Page 5

CHAPTER FIVE

UNKNOWN

“Morgan, I don’t feel so well.”

She turned to face me with soft, kind blue eyes. “I know, sweetheart. But Azazel is here to make that go away. When this baptism is over, you’ll feel so much better. I promise.” Then she winked and walked away.

I frowned and pressed my hands to my belly, needing to feel the baby’s steady pulse to soothe my own racing heart. I wasn’t so sure about this baptism or why it would help, but I couldn’t put words to the feeling. My mind was fuzzy and slow. The house was just so damn warm. It was like I was suffocating in here. Little beads of sweat dripped down my spine and the back of my neck. I’d tied my hair up but there was barely any relief in the effort. When I glanced around, my confusion only thickened as none of the other women were sweating at all. They all still held their pregnancy glow with shiny skin and sparkly eyes. They held their bellies like they were the ones soothing the baby instead of the other way around.

My baby was always soothing me. Whenever my anxiety kicked up too high or I felt strange, my little one calmed me. It should have been the other way around. It was my job as mother to take care of my baby. And as a sheen of sweat covered my arms, I realized that for the first time, the baby’s pulse was not calm and steady, it was pounding. My baby was in distress. I needed fresh air but none of the windows would open. The glass had condensation bubbles running down it just like sweat. Even the house thought it was too hot in here.

The baby kicked my side.

I winced and pressed my hand to that spot. Okay, Little Bird, let’s get some air. I waddled to the door on the side of the house, the one hidden beneath the stairs. No one else used this door, though I had no idea why. Then again, the other women didn’t venture outside of the clinic like I did. I needed fresh air and nature. The other mommies-to-be were happy on the couches in the air-conditioning with their feet propped up. I didn’t judge them. We were all here because we needed help. This clinic was a Godsend. All of us women were pregnant and homeless here, with no family to turn to for help. It was a relief to see just how many women were out there just like me. This clinic and the women here became my family. Here, I didn’t feel so alone. Here, my baby would be safe.

Though I had no idea why the house and I seemed to be the only ones feeling the heat. I’d never had a baby before, but I was assuming it had to do with me being so close to the due date. The doctor, who asked us to call him by his first name Azazel, said I was due any day now. That thought filled me with joy. I couldn’t wait to hold my Little Bird.

Everyone else was focused on the prepping for the baptism so they didn’t notice me slipping around the corner to the side of the stairs. I gripped the handle and pushed but the door didn’t budge. NO. I whined and pressed my forehead to the wood. There was no lock on this door, so I didn’t understand why it wouldn’t open, though I thought maybe it was stuck because the heat was making the wood swell. I didn’t have much strength left in me these days, but I wasn’t going to give up that easily. I took a few deep breaths. Please open. I turned the knob and felt a tingle like electricity shoot into my hand and up my arm—and the door popped open.

I grinned and slipped outside, shutting the door quietly behind me.

Instantly, the pressure in my bones eased. Tension I hadn’t realized I’d been holding in my shoulders vanished. I took a deep breath, soaking in as much of that cold, crisp night air as I could. It was late March, so the temperature wasn’t freezing anymore. Nature was also preparing for a rebirth. My Little Bird and spring were going to arrive together. I stepped off the paved brick pathway into the dirt, then squished it between my bare toes. Little bird’s pulse smoothed. I could have sworn I felt the baby sigh right along with me.

“ That feels better, doesn’t it?” I whispered to my baby. “ Let’s get some more. ”

With a smile on my face, I walked into the forest that surrounded the clinic. I’d walked this exact path so many times since I’d arrived that I’d actually worn my own little trail into the ground. The clinic sat on the edge of a mountain with a pretty severe drop that made for an awe-inspiring view from the balcony, but Azazel didn’t want us out there once we reached third trimester. He was very protective of us and our babies’ health. I admired that a lot. Even when I snuck off to my own private balcony. It wasn’t a literal balcony, at least not the manmade kind, but just around this group of towering pine trees was a little cove where a boulder had fallen off the mountain and landed, creating a ledge right at the edge of the world.

I stepped carefully over to the fallen boulder and pressed my hands to the smooth stone surface. Warmth spread through my palms, but this warm buzzed with energy from nature. It was nothing like the heat inside the clinic. A gust of wind swept over me and I sighed. My skin had gotten so damp from sweat that now I was cold in the wind, yet I welcomed the shiver.

The baby moved into a different position like it was getting comfortable.

“That better, Little Bird?” I smiled and rubbed my hand over my belly.

I didn’t know how long I stood there, but eventually I decided I’d better get back to the clinic before we missed the baptism. My heart wasn’t so set on this little ritual. I’d never connected with religion before, but Azazel and Morgan both insisted it wasn’t about any human religion. I never fully understood what it was but it was important to them, and they’d been so good to me, so I wasn’t going to fight it. Beggars couldn’t be choosers, and all that.

Normally I would’ve gone back inside the way I came out, the side door under the stairs, but it was such a lovely night and the house was so warm that I decided to take the long way back up to the stairs that led up onto the balcony. The one we weren’t supposed to be on anymore. But I was perfectly fine. It wasn’t like I was going to suddenly decide to throw myself off the mountain. I carefully made my way up the wooden spiral staircase until I reached the expansive balcony. From here the view of the mountainscape was mesmerizing. Not for the first time I wished I remembered where this clinic was. They’d driven me here while I slept in the car, so I had never known. I kept forgetting to ask them too. I needed to remember that. I wanted to know just where Little Bird was born. I didn’t have much to tell my baby, didn’t even know who the father was, so I had to know where their life began, at the very least.

The lights were off out here tonight but that was fine, it provided me coverage for sneaking across the private bedrooms of the clinic’s staff and over to where the sliding glass doors led to a grand living room. I stopped and gripped the handle, ready to slide the door open, when red light flashed from inside. I frowned and leaned into the glass to look inside—my eyes widened. One of the other women, her name was Rachel or something similar, was stepping out of a small pool that had been built into the wooden floor. The water in the pool was bloodred. My stomach turned. It sloshed like blood, because blood was thicker than water. My mouth watered like I was going to throw up, but I managed to swallow it down. That had to be a trick of the light. Or wine. It could have been wine. Azazel wasn’t American. He’d always had unique and intriguing ways of doing things.

But then Rachel stepped forward into the beam of moonlight streaming in through the sliding glass doors and my heart stopped. She was naked and every inch of her skin was stained red and shimmered like satin paint. There were three symbols drawn on her body: on her forehead, over her heart, and on her pregnant belly. All three symbols glowed neon-red like spotlights. Rachel threw her head back and sighed. When she lifted her head, my whole body turned ice-cold. She had little black horns and her eyes were entirely red.

She turned to Azazel standing beside her and kissed him. “Thank you, Azazel,” she purred.

He pressed his hand to her belly, then gestured behind her. “Liam, Rachel is ready.”

Liam was Morgan’s husband. They ran this clinic and had hired Azazel to take care of us. But as I watched Rachel push up on her tiptoes to kiss Liam on the lips, I started to wonder just what the hell kind of clinic this was. Liam was married to Morgan, a nice and kind woman. Why was he making out with a pregnant woman who wasn’t his wife and had definitely just kissed Azazel? Liam took Rachel’s hand and led her through a doorway into the private bedrooms I’d never seen inside of. Except now I did look. I crouched down and waddled over a few feet to look through the glass in the bedroom. My jaw dropped. The room had no furniture whatsoever. Black candles had been lined up to make a massive circle on the hardwood floor with that same symbol drawn in what looked like blood.

Liam led Rachel to the circle and then helped her lie flat on the ground, right on top of that symbol. He stepped out of the circle, then light flashed from beneath Rachel— No, from within Rachel. My pulse was pounding now. Rachel arched her back and moaned in ecstasy, like this was the single most pleasurable moment of her life. Bright red light filled the entire room. I dove to my right and scurried back over to the room with Azazel.

Another girl had walked in. This one was named Nicole. I’d barely spoken to her. She was nice though. Morgan had her arm wrapped around Nicole’s shoulders and a smile on her face. She said something to Azazel and Nicole, then slipped back out of the room. Azazel untied Nicole’s black silk robe, letting it drop to the floor to leave her before him naked. Then he reached up and drew that same symbol on her skin with his finger. On her forehead . . . over her heart . . . then on her belly. He chanted words in a weird language that I’d never heard but the sound of them sent goosebumps across my body. My legs yearned to flee as fast as possible, but my feet were glued in place.

My hands trembled as Azazel helped Nicole into the blood pool while he chanted. He stood beside her, taking both her hands in one of his and pressing them to her chest while his other hand seemed to hold her back. She looked up at him like he was the love of her life. Then he kissed her passionately before lowering her into the pool until she was no longer visible through the thick red liquid. After a moment, Azazel lifted her back up to her feet. They kissed again, this one indecently intense. Then Azazel helped her step out of the pool. I watched in horrifying slow motion as what I’d watched with Rachel repeated in front of me with Nicole: the red-stained skin, the glowing symbols, the black horns, and the red eyes.

She turned to Azazel standing beside her and kissed him. “Thank you, Azazel,” she purred. Just like Rachel had done.

He pressed his hand to her belly, then gestured behind her. “Liam, Nicole is ready.”

No, no, no. What the fuck? I couldn’t stop myself from watching in horror as Nicole also kissed Liam. What is happening here? What have I gotten myself into? When Liam brought Nicole into the other room, Rachel was nowhere in sight, but I did see an open doorway on the opposite side of the room, so I was assuming she went through there. I needed to see. I needed to get my eyes on Rachel to know what had happened to her, so I lowered to my knees and crawled across the balcony. Neither Liam nor Nicole seemed to notice me right outside the glass as he laid her on the floor in the circle of black candles. As Nicole screamed out in ecstasy, I scurried faster to the far side of the balcony.

I peeked through that glass and my blood turned cold.

Rachel was in there . . . but so were about ten other women. All of them were lying on little red velvet matts on the floor. Still naked. Still writhing in ecstasy. Still glowing with red skin. What the fuck? What the FUCK? Oh my God. What is this? What kind of cult did I get kidnapped by? That was the only logical explanation. I had no idea what they were doing in there, but I knew it was bad. Bad bad. The air inside had been thick and heavy and hot. As my heart raced in my chest, my mind began to clear a little, which meant they had to have drugged me. That had to be why everyone was so calm, because it was induced lethargy.

Oh my God. What are these people? I had to get out of here. I had to tell someone. I had to find my— I gasped. Memories flashed through my mind like a slideshow on speed. I wasn’t alone and homeless. I had parents who loved me. Parents who’d sent me to college for an education. Parents I spoke to daily. Why did I think I was an orphan in the world? What did they DO to me? My stomach turned and I retched. In a panic, I crawled to the far side of the balcony and puked. The baby kicked but I was too dizzy to stand so I leaned forward and pressed my forehead to the balcony floor, letting the chill in the tile soothe the nausea attacking me.

WAIT.

HOLD ON.

BABY. THE BABY?! I’M PREGNANT. HOW? I sat up straight and sank back onto my heels to look down at the pregnant belly sticking out like I was nine months along. But that wasn’t possible. I’d seen doctors when I went home for Christmas break. Mom had insisted on it, especially the lady doctor. She wanted to make sure I was safe, clean, and on the pill. I had very definitely not been pregnant when I left to return to school in January. I stared down at my belly in shock and a little bit of horror. It was only March. This wasn’t possible. But as the baby kicked a few more times and its pulse quickened, I pressed my hands right to where it was pushing into me . . . and felt its hands.

I could feel the baby’s hands pressing into my stomach. I felt ten little fingers. Tears rained down my face as I held my stomach, my own body the only barrier between me and the baby. This baby was very, very real.

" I’m here, Little Bird, ” I whispered to it. “ I’m here. ”

Yeah, but where the fuck is HERE? And how? I racked my brain, searching through my memories like I was mining for gemstones. I didn’t have a boyfriend, and I didn’t sleep around. I was a nerdy introvert who got in trouble for falling asleep inside the library past closing time. Then I found it, the one memory that was at the root of this all.

Azazel.

I remembered meeting him now. I remembered the power in his smile and in his voice as he flirted with me over my books on herbs and plants. I remembered my overwhelming need to touch him and be touched. I remembered what we did right there on that table in the dark, quiet corner of the library. With my hands touching my belly still, I realized I knew exactly who Little Bird’s father was . . . it was Azazel.

And I doubted he was any kind of doctor at all. Morgan and Liam looked to be my age or not much older. God, they must have drugged me. What are they even doing to them—OH GOD. OH MY GOD. My stomach rolled again but I had nothing left to vomit. This house wasn’t a clinic, it was a breeding pool. There had to be thirty—or more—pregnant women in there. They all believed themselves to be orphans and homeless in need of shelter and help with their babies.

Azazel’s babies.

Oh God. He impregnated all of them. He did. I know it. What the fuck is going on here? My mind ran through all possible scenarios, but I’d only come to two possibilities, and I wasn’t sure which I liked less. The first was that we’d all been impregnated by Azazel and then drugged and kidnapped until it was time to give birth. For all I knew it was March of 2020 already, not 2019. I could have been missing for over a year. That was the most logical explanation—albeit horrific. Because the only other option was that Azazel was not human and these babies had been conceived, grown, and were about to be delivered all within a matter of weeks.

My whole body trembled. I had to get out of here. I had to make a run for it before they found me out here and dragged me back inside for whatever kind of demonic ritual that was. I took a deep breath, then jumped to my feet and raced down the spiral staircase. I had no idea where I was or how far I’d have to go to get help, but I was going to try.

But when my feet hit the cold dirt and I looked up—I slid to a stop.

I was too terrified to even scream.

Two people stood in front of me, but they weren’t people at all. They only barely resembled a man and a woman. They both had black-feathered wings like dark angels— Wait. Azazel. AZAZEL. I’d never been religious, but everyone knew the name of an infamous fallen angel was Azazel. No, no, no, no. Please, God, save me. Save my Little Bird.

The female had long navy-blue hair that blended in with her black wings. She had golden topaz eyes and little matching horns of the same color, but they seemed to be made of the crystal itself. In the center of her forehead was a metallic gold symbol that seemed to be stuck to her skin or was part of her body. Her topaz eyes sparkled down at me. The male had long brown hair where the front two strands were snow-white. He had black horns and eyes that glowed green and were identical to the glowing green orbs on his necklace.

The female leapt forward and cocked her head to the side like a confused puppy, then she reached out and placed both hands on my belly.

I gasped but didn’t dare move. I may not have understood how I got here or how long I’d been here, but I knew I would do literally anything to protect my Little Bird.

She grinned and it sent a sharp chill down my spine.

“ Reuelle, ” the massive, terrifying male said with a warning growl. But then he turned those glowing green eyes on me and arched one dark eyebrow. His mouth curved up on one side. “We’ve got a runaway. Azazel has gotten sloppy with his toys.”

“No.” Reuelle shook her head, her topaz eyes gleaming as she looked back and forth between me and my belly. “Asmodeus, this one is strong . . . and so will be Little Bird.”

I choked on a gasp. I hadn’t said my nickname for the baby out loud— Had I? No wait , I must have. That was the only explanation that my mind could handle. That and the assumption I was still somewhat drugged, and that’s why my brain was hallucinating all this crazy stuff. Had to be. HAD to be.

Reuelle pursed her lips. She glanced over my shoulder to the clinic— house. “Asmodeus, can’t we play with this one? He’ll never know he’s missing one.”

Asmodeus’s smirk slowly turned into a full-on grin. “Consider her your welcome to Earth present, my love.”