Page 44 of Blood from the Marrow

“And with friends,” the woman replied. The silence stretched. No one moving. No one speaking. And then the voice added, “Elena.” An acknowledgment barely trying to sound like a greeting.

“Hel,” Elena replied with the same lukewarm enthusiasm.

“A witch and a?—”

“This is Zuri,” Librada said like she wasn’t totally mortified at her presence. “And Marisol. They are Elena’s mates.”

Zuri was mortified enough at the word mates for all of them.

“Hel,” Librada continued, “is my contact in The Order.”

“Is that a nickname?” Marisol asked because she’d try and befriend Hannibal Lecter if she had a chance.

Hel nodded like they all had fucking vampire eyeballs capable of seeing clearly in the dark.

“What kind of nickname is that?” Marisol asked with an audible smile.

“Well… few who have been through Hel have lived to tell about it,” she replied like she was delighted to provide her tagline.

I’m the only one who hasn’t lost their fucking mind.

“If you came to get The Order on your side against Sayah, you’ve wasted a trip,” Hel said, tone neutral. “Lilith would never abide her daughters fighting each other.”

“Talk to her lately?” Elena snapped.

“Lilith’s grief over the loss of her daughters has been recorded in every?—”

“We’re not here for Lilith storytime,” Elena started.

“Then why are you here?” Hel asked, as if to remind them they’d shown up on her wet doorstep and not the other way around.

“To talk to Sabina,” Librada replied, adding another name Zuri didn’t recognize to the mix.

“About what?”

“Some history,” Elena responded.

Hel laughed. “Since when do you care?—”

“I think she may know of the Aglion,” Lib said in an uncharacteristic showing of cards. Had Elena known she’d spill too much? Is that why she’d tried to head her off?

“Aglion?” Hel repeated, no indication that she recognized the term.

“Something she may know about,” Lib replied, without responding.

“You’re going to have to give me more than that or you can follow the proper steps for an audience?—”

“I can’t,” Lib said, soft tone betraying her regret. “We know very little?—”

“Then give me what you got.” The outline of Hel’s muscular arms was visible in the low light. “If it were just you here, Lib, you know I would take you in, no questions asked.”

Zuri guessed the rest. It was the rest of them causing the hesitation. Her fault for the delay.

“Can you really trust her?” Zuri asked Lib with her attention on where she guessed Hel stood staring at her.

“With my life,” Lib replied quietly.

“For fuck’s sake,” Zuri grumbled, accepting that they were going to have to chance it. A notion that made her want to puke considering their odds lately.