Alone at last, she slumped back into her throne and drummed her claws on the armrest.
Mishetsu was up to something with Belial and the other rogues, and she needed to find out what.
Belial’s defection had shaken the very foundations of Hell—literally. He was so powerful that his presence actually played a critical role in upholding the foundations of the underworld. There had been several devastating earthquakes after he’d abandoned his territory, and the entire Screaming Souls mountain range had disappeared into an enormous crack that spontaneously appeared in the ground.
Why would a demon that powerful willingly leave Hell for a meaningless existence among mortals? His great power was dampened on the Earth plane, his indomitable demon form exchanged for a lowly human one, his harems, legions, and slaves all abandoned in favor of… what?
What could he possibly seek on Earth that would gratify a demon of his caliber? It was the great mystery, the whispered gossip spreading across Hell like wildfire.
And now this. She was certain her Hunter had found him. Maybe what Belial had left Hell to seek, Mishetsu wanted as well. But what? Riches? Power? It couldn’t be, for there were none with more of those than Belial, save Lucifer himself.
Paimon sat up straight in her throne.
The only one with greater power and influence than Belial was Lucifer himself.
What if Belial wanted to rectify that? What if he sought some new power source on Earth because he planned to unseat Lucifer as High King?
There had been talk among his legions for ages about Belial retaking the throne. What if he’d finally decided to try it?
And if Mishetsu had found them, Belial could have offered him freedom if he joined the cause. She had always known her Hunter would give anything to be rid of his bond to her. It was why she’d so carefully chosen the ritual that bound him as her slave. If there was a means of escape, he would have found it long ago.
But if Belial had convinced him he had the power to remove the brands, Mishetsu could be tempted by the offer.
If this was true… the implications were enormous. The search for Belial would need to become more than Mishetsu’s job. She would need to go to Lucifer himself.
She winced, quickly backtracking. She wasn’t going near Lucifer unless she had solid proof of her theory. Hell’s High King was everyone’s worst nightmare, and every instance she’d met with him stuck out as her most unpleasant of memories. His Unholiness had complete power over every being in the underworld, and he loved to abuse it.
Before she did anything drastic and risked facing his displeasure, she needed more information. She didn’t delude herself into thinking she could find Belial as easily as Mishetsu had—he was calledtheHunter for a reason.
But perhaps there was another way. Perhaps, if she could find out what power source Belial was seeking… it might lead her right to him.
11
Pit Stop
Mist allowed himself to be dragged toward the Pit by his chains. He’d drifted in and out of awareness while that cursed camel hauled him through the lair to make a spectacle out of his punishment. He might have been ashamed had he not welcomed the chance to regenerate his brutalized heart and broken wing.
Sometimes the smartest course of action was to swallow one’s pride and play dead. Because he had, he was now stronger than he would have been if he’d continued to fight. Now, hopefully, he’d be able to last more than five minutes in the Pit.
He’d still end up as gorath meat in the end, however. Strength or no strength, his future looked bleak.
This is what happens when the rules are broken. This is the consequence of insubordination.
“Oy,” the gargoyle lurking next to Shaheen said. “Time to wake up from your nap, boss. Time for playtime in the Pit.” He chuckled maliciously.
The gargoyles called him ‘boss’ because he’d often used them on his hunts. But, of course, they wouldn’t hesitate to throw him to the dogs at Paimon’s command. No demon in his right mind would. A demon in his right mind seized any chance for violence with enthusiasm.
Mist had recently discovered he was not in his right mind.
Somehow he had managed to escape his fate the first time he’d broken the rules, but evidently, he wouldn’t manage it a second time. Paimon knew he’d betrayed her, and he doubted he would be free to hunt again now that she didn’t trust him.
If he wasn’t useful to her, he was useless. If she ever got bored of torturing him, she’d likely petition to have him destroyed. He was too powerful for grunt work and posed too much of a threat for anything else.
This is what happens when the rules are broken. This is the consequence of insubordination.
He knew this. His entire life had been spent learning this lesson. So why had he been foolish enough to try in the first place?
It didn’t matter, in the end. Whatever his reasons, he was about to end up in the Pit like every other rule breaker he’d tossed in there at his mistress’s command. A fitting end, he supposed.
