Inside Lucifer's War Read Online Free

will like me addressing him as Prince.
    “Good,” he says. “That’s a start. I am Lucifer. As difficult as it is for you to believe, you will serve yourself well by understanding that sooner rather than later. There are spiritual beings throughout the world and beyond. We are superior to humans in every possible way. I am his greatest creation.”
    “His?” I ask. “Then there is a God? Is he the God of the Bible?”
    “The God of Abraham, Jacob, and David,” he replies with annoyance. “Look at yourself, though. You are not worthy of him. You are a shame to him. Disgusting and revolting, as you are to me. However, I can find a purpose in you. A redemption, if you will. Elijah could not look upon God’s glory. What do you think he would do to something like you? Not only have you abused yourself, you have destroyed his other creations. Look…”
    At this, he holds up his index finger, which has a long fingernail, and splits apart the cave wall. The wall seems to be nothing but a curtain being drawn open, and before my eyes, a play unfolds. However, it is no play. As the image becomes clearer to me, I can tell the scene is real life. A young woman sits still in a bathtub. I don’t recognize her at first, but her face gradually grows clearer. It is Josephine.
    She was a brilliant student who last spring asked me to be her thesis adviser. She was overly impressed and infatuated with me and my work. She hung on my every word and every speech and paper I had written. I allowed her to accompany me to New York for an awards ceremony and interview. She handled the details of the trip. During the trip, our relationship went from professional to personal—and sexual. She was certainly attractive, but I was not in love with her. As with so many other women, our relationship for me was one of convenience. She was in the wrong place at the wrong time—after I had knocked back some drinks and was filled with pride with my many accomplishments. I should have ended it after the trip, but I didn’t. It, she, was too convenient, so I allowed it to go on for a while. At some point she fell in love, but of course I never did. Ultimately, I crushed her. I ruined her life in a matter of months.
    She didn’t look like herself in the bathtub. I recalled her as vibrant. Excitement poured out of her. I recalled an attractive smile and dimpled cheeks. She had short, curly auburn hair that bounced as she moved. She was fit and strong. But the woman I saw in the tub, though definitely Josephine, was not the same woman. Her face was pale. Her hair was longer, and her curls were relaxed. She had been crying. Her face and eyes were puffy.
    “Do you remember how it ended with the two of you?” Lucifer asks.
    “Yes,” I told him.
    “No,” he quickly replies. “You think you know how it ended, but you don’t know how it really ended. You were having dinner with some colleagues and Cynthia Davis, your new romantic interest, when she confronted you. She tried to get you to step outside to talk, but you preferred to embarrass her in front of an audience. A brilliant close tactic I might add. To your guests you described her as ‘an infatuated student looking for a quality paper in the bedroom instead of the library.’ You mocked her in front of everyone. When her temper flared, you asked the maître d’ to escort her out, telling her that she needed to get affection from her father. She begged you, “Why are you doing this? Please don’t do this. This isn’t you.” People laughed at her. Do you remember that? The father angle was perfect, especially since she confided in you that her father had been abusive.”
    I was drunk that night, so I did not recall the details. It was easier to be drunk and forget than to be sober and responsible for my actions. I knew that I had ended it that night, but I couldn’t recall my words. The details were painful to hear. He could tell from my body language that I didn’t like listening to