Chapter Seven

I couldn't sleep, but then, that wasn't a big surprise considering I only got a total of six hours of sleep in one week. I could feel a headache pulsing behind my eyes and in my temples. My body felt so heavy, and yet, whenever I closed my eyes to sleep, nothing happened. I didn't drift off or snuggle under the covers. I just laid there and sleep never came.

So I just rolled over and looked at Stanton while he slept on his stomach, one arm tucked under the pillow and the other resting off to the side. His blonde hair was a touseled mess from rolling around in his sleep, and he hadn't shaved in a couple days, so his jaw was all prickly with dark blonde stubble.

He deserved to sleep, though. He'd stayed up the past couple nights to make sure I didn't have another weird episode. I wasn't sure what that episode even was. It'd struck me so suddenly and nobody could figure out what had triggered it. I looked down at my hands, which had returned to normal, except my fingernails. They were snow white. It almost looked like they were painted. I tucked my hands under the pillow and looked back at Stanton.

He wanted to leave. That was a given. He'd spent the past couple days trying to convince me we should just go back home and leave Akin to his own life, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. Anyone else would have given up by now, and why wouldn't they? Akin was obviously happy here, for some reason... And yet, how could he be? The people here were awful. They had all attacked Hannibal one way or another. He couldn't even leave the penthouse because of how horribly people treated him. He'd be much safer in Hell.

Not that I cared, but it was what I wanted to tell Akin, what I wanted him to think about.

Even though Hannibal couldn't come with us, according to Hades. Hades wanted revenge on Hannibal for jumping his son, whichever son that may be. That I could understand. I'd want to kill someone if they laid hands on my kid too. At the same time, Akin loved Hannibal and wouldn't abandon him, even for family.

And I couldn't go back without Akin.

Why was this so complicated?

I didn't want to break Akin and Hannibal up. That wasn't my place to do such a thing. Even though Hannibal creeped me the fuck out. And I couldn't leave Akin here, because he was my brother.

It was stressing me out to the point where my body was physically deteriorating. That was the only explanation I could come up with. Fighting what had been literally engrained into my genetics was destroying me, and worrying about it was making it ten times worse. Like some robot on a sci-fi movie, I was malfunctioning. It was only a matter of time before I finally fell apart.

Before I died.

And for some reason... that thought didn't scare me as much as I thought it would. Why would it be so bad if I died? No one would be around to notice anyway. Akin could stay with Hannibal. Stanton could go back to work and not be forced to stay around anymore. Things would be so much easier. I was just worried about where my soul would go. Would I go to Hell or would I cease to exist entirely? Would my soul malfunction like my physical form? Did it matter?

I'd finally get some peace.

I wonder if, when Lucifer created me, did he think I would ever have these thoughts running through my head? Did he ever stop to think that maybe I wanted a normal life? There were times when I wondered if Lucifer just created me for the sole purpose of protecting his family, not making me part of it. He just called me "son" like Hades called Charon "son". A formality to keep the questions at bay, to keep the media blinded. Or was I prototype? Was he going to make someone better than me in the future? Someone who didn't have meltdowns?

I wouldn't blame him.

I was virtually useless.

Thorn ruled Purgatory and oversaw the souls given a second chance. He fought back wraiths and rescued Ambrosius from a life of abuse and misunderstanding. Jaques had rescued his wife as well, and they had three children together, and now Jaques's sole purpose was to protect and love his family. Bali and Wednesday had turned Gehenna into the ultimate hellhole and prison, ruling with irons fists and unbeatable intelligence. Raven had fought in four wars, battled the archangel Michael, helped stop a war, put a vicious criminal down, and tamed the supposedly untamable Seven Deadly Sins. Dania traveled the world and went on so many misadventures that if someone wrote a book on her life, it'd be an everlasting series.

Where would I fit into all of that?

My chest started to hurt the more I thought of it. I needed a distraction.

I slipped out of the bed and went to the shower, rinsing off quickly to avoid freezing the water. I changed into a pair of black jeans and a hooded vest. I tugged my boots on and left the room, thankful to not have awakened Stanton. No doubt he'd throw a bitchfit and try and drag me back to bed. I was tired of laying in there with nothing, but my thoughts to make me miserable. I needed a drink.

I went into the living room and paused, hearing Akin and Hannibal upstairs in the shower. I grimaced and shook my head.

That was one thing I didn't need to know about my brother.

I flashed out of the apartment and out onto a street I'd seen before with a few bars. A few people nodded politely in my direction, much to my surprise, and a few others just scurried on past. I went into the nearest bar, one that reeked of cigarette smoke, alcohol, and leather. I summoned my own pack of cigarettes as I went to the bar and sat down, ordering a beer. I pulled out a cigarette and placed it between my lips, snapping my fingers so the end of it lit in a second. I inhaled the hot smoke and felt it sear the lining of my lungs before exhaling in a long, steady stream.

Cigarettes aren't healthy for you, Alaric. Find a different hobby.

Shut up, conscious that sounds like Stanton. I was already falling apart. What did it matter if I smoked anyway?

The bartender pushed my beer across the counter to me and I went to get some coin out, but the bartender shook his head and nudged his head at something down the bar.

"He's payin'." He said. I frowned and glanced out the corner of my eye at a stranger sitting at the end of the bar. He was freakishly tall with dark hair swept back from a sexy clean-shaven face. He wore a long leather jacket over a pair of leather pants with chains around the waist, and a long sleeved black v-neck. His eyes were an eerie shade of green, almost cat-like. I averted my eyes to ignore him, but I saw him move toward me and I prepared to turn him down as I brought the beer to my lips.

"Enjoying that?" He asked before I could speak. I brought the cigarette to my lips, taking a puff before breathing the smoke out in his direction. He didn't even flinch.

"Thanks," I said flatly, "But I'm not here looking for a date." The man nodded and took a seat beside me, as if I'd invited his ass to sit there. I rolled my eyes and took another swig of beer. The man signalled the bartender that he'd take one as well before his green eyes planted on me again.

"My name's Dimitri. Who do I have the pleasure of speaking to?"

"Alaric."

"Alaric," Dimitri purred my name like a song and it actually made my cock twitch, "It suits you."

"I'm not here for a date." I repeated, but something about my voice wavered. Dimitri smirked and leaned on the bar, taking the beer from the bartender as he passed it over. He took a sip and I saw his thick fangs flash before he set the beer down.

"I'm not here for a date either," Dimitri agreed, then raked me with a hot stare that definitely made my cock harden, "Just a fling." I stared at him, then looked away as I finished my cigarette and pulled an ashtray over to smother the cigarette butt into it before I folded my arms on the counter and looked at him.

"And what makes you think you can handle me?" I asked challengingly. Dimitri's smirk became wicked and sexy. I swore all the muscles in my body clenched at that. Hot damn, he was attractive. Certainly not as sexy as Stanton, of course, but sexy nonetheless. I ran my tongue across my bottom lip suggestively and Dimitri leaned in closer, brushing his nose against my cheek. His breath stank of beer, but it didn't bother me in the least. His fangs nipped at my jaw and I shuddered, tilting my head so he could run his nose along my throat before he sat back.

"I like wild animals." He said in a low voice. I trembled at that. God, I needed him to fuck me.

"Got a place in mind?" I asked. He seemed pleased with my response and nodded, standing up and taking his beer with him.

"My apartment is just a block down." He said. I stood up and grabbed my beer, following him out of the bar. This was probably a bad idea, I knew. He was a total stranger at a bar in a creepy ass town. He could be a psycho, but for some reason, I couldn't keep those thoughts in my head. All I could see was him naked on top of me, tearing into me like a rabid wolf. I almost groaned at the thought. He looked like he'd like it rough, and that was just what I needed right now. Not Stanton's playful little romance moves. I didn't want him to give me hope like that before he ran off back to his realm to work. I wanted honesty and Dimitri was pretty honest about what he wanted. A quick hot fling to sate an animalistic need.

"So, what're you doing in town?" Dimitri asked, swallowing down some beer. A shudder coursed through me as I watched his Adam's apple bob in his throat, begging to be nibbled and suckled. I cleared my throat, took a sip of beer and reached for another cigarette.

"Eh, visiting family, but it seems I'm not really wanted here." Or at home. Even though I didn't say it, Dimitri seemed to catch it as sympathy flickered through his eyes before he nodded.

"I know what that's like. My sister kicked me out a few years ago. Said she didn't need me around mooching off her," He drawled, making me smirk, "I don't see how using her guest room is mooching if I paid rent. But whatever. Women are poison wrapped in mystery, and I hate mystery. I prefer cold hard truth." A spark of excitement went through me, mostly because I completely agreed with him. I'd never dated women, but the few times a woman had flirted with me, I had apparently responded incorrectly because she would get angry. With men, we didn't beat around the bush. If we wanted sex, we wanted sex and we'd get it one way or another. And this is what I needed. A guy who knew exactly what I wanted and was eager to give it, then go on with his life. Just the way I'd do it.

Stanton always played games with me, though. While he had no rival when it came to sex, because hot damn he was good, he still pretended like it was a longlasting relationship. He'd massage me afterwards or whisper petty romantic things that made me cringe. He'd tell people we were lovers, and tell everyone to back off, even though I firmly told him it was nothing like that. We were sex friends. When I had an itch, Stanton was who I called and he came running. I would never go on a date with him, never tell him I loved him, and never invite him to stay over. He just did that on his own.

And I did like that, but that was the problem. I'd start to sink into it all and love it, become addicted.

And then he would leave.

Just like everyone else.

With Dimitri, I knew what I was getting into.

Or rather, what he was getting into.

We came upon Dimitri's apartment down the block. It was a relatively nice complex, not as fancy or modern as Akin's, but still pretty nice. We came inside and took the elevator up to his room. It was a pretty large place with two bedrooms, a kitchen slash dining room, a wide open living room with windows that looked out over the city, and a huge master bathroom. It was decorated in hues of black and brown.

"Nice place." I commented.

"Thank you," Dimitri replied, then pointed across the living room to the short hallway, "The bedroom's the first door on the left. I'll grab us a couple of glasses of wine and the ashtray. You go on ahead." I nodded and went in the direction he'd indicated. His bedroom was very nice with a large four poster bed with brown sheets decorated with black circles. I went to the bed and sat down, about to kick my boots off when I saw a magazine poking out from under the bed. I frowned and stooped down, picking it up and staring at it in shock.

It was one of the magazines I'd seen at Akin's. Heat flooded my cheeks at the sight of the man who was strapped to a chair and being viciously spanked with a paddle. I quickly dropped it on the floor and kicked it under the bed when I saw the bedroom door opening out the corner of my eye. I stood up as Dimitri came in, using his foot to shut the door behind him. I was about to sit down and relax when I saw him click the lock and my guard went up.

He was obviously single. Why would he lock the door? Who would come in? No one. He was keeping me in.

"Like the room?" Dimitri asked casually as he went to the nighstand to set down the wine and glasses. I swallowed hard, averting my eyes to look at the door.

"It's nice." I said.

"Something wrong?" I snapped my eyes to see Dimitri standing right in front of me now, forcing me to tilt my head back to look up at him. A smirk curved the corner of his mouth and I started to come up with an excuse when his mouth fell upon mine. A moan instantly fled up my throat at his kiss. His lips were so soft and warm against mine. They were dominating. He growled against my mouth and pushed me back on the bed, climbing on top of me. I grunted as his massive weight pressed down on me, his elbows propping him up as he attacked my mouth. I tried to remember why I didn't want this in the first place, but it was long gone.

All I could focus on was his lips against mine. His hand ran down my chest, reached between my legs and cupped me. I purred, and it shocked me. Usually I didn't make those kinds of sounds. Dimitri massaged me and my surprise shattered back into mindless lust. My body ached as he touched me everywhere, my heart racing and my mind going blank with pleasure.

For a moment, I forgot everything around me.

I wasn't dying. I didn't have to worry about Akin or Hannibal or Stanton or Hades or anyone else. For once in my life, no one else existed, but Dimitri and I on this bed. I had no idea what he was doing that was different from anyone else's, but whatever he was doing, I didn't want him to stop.

And that concerned me for a moment.

What was wrong with me? Why wasn't I pushing him off and trying to get away? Trying to gain control? I hated it when people pushed me down on my back and rendered me vulnerable. Stanton had only done that to me once and it caused me to punch him in the nose. I wasn't helpless and I wasn't some random bitch in heat. I loathed being treated like this. I was a man, not a woman. I may be the fucked, but I was going to have fun with it.

"Wait." My voice was muffled against his lips as he started to move my pants down. Dimitri just sent me a quick scowl, but kept trying to pull my pants off.

"Just relax. We're going to have fun." He assured me. I saw him fumble in his pocket for something and the moment I saw the familiar looking sex toy from that stupid magazine, alarm rang through me and I slammed my head against his. Dimitri snarled and backed up, stepping off the bed to clutch his forehead.

"Son of a whore!" He cursed in agony. My breathing was ragged as I scrambled off the bed, snatching my pants up to my hips again and doing the zipper, trying not to catch myself. I wiped my mouth off angrily, glaring at him.

"What the fuck did you do to me?" I demanded accusingly. Dimitri scoffed.

"You think I drugged you? Fine, baby, whatever excuse you need to make this work."

"I don't think, I know! Oh, fuck this. Nobody takes advantage of me. You can go fuck yourself, shifter." I sneered and started to move past him, but he spun around and caught me by the back of my shirt, throwing me back onto the bed. I cursed and lunged to get off the bed, but Dimitri was covering me with his massive weight again. God, this guy had to be over two hundred pounds of steel muscle. I pushed at his chest as he leaned over me, then grabbed my throat in a vice grip. I choked as his fingers sank into my neck and squeezed. Pain exploded in my throat and head as I gasped for breath, clawing at his wrist. The moment my fingernails broke his skin, he howled in pain and yanked his hand back, gaping at his wrist. I panted for breath, staring in horror at his wrist. Where my fingernails had ripped into his skin, it looked as if he had severe frostbite. Black dying flesh surrounded the claw marks that were turning bright red, oozing blood down the sides of his arm.

Oh shit.

Dimitri turned on me with a vengenve, surprising me that he could still attack me so well while his arm was practically dying of frostbite. He backhanded me hard across the face and tried to roll me over onto my stomach, but I swung my leg around and caught him around the neck, twisting him off me before I did a backwards somersault. I landed on my feet on the other side of the bed and bolted for the door. Dimitri was on me before I could even reach it. He tackled me to the floor and bashed my head against the dresser.

My ears rang and I blacked out for a moment, clawing at the carpet before my vision returned to see ice flooding the floor. Dimitri sank his fingernails into my back, only to have them turn into claws. I cried out in agony as his claws raked down my back, shredding my shirt and skin. Pain pulsed hot through my skin as I scrambled to get out from under him. He went to hit me again, but I caught his wrist.

In a split second, ice shot up his arm. Dimitri shrieked in horror, leaping away from me as he clutched his arm that was now entirely black and encased in clear ice. I quickly scrambled away from him again and bashed the door open, barreling out to get away from him. There was a loud thud from behind me and when I stopped to look, I regretted it.

Dimitri had transformed into a dragon. Not one of those gigantic ones, but one bigger than me. Black scales raced across his lizard body, his tail covered in sharp spikes. His bared rows of giant jagged teeth, his green eyes flashing brightly. I cursed and whirled around, trying to teleport out of the apartment, but nothing.

"What the--"

Dimitri's oversized clawed paw whacked into me so hard that it knocked the breath out of me. I smashed into one of the walls that dented inwards. I gasped in pain, laying there and trying to recover, but my body wouldn't cooperate. Instead, ice spread out across the floor beneath me and raced for Dimitri, who snarled at it and smashed his massive paw down on it. The ice exploded into cold shards, only to suck themselves back in around Dimitri's limb. He shrieked and batted at it.

I took advantage of his battle with the ice and rolled over, getting to my feet and heading for the nearest exit, which just happened to be one of the windows that looked out over the city... from seven stories above. I cursed, but one roar from Dimitri sent me running through the glass that shattered around me. I felt it cut and slice into my skin, blood warming my skin as I ran through it and tripped over the balcony outside.

A second later, I was falling through the air.

And another second later, I was slamming so hard into the pavement that I'm pretty sure it knocked me out.

Because a moment later, I woke up with a couple women around me and a man.

"Are you all right? Sir?" It sounded like one of the women. She was tiny and petite with long blonde hair tied up in a ponytail around an ageless face. She looked like she'd climbed out of one of those flapper movies from the 20s. The woman beside her was much taller, maybe about as tall as I was, with dark red hair cut in a pixie cut. The man was maybe in his late-thirties with dark brown hair and a slip beanie on. I didn't recognize them at all. I blinked a few times, staring past them up at the apartment complex. I held my breath and waited for Dimitri to come outside and go after me, but after a moment of silence, save for the natural city sounds around me, I breathed a sigh of relief.

I was safe.

For now.

I heaved myself up into a sitting position, then made a noise of agony as I looked down at my leg that was bent in a very uninviting angle. I cursed and started to push myself back to straighten it when pain burst up my wrist and I looked down to see my wrist bruised.

"You've sprained your wrist," The redhead sighed, as if I was troublesome, making me glare at her, but she ignored it as she sank to her knees beside me and reached into her overly large handbag, "And your leg is broken. Unfortunately, this kind of injury won't heal quickly for an artificial." I didn't say anything. I don't think I could. My throat felt frozen. So I just watched as she pulled out a roll of gauze and wrapped it firmly around my wrist and hand.

"You're a doctor?" I asked at last. My voice sounded hoarse and quiet. The woman shrugged.

"Doctor, nurse, whatever. Hold still. We're going to straighten your leg. James, honey, could you do that for me?" She asked the man, who frowned for a moment before nodding. I started to protest, but he ignored me as he snapped my leg back into place and I could only manage an angry scream. I went to smack him, but he dodged and pushed me back against the blondie, who patted my shoulder.

"You're all right, honey. What's your name?"

"None of your fucking business," I seethed in agony, "Get off me!"

"You're feisty, aren't you?"

"Nosy c--"

"Hey, now," The redhead scolded, "Be nice. I know you're in a lot of pain, but we're trying to help. James, could you pick him up? We'll take him to the clinic."

"Like fuck you will." I snarled and started to push away from her, but more pain exploded in my leg and I hissed past clenched teeth. I wanted to just take off and go back to the apartment, but at this rate, I wouldn't even be able to make it down the street. And teleporting was apparently no longer a convenience for me. Damn it!

Even though I wanted to just lay here and suffer on my own as my bones healed themselves, these people weren't about to let me go. The redhead, whose name I learned to be Natalie, and the blondie named Regina, forced James to carry me the two blocks down to their clinic. Judging from the looks of it, they owned the place. It was small with only three patient rooms branching off the main lobby where there was only a small desk and a couple of mismatched armchairs in shades of green, orange, and fushia. It was enough to make any interior designer choke on vomit and die.

James carried me into one of the patient rooms and set me down on a cheap single iron mattress. I squirmed against him and whacked him in the arm, but he acted like it didn't even effect him. He didn't say anything, just stepped back and let Natalie in to look at my wrist. I glared at her.

"Why are you bothering with me?" I asked dryly. Natalie flashed me a smile.

"I'm a nurse. It's my job to help people."

"I don't want to be helped."

"It's my job to help people, even people who don't want to be helped. Now hold still and let me just..."

"Ow!" I snarled, yanking my arm back after she'd pricked a needle into the crook of my arm. I shuddered, eyeing the syringe as if it were filled with acid. Natalie stood up and set the syringe aside, giving my arm a tap. I snapped my teeth at her and she just pushed my head away. I glared at her for a moment before the world seemed to tilt. Panic rose inside me as I realized she'd stuck me with some kind of sedative. Natalie reached for me again, but I rolled out of her grasp and hit the floor. The sedative numbed my pain as I struggled to get to my feet to get away, but James was right there to heave me up under my arms to drag me back to the bed. Regina helped lift my legs onto the bed, being ginger with my busted one, een though I couldn't feel anything anymore.

My stomach churned and my head spun as I struggled to stay conscious, watching Natalie order Regina and James around to prep the room for surgery.

Surgery?! What kind of surgery?!

Get away from me!

I tried to get away again, but Natalie had managed to strap one of my arms down while I was distracted. She easily strapped my other one down against my weak protests and wriggling. My chest grew tight with panic, my breathing becoming ragged as I tried to wrench myself away.

"Honey, calm down," Natalie urged, but her voice sounded so far away and I barely felt her hand touching my cheek, "You're gonna make yourself sick. Just relax." The worst part was that my muscles were already relaxed. I felt rubbery and weak. But my panic still rose as I choked for air, feeling the burn of tears well in my eyes against my will.

"You're gonna be fine," Natalie soothed, sweeping her hand over my hair to push it back from my face, "You'll be okay. The doctor should be here any moment to help you with your injuries. We need to go in and see what's causing your leg to turn blue."

"Wha blue?" I managed, my tongue feeling thick and numb. I managed to look down and horror swallowed me as the skin on my leg turned pale blue, my veins stark white. They'd torn my pantleg off --goddamn it, those were expensive-- and were studying it in awe, like I was some kind of lab rat. Horror seized me as I pulled desperately at the straps holding my arms down. I tried to move my leg, but it refused to cooperate.

"How's he doing?" A new voice asked. I tilted my head to see another woman entering the room. She was tall and elegant, incredibly beautiful, with long curly black hair pulled back into a tight bun. A pair of piercing green eyes peering over the top of the surgical mask on her face, matching her scrubs as she shooed James and Regina out. I turned to see Natalie wearing a pair of scrubs too. When the Hell did she have time to do that?

"He's fighting the sedative. I did what I could, Jahlia, but he's really freaking out. I think he's having a panic attack." Natalie murmured. Jahlia came to stand beside the bed, taking out a small flashlight and shining it in my eyes. I hissed and jerked at the strap holding my arm down so I could slap it away, but finally turned my head away instead. Jahlia sighed in frustration as she tucked the flashlight away.

"Are all of Lucifer's kids scared of the doctors? Here, let me try something," Jahlia said and sent Natalie off to gather supplies and Jahlia leaned over me as I watched her warily through the blur of drugs and tears, "Alaric? My name is Jahlia. I'm a friend of Raven's. You're going to be all right. But I need you to just relax and go to sleep. I promise I won't hurt you, honey cakes, okay?" Honey cakes? That was weird. I felt a heavier layer of sedative weigh down on me and it took me a moment to realize Jahlia was using magic to relax me. Against my will, all my muscles went limp and my body slumped against the bed, my breathing evening out steadily. And worse, the tears slid down my face as I struggled to stay awake against the dark fading edges of my vision.

"You're doing good, Alaric. This is good. Just relax. You'll be fine in no time. I'm a trained doctor of fifteen years. I know what I'm doing. I've done this kind of procedure for all sorts of creatures, including artificials. You can trust me." She urged.

Like hell I could trust her. I didn't even trust Lucifer to do experiments on me and he created me.

"Go away." I managed to say, but my voice sounded distorted. It was more of a whimper.

"You're okay, sugar pop. Close your eyes."

"F-Fuck... you..."

And the darkness swallowed me whole.