“I’d like to hire you to break the spell Avnas cast. The one where he tried to use the people who care about me against me. I’d like you to break the part of it where he used the sweat of your brow against me. Can you do that without using your god power?”
“Yes, I can.”
Than lifted his hand. This time Avnas’ head jerked up and he stumbled backward. Than didn’t snap his fingers or wave his hand. He just crooked one finger in a “come here” motion.
Avnas didn’t move, but a light mist, softer than smoke, drifted away from the middle of his chest.
My own chest was warm, then hot, like I was standing in full August sunlight instead of inside an invisible building in an untended forest.
The magic in the building responded to the magic Than wielded. Symbols on the walls, ceiling, floors, and window glowed softly yellow and blue. They were soothing colors, sand and sky colors, beach colors. Than held his hand out toward me.
I had no idea what I was supposed to do.
“Um?”
“The card, Reed Daughter.”
“Right.” I dropped the card onto his palm.
He reached into his pocket and withdrew a little metal hole puncher, then snapped a hole in the card.
The magic in the room snuffed out with a sweet little chiming sound, like someone had triggered a shop door bell.
“Thank you,” Than said with absolutely no inflection. He offered me the card between his fingers. “Come again.”
I blinked. Was that a joke? Had he just made a joke?
“I have information,” Avnas said in a panic, “on the king of hell and his plans to attack Ordinary. And information on his son.”
“Bathin?” Myra asked.
“No. Well, yes, I have information on the eldest, but I’m speaking about his other son, Goap.”
“Let me guess,” I said. “He wants to come to Ordinary, too, and has decided getting a piece of my soul is the best way to do it instead of just showing up and signing the damn contract. Why is this so hard for demons to understand? We have a contract you can sign. We’ve been saying this for decades. Myra probably has one in her pocket right now.”
Myra tapped her jacket pocket. Ryder, who had been quiet through all this, snorted a laugh.
“Demons don’t believe anyone is telling the truth,” Ryder said.
“We do here!” I said.
“I have information on the second son in line for the throne,” Avnas said, once again ignoring the contract he could sign.
I threw my hands up in frustration.
“If Bathin is killed,” Avnas said, “or if the king steps down—which will be never— ”
“Never,” Xtelle agreed.
“—Goap will take the throne. The right information will make it much easier to kill the King of the Underworld. Done quickly, and without Goap’s knowing, Bathin would become king.”
I looked at Myra. She just shrugged like it was news to her.
None of this had anything to do with me. It did, however, have something to do with Ordinary, since members of the Underworld’s royal family were hiding out here.
“I’m not going to kill the King of the Underworld,” I said. “If that’s what you’re hinting at, you can just stop right now.”
He frowned. “He will bring war to your border.”
