Chapter 5: Part 1/5

“So, they want to kill her?” Alice said.

“Meredith does, and she’s got the incubus wrapped around her finger,” I replied.

“That’s not good.”

“If the vote is already guaranteed then they’re putting it all on me. I’m angry at her but I can’t be the reason she dies. She’s a fucking nightmare though because everything they said about her was true. She was going to leave me to die, and she’ll do it to the next idiot that summons her as well.”

“I don’t know what to say,” Alice said, reaching over to rub my arm. “I don’t really know what you can do, either. I’m not really much help.”

I sighed, and shook my head. “No, you are. I would be a mess without you here. You’re keeping me sane.”

Alice smiled at me, a whole lot of unspoken words lingering between us. She wanted to talk about us when we got back home, after she had time to process all of my betrayals. She was too good to me, refusing to leave me behind or express the hurt she was feeling while the weight of a life rested on my shoulders.

“We can talk it over as much as you want,” she said, before finally thinking a little of herself, for once. “Can I shower first though?”

I chuckled. “Oh God, yeah, of course. Sorry. Take as much time as you want. I don’t think they have water bills down here.”

“Then where does the water come from?” Alice asked. I didn’t have an answer, and she laughed at the dumb look on my face as the thought crossed my mind. She picked up some clothes first, and then took them into the bathroom with her. Smooth jazz was playing on the radio.

I felt a little guilty, freeloading in Lily’s flat while she was in prison, but the game is the game. The elders had provided us with three options. We could stay in the cells, because there’s beds there. We could stay in Alice’s original conference room, but there was only one sofa in there to share. Or we could go back to Lily’s place and spend the night there. That made the most sense to me. It made even more sense to Alice, who had spent all of her time in the underworld naked under a dressing gown, and she was desperate for a shower.

After Meredith made her proposal, we didn’t stay for much longer. We were taken back to Serena, who gave us our options for the night, before explaining that we would be collected by her staff before the trial started the following day. She assured us that we would be sent home immediately after the issue was dealt with, and that we would be returned within an hour or two of when we left.

We were flown back to the central megabuilding by a couple of incubi. It was my second time flying, making me an expert, and I managed to hold my nerve and not scream in front of the male demon. Alice loved it, shrieking in joy as they buzzed around in the sky above us. Her guy was definitely trying to impress her, and offered to share her bed that night if she so desired. She turned him down, thankfully.

I remembered the route back to Lily’s flat, and took us the rest of the way, with a few curious demons on our tail as we walked through the courtyard and into the corridor. It was easy enough to spot which one was hers. There was a portaloo outside, and a bag of snacks hanging off the front door.

“Don’t they use the toilet?” I said, and Alice shook her head.

“They had a public bathroom outside my room, but it’s only there for the occasional human visitor,” she answered.

I hadn’t used the toilet all day. I suppose it all burned out of me during the fiery transition into this world. I didn’t notice the lack of one in Lily’s bathroom during my shower, either. I was well aware by that point that they both ate and drank down here, but what a treat it would be to not need to go to the toilet. This was one thing they had better than us. We confirmed there was no toilet in the bathroom when we got inside.