“Anything.” I leaned my head on her shoulder, relishing the scent of her cherry soap and her sweat and the soft way her hair brushed against mine. “Everything. What are you going to do when we get out of here?”
She took a deep breath. “Eat a nice juicy steak without it being covered in barbecue sauce.”
I scoffed. “You love my cooking.”
Marta’s torso vibrated as she laughed. “I don’t know. Probably never deal with another demon again.”
“Oh, come on now,” I said, trying to be light-hearted. “This is a once in a million years event. How many demons have the Harlots sent to liminals? They’ve all gone fine before.”
“I think two months stuck in one is enough to make me never want anything else to do with it.”
I snorted, but then the silence fell on us, and the soft noises from the demon outside started to grate on my nerves like knives scraping on porcelain plates.
“Thank you,” I said, lifting my head so I could meet her eyes.
She furrowed her brows, her confusion seeping into my bones. “For what?”
“For healing me. For putting up with me. For…all of this. We’re stronger now because of what you’ve done.” I took her hand and interlaced our fingers, bringing it to my lips so I could kiss her knuckles. I didn’t know if it was the blood loss, the concussion, or the brush with death that turned me into a big giant sap, but I felt like if I didn’t tell her now, I never would. “I think I’m in love with you, Marta. These two months have been…fucking hell. And I’m sure there’s probably about a million other people you would have rather been stuck here with, but I wouldn’t have changed anything.”
She stared at me with wide eyes, her mouth open, the sharp slice of her shock combining with the warmth of affection and adoration in our tether.
“Don’t talk like that,” she said, squeezing my hand. “We’re getting out of here.”
“No, I know,” I said. “I just wanted you to know. I thought my brother was the only person in the world I’d ever care about. And now…Now, I can’t imagine life without you in it.”
“Atlas—”
“I’m serious,” I said. “When we get home, when this is all over, I don’t want to forget what I felt while I was here. We said what happens in the liminal stays in the liminal, but I don’t know if I can commit to that.”
She blinked, and tears streamed down her cheeks. I reached up with my free hand to wipe them away, and for the first time since we were stuck here, I leaned in to kiss her without the weight of magic or ritual or demonic influence bearing down on us. It was real, and it was me and her, and God, her lips were so soft. It was more than just attraction between us, and maybe it was the impending resolution wearing me down, but I meant everything I said.
Marta was endlessly selfless and brilliant and gorgeous. She was powerful; she’d put me on my ass more than once. When it came to her, I realized there was nothing I wouldn’t do to keep her safe, to keep both of them safe.
“Atlas,” she whispered when we broke apart. “I don’t know how I would have gotten through this without you…without you both.”
The sudden silence between us deafened me, and I realized it was quiet, truly quiet, for the first time since we got stuck here. I glanced up at the windows, at the bright sunshine shimmering in through the stained glass, painting the walls in rainbows of vibrant blues and reds.
She followed my line of sight, sickening alarm blasting through both of us.
“Where’s the demon?” she whispered.
“Where’s Wes?”
Marta shot to her feet. “Wes!”
CHAPTER 23
Wesson
I loved them both.
I knew that deep in my bones.
And the monster had been clawing at my insides since last night, since I’d unlatched his cage and let him have free roam of my body. He’d seen Marta and Atlas, he’d tasted their blood and flesh, and he wanted more.
“Come to me,” he chanted, tearing at my mental barriers with his inky claws. All night and all morning, it had called to me. “Come to me, and I won’t kill them. Deny me, and I’ll paint the entire world with their blood.”
At first, I thought I’d been imagining it. We’d been here two months, and I was only now starting to hear voices. But after it attacked the estate, I realized I was the problem. Whatever I’d done during the ritual, whatever I’d allowed to be done to me, it had given the demon free rein to invade our wards. It used my energy against us, used my blood against us, and it would keep coming after us until I gave in.
