Vessel: The Demontouched Saga (Book 4) Read Free Page A

she has more creative ways to torture information from a demon,” I say, laughing. “Keep the knife there, by the way. You don’t want him to get his power back.”

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
    - 3 -
     
     
     
     
     
    “Got one for you,” I say to Uriel as I walk in the door, the boss demon in tow.
    “Excellent,” she says. “I’ve been looking for him for centuries.”
    The boss must not be impressed because he continues his verbal assault, focusing on Uriel this time. I try not to laugh when he switches to English for a few moments to say a few choice words about her mother. From everything I’ve read, god was supposedly a man, but it wouldn’t surprise me if that’s wrong. If it is though, god will be really pissed off at him when she ends this charade.
    “Who is he?” I say, taking a seat on the couch.
    “Astaroth,” she says. “One of Abaddon’s followers.”
    “Abaddon, huh? The same one who is supposed to lead the armies of hell against you?”
    “The one,” she said. “I assumed he was working in the area, but we didn’t have any proof.”
    I nodded to her. “Why would he be here though?”
    “I believe he wants to rebuild the portal.”
    “Doesn’t sound promising,” I say. “Why doesn’t Michael come down and protect it?”
    “I fear for his safety,” she says. “I haven’t heard from him in a few weeks.”
    “They could have the lines of communication cut off.”
    “We don’t work that way,” she says. “We have ways of communicating with each other that don’t rely on the physical realm.”
    “You think they would hold a celebration if they took out your commander,” I say.
    “Unless you wanted to keep things quiet.” She stares at the blade still stuck between Astaroth’s ribs. “That could be why we have seen an increase in demonic activity recently.”
    I didn’t think about that possibility. I always figured they would ramp up their efforts at some point. Why not now?
    “Is this true?” she asks him. “Is Abaddon close?”
    “You can rot, you ugly bitch,” he laughs, spitting blood in her face.
    “I figured you would have learned some manners when you were in Heaven,” she says. “I guess you need another lesson.”
    She places the palm of her hand on his injured foot. I cover my eyes when she emits a bright white light through her fingertips and into the wound. From the smell, I can tell it is burning the flesh on his feet. I pinch my nose with my other hand attempting to keep from throwing up. After a minute the light fades from the room, returning it to its normal, candlelit glow.
    “Shall we try this again?” she asks, smiling. “I’m not as innocent as I may look. Be thankful for the humans in my presence, fiend. I could kill you with just the sight of me.”
    She pulls the dagger from his chest, allowing him to drop to the floor. I try not to laugh when he pulls off his shoes revealing his burnt feet.
    “He is very close, witch,” he says, rubbing his feet. “Abaddon has promised the dark one a victory.” He raises his head to look right at me. “And your soul.”
    “He isn’t doing too good with that last one,” I say, pulling the knife back to my hand. “How many more of your kind will I have to kill until you realize that I’m not as frail as you might think?”
    “Your confidence will be your undoing,” he hesitates for a moment. “Reaper.”
    “You told him?” she says, snapping her head at me.
    “I didn’t have to. He saw me take one.”
    “Then we cannot let this one leave,” she says. “We will need to find another messenger instead.”
    “Messenger?” I say.
    “I hoped to give Abaddon a warning. To leave this world and return to hell or risk being vanquished.”
    Astaroth laughs uncontrollably on the floor. “He cares not for your terms, witch. He will only stop when the portal is open, flooding this earth with the rest of our brothers.”
    “How well is the portal working for you?” I say with a smirk.