Page 71 of The Demon Mark

“I need you to help me protect her.”

“No, I don’t think I’m any good for that.” Sloth grabbed a handful of coins and let them trickle down the pile. “One of our other brothers is better suited to that life than I am.”

“Listen to me, Sloth. I need better weapons to keep her safe, and we both know there is no better weapon than you. They sent a chimera after her. Do you know where they got that from?” Envy took an aggressive step toward his brother, reaching the bottom stair too fast and then was suddenly right in front of Sloth. “Your kingdom. Your kingdom is the only one they could have gotten that from.”

“Yes, they may have gotten it here. But I do not control the animal trade any more than I control the rest of my kingdom. My people make money as they see fit, and I do not seek to limit them.”

He was going to hit him. Envy was going to punch him in the mouth so hard that Sloth lost all those pretty teeth that he’d bared in a grin. “It is our job to protect those who need to be protected.”

“Is that so?” Sloth arched a brow. “I did not know that was a function of envy in the slightest. You take. You consume. You do it again. That is your lot in life.”

“And yet, you were the one who urged me to change. You were the one who said you started all of this, so are you not at fault?” Envy was grasping at straws, trying to get his brother to see reason, even though he feared it was a waste of time. “If you truly believe you were the one who caused this all, then this is one of the moments where you could make amends for that.”

Sloth stilled. His knuckles suddenly turned white as he gripped the coins so hard they must have cut into his skin. “You know nothing of what you speak.”

“You caused all of this, so you have a duty to fix what you broke.”

“She never wanted this to happen,” Sloth spat. “Neither of us did. I have nothing to make amends for. It’s been broken for a long time, brother. I was just the first one to pull a thread.”

The words hung between them, unusual and baring too much of the truth.

“She?” Envy repeated. “Who was she?”

“No one I will ever speak of. And no one that you will ever hear of.” Sloth straightened, then yanked himself out of the coins. “Now that you’ve ruined a perfectly good day, you are free to leave.”

“I came here for your help. And I’m not leaving without you.”

“What do you want me to do, Envy? You want me to turn into a dragon and breathe fire over anyone who comes close to her? Is that what you want?”

It wasn’t a bad idea. It would make anyone who wanted to attack her think twice. He opened his mouth, only to have Sloth put up his hand and interrupt him.

“I’m not going to do that, Envy. She deserves to live her life without one of us interfering in it.”

“Is that what you did? Did you watch someone from afar and then lose her?”

A ghost passed between the two of them. Cold and sharp, it seemed to pass straight through Sloth and grip his heart before the energy moved on.

“No,” Sloth replied. “No, I wasn’t smart enough to keep my distance. Neither was she.”

Neither of them was going to save the world by beating their heads off a wall, and neither of them were going to change their minds. Clearly, his brother wanted to wallow in his guilt. Envy needed him to climb out of it. Which meant there was only so much he could do.

There was only one last choice, and it wasn’t one that Sloth was going to like.

“Come here,” he said, holding onto Sloth’s shoulder and yanking his brother into his arms.

“What are you doing?” Sloth grumbled. “I don’t need a hug.”

“Neither do I.” Envy used the opportunity to throw up a portal behind Sloth and then he shoved his brother through it. Directly into Lilith’s bedroom, where he hoped his little love was dressed and prepared for visitors.

Otherwise, he would have to pluck out his brother’s eyes. And he didn’t want to do that.

28

Lilith had just about decided it wasn’t all that bad to be alone. She had her room and things to do. There were plenty of places in this castle to explore and honestly, she didn’t need Envy.

It took about two hours for her to figure that out before she was bored again. And this time, she knew it was because he wasn’t around her. She hated this was how she felt, though. After everything that she’d been through in her life, and all the places she’d been, she shouldn’t be so attached to a man.

Especially a man like Envy.

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