Rhyn's Redemption (Book III, Rhyn Trilogy)

Chapter Eight

Rhyn awoke from the island dreamscape in the shadow world.  He rose, uncertain what happened but recalling his urgency.  He crossed through the glowing black portal into the one place he’d hoped never to see again: Hell.  Unwilling to get stuck in the cell where he’d spent many lifetimes, he chose to open the portal into the office of the Council’s betrayer, Sasha.  The office was as he remembered it, down to the black flames in the hearth.

His half-demon blood would render him cloaked among the demons, as it had in the castle. Rhyn shuddered, recalling just how bad Hell could be.

The room even smelled like Sasha.  Rhyn cursed his dead half-brother silently and left, traveling the black stone halls of the fortress in Hell where he’d spent most of his life.  He reached the door before the block of cells where Sasha had collected his favorite creatures in Hell to create his own twisted, private zoo.  They’d referred to the sick Immortal as the zookeeper, a creature as deserving of a cell as any.

Shaking his head, Rhyn realized how sweaty his palms were as he stood before the door leading to the zoo.  Sasha’s mages had sat in the antechamber, repairing any damage the inmates did to their cells or preparing some magical torture that Sasha wanted.

It was the last place in the universe he wanted to be. Rhyn’s body felt wooden, and his heart flew.  He opened the door to the antechamber and stopped, surprised at who sat within.

“Jared?”

“Rhyn!” The full demon dropped the book in his hands and lurched to his feet.

“Darkyn made you the jailer,” Rhyn growled. “You better not –“

“Wait!” Jared barked. “I didn’t do anything. To any of them, as much as I wanted to eat the human. So succulent and sweet-smelling, like barbecued –“

Rhyn drew his knife as Jared’s feature lit up.

“But I didn’t,” the demon rushed on. “I’m as much of a prisoner as they are. I can go here and I can go out on the block.”

“You’re a prisoner.”

“Yes.”

“Prove it.”

Jared motioned him away from the door.  Rhyn stepped aside warily.  The full-demon tried to walk through, only to be thrown to the ground by an invisible shield.

“Darkyn wouldn’t let me stay in the mortal realm. I came here and hid out,” Jared explained. “I knew these things were your friends.” He motioned dismissively towards the cell block.

“Is the angel here?” Rhyn asked.

“Yes. And the man in black who used to visit you. Smells like a human, acts like an Immortal.”

“Gabe?”

“Sure.”

Rhyn moved to the door leading to the block, unable to help the small tremble of his hand.  Not only had he spent too long in this very place, he’d seen Katie hurt here and barely escaped alive with her.

“And the girl.”

“What girl?” Rhyn asked, freezing.

“I don’t know it’s name.  It was with Lunchmeat at the Immortal stronghold,” Jared said, using his nickname for Katie. “Can you get us out of here?”

“Why would I do anything for you?”

“As a reward, for not eating any of your friends.”

Rhyn considered how he might use the demon, as he had once before.  He didn’t answer, pushing the door open to the cell block.  Nearly all the cells were empty.