“Well you didn’t get the real experience. Let’s stay one more night. Let me show you the real city.”
I sucked in a deep breath and exhaled.
“One more night.”
He jumped out of bed.
“I’m going to go shower, want to join me?”
“I just got out. I need to get dressed.”
“You know Colt is probably spread out naked on the floor in your room.”
I made a face. “That’s gross.”
“That’s the truth.”
“Well I’ll take my chances. I need new clothes.”
“Suit yourself.”
I tossed on my clothes from last night and headed down the hall to my own room.
Please don’t be naked. Please don’t be naked. I thought to myself as I used my keycard.
I walked in and the room was empty. The beds looked slept in, but no one was in the room.
I grabbed some clean clothes and locked myself in the bathroom just in case they decided to come back sooner rather than later.
I stared at the tattoo on my body. It had grown more. It was now going halfway down my arm.
I needed to know more. I pulled my clothes on, tied my hair back and rushed out of the room.
I dialed the number that Roderick had handed to me just before I walked out.
“Hello?” his voice was strong and raspy on the other end.
“It’s Kass. Can we meet?”
“Of course. There is a café on Decatur Street we can meet at. Twenty minutes?” he questioned.
“Sounds good.” I hung up and looked at the street sign and then down to my phone. I typed the address he sent me into my phone and started walking down the street.
The roads were quiet that time of the morning, which was a nice change from last night.
I looked at my phone and then stopped and turned.
I slipped my phone back into my pocket after putting it on silent. I needed to focus on why I was there.
Roderick sat at one of the tables in the back.
I walked over and sat at the small table across from him.
“I’m glad you called,” he said.
I nodded. “I wasn’t sure I was going to.”
“Understood. What do you want to know?”
“Everything?” I shrugged.
“I really did love your mother.”
“I believe you.”
“I wanted to stick around, but we both agreed it was a bad idea with the position I was in.”
“But you couldn’t even come check on me? I mean, hell, you seem to live here in New Orleans.”
“I have been making it my home. But that just recently started when your mother passed.”
I shook my head. “I don’t understand.”
He sucked in a breath. “Kass, there is something that you need to know.”
I sat back a little in my chair waiting for the other shoe to drop.
“I’m stepping down from my position.”
“Your position? You are making it seem like you are God or something.”
He laughed. “Definitely not God. I am, however, the king of Hell.”
I laughed loudly but stopped as soon as I saw he wasn’t laughing.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, I’m the king of Hell. I have people that work for me. I’m stepping down and opening a bar on Bourbon Street.”
“Don’t’ you think there are enough bars on that damn street?” I hissed.
“Look, your tattoo started as soon as your mother passed. That’s when my mind was made up. I decided I’m stepping down. With me stepping down, you will inherit Hell.”
My eyes grew, and I shook my head.
“Are you insane? I don’t want that responsibility. I have enough crap going on here!”
“Keep your voice, down will you?” he said as he looked around the place.
“You want me to become something I know nothing about.”
“Why do you think I sent Theo to you?”
“You want him to run it?”
“Damnit girl, don’t you listen. No. I want you to run things, but Theo knows everything. He can teach you. And who knows maybe he can even become the king one day.
I chuckled a little and then it all made sense. Theo knew this. He had to. That’s why he was all over me. That’s why he wanted to be around me so badly and why he didn’t want anything to do with Lela.
“I don’t think so. Look, I can’t just make up my mind about this over a beignet and coffee.”
“I know that. I just needed you to know now so you can think about it before I formally announce this.”
“And what happens if I decide that I don’t want to do this?”
“Then it goes to whomever I choose.”
“Would that person be Theo?”
He looked at me, and his silence was the only answer I needed.
“Thank you, Roderick, for meeting with me. I should go.”
“Kass, please don’t.”
I shook my head. “No, I do.”
I walked out of the café and headed back down the street. Did this guy think I was an idiot or something? That he could pull one over on me.
I wondered about Lela. Would she be able to or even want to live in Hell? I guess if she liked Colt enough that could sway her mind.
I got back to the hotel and everyone was in Lela and my room.
“There you are!” she pulled me into a hug.
“What’s wrong with you?” I asked.
“We’ve been looking for you. Where were you?” she questioned.
“I was with Roderick.” I said, glancing back at Theo.
“Is everything okay?”
I nodded. “Of course, it is.”
“Do you guys mind if I borrow Theo or a couple minutes?” I asked.
“Not at all.” Colt grabbed Lela’s purse and walked out the door with her.
“You okay?”
“You knew?”
He sighed. “Well I had suspected...”
“But you knew. You knew about the tattoo, you knew that it means I would become the queen of Hell, and you wanted that.”
“I didn’t really know it would mean you were definitely going to become the queen of Hell. I just suspected it.”
“But you knew he was the king?”
He nodded. “I was under strict orders not to tell anyone. That included you.”
“So now what?” I asked.
“Now you decide what you want to do.”
“What I want is to go home and let this nightmare be over, but that obviously is not an option.”
“No, it’s not.”
I flopped down onto the edge of the bed.
“Alright, well what if I don’t want to be this queen of all evil? I mean, have you met me? I’m not really a bad person. My mother wasn’t a bad person.”
“No, but she did have a relationship with a demon which is against code.”
“And what are we doing? Isn’t that against code too?”
“Well, yeah. But it’s different now.”
“How so?”
“Well your father has changed the rules. See, he wasn’t the king of Hell when he broke them. He was the king’s right-hand man. When the last king was killed, Roderick took over. Now that he’s the king, he changed the rules. But by the time he did, your mother had already fallen in love with a warlock.”