“I didn’t mind.” He accepted my gesture, gripping my hand as he stood. “I was quite comfortable, though you do snore.”
His grin made my stomach do a flip-flop, and I was certain by the warmth spreading across my cheeks that I blushed. He stepped closer, still holding on to me and raising our entwined hands to his chest.
He stared so deeply into my eyes, I swear he saw the very core of my being. “You’re my soul bride. It’s my duty to ensure your comfort.”
“Umm…” I swallowed hard and tugged from his grasp. “Yeah. No. You don’t have to do that.”
I shook my head and backed toward the door, silently berating myself for feeling all these warm fuzzies. I should have balked when he called me his bride. Instead, the word burrowed into my heart, attempting to take up residence.
No way could I let that happen.
“I’m compelled to.” He cracked the door open and peered from side to side. “It brings me pleasure, which I have not felt in centuries.”
He tugged it open further, and I hightailed it out of the car. My boots thudded on the gravel, and I adjusted my backpack as he slipped out and closed the door behind him.
“Yeah, well…” I tapped my arm and then my temple. “We’ve got the whole blood thing going on, so…”
“Of course. That must be why.” He nodded, though he didn’t look convinced, and he took a stack of cash from his pocket. “Give me the invisibility spell and go to the back end of the train and cross the tracks. Hold your head high and act like you belong. Now would be a good time to use your silver tongue if you have enough vim.”
I handed him the potion bottle and did a quick vibe check. It seemed my sleepy snuggle session with the demon did, in fact, recharge me enough to make this happen. I took the ashmarks and shoved them into my pocket. “Got it. Not a problem.”
“The hotel is the red building, three blocks to the east. Pay for one night. I will meet you there.” He turned and walked in the opposite direction he had just told me to go.
Watching him walk away sent a flush of panic through my system. My pulse quickened, and my breaths shallowed. I started to call after him, the question of wait, you aren’t coming with me? on the tip of my tongue.
Get a grip, Cin. I took a deep breath and headed toward the back of the train. I could do this. All I had to do was exude confidence, act like a demon, and pretend I belonged. The confidence part would be no problem. My magic would take care of that. Acting like a demon, though?
“I guess I’ll wing it.” I reached the caboose and darted across the tracks.
When I joked about this place being vacation central for demons, I had no idea how on the nose I was. Shops and restaurants, bars and luxury hotels stretched down the streets as far as I could see. Demons milled about, some in human form, some not. If we weren’t on a timeline…or being hunted…I could have watched and studied them for hours.
Instead, I looked straight ahead, my gaze trained on the small red building on the edge of town. Behind it, mountains towered toward the orange sky, but no snow capped their rocky peaks. Did they even have seasons in Hell? Hopefully, I wouldn’t be here long enough to find out.
I strode down the street, away from the crowd, and stopped in front of what Discord had called our “hotel.” Aside from being made of stone and glass like every other building around, the place screamed “seedy motel.”
The sign above the lobby door hung lopsided, the chain holding it to the roof rusted and broken. Two long buildings stretched out behind it, and I spotted a demon with red skin and three breasts—two nipples on each—walking out of a room and counting a bundle of cash.
Lovely. Discord, my supposed husband, had brought me to a no-tell motel. How romantic.
I squared my shoulders, took a deep breath, and headed for the door. Bones rattled from a mobile above it, signaling my entrance, but the demon behind the counter didn’t bother looking up. He had tusks jutting from his top and bottom teeth, and a single horn rose from the center of his head. He leaned his meaty arms on the counter and stared at a small screen that looked an awful lot like a television, and… Was he watching a cooking show?
Hell was so weird. Fire and brimstone here, modern cities there. I don’t know what I expected to find when I got to the Underworld, but this definitely was not it.
I started to say excuse me, but I thought better of it. So far, pleasantries and common courtesy didn’t seem important in this realm. Instead, I strode to the counter and slapped my hand on the surface.
“I need a room. A clean one,” I said.
The demon turned his bored gaze toward me, flicking it to my hand. I glanced down as well and jerked my arm to my side. Crap! My shirt had short sleeves, and Discord’s sigil was emblazoned across the arm I’d slammed in front of him. Way to put my predicament on display.
If he noticed, he didn’t let on. He just grabbed a key from the wall behind him and tossed it onto the counter. “Cleanest one we got. Costs one-eighty for an hour, four-fifty for the night.”
“I need it for the night.” Doing my best to keep my arm turned so he didn’t see Discord’s mark, I fished the wad of cash from my pocket and froze. The only writing on the bills was in sigils, and I didn’t know how to read demon. I flipped through them, staring at the designs and willing the symbols to speak to me. They didn’t, of course, so I laid one on the counter and grabbed the key.
The demon slammed his three-fingered hand onto mine. “I said four-fifty for the night.”
I left the key where it was and slid my hand from beneath his before laying another ashmark on the counter. He made a gimme motion, so I laid down a third.
“This ain’t a negotiation. Four-fifty or move along.” Mucus dripped from his nose, and he wiped it with the same hand he’d used to grab me. Ick.
