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School had ended forty-five minutes ago, and Rose still wasn’t home. Why wasn’t she home? Mammon paced the living room, scowling. Didn’t she know he was waiting for her?
Well, okay, so he hadn’t actually told her he wanted to see her. Still. She ought to know, right? He always wanted to talk to her after school. Sure, his brothers liked to steal her away before the two of them could really get started, but what did that matter? If the Great Mammon was waiting for her, she ought to be here!
She ain’t psychic, said a voice in his head. You can’t expect her to know everythin’ you’re thinkin’.
Yes. Yes, he knew.
And if she did know you were waitin’, it wouldn’t matter. She ain’t gonna rush back just for you.
His hands clenched into fists.
A glance at the clock told him it was now an hour since school let out. That was a lot, wasn’t it? She never stayed that late. It wasn’t safe for a human to be alone in a building full of demons, not without one of his brothers there to protect her. Did she have somebody with her? Was she okay?
Dammit, what if she wasn’t?
Before he could think, he was flying out the door, headed back to RAD as fast as his feet could take him.
He found her in a classroom, sitting at a desk with a guy on either side of her. Lower demons, both of them. They didn’t seem like they were gonna gobble her up or anything, but he didn’t like the way they were looking at her. As soon as he walked in, Rose raised her eyes to him, relief written all over her face.
The tightness in his chest loosened. It was okay. Nothing had happened to her.
“Mammon.” Snatching up her bag, she stood up, hurrying to his side. Was she… nervous?
No way. This was Rose. She was used to living with the most powerful demons in the Devildom. Chatting with some lower demons wasn’t near enough to bother her.
Unless… well, backbone of steel aside, she was just a human. If she really felt like she was in danger, with no one to back her up…
Anger flaring in his belly, he clenched his hands into tight fists. “What the hell’s goin’ on here?”
She bit her lip. “I wanted to go home, but these guys—”
They’d stopped her from leaving? Held her here in this room against her will? Fighting to contain his anger, he turned his glare onto the two demons. “What the fuck do you think you’re doin’?”
The guy on the left jumped to his feet. The one on the right looked to be frozen in place.
Mammon took a step forward.
“Hey, hey!” Lefty threw up his hands. “We didn’t mean any harm. We just wanted to talk to her. That’s all, I swear!”
“And did she wanna talk to you ?”
The color drained from Lefty’s face, and Righty looked like he was shaking.
Good.
Still, Lefty managed to find words. “She-she’s just a human. We didn’t think—”
The words made him see red. “Just a human?! Just a human?!”
“Mammon!”
His name, cried out in her sweet voice, made him stop short. When he turned his eyes to her face, the worry in her expression brought him back to his senses. He realized he’d transformed into his true form, so lost in his rage that he hadn’t even noticed.
“I want to be alone with you.” She took a step toward him, biting her lip. “Please, can we leave now? I don’t want to think about these guys anymore.”
Her words pierced through the red haze in his mind, and he turned his full attention to her. Did she just say... she wanted to be alone with him?
As much as he hated to leave these assholes behind, the look on her face said she wanted to be as far away from here as possible. Watching him murder these two vermin wouldn’t calm her down. He’d have to deal with them later. Right now, he needed to take her home.
“Yeah, ‘course. Let’s get outta here.”
With a soft smile, she took his hand and led him out of the classroom.
His hand. She was holding his hand.
Suddenly that was all he could think about. The warmth of her touch, the softness of her skin, the soft press of her fingers…
As she led him down the hall, he realized that her gentle grip was growing tighter, and her steps were speeding up. With alarm, he looked at the back of her head as she hurried in front of him.
“Hey. Rose. You okay?”
“I want to go home,” was all she said.
He didn’t know what got into him, but before he could think, he had his arm around her shoulder, hugging her to his side, matching her pace as they rushed from the building. He barely noticed the stares of the other students they passed. He needed to get her home. Nothing else mattered.
As soon as they stepped inside the House of Lamentation, she collapsed against the wall, sliding slowly to the ground.
“Shit.” This was bad. She almost never showed fear like this. Mammon knelt before her, frantically searching her eyes for any sign of what she was thinking. “What happened? Did those sons of bitches lay a hand on you?”
She shook her head, her unfocused stare locked on the floor. “It’s not that.”
Her body was shaking. Fuck. She was terrified. What was wrong with him? Why hadn’t he realized how scared she was earlier?
Unable to stop himself, he reached for her, tucking a strand of hair back behind her ear. To his shock, she turned her head to nuzzle her cheek against his palm, closing her eyes.
“Mammon…”
His name was almost a sigh, and at the sound of it, he lost all sense of self-control. His arms wrapped around her, pulling her tight against his chest. “I got ya. You’re safe. I ain’t gonna let nothin’ else happen to you.”
Her own arms immediately embraced his waist, and he reveled in the way she pressed herself against him. For a few minutes, they stayed that way, neither of them speaking. He rubbed her back, waiting until her breathing calmed and her body began to relax.
After a while, she started speaking. “They didn’t do anything. Not really. But I thought they were going to. It was the way they looked at me, like I was some kind of toy — and I couldn’t get away—”
Fury made his mind spin. “I’ll kill ‘em.”
“No, don’t.”
“They gotta pay. And everyone needs to see it. They need to know what the Great Mammon does to people who mess with you. So no one ever dares to try anythin’ like that again.”
“Mammon, you’re holding me too tight.”
Oh. He was, wasn’t he? With a deep breath, he relaxed his grip. “Sorry,” he muttered.
“It’s okay. Just… please don’t think about them. I need you right now.”
Did she mean that? She needed him? Or was it just that she needed someone , and he happened to be the guy that was here?
But he hadn’t been there when it really mattered. A surge of guilt hit him like a semi-truck. He was her first. He was supposed to be the one who took care of her. What the hell had he been doing? Waiting for her to come home instead of being there when she was in danger?
“It’s my fault.” The mumbled words spilled from his lips.
“What?” Cheek still pressed against his chest, she tilted her chin up, shocked eyes meeting his own.
“I’m supposed to protect you. I told ya I’d be the one to save you, didn’t I?”
“But you didn’t know—”
“Yeah.” He squeezed her a little tighter. “That’s the problem.”
“No, it’s not.” She pulled back, but only enough gaze at his face in a way that made his heart beat fast. “You saved me. You’re always there for me.”
The earnestness on her face overwhelmed him. “Wha…?”
“You’re like my own personal hero. Ever since I got here, you…”
“I am?” Did she really believe that? Pride filled him, and he felt light as a balloon. “I mean, damn right I am. The Great Mammon ain’t gonna let nothin’ stop him, ya know?”
“Yup.” She tilted her head as she smiled, a smile that sent a thrill through him. A smile of absolute trust. “That’s exactly right.”
She seemed to be calm now, but he had to be sure. “You feelin’ okay?”
“Yeah.” To his great dismay, she released his waist, but when she slid her hands down his arms to take his hands in her own, his heart started pounding in a whole new way. “I'm okay because you’re here. Mammon…”
Her voice trailed off. Why? What made her stop talking?
“Yeah?” He tried not to sound anxious.
She bit her lip, shook her head slightly, then smiled again. “Thank you.”
Oh. For a second, he’d thought she was gonna say... something else. Still, a thank you from her lips…
“Yeah, well.” Shyness suddenly overtook him, and he felt his cheeks get warm. “I guess it ain’t so bad to do somethin’ for a human like you.”
Her thumb brushed across the back of his hand. By this point, his heart was practically hammering against his ribcage. Her touch, her smile, her scent — it was all too much, and at the same time, he couldn’t get enough.
“Were you worried about me?” Now she was looking up at him with puppy dog eyes. “Is that why you came?”
“Me?” Embarrassment winning out, he found himself dropping back into old habits. “‘Course not. Why would the Great Mammon worry about a measly human ? I was annoyed, that’s all. Ya didn’t come home, and…”
As his voice trailed off, he felt ashamed of his own words. Why could he never manage to tell her how he really felt? Especially at a moment like this, when she needed someone to be there…
To his surprise, she let out a puff of laughter, then said something under her breath.
“Huh? What?”
“Nothing.” For no reason he could understand, she smiled even brighter, squeezing his hands.
His heart skipped a beat. He couldn’t be sure, but he thought he’d heard her say, “You’re a terrible liar.”
Did that mean… she understood? She knew what he couldn’t say?
There probably wouldn’t be a better time than this to tell her, right? Fighting down his panic, Mammon gripped her hands tighter.
“Hey. Listen, I—” He took a breath. “I—”
“Maaaaaammon!” came a whiny voice behind him.
He froze.
No. No, no, no. Not now.
“What are you doing to Rose? And right in front of the door!”
Not now , of all the damn times—!
“Go away.” He all but growled the words.
“Poor thing!” As usual, Asmo completely ignored him. “Rose, you don’t have to let this scumbag—”
His voice cut off, and then, in a serious tone that Mammon had almost never heard his brother use, Asmo spoke again. “What happened to you?”
Looking reluctant, she tore her eyes from Mammon’s face to look over his shoulder. “Hi, Asmo.”
“You’ve been crying!” A hand grasped her arm, and before he knew it, Asmo had tugged her out of his embrace and onto her feet. “Rose! What happened? Are you okay?!”
“Hey!” Mammon scrambled to stand up. “What the hell are ya doin’?”
“I’m okay.” Her smile was shaky. “It’s all right now. Thank goodness Mammon was there.”
“That’s right!” Lord, he lived for praise like that. Stepping forward, he gave Asmo the deadliest glare he could manage. “I’m takin’ care of her, so you can just—”
“What’s all this?”
Dammit all to hell!
Drawn by the commotion, the rest of his brothers traipsed into the entryway, stopping when they saw her face.
“Rose!” Lucifer rushed forward, extricating her from Asmo’s hold to peer into her face. “What is it?”
“I’m all right.” She wiped her eyes with her sleeve, which only seemed to alarm them all more. “Mammon took care of it.”
“That’s right!” He found himself raising his voice. “I’m the one who helped her!”
Belphie frowned. “If Mammon took care of it, then it’s not all right at all.”
Why, that bastard—!
She shook her head fervently. “No, it really is—”
“Mammon.” Satan stepped forward calmly, but Mammon knew it was the quiet of a predator ready to pounce. “If Rose won’t tell us, then you will . What happened to her?”
A part of him didn’t want to say a word, but for the sake of her safety, his brothers would have to know. With a reluctant huff, he said, “A couple of lower demons cornered her in a classroom and wouldn’t let her out. Scared her half to death, thinkin’ they were gonna hurt her or somethin’. If I hadn’t got there when I did—” His fists clenched again just thinking about it. “I was gonna beat ‘em to a bloody pulp, but Rose told me to get her outta there.”
Satan’s eyes flashed dangerously, rage emanating from his every pore. Without a word, he strode toward the door.
Rose’s voice cut through the air. “Satan, DON’T KILL ANYONE!”
Her order wasn’t directed at Mammon, but he still felt the force of it.
For the briefest of moments, Satan’s body jerked, but without breaking his stride, he threw open the door and disappeared into the darkness.
There was a second of silence. Then Levi broke it. “Um… that wasn’t much of an order. This is Satan. There’s a lot he could do without killing.”
Her eyes went wide before filling with dismay. “Oh, no.”
Beel smiled in a way that was most likely meant to be reassuring. “Don’t worry. He doesn’t know who they are. The most he can do is tear apart the school.” His smile faltered. “Probably.”
“That’s not okay, either!”
Mammon scoffed. “It’ll be fine. Ain’t no way Lucifer’s gonna let anything happen to RAD.”
Everyone turned to look at Lucifer. He was staring at her face, the only change in his expression a faint twitch in his cheek.
Rose’s brow creased. “Lucifer! He can’t destroy the school! Think of Lord Diavolo!”
At that, his face twisted into something ugly. He took a deep breath, and then his features returned to normal.
“I suppose I’ll have to go after him.” He gave them all a dangerous look. “Take care of Rose.”
Scowling, Mammon crossed his arms. “You don’t gotta tell us that.”
With one last look at her face and a whirl of his jacket, Lucifer disappeared through the door.
Mammon stepped forward, reaching out to take her arm, but Asmo and Belphie were quicker. Peppering her with questions, they whisked her from the room with Beel and Levi close behind.
He wished she would stop them. If only she would brush them off and come back to his arms…
As the others pulled her along, she looked back over her shoulder, searching until her eyes met his. Was he imagining the look of longing and regret in her gaze?
His brothers ushered her through the doorway, and she was gone.
There was only one thing to do. Mammon trudged after them, pulling up the rear. If he couldn’t be the one to comfort her now, he’d at least make sure she was okay.
And there would be another time to tell her how he felt.
There had to be.