“Of course, Great Scala.”
“We’ll need transport to the Courthouse Pulpitum,” says Lincoln.
“Yes, Your Highness. Are you ready for the countdown?”
“Not yet. First, we need three cleanup crews sent to the Wheeler Institute. Red level urgency. My private patrols only. Once they arrive, they’re to find a protector named Jeeves. He’ll give them instructions.”
“Yes, I’ll relay the command immediately.”
“And Marty?” asks Lincoln. “Acca is not welcome to join them.”
“But your father ordered—”
“Absolutely not. No members from the House of Acca are to be on that cleanup crew. The King can approach me directly if he has any questions.”
“Acca will put up a fight,” warns Marty.
“My personal patrols can handle it.” Lincoln takes my hand. Together, we step onto the center of the metal disc. After that, we get into position by standing face-to-face. Lincoln wraps his solid arms around my waist. Something deep inside my soul quiets.
My guy’s voice sounds gently in my ear. “Are you ready?”
“As I’ll ever be.”
“Marty, send us to the Courthouse Pulpitum on my mark. Three, two, one.”
A long pause follows. Both Lincoln and I stiffen. Normally, the Pulpitum would have taken off right away.
“Marty?” I ask. “Are you all right?”
More seconds tick by before Marty’s low voice booms through the deserted barn. “My apologies. We’ve had some issues with demonic alarms. One just went off and shut down the Pulpitum. I’ll have you ready in a moment.”
Lincoln and I share a puzzled look. Recently, we had some serious issues with the Pulpitum being misused by Acca. In fact, it was a key factor in how Lady Adair was able to cause so much trouble. For obvious reasons, the thrax don’t have any Pulpitums that run to Hell. Lady Adair was still able to sneak her possessed ass around on them, though, thanks to her Acca buddies who were working at Transfer Central. After the problems were discovered, we’d been clearing out Acca personnel from manning the Pulpitums. It hasn’t been easy.
A fissure of unease winds through me. Is Acca planning something with the Pulpitum again?
Stay calm, Myla. The Pulpitums are fine.
Lincoln slowly rubs his chin, his eyes lost in thought. “Why the demon alarms?”
“The guests are already arriving for your wedding, including demonic diplomats. We tried to adjust the Pulpitums to allow them to enter, but the alarms still go off.”
Marty’s explanation sounds fine. Even so, something about it doesn’t feel right. “Who was entering just now?”
“Demonic delegation from Purgatory.” A rustling of paper sounds as Marty checks records. “The Acheron?”
Lincoln looks at me questioningly. I know what he’s thinking even if he doesn’t voice his concerns. You’ve heard of them?
I nod. “They’re a family of wrath demons who were exiled when Armageddon took over Hell. They’ve been big supporters of my mother’s.”
“One moment. I need to reset my console.” Another tense minute passes before Marty lets out a long sigh of relief. “Ah, now everything’s working again. Transferring you to the Courthouse station in three, two—”
“Wait a moment,” says Lincoln.
“Your Highness?”
“I’d asked that all Acca personnel be removed from Pulpitum duty. I have the sneaking suspicion that hasn’t happened. Is this the case?”
Marty clears his throat. “Yes, you certainly asked for their removal.” The way his voice sounds is nothing less than über-guilty. “I’ll resume the transfer in three—”
“Not so fast.” I stare up at the ceiling where I know the vid cameras are hidden. “Lincoln asked if his orders were followed.”
“About Acca?” Marty’s words come out as a squeak.
“Yup. Spill it, dude.”
“No, the King himself overrode those orders. We still have representatives from the House of Acca doing regular shifts for operating the Pulpitums.” He lowers his voice to a whisper. “They’re here right now.”
Lincoln starts holding me so tight it’s getting hard to breathe. I loop my arms around his neck. “We’ll take care of the Pulpitums soon.” I make sure to say that loud enough for Marty to hear. “We have to finish at the courthouse first, right? Once we take care of Aldred, everything else will fall into place.” I make sure Marty hears that part, too. The sooner everyone stops fearing Aldred, the better.
Lincoln nods slowly. This bums him out. I can tell.
My heart goes out to Lincoln. This happens time and again. Lincoln gives an order, and Connor could give a crap about whatever Lincoln decrees…Unless it has to do with Acca.
Lincoln stares at the ceiling. A muscle ticks in his jaw. “You’re right.”
“Hey, I’m always right.”