Chapter 207: CHAPTER TWO HUNDRED AND SEVEN

During the drive, I was cocooned in Alaric's body as he carried me on his lap while Octavio drove us.

I was sadder than I'd ever been, completely shattered and unable to allow any happiness in my head. Ridden with guilt, not just at depriving Lucas of his life but putting Alaric in trouble with Lucifer.

Although we were about to destroy the contract, it wasn't going to be the end of it. I could already sense the trouble looming ahead and he won't even let me take some of the consequences on me.

“I can feel your mind running a thousand miles per second,” he murmured in my head. “You'll feel better someday, I promise. I'm sure you'll eventually realize none of this is your fault.”

“You're just saying that to make me better and it's not working. Nothing short of a resurrection will work so please stop,” I mumbled and dug my head deeper into the crook of his neck.

I moved with his chest as he took a deep breath, tired of me I guess.

“I'll just have to check to be sure he's not in hell. Hopefully, that'll give his people some sort of relief. It's better than nothing,” he mused, his hands filtering through my hair.

Sometimes I feel he does that to comfort himself just as much as me. I've been a big pile of trouble lately.

“Thank you so much,” I expressed; even though I knew that wasn't going to pay for his death, it was something most humans would never figure out: where their loved ones went to so I hoped it'd be able to give them some sort of reprieve.

Besides, if he ends up in hell, I'm sure he won't be getting any sort of punishment if I have anything to say about it.

I heard the engine stop before I realized that the car had stopped.

“We're here,” Octavio said as he opened the car door.

I moved off from Alaric's body, only to realize how warm he was. The absence of his body made me feel the cold, something that was a part of me now.

I got down from the car and looked around at the security post that separated the two locations.

I didn't even realize when we'd been checked by the officers, considering they were hassling someone else there, opening his car booth, and demanding ID cards as expected.

Alaric grabbed the paper and materialized a lighter and handed it over to me.

“Over there. Remember the words I taught you?”

We'd been practicing them on our way here, ancient words that I didn't even know the meaning but he said was the only way I could cut off an agreement I'd made with someone as powerful as the devil himself.

So I walked over to the bit of green grass that linked the two cities together, right before the iron net gates that were used as a demarcation.

Then I lit the paper on fire and began whispering the words, trying to avoid drawing attention to myself.

“Louder Spitfire,” Alaric asserted, a bit of tension in his tone.

This was definitely a big betrayal on his side against his father but I've always known the Morningstar family to be as crazy as possible right from my first interaction with them in that fundraiser.

I increased my tone, putting more gust into the words.

“Lyō desmous mou, exēpatēmenos; synepeias de tautēs praxeōs aparnoumai” I poured out over and over, watching the fire catch but the paper refused to burn.

“Come on baby, you have to let that power in you out. I know you can do it,” he encouraged me, still a bit behind me but not too far.

I understood he didn't want to be in the zone of the elements getting the message I was trying to send as he wasn't there when the deal was made. Any slight inconsistency would lead to it not working so I had to be careful.

Thus, I did as he said, voicing the words loudly, ignoring my environment, and pouring all the energy I could muster into the paper in my hands.

All the emotions that had been flowing in and through me the entire time I was in Brooklyn began pouring out, serving as the actual fuel to the fire in my hand.

The paper finally began to burn, encouragement pouring from the two demons behind me until the final paper burned out, the fire feeling warm but not hot as it should have been to burn me.

I smiled at myself, happy that at least one thing was off my list of troubles, but I suddenly became aware of the unusual silence behind me.

I kind of expected them to be cheering me up as we were all tense through the entire process.

But I turned around and realized why they'd been quiet.

The devil himself was standing by them in a pristinely white suit, his hair immaculately combed and gelled while his shoes stood on green grass as he held his son and Octavio in a white, hot bubble in the air.

From my peripheral view, no one around us noticed what was happening as cars sped past and security officers kept on doing their job so I knew we were invisible by his magic.

“What... how..” I gasped in shock, my eyes roving from their startled ones to his bored eyes as he stared at me with displeasure written across his features.

“You burnt out agreement Aria,” he finally said, moving towards me slowly, with calculated steps.

He stopped close enough to intimidate me but far enough that I didn't have to breathe in his air.

But his closeness still rattled me and made me want to fight or run as far away from here as possible.

“You.. you deceived me!” I snapped, finding my voice and anger, replacing the fear that was clawing at my throat.

He chuckled, his laugh reminding me of how much of a fool I was believing he actually wanted to help me.

“I'm the devil, Little girl; you think I'm called the Great Deceiver as a joke?” He chuckled as the words left his lips. “You can't simply change your mind on me alright? I already made plans and this little mistake has to be rectified now, okay?” He mused calmly, like he was saying something so easy to do while cleaning his nails like he wanted to be anywhere but here.

“I… I can't do that,” I forced the words out of my throat because I didn't see any other possible response.

That got his attention, and even I was shocked at my own boldness, but the way I saw it, he might hate his son, but he was not going to kill me because that would mean he'd lose Alaric as well. He needed him.

He raised his finger with perfectly manicured nails and took my hair in his fingers, twirling them slowly like he had all the time in the world. Meanwhile, I was steaming inside, fear and anger battling against each other.

He stepped back and walked towards the invisible sac he had them in.

“You'll find a way,” he said before disappearing into thin air, leaving them hanging up there, unable to breathe.

Leaving me to figure out if he meant that I'd find a way to obey his instructions or find a way to get Alaric and Octavio down from their position.

I could feel a scream bubbling up my throat but I bottled it up as much as possible and rushed towards the car instead.

I found my phone and called Kora; hopefully, her hatred of me is superseded by her love for her brother, and she'll help me out here.

I was completely out of my depths here for sure.