Page 7

"Too bad that's not on offer."
"What is on offer then?" His voice carries a challenge.
I raise my eyebrows. "For you? A goodbye and a pleasant evening."
Instead of being offended, he laughs again—a genuine sound that draws glances from nearby demons. "You really aren't like the others."
"You keep saying that like it's meaningful." I try to sound dismissive, but curiosity creeps into my tone.
"It is to me." The simple statement hangs between us, weighted with something I can't quite name.
Before I can respond, his eyes flick over my shoulder. "Your captain's patience is wearing thin. You should go."
"Are you dismissing me?" I feel oddly indignant.
Vael's lips curve into that infuriating half-smile. "Consider it a strategic retreat. For both our sakes."
"I don't need you to manage my interactions."
"No," he agrees easily. "You seem perfectly capable of managing them yourself." Something changes in his expression then, a seriousness replacing the amusement. "Be careful with that one. He has a reputation."
The warning catches me off guard. "And you don't?"
"Oh, mine is much worse." He steps back, creating distance between us. "But at least I'm honest about what I am."
With that, he melts into the crowd, leaving me standing alone with my heart hammering in my chest. I blink, disoriented by his sudden departure and the strange encounter.
I force myself to turn and make my way back to Drez'kor, arranging my features into the pleasant mask he expects. But my thoughts remain with the strange demon and our bizarre conversation.
"There you are," the captain says, his eyes narrow with suspicion. "I was beginning to think you'd abandoned me."
"Never," I lie smoothly, accepting the fresh glass of Amerinth he offers. "Just needed a moment of fresh air."
As I sip my drink and laugh at his jokes, my eyes scan the crowd for that tall figure, those red-gold eyes. But Vael is nowhere to be seen.
What did he mean about the captain's reputation? And why warn me at all? Demons aren't known for their concern for humans, particularly ones they've just met.
I've spent years learning to read demons, to anticipate their moods and desires. But Vael... Vael is a puzzle I can't solve. He'd challenged me, seen through me in ways that both terrify and exhilarate. For once, I'd responded with my true thoughts instead of calculated placation.
It was reckless. Dangerous.
And I can't stop wondering when I might see him again.
4
TRINITY
Iwake to the scent of fear and unwashed bodies. The familiar cloying smell I'll never get used to, no matter how many times I return to these cells.
"Trin! You're back!" A too-thin girl with matted blonde hair rushes toward me, relief flooding her face.
I force a smile as I shift on the hard stone floor, wincing slightly. The soreness between my thighs a stark reminder of last night's activities with the captain. He was a tad more possessive and I wonder if my conversation with Vael has unleashed some side of him I thought I had avoided. "Just for a little while, Mara."
My gaze sweeps across the dungeon. About twenty human women crammed into a space meant for half that number. They've all been here as long as I have, their eyes hollow with resignation.
"Did you get anything?" This from Elise, the oldest among us at maybe thirty-five. Her practical voice cuts through the murmurs of greeting.
I nod, reaching into the thin fabric of my dress where I've hidden my spoils. "Some dried meat. It's not much, but?—"