Page 4 of Princess of Bael

Or maybe it was the memories coming back to haunt me.

I could almost sense that damn Slither demon here again—the one who had attacked me the night I’d met Ezra. But that was impossible; I’d killed the slithering fucker with a flameball.

Right there, I mused, pausing near the building that stood in my old living space.

An image of the creature oozing black sludge graced my mind, making my nose wrinkle. Being Archdemon Bael’s daughter had painted a target on my back all my life, even when I’d lived here in the human world.

Fortunately, thousands of years in Hell had only honed my skills.

If a Slither demon was brave enough to appear now, he’d be dead in seconds.

And he wouldn’t be able to subdue me with his paralytic poison, either.

Unlike four decades ago, when the Slither had hit me with some slime right before I’d flamed him.

Which led to Ezra’s arrival and him stripping me half-naked to wash the sludge away.

Just before bonding me to him for eternity.

Then tricking me into playing a game in Hell.

A game that is about to end, I thought, pulling Ashmedai’s device from my pocket.

To an outsider, it resembled an old-fashioned cell phone. It fit in the palm of my hand and had a shiny, almost mirror-like surface on one side and a matte plastic back on the other.

However, it was something else entirely—an item bespelled to take on an ordinary appearance in case a human saw it. A pretty nifty trick, actually, given how even I couldn’t see through the spell. Although, I could sense the power lurking within.

Sort of like me…

I was no longer the half-human, half-demon twenty-five-year-old who’d lived in this town. I’d grown exponentially in my demonic essence during the ensuing centuries. Not just in age, wisdom, and overall skills, but in form, too.

My fancy cuff possessed a lot of abilities, one of which hid my true form from the human world.No horns here.Just a head of long, dark hair.

I stared down at Ashmedai’s toy and smirked a little, thinking back on how I used to have a mohawk. That trend had died when my horns had arrived. Some Archdemons grew wings. As a Halfling, I’d adopted horns. Totally not fair.

Focus, I told myself, staring at the phone once more. Prince Ashmedai had shown me how to use it.

Flip it open.

Press the Dial button.

Watch the fireworks.

With a shrug, I followed his directions and waited with an arched brow.

Nothing happened.

Glancing around, I searched for any sign of life or a demonic presence that might be—

A burning sensation touched my hand, causing me to drop the phone as it disintegrated into sparks. They swirled around my legs, causing me to jump out of the way just as they shot upward into the sky.

Right over this residential street.

To explode above the houses full of sleeping mortals.

“Shit!”

Kay