself. Rowan had seen her interact with the outside world, and the hatred she had for everyone who wasn’t those select few.

To think she could do something as life altering as create an offspring without input from the man she claimed to love above all else.

“How did you forgive her?”

He shrugged, “Love, I suppose. For her. I couldn’t stand seeing her shaking, terrified of my reaction. But I also had a love for the child. Her magic was entertaining. She was a master of illusion. She encouraged me to leave the endless hells and explore all the dimensions to satiate her curiosity. I was happy.”

“Anytime we asked Ama about her, she’d redirect or straight up ignore us. What happened to her?”

“She still lives.” He shrugged. “But she’s been hopping dimensions living for herself only. When Annabelle was born, it was unexpected. Her fling with the Southern Elven Kingdom’s ruler was a favor for all the other succubi, who she’d tried to fit in with even though she wasn’t one of them. She stole most of the kingdom’s gold by the time she was pregnant. Your grandfather, Lauricio, didn’t really mind. He was old in age and had only one goal: to have a child. When Annabelle was born, Ellanora already had her next big adventure planned. It didn’t include her.”

Anger brushed every cell within Rowan. “What?”

“Even if Lilith had created her, Ellanora was little more than a pet in her eyes. She had me, her father, to raise her, and I did the best I could. In her mind, it wasn’t a big deal to leave her daughter like she’d perceived Lilith to leave her. We didn’t know about Annabelle until Lilith visited the one person who she’d ever loved other than me-Eliza Dahl.”

“My dad’s aunt?” Rowan’s eyes widened.

“Yes. The Traveling Cabin settled in the endless pits of hell for a few months. Eliza was, well, for a lack of a better word, odd. I know my wife doesn’t encourage confidence, but Eliza liked her. It didn’t matter that Lilith verbally abused the woman as she tried to work out how to get the cabin unstuck.” Lucifer tapped the counter lovingly. “I like to think the cabin knew my woman needed someone other than me to love her, and knew that Eliza could withstand her. Eliza also needed Lilith. She was an outcast in the Eastern Elven Kingdom.”

“Wait.” Rowan choked on a piece of cake she’d taken a chance on as her—she still couldn’t believe it—great-grandfather, continued his story.

Lucifer poured her a large cup of milk to ease her distress.

“Love, love? As in, they were lovers?”