Queen of Night (Thorne Hill 6)

“Why would he do that?” I ask, already knowing Julian won’t have the answer.

“I don’t know. If he hadn’t, there’s a very good chance you would have been discovered last night. Michael was very concerned.”

“It’d be nice if he showed up and proved it,” I blurt. “I get it that he can’t, but even Lucifer found a way to talk to me before all this.” Shaking my head, I sigh. “Whatever, though. Am I in danger of being discovered now?”

“I don’t believe so. Lucifer brought several demons out of Hell in a similar tactic to what he did for your wedding.”

“Did they hurt anyone?” I ask slowly. I almost want Julian to say yes, because then I’ll have my answer. Lucifer is a bad guy and I can’t trust him. End of story.

“No.”

“Dammit.”

“You want them to hurt people?”

“Of course not,” I say and start walking forward again. “Can I tell you something and you have to promise not to judge me?”

“I’ve learned that is followed by a questionable statement.”

“It is. Basically, it’s a warning you’re going to want to judge me, but don’t for the sake of our friendship.”

Julian stops short. “You consider me a friend?”

“Well, yeah. You don’t?”

He looks at me, confused, for a second, and then smiles. “No one has ever called me a friend before. Now, what is your questionable statement?”

“I want to trust Lucifer, and I don’t know if I should, because everything I’ve been told about him says he’s bad. But I get this feeling that he’s not lying. He’s not out to get me. It’s stupid, right?”

“No, it’s not stupid. Trusting that he’s on your side would make things easier. It’s one less family member who wants to kill you.”

“Though having Heaven’s Most Wanted join Team Callie probably doesn’t look too good in the eyes of my aunts and uncles, right?”

“Right. The argument behind killing Nephilim is that Lucifer can sway you to join the dark side.”

I shake my head. “Nah, I’m a rebel.”

Julian looks at me with confusion again, and the one time I make a lame Star Wars joke, Lucas isn’t here to appreciate it.

“He also said it would be a good idea for Lucas and me to head out of town now in case anyone tries to backtrack the energy or whatever.”

“That is a good idea,” Julian says. “Why are you in the woods?” He looks at the big box in my arms.

“I’m meeting Evander to give him the Infernal Dictionary. There are demons in the woods, carving hearts out of deer.”

“Interesting.”

“Yeah. Oh, and werewolves have decided to try and get a piece of the Ley line. We caught one in our yard last night.”

“I missed a lot.” Julian glances at me and we both laugh.

“A lot happens around here in just a few days. Going on vacation will be nice, as long as we can keep it drama-free. And by that, I mean no demons.”

“I’m done tracking demons in the underworld for a while,” Julian says. “Michael was worried it was starting to raise suspicions.”

“So, we can hang out a bit?” I ask hopefully. “You could come to Florida with us. Oh! I can take you to Disney World! Well, assuming you’d want to go. It’ll be nice to have someone to hang out with during the day, actually.”

Julian smiles again. “I can do that, and don’t worry. I will not stay in your hotel accommodations. You two need more privacy, I’ve learned.”

My cheeks redden a bit, but I shrug it off. “That is true, and Lucas will be happy to hear that. You’re going to need different clothes, but I will order some stuff from Amazon and have it shipped to wherever we’re staying in Miami.”

Julian looks down at his long-sleeved shirt and jeans. “What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?”

“You can’t wear that in Florida heat.”

“I don’t get hot.”

“I know, but we don’t want other people to know. You’ll look out of place.”

“Ahhh, right. I have a lot to learn about humanity.”

I nudge him with my arm. “I’ll teach you.”

Twigs snap under someone's feet a few yards ahead of us. Julian holds out his hand, and the large silver knife appears in his hand.

“Who goes there?” he demands, eyes glowing blue.

“Hi,” someone rushes out. “It’s Camilla Harrington from the Grim Gate Coven. Professor Greystone sent me.” She steps around a tree, and as soon as I see her face, the name clicks. She’s on the council and was in the room when I killed Ruth and just happened to mention I’m the daughter of an archangel. She looks from me to Julian and back several times, realizing what he is.

“I…I’m…Professor…um…” She pulls at the Academy-issued robe on her shoulders. “Sorry.”

"It’s okay,” I tell her. “This is Julian, my cousin. Is Evander all right?”

“Yes, caught some students cheating on a test and got held up, that’s all.”