At the same time, I found it difficult to believe my grandfather wouldeverremove his ass from that black throne. Sure, he may need to name an heir, but he’d been alive for centuries, and since I was apparently the only hope to kill him, he’d likely be alive for centuries longer.
But Pischiel hadn’t known about the slaves in the mine. Oh, he’d known the mines existed, but he’d imagined the work was done by magic, or perhaps by the lesser demons. His expression had hardened when I’d described what I’d seen, but he’d finally shaken his head. “And what do you expect your grandfather to do when he’s challenged, Danica? Do you believe he should allow his enemies to wage war against our realm?”
I’d merely raised one eyebrow as he’d turned and stalked out. Pischiel didn’t like being left out of the loop, and he’d learned his king hadn’t exactly been telling him everything. Yet he’d still defended him.
Maybe therewasn’tany hope for him.
“We can get some air on the balcony,” Pischiel said. He took my hand and led me through the crowd, and my breath caught as something in my chest began to ache.
“What’s wrong?” he asked as soon as we stepped outside.
“Nothing.”
“Danica…”
“I miss my bondmate,” I snapped, careful to keep my voice down.
Every balcony I saw made me remember fighting with Samael, pouring out my heart to him, and being wrapped in his arms as he rose into the sky.
Pischiel merely nodded and turned his gaze to the distance. I stepped up beside him and we both looked down, past the gardens and the stone wall of the palace, and further into the night.
“Tell me about this,” I pointed to the metal around my wrist.
Pischiel eyed me. “What do you want to know?”
“How do I remove it?”
“You can’t. Only a spell with the underking’s blood can remove it, or just the blood of the underking himself.”
“What if you cut off the hand?”
He raised one eyebrow. “You’re not full demon, princess. I don’t think your hand would grow back.”
I rolled my eyes. “Of course it won’t.” I thought about it for a little longer, and then I smiled. “Lucifer’s blood runs through my veins.” It was why I could get into the dungeons.
Pischiel closed his eyes as if he didn’t know what to do with me. “You’re not the ruler of the underworld. You may have his blood, but you’d need Lucifer’s bloodanda black witch.”
“I know where I can get a black witch.”
“And why would she betray Lucifer?”
“She’s not an idiot. She made the wrong call and now she knows which way the tide is turning. She’ll have her own spies in my world, and she’ll know just how many allies Samael has. I know Gloria, and she’ll decide to play both sides.”
“And what exactly are you going to offer her?”
I scowled. It sucked, but sometimes you had to make sacrifices to get shit done. Unbidden, the words from above the throne flashed through my mind once more.I give so that you might give.Well, I was going to give Gloria the chance to play both sides, as she so loved to do. And she was going to give me whatIneeded.
“Danica?”
“Immunity,” I sighed. “I’m going to offer her immunity.”
Pischiel just shook his head. “You take that cuff off, and Lucifer will immediately know. I won’t let you throw your life away to prove a point.”
I rolled my eyes at him. “It’s not for me.”
I turned my gaze down to the garden, counting off the guards and memorizing their current locations.
Pischiel shifted on his feet. “Each time I think I know what you’re planning, you do something different. If you’re not taking the cuff off yourself, whatareyou doing?”
