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Rune sat on his couch, his arm casually draped along the back.“You didn’t tell him?”Rune asked me now, brow arched.

“I meant to.”

“You meant to?”His eyes darkened.“I don’t often agree with Jagger.In fact, I never have.But if you were mine, I would take you over my fucking knee for that shit.Lucifer told you, you were to have Jagger shadow you whenever you were with that fucker, yet you recklessly went to this underground shithole with a demon who is known to be seriously unstable, not knowing what you were walking into or who would be there?”

I straightened.“Now hang on a minute.You and Lucifer were more than happy to toss me into this situation.Jag protecting me was just something he threw on at the end of the conversation to keep the peace.I told you I planned to tell Jagger, but everything happened fast.I did text him tonight as soon as I found out.I’m here, I’m fine, and I’m fucking getting sick of having to answer to overbearing, controlling males.”

Jagger was suddenly at my back, his hand coming around and taking my jaw, tilting my head to the side.He dragged his nose along my throat and snarled.

“He touched you, again.Put his fucking mouth on you?”His beast had control of his voice.

“It’s okay.Apparently, Tarrant has some rule about fraternization between the demons who work for him and contractors like me.They have to keep it in their pants because of some issues they’ve had in the past.Poe seems to think once I’m brought fully into the fold, thenwe can finally be together.He seemed to think that me being at this auction would achieve that.When it was called off due to some big buyer pulling out, he lost it, and messed up his hand pummeling a brick wall.”

“Is there a new date for this auction?”Rune asked.

“Tomorrow night.I assume the time and entrance to get down to this place will be the same, but I can’t be sure of that.Poe said there were many entrances.”

Rune sat forward.“Do you know what they’re selling?”

“No, but there were cages.Big ones.”

“Humans?”Jag said.

Rune’s jaw clenched.“If it is, we can send that fucker Tarrant so deep underground he won’t ever see the light of day again.”

“If they’re messing with humans, the knights will want to be involved,” Jagger said.

The Knights of Hell were half angel, half demon tasked with protecting humans and demi-demons like Jack, humans who carried demon blood and special powers.

Rune stood.“Let’s not involve them yet, not until we have proof.The last thing we need is them charging in there before I get my evidence to burn Tarrant for good.”His gaze slid to me.“This was good work, Sutton.I’m not pissed with you anymore.”

“Why, thank you.”

He shrugged.“It seems you handled yourself well.”

“Yeah, maybe you did,” Jagger said.“But don’t ever do that shit on your own again.”

“I did text you,” I said bristling.

“I was in Hell.I was only there for a couple hours, but with the way time moves differently there, I was too late.”He curled his arm around my chest.“Won’t happen again.”

He gave me an affectionate squeeze, and a hiss of pain slipped from me before I could stop it.Jagger froze, and Rune’s head turned sharply back to me.

“I’m okay,” I said quickly.“It’s nothing.”

Jagger was pissed enough, I didn’t want to worry him more.He turned me to face him, so my back was to Rune, then he hooked his finger in the deep V of my dress and tugged it lower, exposing the swell of my breast where Poe had manhandled me.

Now it was Jagger’s turn to hiss.I looked down and the skin he’d exposed was already bruised, and there were clear fingerprints in my flesh.

“Poe did this?”When I said nothing, his gaze sliced to mine.“Poe fucking did this to you?”

“He grabbed me, yes.But that’s all he could do.It looks worse than it is.He can’t force me to do anything, not when it’s against Tarrant’s rules.”

Jagger’s gaze was red now and so filled with rage, it was as if fire danced in his irises as they locked on Rune.“My patience is at its limit, understand me?Asking me to stand back while my female puts her fucking life on the line, while some piece of shit assaults her repeatedly, is too fucking much, Rune.”

For once, Rune didn’t smirk or say something to piss Jagger off even more.He nodded.“I know, and I know I’m asking too much to continue with this, but I have to ask, because if we don’t get Tarrant under control, if he continues to do the shit he is, we risk the gates of Hell closing permanently.”

Jagger’s head jerked up.“Lucifer said that?”