Desert Heat (Complete)

{Allie’s P.O.V.}

I had to be in some kind of wild fantasy because there was no way that the guy standing down the hall could be real. In my eyes, I always thought that Dorian would be the most gorgeous man to ever exist. Of course, that didn’t mean that I never considered other men to be good-looking. There was nothing wrong with appreciating a handsome face, nice physique, and a good personality. But ever since I met Dorian, no man was ever considered gorgeous in my eyes—until this hunk of a man showed up in our house. He had to be at least 6’10” and was as large as Dorian, maybe even larger. He had long, burgundy hair that was tied in a ponytail and had gold eyes. This guy was the definition of drop-dead gorgeous.

“You’re Abaddon!?” Mikey questioned, clearly shocked.

“I apologize for the intrusion, but given the amount of time that has passed, I figured that you would want to hear what I have to say in person,” he replied.

“What are you?” I asked, point-blank. “You’re not a werewolf, and you’re not a demon. Though, I was told you’re a demon bounty hunter.”

“Ah, yes, a well-known misconception. I am a bounty hunter that specifically targets demons and warlocks. And in regards to what I am, I am a—”

“URIEL!?!” We all looked past him while he turned around.

“Anna?”

“AHHH!!!” Anna squealed at the top of her lungs and jumped into his arms. Suddenly, wings then expanded and encased the two of them like a cocoon.

“Well, I guess that answers that question,” Persephone said. A sudden snarl in the hallway caught everyone’s attention, and it was none other than Sly.

“GET YOUR HANDS OFF OF MY MATE!” Sly growled.

“Mate?” Uriel repeated and looked down at Anna.

“Calm down, love,” Anna said to Sly and stepped away from Uriel, whose wings retracted. “Sylvester, this is my childhood friend from Heaven. I haven’t seen him in eons.”

“More like you’ve known me since you were a child. I’m still older than you,” Uriel commented.

“And by eons, you mean how long?” I asked.

“Oh, gosh, what has it been? At least five or six hundred years?” Anna answered.

“WHAT!?” we all exclaimed in unison.

“Yes, unfortunately, I was exiled from Heaven,” Uriel explained.

“Wait, so you’re a fallen angel?” Sinbad questioned.

“I am.”

“How do you still have your wings? I was told that fallen angels lose their wings,” Persephone mentioned.

“Not all fallen angels lose their wings. Most just lose their halo. I was able to keep my wings, but I lost my halo.”

“Why are you a fallen angel?” Mikey wasn’t going to let that detail fall through the cracks.

“Because I committed murder in Heaven.”

“Uriel!” Anna cried out.

“It’s okay, Anna. I’m not ashamed of it. Though it is a sin, I do not regret killing him. He deserved it ten times over.”

“Allie?” I turned around to see Aria on her feet by the door.

“Aria, you shouldn’t be standing,” I scolded her. Persephone and I grabbed her arms to keep her steady and led her back into Dorian’s office when she stopped us.

“Who is that?” she asked while staring directly at Uriel.

“A friend. He’s here to help us find Heather,” Persephone explained.

“What’s his name?”

“Uriel,” I answered, but as soon as I did, she pulled her arms from us and launched an energy ball at him, hitting him square in the chest. “ARIA!! WHAT THE f**k!?!”

“YOU BROUGHT A DEMON BOUNTY HUNTER HERE!?! I THOUGHT I COULD TRUST YOU!” she screamed at me.

“Aria, he’s not here for you! Persephone just told you he’s here to help us find Heather!”

“YOU’RE LYING!!!” she accused me before shoving me away. But in doing so, she lost her footing and fell over.

“Uriel, are you okay!?” Anna exclaimed with worry.

“I’m fine. Was I just hit with a demonic energy ball?”

“Allie, why is there a demon in the packhouse!?” Anna demanded and stood in front of Uriel protectively.

“She’s a friend!” I replied.

“YOU CAN’T BE FRIENDS WITH A DEMON!” Anna shouted. “They’re vile, deceiving, and evil!”

“YOU’RE ONE TO TALK, YOU STUPID ANGEL! YOU THINK THAT JUST BECAUSE YOU’RE FROM HEAVEN THAT YOU’RE BETTER THAN US!” Aria screamed. “And you!” she pointed at Uriel. “An angel, fallen from heaven, betrayed by your own father. Condemned to do his bidding, day in and day out. Vanquishing demons without cause!”

“Demons are the epitome of evil and must be rid from this world!” Uriel spewed as he stood to his feet, his wings in full expansion along with Anna’s. Aria had more energy balls in her palms, and an all-out war was about to commence in the middle of our hallway.

“ENOUGH!!!” Dorian roared, shaking the entire packhouse. Everyone was frozen in their spot. Sinbad, Persephone, and Sly had their heads bowed in fear while I closed my eyes to stop my ears from ringing. Just then, I heard Katrina’s cries on the baby monitor.

“Great, you woke her up with your massive roar, Dorian,” I sneered at him. I grabbed the baby monitor and went to the nursery three doors down. I picked up Katrina and put her into the convertible carrier, making sure she was secure before I went back out into the hallway. “If anyone even so much as throws a pebble in this house while my baby is present, I will make your lives a living hell, got it!?” I growled at everyone. Dorian glared at everyone and put his hand on Katrina’s head to make sure she was okay.

“Everyone in my office, now,” Dorian commanded.

“Forget it. I’m not going to be in the same room with a bounty hunter!” Aria spat.

“Kind of late for that. I’m a bounty hunter, and Persephone and Sinbad are assassins,” Mikey said nonchalantly.

“No one wants you here anyway! Go back to Hell where you belong!” Anna snapped.

“ENOUGH!” I shouted at them. Katrina stirred in the carrier, and I bounced her a few times to calm her down. “Aria, sit your a*s down,” I gritted my teeth. “Anna, Aria is my friend and my guest. And if you haven’t already noticed, she’s severely injured. I don’t care what you have to say about demons. This is my house, and you will learn to respect my guests and my friends. As an angel, I would expect you to show more empathy towards someone who is injured and in need of help. Now, either you can come in and sit down in silence, or you and Sly can go about your merry way.”

“But Uriel …”

“Is here on official pack business. Not a social call,” I cut her off. Anna nodded and sat down with Sly in the corner, away from Aria, who went to the opposite corner by Persephone.

“If everyone has calmed down, let’s get down to business. Abad … I mean, Uriel, you said that you know where we can find Heather?” Dorian continued. Uriel looked over at Aria before answering.

“Yes, Alpha Shaw. But before we get into that, I need to let you know that it seems your phones and emails have been compromised.”

“What?”

“The several emails that I have received from you and your associates have been littered with spyware and malware,” Uriel said. He looked around for a second and then made a gesture for a pen and paper. Dorian handed him a notepad and a pen. Uriel scribbled something down and then passed it back to Dorian. I peered over his shoulder from the side and saw what was written.

I also think there are listening devices in this office and around your packhouse.

I looked over at Dorian, and he tossed the notepad to Mikey. He read it once over, and his eyes immediately clouded over. About a minute later, Sully and Giles came into the office with some kind of device in their hands. Giles put his finger over his lips and told all of us to keep quiet. They went around the office and started to wave a wand all over.

After about twenty minutes, a stack of devices was sitting on Dorian’s desk. I was appalled at the fact that someone had found their way in here and planted a bunch of cameras and microphones all over the place without us knowing. Sully and Giles made sure that they were completely disabled before giving us the all-clear.

“Oh my god,” I said, thoroughly disturbed. “How many devices are here?”

“Four cameras and three microphones with recorders,” Sully answered, putting all of them into lead boxes.

“Sully, you and Giles get a team together and search the entire packhouse. There’s no telling how many have been hidden. According to our guest here, these aren’t the only devices that the culprits planted.”

“Yes, Alpha,” they both responded and turned to leave.

“Check this floor first!” I instructed them. “My office, the twins’ room, and the nursery. With Heather’s threat against our children, we can’t leave it up to chance that she has been watching them.”

“Yes, Luna.” They left the office, and I looked over at Dorian, who was deep in thought.

“Babe, how can someone put all of this crap in here without us knowing!?”

“This could have happened while I was gone helping Jed or while you were recovering in the hospital. This entire floor would have been unprotected because the twins were with my parents, and we were in the hospital with Katrina.”

“Alpha, may I ask why you’re after a human?” Uriel inquired. We all looked at him and then at each other.

—

“Oh, I see,” Uriel said after we had explained the situation with Heather and Gideon. Uriel turned to Aria, who had been quiet the entire time. “I apologize for my outburst earlier. It appears that I have misjudged you, Aria.”

“Whatever.”

“Aria,” I scolded her.

“What?”

“You threw an energy ball at him unprovoked! Which was totally uncalled for, by the way,” I gritted my teeth.

“Fine. I guess I’m sorry for throwing an energy ball at you,” Aria gave a half-assed apology.

“You know, I thought you having a soul now would mean you would be a little nicer to others,” I chastised her.

“You have a soul!?” Anna exclaimed.

“Yeah, do you have a problem with that?” Aria snapped.

“How can a demon have a soul!?”

“Because she is a demon who has used her powers for good or has done a good deed. She’s been rewarded by the moon goddess,” Sinbad answered her. Anna huffed in disbelief.

“Anna, enough,” Uriel told her sternly. “What the werewolf goddess chooses to do with her powers is not our place to judge. If Aria did something that resulted in her receiving a soul, then we must show her kindness and respect as angels. She’s not just a demon, but a living creature. And as angels, we are to love all creatures.”

“But Uriel!”

“I said enough. If you don’t like it, then you and your mate can leave. I still have business to discuss here.” Anna huffed and stormed out of the office. Sly looked at her retreating form and then back at us.

“I’m sorry, I’ll talk to her. I guess she’s picking up on bad manners after being on Earth a little too long,” Sly mentioned before jogging after her, closing the door behind him.

“Don’t be too angry with Anna. She holds a grudge against demons. Angels and demons have never really gotten along. And she’s a young angel who’s always been a little closed-minded when it comes to extenuating circumstances,” Uriel defended.

“I find that hard to believe since she’s the one who convinced me to stop being so hard on people over mistakes they make,” I retorted.

“My guess is that she was a little biased because of Sly,” Mikey replied.

“Okay, enough of that. Let’s get back down to business. Uriel, where do you believe that Heather is hiding?” Dorian asked, trying to get us back on topic. Uriel’s eyes immediately shifted downward. I furrowed my brows and looked at Dorian, who had the same confused expression I did.

“Why are you looking down?” Sinbad asked.

“She’s not in the underworld if that’s what you’re suggesting,” Aria said.

“I don’t mean the underworld. Think further down,” Uriel responded almost cryptically.

“Further down?” Dorian questioned, sounding confused.

“Wait, are you telling us she’s literally in Hell!?” I asked. My raise in tone stirred Katrina but not enough to wake her.

“Allie, give her to me,” Dorian said and unbuckled the carrier from my shoulders. As soon as she was in arms, Katrina snuggled her face into his chest and fell right back asleep.

“Awww …” Persephone cooed, and I think I saw Aria smile.

“Ugh, another Daddy’s girl. Why can’t my girls love me the way they love Dorian?” I whined.

“Hey, be glad that your kids gravitate towards him. They won’t always come to you when they want something then,” Persephone consoled me. I had to admit; she had a point.

“To answer your question, Luna, yes, I am saying that Heather is in Hell,” Uriel confirmed, trying to get the conversation back on track.

“So, she’s dead?!” I asked disappointedly.

“Not necessarily,” Aria replied, and we all looked at her. “Hell is a relative term when it comes to … down there. There’s the hell for humans that is run by the fallen angel Lucifer, but there is also hell for demons. After demons and warlocks are vanquished, they’re sent to their very own hell.”

“So, what, demons get trapped and relive their deaths over and over the way human souls do when they go to Hell?” I asked.

“No … Well, kind of sort of, yes. It’s really hard to explain. But the way demons live and die is very different from that of a human or even other supernatural species. The underworld is our home, essentially, but it’s a supernatural hell, to be quite honest. But it doesn’t look like it. Because demons and warlocks, and even some other dark magic species live in the underworld, we turned into our very own … home. It looks like a suburban neighborhood. It has its own gateways to Earth and back. Those come in handy for young demons who can’t quite shimmer or blink long distances. It’s how Heather was able to go to and from Earth while living in the underworld. After all, the underworld is another realm, similar to that of limbo. It’s where the remains of a demon or warlock are sent to determine if they spend their eternity reliving their vanquish or disintegrate into nothing. If one is unlucky enough to relive their vanquish, they’re sent to demon hell, and that’s where Uriel is saying that Heather is.”

“You just said she wasn’t necessarily dead,” Mikey pointed out.

“You don’t have to die to go to demon hell,” Uriel said.

“Especially not if Gideon goes there himself.”

“What? Are you saying that Gideon can literally go to and from Hell whenever he wants?!” I ululated.

“He’s the Demon King. He can do whatever he wants. He does it all the time,” Aria replied.

“Why would he take Heather down there?” Sinbad asked.

“He’s trying to protect her.”

“Why!?” I asked.

“Because he loves her.”

“WHAT?!”

“Gideon loves Heather. When he found out what she did to you, his anger became ravenous. But instead of getting mad at her, he got mad at me. He said that my jealousy is what made Heather do those things and why her life was now in danger.”

“Why did he blame you?” Uriel asked with legitimate concern.

“The day before she had attacked you, Allie, I had told Gideon what you told me. About your theory that Heather could no longer provide him an heir because of the abortion she had. He didn’t believe me. I begged him to cut his losses and choose me so that we could find a witch to get rid of her mark on him and essentially save his life, but he told me to never say those words ever again. That continuously sleeping with me was the biggest mistake he had ever made, and that he would never touch me again. Heather had been eavesdropping on our conversation.” I looked over at Dorian, and he just rolled his eyes.

“Some bad habits just can’t be broken,” was all I commented on that.

“The next day, she found a dark sorcerer to cast a spell on you and your friends to prevent your abilities from working for a few hours. She recruited a bunch of demons and then attacked you.”

“I guess Max and Claudia were right,” Dorian told me, and I nodded.

“Wait, you said she got a bunch of demons together?” Mikey asked.

“Yeah, at least a dozen. Why?”

“Because she only had three with her when she attacked Allie and Simba,” Dorian responded.

“And according to Simba, after he killed the three demons, Heather retreated,” Mikey added.

“Aria, when Heather returned to the underworld, did those other demons go back with her?” I asked.

“Not that I know of. When she returned, she was alone from what I heard. Everyone assumed all of the demons were vanquished.” Dorian, Mikey, and I looked at each other.

“Dorian, if they weren’t killed …” Mikey started.

“And they didn’t go back with Heather …” I continued.

“Then where the f**k are these demons?”