I snarled at him and he laughed. “I’m not just being mysterious. I’ve spent most of my childhood in this world, remember?”
The fae bartender practically danced over to me, swapping my drink for a new one. “Thanks.” I turned my body to face Vas. “What about your family?”
He stretched out next to me. “My parents were killed when the portals opened. We weren’t planning to leave. Lucifer had ordered all high demons to stay where he could keep them under his thumb.”
I held up my hand. “Wait. Is Lucifer actually the ruler of the underworld?”
“Yeah. Humans got a few things right, but most of what they know was told to them by lesser demons summoned centuries before the portals opened.” I blinked, a plethora of questions on the tip of my tongue. But Vas was still talking.
“There had already been a rebellion brewing. My parents had joined those who protested Lucifer’s rule. They were members of his court. When he found out, he sent his best assassin to kill them.”
“I’m so sorry.”
He shrugged. “I was so young I didn’t know what happened. Daimonion left me alive,” his face went cold. “And that was a mistake. One day, I’ll make him pay for what he did to my parents.”
Vas and I had more in common than I’d realized. “So your uncle raised you?”
“Yeah. He found out too late that Daimonion had been sent. When he arrived, I was sitting between my parent’s bodies, screaming for my mother. A few days later, the portals opened. Ag knew if he left me behind, Lucifer would find out, and kill me to leave an example to anyone else in his court who thought to join the rebellion. He took me with him and raised me in this world.”
“That explains why you… blend in more than the other demons.”
“Yeah. I’ve only ever known this world. My uncle made sure I was raised with the traditions of our people, but when I was a kid, I used to sneak out and go play with the human kids in the park.”
I gaped at him and he laughed. “Most of our powers don’t appear until puberty. My wings were hidden, so people assumed I was a human orphan. The Decade of Despair had just ended when I began sneaking out.”
“You guys rebelled against Lucifer, but you follow Samael,” I said, and his smile disappeared as he got to his feet.
“All of us would die for Samael,” he said, shaking his head as I opened my mouth. “His secrets are his own to tell. But Danica… he’s not a monster.”
I shook my head. I didn’t want to talk about it. Across the other side of the bar, Mere caught my eye. Her eyes dropped to my hand and the gold winding beneath my sleeve, and something like worry crossed her face as she made her way closer to me.
“How are you doing, Danica?” she asked, wiping her hands on a towel as she nodded at someone who called her name.
“Been better.”
She smiled. “Well, you’re in the right place.”
Vas shifted and I turned my head. One of the demons from Monday dinner had walked in.
“Go talk to him,” I said. “I’m fine here.”
Vas nodded, stalking away to lean against the wall by the door, his eyes on my form even as he chatted with the other demon.
“He’s scary,” Mere said and I tilted my head, watching him.
“You think so?”
Vas winked at me and I attempted a smile, turning back to the bar.
“Listen,” Mere said, glancing around as she lowered her voice. “I’ve got something to tell you. I might be overstepping, but…”
“Go ahead.”
She nodded at my hand. “I asked around. That’s not a normal demon mark, you know that, right?”
“Yeah.” I turned my hand over, showing her the thick, black slash on my inner wrist. “I’ve got one of these too. When Samael found me in his club, he decided to make an example of me. He figured this would embarrass me more, and the asshole likes to see me squirm.”
Mere opened her mouth, closed it, and opened it again.
