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Right. The five very illuminating files currently weighing down my bag. "Yes, I reviewed them last night."

"Excellent!" Thea's movements were fluid and practiced as she came around the desk. There was something about the way she carried herself that made it impossible to look away. "Let's get you settled in then. Fair warning though, this job isn't for everyone. Some people just can't handle the pressure." The way she said it made it sound like a challenge, one I suddenly desperately wanted to meet.

I nodded, following her deeper into the Victorian's maze of rooms. For the first time in my life, I was going to succeed at something. I had to.

Because failure meant losing the only chance I had at figuring out who I really was.

Chapter

Eight

PRIDE

“She looks healthy for a human who was dead less than seventy-two hours ago,” my brother said. He looked utterly bored, but that was Envy’s default expression, in order to belie his interest in everything around him. We all had our coping mechanisms, and feigning utter disinterest was his. He took a sip of his latte, eyeing my black coffee with distaste. The cafe was pleasant, but crawling with humans. Nevertheless, it was always best to meet surrounded by them.

Hidden among the crowd.

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at my idiot brother.

“Yes, but what was shedoing?” I asked, struggling to hide my impatience.

He raised a dark, arched eyebrow at me, eyes sharp and assessing. Envy and I favored each other heavily—both tall and lean, with broad shoulders that hinted at strength beneath the surface. His hair was midnight, slightly tousled, a contrast to my own sleek, meticulously combed black hair. His eyes—bright emerald—sparkled with mischief and secrets, always flickering with plans and schemes. We shared a similar build and stature,but where I cultivated a polished, blending appearance to track and blend with humans, he embraced a more reckless, unpredictable look—his tousled hair and roguish grin marking him as the schemer he was. Both of us, in our own ways, mirrored each other’s height and frame, but where I aimed for control and precision, Envy’s style and expression betrayed a hunger for chaos and secrets.

I had limited time I could be away from my dutiesdown below, and had much to accomplish in that time—assigning Envy this task, and check-in with Gluttony.

No rest for the wicked.

Hades was preoccupied spending time with his new-found daughter, and entrusted me to look after things after a much-needed vacation.

I trusted Janine not to let things go to hell–literally–for a day or so while I snuck away. Hades would never need to know.

“What was she doing–human shit. Sleeping, eating, shitting, going to fucking work.Why is this taking up my precious time?” Envy demanded.

Not without cause.

“I–” Hesitation wrapped its fingers around my throat and squeezed.

My brother seized the moment like a wolf smelling fresh meat.

“I can smell your magick all over her; that and Hades’s death magick,” he declared. “Does he know you’ve reanimated the girl? Seems a bit...convenient, what with him away on his little family vacation.”

I had to act naturally. I’d already fucked it up by being too jumpy. I shrugged.

“It’s good to practice. Wouldn’t want to fuck up a reanimation with the boss breathing down my neck, would I?”

That damned eyebrow went higher. He stared and I met his gaze, but after a moment he pulled away.

“Well, aside from the magickal remnants just leaking from her, she appears to be like all the other humans–boring, nonsensical, and far too jumpy,” he finished.

Hmm. That seemed a little over-the-top, even for him. Usually he showed nothing but detachment for his targets.

"You can call it off then. I have what I need," I said succinctly, throwing out the bait. "I'm in the area for another target anyway," he quickly shot back. "Those trafficking reports have been keeping me busy."

I frowned. "Still no leads on the missing children?"

"A few. Trail's getting warmer." His jaw tightened slightly—the first genuine emotion I'd seen from him. "Whoever's behind it knows how to cover their tracks. But they're getting bolder."

That explained his restlessness. Envy took crimes against children personally, even if he'd never admit it.