Page 102 of A City of Smoke and Demons
‘Fine,’ Analise cut in. ‘I’m fine.’
Ezra wanted to argue, but he let his hand drop to caress her thigh beneath the table instead. She threaded her fingers through his.
Maddog had remained silent through the meeting, but he cleared his throat. ‘The South End chapter sent a message yesterday,’ he said. ‘Requesting Analise’s services.’
‘What?’ she whispered. Her fingers tightened on Ezra’s.
Maddog’s lips quirked. ‘Good news travels fast. I told them no, but this is the first indication that there may be a way toprevent Asmael from adding more souls, more demons, to his ranks. People are excited about the prospect.’
‘What a pity someone let the Crown exile the Daughters of Lilith.’ The words were out of Ezra’s mouth before he could stop them, but again, he made no apology.
‘What a pity someone caught the rest of them and sent them to their deaths,’ Blackwood retorted.
Ezra wasn’t going to have this conversation, not with this pious prick sitting across from him. ‘If we’re done, this miracle is leaving.’ He stood, dragging Analise with him. ‘And your death witch is coming with me.’
Analise studied her reflection, watching her lips curl as she made herself smile. She did it again, trying to get used to the feeling and the way it looked. The action still felt at odds with the rest of her face.
She didn’t know how to make the smile reach her eyes. When Lira smiled, her eyes smiled as well, and when Ezra smiled—truly smiled, not grinned or smirked, his whole face came alive with it. Jem’s smiles were fleeting. Even Hernan, who manned the door of the Club each night, was more liberal with his smiles than Jem.
Tonight, Analise was going to be sociable. She was going to go downstairs and talk to people. A smile would probably help. She spent twenty minutes practising what she hoped was a welcoming smile; one that said, ‘nice to meet you,’ rather than, ‘I’m a death witch and I’ve spent my life in hiding.’
Analise stepped back from the mirror so she could see more of herself. Her brows were delicately arched, not too thin and not too bushy. In the flickering candle light, her cheekbones stood out, but her jaw line was soft, decidedly feminine. Therewas nothing extraordinary about her nose, but she thought it suited her face well enough. Then her lips, lush and plump—men always claimed they liked her lips, and Analise supposed she did as well. Tonight, her eyes appeared flecked with gold, but maybe that was a trick of the light.
She was wearing a heavy black skirt and high-necked, black blouse that left her arms bare from the elbow to the wrist. She looked like death. At least her hair broke the darkness that shrouded the rest of her. It seemed fitting, after all.
Analise made her way to the bar. For a moment, she was suspended on the edge of a sea of people. She stood on tiptoe, craning her neck and cursing her short stature. Ezra was on the far side of the room, his blond hair unmistakable in a sea of slicked dark locks. Jem, Tobias, and a few other men Analise didn’t know were with him. She took note of the easy smiles and the laughter, at Tobias’ expense, by the dark look on the other man’s face.
Ezra was happy. She’d leave him be, even though she wanted nothing more than to sit with him and soak up the relaxed air he was capable of creating. He made her feel comfortable, and that surprised her. Analise usually relied on herself for comfort. What surprised her more was that she slept better when he was beside her. She still dreamt of the man in the white suit, but there were no more hands bursting through the earth, no more gravestones gilded by milky moonlight. The man always talked to her, but for some reason, she could no longer hear his voice.
Analise seated herself at the bar, deciding she’d have one drink only, to celebrate. She’d managed to live in a pub and not drink herself into oblivion on a regular basis. With the dreams under control, she didn’t need to. Cigar smoke tickled her nose and conversation rose and fell around her like a wave but rather than be annoyed by it, she soaked it up. As a glass was placed in front of her, someone appeared at her side. Analise turnedto give them a smile but it fell from her lips before it had even formed.
She was looking at her Familiar.
His hair was the same dark shade, but everything else about him was different. There waslifein those eyes. They were blue, not black and his skin was a normal, healthy, human tone.
‘I found you,’ he breathed, removing his hat and clutching it to his chest.
Analise smiled broadly. ‘It’s John, isn’t it?’
He nodded. ‘I wanted to say thank you for what you did. I don’t know how you did it, but I’m eternally grateful.’
‘It was my pleasure. I was told you didn’t remember me?’
‘I didn’t, at first, but after I returned home and the confusion wore off, I realised I knew your face—you were familiar to me. Sorry, wrong choice of words,’ he added sheepishly.
Analise smiled again, and he smiled back. He was so different. She’d done that. Her magic had returned his life, as it did Ezra’s. She remembered her manners, and offered him a drink. He shook his head.
‘I’ve come to ask a favour—another one,’ John said. ‘My mother, she’s dying.’
‘I’m sorry,’ Analise murmured.
‘My sister tells me she has been sick for some time, and the physician says she doesn’t have long. I only wish I had more time to spend with her. I missed so much when I wasn’t myself.’
‘I’m sorry about your mother.’ Analise licked her lips. ‘Can I ask, why? Why make the deal?’
John sighed and ran a hand through his hair. ‘Life in this place is awful. I got a better offer, or so I thought. He promised me …’
‘Go on,’ Analise prompted.Thiswas something she needed to know.
