Page 13 of Crazy as Hell

He finally took stock of his own predicament. Cold iron shackles bit deeply into his wrists as chains suspended both him and Cassian with their arms stretched over their heads over a large pit. The enchanted shackles prevented him from using magic to free himself, but he figured there were probably other magical wards inside the room as well.

Overall, escape wasn’t going to be an option.

At first glance, the pit they were hanging over appeared to be nothing more than a wide chasm. But as his vision fully adjusted, he noticed faint movement below. It was a slow, almost hypnotic ripple of shadows. The black flames rolled and flickered inside the depths of the pit like a living, breathing entity.

Even from several feet away, Viktor felt singed from the heat of the blaze. He wouldn’t be surprised if his combat boots were melting right off his feet. What existed inside the pit was something far more dangerous than endless darkness.

Devil fire.

One of the most deadly substances within the six realms.

Few things in existence inspired fear in ancient supernaturals, but devil fire was definitely one of them. Conjured only by the most powerful dark magic users, devil fire could destroy almost anything. It could reduce a person to ash in a matter of seconds, leaving not even the soul behind. Once unleashed, the black flames burned without end until their creator willed them to be extinguished.

If a small amount of the flames were used to wound rather than kill, the injuries lingered long after ordinary burns would have healed. Even strong healing magic offered little relief. The only one capable of accelerating the healing process was the individual who had conjured the flames in the first place, but that mercy was rarely granted.

That was what made devil fire one of the most feared instruments of torture.

Viktor knew the destructive nature of devil fire well since he was one of the few dark angels who had learned how to summon the flames. One didn’t master devil fire. They were merely granted consent to use the powerful substance. That was why he understood the flames they were hanging over weren’t there for decoration. If the chains they were hanging from were released, that would be the end of them.

He stared into the black inferno for several seconds before finally releasing the breath he’d been holding.

It seemed fate had finally caught up with him.

After all the futures he had foreseen, all the disasters he had prevented, and all the lives he had saved, it wasn’t surprising that he had failed to see this outcome. An ancient dark angel like him would probably fetch a decent price as a captive, as would an angel-fae hybrid, but they would be far too dangerous to try to cage for long.

Looks like he was going to die after all.

He finally glanced over to check on Cassian and saw the younger male was clearly scared out of his mind even though he tried to hide it. His face was a bruised and bloody mess, but Viktor couldn’t see any other injuries on his body due to the black armor he wore.

“How are you doing?” Those few words made his dry throat feel like he had swallowed shards of broken glass.

“I pretty much feel like my insides are slowly melting being this close to the devil fire. Other than that, I think I may have some internal injuries that might be pretty serious.”

Same, Viktor thought, but didn’t bother to say that out loud.

“I only woke up a few minutes before you did, and you took the worst of the blast that knocked us out when you shielded me.” Cassian paused briefly, then added, “I really fucked up, didn’t I?”

There was no doubt that he had, but it would be useless to curse him out like Viktor wanted to. If they somehow got free before they met their demise in the pit of devil fire, he was going to give Cassian a serious ass-kicking, though.

For now, he simply asked, “Why?”

“Do you see the girl with bright red hair in the second cage to the left?” Cassian swallowed hard. “She is my cousin, Lucie.”

Well, fuck.

It didn’t excuse his behavior, but it did explain why the hybrid had lost his mind for a moment. Before he had taken Cassian on as his assistant, the younger male had disclosed that his missing cousin was the reason he wanted to become an investigator. Viktor thought it would be good motivation for him to learn, but the reality of finding a missing person once the trail had gone cold was almost impossible.

“Lucie is cherished by my entire family, and it devastated us when she went missing. That’s why I wanted to become an investigator. To find her. As a talented autumn fae, Lucie has a particularly strong affinity for growing things, even under the harshest conditions. I knew it was a longshot, but I had hope she was still alive somewhere. I never thought I’d actually find her, though. I’m sorry. I totally lost it as soon as I saw her. And now, instead of rescuing her, I’m going to get us all killed.”

“We aren’t dead yet,” Viktor said, trying to sound positive.

“Oh, but you will be soon,” a cheerful voice called out.

A few seconds later, a female with long, curly brown hair sauntered out of the shadows. She was wearing a short, skintight electric blue dress that matched her glowing blue eyes, and her lips were painted a bold red, making her fair skin look even more pale. To Viktor, she looked like a party girl ready to go clubbing rather than the mastermind of a supernatural trafficking ring.

Then again, evil had no dress code.

The power radiating from her made it clear she was a formidable foe. If he wasn’t chained up, they might be equally matched. But without access to his magic, there was no chance of defeating her. She waved a hand with an exaggerated flourish, and a gold throne chair embellished with jewels and a thick burgundy cushion appeared a few feet away from the pit. She sat down, giving them quite the unwanted show when she slowly crossed her legs.