Heaven's Fury: A She Devil Hybrid's Journey, #1

By Miranda Alberty

Defying a wretched past..

The only family Alexus has known has been her parent's Demon friend, Al. There was a time when she was becoming who she always thought her parents wanted her to be, but three years ago that came to a screeching halt when a greedy Devil shattered her life and she lost the first love she dared to let in. One day, an Arch Demon and Angel need her help; Their Devil friend that's as mysterious as he is handsome has a shadow cast over him and they think she's the only one that can save him. Little did they know, she hasn't done anything for anyone in years.

 

To make matters worse, it turns out that the four of them are more connected than they first thought and if she continues to stand by idle, they stand to lose their lives and each other. As she slowly accepts that she'll have to intervene, will they be able to save her when the price she has to pay is more than she can handle?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Miranda Alberty
• Release date: Sep 13, 2022
• ISBN: 9798215046999

Miranda Alberty

Author's Note: Heaven’s Fury is the first novel following the She-Devil Hybrid, Alexus, and the bonds that she makes as she uncovers the truth about the past. While getting my bachelors degree, I found myself relaxing by escaping to the world of Paranormal Romance and was inspired to create a world of my own. I plan to continue Alexus’s journey and I am excited to see how she grows as a character. I have 5 cats and 2 horses at home and I am currently going back to school to get my Masters in Business Administration. I work full time in between all that in an engineering career field—Don’t ask how I became a writer; it’s a mystery to me as well. Follow me on Facebook and Instgram at Booksby_alberty for updates about the series!

Book preview

Acknowledgements

Thank you to Victoria Ellis for proofreading and being my second set of eyes! ☺

Thank you, Brooks Kohler, for being my beta reader and third set of eyes, and to my other readers for the amazing feedback! ☺

One last shout out to my Facebook friends from the groups Drunk on Love – Romance Reader’s Sanctuary and The Reading Writing Ladies for always giving me the motivation to stay focused on my writing. ☺

Chapter 1: The Pull of a Stranger

Itook a step out into the clearing as the ringing in my ears finally subsided. The air was muggy. I had no doubt that there was a storm in the making, but it would probably be a couple days. We always got the big ones that the northern part of Lake Michigan seemed to produce without fail each summer. Staring down at the ground I could tell the rocky earth really needed it. As the shaking in my hands subsided, I started to gather my thoughts.

Someone, no, something had just killed that inhuman spirit that had been after me, but what was it? More importantly, what was I going to do if it was inhuman too? In my current state I’d only be good performing as a jester in the Queen and King’s Court. At least I could still identify the beings that had it out or me. That wasn’t a feat many supernaturals possessed.

My breaths were finally becoming more even but I couldn’t bring myself to callout to whatever was still there. The space around me still felt wrong, distorted somehow. Flipping through the knowledge I had stored away in my mind there was only two things that could’ve created this feeling: Death Magic, which included Necromance Magic, or something that had a hell of a lot of power. Neither was a good thing for me.

Now about ten feet into the clearing I stopped and took a deep breath in. I can feel you, all of you, so don’t bother trying to hide. It sounded like I was confident in my ability to defend myself, but the tone I summoned didn’t match. I realized now that the presence I felt wasn’t whatever had killed that inhuman spirit but a group of supernatural’s. There were six of them in total, and while none of them felt as powerful as whatever had killed the inhuman spirit, they would definitely pack a punch in a fight. There was an Arch Angel, an Arch Demon, two Vampires, and two Werewolves and none of them were happy.

When a few seconds had passed, and no one had stepped from whatever shadows they were hiding in, I took a few steps back towards the woods that stretched for miles behind me. I’d double back and then make my way towards my place. I certainly didn’t want to stay around long enough for them to think I was looking for a fight. If they were going to walk away without any questions I wasn’t going to argue. As I spun on my heels to change my direction, I took another breath and paused. I wasn’t a piece of prey, or at least I didn’t want to be, and prey ran. Nice and slow. I doubt I could outrun all of them anyways.

Wait. My blood froze, not that that was their first indicator of my fear. The Vamp’s and Were’s could’ve smelt it miles away. Where are you going? I almost laughed at the guy’s question but stopped myself before the air could come out of my lungs.

I don’t think that’s any of your business. I tried to keep my voice level but the word think came out an octave higher than the rest. There’s no way they thought for a second that I’d be any trouble for them. Even if my fear was hidden from the supernatural abilities, my magic ability wasn’t anything to brag about, certainly not close to their level by any means.

I’m Lucas, this is Cole. It was the Arch Demon that stepped forward and spoke as he seemed to usher the Arch Angel to join him. I think, I think that we’ve been looking for you. His words were soft, like he was afraid that they’d scare me off. The Vamp that was right next to him seemed to disapprove of his engagement with me but if the Arch Demon noticed he did a brilliant job of ignoring it.

This time I let the laugh fall from my lips, I think you’ve got the wrong person. Something kept me from turning away though, and I wasn’t sure if it was Lucas’s amber eyes or Cole’s icy grey ones. Lucas’s hair was black and almost looked like it was tinted a navy blue, while Cole had sandy brown hair. My red hair that was braided forward in two pigtails was dripping with sweat from the running I had done, and I could feel my eyes burning. They must be pitch black right now. Hardening my stance on the situation, I suppressed the dim smile that had lit my face, Nobody looks for me. The pity that swallowed his face was enough to make me vomit. I don’t need his pity.

You’re Alexus, aren’t you? Alexus Teras? My heart skipped a beat. It had been years since I had heard my last name muttered. I only knew it existed because I had returned to my parents house for my birth certificate. I needed the damn thing for just about everything in the human world.

Then someone must’ve pointed you in the wrong direction. Sorry for wasting your time. This time I did turn around and started walking towards the tree line. Ms. Teras, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. Your choice. I turned back and glared at the Vampire that spoke. How dare he?

Stop it, Rich. Cole and I need her help, on her own terms, we don’t need you to scare her off. His body stance told me he respected the Vampire, that was probably twenty or so years older than the maybe twenty-nine-year-old Arch Demon, but the warning was laid on heavily. I got an instant feeling of being safe but bit the inside of my lip to chase it away. Feeling safe with people was a good way to end up dead, or worse. Please, Alexus, there’s so much we need to know and you’re the only one that we’ve been able to unbury that might have the answers.

Letting out a sigh, I wasn’t sure what to do. What could I know that these guys didn’t? Sure, it was only the one Vamp that was older, the rest were all in their late twenties to early thirties, but I was only twenty-four. Not to mention they were obviously raised within the supernatural community. What exactly is it that you don’t have answers to? I wanted to argue but the words came out on their own.

The Arch Demon and Angel’s eyes lit up and a feeling of uneasiness formed in my stomach. My mouth grew dry as I waited for Lucas to speak. There’s a friend of ours that’s burned some bridges recently and the other party isn’t too happy about it. They said they’ve laid a curse, but neither him nor us can sense anything.

Then there probably isn’t. Very few curses can fly under a person’s radar like that, let alone three of you not sensing it. The curse would have to be ancient to do that, and I don’t think there’s anyone left in any of the planes that could successfully do magic like that. I feel like they should know that, but the paranoia was unnerving. Just who exactly was this friend of theirs, and who did he piss off?

Can you at least come take a look? I felt my stomach dip again as Cole stepped forward this time. I mean, sure, we’re worried about him, but obviously if it was a death curse he wouldn’t be alive still. We’re more worried about it leading back to the community we’re in. Not all the supernaturals there could defend themselves like we can.

Letting out a sigh, I realized that this was an uphill battle that I was losing. Make that lost. Yeah, I guess.

The two of them grinned, while the older Vamp looked like he despised bringing an outsider to their community. While I couldn’t say I despised it, I certainly didn’t share the other two’s excitement. Not to mention, if whoever cursed this friend of theirs caught wind that I checked it out, I was going to catch hell. I have to warn you. Lucas dropped back from the others. He’s not super stoked that we were looking for help. So, don’t take his attitude personally. The smile he gave didn’t help quell my anxiety. Great, a drama queen.

It didn’t take long to find the hole in the ground that they all called home. Lucas opened some portals through Hell which shaved a lot of time off. Nobody asked what had been after me either. That was a relief. They were asking for my help to try and protect their friends. How could I tell them that bringing me here was counterproductive?

Cade. Lucas and Cole both ran over to him as we exited the portal from Hell. We found her. Play nice. Lucas looked back and grinned at me again.

He had told me a little about Cade on the way here. He was close to their age, twenty-eight, and had been living with them since forever. What they had said about his abilities, though, didn’t do him justice. He had immense power. Then again, I would’ve expected it if Lucas or Cole had mentioned he wasn’t just another Demon, he was a Devil. Didn’t that bring back memories.

Sorry they bothered you, you can leave now. His voice was cold, but his eyes were scared. They were a hazel color and his hair was an amber that was similar to Lucas’s eyes. I couldn’t get over the panic that was written all over his face. Something was definitely wrong.

I may not be a Vamp, but I’m not stupid. Ignoring his brash exterior, I took his hand in my own and surprise radiated from him. It probably would’ve radiated from me, too, if the simple action hadn’t brought on so much pain. Hissing, I dropped it as quickly as I had grabbed it.

Touch him, on his skin. I directed Lucas as I ignored the concern that had replaced Cade’s panic.

Lucas brought his hand to Cade’s and looked at me with a funny face. What’s your problem? Great, now I looked like a lunatic.

You brought her here to help and now you’re acting like that. Obviously, somethings wrong. Cade glanced back at me but then focused on the old Vamp, Rich. You may want to invest in some extra bodies here. Now that you’ve brought someone back that can sense the curse Leo may strike. The phrase, ignorance is bliss, never felt truer. Cade probably knew that something had been off but by keeping it from the rest of them he had kept this Leo dude at bay.

What kind of magic does Leo use? What is he? Curses could be altered by the caster once they were placed, there was no way I could leave it now.

Apparently you are stupid. The anger that overtook Cade blasted away any concern he had about me a few seconds ago. Leave. There’s lots of ways to break a curse but they can be put into two categories, easy or hard. It was apparent that this stubborn headed Devil was going to make it hard. Why do I even care? I shouldn’t have come. What are you anyways? The suspicion in his eyes made it hard not to cringe.

What I am doesn’t matter, the fact that I can remove that curse, so it isn’t altered into something worse does. So, what kind of magic does Leo use and what is he? My patience was wearing thin. I don’t think I’ve ever been this irritated with someone before. Usually, I was more irritated with myself. He let out a puff of air but stayed silent. Fine, be that way. I turned to Lucas. You asked me for help. In order to help you, you need to help me.

We were running out of time. I could feel it. I may not be as strong as I once was, but my senses were still in top notch condition. Maybe even better to compensate for my lack of power. I didn’t want to rush into this curse blind but if I had to I would. I didn’t want to put a crack in their loyalty to each other. Brushing aside my irritation and growing fear I stepped toward Cade again and took his hand.

Pain surged through me again, but I didn’t drop it this time, even when he tried to yank it away. Gritting my teeth, I closed my eyes to try and focus better. I expected his skin to be soft, most supernatural’s that come from other planes are typically well kept, but his was rough. Not quite like sandpaper, but it wasn’t like a baby’s bottom. Let go! Ignoring him, I grabbed his shirt in my other hand and pushed him back until we hit what was hopefully a wall. He grunted at the impact but didn’t say anything else. I could tell that we had a crowd of people gathered around us now and their anxiety was rising. Focusing back on the pain I tried to unweave the magic that was flowing between us.

My guess was that Leo was an Origin Demon from Hell. Unlike the Devils, Demons and Arch Demons like Lucas and Cade, Leo’s kind were created from the need of containing souls in Hell. That doesn’t explain how this curse went unnoticed by everyone other than Cade. No Origin Demon would have this level of power, not on their own at least. Finally finding the core of the curse I cringed, whoever helped him create this was a monster. Ignoring the approaching energy, that was eerily similar to this curse, I started feeding my energy into it. After about ten seconds it started to crack and a few seconds later it dissolved into wisps.

Opening my eyes, I looked up to Cade, who probably had about seven inches on me at six-foot and dropped his hand again. I was waiting for him to make some kind of declaration, but instead he just looked down at my hand that was still fisted in his shirt. Embarrassed, I dropped that too and took a step back. Clearing my throat, I found a spot on the ground to stare at, You have bigger problems than Leo. He didn’t make that on his own.

Can you tell us who did? Cole had hope in his eyes. I missed having that emotion.

Someone powerful, someone capable of casting Ancient Magic and someone that’s a monster. His eyes grew dark, and I felt his power amp up. He was the scary one of the three, that was for sure. Demons are cunning, full of mischief and sly in almost every situation, but Angels don’t mess around when their kin, or people they perceive as their kin, are threatened.

What do you mean, a monster? Rich looked at me, intrigued by my presence for the first time.

I mean that curse that was placed, it was a poison. Every person he touched or was even just in close proximity to was exposed to it. If it had gone on, you all would’ve been taken  out in a small-scale genocide. Fear and panic re-entered Cade’s gaze.

What about everyone, are they okay? Do they need help, medication or something? The panic on his face made him look disheveled. It made me sick.

They’re fine. When the curse was removed so were its effects. Ordinarily that wouldn’t be the case, but like I said before, someone gave Leo the ability to cast it, it wasn’t his own magic ability so there were flaws.

How sure are you? Doubt filled his gaze, but the panic subsided.

Positive, I’d feel it in the others if I was wrong. A wave of dizziness swept through me, and I went to drop to my knee to steady myself.

Alexus? Lucas came up behind me and placed a hand on my shoulder. You’re burning up. Fear came at me in all directions now. I was pathetic, I couldn’t even withstand breaking an Ancient Magic curse anymore.

I’m good, think of it as a side effect. I gave him a weak smile and stood back up. Urging my body not to give out just yet I looked back at Cade, I don’t suggest letting your guard down. Sorry I can’t give you more specifics to go off of. I’ll see myself out. Turning slowly, I looked around for the first time. The whole place was swamped in magic particles, none of them belonged here though. Someone was manifesting. Hesitating a moment longer I recognized that energy, it was the same one that was in the core of the curse. Shit was about to hit the fan.

Chapter 2: The Ghost of My Past

Seeing the particles start to condense behind Cade, my instincts kicked in despite my screaming body and my inability to cause any real damage. The clearing we were in was pretty open, it had been a cabin of some kind that I had backed him into earlier. Launching towards him I realized I wasn’t going to make it in time. Summoning the little magic that I could, I blasted myself forward through an invisible dimension using the spell Territory and flung Cade out of the way as a blade formed and pierced me through my abdomen.

Gasps flew out of everyone’s mouth, maybe ten or so left in the clearing, and a few screams sounded off. One of them was probably mine. Rich and Cole flew forward and then dragged me back a good ten feet while Lucas leapt to Cade’s side. This was so not good. There’s your original caster, Cade. I looked over to him, blood leaking out of the corner of my mouth. The two were pretty even magic wise, but there was something off about this newcomer that left me cold in the chest.

Anger