Go to Hell (on hold)

FOUR

I followed Gabriel through the castle, tripping over myself the whole way. Of all the different ways I imagined being tortured, stilettos had not made the list. Servants paused and bowed deeply as we passed, and I noticed a few trembled slightly. I gulped, wondering what horrible things Gabriel had done to them.

The dining room, like most things in this house, was extravagant. Marble floors gave way to walls covered in a strange black, nearly reflective, wallpaper. A chandelier made of ebony antler horns and candles dominated the center of the ceiling. And long, dark table was occupied with seven beautiful men. Two were unfamiliar to me. I tried my best to keep my eyes on the floor, no matter how much I wanted to look up and observe them.

Gabriel ushered me to a seat next to the man with auburn hair and striking blue eyes. He raised an eyebrow at me and took a sip of what smelled like wine.

"Help yourself to anything you want," Gabriel whispered in my ear. "I swear it's not poisoned."

I nodded but remained motionless until he was seated down by Luke and a man with bouncy blond curls. I smiled inwardly. His hair looked too fun and cute to be on the head of a demon. I took in the rest of him, from his strong shoulders, to his slim, long hands, and crisp green eyes. Eyes that were staring at me. I adverted my gaze only to realize they were all staring at me. Waiting. I reached out to grab a roll of bread, extending my arm so far my chest was nearly in the table. I heard a shark intake of breath, and Kota, who was seated directly across from me, look away while sending a glare to Gabriel.

"Is something wrong, Kota?" Gabriel drawled.

"No," Kota clipped back, his jaw tense. The others chuckled.

"So, Sang," the man with the blonde curls interjected, "I don't believe we have been introduced. I'm Dr. Sean Green."

"A doctor?"

"Yes. Even in the Underworld there are certain situations where a doctor is necessary."

"Oh." I broke off a piece of my roll and nibbled on it.

"Matricide is quite the crime," the boy with reddish hair said. "Very impressive. I'm Nathan by the way."

"Nathan, do you have any idea on how to talk to women?" The fire-eyed boy from earlier asked.

"Shut up, Victor," Nathan grumbled. "I was complimenting her. You don't have to be such a--"

"It was an accident," I interrupted. "I didn't mean to kill my mother."

"I'm not judging you. It's okay if you did."

"I didn't. We never had the best relationship but I wouldn't want her dead." It was a slight lie. Sometimes I'd imagined what it would be like if her illness took her life. I just never imagined I would.

"Alright, little miss I-didn't-want-to-kill-my-abusive-as-hell-mom. Whatever you say." I wanted to cry. My mother had haunted me during life. And now it seemed she would do the same in death.

"Oy, where the fuck is Blackbourne?" Gabriel piped up.

"He's taking dinner in his room," Dr. Green responded.

"Pussy," North muttered.

"What was that?"

North clenched his fists on the table. "I said he's a fucking--"

"Everyone shut the hell up and eat your dinner!" Kota barked. North glowered.

I was left alone after that. The others laughed and joked with each other, and I silently ate my roll. Dinner couldn't end soon enough. After a while, servants came and took our dinner plates away. Dessert was then placed on the table. Luke's eyes nearly doubled in size and his smile spread from ear to ear. Again, I found it hard to believe they were all demons. I served myself a macaroon.

"Sang," Kota said, demanding my attention. I looked up from my macaroon to meet his vibrant emerald eyes.

"Yes?" His eyes darted down to my mouth before grimacing.

"You have chocolate on your lip," he remarked with disgust. Luke snickered.

"Sorry," I mumbled, wiping it off. Kota cleared his throat.

"As I was saying, while you are staying here, there will be a few rules." I didn't like the sound of that, but there was no where else for me to go.

"Alright."

"Number one: never go outside at night. Ever. There are no exceptions, and you cannot question this. Number two: if you would like to leave this house or its grounds, you must be accompanied by one of us. And three: the west wing is off limits to you. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir." Kota's jaw clenched shut and he shut his eyes. When he opened them, he had the most peculiar look on his face. Like he was hungry.

"Don't ever call me that again."

"Of course. Sorry." We all sat in awkward silence for a moment until a doorbell chimed.

"Are we expecting someone?" Silas asked.

"I am," Luke replied with a grin. "Gabriel, do you want to join me? One of them is an artist and her favorite medium is blood."

"No, thanks. Crazy isn't really my type." Luke pushed out of his chair and clasped Gabriel's shoulder briefly before heading towards the door.

"Your loss, brother. Don't wait up for me!"

"We never do," North said. "Don't contract a disease."

"Never do!" With that, Luke was gone. Soon, laughter of multiple female voices could be heard from somewhere else in the house.

"Someone needs to remind him that he can only bring one date to the ball," Victor chuckled.

"Indeed. Sang, you'll be my date, right?" Dr. Green asked, giving me a sly smile. I blushed. This was probably flirting but I had absolutely no clue how to flirt.

"What ball?" I asked.

"The Winter Solstice ball of course! It's next month."

"Am I even invited?"

"Naturally. You're our guest."

"I suppose I need to start designing her dress," Gabriel huffed.

"I'll take care of Sang's dress. You have already made enough wardrobe choices for her." Kota said, his tone harsh. I looked down and cringed at my plunging neckline.

"Like fuck you will. I know what I'm doing."

"Oh, yeah? Because you know so much bout women's dresses." Nathan teased.

"Well, I know how to take them off," Gabriel retorted.

"That was one time--"

"As much as we would all love to hear that story again, dinner is well past over." Dr. Green said. "Would someone please escort Ms. Sang to her room?"

"I will," Silas volunteered. I grinned. Out of everyone here, he seemed to be the kindest. We rose and made our way out of the dining room. A chorus of goodnights followed us. He placed my hand in the crook of his elbow, and guided me back to my room. Outside of my door he paused.

"That went better than we all expected," he confessed. "Congratulations for not completely fucking it up."

"I didn't do much."

"And that was the right call. Goodnight, Sang." I decided I liked the way he said my name. His accent made it sound exotic instead of strange.

"Goodnight." Silas took my hand and kissed the back of it. His lips were warm and smooth against my skin. He held them there for a second before pulling away and leaving me. My heart nearly doubled its speed and blood rushed to my cheeks. Quickly, I darted inside to the safety of my room and pressed the hand he kissed to my heart.

I stripped out of my awful dress and crawled into the cold, creaky bed. As I tried to go sleep, I kept replaying today's events, lingering on Silas's kiss to my hand. Perhaps if a few people were like him, the Underworld wouldn't be too bad.