Now that just pisses me off. I press the knife harder, drawing a small droplet of blood from his neck.
“You didn’t fucking care about going aftermy family,did you?” I snap.
Something in his eyes goes cold despite his fear. He doesn’t show even a drop of remorse. He says nothing.
“You were going to take some sweet young girl and gut her for your twisted magic,” I continue, letting my anger build. I think Syrus encourages it, slipping through my body and stoking the rage. Either way, the heat of it burns in my veins as Hathwell just stares at me, dead-eyed.
I adjust my hold on the knife, contemplating whether to ask the next question—the one I’ve been afraid of asking, especially in front of Syrus. But I have to know, no matter the answer.
“It was me you wanted from the start, wasn’t it?” I say. “You trapped my father into offering you Evie, but when I came along—when you learnedAda wasn’t my mother—you were suddenly all for marrying me.” The volume of my voice rises as my anxiety about what he might say takes hold. “Why? Why did you choose me?”
Syrus’s awareness sharpens when I ask the questions, but he doesn’t say anything. Hathwell, meanwhile, seems to consider how to answer.
“If I tell you, will you let me go?” he asks.
I blink, surprised.Thishe’s willing to share? Obviously, he doesn’t think whoever has kept him down here will count it as a betrayal.
“All right,” I lie. I actually haven’t decided his fate yet, but no need to tell him that.
Hathwell licks his lips, wincing when he catches the bruise on his mouth. “Why don’t you unchain me first?”
“Nice try,” I say, reminding him of the knife in my hand with a little pressure. “But you’re not in a position to negotiate. Now I know you’re willing to tell mesomething, you have to hand it over or I’ll start cutting.”
He glares at me, hatred burning in his eyes. “I wish I’d realized from the start that you’d turn out to be such a troublesome bitch,” he says.
“Start talking,” I snap.
He sighs, the hardness still lurking in his eyes as he obeys. “We learned that if we wanted to summon a high-ranking demon—someone powerful—ordinary blood wouldn’t do.”
My heart beats faster, wondering if he’s really about to say what I think he is yet feeling crazy for even entertaining it at the same time.
“We needed a nephilim,” he says.
I close my eyes. There’s a rush in my ears. Syrus has gone very still, and I have no sense of what he’s thinking or feeling. I suspected…something…I don’t know what. But I’m not an idiot. I’ve been getting so strong lately, and Syrus seems constantly surprised by my being able to do things like push him out of my head. It’s not normal for a human, not even one who’s bonded to a powerful demon. It’s not just his strength making me strong—it’s mine too.
Because I’m not entirely human.
I have ephilium blood in my veins. I’m a hybrid, a crossbreed. It’s not an idea I could’ve ever articulated myself, not until Hathwell came out and said it. It still seems impossible.
“But my mother…” I say. “I remember her. She wasn’t…”
“She must’ve been nephilim herself—obviously not full winger,” Hathwell says bluntly. “The children of humans and ephilium tend to not show their winger traits if they’re not raised around other ephilium.”
“How did you know what I was?” I ask, my eyes snapping open. “How did you know when I didn’t know myself?”
When he hesitates, I scowl at him. “Tell me, or you can kiss your shot at freedom goodbye.”
“We found a spell to locate you,” he grunts. “At least, to locate the dwelling place of a nephilim. We pinpointed your father’s house, but we needed to be sure of the nephilim’s identity. We’d already wasted valuable time with one failed sacrifice.”
“Your first wife,” I say, a catch in my throat as the full horror of it sinks in.
“Yes,” Hathwell says, again not showing the slightest hint of remorse. His jaw tightens, as if he’s more annoyed than anything that I’ve interrupted him. “That was before we knew a normal blood sacrifice wouldn’t be enough.”
“Syrus,”I reach out in my mind, seeking…something. It hurts, how quiet he’s been.
“Yes, Leah,”he replies, and I feel the soft touch of his consciousness against mine.“It’s all right.You’regoing to be all right. I’m here.”I exhale with relief. I was so worried he’d think I’d been lying to him this whole time, that I really was an ephilium agent in disguise. But his simple assurance tells me nothing has changed between us.
“So how did you identify me?” I ask.
