Page 5 of Queen of the Wicked (Afterlife #1)

Erebos

T he girl stared at the seraph like she didn’t just kill her. Like she didn’t murder not only one seraph but two. He was still reeling at the thought.

An important soul, indeed.

“What?” Erebos mused. “Finally feeling the regret of what you’ve done?”

She whirled to face him, her emerald eyes with red-ringed irises blazing. They looked like his own, minus the green, when he was past the point of reasoning—his power , which was now gone thanks to her.

Did she take it from him?

Erebos clenched his hands into fists, creating crescents on his palms. He knew what those red rings meant. Anger. And since he no longer had any power, he was unfortunately at her mercy.

At a mortal’s mercy .

Fucking hell .

“I didn’t kill her. That’s my…” She shook her head, unable to look at the dead body. “That’s my mom .”

He barked out a laugh. “Try again. No way would someone possessing dark magic have a seraph for a mother.”

The girl lifted her satin nightgown a bit, and he sucked in a breath at her now exposed, thick thigh when she glanced at her knee. Nothing was there. Not a mark to be found.

“It was there ,” she insisted. “I scraped my knee on the roof as I tried to find my way to the ground, and that’s where the blood came from.

I didn’t kill her. I don’t even know how to use my powers.

I know nothing .” Then, as if she had this great epiphany, she whirled around to look at the rest of the house.

“Where is my mother? Did she…did she escape?”

Erebos leaned against the rickety door. “You have two mothers?”

She nodded and bit her wobbling bottom lip.

So intriguing. Why was he called upon to bring her back to Hell? The girl didn’t look like she had an evil bone in her body. Well, until she made a seraph bleed out from his eyes a few minutes ago.

An intricate braid of black hair hung over her shoulder, reaching her breasts.

He tried to ignore her pebbled nipples beneath the nightgown, but he found himself drawn to them, unable to look away.

It made the bile rise in his throat at the thought of lusting after a mortal.

He hadn’t fucked in a while, so he drew it up to that.

Accepting the truth would be too difficult to handle at the moment .

If there was anything he hated more than emotions, it was crying.

He was the Lord of Hell. Tears weren’t his thing.

But the girl currently sobbing beside her mom’s body was a ticking time bomb, and with her potentially carrying all of his powers, he had to act like he gave a damn.

She couldn’t escape him until he figured out how to regain his powers.

“Okay, so let me humor you and say I believe you didn’t kill the seraph. Why was Godric after you? Or do you truly not have a clue?”

She was crying so hard she could hardly catch her breath, shaking her head in disbelief.

“I-I don’t know . Growing up, I was taught about magic and the history of Heaven.

I was told I was important and would have answers on the day of my twenty-sixth birthday, which is today.

I was supposed to learn about who I was tonight at midnight.

You know, about my powers and what that meant until you showed up and—” Her eyes blazed red.

Not black, but red . Pure red. The color of crimson blood. “ You killed her, didn’t you?”

Fuck.

His powers would be very useful right now.

Erebos put his hands up. “I didn’t. I thought you killed her, remember? It was likely Godric.”

“And why would he kill one of his own?” she asked.

He shrugged. “I have a couple of theories, but I have no idea what you are. Those are things I am unwilling to share.” The lord was cautious of those red eyes, realizing everything he said sounded vague and likely suspicious.

“What do you know of my power? Is it dark magic?” Then, after a heartbeat, she added, “Do you think Godric took my mother?”

Her gaze was wide and frantic, leading Erebos to believe that she genuinely had no idea how to wield her powers, which was even more dangerous than if she did . Who knew what she was capable of? Every second he stood there, he risked dying.

But without her, if he tried to leave or attempted to kill her, he might never get his powers back.

“Your mother being taken could very well be a possibility. As for what you displayed in the woods, your magic has nothing to do with Heaven’s powers.

Not at all. I don’t know why the king wants you or why he’s so hellbent on obtaining you, but somehow, you took my powers when you killed that seraph, and I need them back. It’s imperative.”

She went deathly white. “I—what?”

“I think you took my powers,” he repeated, “and I need them back. I know a witch who lives a few miles east of here. I will help you figure out your powers if you come with me. She may be able to provide some insight.”

“No.” She rose to her feet and stepped in front of her mom’s body defensively, arms crossed over her chest. “I’m not following you into the pits of Hell, Evil One.”

“Says the one with pureblood eyes,” he shot back. “Whether you’d like to believe it or not, you’re filled with dark magic, and if you look around, I don’t think anyone else will provide you with any answers.”

She did as instructed, gulping loudly as his words sank in.

“If you’d rather stay here and risk being found because I’m sure the king will be getting word of one of his best seraphims being murdered relatively soon, then by all means, be my guest. Or you can come with me, take your chances, and learn about your powers. Your choice.”

He wanted to laugh at himself for trying to reason with a mortal.

If he had his powers, he would have muted her as soon as she started crying, avoiding this topic altogether, so he could just Travel them to the witch’s cottage.

But for whatever reason, she was important, and he didn’t think whoever wrote that letter intended for him to kill her.

They just wanted him to take her. He’d figure out why when they returned to Hell.

“And I won’t be tortured?” she asked.

“So long as you don’t try to kill me, then fine. As soon as I regain my powers, you will be free to do as you please and return to this…place.” He narrowed his eyes at the beaten-down front porch, the withered wood, the leaks in the ceiling…

“Make a blood pact,” she suggested.

Erebos raised his eyebrows to his hairline. “Excuse me?”

“A blood pact. Let me know I’ll be safe, and you’ll keep your word about figuring out more about my powers. Also, I’d like your help finding my mother.”

“How do you know about a blood pact? I thought you said you only learned about the history of Heaven?” But even history books wouldn’t explain the blood pact. He’d never shared his weakness with anyone unless necessary.

She blinked, genuinely confused, before saying, “I don’t know. I just do.”

What kind of dark magic did this girl possess? Or, even worse, was she gaining access to his memories because she had taken control of his powers?

And if she had access to his memories…

Fuck.

“Fine,” he spluttered in annoyance. He grabbed the blade tucked in the side of his boot and swiftly cut against his palm, a pact that he created with only his inner circle.

They were the only ones who knew about it, until her.

Once the blood swap was complete, if either of them went against their word, they’d die instantly.

It was just the way dark magic worked. “And you will agree not to harm me and to listen to me every step of the way until I gain my powers back. Then, I will be out of your debt, and the pact will come to an end. I don’t care if I’m powerless.

If you kill me, you will be targeted within minutes . ”

Well, hopefully. It might take Izara and Eryx days to find him if he were to die. He didn’t have access to his mind communication now that his powers were gone, so he wouldn’t be surprised if they’d already formed a plan and were leaving for Earth to start the search.

“I will listen to you so long as it only pertains to obtaining your powers.”

The mortal was smarter than he thought.

“Agreed,” the lord replied.

She took off the backpack slung around her shoulders, pulling out a blade of her own.

With a slash to her palm, they joined hands, and Erebos jumped back, hissing in pain when the fucking burn scorched his palm.

It navigated up his elbow, sizzling the flesh of his forearm with a mark to signify the pact had been made.

“Shit.” He clutched his arm, hating that he was powerless.

It would have hurt a lot less if he still had his quicker healing capabilities, but even with his added power racing through her veins, she still seemed uncomfortable when she grimaced and slapped a hand over the tiny black teardrop now marred on her skin.

It was in the same spot as Erebos’s mark, resembling a drop of blood.

Whoever led him to her must’ve known she was special, especially with Bastian and his lackeys hounding her here on Earth.

This woman might just be why rejected souls started disappearing from the soul yard, the key to all of his unanswered problems, so until further notice, Erebos wasn’t letting her out of his fucking sight until he got some answers.

Not that she’d be able to run even if she wanted to.

They’d officially made a blood pact.