I Hear Voices(35)
“I killed the wrong one?” Aunt Sophie’s eyes filled with an odd fanatical light and she snapped, “A mistake I can easily correct.” Her tail whipped out, sending me flying backwards into a stone pinnacle. “You will spend eternity in hell.”
I climbed to my feet, fighting to stay conscious, fighting to move through the pain of a broken rib.
“No, I won’t but you will.”
With a thunderous roar, her great gaping maw snapped at me.
Teeth gritted against the pain, I sprinted insanely for Excalibur and grabbed the sword. The
minute my hand closed around the hilt, healing energy flowed through me and I spun around to face the demon. Oh ick! Her skin was liquefying and dripping off her in thick torrents of ooze.
“I’m melting,” my aunt squalled in horror.
“Make it stop. Make it stop. Please help me.”
“Help you? Sure.” With one swing of Excalibur, I chopped her head off.
Aunt Sophie’s body disintegrated into a puddle of slimy yellow ooze.
I glanced down at my shoes. Nope. No ruby red slippers, but the wicked witch was definitely dead.
“Ding fucking dong.”
“Come home to me, Angel,” Derek murmured in my head.
I might not be in Kansas anymore but home sounded damned good. I focused on Derek and said, “Cuidam dicitur autem morsellus. There’s no place like home.”
The stone in Excalibur’s hilt pulsed brightly and a cocoon of energy engulfed me.
“There’s no place like home.”
Chapter Eighteen
“There’s no place like home.” The cocoon vanished and I was standing back in my circle with Excalibur clasped firmly to my chest. A shudder of relief shook me. Hallefrickinlujah. I had made it.
“Angel!” It was a joyous cry of relief.
I spun around and met Derek’s gaze. His eyes were full of possessive pride, joy and love.
I stepped out of the circle. “Miss me, snookums?”
His mouth brushed over mine in a light caress.
“What do you think? You’re my heart, my soul and without you I could never have sex again.”
“Funny man.” I leaned in and nipped his lower lip. “I fought my way out of hell for you.”
Derek examined my bloody, battered face, torn clothing and the yellow gunk decorating my hair.
“Looks like my warrior princess kicked some demon butt.”
“I did.”
“You’re one of a kind, Angel.” He tugged me closer. “But next time you pay a visit to hell, I’m coming with you.”
A smile curved my mouth. “Will ya now? It’s a damn scary place.”
“Things that go bump in the night don’t scare me.” Derek gave me a long, tender kiss. “But if I lost you, I would lose the other half of my soul.”
Elation filled me. He really did love me. Now if I could only get him to say it out loud. “Aw, I have my very own Prince Charming. Who said romance was dead?”
Derek grinned and held out a smashed candy bar. “What’s romance without chocolate?”
I took the slightly gooey bar. It wasn’t Godiva but my man was definitely trying. “Next you’ll be telling me you’re a happily ever after kinda guy.”
He took my grubby hand and kissed it gallantly.
“I am now.”
“Bella!” Fabian burst out of the motor home with a grinning Ed hot on his heels.
“You survived hell,” my cousin cried and threw his arms around me.
“I’m a bit surprised myself.” I winced as Fabian crushed me in a bear hug
Growling, Derek pried me loose from Fabian.
“Can’t you see she’s injured?”
“It’s nice to have you back, ma’am,” Ed said, his concerned gaze roved over me.
“It’s not as bad as it looks.”
My cousin voiced his outrage. “Who did this?”
“Sophie. She kept whacking me with her tail.”
Fabian repeated in astonishment. “Sophie has a tail?”
“Had. Had a tail.” The events of the last couple of hours hit me with a vengeance. A tear rolled
down my cheek and I began to shake uncontrollably. Omigod, I had actually gone to hell and lived to tell about it. What were the odds of that happening? A zillion to one? I sucked in a horrified breath. Had I really killed Aunt Sophie? Or could Asmoday resurrect her? Would I have to kill her over and over again?
My husband’s big arms enfolded me in a comforting hug. “It’s okay. It’s just a little adrenaline crash. It’ll pass. You’re safe now.”
“Safe? I won’t be safe until that monster, Asmoday, is permanently imprisoned in the Ninth Hell.”
Derek stroked my back soothingly. “I have Charlemagne’s Sword. If that demon comes anywhere near you, I’ll chop his fucking head off.”
A hysterical giggle escaped me. “I chopped Aunt Sophie’s head off. It was so easy. One swing of Excalibur and bam! She’s a puddle of stinky ooze. Does that make me a bad person?”
Ed patted my shoulder awkwardly. “You did what was necessary to survive, ma’am.”
“She was trying to eat me,” I added with a shudder of remembrance.
Outrage and confusion crossed my cousin’s face. “Sophie’s a cannibal?”
“No, a big, fucking two ton demon,” I corrected.
“A demon that needed killing,” Derek snapped, his eyes burning with suppressed rage.
“More than you can ever know. She was truly evil and mad as a Hatter. It’s just… I’ve never…” I wiped at the tears.
“Killed anyone,” Fabian finished for me.
“Yes. I thought I wouldn’t have any regrets but…” I rubbed the front of Derek’s shirt. “I’m getting blood and demon gunk on you.”
“I don’t give a fuck about the blood or demon gunk or how that bitch died. All I care about is you’re alive and you’re home.”
I handed Excalibur to Fabian and wrapped my arms around Derek’s waist. I was home.
Granny Annabel materialized next to us. “I am so proud of you, bella. You have accepted your destiny.”
Sometimes destiny sucked. “It was great freeing all those souls but killing Sophie was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. I mean, she was your daughter and family.”
“That creature was not part of our family. My Sophie died the day she murdered your mother and father and became that demon’s spawn.”
Pain twisted my heart. “Why didn’t you tell me? I had the right to know.”
Derek kissed my forehead and his arms tightened around me. “She was trying to protect you.”
“Protect me?”
Granny’s ghostly hand touched my cheek. “I could not…would not risk losing you, too. Before I
told you the truth, you had to be strong enough to defeat her.”
Derek picked me up. “Let’s get you inside and I’ll give Hank a call.”
“Excalibur’s magic healed most of my injuries.”
My husband cocked an incredulous eyebrow. “A magic sword, huh? Hank’s still checking you out.”
Fabian chuckled, “Excalibur?” He held up the sword and his eyes bugged out. “Dios Mio! It is Excalibur!”
I looked over Derek’s shoulder. “It sure is.”
“How?”
“You know the whole sword in the stone thing?”
“You are joking?”
“No. Excalibur and a bunch of knights were trapped in the Ninth Hell for centuries.”
“Until you freed them,” Granny inserted proudly. “A feat many have tried and failed to accomplish.”
A murderous roar reverberated off the mesa.
Derek calmly surveyed the area. “Asmoday?”
I clung to him. “Yes. Guess he realized I escaped his realm and killed his minion.”
My husband’s eyes were hard and menacing.
“Don’t worry, Angel. I’m going to introduce him to the sharp, pointy end of Charlemagne’s Sword.”
Implacable resolve stamped on his face, Fabian raised Excalibur. “We’ll send him to hell permanently.”
“It will take Asmoday several days to rebuild his power,” Granny advised.
I leaned my head against Derek’s shoulder.
“Good. I need a bath. I reek of hell.”
Fabian quipped, “I wondered what that stench was.”
My husband kissed me gently. “You smell great to me.”
“You, my love, are a liar.”
Laughing, Derek carried me inside the motor home and down the hallway to the bathroom. “Do you want something to eat or drink?”
“A Coke would be great.
“Ed bring Zelda a Coke.”
“Yes, sir,” Ed hurried off.
My husband set me down on the toilet and gave Fabian a sharp glare. “Out.”
“There is something I must show you,” Fabian said, totally ignoring him.
Derek got in his face. “You can show her later, after she’s had time to catch her breath and clean up.”
“I think it is important bella knows now,”
Fabian growled poking my husband in the chest with his index finger. “Back off.”
Jumping to my feet, I wiggled between the two men and pointed to Aunt Sophie’s ring. “Didn’t we already have the testosterone talk?”
They both took a quick step back.
“Easy Angel.”
“You let her keep the ring?”
One look at their predatory expressions and I let the tears flow down my face and sobbed, “I just came back from hell and all I want hot shower and something cold to drink. Is that too much to ask?”