"Your mother was displeased when she learned my true nature. She was determined to keep you from me, and she was quite adept, it seems," Asmodeus said, his voice soothing and rich, like warm cocoa. "I have been waiting a century to meet you, daughter mine."
"You sent people to kill me," Amber pointed out, shaking as the full impact of her discovery hit her. "And you wonder why my mother kept you from me?"
His expression tightened. "I sent no one to kill you. They were to retrieve you. Bring you to me. Had you stayed in one place long enough to listen—"
"Stay in one place when they came for me with knives and guns?"
Asmodeus made a dismissive gesture. "To subdue. They were human. You are not. What value do their weapons have against you?"
"What value?" She stared at him, seeing the genuine perplexity in his expression. He was so far from human, he had no clue. "They killed Kai," she said flatly.
"He is not dead now," Asmodeus said with a dismissive wave, clearly not seeing the problem.
Kai made a strangled sound that was suspiciously close to a laugh. She remembered using almost the exact same words to him.
"They stole fifty years from us."
Asmodeus turned his gaze to her, and suddenly he looked ancient. His face was unchanged, but something in his eyes reflected the knowledge of ages. "You stole fifty years from yourselves, blaming each other, doubting each other." He gave a lazy, one-shouldered shrug. "A blink. You have eternity to correct your mistakes."
His gaze slid to Kai. "What payment do you wish, soul reaper? You have succeeded where all others failed. You have brought my daughter to me. You have delivered her. You deserve your bounty. State your demand, and then leave."
Amber felt like her heart plummeted to her toes. She turned to Kai, feeling ill. What was this? Had it been his plan all along, to deliver her to Asmodeus for a reward, to—
She lifted her gaze to find him watching her, and his mouth curved in a wicked smile, white teeth flashing. In that second she knew what he was going to say before he said it.
"I have my reward." And he drew her to him.
Epilogue
"Close your eyes," Kai said. "I have a surprise."
"I hate surprises."
"You loved your surprise last night." He leaned in and nipped at the sensitive spot where her neck met her shoulder. Amber gave a soft yelp, and he smiled to himself as he turned her and kissed her and she melted in his arms.
"Only because you were my surprise," she murmured. "I thought you couldn't come back until next week."
"Time off for good behavior." It was nothing less than the truth.
What could have been an utter disaster that led to his destruction had in fact turned out to be a boon. Kai was mated to Asmodeus's daughter, and rather than see that as a bad thing, Sutekh had seen it as a political advantage. A soul reaper linked to another Underworld lord. While not nearly as powerful as Sutekh, Asmodeus was a valuable ally.
Kai had always been free to come and go between Topworld and Underworld at will; all soul reapers could. But somehow, he'd gained favor by following his heart's dream. He wasn't about to question the golden horseshoe shoved up his ass.
And Amber had been thawing a bit toward her father's attempts to get to know her. Not much. But a little.
"Close your eyes," Kai said again, and Amber complied.
He led her outside, onto the street.
"Open." He couldn't keep the smile from his voice.
"That's your—"
"Mint-condition 1960 Corvette convertible," he finished for her. "Thanks to Nick at Custom Autobody." Then he pulled open the door.
Sitting on the seat was a massive bouquet of daisies tied with a purple silk scarf.
"Happy first day of the rest of our lives," he murmured, and lowered his mouth to hers.
"Happy first day of forever, my love," she whispered against his lips.
*
If you liked this story, don't miss Eve Silver's Otherkin trilogy—Sins of the Heart, Sins of the Soul and Sins of the Flesh—from HQN Books.
*
Turn the page for an excerpt from Sins of the Heart…
Sins of the Heart
Half human, half god, Dagan Krayl is the Underworld's most powerful soul reaper. When one of his brothers is murdered, Dagan must use every ounce of his power to hunt down those responsible for his brutal death. But he must move swiftly—and carefully—if he's to have any chance of resurrecting his brother.
Yet that resurrection could wreak havoc on the mortal world. As an Otherkin, Roxy Tam has sworn to protect the human race, and it's her mission to stop Dagan. But when she sees him face-to-face, she realizes that she has seen him once before—a meeting that changed her life forever.
Neither Dagan nor Roxy expect to join forces for the sake of mankind. Or to have their loyalties tested as they struggle against the potent desire that threatens to consume them both….
Chapter One
In the far corner of a room in the basement of an abandoned factory, a woman huddled on a filthy mattress. Her wrists and ankles were bound by yellow nylon rope. Her head was bowed, dark, glossy ringlets falling forward to obscure her face. The harsh glare of the naked overhead bulb accented the curved line of her back.
Terror had a way of making mortals scream.