Mariam slid her a cool look. “The selkie was being punished according to the Mage Council, and yet she did unspeakable amounts of damage to their library, practically obliterating it.” She glanced at me. “Obviously, that is now a moot point, since you brought the entire building down. Either way, Albert demands punishment.”
I went very still. Next to me, Kyla was barely breathing. Mariam threw up a ward, her eyes wide as she stared at us.
“Have you ever worn Naud chains, Mariam?” I asked softly.
She swallowed. “No.”
“I have. I wore them for several hours that night. And it was one of the worst experiences of my life. Not only did I not have access to my powers, but they drained me of energy. I could feel them, slowly eating away at my body’s will to live.”
I had to take a deep breath, forcing my mind away from where it wanted to linger. “Your people allowed the Mage Council to abuse Mella for over thirty years,” I said softly. “She was locked up, away from her people, without her skin, and viciously targeted by every bully in that facility.”
“The political situation with the Mage Council–”
I held up my hand. Mariam’s face drained of color at whatever she saw in my eyes. “I’m low on time, so let me be clear. If the seelie don’t protect Mella, if you hand her back over to the Mage Council, my people will step in.”
Mariam’s lips were bloodless as she stared at me. “I’m not sure I know what you mean.”
I smiled. “Yes, you do.”
Silence. But I was happy to spell it out for her. “I’m the current ruler of the demons in this territory. If Samael dies, I will remain in charge.” It was unlikely that she knew my life was tied to Samael’s. The demons were keeping that very quiet. “Mella owes me a blood debt from that night.”
She opened her mouth and I held up a hand. “Consider how you’ll choose to act in this case. Because if Mella is harmed or killed before she repays her debt, Iwillconsider it an act of war. Think very carefully about whether your political dealings with the Mage Council are worth the repercussions from every demon in our territory.”
Mariam was silent for a long moment. Next to me, Kyla watched her intently, her claws extended.
“I will think on what you have said,” Mariam said finally.
“Good. Now where can I find Mella?”
Mariam frowned and I shook my head at her. “You don’t want to prevent me from calling in my debts,” I purred.
She narrowed her eyes at me and finally pulled a notepad and pen toward her, scribbling something on a piece of paper, which she ripped off and handed to me. Then she opened a drawer and handed me a small cloth bag. “You’ll need these as well. One would wonder why you would be pursuing such a debt while Samael barely clings to life.”
I shrugged and took the bag. “One may wonder whatever one likes.”
We stalked out of her office. Next to me, Kyla’s shoulders shook as we passed the receptionist, who gaped as Mariam slammed her office door shut.
“That was incredible,” Kyla said as we stepped outside. “I kind of want to applaud.”
“I guess hanging around all these arrogant paranormal rulers is rubbing off on me.”
She waited until we got back into my car before she asked. “Does Mella really owe you a debt?”
“Yeah.” I started the car and pulled out. “I got her pelt to her that night. That’s why she was able to break the Naud chains. The girl had thirty years of power stored, and sheexploded. I thought I was going to die. I was lying there, wondering how the hell I would relocate my knee when she strolled over and told me her people owed me a debt.”
I shivered at the memory of Mella’s teeth, and the shredded meat of Bruce’s heart that had been stuck between them.
“Why didn’t she help you get out of there?”
“Her mind had… cracked,” I said. “I guess she’d been trapped in her human form for too long, and by the time she got her powers back, she was… different. There was nothing remotely similar to the Mella I knew.”
“You think she went crazy?”
I shrugged. “Either way, her people owe me.” I glanced down at the piece of paper in my hand. “I never would’ve thought I’d take her up on the debt, but now I need to collect.”
“Where are we going?”
I sighed. “The Outer Banks. We’re going to the Outer Banks.”
