Chapter Twenty-Three

S hit,” Nic whispered.

Shay tore her gaze away from the man and looked at Nic.

“I’d like to say I’m shocked to see you, Bart, but I’m not,” Nic said, cracking a half smile.

“Dominic, how nice of you to come to me.”

“You led me here.”

Bart sniffed, lifting his chin. “Of course I did.”

Nic wasn’t surprised. This whole thing had been preordained by the Sons of Darkness. That’s why he’d felt compelled to find the underground. Was it some kind of mind connection with the demons? Were they taking control of him?

If so, he had to fight it. He was stronger than that. Shay inched closer to him, her shoulder brushing his. Derek stepped to his other side. The contact was reassuring.

These were his people, the ones he cared about. He needed to remember that.

Nic held still as Bart moved toward him. The hunters raised their weapons, but Nic held up his hand.

“He’s not going to hurt me,” Nic said.

“Of course I’m not going to hurt you. We’ve been worried about you; we couldn’t find you after Louis and his minions took off with you. Darkness only knows what they did to you while you were in their grasp.”

“Your show of family warmth is…interesting, Uncle Bart.” Especially considering his uncle was one of the coldest men Nic had ever known.

“You have no idea how important you are to our family, Dominic. We need you here, especially now. I assume they’ve told you what they did to your father.”

“That he’s dead? Yes.”

Bart nodded, leveling a venom-filled glare at Lou. “They will pay for what they’ve done.” He turned his gaze to Nic and smiled. “But that will occur later. This is your time.”

“My time for what?”

Bart reached for Nic but Nic stepped back and Bart dropped his hand. “I’ll fill you in on that soon. I’m so glad you’re here. And that you brought hostages. They can bear witness to what the Sons of Darkness have planned for you.” Bart motioned to the demons nearby. “Guard them while I talk with Dominic. He and I have much to discuss.”

“I don’t fucking think so,” Derek warned, raising his laser.

Nic’s gaze shot to Derek. He shook his head. Though he wasn’t sure what his uncle was up to, now wasn’t the time for battle. Something told him they should wait, that if they tried right now it would be devastating to the hunters. He wanted to find out what Bart’s plan was, and if he had the black diamond yet.

Plus, Nic had to protect Shay. And the Realm of Light.

“Don’t hurt them,” he said to his uncle. “If you do, you’ll get no cooperation from me.”

Bart’s tight smile was less than sincere. “I promise you no harm will come to them.”

Nic nodded and followed Bart to the back of the room, the other hunters being herded along behind him. Bart raised his hand and the solid rock wall shimmered, becoming transparent.

Uh, okay. That was interesting. Bart stepped through, motioning for Nic.

Since it appeared the Sons of Darkness had “big plans” for him, it wouldn’t be likely they wanted to crush him within a mountain of rock. He stepped through the portal, making sure the others followed. The wall solidified behind them.

Walking through a stone wall was an interesting experience. Kind of a high, actually. This whole otherworldly demon thing was kind of cool. Except for the evil part, of course. Nic felt as if he was dreaming, like this whole thing wasn’t really happening. But it was.

The room they occupied now was lavish, completely furnished but still in the cave. Tall, golden columns stood floor to ceiling, reaching up as high as Nic could see. Thick velvet draped from one column to the next. Black, cloth-covered tables were loaded with the most decadent of foods, golden-encrusted, velvet-covered chairs at each table. A roasted pig centered the main table against the back of the room; huge goblets were filled with dark liquid. It looked like they were readying for a feast.

Just like Shay’s vision described: the throne room.

“As you can see, we’ve prepared for you,” Bart said, splaying his hand out to showcase the room.

Nic frowned and scratched his head. “Uh-huh.”

“Your arrival was timely. Everything is in place.”

What the hell. He’d play along. “Good to know.”

“After the transition, we will celebrate.”

Okay, this was making him crazy. “You do realize I have no fucking idea what you’re talking about.”

The smirk his uncle shot his way was so goddamn annoying Nic thought about melting him on the spot with his laser.

“Of course you have no idea. You’ve never known what our plan was for you. That was intentional, ever since your father took you. Though with your father’s untimely demise, things didn’t quite work out the way we’d planned. Our timeline had to be moved up a bit. We can no longer wait. You must take his place now.”

Hearing the affirmation of what Derek told him was like a kick to his stomach. And more bits of memory flashed in his brain, lightning-hot zaps of pain accompanying them. His father’s voice waking him up, but when he opened his eyes it was a hideous monster looming over his bed. The feeling of utter terror. Then a hand over his face before he could scream and everything went black. He was starting to remember. “Why?”

“Let’s prepare you for the event, then I’ll explain.” Bart’s face softened. “I’m sorry your father can’t be here for this. He waited a very long time to bring you into the fold. You were his favorite, and he counted on you to sit as his right hand, Dominic. He wanted to be the one to help you through the revelation.” Bart cast a glare at the others.

“Nevertheless, he would be very proud of you right now, knowing you came back to us, that you had fought the Realm of Light to make your way home. You instinctively knew how much we needed you. Your connection to the Sons of Darkness is strong. You’re going to be an incredible asset.”

Nic didn’t have anything to do with their being here. Or did he? Had he inadvertently been leading them here all along? Had he led them all into a trap?

Fuck, he hoped not.

No. He’d led them to this place to fight the Sons of Darkness, to end this nightmare once and for all.

“Everything’s in place,” Bart said, looking around the room. “We’re ready to begin.”

“I have questions.” And he needed to delay whatever the hell Bart had planned. Because Nic had no plan for escape yet. And getting out of this was paramount. He felt the pull to the other hunters, the need to join with them. Funny how being with his “family” meant being with Shay, with Derek and the other hunters, not with his uncle.

Shay’s visions were wrong. He didn’t belong with the Sons of Darkness. They weren’t going to claim him.

“I’ll answer them soon enough. This event will not unfold in a hurry.” Bart gestured to the far wall where an ornate, velvet-covered chair sat. “Shall we?”

Although Nic felt like the lamb being led to slaughter, he allowed Bart to seat him on what looked like a throne. But if his uncle put a crown on his head, he was going to have to strangle him. There were limits to the amount of hokey ceremony a guy could put up with.

Bart was going down. Of that there was no doubt. It was just a matter of time. Nic was already antsy enough. Having to endure some kind of bullshit ritual to officially welcome him into the fold was more than he could tolerate. But he’d put up with it until the hunters got the information they needed, figured out what the plan was; then they’d attack.

“Let’s bring your friends in closer now, and our family.”

Nic assumed by “our family” Bart was referring to the demons. Sorry, no feeling of blood kin there. Just the need for some blood spilling.

“Come closer, everyone,” Bart said. “We’re just about to start. Please move forward.”

Nic noticed the frown on Shay’s face and the way Derek’s brows arched in confusion. He didn’t blame them. If he was looking at one of the hunters perched on this gilded throne he’d wonder the same thing they were probably wondering—had he switched sides and decided to become a Lord of the Sons of Darkness? But he couldn’t reassure them right now, because it was paramount Bart believe Nic was part of the demon team.

Nic just hoped the hunters trusted in him. That Shay believed in his ability to get them all out of this.

They stepped forward, the demons surrounding the hunters. Interesting thing was, the demons hadn’t taken the hunters’ weapons away. Maybe they didn’t see the hunters as a threat because they were so outnumbered right now, or maybe they sensed there wasn’t going to be a battle.

Not yet, anyway.

“Dominic,” Bart started, facing him. “I know you have questions. Ben wanted to make you one of us. But your mind refused to accept what you saw when you were taken by him all those years ago. You blocked it out, refused to recognize the demons around you.

“When he took you, it was…traumatic for you. You crawled inside yourself, shut us out. It was as if we didn’t exist. After that happened, Ben and I discussed it and felt that when the time was right, you’d remember, you’d accept. Ben wanted to wait until the memories came back to you naturally.”

So that’s why he’d been uninformed for so long, why he’d never known the truth about his father. And why he had the gaps in memory, why his father had made up the story about his head injury and amnesia.

“Unfortunately, we ran out of time. Your father was killed, leaving the Sons of Darkness without one Lord. You must take his place. The time is now. We can wait no longer.

“The Diavolo power is yours to control. You were born destined to lead as one of the Sons of Darkness. You were specifically created with this power, a special magic inside you to control this one special event. You need to take the helm, now that your father has been ripped away from us by these heathens from the Realm of Light. These people who claim to be your friends,” Bart said, pointing to the hunters, “killed your father. They captured you in an attempt to use you to annihilate the rest of your family. To destroy you. They do not care for you, Dominic. Do not allow yourself to fall victim to their lies, or they will do the same to you as they did to your father. Remember who your family is. We need you. Your father needs you, Dominic.”

“Yes, Nic. I need you.”

Nic’s ears perked up at the familiar voice. He gripped the arm of the chair and looked around, certain he hadn’t heard it.

“Nic, I’m here.”

“They said you were dead,” he whispered. Wasn’t he?

“I’m not dead, Nic. Not really. They cannot silence a Lord of the Sons of Darkness.”

If his father was alive, Nic wouldn’t just be hearing a voice. Ben would be there, in human form. Nic closed his eyes, forcing the voice away. “You’re not my father. You’re not here. You all are screwing with me.”

“The only ones screwing with you are the Realm of Light. Don’t listen to them. They don’t care about you. I waited forever for this moment. From before your conception I knew who and what you’d be one day. The reason I mated with a human was to create children who could dominate both demons and humans.

“There was a plan, and it was a great plan. One that had you standing by my side.”

Nic didn’t want to listen to any of this. It was bizarre; it freaked him out; it was way too much like his nightmares. He looked toward Shay, toward Derek, saw them staring at him. Shay was wide-eyed with shock, Derek’s gaze narrowed with anger. They heard, too.

“They took it all away from me,” Ben continued. “You were supposed to stand at my side and take your place on the throne.”

“You’re not here.” Nic didn’t want to believe any of this. He wanted to relegate it to the place where his unconscious mind enveloped the unreality of it all. Where he could blow it off to a dream state and nothing more.

His father’s soft laugh was so close it almost felt like it was inside him.

“Of course I’m here. I have to be here to see you transition into one of the Lords. You never did realize how much you meant to me, Nic—you thought I didn’t care. But I do care. I took you instead of Derek because I knew how important you were to our cause. I created you. I kept you close to me, let you do anything you wanted, let you have the world—every excess you could ever desire.

“You’ve grown into a fine man, and I’m so proud of you. You will lead the Diavolo Corporation into unimaginable wealth. You will lead the Sons of Darkness into indescribable power. Take your birthright, Nic. I need you. You are more important to me than life itself.”

Ben’s words sickened Nic. He felt dizzy, nauseous, closed in. The fact that Ben’s blood ran in his veins made him want to turn his laser on himself. He was part demon—that he couldn’t deny any longer. His nightmares were coming true. His father really wanted him to stand in darkness with him and lead beside him as some demonic king.

Anguish churned inside him. All he’d ever wanted was to feel needed, to be important and necessary—to feel as if he belonged to the family. To feel loved by a father who had never loved him, never had time for him, never showed him any affection.

Now his father was dead, or some semblance of dead, and he picked this moment to show his love?

Hell of a time for this revelation.

And a lifetime too late. How stupid did Ben think he was? Did he look like a fucking sheep? His eyes were wide open to the truth now. His father wasn’t capable of love. Not the kind of love he saw in Shay’s eyes. Not the kind of family, the kind of acceptance he’d found with his brother. With Ben he’d known nothing but distance. Loneliness. His uncle Bart had never been anything more than an empty shell.

And this whole mind meld with his father? What a bunch of bullshit.

Nic was no idiot. He might have been able to get a glimpse of the future thanks to Shay’s visions, but that didn’t mean the future was set in stone. It could be changed.

He would change it. What Shay had seen wasn’t going to come true.

He opened his eyes and smiled, looking at nothing and no one, as if he were channeling the dead.

“Father. I remember. I know what my place is, where my future lies. I’m ready now.”

 

Shay searched Nic’s face, trying to get him to make eye contact with her. But he stared straight ahead, refusing to look at her.

They’d all heard Ben’s voice and the conversation Nic had with his father. With Derek’s father. Gina had her hand clasped with Derek’s, both of them looking a little pale. After the battle they’d fought with Ben on the island, Shay couldn’t imagine what the two of them must be going through, hearing Ben’s voice again.

Bart bent over Nic, whispering. Shay couldn’t hear what they were saying. Ben’s voice had gone silent. Did that mean he was gone? Had he ever really been here?

Could the demon dead rise?

“Lou, was that really Ben?” Shay asked.

“Yes and no” was all he said in his typical cryptic way.

“Is this another one of those things like the force?” Ryder asked. “When they die, their essence remains?”

Lou snorted. “Something like that. The evil is always there. Ben’s core is gone, but he remains within the Sons of Darkness. He holds no power, can wield no magic, but he can still speak, though only on occasion and with some difficulty. It takes strong forces to amass the dead. I imagine that bringing Ben forth even for such a short period of time has weakened the Sons of Darkness, because he could not return of his own volition.”

Relief washed over Shay. “Good to know.”

“I’d hate to have to kill him again,” Gina said, gripping her laser more tightly.

“I’d be glad to,” Derek added. “He’s fucking with Nic, isn’t he?”

Lou nodded. “In a manner of speaking. The Sons of Darkness are trying to manipulate his emotions, to bind him to them. You know how Dominic was tied to his father all these years. He was the only family Dominic knew.”

“But is Nic buying into all this?” Trace asked, his hands tightening on the trigger of his laser. “Is he one of them now?”

“He hasn’t changed. He won’t change. He’s playing them,” Shay said to all of them in a harsh whisper. “Don’t you see that? He had to accept what we said on faith. Now we have to have faith in him. It’s our turn to believe in him, despite what we see.”

Even if Nic didn’t look her way, she still kept her gaze focused on him. She wanted him to see her, wanted him to know.

“I believe in you, Nic,” she whispered. “I know you’re on our side.”

“If you’re ready, Dominic, we will begin,” Bart said.

Nic nodded.

A heavy stone table was brought out by several of the hybrids and set in front of Nic.

“Our altar, where we will conduct the ceremony. And thanks to our new friend, we now have the black diamond with which to create the magic.”

Shay’s eyes widened as Angelique was dragged into the room by two demons. She shook them off, seemingly unafraid of them as she wrinkled her nose. “You bastards stink.”

The demons pushed her toward the hunters. She moved by Ryder, shaking her head as if to ask for their silence.

“I’ll explain later,” she said.

Where had she been all this time? And why did Ryder look so angry?

“Look at the size of that rock,” Gina said. “Is that the black diamond?”

“Yes,” Angelique answered.

It was the size of a bowling ball, chunky and uneven and dull. Not brilliant and beautiful like Shay expected it to look. And not at all like the glowing, brilliant orb she’d seen in her vision.

“That’s mine,” Angelique said, glaring at Bart.

“Of course it is. And you will get your hands on it again tonight. You have a destiny, my beauty. That’s the reason I hired you. You were meant to be here.”

“You told me this diamond was to be taken to a museum. We had a contract.”

Bart’s lips twitched. “You do not yet understand what is happening, Angelique. You will. Be patient.”

“A goddamn treasure hunter,” Ryder said, shaking his head at Angelique. “I should have known.”

“I am not a treasure hunter.”

“Where have you been? How did you get out of the tunnels?”

“His men got me out through some secret passage in the hole, then guarded me while I searched for the black diamond. Which I found and I claim,” she finished loud enough for Bart to hear.

Bart didn’t respond, just turned his back to her and placed the rock on the table in front of Nic.

“Babe, you have no idea what you’ve just been thrust into the middle of,” Ryder said. “You’ll wish you weren’t here soon enough, trust me.”

“I already wish a lot of things were different.” She crossed her arms and clamped her lips together.

“Where did you find it?” Lou asked.

“In a cave near where Ryder and I had been stuck. When Bart took me out of those tunnels and put me back to work to find it, I wanted to grab it and bring it to you,” she said to Ryder.

“Uh-huh. Sure you did.”

“You have to believe me.”

“Why should I?”

“We don’t have time for arguing right now,” Lou whispered. “We’ll settle this later.”

Shay’s head spun with all that was happening. Nic seemingly under some kind of spell, the black diamond found, Angelique taking part in all of it—how were they going to get out of this?

“Now that we have the black diamond, we can begin,” Bart said, capturing her attention once again. “Having Dominic here means the magic can be fully harnessed. Dominic is the catalyst. As Ben explained, Dominic was created with an inherent power to meld with the black diamond and strengthen the demons. We needed someone who was half demon and half human to meld with the diamond.”

“What’s he talking about?” Derek asked Lou.

“The legend says that the black diamond was forged by a battle between one of the Sons of Darkness and one of the Realm of Light—demon and human—that it contains the essence of both. Its power cannot be triggered by just one or the other, but has to be a combination of both.”

Bart stood over the rock, his eyes sharp and wide. “The black diamond will empower Dominic, will make all the Sons of Darkness more potent. The mix of his human and demon blood will allow him to rule over the sons of the earth and of darkness. Once Dominic joins hands with the Queen of Darkness, their touch will finish the Realm of Light. They will harness the power of the black diamond, and the portal between heaven and hell, between good and evil, will belong to the Lords of the Sons of Darkness.”

“Oh, shit,” Derek whispered. “Who the fuck is the Queen of Darkness?”

They all looked to Lou, his lips set in a grim line. That wasn’t a positive sign. Lou was always supremely confident in the Realm of Light’s ability to emerge victorious.

Not good at all. She needed Lou to tell them it was going to be all right. The Realm of Light had to win. The good guys always won. The stuff Bart was spouting about Sons of Darkness inheriting the earth and heaven and hell was all bullshit.

Wasn’t it? Lou had to tell them they were going to come out on top. He had to.

But Lou was fixated on Bart right now, so she turned her gaze back to Nic, trying to get him to look at her.

Please, Nic.

Nothing.

The cold chill of fear crept into her bones.

Bart waved his hand over the rock and began chanting in a language she didn’t understand. As soon as he started, Nic’s gaze gravitated toward the black diamond. Fixated on it, his eyes widened. Shay willed his attention toward her, but he wouldn’t look at her. Only at that damn black rock.

Bart continued to mumble in his strange language, and the demons behind and around them murmured. They didn’t speak, just moaned, or hummed, or made some kind of weird noise. It was almost musical in an eerie kind of way. She shuddered, not liking this turn of events.

“Lou,” she warned, “we need to do something.”

“Wait, Shay. Just wait.”

She didn’t want to wait. Nic’s expression grew more remote with every passing second. She felt her connection to him weaken. She was losing him.

 

Angelique watched, mesmerized by what was happening. Ancient rituals had always fascinated her, and the beauty of the singing around her couldn’t be denied. Such a lovely sound from such hideous creatures was an incredible thing.

But she had no time to marvel at this. Creatures that could not be real surrounded her, yet in her heart she knew they were. The demons Ryder had described really existed.

She felt responsible for all this. She’d found the black diamond. But what choice did she have? If she hadn’t found it, Bart would have eventually.

Her plan had backfired. She’d been so certain of her ability to locate the diamond and turn it over to the demon hunters, to somehow spirit it away and make her escape. She’d gotten out of sticky situations all her life. She’d evaded treasure hunters trying to steal her find. She’d held her own when invaders came upon her at a dig site, trying to claim her artifacts. She’d even outsmarted Izzy a time or two when her sister tried to spirit away a valuable treasure Angelique had uncovered. Angelique thought this was just another situation she could manage to wrestle her way out of. She’d never lost before. She was confident in her ability to uncover the black diamond, hide it, and turn it over to Ryder.

But she was wrong. This was like nothing she’d ever experienced. She was in way over her head.

She’d managed to find the diamond; the guards’ backs had been turned. It was huge, but she thought she could load it in the bag of tools and tell Bart she’d never found it. Unfortunately, two hulking demons had come out nowhere, scared the shit out of her, and snatched the diamond right out of her hands. Then she’d been locked up until they hauled her into this cave.

And now this chanting and some kind of odd ritual.

She had to do something to make it right. Bart had his eyes closed and head tilted back. This was a good time to make her move. If she could grab the diamond and make a run for it, she could hope the demon hunters would spring into action. Without the black diamond, Bart couldn’t do anything, right?

She eased toward the table, pausing every few steps to make sure no one noticed.

They hadn’t. In fact, no one seemed to be paying the slightest attention to her. Even Ryder was in a huddle with his own people. Strategizing, no doubt.

She edged closer to the table. The diamond was within reach now. She could snatch it and head for the exit. And maybe, just maybe, luck would be on her side again. Maybe Ryder and his people would choose that moment to start firing their weapons. Either way, she had to get out of here with the diamond.

Almost there. She reached out, her fingertips grazing the black rock.

But strong arms grabbed her around her middle. Bart’s eyes shot open, revealing a hollow blackness that made her shudder and recoil as she was brought to stand before him. And merde, he was so cold! How had she not noticed that before?

“Why, thank you, Angelique. You’re just where I wanted you.” He turned to Nic. “Dominic, come over here.”

Nic moved toward Bart. “Put your hand on the diamond.”

Nic placed his palm over the diamond. Angelique’s eyes widened as she heard a hum emanating from the rock and felt vibrations under her feet. “What’s happening here?”

“You’ll see soon enough.” Bart’s eyes gleamed with dark pleasure as the dirt began to fall away from the rock.

Angelique couldn’t believe what she saw. The rock began to transform under Nic’s hand, the black changing first to a deep purple, then a midnight blue, and finally to a brilliant, sea blue color. The shape changed, too, from irregular edges to smooth, glassy surfaces, as if she were seeing the diamond cut in front of her eyes, but without benefit of technology. She could see into it, the color swirling and moving within the orb.

It was beautiful. Her breath caught and held, and she felt if she didn’t possess it she’d die.

“Lay your hand over Nic’s, Angelique.”

Anything. She’d do anything to draw closer to the diamond. She’d never seen a treasure like it. Something about it called to her, as if it were a living, breathing thing and she was a part of it. She placed her hands over Nic’s, hoping like hell she could take the diamond and run.

But as soon as she touched it, the light within the orb began to dim.

“This isn’t possible,” Bart said.

Angelique dragged her gaze away from the diamond to look at Bart. He was frowning.

“What are you talking about?” she asked. She wanted, needed to touch that diamond again. She felt cold without it.

“The light within has died.” Bart moved closer, grabbing Angelique’s wrist in a tight hold and jamming her hand over Nic’s.

“Hey. That hurts!”

“Nothing is happening!”

She had no idea what he was talking about. Just as she thought, the man was a lunatic.

“You are the one. You must be…but it’s not working.”

He was beyond insane, his eyes glowing with madness. She tried to jerk away but she couldn’t. Fear coiled around her middle, turning her anger to dread. Bart squeezed her wrist so hard tears sprang up in her eyes.

She never, ever cried. But he was hurting her.

“Okay, that’s enough.”

Ryder. He was behind her, his hand on hers. And she felt safe.

“You are not invited.” Bart turned his menacing glare on Ryder. “How dare you put your hand on the diamond?”

“I just invited myself. And she’s done here.” He slipped his fingers over Bart’s. “Let her go. Now.”

Ryder’s dark gaze met Bart’s. Angelique thought for a moment that Bart would strike Ryder. But Ryder didn’t flinch or back away. He simply extricated Bart’s hand from Angelique’s and laced his fingers with hers. His grip felt strong and comforting. Disconcerting.

Bart cursed and pushed her into Ryder’s arms. “Take her, then! She is not the one.”

Ryder escorted her back to the others; she had never been happier to go where he led. He left his arm around her. No way was she going to shrug it off. She’d never felt so cold before.

“You okay?”

She nodded, her gaze fixated on Bart. “He’s insane.”

“He’s way more than that.”

“What’s he talking about?” Angelique asked. “What did he mean by ‘the one’?”

Ryder shrugged and looked at Lou.

“I don’t know yet. Some kind of catalyst for the black diamond’s magic, I would assume.”

No, Angelique most definitely was not any kind of catalyst. The only magic she knew was the worthless card tricks her mother’s friends had taught her as a child.

As far as her being “the one”…Bart was mistaken. He’d chosen the wrong woman. But he’d acted as if he expected her to be something or someone she wasn’t. A sick feeling twisted inside her. It couldn’t be, could it?

Yet even as she thought it, she knew the answer. It wasn’t her Bart was after. He’d chosen the wrong woman.

He wanted Isabelle.

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