Page 17 of Hunted By Fear

“How long will it take?” Bast all but demands, making Lucifer raise a brow at his tone, but he doesn’t comment on it, and I’m not even sure Bast realized.

“I’m unsure. I’ve only ever brought one mortal to Hell before her.” He nods toward the bed as he walks around the room. “And that was a long time ago.”

“Aerilyn, but she goes by Aeri,” I tell him, and he turns his attention to me, looking confused. “Her name.”

“Who and why?” Bast asks, unable to hide his curiosity even now.

“I’m unsure who she was, but Asmodeus requested I grant her access, and so I did. At the time, I was unsure if she would survive crossing into the realm, but he was willing to take the risk to find out, so who was I to say no?” He shrugs as if the fate of the mortal is insignificant to him, and I guess it is if I’m being honest.

Before Aeri, I never cared about what the mortals did, if they lived or died. They were a means to an end, a way to enjoy my time while topside, nothing more, and with the exception of Aeri, I still feel that way.

“Is she still alive?” I’m honestly not sure where the question came from, but there it is.

Damn it. I know why I asked, and judging by the weight of Bast’s gaze on me, so does he.

Thankfully, Luce seems none the wiser.

“Yes.”

Bast turns his gaze from me back to Luce, his eyes wide.

“What do you mean, yes? You said it was a long time ago, and considering how long we’ve been alive, that often means more than ten or twenty years.”

Lucifer nods along, thinking for a moment. “Yes, I’d say it was probably around five thousand years ago, give or take.”

“How is that possible?” I ask Bast more than Luce because while this might be his domain, he doesn’t seem like he will have the answers. It doesn’t seem as though it even interests him in the least if his wandering feet and eyes are anything to go by.

That can’t be said for the mortal girl on the bed, though. Aeri continues to draw his gaze, even though he appears to be doing his best to disguise it.

“I have no idea. If she was the first, it’s not like there's anything to look into or research. The real question is, would the same thing happen with any mortal Lucifer brought into the realm, or is that extended life expectancy somehow related to something she or Asmodeus did?”

“Only one way to find out.” I half expect Bast to jump at the chance to learn something new, and as I watch him, I get the feeling he wants to, but he remains in his seat.

“I can watch her. I’ll have Asta pop in and grab you if something changes,” I offer even though I know he won’t take it. I can’t blame him; I haven’t left either, and I have no plans to.

“Ah, there. See, I told you.” It takes me a moment to understand what Lucifer’s referring to, but the soft groan from the bed has my head snapping back toward her like a whip.

I watch as her face scrunches up in obvious pain. While I don’t love seeing her like that, I do love seeing something. For too long I’ve stared at her blank features. I’d almost believed her dead if not for my ability to hear her heartbeat.

If there was even the smallest chance that Bast was going to go, it’s gone now as Aeri blinks open her eyes. It only lasts a moment before they fall closed again, but despite the low light of the room, I’m sure it seems intense after days of darkness.

Her eyes fall closed, and she groans. The sound shouldn’t affect me, but it does; my cock is half hard from a single sound, as if I haven’t been having sex for thousands of years.

“Aeri?” Bast leans forward, his hands pressed to the bed at her side as she continues to stir, though her eyes remain closed.

Her breathing picks up, the undeniable sound of panic as her heart rate increases, and this time, when her eyes open, they’re wide with fear and confusion as they dart around the room.

“What’s going on? Where am I?”

Bast looks at me, unsure of how to answer that, but I don’t have the foggiest idea either. I turn to Lucifer, unsure if we should tell her she’s in Hell or not, but he’s no longer there. Looking around the room, I see he’s gone completely.

Coward.

“Talian?”

The sound of my name on her lips makes the world stop. I hear the confusion, and I know she needs comforting or, at the very least, answers, yet I can’t bring myself to speak.

Kai said she didn’t recognize him when he found her, and I experienced the same thing when I went to collect her.