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“You!”
There, once again, was Phaidros. I had no idea where he’d come from. I hadn’t heard any footsteps, nor had I seen his distinct features in the crowd. He was dressed similarly to the men in the ballroom, his outfit somewhat medieval, a splash of red standing out against his black skin. Where the sky was absent of stars, the ones etched on Phaidros’s skin seemed to glow. The subtle scent of cloves coated the air.
He grinned. “Missed me, love?”
“I was stuck as a wolf for three days because of you!” Green flames sparked between my fingers.
Phaidros tensed for half a second, glancing at the power held in my palms before relaxing again, that practiced, carefree mask sliding back into place.
“Heard that was quite the palace spectacle.”
I growled.
“Come on, love, we did have a deal after all. In the grand scheme, that was a rather small price for what I gave you, isn’t it?”
“I don’t trust you as far as I can throw you, Phaidros. And right now, I’m rather tempted to toss you off this balcony.”
“You could try, love.” He adjusted the lapels on his suit while leaning against the shadowed wall, then canted his head to the side. “But that will have to wait for another evening.”
He flicked his wrist and a portal lit the wall behind him.
“Wait!” I wanted to ask him about the teeth I’d planted.
“Don’t worry. We’ll be seeing each other very soon.”
Before I could lunge and grab him by those crimson lapels and shake some answers from the demon, he tipped back into the portal, which immediately shut behind him.
“Lady?”
Cole’s captain of the guard, Stefan, stood in the doorway.
“Making sure I’m not running off?” I joked.
The joke bounced off Stefan like a lead ball into the ocean. “I’ve been tasked with keeping an eye on you, Lady Avery. It’s an honor.” He tacked on the last bit at the end as if to counter the boredom in his voice.
Babysitting duty was probably extremely tedious and not exactly befitting someone of his station.
“I’ll go back to the party, don’t worry.” I pushed off the balcony railing. “Never know what riffraff is hiding in the shadows anyway.” I glared at the spot where Phaidros had been.
“Riffraff?” Stefan sounded affronted. “We wouldneverallow such a breach!”
There was no point in bringing up the Libra demon. Stefan escorted me down the hallway, following half a step behind me. I guess I’d accidentally given him the slip before.
“Stefan, can I ask you something? It’s a bit nosy.”
“Of course, Lady Avery. I will be of service any way you require.”
Stefan clearly took his duty very seriously. Then again, one look at his stiff shoulders and cropped hair could’ve told me that.
“Why are you in Hell? Like… how did you get here? When did you die?”
The older male considered my barrage of questions. “I supposed by now it’s been centuries. Like most others, I lived in the realm of the living. I was a simple warlock. When I died, I found myself here. It’s hard to say why some do and some don’t. It was an inhospitable place at the time, though it got better when the ruling powers were balanced. For a long time, I was aimless. Eventually, I wandered into the capital and decided to take up as a simple foot soldier. The days can get monotonous, you understand. It gave me purpose.”
“Then how did you become captain?”
“May I be frank?”
“I’d prefer you be Stefan.” My lame joke drew about as much laughter as a clown at a funeral. I wasn’t sure why I kept trying. “I mean, of course. Please.”
