Page 59 of Cry for Help

Stolas didn’t answer as he walked to the bar and grabbedthe nearest bottle of Titos. He didn’t bother pouring the drinks. Instead, Stolas shuffled over to Behem and handed the demon the bottle. Despite Behem’s offer of a drink, the demon tilted his head back and sucked the contents dry.

When Behem was momentarily distracted, Stolas shot him a warning look.

Okay, Malphas thought. There was a plan. That was good. Because for a moment, he had thought the wise old owl had officially lost it.

Malphas hoped that Murmur and Maddie had found the Fae prisoners upstairs and gotten the hell out of dodge. Still, to be sure, he was willing to provide a distraction.

Behem finished the vodka, and chucked the empty bottle over their heads. The glass smashed against the marble steps, but neither Caim nor Malphas flinched. A dusting of glass coated one of the sleeping demons, but they didn’t wake up.

“Poaching from Sloth?” Malphas kept his voice casual. “Because I can’t see any other reason for tolerating such behavior from your subjects. We sauntered right in here, and no one blinked.”

“I was expecting you.” Behem shifted in the pool, submerging his chest despite the heavy weight of the gold. “In fact, I invited you, if you recall.”

Malphas fixed his eyes on the gluttony demon, doing his best not to glance at Stolas. “You did.” Malphas agreed, leaving the sentence hanging.

“Does Beelzebub know you’re hanging around with Sloth demons?” Caim chimed in; his voice was airy and ignorant. His MO. Beelzebub was Gluttony's king and was hands-on by demonic standards.

“Those are Gluttony demons.” Behem chuckled, watching the pool water ripple as he moved his hands under the surface. “They’re just getting used to the Sugar.”

“Sugar?” Malphas echoed dryly.

“Diabetes is a killer.” Caim nodded solemnly.

“It’s a new invention of mine,” Behem explained. “It’s just… delightful.”

“I would think that gluttony demons consume enough sugar as it is.” Malphas drawled.

“Sugar.” Behem sat back, puffing his concave chest with pride. “Is a new drug, you dullard.”

“Sugar?” Caim stepped forward, crouching down to the pool’s edge. He put his chin against his hands and knelt down to speak to the glutton. “Is it any good?”

Behem swam closer. “It’s the only thing that quiets the curse. The hunger.”

“Oh?” Caim cocked his head to the side.

“I invited you because I sense the same hunger in you that plagues us,” Behem said earnestly. “Stolas already made a deal.”

“Did he?” Malphas’s brows lifted, but Behem ignored his question, and Stolas ignored his glare.

So many deals.

“What’s in it?” Caim asked innocently.

Behem opened his mouth to speak, but the eerie silence surrounding the pool was broken by the high-pitched scream as the windows on the second floor burst into shards of glass.

Malphas cursed.

He knew that scream.

Chapter Eighteen

I sensed the iron around us before I opened my eyes. The air smelled of damp and rot. Unwashed bodies and blood.

Even with my eyes closed, I saw her face. Inmate Peck. Inmate Higgins. Eaten.

Just like mom.

I couldn’t breathe.

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