Damned If You Do by Marie Sexton Page B

longing that blossomed in Seth’s heart. The twinge of arousal in his loins. The undeniable joy at being as close as they were. The knowledge made Abaddon ache in the most wonderful, horrible way, and he pulled away, taking a step backward before he did something foolish.
    â€œYou’re Abaddon,” Seth said, his voice a shaky whisper. “But are you the Abaddon? The Destroyer?”
    Abaddon was glad to have something to take his mind off his desire, and off the fact that Seth apparently felt the same way. “Angel of the Abyss, you mean? King of the Army of Locusts?”
    Seth finally turned his blind eyes toward Abandon’s face. “Are you?”
    â€œNo. I’m not him. When we cross over, they make us choose a name, but there aren’t that many to choose from. Mammon, Azazal, Beelzebub, Mestama. Maybe a dozen more. They added Damien in the seventies, thanks to Hollywood.” He laughed, although it came out wrong. “We have it better than the women though. They only have three: Lilith, Lamashtu, and Lamia. They petition to add Delilah every few decades, but it never passes.”
    â€œBut does the real Abaddon exist?”
    Abaddon blinked, surprised by the question. “I don’t know. Probably, I guess.”
    â€œAnd Satan? Have you met him? Or God?”
    â€œI’ve never seen either one of them in person.”
    â€œBut you know they’re real?”
    Abaddon wasn’t sure he liked where this was going. “I guess.”
    â€œAnd if devils are real, then angels must be too, right?”
    â€œOh, sure.” He was glad they’d moved away from God. “Angels are real.”
    â€œHave you seen them?”
    â€œWell, devils only see angels if the angel wants to be seen. They can hide from us, although we can’t hide from them. They always know us on sight, although I’m not sure how. But I’ve met a couple over the years. I ran into Hadraniel at Sturgis once, and I sat next to Ambriel at a Doobie Brothers concert.”
    â€œWho are the Doobie Brothers, and what’s a sturgis?”
    Abaddon laughed. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter.”
    Seth nodded, but Abaddon could tell his thoughts were elsewhere. “I think it must be your eyes that give you away.”
    â€œWhat do you mean?”
    â€œEarlier, when you let me see you…”
    â€œYes?”
    â€œYour eyes were wrong. They were…empty. And I don’t mean that in some poetic way. I mean, they were utterly black. I could see the abyss in them.”
    â€œOh.” Abaddon touched each eyelid with a fingertip. They felt normal enough to him. Then again, he didn’t really remember what they’d felt like before he’d crossed over. “I didn’t know.”
    â€œThat must not be how the others see you though. The girls keep teasing me, telling me how it’s unfair to waste somebody as good-looking as you on a man who can’t even see him. But they never mention your eyes being wrong.”
    There were too many pieces of that confession that intrigued Abaddon. His fathomless eyes, and Seth being teased as if they were a couple, and…
    â€œWhat exactly do you tell them about me? How did you explain me finding you all the way in Alabama?”
    â€œI told them the truth, but I let them think it’s a joke. They all guess, and when they come up with something that sounds reasonable, I give a vague answer, like, ‘Yeah, that’s about right.’”
    Abaddon found himself smiling. “So you don’t have to lie?”
    â€œNot outright, at any rate. The general consensus is that you lost your job and your house and maybe your wife, and now you’re living out of your car. They all think you’re following me around because you’ve fallen in love with me. It’s easier to let them believe that than to tell them you just like the flavor of my soul.”
    There was a question buried