My breath caught. In front of me Andre stiffened, either from insult or from the shocking possibility.
The devil let out a surprised laugh. “You both genuinely never knew?” The devil clasped his hands together. “Well, cat’s out of the bag. She’s far stronger than you, vampire, old as you may be. She is my mate, after all.”
I glanced down, seeing myself for the first time. Could he be right? I’d never tested the extent of my powers because of how frightening they were. But as I took in my heavy limbs, the slight palsy I’d developed, and my slow heartbeat, the last thing I felt was powerful.
“She’s nothing of yours,” Andre spat.
“That’s where you’re wrong.” The devil turned to me. “Isn’t he, consort?” He took a step forward, something behind his eyes shifting and curling like a flame might. It mesmerized me. “I am something to you, aren’t I? You’ve known this from your first memories of me.”
The man in the suit standing in the flames of my house as it burned. Yes, even then I’d known that I belonged to that fire as much as he did. And then there had been the time shortly after I’d been adopted when he visited. The first time I’d seen him since the fire. By then, I’d lost everything I’d ever known.
Everything, save for him.
He scared me even then, sitting on the neighbor’s roof, just watching me through my bedroom window. But another part of me found relief in his presence. He’d been the only person who’d ever consistently stuck around.
I touched a hand to my forehead, the knife I still gripped now coming dangerously close to my face. “Stop it.” He did this on purpose, digging up memories better left buried and seeding emotions where there had been none.
“All you need to do is die, and then you will come into your powers.”
“That will not be happening tonight, Lucifer,” Andre said.
The devil shoved his hands in his pockets and strolled around us. “Another empty promise, Andre? Really, you can only disappoint people so many times before they stop trusting you.”
The devil swiveled to me. “You know he cannot prevent your death anymore than you can.” He was that dark voice inside my head, the one that probed for my weaknesses, then exploited them, and right now he was trying to drive a wedge between Andre and me.
The devil’s attention returned to my soulmate. “But not to worry, brute, I’m not here to take my consort home this evening.”
Andre’s hair ruffled, and I couldn’t tell whether the breeze that moved it came from the island’s wind or Andre himself.
I stepped forward. “What are you doing here?” I demanded. I pretended not to hear tremor in my voice.
The devil’s eyes narrowed on me. “Enjoying bloodsport.”
I looked around, taking in the ephemeral beings. “What bloodsport?”
He smiled and my stomach plummeted.
“Soulmate, let’s go.”
Andre placed a hand on my back, angling me towards his car. We were almost to the ring of shadows when the devil spoke.
“You haven’t told him, have you?”
I stopped, closing my eyes. I could feel Andre’s probing gaze on me, even without looking.
In the distance I heard the rumble of an engine approaching, coming up fast. A small part of me hoped they would see us as they passed and stop to help. A much larger part of me already knew that no one who stopped would be as well equipped to face the devil as Andre and I. They’d just be casualties.
“Tut, tut, keeping secrets from the vampire. Though I don’t blame you, consort. This one is a doozy.”
I opened my eyes. Next to me, Andre’s jaw had tightened, his gaze trained over his shoulder at the devil. His hair flicked like the tail of an agitated cat.
The car slowed down, drawn to the sight of us undoubtedly.
“Ah,” the devil held his hands out, “look, we have company.”
Would they be supernaturals, like us, or regular humans? The Politia was still after me. Maybe it was an officer. But if it was, then they drove a civilian vehicle.
The engine cut off, and the driver-side door swung open. A man stepped out of the car, and my senses kicked into gear. His gaunt face and bloodshot eyes were a far cry from the dark perfection of the devil’s own features. He smelled of black magic, alcohol, and sickness. This man, like me, was dying.
Liver failure. My nose could detect that. It could also detect what he was. It washed over me, the smell unlocking a memory of a stainless steel table, a still heartbeat, and the touch of death. I’d come across one like him before, though the last man’s life force had been long gone by the time I’d ever laid eyes on him.
Necromancer.
They practiced dark magic, so definitely not the Politia.
When I swiveled back around, I caught the devil smirking. Never a good sign.
Another heartbeat came from the car.
“There’s someone in there with him,” I said to Andre.
“I know.”
Around us, the demons and even the devil had fallen silent.
“Necromancer,” Andre called, “get back in the car and drive home to your loved ones. This place holds only death for you.”
Rather than taking Andre’s advice, the necromancer pulled out a knife.
Something told me this dude wasn’t on team Andriel—yeah, I’d made Andre and me a celebrity name.
The man brought the knife down, the weapon biting into his skin. Andre swore, his form blurring as he ran to the man.
Was I the only one who had no idea what was going on?
The sharp tang of blood filled the air, making my fangs slide out.
“See, little bird?” the devil whispered in my ear. I jumped at his voice, but when I rotated to face him, he still stood a great distance away. “Bloodsport.”
The two grappled, which is really to say that Andre quickly put the necromancer in a chokehold and was threatening to kill the man if he didn’t cooperate.
That heartbeat in the car still thumped away, calling me towards it. I moved forward, trying to pick up the person’s scent.
Smoke congealed in front of me, and out of it stepped the devil. “Ah, ah, ah, consort. All in good time.”