Page 39 of Demon with Benefits (Hell Bent #3)

RAIN OR SHINE

S UNSHINE, FORMERLY KNOWN AS S HAMSIEL, GUARDIAN angel of the lower Third Sphere, twiddled her thumbs in the empty courtyard.

Daniel was three minutes late.

Daniel was never late, and this concerned her. The entire nature of this scheduled visit concerned her.

Daniel had asked her to search the Empyrean Library for information on an extinct class of demon called the Shehanva, with particular attention paid to their branding rituals.

Even stranger, when she had asked him why he was interested in such information, he’d replied that he couldn’t say, but he wished for her to trust him.

He’d responded to her further reluctance by calling in an old favor she owed him from long ago.

Of course Sunshine could not deny her friend this request. Not after what he’d done for her.

Unfortunately, there was not much information on demon enslavers in Heaven’s archives.

After an exhaustive search, she’d found only a handful of texts on the subject, and after her first meeting with Daniel, they’d established that he was already in possession of the information most of them contained.

One detail—that the slave brands could be transferred to a new owner—had seemed to pique his interest, though she hadn’t the faintest clue as to why.

After their last rendezvous, Daniel had asked her to look once more, this time with a particular focus on methods, no matter how unorthodox, of breaking any type of seemingly unbreakable magical branding.

Sunshine had agreed, but despite her determination to believe in Daniel’s sense of duty... suspicion had begun to arise.

She couldn’t help it. She told herself that doubting the integrity of one of her oldest friends was wrong, and yet, the suspicion lingered.

Not only did it linger... it grew.

Why should Daniel care about Sheolic branding rituals?

What possible interest could he have in the goings on of underworld beings?

Already their friendship was forbidden—the Grigori were fallen, and angels of Heaven were not to associate with them—but Sunshine had always believed Daniel was noble of heart.

How could she not when he had proven himself to her so selflessly?

And yet, as she stood in the courtyard soaking in the morning sun, she knew she was going to withhold the information she had until he told her what he planned to do with it.

It was not wrong, she decided, to verify that she was not unintentionally betraying Heaven.

Her highest duty was to the realm and her angelic brethren, and Sunshine had much to atone for.

Every day she thanked the angels of the highest Sphere that her grave transgression had resulted only in severe punishment and not total banishment.

After two more minutes, Daniel finally arrived.

Since their friendship was forbidden, they chose a new anonymous location to meet each time.

Athens, Greece had been the choice today, in a small, overgrown garden in the backyard of a vacant home.

Vines crawled up the stone walls around them and the satyr in the fountain had seen so many years, its features had eroded to nothingness.

“Sunshine.” Daniel approached with a smile, and Sunshine hurried to embrace him. “Sorry I’m late. Things are a bit hectic lately.”

It went against everything in her nature to be suspicious of a friend. She believed the best of everyone until proven otherwise, and even then, she always gave a second chance. It was humanity’s inability to forgive that was responsible for so many of their troubles, and this saddened her.

She pulled back from his embrace, smiling at the Grigori. “How are you, Daniel?”

Long ago, before Daniel’s fall from Heaven, they had stood side by side as high-ranking warrior angels. That past was no more, but their friendship had endured the test of time, and she was grateful for it.

“I’m great,” he said, but there was a certain tightness to his features that told her his answer may not have been entirely truthful.

He was entitled to his privacy, however, and she would respect it. She reached out to clasp his hand and smiled. “I’m so glad to hear you’re well, treasured friend.”

“Thanks, Sunshine. And you?”

“I am also excellent.” Her smile didn’t waver, and she realized Daniel was not the only one hiding his true feelings.

“They’re keeping you busy?”

“Indeed. I have been tasked with the protection of a new environmental agency, an endangered species rescue organization, and a traveling musician speaking out against racism.”

“Wow.”

“Yes.” She released his hand and wove her fingers together. “But we didn’t arrange this meeting to discuss my duties. As much as I enjoy our visits, I must keep them brief.”

“Of course. I’m grateful you’ll meet with me at all. I know what it means for you to break the rules.”

“It is worth it for you, dear friend.”

Daniel smiled. “Thank you. So, did you manage to find anything?”

Sunshine held her breath momentarily.

And then... she lied.

“I’m sorry, but my research this time did not bear fruit. I was unable to find evidence of a foolproof way to remove any magical brand.”

Daniel sighed. “Damn. I was sure Heaven would have a method for this kind of thing.”

It did indeed. And Daniel himself would have been privy to the knowledge long ago, before his fall. But as it was now, too much time had passed for him to remember—if he had ever known—and he was no longer able to access the Empyrean Library to refresh his knowledge.

And his friend and confidante had just lied to him.

Sunshine’s stomach churned from the bitter taste of dishonesty. An angel did not speak mistruth. She was to be a shining beacon of morality, a perfect example for humankind to follow.

But an angel’s highest duty was to the heavenly realm first and foremost. And sometimes, to protect meant telling a lie.

At least, that was what she told herself.

“Perhaps,” she tried carefully, “if you could tell me what it is you’re searching for, I might be able to find more conclusive results. It is difficult to search the archives when it is not entirely clear what I’m looking for.”

Daniel’s face fell, and she knew immediately he would not share any more with her. “I’m sorry, Sunshine, but I can’t. Will you believe me when I say it’s for a good cause? That I would never ask you to do something that went against your principles?”

“Of course.” She smiled, but her face muscles resisted the expression. “We have come too far for me not to offer you the same trust you’ve always given me.”

Another lie. This one burnt like ashes on her tongue.

“Shall I continue searching for you?”

“No,” Daniel replied, waving a hand. “You’ve done enough. I know the risk you’re taking just to meet with me, and I can’t ask you to continue looking when no one can know what you’re doing.”

She reached out and clasped his hand again. “Thank you. I’m sorry I couldn’t provide you with any useful information. I wish I could have done more.”

“You’ve done plenty.” He used their joined hands to pull her into a brotherly embrace. That was how she had always seen him: like a beloved older brother. “Thank you, Sunshine.”

“You’re welcome, Daniel.”

They stepped apart, and he smiled. “You know, I think you’re the only person in the world who still calls me Daniel.”

“It’s your name.”

“Not anymore.”

“Do you wish me to call you Dan?” The word felt foreign on her tongue.

He chuckled. “No. It doesn’t matter to me.” He clasped her shoulder briefly. “Take care. Keep saving the world.”

“You too, dear friend.” She smiled and then flashed away.

But she didn’t return to the realm.

In fact, she only teleported out of the garden, out of Daniel’s sight.

There, she dampened her energy so he would not sense her and then waited.

Grigori still had most of their angelic powers, but they lost their direct connection to Heaven when they fell, and as such, they were weakened.

For this reason, it took Daniel several seconds of focused concentration before he could teleport away.

As soon as he was gone, Sunshine flashed back into the garden to where Daniel had been standing seconds before.

Holding out a hand, she waved it through the air, still tingling with a slight static charge from Daniel’s power.

She closed her eyes and focused, tapping into the wellspring of her own abilities.

Little tendrils of her energy latched on to the remnants of Daniel’s, following it through the ether, transcending time and space. And then she felt it. There.

Her eyes opened. Hong Kong. Interesting.

Using the energetic signature as her anchor point, she traveled the same path Daniel had taken, with a slight deviation at the end to ensure they didn’t end up in the exact same location. Daniel couldn’t know she’d followed him.

From there, she immediately sensed the energy traces of another jump. But why would Daniel travel to Hong Kong only to leave seconds later? Unless...

He was trying to ensure he was not followed.

Her sense of suspicion increased, and so did her focus. Closing her eyes, she traced his path and followed him once more. Brazil. And then again. Morocco.

And finally... Canada.

She arrived in a back alley in a wintry city. Still dressed for Greece’s milder weather, the cold bit at her arms through her light jacket. It wasn’t immediately clear where exactly she was in the expansive country, but she had a sense of being in one of the eastern provinces.

It was night, but the cloudy sky glowed from the city lights.

Behind her, broken furniture stuck out of an overfilled dumpster.

The brick walls on either side were painted with graffiti, and the snowdrifts were so high, they covered nearly half the wall.

Only a small, icy path remained, and Sunshine followed it toward the street.

There, cars and buses sprayed slush behind their back tires. People hurried on the sidewalks with heads down as a cold wind gusted. She looked to the intersection closest to her and peered up at the street signs.

Saint-Laurent and Mont-Royal. Montreal, she realized. Daniel had led her to Montreal. What business could he have here?

She was about to find out.

Still clinging to the remnants of Daniel’s energy, she focused again until she felt his presence nearby. Keeping herself hidden from human eyes, she flashed again, ending up a few blocks down from her previous location.

She arrived just in time to see Daniel opening a black door and climbing a set of interior steps. Peering at the building, she read the half-burnt-out neon sign beside the door. “Bootleg.” The name of a bar, perhaps?

As a heavenly angel, Sunshine hadn’t much cause to visit taverns, though she was sometimes required to as part of her guardian duties. As for Daniel... Grigori were fallen, yes, but the majority still followed the principles of angelic living. So what was he doing visiting such an establishment?

Keeping her energy tamped down, she took a breath, opened the door, and climbed the steps.

Upstairs, the club assaulted her with sensation, and she fought the urge to panic. Bodies pressed in from all sides, and the music coming through the speakers pounded with heavy bass and drums. The stage was full of musical instruments, though no band had started to play yet.

She squeezed herself into the far back corner to make contact with as few humans as possible.

Every time a human touched an angel, they received a blessing, since the angel transferred a small amount of power to them.

If too many humans touched her without her shields properly activated, she would be drained of energy until she had time to recuperate.

From her corner, Sunshine scanned the room in search of Daniel.

She found him standing beside a table near the stage in the most unusual company.

There were two women of similar appearance, one younger and one older, both of pleasant countenance and treating each other with obvious affection.

Sunshine immediately sensed the bond of a mother and daughter.

The mother was watching Daniel with a curious expression, and when he glanced at her, they exchanged smiles.

Daniel quickly glanced away, color rising to his cheeks.

How curious. In all the millennia Sunshine had known him, she had never seen such a look upon his face.

Her attention turned to the others in their company, all of them striking in their own way.

There was a man with long, inky-black hair and stunning features.

His hand was intertwined with that of the daughter, and she leaned into him in a comfortable way that told Sunshine they were a couple with a strong foundation of trust.

The daughter bid farewell to her mother and the rest of her friends as she pulled the man toward the stage, where other musicians were gathering.

As Daniel took a seat beside the woman he’d been smiling at, Sunshine turned her attention to the others in his company.

There was a tall man with tanned skin, messy hair, and a feral look in his eyes as he scanned the club suspiciously. The thick tattoo encircling his neck seemed oddly familiar, but it was too dark in the club for Sunshine to see it properly.

A short, curvaceous female with pale skin and summer-blond hair tugged on the man’s hand until he glanced at her. When their gazes met, she smiled sweetly, and the wildness bled from his eyes. Another couple, then.

Then, there were two more men. One was unusually large, and he sat facing the stage with his back to Sunshine so she was unable to see his face.

Something about his presence made the hairs rise on the back of her neck.

His short hair was a bright platinum blond, and he was so tall that, even sitting, he was nearly the height of those on their feet around him.

The final man had rich dark skin and brilliant gold eyes, so bright they seemed to gleam all the way across the crowded bar. His face didn’t look like one that smiled often, but it made him no less striking. In fact, to her, he was the most distinctive of them all.

Sunshine’s gaze lingered on him the longest as her heart began to pound.

That man... There was something about him. But what? And who was he?

All the men were curious, in fact. The air around them seemed to crackle with energy, and their auras were like nothing she’d seen on a human before. In fact, the more she studied them, the more she began to suspect...

Perhaps they weren’t human at all.