Page 22 of Lucifer's Mirror

“What did your brother’s message say?” she asks. “Exactly.”

I can see no reason not to tell her. And maybe it will trigger something in her mind. “The message said:I’m sending you a girl for safekeeping. She must find Lucifer’s Mirror. Take her to the Crone—Thanouq will help you find her. He’s in Zandar Aurion. Tell no one.”

“Not even my real freaking name,” she mutters. She gazes off into space, but finally, looks back at me, a resigned expression in her eyes. “I’m guessing you have no clue what Lucifer’s Mirror is.”

“I’d never heard of it before. I was hoping you would know. Clearly, that was expecting too much.”

“Duh. Amnesia.” She frowns. “By ‘Lucifer’ do you mean the devil?”

Clueless.

But still, she’s my only chance to find out the truth about Khendril and maybe finally put the past to rest. That’s why we’re here. Not to help her. Certainly not to fuck her. But to get the answers I need.

She jumps to her feet. “So what are we waiting for? Why don’t we go find this crone? Maybe she’ll have some answers for both of us.”

“I needed to be sure you are the one. That I could trust you. That you weren’t some kind of…”

“Spy? Undercover agent? Werewolf hunter?”

I scowl—because I know she said that last bit just to piss me off, and part of me likes that. She tosses me a smile, then considers me, head cocked to one side. “Can you do it at will?” she asks. “The wolf thing. Can you change whenever you want?”

“Yes.”

“Will you change for me now? Hey, I like dogs.”

This time I don’t have to fake my outrage. “I’m not a fucking performing animal.”

I toss back the last of my drink and glance across to find her gaze fixed on my mouth. She’s just as intrigued as I am. And probably just as happy about it. It’s an inconvenience I don’t need. All the same, I flick out my tongue and lick the taste of whiskey from my lips.

She mirrors my action, her pink, pointed tongue swiping across her plump lower lip.

A low growl rumbles between us, and she goes still. “I told you not to look at me like that,” I murmur.

She presses her lips together. “I’m not looking at you like anything. Well, I am looking at you, I mean, but you are standing right in front of me. And you’re pretty big.” She looks me up and down. “It’s not as though I’ve got an option.” She takes a deep breath. “So, are you satisfied that I’m me, even though neither of us knows who me actually is?”

I give a brusque nod.

“Then can we go? Because I’d really like to get this over with. I have a life, you know. I’ve made a life, and it wasn’t easy.”

“A life?” I say. Not something I’ve considered.

“A job. And I’ve got a place at university, starting in a month or so. I need to—”

“Forget that life. It’s over.”

Her jaw clenches. “Of course, it’s not over. Obviously, I want to meet my family and find out where I came from—I’ve been dreaming of that for three years—but that doesn’t mean I’m going to give up everything I’ve worked for. Do you realize how hard it was for me to catch up with everyone else? Freaking hard. I’m not throwing all that away.”

“Forget the last three years. That’s not what matters. It’s what happens next that decides who you are.”

She looks like she’s going to argue some more. And I realize I want her to. It’s refreshing. But instead, she gives a shrug—maybe she’s accepting the futility of not doing exactly what she’s told.

“So, can we go?”

I glance across to where her friend is still unconscious. What is he to her? She was willing to risk her life to save him. Maybe I should have just broken his neck. “As soon as your friend wakes.”

“He’s coming with us? What if he wants to go home?”

“That’s really not an option.”