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Because he’s starting to realize your potential, Melek whispered back, obviously listening to my thoughts.

Or perhaps I’d broadcast them. He respects you, little angel.

You might not see it, but I do. This lesson proves it.

He’s being patient and taking responsibility for his faults, all while trying to answer your questions.

Ty wants to fix this. But he’s right—the success of this endeavor relies on your acceptance.

Either you allow him to make amends, or you continue to hate him.

I don’t hate him, I replied via our mental connection.

Just as he doesn’t hate you , he murmured, his voice a caress to my mind. Look into his eyes. Really look. And you’ll see that his feelings are anything but hatred.

I swallowed, my attention returning to the male before me—the one standing far too close. His gaze held mine with a dominance that caused my heart to skip a beat.

“Most of my deals are crafted to benefit the Hell Fae Realm,” he informed me, his voice seeming to soften with each word.

“There’s power in agreements, specifically the successful ones.

You’ve experienced the darker side of my world, the offers devised for personal gain.

Offers like your father’s and offers like the one I gave to Ajax.

But most agreements are benign and consensual. ”

He squeezed my nape once before releasing me and rotating toward the endless wall of shelves.

“These are my active offers,” he went on. “Every scroll is an ongoing deal, each agreement taking up residence in my mind, as I personally monitor every outcome. There are some I pay more attention to than others. Some that I’m anticipating will fail.”

He waved his hand, causing several papers to appear out of thin air and float down to the desk.

“I make deals with dark souls for a single purpose—to have a hold over them. On very rare occasions, a dark soul can choose a path of redemption. Typically, however, the dark soul seeks to trick me into a bargain. Then he or she quickly learns that deception is a game I mastered long ago.”

The documents on the wood magically organized themselves into a pile of ten or so pages.

Lucifer rested his palm on them, his eyes capturing mine once more. “These are the live contracts I hold with those I expect to fail. All the others in this room will succeed in some way or another, and the majority of those successes will be in favor of the offeror, not me.”

He picked one up off the desk, his gaze skimming the words. Then he proceeded to read it aloud, the deal one between him and a female Lunar Fae.

It only took me a few seconds of hearing the words to realize why he’d chosen this one specifically—the woman had offered him her three sons in exchange for helping her find safe passage through the Human Realm.

“She’s in Los Angeles,” he added. “And she has no interest in actually leaving. She seeks fame and fortune, and she’s willing to destroy everything and everyone in her path.” He pulled up a mirror to reveal a familiar woman on the other side.

My eyebrows rose. “Isn’t that…?” I trailed off, my mind failing to conjure the name I was looking for. I’d seen it in the media outlets dozens of times, but I rarely paid attention to famous humans.

Except she wasn’t actually mortal, apparently. But a Lunar Fae.

“She’s a singer,” I went on. “But her name is escaping me.”

Lucifer said it for me, then followed it with a scoff. “You have no idea how many mortals she’s hurt in her pursuit. They’re not usually my concern, but I find that how you treat a lesser being speaks volumes about your own sense of character.”

I couldn’t disagree with him there, so I simply nodded. “And her sons?”

“Are currently in my kingdom. They’re half-breeds, their respective fathers having been various other types of fae.

” He set the paper down, the ink seeming to writhe across the page in response to his touch.

“The real reason she bargained them away was to hide her previous affairs because she’s a Lunar Fae Royal.

If the pack discovered the truth of her illicit liaisons, she would be killed by her mate—the Alpha King. ”

“Oh.” I blinked. “And you helped her escape…?”

“So she thinks,” Lucifer replied, his lips curling slightly. “Her sons are abominations by Lunar Fae standards. They would have been killed had they been discovered. I accepted them as payment to save them, and I’ve been waiting for her to fail our terms so I can imprison her for her cruelty.”

“But she gave you her sons. That’s what she promised, right?”

“In exchange for passing through the Human Realm. However, she hasn’t passed through. She’s remained there. That nullifies our terms.” He tapped the parchment, drawing me forward to read the text for myself.

“Does she realize that she’s in breach of your agreement?” I wondered out loud as my eyes scanned the words written in his elegant penmanship.

“Of course not. She thinks she’s won, and she’s too caught up in her perceived success to consider an alternative.” Lucifer removed his hand, causing the script to writhe once more. But the words didn’t change. They simply wavered.

“When will you inform her?”

“When her sons are ready.” He flicked a finger at the mirror, making it disappear. “They’re currently devising her nightmare, something to do with a hole in the ground where she’s fed nothing but scraps.”

My eyebrows rose. “That’s oddly specific.”

“That’s how they grew up—hidden away from the pack, treated as pet rats in a hole where she hid her sins.

” Something flickered in his gaze. An emotion underlined in darkness and fury.

“They were feral pups when she dropped them at my door. One of my Hellhounds took them in. It’s taken years to rehabilitate them, all while she’s gallivanted around the Human Realm creating more havoc and pain. ”

I glanced from him to the paper and back to him. “So this agreement benefited your realm because you acquired more fae.” I spoke the words slowly, trying to understand. “But really, you’re helping them survive. And you’ll be punishing a dark soul to appease them.”

“I’ll be punishing a dark soul because it gives me a reason to repurpose their vitality,” he replied.

“The fact that it’ll avenge some of her wrongdoing is merely a benefit.

The primary reward—the reason these agreements are so beneficial to me —is it gives me an excuse to exercise my abilities.

I essentially siphon the energy from the dark soul and feed it into my Source, which in turn protects my realm. ”

“Siphon,” I repeated, the term obviously striking a chord.

“Yes. I used to be a siphon like you. Only, I turned off that ability a long time ago.” He frowned. “Well, turned off might not be the right term. After realizing there was power in deals, I restructured and redeveloped my skill to use my talent for protection rather than destruction.”

“You’re a siphon, too?” I asked, unable to hide my shock.

“Used to be,” he repeated, a small smile flirting over his lips. “But technically, yes. My power has just evolved, like I said.”

I blinked at him. “Oh.” Is that why he no longer considers me a threat? Because he understands my ability?

It’s why he wants to train you, Cami, Melek replied, hearing my thoughts. And why he keeps thinking of you as a queen.

I swallowed, not sure how to reply to that. Instead, I focused on everything he’d said about his deals and what he did with the souls— energy —he acquired from them.

It’s how he powers the Hell Fae Realm , I realized.

Yes , Melek replied, even though I didn’t need the confirmation.

Meeting Lucifer’s gaze, I said, “So you’ve absorbed a lot of power over your lifetime, creating this vast universe of kingdoms where you protect your Nightmare Fae and Hell Fae, and the Source has now grown to a point of potential mismanagement.”

I looked at Melek for confirmation, my assessment primarily derived from his various explanations, but he didn’t respond. Instead, he stared at Lucifer, drawing my focus back to the Hell Fae King.

“That’s my prince’s assessment,” Lucifer said after a long, drawn-out moment of palpable tension. “And it’s one… I’m beginning to accept.”

Surprise flitted through Melek’s expression.

“I owe you a boon, little prince,” Lucifer went on. “Care to take advantage of that now? Or would you prefer to play later?”

Melek considered him for a long moment, his lips slowly curling up at the sides. “I always want to play, my king.”

“I know.”

“And you did tell me to make you an offer,” Melek added.

“I did.”

“Hmm.” His multicolored irises flickered, his devious energy seeming to thrum to life in our bond. I couldn’t hear his thoughts, but I could sense he was crafting something sensual.

Something dangerous.

Something involving me .

Melek , I warned.

Shh, he hushed, his attention still on Lucifer despite his mind clearly being focused on me. I’m thinking, little angel.

“This all began because of your deal with Pierre De la Croix,” Melek went on out loud, his words causing my breath to stall in my lungs. “It seems only natural that we negotiate similar terms. For educational purposes, of course.”

I gaped at him. “Similar terms?”

“Quiet, Camillia,” Lucifer said. “This is between me and Melek.”

“Yet it involves me.” I couldn’t hide the exasperation in my voice. “You can’t be ser?—”

Lucifer’s mouth covered mine before I could finish, his kiss demanding my silence. My submission. My… my everything .

Such a quick move, so utterly unexpected, and I… I succumbed.

I let him hold me. Kiss me. Master me .

Because he was a king.

A God among the fae.

Typhos Lucifer .

And I was a slave to the power unleashed from his lips to mine.

How…? I thought, breathless. Why?

One moment, I’d been ready to kill him. To hate him. To… to scream in protest. Yet now I felt utterly possessed.

By the time he released me, I could barely think. He hadn’t even slid his tongue into my mouth. Just used his lips. His aura. His power .

“This is an exercise in trust, darling queen,” he said, the endearment rendering me speechless once more. Not that I had enough oxygen in my lungs to formulate words. “Watch and learn. And most important of all, believe that your mate will protect you.”

His lips ghosted across mine once more, then he released me with a suddenness that rivaled how quickly he’d grabbed me.

Only, a broad chest caught me before I could stumble backward, and strong arms encircled my waist. Then Melek’s mouth brushed my ear. “I believe there was mention of a need for a bath or a shower,” he murmured, his voice silk against my senses. “Let’s start the negotiation there.”