“Nothing. Just thinking.”
He looked displeased and I changed the subject. “Do you have somewhere I can put Misty?”
“Misty?”
I held up the Mistilteinn Dagger and Samael’s lips twitched. “It needed a nickname,” I explained.
Actually, while I had the dagger in my hand…
“Why were you seen near my mom’s body?”
Surprise flashed over his face. “You want to talk about this now?”
“The last time we were supposed to have this conversation, it was derailed by a demon under a compulsion spell. Every other time we’ve been interrupted.”
He took a step closer. “And now you have your dagger in your hand.” He smiled, but not like it was funny. “You don’t think I killed her.”
“No.” I’d already used Misty to question him when I found out he was close enough to the body to leave a magical imprint behind. Only the most powerful creatures left an imprint that could be picked up by magical investigators. Power leaked from them constantly.
“Tell me you didn’t have anything to do with her death, Samael.” My throat tightened and I stared at him. “You lost everything as a kid. Can you imagine wondering if I was responsible? I need to know, without a doubt, that you didn’t get my mom killed.”
His face softened, and he raised one hand, cupping my cheek. “I had nothing to do with her death,” he vowed. “I was in the area because my enemies had begun targeting those I cared for.” The dagger didn’t glow. He cleared his throat and if I didn’t know him better, I would’ve thought he looked… awkward. “I had been seeing a witch. When I learned that a body had been found…”
“You thought it was your lover.”
He nodded. Something uncomfortable twisted in my chest. “Did you love her?”
I clamped a hand over my mouth and took a step back. What was wrong with me? Next, I’d probably ask Samael if she was prettier than me.
Surprise flashed across his face, followed by a feral delight. I closed my eyes, cheeks burning. “Don’t say a fucking word.”
“I don’t need to, witchling,” he purred. “Your reaction tells me everything I need to know.”
I took a deep breath, opened my eyes, and attempted to ignore the satisfaction glittering in his silver eyes. “Can you… tell me anything about my mom?”
His expression softened. He knew what it was to lose a mother.
“I forwarded everything I found on to the investigators. However… she was a witch, so the humans were uninterested in solving her murder. The covens were at war with one another, and there were too few resources to cover the surge of murders.”
A tear slipped from my eye and Samael looked like I’d stabbed him. “There is something else we can try.”
“What is it?”
“My bond with you… it allows me to share images, memories.”
Like he had with the memory of losing his whole family. I opened my mouth to demand he do it right now, and he shook his head.
“I will not show you the memory now, Danica. We will choose an appropriate time.”
I let out a slow breath but finally nodded. I had no doubt that after seeing my mom’s body, I wouldn’t exactly be in the good state to accompany him to his ball.
I held Misty out to him and he took the dagger from me, disappearing within his apartment where he tucked it away— likely in a hidden safe. Surprisingly, I didn’t demand to see where he’d put it. I trusted Samael to give it back to me. I frowned.
I reached for the tiny, useless sparkly purse I’d been given, tucking my phone inside. The purse could fit two throwing knives, and I slipped them in as well. I didn’t expect shit to go down at Samael’s fancy party, but it was best to be prepared.
The demon returned, reaching for the velvet box. I gave him a look and shook my head. I wasn’t wearing his jewels. He merely smiled at me and opened the box, revealing a… knife sheath. A knife sheath on a lanyard. Only his was somehow… classy.
I stared. The leather was black, polished to a gleam, with cubic zirconia set in regular intervals along the strap. While I’d bought my lanyard with the understanding that it would look like a cheap necklace, Samael’s looked anything but cheap.
