Page 35 of Mortis

“Here you go.”

I handed him the cutlery. As he’d done several times already, he stared at them with complete confusion.

“What are these?”

I blinked. “They don’t have knives and forks in Hell?”

“Lucifer has a fork.”

I snorted. “So I’ve heard.”

“Higher demons may use them,” he continued, entirely serious. “Lower creatures such as me simply use their hands.”

I shrugged and left the cutlery beside his plate before dropping into Arlo’s vacated chair. “I’ll teach you another time.”

A yawn ambushed me. My jaw popped and my eyes watered. Now that the food was cooked, the adrenaline was finally leaving my system, and exhaustion was rushing in to take its place. At this point, I didn’t give a fuck if the beastie ate me. As long as he let me have a nap first.

Kael glanced between me and the plate. I realised he was still waiting.

“Dig in,” I said. “Let me know what He thinks.”

His eyes immediately flared red. The Beast turned towards the window. Outside, the sky had shifted to pale blue. Soon the first hints of sunlight would creep over the rooftops.

“Dawn approaches, mortal,” He rumbled. “This is his final chance.”

I rolled my eyes.

“Yeah, yeah.” I waved a hand. “Eat your dinner before it gets cold.”

The Beast grunted. Then launched Himself at the food. Smoke curled around His hands and mouth, revealing black claws and rows of razor-sharp teeth. He tore into the meat with alarming enthusiasm, grunting and smacking His lips between bites. Every so often, His glowing eyes flicked towards me before returning to the plate.

He didn’t speak. Didn’t react. Didn’t give away a single thought. I had no idea whether He loved it, hated it, or was merely tolerating it. So I sat there and watched Him eat like a zoo animal.

If He decided it wasn’t good enough, I hoped He’d at least let me say goodbye to Kael first. Not that I should’ve cared. I’d only known him for a few hours. But he’d seemed . . . nice.

Flesh-eating demon monster aside.

Sure, he had a murderous alter ego. Who didn’t have flaws? And he looked so genuinely happy when I used his name. Like nobody had spoken it in a very long time.

I must’ve drifted off for a moment. When I looked up again, the meat was gone. The Beast was staring suspiciously at a single chip pinched between His claws. “What is this confection?”

“A chip.”

He turned it over. Then turned it over again.

“It’s potato,” I explained. “Salty. Soft in the middle. Crunchy outside.”

The Beast hummed thoughtfully. Then slowly extended a forked tongue and licked the chip. Once. Twice. Apparently satisfied, He crunched it between His teeth. His eyes widened. Before He’d even swallowed, He scooped up an entire handful and shoved them into His mouth. I would’ve thought that many chips would be difficult to chew.

Apparently, demon teeth solved that problem.

When the plate was empty, He stared at it for several seconds, then picked it up and licked it clean. Honestly, I wasn’t even surprised. When He finally set it back down, the porcelain practically sparkled.

The Beast leaned back in His chair, and when our eyes met, I smirked.

“Enjoy that?”

He didn’t answer straight away. Instead, He tilted His head one way and then the other. Like He was listening to something only He could hear. Maybe He and Kael were arguing.