Stepping out of the sky elevator, a wave of anger rolls across the Celestial Garden and rattles the golden gates of the Heavens. Sizzling rage releases sparks that set the rose bushes on fire. My breath stokes the flames, ready to transform this whole cursed place into a blazing inferno. As air and energy burst into my lungs, I'm about to shout Levinia's name to ensure that everyone knows whom I'm here to see when she steps through the gates. Her smile is disarming; she has this way of looking at me that always makes me feel like an inexperienced youngling.

"Oh, dear, you made such a mess." One clap of her hands and soft rain pelts down from the bright-lit sky, smothering the flames.

I grin at my handywork; the clean-up will take days. Locking her gaze in a futile attempt to intimidate her, I growl, "Where is she?"

"Where is who, dear?"

Now she is playing games.

Not appreciated, Mother.

"Cassandra Wallace. I want her returned to my care."

"Oh, Lou, are you still fussing about this human? What is it about this woman that gives her such hold over you and your brother?"

"She absolutely has no hold over me, but as you pointed out, she is a human who was sent to hell; therefore, she is my responsibility. You had no right to interfere."

"Let's not argue about such silly things as hierarchy and who has the final say. This woman had some sort of spell on you and I had to protect you from yourself. In due time, you will see that I was right, but no worries." She waves her hand in an accentuated arrogance. "There will be no need for you to apologize. You are already forgiven."

What a lucky devil I am.

She cups my chin and turns my head. "That's a nasty cut on your cheek."

"Raguel did that. He also hurt my hellhound and nearly killed him."

"Awe, will the little pup be alright? Should I check on him?"

"He'll be fine. I sent for Desmona and she is nurturing him back to health."

"Oh, Desmona, how delightful. Are you two back together?"

I internally groan. "We are not."

"That's too bad." She cocks her head. "And you broke Raguel's tailbone, leaving him in excruciating pain while he was flying. He wasn't happy about it."

Oh, for Heaven's sake, hand me a tissue.

"He drew his sword first, so I was only defending myself." I huff; he is such a wuss. "Out of curiosity, where did you take Cassandra Wallace?"

"Nicoletta."

The spit dries up in my mouth.

"Since Welbourne hardly gets any sinners, he needs the practice and wants to test some new torturing methods on her," she carries on.

It takes all my effort to keep my voice calm. "The girl isn't a guinea pig, Mother."

"She is human. In a way, they are all guinea pigs."

I pump my fists to avoid reigniting the entire garden.

She squints at me. "Are you okay?"

"No, I'm not okay. How could you do that to her? Welbourne is a punk and not right in the head."

Her gaze is drilling. "Something odd is going on. You surely don't act like yourself." Her lips purse in thought. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you are in love with this woman."

I gape at her with an open mouth. "Are you implying that I might've been infected with love?"

She shrugs.

I scoff. "Then make it stop."

"I can't. Love is a rogue emotion, and Big B has yet to figure out what causes it."

Figures. The big human experiment has been a disaster from the start, and now I'm the victim of some crazy side effect that he has tried to fix for well over five millennials. Love has caused wars and the Heavens only know what else. "While he figures it out, give Cass back to me, so I can investigate on my end. Nicoletta surely isn't the right place for her, and I promise that she'll get what she deserves."

"I'm sorry, but Cassandra Wallace is a sinner who needs to pay for what she did without any further delay. Since I can't trust you with her, it's best for everyone if she stays where she is."

I shake my head.

She beams. "But I have an idea. Why don't you and your brother talk to Uriel? He might be able to find the underlying cause for this strange behavior."

"Seriously? You want us to do family therapy with the most conceited angel of the heavens."

"Therapy has never harmed anyone."

"I'm the devil, Mother. I don't do therapy."

"Will you at least think about it?"

I roll my eyes.

"That's a good boy." She pinches my cheek.

I hate when she does that.

"What about my hellhound? Raguel broke the sacred pact. Noone living in the heavens is to harm a demonic creature and we are to do the same unless it's a sinner." I fold my arms. "That has been our law since the beginning of time."

"I will talk to him and make sure he apologizes."

"And that's it?"

"What else would you like me to do? You said yourself that the pup will be okay, so there is no permanent damage." She smiles. "And I'm glad that this unfortunate incident gave you a chance to reconnect with Desmona. She would make a wonderful queen by your side."

"Desmona and I had enough offspring already. Besides, she isn't into leadership and spending time in hell. Seduction is her thing and she likes commingling with humans and leading them astray."

"Yes, I know."

I peek through the gates into the Garden of Eden. Maybe I should convince Desmona to sneak up here again and cause some mischief, like she did all those years ago. It would be fun to see Big B cursing and throwing things. It could kill the whole human project and let me off the hook. Enjoy a well-deserved retirement. We could get a pool right in the middle of hell and recruit a heavy metal band from one of the other planets. Rock till we drop . . .

Levinia clears her throat and tears me from my daydreams. "If there isn't anything else . . ."

"There is not." As she is obviously not inclined to help me, I will have to take matters into my own hands. Not in the mood for a grandiose mother-son gesture, I spin around before she can offer me her cheek for the traditional peck.

That will show her.

Back in the elevator, I press the button for the sublevel. Time to pay my brother a visit. When I step through the portal, he is in his usual spot behind the bar, polishing a glass. A young boy of maybe twelve is chatting his ear off while Anchor is listening with a pained expression.

I fling my arm around the boy's shoulders. "What's the matter, buddy? We usually don't get kids stopping by the bar. Why did you take the path toward Regret?"

"Like I told him"—he juts his chin at Anchor, frowning—"though I don't think he was listening—"

"Nah, Anchor always lends a kind ear to those who have passed on."

The boy pulls his brows together. "Yeah, whatever. I was telling him about my little brother, and how upset he is that I died, so I wanted him to pass on a message."

"We usually don't do that."

"Yeah, that's what he said." The tough façade crumbles and tears fill his eyes. "Please. My brother needs to know that I'm not mad at him, and that he shouldn't feel guilty."

"Why would he feel guilty?"

"Because I told him not to step on the ice, but he did it anyway, and then, when I tried to get him back to safety, I fell through. He was screaming my name and crying while I was drowning." A few tears fall. "Please, you have to tell him that it was just a freak accident and not his fault."

I rub my chin. "I suppose we could make an exception."

A flicker of hope lights up his face. "You will."

"Sure. I have a younger brother, too, and even though he is mostly a royal pain in my you-know-what"—I smirk at Anchor—"I'd do anything for him." Sharing of women excluded.

"So you understand."

"Yep." I stretch my hand across the bar. "Anchor, could you pass me a pen and a piece of paper, so I can help this young man."

Anchor obliges with a frown and I make sure to correctly capture the name and address details of the boy's brother. When I'm done, I tousle the boy's hair. "Now run along. All you have to do is step through that portal and walk to the dude by the elevator. Oh, and tell him that Lou said that he doesn't want to see you around his neighborhood."

"Will do, and thanks again."

Keeping an eye on him until he has disappeared, I fold the paper and slide it in the front pocket of my shirt. As soon as Cass is safe, I will personally take care of this.

Anchor shakes his head. "Since when do you break protocol?"

"Since Levinia pissed me off."

"Aha." He picks up another glass and polishes it. "Is that why you're here? Did she make a stink about Cass?"

"She took it a step further and sent one of her angel goons to abduct Cass and take her to Nicoletta."

The glass breaks in Anchor's fist. "Fuck, that's bad. And how come you are so calm? Don't you care that Cass is gone?"

"Oh, I do care a whole lot, but I already took my anger out on the roses in the Celestial Garden to no avail." Levinia's pride and joy, now reduced to ashes, which didn't cause as much as a raised brow. "No, Brother, rage and reason are wasted efforts in this instance. It's time for action. I'm gonna go to Nicoletta and get Cass back. Care to tag along?"

"You bet."

Two ways to get to other planets: through the heavens or the underworld tunnels. As the devil, only the latter is an option. "We will have to cross the Seas of Six Wonders, so we should stop by hell's armory on the way out."

"Sounds like a plan. Just give me ten minutes to find coverage for the bar."

WP total word count: 17,313

So Anchor and Lou are off on a mission to save Cass. It's gonna be a wild and fun ride, so make sure to keep an eye on updates. If you enjoyed this chapter, please consider hitting the Star button and I'd love to hear from you in the comments. Thanks for reading!