Hallows: The Golden Viper

Three, Two, One. Boom!

The Neighbourhood- Sweater Weather

Delilah

Having Dad here in the house is strange. Before purgatory, I was used to having Mom pop in and out. Her presence was always around. The piano was enough to tell me she would always come back. When she appeared in front of me in purgatory, I didn't know how to react. I thought someone was trying to get a rise out of me and I struck her down. But seeing them together takes me back to a simpler time. A time I hate remembering because not only did it cause B.B. a whole lot of pain, it f****d me up a little too.

Mom fell apart when he left us. B.B. rejected everything our father was. She was so angry at him. I didn't get the opportunity to think about what I felt when he left. I had s**t to take care of. I threw myself into work. Violence and drugs became everything to me. My outlet. The only thing that was mine after he left. Now that he's back. It feels like his presence is suffocating me. I want him gone. He hasn't changed a bit. He's still a monumental f*****g asshole. I've been taking any opportunity to make him feel like s**t and it's kind of helping me cope because he just takes it. He thinks it's funny and I get to let this rage inside of me out.

"You're glaring," Stacy whispers in my ear.

I look over at her and then glance back at my father who is sitting in my sister's spot reading some of her science journals. I hate that he's just touching her things like he has the right to. Do you know who else hates people touching her things? B.B.

"Dad, what the f**k are you doing?" I ask. He looks up at me confused.

"Uh, reading?" he holds up the journal.

"Those are B.B.'s private things. She doesn't like people touching her s**t,"

Dylan and Marcos both snicker from the couch but say nothing.

"I don't see why you would," he points at me with the journal. "I doubt you would understand anything in them,"

"Oh, s**t," Marcos laughs.

"What is this about?" he sighs and lowers the journal. "Am I not paying enough attention to you, Del?"

"What?" I glare at him. "No, just stop touching B.B.'s s**t. If you so much as put a scratch on that or fold a page she will f*****g have a fit and I have to be the one to deal with it,"

"Okay," he nods and folds the f*****g corner of the page to save his spot. Why the f**k would he do that? What a psychopath!

"Oh, no!" Dylan jumps up and snatches it from him. "Mr. B, why? You will upset the balance. B.B. will f*****g go nuclear if she sees this. Nerf!"

"Sir," his demon comes out of nowhere. He holds up the book and the demon's eyes widen. "Oh, no. I will go get the flat iron. You get the bandana," the demon takes the journal holding it out like it's made of glass, and slowly takes it over to the studying table in the back corner. "Who would do such a thing?"

"See," I point at them.

"f**k. I wouldn't have done it if you hadn't interrupted me. I was getting to the good part," he sighs. "Does she really make a big deal out of that?"

"Dante, you once trashed your suite when Kelly read the lyrics to one of your songs over your shoulder while you were writing them," Mom laughs.

"That's personal," Dad and I say at the same time. I hate when people read over my shoulder like that. I've elbowed Lucien and Carson in the mouth a couple of times for that very reason. Bunch of nosy Rosies, both of them.

"Those are too," she points at the journals lining the wall next to him.

"Whatever," he sits up. "How do you think their date is going?"

"Great," Stacy answers without hesitation. She's probably right. B.B. just has a way with people. The little asshole gets away with everything.

"How do you figure?" Mom asks.

"B.B. is like the Disney princess of monsters. All she has to do is bat her eyes and smile. Boom, instant simp poison," she smirks. We all laugh.

"Very true," Dylan nods.

"Did you guys know that they go out to the stump to fight?" Dad asks.

"Oh, yeah. We call that Thursday Night Thunderdome. We set it up when the girls wanted their own day," Marcos nods. "The Daemons and the Apocolypse stones join us. We all let off some steam,"

"Wait, you guys have a Hallow's fight club?" Dad asks interested.

"Yeah, Dec and San started it a few weeks ago. They know others like us. Last week we had this guy come in from Florida. Dude f*****g wrecked San," Dylan laughs.

"That big Russian guy that rocked Lucien's s**t was my favorite," Marcos nods.

"Aww, Anthony, and Kelly would have loved that," Dad says under his breath.

"I have a question," Stacy asks.

"Sure," he points at her.

"From what B.B. has gathered, she says a more proper term for Hallows would be Upior. We're demonic entities born to the damnation of hell. So, my question is. What happens when we go to hell? Are we like seriously cursed to be f*****g assholes up here and then die only to be rewarded with eternal suffering? Who is setting us up like this? I'd like a word,"

"Holy s**t," Mom laughs. "You are definitely Tam's daughter,"

"We don't talk about that woman in this house," Stacy crosses her arms over her chest. "A lot like none of us talk about you,"

"Ouch," Marcos clears his throat.

"Right, I apologize," Mom says sarcastically but it's obvious it hurt her feelings.

"It varies," Dad answers. "And wrong. Upior, are different from us actually. They're just a few steps more evolved than Wendigos. We can negotiate with Upior. Wendigos are a lost cause, but I see why she would think that. Lots of folklore out there.

"Okay," he sits up. "Let me put it into words that you guys can understand. Heaven and Hell are not real. The afterlife is. It's an eternity of what you yourself think you are worthy of. If you regret all the s**t you did alive if you feel guilty about what you've done. It's not going to be pleasant. I can't tell you what to expect simply because I don't know what it is you think you deserve in this life or the next and every once in a while, your DNA is reborn and you get another shot at f*****g s**t up. Unless your soul is damaged, Then it just poofs away forever,"

Is that true or is he just messing with us?

"What is your afterlife like?" Dylan asks.

"Well, a lot like my real life. It doesn't belong to me. I gave it away," he answers. "I am a servant to a higher entity that was born in the afterlife. He granted me the power I have to be here,"

"Can you see our parents?" Marcos asks.

"Yeah," he nods. "I've seen Beli around,"

"Is she okay?" he doesn't look up at him.

"She is," he smiles. "But I doubt there's a place anywhere Belinda wouldn't survive in,"

"What about Mr. And Mrs. Daniels?" I ask. My parents both look up at me.

"No one calls them that," Mom laughs. "Carter would have a f*****g fit. Lily thinks it's hilarious,"

"Wait, humans go where we go too?"

"Not exactly," Dad shakes his head. "Carter and Lily were a special case. Like your mother. Because they were properly claimed by us. By the time they died, they were closer to being like us than they were to being human,"

"They have to go through trails as well," Mom adds. "We have to transcend from mortality to whatever we become and it's not an easy thing to do,"

"Although Lily made it look like a f*****g game," Dad laughs. "She liked the last trial so much it fell on your mother to go there and bring her out,"

"Yeah, a lot of people were upset I pulled her out of the pit," Mom nods.

"Wait, Creepy Lily is Lucien's mother? The demon duchess that was in the pit organizing riots and c*****e is Lucien Daniels's mom?" I ask. They both laugh.

"Yeah," they nod.

"Holy s**t," I sit back. "I tried to kill her a couple of times but she was f*****g unkillable. She tried to recruit me into her little gang,"

"And you said no?" Mom laughs.

"Yeah, the f**k. I am no one's b***h," I roll my eyes. "I totally understand Daniels a little more now. I always wondered where he got his Manson cult leader personality from. That guy can say anything on social media without anyone coming after him. I know Mr. Daniels was sweetie so I get he gets that from him,"

"He does," Mom smiles fondly.

"What about Kelly and Carter?"

"Carter was down there too but once his time was up he went back to Kelly. They're collectors," Dad says.

"What's that?" Dylan asks.

"There are different ranks of demons. Dealers are summoned and they grant wishes in exchange for damnation. Some humans, mostly hunters. They find a way to avoid paying up. Carter and Kelly are the ones that are summoned to collect. They have a f*****g pack of trained hellhounds. And not like the Phantoms. I mean real big monster hounds that fetch souls," Mom shakes her head.

"Tony and Lily are royalty. Sort to speak," Dad adds. "They're our neighbors. He took over the Berserker rings in Tartarus with Brad, Beli, and Teegan,"

"What are the Berserker rings?" Stacy asks.

"Uh, they're a type of demonic entity. Like Dante and Tony. They can devastate masses in a single sweep. It's usually reserved for Reapers and Crows. The higher rank demons like to go down there to test their endurance and stuff," Mom explains.

"Cool," Dylan and Marcos smile at one another. SLUT ME OUT by NLE Choppa begins to play and Stacy pulls her phone out to answer.

"What's up, Nat?" she answers. "Right now?" she looks up at the guys. "Okay," she tucks her phone away. "Nat wants us at the clubhouse. The guys are back. Car and Luc are on B.B. duty and they're headed back. I do not want to be here for that,"

"Say less," the guys both jump off the couch. She takes B.B.'s keys off the desk and they all leave together. I can't take B.B.'s Jeep because she ruined it. So, I am going to take Lucien's. He just got it back. I hope I crash it just to piss him off.

"The date went well," I sigh.

"Before you go," Dad says as I get up. I drop back into my seat and look up at them. "I know," he says. I look over at Mom confused and then back at him. "I know you're not a Hallow,"

I look between them and sit back, resting my arms on the armrests. I am one hundred percent sure that little slip came from Ash. No one else knows. I made sure of it. Mom sighs and takes a seat in front of me. I've been trying to avoid this conversation. To even think about it.

"Why are you hiding it from the others?" she asks. Now that demon is out of the summoning circle. I might as well talk to someone about it. Why not the two assholes that are in the same boat as me. The same f*****g boat I don't want B.B. to be on.

"How am I supposed to look B.B. in the eyes and tell her that she's alone?" I ask. "That she's the last Blackstone alive? That we all f*****g abandoned her? Chance gave me a choice. He said he would send me back as long as I served. I rather live in this mortal f*****g body until it rots than tell her that she has no one anymore,"

"I think she would understand," she says. "She's not alone,"

"I know she would," I look down at my hands. "I know B.B. will always f*****g understand and forgive me. She doesn't have to this time. Maybe when she's dead and the Queen of hell because we all know she's going to make that f*****g thing fall in love with her. I'll tell and explain it to her that I didn't want her to be alone,"

"But you're here," she shakes her head. "You're with her. You shouldn't-"

"It doesn't change anything. You're here. Dad is here but her Delilah and her parents aren't. That's what the two of you don't f*****g understand. We're not-" I stop when the Phantom's lights flash in the window behind me. "We're not the family she had. We're different. She's still our B.B. Full of life and love. We're dead and f*****g gone and if I can prevent more of what we've already done. I will,"

"I was thinking something cool like Dusk Incorporated," B.B.'s voice comes from the front door.

"Dusk?" Carson asks. "Hard pass, Princess,"

"Aww," she huffs.

"What about just giving it the ol' Blackstone name? I mean this is your idea," Lucien suggests. "Bruce Wayne it. Blackstone Enterprises,"

"No," she shakes her head as they come into the library. "It's too obvious and borders on cliche. Besides, the plan is for me to become a Hayashi. It doesn't make sense,"

"I'm sorry, what?" Dad interrupts them.

"We're trying to figure out what we're going to call the company we're starting once we finish cleaning up the fields and open them up," B.B. explains. "Hellbourne's unemployment rate is about to take a massive hit. Espinosa predicts a double-digit percentage drop,"

"He was talking about you becoming a Hayashi," Mom laughs.

"Oh, yeah. Carson is going to be president and we all decided I'd make a cool First Lady," she says nonchalantly. "I have a princess online profile so why not?"

"Just like that?" Dad glares at her.

"Yeah, it's business," Carson nods. "Marriage is a mortal custom. What does it matter?"

"This is the guy you want to marry?" my dad asks.

"Not for like two more years," my sister rolls her eyes at him.

"Five," Lucien corrects her. "Masters degree before getting on his knee,"

"Uh, I'll be getting mine sooner than that," B.B. scoffs.

"Yeah, but Carson isn't as smart as you,"

"Shut up," Carson growls. "I am going to shower. I smell like wax," he says and disappears up the stairs.

"Wax?" Mom asks.

"Me too. But not for that reason. I smell like ectoplasm," B.B. spins around in her heels and follows him up. She looks amazing. I mean she always does because Carson dresses her up like an expensive doll but I know tonight was special for her and she looks the part.

"So," I look up at Lucien. "How did it go?"

"Rough start," he clears his throat. "San told and she wanted to go see the damage. We got to see Merciful Death in action. It was f*****g beautiful and terrifying," he rubs his face. "But after," he smiles. "I don't know. I feel closer to her. If that makes sense. She let us in and we all talked about s**t we never talk about. Even Carson and Vic. Then she started a food fight and we got yelled at by James,"

"She wasn't mad?" I ask.

"She wasn't happy but she said she understands that s**t happens. She said if s**t like that happens again, we have to tell her so that the souls of the people whose time wasn't up can be properly reaped. She said that they become vengeful and hurt the living if they're left like that,"

"That sounds rough," Dad says.

"It wasn't like that for you?" he asks him.

"Nah. I just reaped whoever I wanted. Black Death," he shrugs.

"Overall, it was a good night. She had a lot of fun,"

"Probably having more," Dad growls under his breath. Lucien laughs adding to his misery.

"Heads up," he points at me. "When we B.B. gets back she's going to be alone with Vic for a few days before everyone else gets back,"

"What? You guys are leaving me alone with B.B. and Vic? What the f**k? Those two together are insane. I rather take B.B. and Ro. Where is he going?"

"Ro is-" he scratches the back of his head. "We need to talk with him. All of us. He's not doing well,"

"What do you mean he's not doing well? He's B.B.'s favorite f**k toy," I shake my head.

"Not with us. I mean his personal s**t. And I take offense to that. I'm always going to be her favorite," he scoffs. My mom laughs.

"His family," Dad clarifies, clearly annoyed.

"Oh," I nod. "Yeah, okay. Do we know what's going on?"

"Not specifically, but San said they tried to take him out when they were over there. He said his dad is stoked about him being around more but not his mom,"

"She's here," I nod. "She's been snooping around the witches. Cutting deals with the Goodwills. She's giving them a cut of their supply,"

"That's something we should all be aware of. Especially right now," he crosses his arms over his chest. He's a lot bigger than when I first got back. By a lot. Not just a subtle difference. What the hell is my sister doing to them?

"That's Carson and Vic's s**t. Car's been going out of his way to undermine me for a while," I shrug.

"Because you're f*****g letting him," he growls.

"What am I supposed to do? f**k him up?" I scoff.

"Yes," he and my dad say at the same time.

"And then what? Deal with B.B.'s f*****g temper? You saw what she did when I was wearing the f*****g t-shirt,"

"That was cute," he grins. "This is business, Dilly. She can't intervene because she's not part of the squad. You gotta stop feeling sorry for yourself. You either want back in or you don't. You're slacking. A lot. In this and with the music. You asked me to come back. I could be doing so much more, but I want to do this with you. This is our thing. I didn't expect you to jump right into it. I get it. But, you have to make that choice. I can't make it for you. None of it has to do with B.B. She's just the excuse you're hiding behind,"

He walks out of the room and heads over to the kitchen.

"Oof," Dad says looking at me. "He's not what I expected him to be. I mean that's Tony's and Lily's son,"

"What do you mean?" Mom shakes her head. "He's exactly the perfect balance of Lily and Tony. He's down-to-earth and loving. Tony. Crazy and unpredictable. Lily,"

"Baby, they were both insane," he shakes his head. "They still are,"

"He's f*****g nuts," I say. "Lucien can set people on fire with a smile on his face. I've seen him do it. When Carson needs something done properly, he calls Lucien. They call him the White Devil of Hellbourne cause of his hair,"

"That makes him sound like a massive racist," Mom shakes her head.

"He is. He only likes being around Dec to remind him he's black," I laugh thinking of all the times he's sat next to Dec simply to f**k with him. Dec has a very short fuse and Lucien Daniels just likes flicking his lighter in his direction. "They did a segment called Three. Two. One. Boom! and it was just Lucien and Ahsan saying racist s**t to him until he snapped,"

"And their publicist let them do that?" Dad laughs. "Where can we watch these things?"

"YouTube and yeah, because Dec and Ahsan would do it to Lucien, and then Lucien and Dec would do it to Ahsan. They're a weird bunch of f*****g idiots. It's fun to watch tho. Lucien and Natalie can talk anyone into doing whatever the f**k they want and the people who have a problem with it only expand their reach,"

"Are we not going to talk about what you said?" he asks calmly.

"No, we're not," I shake my head.

"She dreams about you, Del. She still sees you up on that chandelier. It still haunts her. B.B. knows something is wrong,"

"Yeah, well, you left me alone with her and I made this choice. So, it's up to you if you want to make her life worse than it is. And FYI, she's Merciful Death. Having dreams about me on the chandelier is mild on the scale of things that haunt B.B. I don't want to be the reason she decides humanity's only hope is total annihilation and trust me. If there is someone who can find a way to put humanity to sleep and never wake them up, it's that f*****g thing we call B.B.,"