The Devil's Pact Pt. 34

"Lana, bring me the twins," Lilith commanded.

"Yes, my Goddess," I answered, standing up.

For hours, Lilith had been brooding in her chambers, pacing in her reborn flesh. Brandon's dramatic attack on Mark and his occupation of Tacoma had changed everything. The man had, in a single day, brought the entire United States to its knees. Only a few hours ago, the President himself had knelt and paid homage to Brandon, surrendering the country to him on national television.

All of our careful maneuverings in Seattle would be for naught with this new, and unanticipated, player. We had the Mayor under the sexual domination of Lilith's daughter, Lamia. And Ziki, another of her monstrous daughters, had assumed the form of Nate Kirkpatrick, the City of Seattle's head of human resources. She slowly hired Lilith's followers to key positions within the city's government. We were so close to taking over the city and establishing Lilith's rule.

So close.

And then this damned Brandon Fitzsimmons had to go and ruin it all.

Lilith must have a plan to stop him. I pondered that thought as I threaded my way through the warehouse. It was owned by the City of Seattle but not currently in use. With the Mayor in our power, we had quietly occupied it, moving Lilith's children and her pregnant followers here. Babylon's house had quickly grown too crowded.

As I walked past the women, they all bowed to me. Some were pregnant, while others had already birthed Lilith's children. Every woman who joined up was bedded by our goddess, bred, and within a month, delivered her a child. The children all stood out from us regular humans in some way—unusual colorings, abnormal heights, or strange features that made them look slightly different. And they all had powers. My daughter, Cora, was a Manticore. She was big and had leonine features. Lamia, Chantelle's daughter, had purple hair. Others stood out even more. Ziki, who masqueraded as Nate Kirkpatrick, was a freakish albino in her natural form.

And the twins were the strangest of all of Lilith's children.

I found them with their mother, a recovering heroin addict named Andi. The twins were pale girls, their hair pure white. They lacked any pigment in their eyes. They were born yesterday, and would reach their maturity by tomorrow evening. When I entered the room, the twins jumped in surprise. One vanished completely while the other became translucent.

I shuddered in discomfort. I could see straight through her.

They were both Dimme, more spirits than creatures of flesh. When they were translucent or invisible they could pass through solid objects. Lilith was ecstatic when they were born. "Dimme are assassins," Lilith had purred when she saw the twins, "capable of penetrating an enemy's defenses and killing their target with a single touch."

They could only kill when they were solid. But that also meant they were vulnerable.

Most of Lilith's children were immune to normal weapons. Only enchanted weapons or cold iron could hurt most of them. But a few, like the Dimme, were more vulnerable. As long as a Dimme remained translucent or invisible, she could not be harmed by anything. However, she could not affect anything, either. To kill, she had to become solid and leave herself vulnerable to any weapon.

"Di, Emi," I said, holding out my hand. "Your Mother wishes to see you." The invisible one reappeared. I think she was Emi. And then Di became solid. Hesitantly, they both gripped my hand. I smiled shyly at them.

"Mother needs us?" Emi asked, her voice a soft whisper.

I nodded. "Come on."

Both girls smiled and looked almost cute. Almost.

Lilith was waiting in her chambers, the former warehouse manager's office. It was richly appointed. Persian rugs covered the floor. Silk tapestries hung on the walls. Scented candles, held in gold sconces, lit the room, filling the air with sweet jasmine and spicy cinnamon. Lilith sat at her richly carved, mahogany desk and smiled happily when we walked in. She stood and walked out from behind her desk, kneeling with her arms outstretched.

Emi and Di ran to her, laughing as their divine mother scooped them up in her arms. "Oh, you two are growing up so fast," Lilith praised then kissed them both on their foreheads. "And so beautiful."

"Not as beautiful as you, Mother," Di politely said.

"No," Lilith answered with a vain smile. "But then no one is." Lilith set her daughters down. "You two will be fully grown by tomorrow, right?"

"Yes, Mother," Emi nodded. "By Sunday night we will be adults."

Lilith smiled broadly. "Good." Lilith conjured the images of Brandon Fitzsimmons and Mark Glassner. Well, I thought it was Brandon she conjured. He looked younger and slimmer than he appeared on TV. He even had a full head of hair. Perhaps he had cast a spell? Or did he make a deal with another demon? "Sunday night, when you are fully grown, you are to go south to Tacoma and kill these two men."

Di and Emi both smiled. I suppressed a shudder. They were hungry, disturbing smiles. "Of course, Mother."

Lilith spread out maps on her desk and we began to plan the twins' infiltration. In one stroke, the two great threats to our rule would be assassinated. I trembled in excitement. After tomorrow night, our Goddess would rule.

I shivered in anticipation.

To be continued...