Page 6

Ten years ago, I’d have laughed in someone’s face if they told me my twin and I would be heading to Stonewell Academy to babysit a new supernatural.

But no one’s laughing now. Not even my twin brother, Bane.

‘Cause that’s exactly what we’re doing. Which is bullshit.

We’re two of the strongest demons that reside in Hell—princes, to be exact. But the long centuries became nothing but a bore for us in the same place, so we branched out to what used to be the human realm and opened a guard service. Almost overnight, our names were on everyone’s lips, and our business flourished faster than we could have imagined.

Celebrities, dignitaries, royalty. You name it, we’ve guarded it.

But now… I snort, a plume of hellfire ash exploding from my nose as I shake my head. Now we’re glorified babysitters to a little girl who can’t use her magic. Even worse, we aren’t even getting paid for this shit.

So yeah, I’m a little—okay, a lot—salty over the situation.

They wouldn’t even let us send someone else in our place. No. It had to be us.

“This is bullshit,” I grumble for what has to be the hundredth time since we took the portal into the realm and jumped into the black SUV our employer left for us.

The moment we popped through the portal, all the bad shit that’s happened in this little slice of Faridity came to the forefront, reminding me why I hate this place so damn much.

“Chill, Zane. You know the deal. There’s no way it’ll be as bad as what you’re thinking. Plus, look at the bright side.” He thinks there’s a bright side to this? “Pheromones will be rolling off the students there. It’ll keep you sustained for far longer than the sex parties you need to constantly throw in Hell.”

My head whips to Bane in the driver’s seat, my brows hitting my horn line. Why in the seven circles of Hell didn’t I think of that? If I didn’t know any better, I’d think he’s the incubus out of the two of us and not the crossroads demon he is.

“Fine. That’s one bright side,” I reluctantly agree. “But we do this, then we leave. We put Tomas in charge of this district and never step foot back in Faridity.”

“Agreed.”

Thank fuck. I love my twin to purgatory and back, but ninety percent of the time, he’ll disagree with the plan, and it’ll start a massive fight between us. And those have never ended without a good dose of bloodshed.

One thing I can say about the used-to-be human realm is that it’s teaming with bubbly, effervescent life. Everywhere I look as we roll through the main city, supernaturals of every walk of life are smiling, laughing, and just generally enjoying their day. It’s such a far cry from the inhabitants of Hell. There, they’re miserable, there’s no chance to really make your life better, and the ruler of Hell can be a dick.

Which isn’t saying much for Lucifer.

The bright sun sits high in the sky, almost ready to start making its descent for the night. That observation alone tells me we’re late. Not that I didn’t know that already. I purposely dragged my feet earlier when we were getting ready to leave because, well, I’m not a fucking babysitter.

As the city disappears in the rearview mirror, a large forest blankets both sides of the road leading toward the castle that houses the academy. I’ve been here numerous times before, but that was back when the castle was still a family home for the Stonewells. As a prince of Hell, I’ve been sent to the realm many times before to handle business, and it was the perfect place to stay. Everything a demon—-hell, any supernatural for that matter—could need was readily accessible. But since its conversion, I don’t even know if it retains any of the natural elements as before.

That’ll be a shame if little Jasper destroyed his family’s legacy.

I cringe at my own inner monologue. Those words make me sound like an elder.

And I’m far from it—still in my prime, thank you very much.

It’s been hundreds of years since we last saw Jasper, and there’s no way he’d still constitute as little. By now, I’m sure the gargoyle rivals my brother and me in size and stature. Not to mention the power of his name alone.

The SUV finally rolls to a stop in front of the stone steps leading up to the main door of the castle. From the way it looks, nothing has changed. Turrets still stand above the main walls in the four corners, and the immaculate grounds still look like they’re manicured every day. The only thing that really stands out that wasn’t there before is the crowd of supernaturals flitting all over the place.

Back then, you had to be someone important just to step foot anywhere near Stonewell Castle. Now it seems if you have even just a drop of magical essence, you can be here.

It’s blasphemy.

Bane kills the engine before popping open his door, while I follow suit, ducking down just to clear my horns from scraping on the roof. That’s one tick against our employer I plan to complain about. We’re fucking demon princes, bigger than other demons, but yet, they give us a vehicle that’s barely big enough to handle our larger stature.

Speaking of our employer, that fucking angel better hold his end of the hells-damned bargain. Once this kid gets her magic shit together, our debt is clear. Councilman or not, I’ll kill the son of a bitch if he reneges.

After all, it was Lucifer’s bullshit he had to clean up. Not ours. But that fucking fallen angel bastard pinned it on us, and being young demons, who were we to fight back against the powers to be?

Bane’s long legs quickly eat up the distance between us as he skirts around the front of the SUV, coming to a stop beside me. Our surroundings come to a standstill, every supernatural in the vicinity halting in their tracks to eye my brother and I warily. It’s not every day demons come to this realm. We prefer Hell over anywhere else due to the constant high temperature versus the whacked ass weather that happens here.

But I know that’s not the only reason they are staring. In normal circumstances, the inhabitants of Hell will don a glamour when they’re here on business. But my brother and I? Never. We don’t give a flying fuck if we scare people. This is us, and we refuse to hide it.

Now, while we may be twins, we aren’t identical. Not in the slightest. From the curvature of our horns to our skin color, not one thing screams twins. Our blood and our birthday are the only things tying us together as siblings.

“Shall we?” Bane muses, twisting his neck with an audible crack.

“Do we have to?” I grimace, the hellfire in my veins surging with my reluctance.

“Well, it’s too late now.” I follow Bane’s gaze, seeing a grown-up Jasper fluidly striding down the stairs and in our direction.

The gargoyle has definitely grown into his stone from the last time we saw him. Hell, even the three-piece suit is new from the jeans and Henley’s he would wear as a kid. Maybe it’s the position, maybe it’s his age. But Jasper exudes authority, though nowhere near the level my brother and I have.

“Zane and Bane Acheron. It’s been a long time.” Jasper holds his hand out in a gesture of welcome, and after we both shake, he steps back, looking us over. “I see some things never change,” he rumbles, eyeing our true forms.

“And it looks like you finally grew into your big ass head,” Bane counters, earning a snort of laughter from the gargoyle.

“Yes, well, centuries in between visits will do that,” he counters, his gaze roving over the gawking students. “Let’s get up to my office, and I’ll fill you both in.” His rocky wings crack as they flare behind his back, and his tail swishes in agitation at the crowd forming around us.

Jasper spins on his loafered heel, heading back toward the main entrance, while ignoring the whispers no doubt reaching his ears.

My eyes meet Bane’s, and with a pop of hellfire, our own wings expand from our backs, causing everyone to scream and scatter in fear. Jasper chuckles from ahead of us, used to the same antics we pulled back when he was a mere child.

Stepping over the threshold, it’s easy to see that much of the originality of the castle is still the same from when it was nothing more than a home the Stonewell family lived in. Minimal changes aesthetically have been made, but I can’t guarantee the same could be said for the rooms hidden behind the numerous doors we pass. After all, classes need to be held somewhere.

Jasper takes us on a small tour, pointing out where the important things are—like the cafeteria. That has to be one of my favorite spots thus far. Bane and I are still growing demons, so sustenance is a must. Plus, it seems that’s where the students congregate the most, so I’ll be able to appease the other side of me easily there.

Our steps take us to various different floors where the classrooms are held, ending at the office of the headmaster himself. Everything about this one room screams Jasper. From the massive desk dominating the center of the space to the large fireplace along the wall. Hell’s bells, if I remember correctly, this might have even been his father’s office and his grandfather’s before him.

The balcony doors are wide open letting in the fresh air and sunshine most supernaturals enjoy. It all screams cheery to me. Way too cheery when I’ve spent most of my life listening to the screams of purgatory’s inhabitants. But I’ll suck it up because I don’t have a damn choice in the matter. For now.

Even if Bane and I have to carry this kid on our backs so she learns her shit quicker, we’ll do it. Just so we can go home.

Jasper nods to two empty chairs as he rounds the desk and reclines in the large one made specifically for his stone frame. It creaks slightly as he shifts his weight, but there’s only patience on his face as Bane and I sit down.

Indecision flashes across his face when his eyes crinkle in the corners like he’s trying to decide what all he wants to tell us. But the three of us know we need every lick of information if my twin and I are supposed to do the job we’re hired for.

“This is…” Jasper grimaces, “a delicate situation. How much did Councilman Cassian tell you?”

I raise a brow, exchanging a loaded look with my brother. “Not much, if we’re being honest here. Just that we needed to be here to protect a kid from her classmates while she learns her magic. So, as you can imagine, he was vague as fuck.”

Hellfire ash puffs from Bane’s nostrils as he snorts a laugh. “Vague really is an understatement. Because that damn angel wouldn’t let us send anyone else. It had to be us, but he refused to tell us why.” He throws a pointed glance at Jasper. “Maybe you can fill us in on why that is.”

“Of course, the fucker didn’t say anything,” the gargoyle huffs under his breath in amusement. “Plain and simple, Miss Matthews is in danger.”

Matthews?

“We must have wires crossed here.” I shake my head. “We’re here for a Miss… shit, hold on.” I pull my phone from my pocket, double-checking the minuscule information we were given. “A Miss Foss. Not Matthews.”

“Ahh, yes. Clever woman,” he mutters more to himself than us. “They are one and the same. Matthews was her human adopted parents’ last name. Foss is her birth parents’ last name.”

Wait. Did he say human?

Bane seems to be on the same page as me when he asks, “So we’re not dealing with a child then? We’ve been under the impression that we’re shadowing a young kid, not a twenty-one-year-old woman who just found out she’s supernatural.”

“No, definitely not a child.” A shot of lust from Jasper hits me square in the dicks, fueling my incubus magic. Interesting . “But compared to us, yes, she is young. And very new to our society.”

“So, what makes her so different that the supernatural council wants guards on her?” That’s the million-dollar question here because I just can’t see a damn new wolf or witch needing protection from those around her.

Jasper gets up from his chair, his wings shifting behind him. “That’s where things get interesting. I feel it would be better for you to meet her and see for yourself before passing judgment from my words alone.” He rifles through a few papers on his desk before holding out a file. “This has Miss Matthews’ new class schedule along with locations and information on those closest to her. It also has intel on her mates—who they are, what they do, etc.”

Holy hellfire. Mates? As in plural? Already? Most supernaturals take years, sometimes decades, and even centuries to find their mates. And this woman already has more than one. But if that’s the case, again I stress the question, why are we even here?

Bane collects the file and tucks it under his arm and sends a look at me that screams we’ll rifle through it later . My fingers twitch to tear it apart now to find out what makes her so special, but I refrain. Just fucking barely.

“Let me show you where you’ll be staying, and then I’ll take you by to meet Miss Matthews.” Fucking dismissal much? “You won’t be needed until Monday morning because I doubt her mates will be very far from her until then. Besides Miss Matthews, her mates, Miss McHale, and a few teachers, no one knows where her room is. Which yes, before you ask, we did it on purpose for the very reason you’re here. Protection.”

Well, that’s just fucking peachy.

* * *

The overuse of artificial lighting irritates my eyes, and I grumble my displeasure under my breath as Bane and I follow in a single file line behind Jasper through the halls. The talons topping mine and my brother’s wings scrape with every step we take, making me grit my teeth. I could put them away, but why should I when this kid—sorry, woman—needs to know who she’ll be messing with if she refuses to follow our orders. We finally reach a sparsely doored hallway that looks vaguely familiar, but that could be because every damn corridor looks exactly the same, or it could be that we’ve stayed on this floor before.

“This is what we consider our faculty wing.” Jasper’s gravelly voice breaks the tentative silence we’ve been existing in since we left his office. “Miss Matthews stays in room 580, the last one at the end of the hall on the right, and you both will be in 579. They’re set up?—”

“As apartments,” Bane finishes for him, his mind obviously remembering this area better than I do.

“Correct,” Jasper throws over his shoulder, still walking toward our new accommodations. “Professor Winterton is across the hall from you both, and my room is across from Miss Matthews.” Doubly interesting. He seems to like keeping her… close. “Thaddeus—Professor Winterton—is her mentor helping her learn the magic she needs to know. Though it’s a bit tricky. Again, you’ll see why. But here we are.”

Jasper pulls two iron keys from his pocket, passing one of each of us and pointing at the door for us to go in. Bane steps forward, but I put a hand on his shoulder, halting his advance.

“Now that we know where our room is, how about we get the introduction out of the way first, that way, we can spend the rest of the day figuring out what we need supply wise.”

Jasper’s eyes tighten at my blatant rejection of his carefully laid plans and moves further down the hall till he reaches the only other door on this side of the hall. The golden plaque on the wall with our charge’s name etched on it just screams someone come attack me with it on display the way it is. That’ll have to change. As soon as possible.

Fuck it.

My nails dig under the golden name plate, and with a pop of hellfire, it twists and distorts beneath my fingers, leaving her name unrecognizable.

Better.

Jasper raises a stone brow in my direction, but I shrug my shoulders, pointedly ignoring his questionable stare. He should know I have my reasons if we’re here to protect her.

“Ready?”

The gargoyle slams a heavy fist on the door without waiting for our reply, and my heart does a triple thump and then stops as it creaks open.

Holy hell’s bells. We’re in trouble.