Nighttime came quickly, and it was nearing midnight, and I hardly caught a wink of sleep. So, I spent most of the time awake studying the mural above my head. It was one painted of a young, half-naked devil with her horns being gently cleansed by her comrades. The sentiment was sweet and relaxing, but even that wasn't enough to put me to sleep.
Just as I turned and twisted for the umpteenth time of the night, two soft knocks came from my door. Assuming it was the nurse again, I sat up and called for them to enter.
To my surprise, a beautiful dark-haired woman with the skin of a porcelain doll walked in. She did not look a day above thirty, but devils were immortal, so that was only a façade.
With a smile as bright as the sun, she introduced herself, "Hello Julane. My name is Queen Rita."
"Oh," I shoot up from my bed and make my best attempt at a bow with my broken back. "The honor is all mine, ma'am."
She shook her head and laughed. "No need for the formalities. You can just call me Rita."
"Okay, Rita..." I tested her name on my tongue a little before asking, "Why are you here?"
"Couldn't get some sleep and thought I could come and visit you," she confessed, with a tilt of her head. "You look livelier when you're awake but still just as pretty."
My cheeks grew a tinge redder, and my thumbs began to twiddle. "Um, thank you. How often have you been coming here?"
"Oh, about every night since your arrival," she said as her tone grew worried. "You were unconscious for a very long time, I was worried sick, to be honest with you. Devlin could hardly sleep either."
"He wasn't sleeping?"
"How could he if his girlfriend was near death?"
My cheeks blushed more intensely as I waved my hands at her. "No, I'm not his girlfriend! We're just friends."
"Uh-Huh. Sure, you are." She leaned towards me, slipped her hand over mine, and, with a cunning grin, she asked, "Anyway, would you by any chance be interested in going on a little trip with me?"
I didn't know how to react to that, so I just shook my head. Before I could change my mind, she quickly called for Charity, the nurse. "Charity, darling please bring the wheelchair?"
Pushing a wheelchair, Charity waltzed right in. It was only then that I noticed just how petite she was and her small pink ram-like horns. She was the epitome of adorable.
They both aided me onto the chair and, once I was comfortable, wheeled me out through the door. We passed so many halls that I lost count. Each passageway we entered had towering high ceilings with several arrangements of different chandeliers and was about as wide as a football field. It was ridiculously sized. Devlin was right; this place was huge.
After half an hour of meandering through the endless hallways, we made it to a beautifully decorated veranda just outside the mansion. Covered with various flora, vines curled around the silver pillars of the glimmering golden-roofed platform. They parked me by its edge, where a fountain was busy shimmering with waterworks.
Queen Rita took a seat in an intricately woven Ruby-red armchair by my side. Once the both of us were settled, she politely gestured to Charity to leave. The young nurse did after a curtsy for respect.
"What is this place?" I asked out of fascination as my eyes watched a few pixies dancing by some nearby rose bushes. They looked just as they did in fairytale books; little humanoid butterflies buzzing about.
"This is my escape place or my she-shed," explained the queen before releasing a sigh. "My daughter, Juliet, and I frequently spent our days here while the boys busied themselves with training and all that other jazz."
Juliet? So, that was her full name. "She's the one who passed away, yes?"
Biting down on her lip, the queen nodded. "I'm guessing Devlin told you."
"Well, only recently." I added, "Another friend of mine had told me beforehand. Regardless of when I wanted to offer you my sincerest condolences."
Her thin pink lips relaxed and faded into a soft smile. "Thank you. That means a lot."
I nodded my head and allowed a short period of silence to fall between us. It wasn't uncomfortable; it was the silence of two people paying respect to those that had fallen.
Breaking my focus from the mystical creatures, I looked over at her highness and asked, "May I ask why you brought me out here, Rita?"
She shrugged. "Just thought you needed a change of scenery after being in that room for almost two weeks. And fresh air is good for the soul as my husband says it. You'll meet him soon enough; he's just been busy with Devlin's return."
"Oh yeah, I forgot about that," I laughed. Feeling my forehead, I had a little fever coming on, but the cool chill of the nighttime air was helpful. "You were so overjoyed for his return at the night of the ball."
She leaned over and grabbed my hands again and so lightly kissed them, then said, "You brought my baby back to us, and we are forever grateful to you for his return. So treat this home as your own and if you need absolutely anything. Let me know."
Once again, I nodded my head with flushed cheeks, then replied with a soft and flustered, "You're welcome. To be fair, I didn't expect to make it out alive, but I tried my best."
"And that's more than enough," she said, squeezing my hands with the warmth of her gratitude. "You see, the seven great devil kingdoms have never really gotten along, especially Desidia and Iram. After the incident with my daughter, all the other kingdoms detested Desidia above all else. You see, Juliet was the royal with the most charitable heart, and hence the most loved among the kingdoms. Her death broke the hearts of trillions; it truly was a tragedy."
That was when an obvious question came to mind. "If it's so dangerous, then why did Devlin run away there?" I queried.
She looked to the sky then closed her eyes as a tear escaped down her cheek. "To avenge his sister. He was always adamant about that."
Did he find her killer? Was that how he ended up in the hands of Madame Sharq and Lady Hepler? Were those two women behind her murder?
I had so many questions. However, I knew better than to ask her. She probably didn't know herself. So, I just locked them away in the back of my mind for another day when I would get the chance to have a one-on-one with Devil Boy himself.
However, there was one question she could help me with that Devlin hadn't quite clarified. "Can I ask you something?"
"Sure, Julane. What is it?"
I tried to find the right way to phrase it without sounding rude or ungrateful. "Why is it that I cannot go home?"
She narrowed her eyes at me. "What do you mean?"
So, with a quick breath of confidence, I clarified, "Devlin said because I'm a demi-demon, I can't go home. I've been one all my life and that's never been a problem until I've come to the Underworld. Why is that?"
Preoccupied with whether it was her place to tell me or not, she hesitated but soon followed through. "Demi-demons are not meant to exist according to the law of creation."
"Huh?" My eyes widened. "Why?"
She nuzzled our hands under her chin, heaving a sigh. "It's complicated...," she started, "but basically it all comes down to genetics. As you know demons have fragments of a devil's vis or energy. Humans possess the same characteristics but with angelic vis. The first rule of biology is that Devil and Angel vis are immiscible; they are impossible to mix and form one being. That being said, demi-demons break this rule entirely and, to many in the Underworld and Heavens, that is a great phenomenon."
I took in everything she had just said, and that's when it clicked. "That's why we are so rare."
She blew a stray strand of her hair back into place before stating, "Precisely. It's a tricky combination to mix and give offspring to. So, that's why there haven't been many experiments done, and why everyone to anyone wants their hands on you. Your existence, alone, is worth billions of dollars in the science department — as well as in the military department. That's why you cannot leave without having fully recovered and being able to defend yourself, Julane."
"Wait..." I said, remembering something she had mentioned. "What about the Heavens?"
Her arms began to tremble, forcing mine to quiver. "Whatever happens we won't let them know. They are the last ones that should ever know."
"And why's that?" I asked, pulling my hands away from her grasp.
For the first time since our meeting, I could see absolute fear in her eyes. She mumbled something, but I asked her to speak up, so she did, "They'll send the Guardians of Dimensions, aka God, to exterminate you."
My body froze. Suddenly this had become very serious. I began regretting ever coming to the Underworld.
"What's on your mind, Julie?" asked the queen with a very concerned expression.
I didn't want to worry her, so I just smiled and said, "Nothing, my headache is getting a little worse, and I feel like it may be time for me to go to bed, is all."
She nodded profusely then got off her seat. As she began wheeling me back, I spotted a humanoid creature staring at me from one of the balconies. The closer we got to the mansion, the more the creature's features became clearer; it was Estio. With another sour glare, he turned on his heels and headed back inside.
As much as I enjoyed Queen Rita's company, I couldn't get the conversation out of my head.
Was I only worrying about Underworld bounties on my head? Did other creatures in the Human World want my head? Or was God informed, and I was basically awaiting my inevitable death?
I had so many questions but so little time. However, each one had the same answer my dad had constantly told me: I should've never come to the Underworld.