Darkness Becomes Her by Lacey Savage Read Free Book Online

other, I am going to come in here and kill them myself. If that happens, though, I can’t guarantee what kind of effect it will have on you. Understood?”
    Heidi shifted on the balls of her bare feet and shook her head as though clearing it after a momentary daze. “Got it. Sex and death. It doesn’t sound too complicated.”
    Baal laughed. The rock amplified the horrid deafening sound until it echoed back in rippling cackles. Unmistakable evil rolled through the chamber, accompanying Baal and his cronies as they all left the room.
    The torrent of liquid rock resumed its abundant gushing flow, cutting off any avenue of escape Varin, Luke or Heidi might have had. Not that it would have helped if he’d left the door unblocked. The three of them could have run through every winding tunnel in the Underworld for an eternity and they still wouldn’t have managed to find a way out, because there simply wasn’t one. Opening a portal through the fabric of space and time was the only method of transportation between the mortal realm and the dark recesses of Hell.
    If Varin still had his powers, he’d waste no time tearing a hole into thin air and shoving Heidi and Luke through it. As it was, he had nothing but his body and the truth of his words, neither of which were a match for Baal’s convincing display of mastery.
    “So…” Heidi lifted a supple arm, which undulated as she twirled blue strands of magic around her wrist. “I guess you have no say in any of this, huh?”
    Varin opened his mouth to answer, but Luke was faster. He moved toward Heidi with the speed of a predator, his golden hair flowing behind him like an abundant lion’s mane.
    “That’s not exactly true. We volunteered for this duty. It’s an honor to lay down our lives in sacrifice so that you might once again rise from the ashes of your mortal self and become the great deity you’ve always been.”
    Varin knew his jaw hung open, but he couldn’t get words out. He’d expected Luke to fight Baal’s villainy with every bone in his body. Instead, he was calmly playing along.
    Too calmly .
    Pride and unmistakable affection swelled up within Varin’s chest as he stepped forward and stood beside the younger man. “He’s right,” Varin said, pleased with the thundering confidence in his tone. “We’re… honored to assist you in any way we can.”
    Assist you to remember who you are. And get you the fuck out of here as soon as your memory returns .
    He left the words unspoken, knowing she wouldn’t understand. Clearly, though Baal had stripped her of her memories, he’d left her in full possession of her magical abilities. The Lord of the Underworld had needed those to prove to her that she was who he said she was.
    That mistake would have to be enough for Varin to use against him and send Heidi back to the mortal realm, where she belonged. If it wasn’t, they were all doomed, as it was the only miscalculation Baal was likely to make.
    Heidi furrowed her brows. She glanced from Luke to Varin, then back again, confusion and a hint of skepticism playing across her face. Loosening some of the magical tendrils and letting them dissipate into thin air, she pointed a slender finger at Luke’s chest. “Did I do that to you?”
    Luke glanced down to the spot she indicated. A smile curved one side of his mouth. “As much as I’d like to say those are love marks bestowed upon me, I’m afraid the truth isn’t nearly as seductive.”
    “The guards.” Heidi pressed her lips together, her mouth thinning into a flat, bloodless line. “They looked like the type of men who’d enjoy hitting first and asking questions later.”
    “You’re not like that.” Varin moved close enough to touch her, but stopped just short of reaching out. He didn’t want to frighten her and experience a repeat of what had happened earlier.
    It was clear to him she had no idea who either of them were. She’d reacted out of instinct alone, using the demon powers Varin had