“Sometimes, good beings must do things that in isolation seem wicked in order to serve the greater purpose.” She sighed, and Her eyes dimmed. For a split second, I saw the exhaustion in her that I saw so frequently in Father. “But you, my son, you found the capacity for love, for kindness, for selflessness, all on your own, and you proved that you are exactly who both Heaven and Hell need.”

“And what if I don’t want that?” I demanded, tail flicking. “What if I wish to abdicate both those crowns and leave both kingdoms to anarchy?”

What if I want to permanently abandon this devil’s body and live a human existence with the only woman who has ever made me feel like I was worthy?

“You won’t.” She said it with such conviction that the thudding in my chest silenced.

“Won’t I?”

She shook her head. “You will not, because you care for the Human Realm too much to let it be the battleground of that war. And you know that is what it would come to.”

“I care nought for the Human Realm, besides it being Jemma’s home,” I muttered.

A flash of triumph lit Her face. I wanted to cringe away from Her. “Ah yes, and we return to Jemma Bliss. Such a sweet, good, kind soul. Volunteering with sick children, making all those critter owners feel welcome at her little market stalls.” She sighed dramatically. “It truly would be such a terrible shame … if her world turned into an arena of chaos and violence, all because the male who claimed to love her refused to protect her and her kind.”

A growl rumbled up my throat, and my tail lashed around me. “Are you threatening me?” I demanded.

She shrugged, completely nonchalant. “Merely pointing out the likely outcome of you not fulfilling the destiny you were raised for.” A hint of that smirk tickled at Her lips.

“You know nothing of my feelings for Jemma!”

“Do I not?” She asked snidely. “Do you think I haven’t been keeping a very close eye on you these past weeks, son? Your ‘mission’ with Jemma was your final test, the proof that you are ready, have the right … temperament … for me to set into motion the next phase of this plan.”

“And you think I passed? I broke her!” I rasped. “I put her through … Hell … but worse, somehow, in the midst of all the humiliation I manufactured for her, I made her fall in love with me. And all that did was put her in more danger—do you know what my sister is like? Do you know what she’s capable of? Because I fear I have barely scratched the surface of the depths of her depravity.”