Falling for the Devil

Chapter Six

Monday morning rolled around, and he still hadn't heard anything from Ell. Every time his mind dragged up images of her scarred body, hatred would flow through his veins and it would take several minutes for him to get his body back under control. It was physically painful for him to walk away and leave her that night, but with Bael taking inhabitance in his home, Luke felt that taking her to his home would only place her in greater danger. The best he could do was get to class especially early on Monday, to try and catch her before Mrs. Fields demanded their attention. The door to Room 113 creaked open and Luke's head whipped around, hoping to see Ell floating through the door.

When he saw her, Luke immediately began to feel calm and more himself. Ell looked nervous as she scurried over to the table she shared with Luke. She dropped her bags to the ground, and with her head still lowered sped through a carefully crafted monologue, "Luke, I know you want to talk about Friday, and maybe you have every right to question me, but I don't have to answer your questions, so I don't plan on doing so. Please don't hate me." With her speedy announcement completed, Ell slammed into her seat, out of breath from talking so quickly. She looked at Luke with apologetic eyes, begging for forgiveness.

Driven by the need to comfort her, Luke pasted a cheerful smile on his face, "There's nothing to forgive! I just want to make sure you're safe. I couldn't bare it if something happened to you." His hand snaked out across the table to capture her own, and immediately he regretted the choice. His arm felt like it was on fire. Sparks ran up and down his body as he touched this beautiful, charming, broken young woman. Ell's mouth dropped open into a large O, and Luke was sure she was feeling the same thing.

Luke had never felt this sensation before, and it frightened him. Father wasn't going to let him have a happily ever after type ending. No, his father would drag his body to the Underworld piece by piece if that's what it took for him to win his bet against God. The more time he spent with Ell, the worse it would get. She was changing so much already. Luke could see it in the way she flittered down the hall, instead of clumping along like every other human. And her eyes, once the dark blue of unrefined sapphires, had lightened until they looked like crystalline pools of water. Sadness filled his being as he realized how much danger he had brought into her life.

Suddenly, Luke felt a shift in the air, and a chill tickled the back of his neck. A familiar smirk caught his eye and a haughty demeanor filled the room. What the hell is Bael doing here? Luke couldn't believe his eyes. Never before had Bael deigned to appear at one of his schools. Normally, he just made fun of Luke for "trying to be human." Bael held Luke's eyes as he sauntered over to Mrs. Fields and handed her a purple slip of paper. After a quick glance at Luke, Mrs. Fields addressed the entire class, "Class, we have a new student."

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All throughout class, Luke couldn't believe what he had just heard. A new student? What is he playing at? To make matters worse, Bael Williams, as he so thoughtfully thought to call himself, was placed at his table with Ell. Luke remembered the surprise in Ell's eyes as she put two and two together, "Luke, you didn't tell me you had a brother!" She greeted that demon so sweetly, welcoming Luke's brother in her life. From that moment on, Luke couldn't control his glare, as he stared red-hot fury into Bael's back for the next fifty minutes.

When the bell rang, Luke shot out of his seat, murmured a word of goodbye to Ell, and dragged his brother out of the room. "What the hell are you doing here, Bael? Isn't living in my house torture enough?"

"Oh, Lucy, don't be that way! I'm just taking a page from your book. All these years I've berated you for following your stupid human conventions. Going to school, hiding your superior form, washing your hands. And I thought, 'Well, maybe the little brother's on to something' so I decided to see what all the hullaballoo was about!"