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"Why would he?" Thane asked.
Brice shuffled again. "Because I don't want to stand against her. That woman scares the piss out of me. They picked you because she let you live. Well, guess what? She let me live too. What the fuck do I do if they make me call her?"
Thane's heart stopped. What if they had her name now? What if he was out of time? What if that was why she hadn't called him back, because she was currently sitting in a cell somewhere in that building?
Except it didn't work like that. She had a body, so she wouldn't just vanish and reappear. She'd be pulled to return. When Mei had been killed, Dahlia had known. Probably because Mei had called her, which meant running there - or driving - was how she'd answer the summons. Hopefully, she'd also let him know what was going on so he could help.
Yet Brice was staring at him, clearly waiting for some kind of answer. "She's a good lay," Thane offered. "Expect her to bite you, though. Hope you're into that. Um, she was disoriented at first, worried more about reforming than when or where she was."
"When?" Brice asked.
Thane nodded. "She asked, 'When am I?' and I thought she misspoke. She didn't."
Brice's eyes narrowed. "How old is she? Because that doesn't sound like some new demon. That sounds like she's been around enough to get lost in time."
"Yeah, kinda what I thought," Thane agreed, doing his best to walk this line. "The problem is that when I suggested it to the Bishop, he didn't want to hear it. The thought that some demon has been wandering around and we've missed it?"
"Valkyrie," Brice whispered, sounding like that was meant to be to himself. "She's going to kill me."
"I don't think she wants to," Thane admitted - cursing himself as soon as the words were out. "I mean, that wasn't the impression I got." Damn, he was digging this hole deeper.
"Thane?" Brice asked. "Man, I'm not going to repeat this to anyone. It would incriminate me as much as you. I'm just freaking out, and you're the only one who seems to understand her. Maybe it's against what we were taught, but your first impressions - even if you know they're wrong - could help me."
"Have they talked to you yet?" Thane asked.
Brice just hung his head. "Yesterday. They said that they might need my help, mentioned how she'd let me live, and asked if I had any idea why. Sounds like what they did to you, so I'm bracing for it. Just... Please?"
"She seemed like she was defending herself," Thane admitted. "I don't have a damned clue how this works in her head, but that's how she acted. When I called her - " Even though he would not tell Brice her real name. " - She just wanted sex. She was also invisible, so I recommend closing your eyes. She kissed me, fondled me, and then began to rub against me. I used that as my chance to get her against the back wall, then fucked her. She bit me in the process, but it was almost accidental, as if she was just lost in the moment. When we were done, she finally recognized me, and she was a little lost in her afterglow. I took the chance, broke the illusion, and shut the cage with her in it."
Half of that was bullshit, but it was the kind of bullshit that would work with the audio recording Thane knew they had. He'd left off the bits that would get him in trouble. He'd skipped over the things that Brice didn't need to know, but he included enough to make it something Brice would believe. Hopefully, it would also make the guy feel better about all of this.
"What if I mess up with the door?" Brice asked. "Like, if she gets past me somehow?"
"They will put a stake in you," Thane said.
Brice just looked up and met Thane's eyes. "You ever thought about that? They act like it's a real good threat, but what's the alternative? A demon rips our throat out?"
"It's more about how long you get to live before a demon wins," Thane pointed out, "and less about the fact that we all die in the end."
"Yeah, because the line between today and tomorrow is a real big one," Brice huffed. "Fuck it. I'm gonna let her out."
Thane grabbed the man by both arms and shook him. "You will do no such thing!"
"Fuck you," Brice hissed, shoving him off. "Stop and think for a damned second. I'm not a fucking idiot, Thane. She let you live. She let me live. I happen to knowwhyshe let me live, and I have a funny feeling that you do too. At the old stadium field? She looked right at me. She looked at Lucas too, but she didn't know him. She had no reason to spare him, so she didn't."
"He's still alive," Thane pointed out.
"Because of a fluke. Because a priest found him before he bled out completely!" Brice paused, knowing his voice was too loud. "She ripped off faces. She pulled off arms. She broke bodies. She kicked me in the damned jaw. Something about that seems a little disproportionate, no?"
"Yeah," Thane agreed. "The question should be why she's letting some of us live and not others."
"She didn't kill your brother," Brice pointed out. "From what I heard, Brother Laird drained her with a Word, and she ran. There were how many bodies around that she'd been drinking from? There was an entire slew of us available to feed them both, but she ran. Maybe no one's bothered to think about that yet, but I can'tstop. She let me live. She let you live. She spared your fucking brother, wounding him just enough that it was clear he put up a fight."
"Don't make my life worse," Thane warned. "I will turn you in before I allow rumors about my family to start again."
"Your family," Brice pointed out. "That's Laird. You never mention your old man. We all know about your mom and little brother, but you don't say a damned thing about your father. You drop everything for Brother Laird, though. So. Did. She."
"Fuck you, Brice," Thane grumbled, turning away.
