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The human goes down like a sack of bricks.

Typical. One scratch, a little blood loss, and he’s dead weight. How the hell do humans manage to live as long as they do?

He hits the ground with a dull thud, blood seeping through his clothes and staining the glowing pink roots at our feet. Even in unconsciousness, his stupidly stubborn face looks like he’s ready to pick a fight. Idiot.

The scent of human blood fills the air, mingling with the acrid tang of demon ichor and whatever other god-awful things lurk in the Evergloom. It smells like trouble. Delicious, tempting trouble.

The two new demons watch us with varying degrees of amusement. The scarred constellation asshole seems mostly curious, his pale eyes assessing everything with detached calmness. The bulky red bastard is grinning widely, obviously entertained, his thick tail swishing lazily behind him.

“You could help, you know,” I snarl, glaring at them both.

The red one shrugs, his grin never faltering. “We saved your hides once. Think of it as a friendly first-time bonus. Additional services come with a cost.”

“Fucking helpful,” I mutter, turning back to Hudson. He looks pathetic, sprawled out on the glowing ground, his heartbeat growing fainter. His scent fading bit by bit.

Something unpleasant coils in my gut, tight and heavy. It feels wrong. Feels like dread, regret, or some other bullshit emotion I have no business experiencing. I’m a fucking nightmare demon, for hell’s sake. Human feelings aren’t in my job description.

But Parker is.

My claws flex involuntarily at the thought of her. Those defiant eyes, that infuriating mouth, the intoxicating mix of fear and lust she’s always dripping with whenever I’m around. She’d burn the whole world down for this idiot lying at my feet.

I don’t want to think about what she’d do if I let him die.

Or worse—what she wouldn’t do.

Forgive me. Trust me. Look at me without hatred in those eyes.

I crouch beside him, claws twitching over the wound, torn between saving him and letting the Evergloom finish what it started. His breathing is shallow, his skin pale and clammy. I can practically hear Parker screaming at me to do something, anything.

“Trouble in paradise?” the red demon drawls.

I shoot him a venomous glare. “Keep talking and I’ll feed your horns back to you.”

He chuckles, low and gravelly, folding his massive arms over his broad chest. “You talk tough for a lovesick demon.”

The other demon—the dark, starry bastard—tilts his head slightly, watching me. He looks thoughtful. Too thoughtful.

“You know the girl will never forgive you if you let him die.” His voice is calm, detached, as if he’s merely stating an obvious fact. “You might even lose whatever scraps of trust you’ve earned.”

I grit my teeth, a low growl rumbling in my chest. “Who says I care what a mortal thinks?”

He shrugs, the gesture minimal. “You do. Quite obviously.”

Fuck.

I close my eyes, exhaling slowly through my nose. Hudson’s pulse is slowing. If I’m going to act, I need to do it now.

“Dammit, human. You’re more trouble than you’re worth,” I mutter.

Decision made, I open my eyes and slice a claw deeply into my palm. My blood wells up—black, thick, humming with power. Not human. Not demon. Pure nightmare. It smells like ash and old dreams. Like something that should never be inside anything still breathing.

“Impressive,” the red demon muses, eyeing the shadowy liquid dripping from my palm. “Didn’t take you for the nurturing type.”

“Shut the fuck up.”

Leaning over Hudson’s still form, I press my bleeding palm to his open wound. My blood immediately responds, spreading into him like ink on wet paper, tendrils of darkness slipping beneath his skin. It’ll heal him, but it’ll leave a mark. Another damn mark tying him to creatures like us.

I ignore the bitter taste in my mouth as the darkness slowly fades, the wound knitting together beneath my touch, leaving behind a jagged scar with faint black veins—proof that nightmare blood now runs in his veins, too.

Hudson’s breathing steadies, color creeping back into his face, but he remains unconscious. At least he’s not actively dying anymore.

“There,” I say sharply, pushing myself upright, my own hand already healed. “Happy now?”

The scarred demon hums thoughtfully. “Curious. Perhaps you’re not as heartless as they say.”

I snarl at him. “Don’t push your luck.”

His blank white eyes glitter with something like amusement. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Is the human alive?” the red brute asks, tilting his horned head.

“Unfortunately,” I say dryly.

He chuckles.

“You two done playing spectator?” I snap, already bending down to lift Hudson’s unconscious body over my shoulder. He’s heavier than I expect, the dead weight awkward. Fucker.

“Don’t tell me you want us to carry him for you,” the red demon mocks. “We already did our good deed.”

The scarred demon turns slowly, his eyes following the faint glow stretching into the darkness. “It’s time you move quickly. This burst of power is fading fast.”

I adjust my grip on Hudson, glaring at them one last time before I start walking.

“Next time we meet,” I growl, “I’m taking your heads—just to see if they grow back.”

The red one chuckles again. “Can’t wait, nightmare.”

I keep moving forward, step after step, the Evergloom’s eerie silence punctuated only by Hudson’s even breaths and my own muttered curses.

Somewhere ahead, Parker waits—tangled up with that Death Devourer himself, surrounded by shadows and monsters far worse than me. And now, because of my impulsive act of mercy, I’m dragging along her favorite human liability.

She’d better appreciate this.

Because I don’t do mercy twice.