“What. The. Fuck?” Mal’s jaw was tight, and his eyes were dark with anger.
I looked down at his hands curled into fists at his sides. “Mal…I…”
“No.” He breathed in and out through his nose and closed his eyes. “I’m going to kill him. Who the fuck does he think he is?”
He turned away, and I grabbed his arm. “Don’t. Wait. Listen to me.”
Mal’s chest heaved. “What is it? You feel sorry for him? What?”
“I—”
“It doesn’t even matter. He doesn’t touch you again. You stay away from him, and whatever you do, don’t mention this encounter to Az. You get me?”
My face grew hot. “But—”
“The kiss in Limbo…” He caught his bottom lip between his teeth. “I thought that was just you doing whatever it took to save Keon’s ass, but this…” He shook his head, emerald eyes sharp and cutting as they landed on me. “No. You need to put a cap on it. Now.”
My heart was pounding way too hard against my ribs, part indignation, part shame, and that sparked my anger. “I thought you guys wanted me to be honest?”
He rubbed a hand over his face. “Fuck, Fee, of course we do, but this is Keon we’re talking about. He’s a fucking monster.”
My nape grew warm as the rising anger pinched my throat. “He’s not a monster. Just because he looks different—”
“Whoa.” Mal gripped my shoulders, his brows pinching. “This is not about the fact he’s a daemon. This is about the fact that he works for Lilith. He will kill you if she asks him to.”
He didn’t know the side of Keon I’d come to know. He hadn’t looked deep into the daemon’s eyes.
I bit the insides of my cheeks. “I don’t think he will.”
Mal’s face contorted in pity. “Fee…You don’t understand. He won’t have a choice. If she orders him to kill you, he will be compelled to do it. Keon is dangerous because he isn’t his own person. He’s a possession, and he already belongs to someone else.”
Oh, God…Keon… I hadn’t realized the extent of the chains that bound him. My chest ached for him. No wonder he’d bolted earlier.
“This isn’t fair.”
Mal’s smile was wry. “Life isn’t fair, Fee. Az, Grayson, and I swore to keep you happy, and all Keon can bring you is pain. Trust me. Don’t go there. He can’t be one of us because he can never put you first.”
I sucked in a breath and nodded. He was right. This was for the best, for me and for Keon.
I smiled, shutting down the feelings that were threatening to bloom for the beautiful blue daemon. “So, where are we going?”
He studied me for a long beat and then pulled me into a hug. “Come on. Let’s get the fuck out of here and grab some carbs.”
“I could kill for a cinnamon swirl.”
“I’ll buy you a whole fucking box.”
I should be happy. The Beyond was safe, which meant our world was safe. I wanted to be happy, to enjoy this time with my guys before they left for the Underealm, but there was a worm of dread in the pit of my stomach that told me there was something on the horizon. Not the war with Mammon. Not the search for Hunter or the super vamps or even the hooded figures. Something…else.
Something that lurked at the back of my mind.
Something that wouldn’t be beaten back so easily.
Chapter Eighteen
Cora
The small office space looks like it’s been disinfected and scrubbed. It’s so clean I could probably eat my dinner off the floor.
“This is a waste of time,” Jasper says from behind me.
I ignore him and carry on scoping out the place. It’s a rental. The company who owns it says that it was leased for a month, but it looks like it’s been empty forever.
The name and details the company have for the renters are duds. Ursula confirmed it twenty minutes ago, so I’m looking for clues. Anything that can tell me what the fuck happened to the humans that went missing.
“There is nothing here,” Jasper says. “Except the stench of your desperation.”
I want to tell him to shove it, but talking to him means acknowledging his presence, and I don’t want to do that. I want him to piss off and leave me alone.
This is my fourth stop today. Four alarm locations, and all clean of any clues. Too clean, which suggests foul play. The human police have no idea about