Page 97 of Bad Demon

“I must’ve fallen asleep. What’s wrong?”

Her gaze slid to Sutton, then back to me. “I went back to the demon library tonight, looking for my headphones. You know I’ve been looking for them all week, and that was the only place I hadn’t been back to check. You know I can’t work without them.”

Sutton and I both nodded.

“Well, while I was searching the library, Rune came in.” Her eyes widened. “He asked what books I’d been there searching for. I explained everything—like, everything—about you making a deal with Relic and claiming his soul so he’d protect you. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to, but it was like he was pulling the words from me, and I couldn’t stop.”

“It’s fine. I know what you mean.” I patted her hand. “Don’t even worry about it.”

She shook her head. “That’s not the part I wanted to tell you.” Her eyes were still wide. “When I finished talking … well, first, he laughed—like, a lot. Then, finally, he said … in that freaky, sexy, terrifying voice, ‘No one Hell-born has a soul, lovely, not the kind you mean and not the kind that can be owned.’”

I froze. “What?”

“I don’t think you ever owned Relic’s soul, Fern,” she said, blinking over at me.

“No … hang on a minute. That can’t be right.”

Sutton exchanged another look with Phoebe. “Rune would know though, right? He’s a soul collector as well. And he’s like, Rune.”

I shot to my feet and paced away. What the hell did this mean? Had Relic actually … pretended I owned his soul? Why? Why would he do that?

I’d wanted his feelings for me to be true so badly. I’d wanted the way he touched me, the way he looked at me, to be real, but it was safe to pretend, to want it because it was never going to happen. The deal had been a shield, protecting me from the possibility of real feelings, of real rejection, of again being cast aside for being what I was. For being me.

It hadn’t mattered that I was a total mess or how much I’d fucking hated him seeing all my broken pieces, because none of it had been real. I’d forced him to be there with me because ofthe deal, becauseI owned his soul.

Oh gods. I suddenly felt exposed, laid bare in a way I never had before.

But still a voice in my head, timid but hopeful, whispered,could he really want to be with me?

I shook my head. No, he couldn’t want that. Why would he want that? And even if he did, it would never work, it couldn’t. Eventually, he’d get sick of looking after me while I melted down. Eventually, he’d get sick of the compulsions and the weirdness and my feeding off him like a leech and want me gone.

I was finding it hard to breathe. I had to know. I had to know if what Rune had said was true. “I need to go to the clubhouse.”

“We can take you,” Sutton said.

“We’ll make sure no one gets near you,” Phoebe added.

I nodded. “Let’s go.”

ChapterTwenty-Six

RELIC

“What do you think?”Roman asked, holding out his sketch.

He’d returned from Hell earlier that day after Lothar went to take his place.

There was still no word from Lucifer.

Besides a couple of brothers playing pool and Brick watching a movie, the common room was quiet.

“Yeah, brother, that’s fucking perfect.”

The drawing Rome had done was better than I’d imagined. From a distance, you might think it was the Tinker Bell fromPeter Pan, but up close, not so much. Rome had given my Tink vibrant red hair, cute little fangs, curves for days, and her dress was made of fern leaves.

Rome nodded. “Is your female in your den?” he asked while he loaded the ink.

“I fucking wish.”

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