Page 112 of Demon Found

Lorelei turns around, and for a brief second, her eyes widen as she takes in mi mami.I couldn’t work out how to tell her, not without appearing as if I was ashamed. And I’m the furthest thing from ashamed there is.

With grace worthy of freaking royalty, Lorelei slips her arm through mine and propels us both toward mi mami,ducking her head in respect, but maintaining eye contact. Respectful in someone else’s house, but not subservient. Perfect.

“A pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Maverik.”

With a shrewd smile, my mother eyes Lorelei. “He didn’t tell you, did he?” She gestures to her wheelchair, slapping its wheel with the flat of her hand.

Lorelei shakes her head and shrugs, nonchalant as you like, taking it all in stride.

Disability isn’t a thing for supes. A demon in a wheelchair? Unheard of. We had to buy the damn thing in the human realm. An ember in my chest takes light for the way my Aeternum just accepted mi mami’s appearance, and with a simple gesture dismissed it as unimportant.

“Mi Chano, an introduction? Who is your beautiful companion?” Mami’s purple eyes bore into me.

“Mi mami,this is Lorelei Smith.”

Lorelei rolls her eyes and steps past me, reaching out to shake my mother’s hand.

“My name is Lorelei Bal, although I’ve lived most of my life as a Smith. Let’s not start off with half-truths.”

Mi mami’s smile cracks her face in two, and her tail, sitting curled in her lap, twitches.

“I like you already,mi querida. A Bal but hiding as a Smith, now there’s a story. Please, be welcome. Chano didn’t give me much warning he was coming, and none that he was bringing a . . . guest.” She glances hopefully between us before birling her wheelchair on the spot and making off down the hallway at speed.

It takes no time at all for mi mami to wheedle out Lorelei’s life story. Bits even I didn’t know. The woman has a way of weaving words and leaving empty silences that encourage you to fill them. Thankfully Lorelei doesn’t seem to mind the inquisition. Seeing the two of them together here, in my childhood home, fills me with a sense of wholeness.

“So, Chano is keeping the Maveriks in line at the academy?”

Shit, she’s onto digging for information about me now.

“If I didn’t know better,” Lorelei responds, “I’d say he has a better moral compass than a fricking angel.”

“Not difficult. If the Angel King is anything to go by,” a shrill voice announces before Lottie throws herself on the sofa between Lorelei and me, her little wings flapping, forcing a space for herself.

“Be careful where you say those things,nina,” mi mami says, glancing quickly at Lorelei, “I can’t protect you forever.”

“I don’t need protection! And Chano’s not living in the real world. Being all high and mighty and moral.” She sneers.

I round on my kid sister and pin her with a stare. “This is the tios' talk, kiddo. You’re better than that. The Maveriks are not just any gang. We might not follow the law, but that doesn’t mean we have no morals.”

Lottie snarls at being corrected and flings her arms in the air. “Fat lot of fucking good that did mi mami.”

Deathly silence follows, and my bolshy little sister winces. She didn’t mean the insult to mi mami. She was flexing her little baby demon muscles in front of the stranger.

“What do you mean the tios?” Lorelei looks between me and mi mami, ignoring Lottie’s outburst and neatly defusing the situation. Mi mami’s face is thunder, but now she’s back to evaluating the stranger in our midst.

“You can trust her,” I say with a grunt. “We were keeping the announcement for over dinner but . . .” I flick my fingers, releasing the spell concealing the mark on both our thumbs. “Lorelei is my Aeternum.”

Lottie’s eyes widen, and she jumps up from between us, turning to stare at Lorelei. Mi mami is frozen, fixated on my thumb. Slowly her gaze travels up my arm. She lets out a yowl like a werecat in heat.Fuck.I’ve not told her about the allegiance yet.

Lorelei’s on her feet in an instant, staring between us, alarmed. I tug her back down to my side with a wry smile. It takes a long beat before the scream dies out. The ladies in mi familia are loud. Especially if you’re not used to it.

“It’s okay, chica.”

“It is not okay, Luciano Maverik,” mi mami exclaims. Lottie snickers at my full name, and even Lori’s mouth twitches. “You didn’t think to tell your poor old mami you had an Aeternum and an allegiance? Oh, your tios have lost already!”

She punches the air.

“The tios. . .Chano’s uncles,” she explains. “I became ill, and they took over the Maveriks. The bastards will do anything for money and power. I mean anything. I should know, they’re my brothers.” She scowls, her purple demon rings spinning violently in her eyes. “By rights the head of thisfamilianow is Chano. But he needs to be stronger than all of them combined for that. It was a gamble to send him to Fates. We had no guarantee he’d find an allegiance and ascend. But he’s done it. With a Bal as his Aeternum.”

---