Page 56 of Mortal Heart

Arkady had known vampires much older than six hundred years, so it wasn’t as difficult for her to process that information as it might have been for most. Six hundred years wasn’t even particularly long-lived for a vamp. The real difference was how long he’d existed before that six hundred years.

“Eons,” he said.

“Hey.” She scowled. “Can you read my mind?”

“No, but I didn’t have much trouble figuring out what you were thinking.”

She absorbed what he’d said.Eons. Not centuries or even millennia. Eons. Millions of years.Compared to her own thirty-some years of existence, it seemed incomprehensible.

“So with me you’re robbing the cradle big time,” she teased when he seemed to be waiting for a response. “What, can’t find any women your own age?”

He didn’t return her smile. “I broke angelic law twice. I’m a mortal man now. Not human, but mortal. With a mortal lifespan and everything that comes with it. It’s a punishment.”

She moved closer to him and rested her hand on his chest. “Is it?”

“Yes.” He took her hand and pressed a kiss to her palm. “Or at least it was supposed to be.”

“See, now you’re getting it. Nobody can diminish us without our permission, and fuck ’em for trying.” She glanced down between them. “You know, for a supposedly mortal man, you seem to have remarkable powers of recuperation.”

That finally elicited one of his rare real smiles. “What can I say? I’ve never had much trouble in that department, and lately I’ve been a bit deprived.” He kissed her neck. “Also, how any man could look at you and not get hard, I have no idea.”

“Yeah, yeah, no need to flatter me.” She rolled her eyes. “I’ve already invited you to my bed. And my shower.”

“Yes, you did.” He pinned her against the wall. “So I’m going to make the most of it.”

Despite her exhaustion and the hot water, she shivered with anticipation. “Well, if you insist.”

15

RONAN

A demon livedin Carmody Tower.

Katy had confirmed upon waking that Carmody was the building she’d seen while scrying and their target resided on its top floor. But even if he hadn’t gotten that confirmation, the moment Ronan and Arkady approached he would have known.

“There’s a demon here,” he said as Arkady pulled to the side of the wide boulevard that led up Castle Hill to the tower. “And the tower is built on a crossroads.”

She frowned and scanned the area. “I see one road going in. It dead-ends at the tower. What do you see that I don’t?”

“It’s not what I see, but what I sense.” He gestured from left to right. “Two roads intersected here long ago before this area was made a park. They’re no longer visible but once created, a crossroads is forever. Its power remains.”

“So a crossroads deal is a real thing?”

“Veryreal.”

“Good to know. Not that I plan on making one.” She drummed her fingers restlessly on the steering wheel. “Why would a demon reside at a crossroads?”

“A crossroads is a liminal space—a place that is no place, between places, neither here nor there,” he explained when she frowned. “Portals between realms are made more easily in such locations. Spirits often traverse roads that no longer exist and become confused where they intersect. Powerful spirits also sometimes travel between realms at crossroads. Demons feed on those spirits, among other things.”

“So a crossroads is a power source, a food source,anda convenient location to make a door in case they want to visit other places. That makes Carmody a perfect spot.” She studied the tower. “Kinda makes me wonder how many demons might be living here. Just our girl or an army of them?”

He’d been considering that very question since they’d identified Carmody as the demon’s probable residence. “Not an army. A concentration of many demons would attract the attention of numerous powerful entities for whom low-level demons are either food or to be destroyed.”

“How do you know it hasn’t?”

He gave her a bland look. “The tower is still standing, is it not?”

Arkady laughed. “Okay, fair enough.” She sobered. “So our number of adversaries is somewhere between one and not an army. I don’t like that great big question mark. You got any other secret powers that can help us here?”

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