Dark Hope (The Devil's Assistant) by H.D. Smith Page A

had she asked?
    I tried again to place her. Given my role, she had to know who I was from the office—unless she didn’t know me at all. Could she be working for the double?
    Were the quads next on my double’s hit list?
    Was this why Omar told me to visit them?
    To save them?
    Cinnamon’s peal of laughter drew my attention. She needed my help either way.
    I headed back toward the hedge. I scanned the foliage and found an opening about twenty meters down from where I’d been shoved through earlier.
    I opened my eyes and drew back into my body. I reached out my hand to steady myself, but the sensation was barely noticeable this time.
    I eyed the watch, but my handy compass wasn’t moving. “Let’s go,” I said.
    Staring at the unmoving hands, I considered what had made it work before. Nothing, it just started giving directions in the cell. No. It first went crazy on the road.
    “Which way,” I said, remembering the command I’d unknowingly given it before.
    The watch hands spun. I focused my eyes, zeroing in on the hands, which stopped and pointed right. I walked until the hand moved left. The hedge in front of me appeared as thick and gnarled as the rest, but if the watch was directing me forward, there had to be something there. Maybe it was a hidden door, like the brick wall to Cinnamon’s compound.
    I stretched out my hand and walked forward. I expected to run into the hedge or pass through a threshold, but I didn’t. There wasn’t anything there except a small corridor between two identical hedge walls. The thickly gnarled hedge was only an optical illusion. No magic needed.
    I followed the watch’s directions until I reached the opening on the other side. I cautiously approached the exit, but wanted to scream when Cinnamon called my name.
    She’d spotted me and wasted no time announcing my presence to the others. “Claire, darling,” she squealed. “What are you doing here?”
    When I looked at Charles, his eyes were wide. He stepped from his throne and stalked toward me. He barreled past Cinnamon, who was tripping over herself to reach me.
    She recovered from being shoved. “Oh, Charles, this is my father’s assistant, Claire.”
    I moved away from the hedge. I didn’t want him to throw me back in.
    “Yes, we met earlier today,” he said dryly.
    Earlier today. I must not have been in the Maze as long as I thought. I stiffened when Charles stopped in front of me given that he was close enough to touch me. I lurched back. He inched forward. I took another step and slammed into one of the sentries.
    Charles was inches from my face. He smelled of sweet lilac and eucalyptus. The compulsion was stronger now. It was so thick around me I could barely breathe. I was afraid to willingly touch him. The power he had over Cinnamon appeared to intensify when she touched him.
    He smiled at my reluctance to push him away. “I’m not sure how you made it out of the maze, but you can’t resist me forever.” He leaned in.
    His power crashed against me, as if the spell were a physical force. “Back the fuck off jackass, I’m not going to touch you.”
    “Are you sure about that?” He licked his lips, parting them as if he might try to kiss me. He was arrogant and cocky and nothing like the kind of man Cinnamon dated.
    I swallowed, pressing against the guard at my back. A second later Cinnamon not so gracefully snorted and clumsily toppled into Charles.
    He stumbled, shoving me at the sentry. Furious, Charles snarled and pushed himself away. His touch sent a surge of power crashing over my entire body. It shot through me like a bolt of lightning, and I howled at the jolt of pain.
    In the time it took to blink, the spell wrapped around me like a suffocating blanket. As it took hold, pain became love. I loved Charles. I’d die if I couldn’t have him. I stretched out my hand to stroke down his long luscious body, but he spun toward Cinnamon—ignoring me.
    My eyes widened with outrage. That bitch couldn’t