Free Soul Corrupted by Lisa Gail Green Page B

beaten and more frazzled than when I came in. And he’s there behind
me, his sallow, wrinkled face leering at mine.
    “See what you are?” he hisses. “A harlot. Nothing
more. Now say good-bye to the only face you ever cared about.”
    I stop fighting. The only thing that moves is my chest
as the air presses in and out of my lungs, desperate for some reprieve that I
know isn’t coming. I’m about to die. Again.
    “See you in Hell,” I say before he forces my face into
the basin.

Chapter 12
    Josh
     
    Grace is gone. I made her run
from the room, run from me. And now my heart is in tiny pieces lodged in my
throat. Either that, or I’ve swallowed a bunch of broken glass.
    I sink into the leather sofa I insisted on adding to our
room. I guess I’ll be moving to my own room now. What have I done?
    But if Grace knew about Noah—if I hadn’t made
the counter deal—they’d both be in danger. I despise Lucifer, but I can’t
argue his point—if she knew, she would have gone to him and made her own counter
deal, and he all but admitted he’d make her fall again. But Grace deserves to
be in Heaven, and I’m going to help keep her there.
    It takes a minute for the rest of the world to come back
into focus as I fight the very manly tears threatening to break free. The
screen in front of me is focused on an image. Grace was working when I walked
in.
    I’m about to turn it off when the creepy girl from
yesterday stands up, snapping her book shut and sending the porch swing into a
frenzied wobble. The gray eye travels over me and lands somewhere to my right,
where it focuses on something that makes her tense up. A short, roundish woman
walks into the scene, beaming, and I freeze.
    I know who it is. I remember seeing her argue with
Grace before Mr. Griffith threw her from Heaven.
    “You’re dead,” I tell the screen. “You’re supposed to
be in Hell.” So what is Ms. Alvarez doing there? But I know what happened:
Lucifer. Of course he’d want her working with him. She murdered both Grace and
me in her determination to find the Antichrist. So if she’s with this girl…
    “Hi, Lucinda,” Ms. Alvarez says. I wonder how Grace could
stand that annoying, high-pitched voice for so long.
    “Lucy,” says the girl. She sounds hoarse, like she
hasn’t spoken recently. “I told you the other day.”
    “Of course, dear. But let’s get right to business,
shall we?” She offers a pudgy hand, which Lucy stares at with her good eye, the
other one trained on Ms. Alvarez’s face.
    “I don’t like to touch people,” Lucy says. “But you
can come in.”
    “Lovely. Oh, and I see you’re reading. I adore
literature. May I?” She grabs for the book, but Lucy’s faster and snatches it
away. I remember talking my way into Cam’s room and complimenting his torture
device designs.
    I can’t let Ms. Alvarez play that role for Lucy.
Instinctively I reach for the comfort of Grace’s hand, and find only empty air.
Because I just broke up with her.
    I broke up with Grace.
    I lean back into the couch, rubbing both hands over my
face. “Screen off.” It comes out muffled from my hiding spot, but I can no
longer hear Ms. Alvarez’s awful voice, so I guess it worked.
    My phone alarm goes off and I slowly drag my hands
down. I completely forgot I was supposed to meet with Mr. Griffith to update
him on our progress. Crap. I can’t go over there now. How am I supposed to keep
my deal a secret from him? Lie and tell him I’m dating a human girl? I’m pretty
sure he won’t approve like I told Grace he did.
    I’m still sitting, trying to figure out how to handle
this, when there’s a knock on the door. Mr. Griffith pops his head in a minute
later.
    “Josh? You okay, buddy?” He’s concerned, judging by
his narrowed eyes and the wrinkle in his normally smooth brow.
    “Come in,” I say, even though he already is.
    He sits next to me on the couch with a sigh.
“Something’s up,” he says. “You’re never late.”
    I