Page 20 of One Hell of a Deal

Daphne raises her head and catches my eye before turning back to face him. “I understa…

In another sudden rush of hot flame, he is gone.

I move to Daphne and wrap my arms around her as she silently sobs. “We still have time. We can find a way.”

“I doubt it,” she stammers. “We barely have two weeks.”

I shift myself in front of her and put both hands on her shoulders and stare firmly into her pooling eyes. “We'd better start on the research right now, then. I’ll get the papers. You put on some coffee.”

She takes a deep breath and nods. “Okay. But can you still try to get us a lunch reservation for tomorrow?”

She is something else. “Sure. I can try.”

“Good,” she says, pushing to her feet. “If I have to go back to hell, there are a few things I’d like to do before I go.”

“And eating foie gras is one of them?” I can’t help but chuckle, despite my emotional exhaustion.

“At Brechon Fire? Yes.”

I guess this is very important to her. Hopefully, I can get us a table.

Chapter Seventeen: Daphne

Max couldn’t get us the reservation until next weekend, but that’s okay with me. I’m too depressed to enjoy anything right now anyway. I never realized that emotion can have such a strong physical effect on the human body. All the energy and excitement I had before Shax showed up last night is gone. I just want to lie in bed and cry all day.

Thankfully, Max isn’t having it. He says if we are going to find a way out of this mess, we have to dig deep and get to work. Despite us both tossing and turning last night, he was up early, making us breakfast and coffee that we enjoyed together in bed. But now it’s time to get to work.

Pages of the Book of Arcainia are strewn about the living room. Page by page, we double-check everything to ensure nothing has been missed. After three hours, I can’t take much more.

“There is nothing in here,” I growl. “I’ve read every page three times by now.”

He releases a deep sigh as his body visibly deflates. “I guess we need to find another angle.”

I shake my head, as my chest grows tight. “This is hopeless. We should give up now, and that way we can spend the little bit of time I have left, enjoying things together.”

His brow furrows. “How can you give up so easily?”

“Easily?” I snap. Nothing about any of this is easy. It’s not his humanity on the line. “Do you even realize how slim the possibility is that we can outsmart the devil twice?Nothingis easy here.”

My body is trembling slightly, and my face burns, and to make matters worse, Max is staring at me with a bewildered expression.

“What?” I bark, louder than warranted.

“It’s just that…” his voice trails off.

“Just that what?”

He shifts uncomfortably and looks down at the floor. “Your…um…eyes…”

“What about ‘em?”

“Well,” he says, rubbing the back of his neck. “They are black.”

Confused, it takes a moment to register what he’s said. Once I collect my thoughts, I focus my energy on calming down, closing my eyes until I feel the change back to human eyes take place. I don’t know why, but something is happening inside me. It’s like my humanity is starting to fade away.

“That’s better,” he says, chuckling nervously. “What was that about?”

I shrug, not wanting to tell him what I suspect is happening. “I think my emotions got the better of me. I’m sorry. I hope I didn’t scare you.”

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