Welcome to the Kali Sweet Chronicles. Sweet Malice is the fifth book in the Kali Sweet Urban Fantasy series and will be released to retailers in February 2025. I’ll release a chapter twice a month here in my Magic Bites Membership, and I look forward to reading your comments! *Please note that these are UNEDITED and some story elements may change before the official book release in February. Enjoy!
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Sweet Malice, Kali Sweet Urban Fantasy Series
©2024 Misty Evans
Chapter Ten
“What in the fires of Hell are you doing?”
The condescending tone was as cold as the divine magic rippling off him and sending goosebumps chasing each other over my skin. I would have been an icicle if it hadn’t been for the blazing heat oozing through the gates. “I was in the middle of an orgasm. You need to work on your timing.”
If what he saw invoked lust, he hid it well. From what I’d seen, he only had eyes for his witch, and the slow perusal he did over my nude body, along with the tundra of his anger, cooled the demon-sized ache between my legs. “Your job is to hunt Fallen and bring them to the Institute.”
Why did everyone feel the need to remind me of that? “I’ve already checked several off the list. The demonologist was a freak, and he’s not Fallen. He was some weird mix of magics that Michael and Lilith concocted. Your brother is in league with her, I’m sure of it.” I glanced around, noticing a new guardian skulking around the gates. Many entities were associated with the Underworld, especially Hell, but I didn’t recognize this one. He was a grotesque beast with a hunched back, horns, and a goat-like beard. He ogled me as he paced, his beady eyes zeroed in on my double Ds.
I gave him a rude gesture. “Can we possibly discuss this after I have clothes on?”
Lucifer blinked, and I was suddenly clothed in the goat’s attire. Although he was six inches taller than me, and both of my feet should have fit in one of his giant boots, the material and leather instantly remade itself, so it fit perfectly. I screwed up my nose at the odor, though.
The guardian squawked. “Hey! Those are mine!”
I was no happier about it than he was, although the soft lining of his leather jacket was toasty warm against my skin, and the leather pants fit like a glove. Still, yuck. “This isn’t exactly what I had in mind,” I said.
The guardian called me a series of vulgar names, and a muscle in Lucifer’s jaw ticked. In the next breath, the beast went up in a ball of flame, and I sucked in a sharp breath, the acrid air burning my throat. While I never forgot that Lucifer was an all-powerful being here, there were times when I let myself get casual about who he was and what he could do.
Pressing my lips together and holding my nose against the stink, I cast my gaze to the ground in front of his feet, bowing my head. I was a valuable resource for him, but I was replaceable, and we both knew it.
“I’m looking into the demonologist,” he said without emotion, “but the real one was a Fallen. Is it possible the version you encountered was him, only he was infected by Lilith’s magic?”
Possible, but that didn’t feel right. “It’s an avenue to explore. Perhaps his vessel was used to create a golem in his likeness that she and Michael filled with their opposing magics.”
He was silent for a long time, only the distant screams of tortured souls echoing around us. I waited, remaining quiet and meek—as much as I could pull off—until he ordered me to look at him. “We both know you’re not docile, so cut the act.” The impatience in his voice was tempered with exhaustion. “You need to get back to work.”
Cautiously, I lifted my gaze to his. “Of course. You’ll investigate the mole, right?”
He shook his head. “There is no mole.”
“How can you be sure? What other answer do you have?”
The king of Hell didn’t like being questioned, and it wasn’t his best day, but he indulged me. “Until a few months ago, I could not sense the Fallen. After Amy and I found the Lost City of Angels, I knew the rest had to be walking the Earth, but detecting them was a challenge. All that changed when my daughter was born.” He paused as if waiting for me to put the puzzle pieces together. When I didn’t catch on, he continued. “Since her arrival, I can tap into the Earth’s grid and perceive their presence. It’s like looking at a map, their angelic energy gives off a pulse.”
“That’s how you came up with the list.”
He nodded and waited again, expecting me to get the gist of what he was not saying.
Was this a test? Couldn’t he just come out and explain it to me?
I was about to ask him to do so, owning up to my inability to understand, when everything fell into place. “Michael has the same list.”
A nod. “He can tap into the Earth and find them the same way I can.”
“Once he became Azaria’s guardian, he figured it out. Her power allows both of you to sense where and who they are.”
“You understand now?”
I rubbed my forehead. This was not good news. I didn’t look forward to hunting down a hundred thousand Fallen, knowing that Michael had probably already gotten to them and left me more surprises. “Our method of finding them and bringing them in isn’t working. We need to reverse engineer how we’re doing this.”
His impatience shifted to curiosity. He’d probably been thinking the same thing but couldn’t see a way to improve the process. “How?”
“It could take me years to cover the entire planet and convince them individually to undergo rehab to fight your war. We need something to bring them to us.”
He studied me for a moment, his mind working. “Suggestions?”
The seed of the idea had struck in the chapel when I saw the angels gathered and Salmad leading them in song and prayer. “We need an event that will appeal to them on their divine level, regardless of who or what they are now. Something big, like the halftime show of the Super Bowl.”
“I doubt a sporting event will attract many of them.”
“Not a sporting event. A worship service.”
“Only thirty-three percent of those on the list attend church or even believe in God. They don’t know who they are, Kali. Even if they have an inkling that God betrayed them. They feel no fidelity to him.”
“That makes two of us, or, I guess, a whole lot of us.” As the idea grew in my mind, I felt more excited about my new job than I had so far. “They may not worship him, and they may not particularly like you since you and Amy are the ones that got them tossed from Heaven in the first place, but I think there’s another being who’s tapped into them. One who will be irresistible to them once they feel the call of her request.”
He was faster on the uptake than I was. Barely a heartbeat passed before his eyes widened. “You can’t be serious.”
“No harm will come to her. We only need Azaria to be the beacon that pulls them in.”
“Her mother will never allow it. I won’t allow it.”
Dammit. It was the best idea I had and the most efficient. “Then you’ll lose.” Saying it out loud was a risk. I would probably be a pile of ashes before this conversation was over. “Michael will win. Sending a foot soldier to recruit your Fallen, convince them of who they are, and get them to the various Institutes in each major country to rehabilitate them is a long game. It will take time you don’t have. Michael has only tested the waters at this point. He’s toying with you, playing one of his stupid games, and if you don’t step up, he’ll destroy all of them before your daughter can say ‘daddy.’”
We squared off in a stare-down that made me worry once again for my continued existence. The only reason he let me live was written on his face when he finally nodded. He knew I was right. “What do you need me to do?”
Phew. No pile of ash today. “Let me put together a strategy, and I’ll report back as soon as everything is worked out. I want nothing but top-notch, experienced players on this team. We take no chances, and we hit quick and hard.”
“Whatever it takes.”
I liked his way of thinking. “I won’t let you down.”
A blast of heat hit me from the gates, while at the same time, his icy demeanor slapped me in the face. “If you do, it won’t be Michael you must worry about. I’ll destroy you and everyone you love.”
It was said with no emotion, his voice laced with steel. My snarky side wanted to snap off a salute, but the sensible side bent a knee and bowed my head. “I’m at your service.”
He snorted. “Get up, and go get some decent clothes on.”
Before I could regain my feet, I was on my knees in my bedroom at the Institute. Rad was pacing, yelling into his phone at someone about finding me, his naked body tense.
“Call off your search party,” I said, standing.
He looked at me in shock, then screwed up his nose as he sniffed the air. “What are you wearing?”
I waved him off, heading for the bathroom and a hot shower. “Tell Damon to round up the vitiums, Cole, Tabriss, and Aphrodite. Have them meet us in the conference room in ten.”
I showered quickly, scrubbing every inch of my body. The stink of the dearly departed goat beast was, well, a beast to remove. It was good to get back into my own clothes.
Rad waited for me, now dressed. He came to attention when I swaggered out of the bathroom. I had bagged the clothes but could still smell them. Probably, the insides of my nose were forever scorched with the reek. I held the bag away from me as I walked it to the door. “I’ve got to burn these, and then I’ll be there.”
“Neve is bringing food and beverages,” he informed me. “Whatever you’re planning, I want in.”
I patted his cheek. “Of course you do.”
He grabbed my wrist before I could exit and pulled me to him. “I’m serious. I know that look in your eye, and you’re not leaving me out of this, whatever this is.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it. Now let go of my arm and meet me in the conference room.”
He slid his hand to the back of my head and pulled me closer, his lips finding mine. The kiss was long and deep, and I realized he’d been scared when I disappeared on him. The thought warmed my heart, cementing the idea that he truly did love me. I slid my free hand behind his neck, mirroring his gesture as I explored his mouth with my tongue. I bit his bottom lip and flashed him a grin. “And we’re not done with what we were doing earlier. You owe me another orgasm.”
His eyes flashed with wicked desire. “Damn right, I do.”
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Wonder what Kali is up to? Find out in the next episode!