Abbadon was dead.

At her hand.

Hellen paced the floor of her room, stopping every so often to look at the fireflower on her bed. It was still open, still alive.

What was she going to do? Where was she going to live? She was ready to run away with Erion, take her sisters along for the ride, all without a plan in place. She felt so insecure. Erion cared for her; she knew that. But had his feelings changed? Had seeing her end her father's life in such a brutal manner endeared her to him more or made him question if he wanted someone like her in his and his child's life?

Hell, it made her question it. The monster her mother had begged her never to release had protected him and Ladd and her sisters' futures, but it wasn't gentle and benign. It was capable of the darkest acts imaginable. In fact, she wondered if it might actually crave them.

A knock on her door brought her out of her anxiety-ridden question fest, and she immediately crossed the room and opened it wide.

"Hey, demon girl."

Just his deep, magnetic voice made her feel better, made her feel calmer, but the smile he offered made her insides curl with arousal.

Would it always be this way with them? Instant chemistry, instant fire?

Beside him, her sister Polly was attempting to look put out. "He insisted I tell him where your room was."

"And she insisted in following me here," Erion said, leaning against the doorjamb.

Hellen's gaze moved over him covetously. He was so handsome, so wickedly sexy, standing there in his black T-shirt and jeans, his black hair licking the edges of his wide, powerful shoulders. The male made her heart squeeze with wanting. Did it matter that they didn't have a plan aboveground? He wanted her with him. Wasn't that enough? "You can go now." Her eyes remained on Erion. "Thank you for bringing him to me, Polly."

The female grunted, didn't move. "Perhaps you won't be thanking me tomorrow, sister. He is hungry."

"Is he?" Hellen smiled at him.

Erion growled softly, his eyes pinned to hers.

"Yes," Polly said as though she and Hellen were the only ones standing at the door. "And do you know what he is hungry for, sister?"

Hellen's breath quickened, her gaze never wavering from his. "I couldn't possibly guess."

"Blood," she said on a horrified gasp.

Heat moved through Hellen at her sister's words, and she moistened her lips. This male, this incredible demon vampire, wanted her. She saw it in his gaze, in the way he touched her, kissed her, protected and possessed her. While others had only ever found her unsightly, Erion somehow believed her beautiful, desirable-so desirable he wanted not only to claim her but to consume her blood.

Erion's nostrils flared as he inhaled. His expression darkened and he lifted one black eyebrow, scenting her arousal.

Polly continued, completely unaware of what was happening right in front of her. "I told him you would most definitely not be interested in removing your blood and allowing him to consume it."

"That is true," Hellen said, heat now pooling in her belly and threatening to dip lower.

"See there, demon vampire male," Polly said, gesturing to Hellen. "My sister has much more sense than-"

"If he wants my blood," Hellen said in a soft, seductive voice, "he is going to have to take it himself."

That was it. Erion growled, his demon exposed, his fangs too, and pushed his way through the door.

Hellen laughed and backed up. "Good night, Polly. I will see you later."

"Much later," Erion uttered tersely as he closed the door on the female demon's shocked and appalled face.

He wasted no time in coming after her. He yanked the black T-shirt he wore over his head and tossed it aside. As she stared at his wide shoulders and smooth, thickly muscled chest, he flicked open the button of his jeans and sank the zipper.

"You're hungry, Erion?" she said boldly, her hands itching to grip his waist, run her fingers over his hip bones, dip her tongue inside his navel.

He shook his head, his eyes fierce. "Do not play. Do not tease. Do not pretend to give unless you are one hundred percent sure." He kept coming, stalking her until the back of her thighs hit the side of the bed. "Because once I have even a drop of your blood on my tongue, it's over. You will not be able to run without me at your back. You will not be able to sleep without my arms around you. You will not utter a moan of distress that doesn't end in my care or a cry of lust that doesn't begin at my touch." He stopped just inches away and narrowed his gaze on her neck. "Think hard, demon girl. With just one bite, you will belong to me."

Hellen's breath came out in a rush and she stared up at him, panting. His words had pushed her into a place of such deep wanting, she knew she'd never return. She was his. She'd been his since he'd stolen her away, and in doing so had opened her eyes to the truth about herself and her father.

Inside her thin, white silk nightdress, her breasts felt heavy and her nipples ached to be touched. Her belly convulsed with each breath she tried to pull into her lungs. Her legs felt unable to hold her weight, and between her thighs, heat swirled inside her tight, soaking-wet pussy.

Was she sure?

Did she want him?

His hands on her? His mouth on her? His tongue inside her?

His fangs sinking deep and stripping her of the blood that would satisfy his hunger?

He towered over her, his fangs so low they pierced the flesh of his bottom lip. "Am I easing you back on this bed? Am I taking your vein as I take your body?" His nostrils flared. "The answer had better be yes."

"Yes, Erion," she breathed. "Gods, yes."

His satisfied grin made her tremble with anticipation. She'd thought about this moment too many times. Erion taking her completely. She'd never felt the intensity and pleasure of a thick cock pushing into her, but she wanted it-she wanted him.

He pulled off his jeans and threw them in the same direction as his shirt, then grabbed the top of her nightdress and in one clean movement ripped it from neck to knees.

She sucked in a breath as the material slipped off her shoulders and pooled on the floor at her feet. "I would've taken it off for you."

His arm snaked around her and he lifted her onto the bed. "You will never remove your own clothing again," he commanded with a sexy purr. "If I don't ease them over your head with my fingers, rip them from your body with my fists, or bite them off with my fangs, they remain. Understood?"

She nodded, swallowed as he rose over her. She couldn't get over how beautiful he was and how terrifying. Everything about him was large and overpowering, from his shoulders and chest to the thick shaft between his thighs that was so hard it stood tall against his belly.

"You are perfect," she whispered, her eyes meeting his. "The most beautiful male in the world." She smiled. "And you are mine."

He grinned back at her. "I'm glad you finally understand that."

"And I am yours," she added, her hands going around his neck.

"That too." He growled and leaned down to kiss her. "My good little demon."

"Not so good," she whispered right before his mouth claimed her.

The kiss was anything but soft and slow. They had wanted each other for too long, their need too intense. He took her with ravenous abandon, his tongue plunging inside her mouth to find hers, and once he did, he groaned with possession. She didn't need to hear him say it to know what he was thinking: MINE.

And she was.

Wanted to be in every way.

He tore his mouth from hers and dipped his head, brushed his lips across her neck. Hellen sucked air between her teeth with the feeling, every nerve ending on alert, the muscles between her thighs clenching.

"Are you going to bite me now?" she asked breathlessly, wanting him so badly, wanting his fangs inside her-wanting him inside her.

His warm breath caressed her ear. "Not yet, demon girl."

She shivered, then cried out as he raked his fangs ever so lightly up the shell of her ear.

She was going to come, just from his voice, his breath on her skin, the anticipation of his touch.

He eased to one side of her, his hand finding her belly. He stroked her gently, teasing her navel until she felt tears in her eyes.

"Please, Erion," she begged, her hips lifting, straining, to get to him.

His hand stilled on her rib cage. "What is it, my beautiful one? What do you need?"

"Touch me."

He chuckled softly, tracing each rib until his fingers rested just below her right breast. "I am."

She whimpered. "It's too slow. It's torture. I won't be able to hold on."

"You don't have to," he uttered, leaning down, kissing her cheek as his fingers brushed over her breast, his nails raking her stiff nipple lightly. He purred when she cried out. "Come, demon girl. Come for me. It will be the first of many."

He found her ear and licked the shell as he squeezed her breast against his palm, then drifted up to pinch the hard peak.

The sensation went straight to her cunt. "Oh, gods. Erion."

His tongue laved her as he tugged and circled her nipple. Shards of white-hot pleasure assaulted her and she reached down between her legs to touch herself.

"No," he said harshly. "Your cunt belongs to me now."

It was too much for Hellen; his words, his tongue on her ear, his fingers pinching her nipple. Then he bit down gently on her earlobe, and she lost her mind completely. Teeth clenched, hips jutting up, a cry wrenched from her throat and she came so hard it was almost blinding.

"So beautiful," Erion whispered against her ear as his hand moved down her torso, over her belly. "The state of euphoria suits you, demon girl. I intend to keep you there."

Hellen's mind felt heavy and her eyes were unfocused, but her body called to him. She had a feeling it would never stop calling to him.

"Touch me now? Please." She was begging and she didn't care.

He chuckled softly as he lowered his head and kissed her nipple, the one he had pinched and tugged that sent her over the edge. Then he shifted to the other. Hellen arched toward him as her hips continued to lift and lower. Why was he torturing her? And yet even as the thought entered her mind, she brushed it aside. His lips were on her nipple, sucking it into his hot, wet mouth, his tongue flicking the tip as he moved his head up and down. She'd never experienced such a delicious sensation. He was fucking her breast, and she keened and convulsed and felt the rush, the heat, the overwhelming sensation of impending orgasm move over her. She was going to come and the male hadn't even touched her below the waist.

His fangs were descending. She felt it against the flesh of her breast as he sucked her off, as his tongue flicked violently at her tight, aching bud. And then he released her, lifted his head a fraction, and used one sharp fang instead of his tongue. He circled her nipple with the tip, then slowly flicked it back and forth. The slight pain and intense pleasure stole her breath, and once again she climaxed.

She cried out his name and reached for him, took his cock in her hand. He was shockingly stiff and so warm, she smiled. Erion blew a cool breath over her wet breast. And as she rode the waves of climax, as she pumped him slowly and gently and hungrily, somewhere in the back of her mind, she heard him speak.

"I've wanted to possess you from the moment I saw you, Hellen," he said, easing himself out of her grasp and moving down her body. "You taste like heaven. Or, shit, maybe it's Hell. But I want more. I want everything at once. I know you're soaking wet down here, that your cream will drench my fingers and coat my throat. I ache with wanting you." His hand moved between her thighs, his fingers dipping inside her slit to gently circle her clit.

She gasped and whimpered. The feeling was too intense, and she tried to press her ass back into the bed to get away from him, but Erion wasn't having it.

"We're just getting started, demon girl," he whispered against her hip bones as his finger lightly traced her clit. "It's so swollen, so beautiful. It loves to be touched, played with."

"Erion, please," she begged. "I can't . . ."

"How tight are you, Hellen? If I fuck you with my fingers, will you squeeze them tight? Show me what my cock aches to feel."

She fought for breath but lost it again as he slid two fingers inside her.

"Oh, damn," he uttered, his mouth dangerously close to the top of her sex. "That tight grip could kill me. Cream running down my fingers." He inhaled deeply. "I can scent you. I love the way you smell. Oh, fuck it." He left her side and, keeping his fingers inside her, he moved between her legs.

Instinct drove Hellen, and she brought her knees up to her chest. Erion laughed softly. "My demon girl knows what she wants, what her body screams for. You love being licked, don't you, Hellen?" His fingers fucked her slowly as he lowered his head and purred. "Oh, so beautiful. So pink. Every inch of you cries for me. Eating your sweet pussy makes my cock cry too."

He covered her clit with his mouth and drew the bud into his wet heat, suckling it as he'd suckled her swollen tit.

Hellen groaned and fisted the sheets. "Erion, this is torture. Please, I can't think."

He released her clit. "Don't think, demon girl. Just feel. Feel and come."

He rubbed his nose against her, his mouth, then his chin. The roughness of his skin, the pressure of it, was too much for her. She started to cry.

"Let the tears come, Hellen," he whispered. "You deserve them."

He locked on to her clit and sucked it into his mouth. He found a rhythm, thrusting his fingers inside her as he suckled her, as she cried above him and gave in once again to the sweet release of her climax. Erion eased back and just licked her gently as heat barreled through her like a possessed animal.

She was boneless as he moved over her, as his cock slid between her pussy lips and pressed against the entrance to her cunt. But she wanted him still-wanted to be fully and totally and utterly taken by him.

"Your first male, Hellen?"

She watched his face tight with tension and desire, the bands of tension in his neck, the muscles in his arms and chest bunching and flexing.

"Yes," she said breathlessly.

He purred. "And your last, Hellen?"

"Yes!"

"I love you. Fuck, I love you!" He covered her mouth with his and entered her in one deep thrust.

Hellen had never had a male inside her, but there was no pain when Erion sank his cock deep. She was slick and hot and ready for him-more than ready-and all she wanted was for him to claim her body as he had claimed her heart.

She wrapped her legs around him and thrust her hips up, grinding against him, letting him know that she was desperate. His kiss intensified, and as he pleasured her mouth, he slowly fucked her.

Tears pricked at her eyes again. Not because of the heat that surged inside her or the delicious feeling of being completely and totally filled with the male of her dreams-the male she loved-but because, for the first time in her life, she was allowing herself to take without guilt, love without fear, and need without reproach.

Erion tore his lips from hers for a moment and lifted his head so he could stare into her eyes. He had such amazing eyes, so dark and soulful. And they were heavy with desire for her, all of her.

"Your pussy is so tight, demon girl. It sucks me in and refuses to let me go. I don't want to go. I want stay inside you forever."

"Stay," she implored him ardently. "I love you inside me. I want you inside me always."

She moaned and jacked up her hips, and Erion answered with thrust after thrust into her slick pussy. He was impossibly hard, and her clit pulsed with need once again. Would she ever grow tired? Would she ever not need this to breathe, exist?

"You are mine, Hellen," he uttered, moving within her, his thick cock stroking her. "And I am going to mark you now. My seed inside you. But first . . ." He gained in speed, battered her cunt until she saw stars again, until she writhed and cried out and seized and trembled around him.

And then he allowed himself to come too.

It was like an animal's mating-No, a demon's, she thought blissfully. His face had changed fully-lionlike, demon eyes, fangs extended-and he snarled and growled and pumped himself into her, making tears escape from her eyes once more.

They were mated.

Well and truly mated.

And she would never give herself to another.

Erion pulled her close but remained buried inside her. His face inches from hers, he nuzzled her nose. "I wish to stay with you, in your bed, sleep with you until the morning, when we leave this place forever."

Her heart seized at his beautiful words. "I want that too."

He grinned, purred.

"You look happy, demon beast," she said, feeling his cock pulse inside her. There was no rest with him.

"I am most happy," he said, his grin widening. "I never expected to feel happiness like this. It's pure and raw."

"Just like you," she whispered, kissing his chin, nipping it with her teeth.

He growled at her. "You are mine, Hellen-you are my unbeating heart, my insides, my family, my future."

She stilled with his words, those raw words. Family. Future. She hadn't thought of that. Why hadn't she thought of that? Maybe because she'd wanted him so badly. But a family, children . . . Would he be happy, content with only the one?

"What is it?" he asked, concern in his voice. "Are you all right? Am I hurting you?"

"No, no." Her gaze dropped to his mouth. "You know I can't give you children." She released a breath. "If you wanted more, I would understand." I'd hate it, perhaps lose my mind over it, but I'd understand. "If you wanted to find someone who could-"

"Hey." He lifted her chin, forced her to meet his gaze. It darkened even as he stared at her. "Listen to me, and listen well. When I was born and my mother realized I was mutore, she tossed me out like trash. I was a bad omen, something broken and unwanted. Something that didn't deserve to be loved." He cupped her face. "Can you give me love, demon girl? And the loyalty of a mate? Because that is what I truly need."

The honesty, the open vulnerability of this male tore at her insides. She leaned in and kissed him. "That I can give you, Erion."

He lapped at her lower lip and whispered, "And I promise it to you as well." He drew back. His eyes deepened and grew in intensity. "I love you, Hellen. I ache with it."

She'd heard him say it right before he'd taken her, and she'd believed him. But like this, wrapped in his arms, satiated and warm and safe, it meant a thousand times more. "I love you too."

He smiled, though a flicker of worry lit his eyes. "You will be all right leaving your home?"

"As long as I'm with you," she said, though she knew it wouldn't be that easy to walk away. "I don't think I belong here anymore. Not after what I've done. No matter what Eberny says, I fear I will be despised."

"You did what you had to do, my love."

"I know." And she did. She had no regrets-only relief that everyone she cared about was safe. "But I am ready to start my life."

"Our life," he amended with a grin. "And we can live anywhere you want. New York, France. Me and you and Ladd."

Her heart sank a fraction. The boy. She wanted the boy to be happy, and she'd seen him that way with the female vampire. "He will want to be with Kate. He clearly adores her, and she him."

"He will. I would never take him from her." His brows came together. "But he is my son, and after witnessing Abbadon's cruelty, I want more than ever to be a good father to him."

"You are a wonderful father," she said with passion, touching his face. "You went into hell to save your son. That makes you a real father."

He grinned proudly. "And you, the way you threatened to attack Kate-that is the act of a loving and overly protective mother."

"No." She drew back, shaking her head. "No. I'm not a mother."

"What do you mean?"

"I fear what is in me now. I have the power of my father in me. I can feel it when I get angry or possessive. It pushes to come out and fight and take without asking and . . ." She shook her head. It was so ugly, this truth, this fear of the unknown that raged inside her blood. "I would die if I hurt a child-"

"Stop, Hellen." His tone was fierce, his eyes too. "No matter what you think you have lurking inside you, you are not your father. You are no devil." He gathered her up in his arms, his mouth a breath away from hers. "You are an angel. My angel."

He kissed her softly, sensuously, convincingly, and as he did, he purred and started to move inside her. "I wish to take you again, but I know you are sore."

"I am demon," she returned, biting at his lower lip. "We don't get sore. We get demanding."

He grinned. "My perfect mate. You demand, my love, and I will give you everything you desire." He pulled out of her and flipped her over onto her belly.

"Wow," she said on a gasp.

His arm tunneled beneath her and he eased her hips back so she was on her hands and knees. "Wow, indeed," he uttered, his voice dark and heavy. "If I wasn't so desperate to get inside you again, I might have to eat you this way. You are so pretty."

He moved over her, his chest against her back, until she felt the head of his cock. It was so hard he didn't need to guide it. She gasped as he entered her, stretched her.

"I have only just filled you with my seed," he whispered against her ear. "And I already want to give you more. You have the tightest, hottest pussy. It begs me to fuck it, weeps for me to fill it."

One hand brushed past her hip and found her sex. He groaned, and she felt his cock swell further inside her. "Do you know how wet you are, Hellen? It's running down your thighs, soaking your skin, soaking my hand."

She arched her back and pressed against him, ground her ass against him, wanting him deeper, wanting everything as the pressure built inside her once again.

"Hold on, demon girl," he said, his fingers dancing lightly over her clit as his strokes gathered speed. "You're about to come again, and when you do, I'm going to fuck you so hard you won't be able to breathe."

"Yes, Erion! Please!"

He rammed up inside her and froze.

Hellen's breath was caught; she panted as she felt him close to her ear.

"Oh, shit," he whispered, his voice otherworldly. He was demon now. She didn't have to see his face to know it. "I'm hungry, Hellen. I can't hold out any longer. You're mine. Your blood is mine."

Without warning, he bit down hard on her shoulder, and she screamed. His cock swelled again and he started fucking her, slamming inside her so deep, she dropped her head and prayed her legs wouldn't give out beneath her. As he clung to her shoulder with his fangs, pulled on her vein and took her blood into his mouth, Hellen fell over the edge for the fourth time that night. She was utterly gone, hovering somewhere where only madness and heat and mind-blowing climaxes were allowed to exist.

Trying to remain upright, she let him work her over. He was pumping inside her, flicking her clit, and swallowing her life's blood all at the same time. Happiness and pleasure spread through her. In the bed where so many nights had been spent crying and plotting and coming to an understanding about her dismal future, she was being fucked-no, she was being made love to-in every way she'd never dared to imagine.

For the first time in her life, she'd witnessed a happy ending in Hell.

And it was hers.

"Where did you find her?" Alexander asked the moment the door of the Manhattan hotel room opened.

Whistler backed up and allowed them to enter. "Bronx Zoo."

Still living with the shock of such a possibility, Celestine gaped at the male. "What?"

The Eye closed the door and headed past them into the room, took a seat on the couch. It was a generous suite, paid for by Alexander. He hadn't wanted the female brought to his home yet, not until her parentage was confirmed. But he also didn't want her in the park or in some shitty motel.

"She was living near the cages of the animals," Whistler informed them, putting his feet up on the coffee table.

Alexander put a hand on Cellie's and found it trembling. "Why would she do that?"

Whistler shrugged. "You'll have to ask her."

"But you're sure she's . . ." Celestine broke off with a whimper.

"Oh, I'm sure. She carries the blood scent you gave me." He leaned back on the couch, his hands behind his head. "Shall we open her vein and have a closer look?"

"No!" both Celestine and Alexander answered at once.

The Eye chuckled, then turned his head toward an open door to his left.

Out of instinct, Alexander's body shifted into high alert.

"Come here, veana," Whistler called.

There was a sound of a soft snarl, then footsteps. "I am not a veana."

When she entered the room, Celestine gasped. "Oh, my gods." Her hand went to her mouth, muffling a cry.

Alexander's fighting instincts evaporated, but he couldn't move. Shit, he could barely breathe. He just stared at the wary, snarling female before him. The heavily pregnant female. It was the strangest sensation. Like looking at a different form of his true mate.

"She looks . . ." Celestine uttered, but she couldn't finish the thought.

Alexander did it for her. "Like Sara."

Celestine burst into tears and ran from the hotel room.

Hellen woke with arms wrapped around her.

But they weren't Erion's.

The shock of that knowledge came swiftly and she bucked and slammed her elbow back into the body that carried her through the corridor archway, until it released her onto her feet.

She glanced down at the ash on the ground and at herself. She was wearing a blue robe, not unlike the one her captor was wearing. Her gaze slammed upward and into the serene face that had practically raised her after her mother died. "What are you doing, Eberny? Have you gone completely insane?"

In the dark lavender evening light, the hybrid looked especially foreboding. Eberny nodded. "I apologize."

"For what?" Hellen demanded, her hands on her hips. "Coming into my room unannounced? Taking me from my bed? From my mate's embrace?"

The hybrid's eyes shuttered. "Yes."

Hellen's eyes narrowed. "What's going on? It is still night."

"We must talk."

"And it couldn't wait until morning, when we open the portals?"

"When you open the portals," Eberny corrected.

"Me, you-what does it matter?"

"It matters a great deal," Eberny stated, the hybrid's expression graver than usual. "Do you think I have the power to do such a thing?"

Hellen stared at the hybrid, something moving inside her. "I'm guessing no."

"Abbadon was the only one with that power."

"Are you saying I won't be able to manage it either?" Suddenly panicked, Hellen moved past the hybrid and walked over to the massive rock that had once been a portal. "Is that why you brought me out here? To tell me you think we're all stuck in the Underworld-Erion and Ladd. Kate."

"No," said the hybrid calmly. "The others will be able to leave as soon as you open the portal."

Hellen whirled around and hissed. "Eberny, you're starting to piss me off."

"Did you enjoy your night with the demon vampire?"

"Very much," she said in an almost protective way.

"I am glad. You needed to."

"What does that mean?"

Eberny's face remained impassive. "Sex unlocks the final shift, the devil magic you will need to open the portals."

A slow, terrifying vibration started to move through Hellen's blood. "What are you talking about?"

"You are your father's firstborn," the hybrid explained. "And that gives you most of what you require. But not all. Sex is the key, the final step in the fertilization of your true magic."

Hellen attempted to reel in and process what the hybrid was telling her, but it wasn't easy. She had the power-sex with Erion had not only been the best moment of her life, but it was the key to opening the portals. She brightened at the news. "This is good, then, right?"

"Yes," Eberny said, watching her.

But if sex with Erion, with anyone, was the key to unlocking the portals, why wouldn't Eberny have told her before? Hellen wouldn't have wasted a moment. She'd wanted Erion desperately, and he'd wanted her.

Her mouth thinned and the fear-laced vibration was back. "There is more. What is it?"

Eberny regarded her with cool eyes. "Do you know that the citizens of Hell are grateful for what you did, Hellen? Abbadon's cruelty and tyranny was a strain on the society for too long. It is why there was no revolt when you ended his life. They accept you."

Hellen moved away from the rock. Something was growing within her, something other than fear. What was it? Anger . . . Violence . . . "I don't understand where you're going with this. They know what? Accept what? What are you talking about?"

"I speak of your kind, your demons."

"I have one demon, and he's back in my bed," she snarled, letting the feeling rise to the surface.

"Hellen."

"I want nothing from you, Eberny, nothing from this place."

"This is your home."

Hellen didn't want to hear any more. She'd made up her mind. She turned and headed for the archway.

Eberny followed. "Your mother named you for your birthplace."

"I know. I know the story-"

"Then you know she also named you for the world you would rule someday."

Hellen stopped just inside the arch. She slowly turned to face the hybrid. Eberny no longer wore the usual mask of indifference. Within the hybrid's expression passion and fire now flared, along with a need to force Hellen's hand.

"Why didn't you tell me that sex was the final puzzle piece in opening the portals?" Hellen whispered in a caustic voice. "You knew I was going to sleep with my demon male."

Eberny's gaze flickered with heat. "You might not have if you knew that the very portal you must open to release your lover is the very one you will not be walking through with him."

Hellen's demon emerged and lunged at the hybrid. "Liar!"

Eberny drew back, out into the purple end of night once again. "I took you from your bed, from your one night with your lover, to show you the world you have inherited, the world you will govern."

"I refuse it!" Hellen roared, stalking after Eberny. She would tear the hybrid apart. This is what she feared. This was her father inside her-and right now, it pleased her to call upon it.

But Eberny's eyes weren't filled with fear. They glittered as if Hellen's visceral response was precisely what the hybrid was after. "It is a call you cannot refuse, Hellen. You have a responsibility here. Your mother warned you of this. It is why she begged you not to unleash your monster."

"Do not speak of my mother," Hellen growled, barreling down on the hybrid.

Oh, gods. What don't I know? What didn't she tell me?

"I wanted you to know this now," Eberny continued with slightly less calm than a moment ago. "Perhaps you wish to say good-bye."

"I'm not saying good-bye to anyone but you."

The hybrid's back hit the rock. "You are the new Demon Queen, Hellen."

Hellen coiled over Eberny. "No!"

"Yes, Your Highness. You are the Devil."