Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 72056 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 360(@200wpm)___ 288(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72056 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 360(@200wpm)___ 288(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
Rogan places two fingers over my lips. “You’re getting yourself worked up over nothing. It was a nightmare, princess. Just a nightmare.”
His words make sense. And if I weren’t who I am, and Richard weren’t who he is, I might believe him. But I’ve known since the beginning that my stepfather is evil. The fact that he’s the demon king only clinches it.
Yes. Rest. I’m getting too worked up. Except…
My body shoots up into a sitting position.
“Princess, lie down.”
“Shit,” I say.
“Lie down,” Rogan says again.
But I stand. As much as I want to obey Rogan and lie down, I can’t.
“I need a phone,” I say.
“I have no idea what happened to your purse and your phone.”
“I need a fucking phone, Rogan.”
“Would you just lie down?”
Rogan doesn’t understand. My father’s trying to get in touch with me. His blood is calling to my blood, even though my heart is still pounding from the nightmare and my body is weak from the flaming arrow.
The fucking vampire king waits for no one.
“Rogan. A phone.”
“For God’s sake, princess. Lay your ass down.”
“Don’t you understand? I have to contact my father. I don’t have a freaking choice.”
Victor finally nods and brings me a cell phone. “It’s a burner.”
“Good enough.” I punch in my father’s number.
“Hannah?”
“Yes, it’s me.”
“I’ve been trying to reach you.”
“I’ve been a little busy, Dad. Why didn’t you tell me my stepfather is the damned demon king?”
“That’s why I’m calling. I hear you had a run-in.”
“You didn’t think that little piece of information was relevant?”
“Richard and I made a deal,” my father says. “When he married your mother, he and I promised to stay out of each other’s way, as long as we both met certain conditions.”
“Great. That’s just great.”
“Yeah, but he reneged on that deal.”
“He did? How so?”
“My condition to him was that you, your sister, and your mother would never be harmed. He broke that promise.”
“He broke that promise a long time ago, Dad.”
“I’m talking about physical harm, Hannah.”
“Right. Because emotional and mental harm is no big deal.” I scoff.
My father doesn’t say anything. Until—
“I’ve made some mistakes.”
“You think?”
“Perhaps I shouldn’t have married your mother, but if I hadn’t, you and your sister wouldn’t exist.”
He’s got me there. I may bitch about my life sometimes, but I’m damned glad I have it.
“Your stepfather, on the other hand,” Dad continues, “procreated only with his first wife.”
“How does this even happen, Dad? I don’t get it. The vampire king? And the demon king? Did I win some kind of contest in hell? I get the king of hell himself as a stepfather?”
“The demon king isn’t the king of hell, Hannah.”
“What the fuck is he then?”
“He’s the demon king. Demons are simply another supernatural species. They don’t live in hell. They live on earth.”
“Is there even a hell?” I ask.
“I’ll have to let you know.”
Mic. Drop.
“Heaven and hell, Dad. Tell me the truth.”
“I don’t know the truth, Hannah. No one alive does.”
This is not news to me. Still, I’ve always associated demons with hell. No one knows the truth about the afterlife, if there even is one. But why am I waxing philosophical when I’ve just been attacked by a demon? I guess an out-of-body experience will do that to a person.
“How did they get you, Hannah?” Dad asks.
“Believe it or not, they found me in Rogan’s walk-in closet.”
“What the hell kind of security does he have?”
“I think a lot of his security force is made up of demons, which may be the problem.”
Rogan shoots me a fuck you look from across the room.
Dad clears his throat. “Demons often work security. Maybe a few of his went rogue.”
“Or maybe my stepfather is an asshole. Did you consider that?”
“Of course he’s an asshole, Hannah. I’ve always known that.”
“And you let him marry my mother?”
“I didn’t have any say in it. She divorced me. Not the other way around.”
“Oh, well pardon her for not wanting to play second fiddle to your hot stud lovers.”
“Look. If I had it my way we’d still be—”
“No, you wouldn’t. Don’t lie to me.”
I expect him to argue the point, but he doesn’t. Instead—
“Find the information about Rogan,” he says. “We’re running out of time.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means that Richard is up to something. I’m concerned. For your mother’s safety. For Larissa’s. And for yours.”
“Can’t you do anything? At least make sure that Mom and Larissa are safe?”
“I’m working on it. He won’t harm your mother. I’m fairly sure of that.”
“Fairly doesn’t cut it. You need to be completely sure. Which one of you has more power?”
He doesn’t respond for a moment. Then, “It’s not a question of power, Hannah.”
“What is it then?”
28
I wait. I wait not so patiently for the answer to my question.
Finally—
“No being is inherently more powerful than any other, Hannah,” my father says.
“That’s crap. Vampires have mind control.”