Page 31 of Queen of the Wicked (Afterlife #1)

When the threat was cleared, he focused all of his attention on Alessia, scanning her from head to toe for any injuries.

Her hair was braided to one side, falling just beneath her breast, seemingly untouched.

A lilac cotton dress hugged her curves, showcasing the body of a warrior she had been trained to become, but no bruises branded her skin that he could see.

Her face was deathly pale; those emerald eyes still widened in fear.

It led Erebos to believe that while Callum hadn’t succeeded in physically torturing her, this interaction would live on in her mind for far longer than a bruise.

“I’m sorry,” Erebos said. “A demon will rarely cave into temptation, but it does happen. He will be dealt with accordingly.”

Alessia’s eyes darted to his. “You’re going to kill him?”

He replied immediately. “Yes. There are a few things I do not tolerate. Assault is one of them.” Especially when their victim is you. “They belong in the Unknown, with no chance of salvation.”

She pursed her lips before wrapping her arms around her waist. “It all happened so fast that I couldn’t…” Her eyes shuddered. “I couldn’t stop my power from choking him.”

“You were defending yourself,” he replied.

“I could have killed him.”

“But you didn’t.” Alessia’s glossy eyes met his, so concerned and filled with an innocence he wished he still possessed.

“Despite what you think, you prevented the black magic from killing him. The collar was a means of restraint for him. Nothing more. You’ve come a long way from the incident with the seraph. ”

She chewed on her lip, seeming to debate it. “Do you think he’ll tell people what he saw?”

Erebos shrugged. “There won’t be anyone to tell.

” Not after he was finished with him. “Are you still up to having this meeting with Eryx, or should I postpone it to tomorrow?” He could still feel her trepidation down the bond, and it was suffocating him like a piece of barbed wire wrapped around his throat.

“I want to go,” she said. “I have control of the smoke now, so let’s finalize this plan so I can get the hell out of this realm already. We can’t postpone this any longer. ”

Her admission shouldn’t have invoked a dagger to shred through his heart, but it did so regardless. Why did he assume Alessia would want to remain here in Hell? After what she just experienced, she should want to escape as soon as possible.

It was the selfish part of him that couldn’t fathom being without her.

Maybe he’d admit to her that he was her mate when all of this was said and done, but then she’d have the potential to ruin him if she rejected the bond, and he didn’t think he would ever be in a place to hand over that sort of trust to anyone.

He’d been on his own for as long as he could remember, more than content to live out the rest of his days alone until she came along and tilted his world upside down.

Now he didn’t know what he wanted.

Alessia still quivered when she pushed away from the wall, so Erebos extended his elbow out for her to hold. He was surprised when she linked her arm through his without a word of complaint, allowing him to lead the way to his study.

“Thank you,” she whispered, catching him off guard. “For making that decision for me.”

Erebos cleared his throat, uncomfortable with the fuzzy feeling taking over his chest. It chipped away at the block of ice wrapped around his heart, and when the organ began hammering in his chest due to merely two words rolling off her tongue, he was in deeper shit than he thought.

Because he knew, without a lick of hesitancy, that if she were terrified of getting blood on her hands again, the lord would continue to stain his, if only to make her happy.

“It looks like a maze.” Alessia observed the map sprawled across his desk with furrowed brows.

The parchment had seen better days, kept hidden amongst his other sacred scrolls in a locked drawer.

It was centuries old, so the ink had faded in spots, making it difficult to determine the exact route they were supposed to take.

“It is,” Eryx replied. “The Seeker is rumored to be just past the Dead Zone, so we’d have to find the center of the maze to find him. Or her, ” he amended. “Let me not be sexist and assume the scariest creature in the realm is a male.”

“What is the Dead Zone?” Alessia asked.

Erebos pointed to a spot on the map, a bridge of sorts that connected them to the center. “Your powers won’t work here. At least, that’s what people have claimed who have managed to make it out of the pits alive.”

“You mean to tell me you’ve never gone into the pits?” Alessia stared at him in disbelief. “Are they not part of this realm? Your realm?”

“I have no obligations to tend to the pits. The creatures who occupy it find their own food source.” The lord didn’t want to imagine what, exactly, the inhabitants snacked on.

“Or you’re scared,” she mused.

Eryx choked back a laugh when Erebos narrowed his eyes. “I am not scared. ”

“Oh? Your research books speak otherwise.” She pointed to the left of his desk, where an arrangement of texts spanned from "Creatures of the Underworld" to "Surviving the Beasts of Hell. "

“It’s precautionary. It can’t hurt to learn as much as I can about what occupies the pits.”

Alessia tipped her head back and laughed. “The red aura around you is so bright it’s as if you’re on fire.”

Dammit.

He forgot about that.

Attempting to hide his smile, he swiped a hand over his mouth and studied the route they had all agreed on. Alessia had been clueless for the most part about the best suggestions to take, but she was happy to be included, and Erebos found that pleasing her was far easier than disappointing her.

It was why he ensured she was comfortable the moment they arrived at his study.

Because of the mating bond, he could feel her anxiety even though she was adamant about being fine, so he started the fire that seemed to calm her down during her last spiral and pulled the wingbacked chair to the desk for her to sit in.

Then, he provided her with a heavy blanket as an attempt to calm her shaking limbs, and the entire time, Alessia allowed him to dote on her without so much as a complaint.

“So, we are leaving tomorrow?” Eryx asked, sparing him the embarrassment.

“It would appear so. Izara is confident Alessia will be able to use the smoke against the creatures should we encounter them.” Despite Erebos feigning confidence, he was reluctant to go into the pits.

All he’d heard since taking over Hell was horror stories about what lurked in the shadows at the bottom of the realm.

He wasn’t exactly thrilled to be getting a front row seat to the show.

With a dip of his chin, Eryx began collecting the various papers scattered about when Alessia asked, “Could I give Isla some books to read that include sex?”

Erebos slowly lifted his gaze to hers at the exact moment the stack of papers Eryx held went flying. “What?”

She sat up straighter, her lips twitching when Eryx bent to retrieve the parchment.

“Isla and I were having a conversation a few weeks ago, and I told her about this series, Bridgerton, that I think she would love. It’s a series on Earth.

She was adamant about being unable to read about such things, but I was wondering if you would make an exception for her. ”

When demons were indicted to Hell and offered a second chance at redemption, they vowed to leave behind all aspects of life that could be considered temptation, which would include books describing it.

Isla had worked for Erebos for almost a decade now, never straying from the orders she was given.

He supposed if anyone deserved it, it would be her, but if he made one exception for her and word got out, he would be expected to be lenient for all the demons fighting for redemption.

“Isla was correct,” he said. “Temptation is forbidden for those who are not free.”

“But she deserves it!’ Alessia pleaded, and then she hit him with puppy dog eyes that nearly sent him to his knees.

“I’ve never had a true friend before, and it would be nice to bond over something with someone I’m becoming close with for the first time in my life.

You know Isla. She wouldn’t tell a soul if you were somehow able to sneak those books into her room. ”

New turn on unlocked: Alessia begging.

Expelling a heavy sigh, Erebos leaned back in his chair. “I will think about it.”

Alessia clapped her hands together, seeming satisfied as she jumped from her seat. He was happy to see that her nerves had diminished over the past hour, and they were hardly noticeable now. “That’s better than nothing. Thank you, Erebos. I’ll see you both tomorrow.”

The lord nodded. “Do you want me to escort you?”

Faltering in the doorway, Alessia contemplated it before shaking her head. “I think I’ll be okay. I’m better now.”

“Good. I am glad to hear it.”

When she disappeared from view, Erebos found his eyes trained on the doorway, as if willing her to come back. He despised how uncomfortable he felt when she wasn’t near, the loneliness she reprieved him of seeping back in all too quickly.

Eryx finished collecting the papers, tucking them in the crook of his elbow.

He wore a shit-eating grin when he asked, “I’m in charge of getting the books for Isla, aren’t I?

” The general had predicted the bond would have it come to this—to the lord giving her anything she wanted.

He hadn’t wanted to believe it then, but Eryx had been right.

Erebos hung his head in his hands and accepted defeat. “Be sure she receives them before we leave tomorrow morning.”