Supernatural Lies: A Paranormal Reverse Harem Romance (An Angel and Her Demons Book 1), Lacey Andersen [phonics story books txt] 📗

A tear slid down her cheek. Being suffocated won’t kill me, but it sure as hell will hurt.

And after I wake up from this, no doubt I’ll be imprisoned again.

It’s hopeless.

2

“You think Caine wants to see you like this?” Frink said, tossing her back.

She hit the ground and immediately began gasping in air. The darkness receded, and slowly her panic eased too. Unconsciously, she touched her throat, and flinched as her fingers grazed her skin.

How dare he! If her demons were there, the angel would’ve been pummeled into a pile of flesh. They didn’t tolerate anyone hurting her. But unfortunately for Frink, she didn’t tolerate it either.

Turning to glare up at him, she unsteadily struggled back to her feet. “If he doesn’t want his prisoners stinking and dirty, maybe he shouldn’t toss them into cells and forget about them!”

He punched her square in the face.

She hit the stone floor, and lay for a second too shocked to move. Before her imprisonment she would’ve easily avoided the blow. It frightened her how weak she’d become.

Don’t think about it too much. Just focus on getting up.

She looked up at him, rubbing her stinging cheek and trying to sit up. “Ass!”

“Just the kind of language I would expect from a demon-whore.”

If he hadn’t awoken her temper, she might’ve been smart and shut up. But instead, she struggled to her shaking legs and smirked. “Harsh words from an angel with a reputation for having sex with humans ‘just to feel alive.’”

He swung, but this time she ducked, missing the blow just barely. “Take your damned bath!”

A bath? She glanced at the tub in the middle of the room. That sounds incredible, but I can’t lose my focus.

“And afterwards I’ll see Caine?”

He flashed her a smile that was all teeth. “I guarantee it.”

That’s strangely not reassuring.

She turned away from him, trying to hide her nervousness. Whatever was going to happen, she couldn’t hope to actually fight it. Not in Caine’s fortress. Not with hundreds of angels filling the halls, rooms, and skies. But she could at least face her enemies without months’ worth of filth coating her flesh.

Crossing the room, she paused as she glanced at the steaming water and then back at Frink. The angel had already turned his back. He likes his women human. Lucky for me.

She quickly shed her filthy garments, folded her wings tightly against her back, and climbed into the water. She groaned as the heat sank into her skin and warmed her body. It felt so good. So incredibly good.

She sank beneath the waters, scrubbing her stiff hair, and then moving on to gently wash her black feathers, which were covered in grime. By the time she came back up, the water was cloudy. Picking up the soap at the edge of the tub, she cleaned every inch of her body until she felt better than she had in months. Until the sweet scent of lavender seemed to hang over the entire room.

That’s much better.

Now to pump Frink for info…

“So,” she began, her gaze going to where he stood, staring angrily at the wall. “Is Caine going to kill me and send me to the demon-realm?”

Frink didn’t answer.

“Wrong, huh? Well, what, he'll command me to serve him again?" Still no answer.

Here goes nothing.

She sighed. “Maybe he’ll be reasonable. I have a lot to tell him. If he would just listen, everything could change for the better. Things can't keep going the way they are. Something has to give."

He glanced at her for the first time since she’d undressed. “You can’t possibly be stupid enough to think he’ll listen to a word you say.” After a second, he laughed. “You actually do! You think he’ll care that things aren’t fair. You think he’ll want to change.” He shook his head. “You are so freakin' naïve!"

He’s wrong. I have to believe a being made to be The Judge of all of mankind still has some goodness in him.

Time to find out, one way or another.

Taking a deep breath, she stood, grabbed a towel and climbed out of the tub. Drying quickly, she donned the simple white gown stretched out on the bed for her. Turning back to the angel, she gave a sharp nod.

“Lead on!”

His nostrils flared in unspoken rage, but he turned and opened the door.

Time seemed to slow.

Her feet brushed the stone floor as she followed him, her heart pounding. In her mind, she ran through every possible scenario, but nothing she imagined ended with her alive and returning to her demons.

She tried to appear calm and confident, but she was pretty sure she failed. The urge to flee built inside her like a sickness. Her logical mind screamed that her fear was ridiculous, that this was what she’d been waiting for, but her heart refused to listen. It raced so hard it filled her ears, so fast her head felt light.

Come on, Surcy, hold it together. Being brave doesn’t mean you aren’t scared, it means you do it anyway. The old words echoed in her mind. Where have I heard them before? She couldn’t recall, but they kept her moving forward.

Frink led her to the throne room, where The Realm Creator was located. She took a few steps forward before Frink closed the door, leaving her inside to face Caine alone.

I’m finally here.

To face The Judge.

Today I could change the world, or be wiped from it forever.

With sweat sliding down her back, she scanned the massive room carved of gray stone. Waiting to be acknowledged. The ceiling rose so high above them that she could scarcely see the top. She remembered that a hole above them allowed the angels to fly into the room, but she couldn't sense any fresh air coming from above. Instead, something oily and thick hung over the room laced with a scent she’d never noticed before.

Perhaps because the last time I was here I was nothing more than a mindless soldier. Curling black magic