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As soon as the door had closed behind Angel, the once cheerful and uplifted atmosphere in the office vanished, replaced by a mood of annoyance and frustration.
“Jesus fuckin’ Christ… That fucking whore… Where the fuck does he get off making suggestions?” Grumbled Valentino, clicking his lighter and touching the flame to the tip of a fresh cigarette until it smouldered, taking a long drag and exhaling the smoke towards his compatriots. “Remind me again why we need him so much?” He bemoaned, ignoring how Velvet and Vox waved away the smoke.
“For some reason, that radio-hack has a thing for that piece of fluff’s ass and if we want to finally get rid of that vacuum-tubed shit head, we need to use the spider.” Vox answered robotically. He had repeated this speech so many times, he had the damn thing committed to memory. He had been about to pull out his phone and start scrolling as Velvet cackled under her breath, reaching out and taking one of the red velvet cupcakes sat on the tray on the table. Vox watched carefully as she peeled back the wrapped and took a bite, wondering if they were really safe to eat. It wasn’t the first time she had promised not to taint a batch and then reveal that only the one she was eating was safe.
He still remembered how much glass he had to pick out of his teeth after last time.
“As soon as we get what we need, we won’t have to deal with either of them.” Velvet chimed in casually, scooping frosting onto her finger and licking it off. She lounged back on her chair, lying on her back with her legs in the air, slurping the blood red frosting off of her fingers with indecent relish. She was smearing the remnants on her phone screen as she scrolled through Voxtagram. Valentino had no doubt that she would whine about it later like the petulant child that she was.
“Just… Remind me why we can’t just nuke that hotel and wipe them all out? We’ve got enough holy weapons to wipe that place off of the face of hell forever.” Vox complained, shifting away from Velvet as a drop of frosting dared to look like it might land on his pant leg.
“Do you want Lucifer to squash you? Because that’s how you get erased. No exterminated. Erased. He will remove any proof that you ever existed.” Valentino warned, with all the insistence of someone who had seen it happen before.
“What makes you so sure?” Velvet challenged him, moving over onto her stomach, her foot narrowly missing hitting Vox in the side of the screen.
“You aren’t the first partnership I’ve been in. I was just the only one who was smart enough to keep from being implicated in their bullshit plan. We need to be smarter than those pissants ever had a dream of being.” Valentino leaned forwards, his red eyes glaring at his partners from behind his glasses. “Are you two going to be that stupid or are we going to actually do this right and take that grinning son of an unholy whore down?”
Vox pulled out a roll of paper from the inside of his jacket and laid it out on the table, detailing their plan. Velvet righted herself and leaned in to look, her eyes, already glowing maniacally from all of the sugar running through her system, glowed in the darkness of the office, the glare of Vox’s screen illuminating the paper for all to see.
“Every time I see it, the more I fucking love it…” Velvet cooed over the paper like she was looking down at her first-born child.
Valentino laughed darkly under his breath, leaning back in his seat. At the bottom of the page, there were three blank lines, waiting to be filled with their signatures. When his compatriots still looked hesitant, he spoke.
“We are friends are we not?
And our interests are the same
We collaborate
And trust in fate to parcel out the blame…”
“There are ends we've all got
That can justify the means
We negotiate
Then fabricate the facts behind the scenes!” Vox replied, running a tongue made of pixels over dagger sharp teeth.
“Keeping all the details vague
And secrets hidden
Safe on the balanced sheet of those you trust!” Velvet cackled, wiping off her fingers and plucking three quill pens out of nowhere.
“Because, history is a story told by the winners of the fight!” Valentino announced, arms spread wide. Like flies to a carcass, Vox and Velvet moved from their seats and sat down, leaning in against his sides.
“You imply a little…” Velvet cooed, malicious grin in full view and fine form.
“Lie a little…” Valentino added, twirling his cigarette between his fingers.
“Testify a little…
Try a little…” Vox withdrew a lighter from his jacket and offered Valentino the flame.
“Spider…” Valentino leaned in and ignited the end.
“Who's gonna question what goes on in the middle of the night?” Vox pulled out two smokes of his own, handing one to Velvet and lighting them both.
“Not a tinker, not a tailor,
Not the princess or Angel…” Velvet took a drag off of the smoke and exhaling it.
“Or Lucifer.” Valentino added, yellow teeth gleaming, smoke curling over their heads.
“So we all are agreed?” Velvet asked, leaning over Valentino’s lap and his claws settled in her hair, petting her like an adored pet cat.
“Let's be vigilant and wise.” Vox stated, picking up the paper from the table.
“We must all pretend our naive friend was caught in his own lies.” Velvet breathed, pulling out her phone and preparing to take a selfie of the three of them but Vox snatched her phone away, much to her annoyance.
“For our plan to succeed we must share but one belief
The Radio Demon stays and ends his days
Inside the pits of Hell!” Vox almost shouted, jumping to his feet, Valentino forcing him back down and against him again.
“Where the softest things he'll touch are stones and darkness
Deep in the frozen cliffs and harpy's keep!” Velvet sat up on her knees, reaching over Valentino’s lap to reach for her phone.
“Because, history's a story told by the ones who make the laws!” Valentino interjected, snatching the phone away from Vox’s grasp and tucking it away in his coat.
“We supply a little lie
To help the gullible to buy a little fable!
What will become of the righteous men who fashioned Radio’s flaws?!” Vox, never one for maturity, stuck his tongue out at Velvet. The Doll demon was glaring at him.
"The rich
And well respected
Are no more to be rejected at our table!” Velvet, sulking, picked up another cupcake, licking the frosting off the top.
“I'll be comfort in his time of grief and anguish
I'll be Angel's ever faithful ‘acolyte’.” Valentino crowed sarcastically, chortling under his breath at the idea.
“Every night!” Velvet supplied, eyes dancing again.
“A part of me wishes Alastor didn't have to languish….” Valentino had an eye for talent and the deer’s slim figure was perfect.
“But I can see
It's him or we!” Vox spat, slapping the paper down on the table.
“Let him sit there and rot till he's forgot!” Velvet declared, handing out the quills.
“Let him rot!” Valentino roared, pricking a finger with the sharpened nip.
“History's a story told by the people who survive!” Vox and Velvet said together, painting the nibs with their own blood.
“Let me sign and then initial,
It's the truth if it's officially the story!” Valentino scrawled his name in flowing script on the top line.
“What if the cost is just one Overlord so three more can survive?” Velvet signed her own on the line underneath.
“He's a price we have to pay
To live and fight another day for love and glory!” Vox finished, rolling up the paper again once he had put down his own name and stashing it away in his pocket.
“He was standing in the way of precious justice set in hell!” Valentino offered his hand out towards his colleagues.
“So goes the story!” Vox extended his own.
“Stick to the story!” Velvet announced, putting forth hers.
“Here ends the story!” They finished together, Valentino and Vox clasping hands and Velvet placing her own over the top, setting the agreement in stone.
They separated, enjoying the feeling of a fresh victory. But there was still something that was taking root in Velvet’s mind and she had to air her concerns.
Valentino, smoke in hand and looking like he had been presented with the keys to hell on a silver platter, was heading for the door but she had to stop him.
“Val… What makes you think that Angel will really go along with this plan? He doesn’t even know he’s involved.”
Valentino turned around to face, pinning her down with a look.
“Oh Velvet… Darling. Haven't you come to realise it by now? I’m his master and the master of this house.”