My Lord's Judgment by Taylor Law

“What?” was shouted at them. When the man
stepped into the frame, both he and Samael just gawked at each
other for a moment, open mouthed.
    Sam moved first, pushing Bran behind him and
wedging his foot in the path of the door, while smacking it with
his hand, to prevent it from closing. There was a struggle over it
for a minute; until finally Samael unsheathed the Demon Dagger from
the holster Brandon had purchased for him, and laid it against the
demon’s neck, while caging him against the doorframe.
    He could hear Brandon yelling in the
background, but ignored him.
    “Asmodeus? Fancy meeting you here.” Sam
narrowed his eyes on the demon. “I wouldn’t move too quickly if I
were you.”
    “What the fuck are you doing here, Samael?”
His mouth was pressed into a thin line and he kept glancing at the
hilt of the weapon.
    “Funny, I was just wondering the same thing
about you.”
    Brandon had quieted and was looking back and
forth between them, trying to understand. “Chris? You two know each
other? Wait, Sam, what did you call him?”
    “He called me Asmodeus, my tasty little
morsel - for that is my name.” The demon grinned at Bran before
focusing again on the danger.
    “Bran, this is Asmodeus, the demon of lust.
A…you know Brandon. Now that the introductions have been made, I
want answers. You are going to provide them for me.” The
buzz humming through Sam was getting stronger and he took strength
from it, used it to focus.
    Asmodeus leered at him. “You look good Sam.
Why don’t you come in, and we’ll have a …hmmm… chat .” He
waggled his eyebrows and licked his lips, and Samael felt sick.
    “I don’t think so. I'm perfectly fine right
here. What’s going on, A?”
    “You know I can’t tell y….” he started, only
to cut off with a hiss as Samael pushed the blade tighter against
his throat.
    “Not what I want to hear. What is wanted with
Brandon? Why the entire pretense about money? Tell me!”
    “His father. His father wants him, so he set
up a situation where Brandon would have no choice.” Asmodeus was
sweating, filling Sam’s nostrils with the stink of his fear. He
never was one for fighting. Mental manipulation and sex were his
strengths.
    “Who? Give me a name.”
    “I can’t. You know I can’t. I’ve already told
you too much.” Samael drew the dagger in closer, barely breaking
skin, but A just closed his eyes and prepared for the deathblow.
Only two things stopped him from delivering it: he didn’t want to
have to explain why he killed a demon when he had been denounced -
it wasn’t considered his business anymore - and Brandon was
standing behind him. He didn’t want him to see that
    “I’m only going to say this once, so listen
very closely, Asmodeus. You will call this drug dealer and see to
this problem. You will ensure his harassment of Brandon ceases
immediately. Then you shall spread the word that Bran is
off-limits. Inform whom you must. If I catch you, his father, or
any other demons around him, I shall destroy you all. Do you
understand? You know I am able, Asmodeus—and I will . This is
no idle threat. You have seen me in action. I am permitting you one
free pass. If there is the occasion that I see you again, it will
be the last time, because you will be subsisting in the Seventh
level of Hell for the whole of eternity. Understood?” By the time
the last words had left Sam’s lips, his voice was a low growl and
he was emitting serious pressure on the blade in his hand,
practically leaning on A to do it. One movement and the demon was
finished.
    Asmodeus kept his eyes closed and stood
there, frozen. “Yes, yes. I got it. I got it,” he whispered, barely
moving his mouth.
    Samael released the demon and backed away,
latching onto Brandon’s arm as he went. He kept his eyes on his
enemy until the door had shut, before finally turning and hustling
Bran toward the car.
****

    Brandon had stepped into the fucking Rabbit
hole. Hell, stepped? He’d dove in