Savior (The Keepers of Hell Book 1) (7 page)

CHAPTER TWELVE

     Ash walked briskly through the caverns of Hell. He really wasn’t feeling like dealing with minions. He could hear them scampering after him, hiding in the corners. He could hear them whispering and grinding their teeth. To think, he had almost made it here for the rest of eternity.

     Before his near death experience, Ash thought he was prepared to face his fate. Not anymore. Not since he laid his lips on one lovely woman. He knew that he could never really have her, but he could watch her from a distance. Not something he could do if he were busy being filleted by various hell dwellers.

     Again he had to shake her from his mind. She was becoming a distraction, and in his line of work, he couldn’t afford distractions.

     It didn’t take him long to find the demon he sought. He was just closing a door that led to one of the many realms of Hell. This one was named Brillos. He was tall, but not taller than Ash, with olive skin and black eyes. His midnight black hair fell over his shoulders, and essentially, he appeared human. Ash knew he was anything but.

     He wasted no time. Ash crept up behind the demon and pulled a blade from his boot. Just as he was reaching for the fucker’s neck, it spun around on him. The demon’s hand squeezed Ash’s throat to the point of nearly crushing it. As Ash struggled to pull air into his lungs, he grabbed at the hand that was slowly strangling him.

     “What do you want?” the demon spat.

     “For… you… to… die,” Ash ground out. With his free hand, he pulled his knife up and shoved it into the demon’s stomach, ramming it upward into his chest cavity.

     The demon paused, but didn’t release Ash. In fact, he grinned. “You’re one of Shax’s lackeys, ain’t ya?” he asked. “Well, I got news for you. That pretty little knife of yours isn’t gonna kill me.”

     Ash’s head was swimming. First of all, who the fuck was Shax? Second of all, who was this demon that didn’t die like it was supposed to? And third of all, Ash was going to die if he didn’t get some oxygen in his lungs, quick.

     His survival instinct kicked in and Ash let go of his knife. He jerked his knee up into the demon’s groin and then punched it in the eye with his free hand. He kept punching. Blood was spurting from its nose before it finally let go of Ash’s throat.

     Air rushed into his lungs and Ash relished the burn. He would not be dying today. As he dropped to the ground, Ash kicked his leg out and connected with the demon’s knee. It buckled under the force and the demon howled. Ash kicked again, this time at its ankle. He heard a satisfying crunch as the bone of the demon’s ankle broke.

     As the demon went down, Ash snatched up his knife and leapt on top of it. He sat heavily on the thing’s chest and wailed on it with a flurry of fists. When he was satisfied that the demon wasn’t going anywhere, Ash raised his blade.

     “You can kill me,” the demon choked out, “but there will always be more. Shax will never let you have peace.”

     Ash paused. Demons lie, that was no secret, but now that he could think clearly, Ash thought Shax was the demon he had been working for. The same that he promised his soul to. The same one that sent him after this guy. And yeah, he already knew that his boss would never allow him peace. “I know that.”

     “But did you know he has you killing his competition for the throne?” the demon grinned through bloody teeth.

     Ash didn’t know what he was talking about, nor did he care anymore. This was just a distraction; a way for the demon to gather enough strength to kill Ash. Not today.

     Ash raised his blade high and brought it down hard into the demon’s throat. Blood squirted from its neck and Ash yanked his blade to the side. Then he slashed it again the other direction. When the demon’s head rolled free of its body, Ash was satisfied that his job was done. He could hear the minions getting closer, and he needed to get the hell out of dodge.

     He rose up to his feet, wiped the blood off his knife, and then chanted the spell to take him home.

     Elizabeth arrived for her shift exactly on time that night. For whatever reason, she really didn’t want to be there. She was worried sick about Ash. A small part of her had hoped that he would come to his senses and come back to the hospital. But her rational brain knew. That kiss… That kiss was a goodbye. She was never going to see him again.

     Unless he got shot again.

     Elizabeth gave herself a mental scolding. Of course she didn’t want that to be the only way she could ever see him again. He was too much for her, anyway. She wouldn’t be able to handle him. She knew it. He lived a hard life. It was evident in his stare, the way he walked, the way he talked. It was even more so by the sheer number of scars that man had on his body.

     She made her rounds, hoping for a quiet night. Everything seemed to be running smoothly, and for a change, there were limited cases of human stupidity in the ER. As she sat down at her desk to get in some much needed paperwork, Dr. Tucker entered her office.

     “How’s it going, Dr. Rone?” he asked as he took a seat across from her.

     “Good,” she replied with a fake smile.

     “I was wondering,” he continued, “Leanne and I are having dinner at my place tomorrow night. I already checked the schedule and noticed you were off. I know Leanne is very appreciative that you saved her brother, so I was thinking you might join us?”

     “I don’t know,” Elizabeth answered. “I’m just so busy lately.”

     “All the more reason for you to relax a bit,” he said. “Besides, I already told her you would come. Don’t make a liar out of me?” he borderline begged.

     Elizabeth sighed. “All right. I suppose a good dinner wouldn’t hurt.”

     Dr. Tucker grinned. “You know I’m an excellent cook.” He stood and went for the door, turning back to her just before opening it. “Thank you. This means a lot to Leanne.”

     Elizabeth watched her friend go. How did she get roped into these things? And more importantly, would Ash be there for dinner as well? She had wanted to ask, but didn’t want to seem like she was interested. But she was most definitely interested, and that was putting it gently.

     The rest of her shift went well and she hardly had time to think about Ash. Between the several people admitted with the flu and the myriad of broken bones, bumps, and bruises, Elizabeth didn’t even have time to take her lunch break.

     As the sun came up and her shift came to an end, Elizabeth said goodnight to her nurses and drove herself home.  

***

     After a day of fitful sleep and dreams about a gorgeous man in purple scrubs, Elizabeth finally gave up and got out of bed. She picked out a plain yellow dress and a simple scarf to cover her shoulders for dinner. Then, she did her hair and makeup. In fact, she hadn’t really primped in so long that she had to wash it off and start over twice. What the hell was she even thinking? She hadn’t made such an effort for a man in a long time, much less for a man she might not even see. Which was why she hoped he wouldn’t be there. She didn’t like the way he made her feel. Actually, she didn’t like that she liked it.

     Elizabeth didn’t know what she expected when she knocked lightly on Dr. Tucker’s door. At least some part of her hoped that the woman’s brother wouldn’t show for dinner. He didn’t seem like the sit down dinner type, after all. No, he seemed more like the grab a cheeseburger and get shot type. Oh wait, he already did that. 

     But what if he was there? What would she say? And how was she supposed to look at him now after the kiss he laid on her? And how dare he kiss her like that and then walk away? It burned her ass a bit to think that he could do it. He probably kissed lots of women. Love ‘em and leave ‘em. Elizabeth hated guys like that. Ash was probably exactly that type.

     As she waited for someone to open the door, Elizabeth convinced herself that Ash would not be there and that it was for the best. And then the door opened.

     “Well, hello there, Doc,” Ash’s deep voice rumbled. As he opened the door wider, Elizabeth was met with a nice view of his broad chest covered in a black tee shirt. Her eyes traveled over his pecks, then down his abs. Without permission, they took in his long legs and even his boots, before going back up to meet his amused eyes. “Like what you see?” he grinned. Damn him.

     “I didn’t know you were coming tonight,” Elizabeth tried to say with the proper amount of indifference. She feared that she failed and it came out way too excited. His hair was clean and combed back off his face and his skin was shaved smooth. There was a scar on his chin that she hadn’t noticed before. It ran from a small dimple in the center up to his lower lip. The same lip she had tasted.

     She shook herself and pushed in the doorway.  “Thanks for letting me in,” she said as she walked past him.

     “No problem. When my little sister says dinner, I’m here.” He closed the door softly behind her.

     “Easy to please, huh?” Elizabeth joked with him.

     “I suspect I would be,” he mumbled. Elizabeth quirked an eyebrow at him, but he offered nothing further.

     She followed him to the kitchen where Leanne and James were laughing over a pot of boiling pasta. “Hey, I’m so glad you made it,” Leanne grinned as she wiped her hands on a towel. She walked over and embraced Elizabeth in a quick hug. “I hope you like Italian,” she said.

     “I do,” Elizabeth smiled back.

     “Great. It’s going to be few minutes, so if you’ll just make yourself at home,” Leanne said cheerfully.

     “Is there anything I can do to help?” Elizabeth offered.

     “Nonsense, you are my guest. Go play with Ash or something,” she answered. She even made a shooing motion with her hands.

     Elizabeth sighed.

     “Yeah,” Ash added in his way too sexy voice. “Come play with me.” He arched one of his brows and Elizabeth silently cursed the electric zing that went through her body at his suggestion. Oh the ways she would like to play with him.

     But he had kissed her and left her, hadn’t he? Elizabeth held to that thought as she found her legs leading her into the living room. Of course, the plaything in question was lounging on the sofa, his long legs out in front of him, crossed at the ankles. His size alone ate up most of the sofa, and the grin he was wearing rendered her mind blank of all other thoughts.

     He was amazing. Had she thought he was scary before? Elizabeth gave herself a mental shake. No, Ash wasn’t frightening. He reminded her of being safe. Secure. Protected. Loved.

     Whoa, where did that come from?

    She planted herself on the recliner adjacent to the sofa and pretended to look out the window.

     “Did you have a nice night at work?” he asked her.

     “Umm,” she answered in a noncommittal tone.

     “I was worried that you didn’t get enough sleep.”

     “I never sleep much anyway,” she answered.

     “You should sleep more,” he said, leaning forward. “Sleep is what heals the body.”

     “And I suppose that since you are an exceptionally fast healer you would know,” she retorted. Fast healer her ass. She didn’t have any other explanations, though. Well, she was sure there were other explanations, but she had held his heart in her hand. She was one hundred percent certain he was human.

     “I do,” he answered her with a half-smile. “Anything exciting happen since I left?”

     Elizabeth leaned back in the chair. “No, not really. But it’s pretty hard to follow a gunshot victim who walks out three days later.”

     “Ok guys, it’s done!” Leanne called from the kitchen. Ash let out a sigh of relief. He was desperately trying to make any small talk to distract himself from the memory of the taste of her kiss. His pants were getting tight just trying not to think about it. He had thought that he wouldn’t see her again, but he hadn’t counted on his sister. That woman… he knew what she was up to and he knew her intentions were good. That didn’t change anything though. He was no good for the Doc and he knew it. That didn’t mean that if he was in the same room with her that he couldn’t enjoy her company, right?

     Whatever he needed to tell himself, he thought as he followed behind her to the kitchen where the smell of tomato sauce filled the room. The closer he got, the more he smelled. Garlic, oregano, basil… it was all there. If there were no other truth in the world, his sister could cook.