Page 56 of Hell Fae King

Cami looked at me, her gaze assessing. “He has some spots of gray, but his soul is good and his intentions are admirable.”

“Now evaluate me,” Lucifer dared her.

“No,” she replied.

“Why not?”

“Because I’m not ready to see your soul yet,” she whispered.

Lucifer stayed quiet for a moment, then conceded with a nod. “Can you sense any of the other dark souls here? In this dungeon?”

She didn’t answer right away but eventually gave a small nod.

“How do they compare to Dakota?” he asked.

More silence as she considered his question, the answers seeming to float through her mind as she evaluated all the souls she could sense. It was fascinating to observe as her mate, her ability unique from my own.

I could sense darkness and the occasional intention, but she was almosttastingtheir auras.

Because she’s a siphon, I realized, intrigued by how her gift worked.

She was taking a bit of each soul, evaluating their power and how it had been used in the past… and how it would be used if freed from this hell.

Too many of them were unapologetic, including Dakota. All she wanted was status, and she didn’t care who she hurt to acquire it.

There was no compassion in her soul. No regard for others. Her only aspiration in life was to seek her own happiness.

Which would have been fine if her happiness weren’t manifested by hurting those she considered to be beneath her.

She has no conscience, I heard Cami think.None at all.

There were a few others who gave off the same impression and a handful more who derived pleasure in harming others.

By the time Cami finished, she was shivering and shaking her head. “I don’t want to stay here.”

Melek stepped forward, but Lucifer held up a hand to stop him. “Camillia.”

She looked at him, and whatever he saw in her expression silenced him. As I could hear her mind and feel her fear of what this place represented, I understood.

This was too much. She wasn’t ready to kill anyone, even a dark soul. Not when she didn’t fully understand how all these souls had become so evil.

Part of her still questioned Lucifer’s deals, though deep down she seemed to be accepting that perhaps she’d misjudged some of this.

But until she knew for sure, she couldn’t proceed.

“Please,” she whispered.

Lucifer lifted his palm for her before anyone else could respond. “Come. You and I will continue this lesson in my den,” he said.

She started to lift her hand, then paused. “Just me and you?”

“Yes,” he replied. “I want to show you how my agreements work, and the Warden has work to do here.” He glanced at me knowingly. “The dungeon is officially his.” His focus shifted to Azazel. “I think you should help him.”

Az—who had been interestingly silent throughout this entire “lesson”—simply nodded. “There are things we should discuss.”

I frowned at that.What kinds of things?

Things,he simply echoed in my mind.