“Maybe not yet, but I could put you there any time I like.”
“Piss off.” Unfortunately, though, it was true; he’d put himself under Luc’s power by asking for this favor. But his daughter was in danger. Raphael had been spotted, and rumor had it that there were Avenging Angels on the loose, and while they weren’t specifically after Tara, she could be harmed in the cross fire. He needed to get her what protection he could, regardless of the price. All the same, his fingers trembled with the need to rub the demon’s sigil wrapped around his upper arm—the mark of his debt, which would remain until that debt was paid. Hopefully, soon and not too painfully.
Finally, Luc straightened, the talisman dangling from one long finger—a black, heart-shaped crystal on a white-gold chain. Asmodai stepped forward to take it, and a shiver of magic ran through him as Luc laid the jewel on his palm. He closed his fist around it.
“So you think this will make a difference?” Luc asked. “That your daughter will forgive you in exchange for such a trivial thing.”
“Hardly trivial.”
“She’s half fae,” Luc continued. “They’re vindictive bastards.”
“She’s also half demon.”
“Yeah, right, and of course we’re known for our forgiving natures.” The tone was definitely sarcastic. “Isn’t that what got you into this? Trying to get your revenge on Christian Roth?”
Christian Roth was his daughter’s husband. But that was a recent occurrence. Twenty-three years ago, during the last demon war, he’d been head of The Order of the Shadow Accords, the organization set up over a thousand years ago to police the supernatural world and ensure the demons and fae didn’t destroy humanity with their perpetual wars.
At the end of the war, Roth had stripped Asmodai of his powers and banished him to the Abyss. Lillian, his wife, was pure fae and unable to follow. She’d been stranded on Earth alone and pregnant.
Asmodai had believed both she and their child had perished, and he had held Christian Roth responsible. As soon as he’d regained his powers, he’d gone after the vampire. Needing him to feel the same pain, he’d sent minions after the people Christian loved. One of those people had been Tara, though Asmodai hadn’t known then that she was his daughter. Tara had survived, but her best friend had been killed in her stead. It hadn’t been a good death and Tara, quite rightly, blamed him.
It wasn’t in his nature to feel remorse, but he wanted his daughter’s love and her safety. Hence this deal.
“You’ll be in touch when you want your…payment.”
“As it happens, I have a job for you right now.”
“You do?”
“Someone has approached me for a demon representative for their new committee.”
Asmodai cast him a look of disbelief. “I don’t do fucking committees. I don’t play well with others. You should know that.”
Luc smirked. “You will now, old friend. Actually, I’m doing you a favor. This should fit right in with your plans.”
“It should?” Why did he doubt that?
“Yes. You’re the demon representative of the brand-new Committee for the Integration of Mankind and…well…other kinds. Including us.”
Asmodai narrowed his eyes. “The Order’s new initiative?” He’d heard rumors that the Order was gearing up for some big changes. But he hadn’t planned to be any part of them—he was as integrated as he wanted to be. Humans with their frail existences and short lifespans held very little interest for him.
“Yes. And they’re expecting you five minutes ago. At least you’ll get the chance to hand over your gift.”
A committee? But really what choice did he have? And Luc was right. Tara was bound to be there. He gave a brisk nod and headed for the door.
As he exited the building, he spread his wings and launched into the air. He headed for the nearest place where the walls between worlds was thin and spoke the words to open a gateway to the Earth.
This particular portal opened into an alley at the back of the CR International offices, in the business district of London. Asmodai took his human form as he stepped through, then closed it with a wave of his hand and made his way around to the front of the building. He pushed through the glass double doors and into the large reception area.
Graham, Christian’s red-haired human servant, sat behind the desk. He appeared a little harassed, and Asmodai hung back while he dealt with the two women in front of him. Though on closer inspection, one woman and one girl. Asmodai dismissed the girl as uninteresting, but something about the woman drew his attention, which was strange in itself. It had been so many years…
She was tall and bordered on too thin. Her hair was long and dark and pulled back in a ponytail, and she wore a plain black pantsuit and no makeup. Obviously, a woman uninterested in men. That intrigued him, because she was attractive with expressive gray eyes, white skin, and a wide mouth, her lips red even without lipstick.