“A mate. That's what they call them,” Silas said, then made a disgusted face. “Hounds, you see? They're only animals. They mate with this woman and bind her to them magically. She becomes nothing more than property. Each team gets one woman to share.”
“To share?” I had to set my cup down because my hand was shaking. “Between the three of them?”
“Yes.” Silas cocked his head. “Does that shock you, Indigo? We are talking about the Devil and his hellhounds. Three hounds sharing one human woman is hardly worth raising an eyebrow about. They are capable of far more repugnant deeds. They are dogs. Animals driven by base desire. But that is a weakness we can exploit!” He leaned forward, his eyes going bright. “I believe that dog thinks you're his mate.”
“His mate?” My mind spun, twirling back to my conversation with Garret.
I know this sounds hokey, but I'm looking for the one.
Holy shit. Garret meant his mate. He was looking for the woman the Devil promised him. Was I her? Was that why I was so drawn to him? Holy. Shit. Or unholy shit, as the case may be.
“Indigo? Are you all right?” Jake had his arm around me and was rubbing my upper arm.
I hadn't even noticed when he'd done that.
“Yes, I'm fine,” I said. Then I leveled my stare on Silas. “What exactly do you want to happen?”
“If they believe you're their mate, the demons will do anything to get you away from us,” Silas said. “And once they have you, they'll treasure you.” He grinned. “They'll never suspect you of any wrongdoing. As their mate, you'll be above reproach. You could get close to them. Close enough to learn their secrets.”
“Their secrets?” I scowled at Silas. “Don't you already know?”
“I am not all-knowing when it comes to my counterpart and his demons.”
“Please tell me you're not suggesting Indigo let them take her?” Jake growled, his hand tightening on my arm. “Or that she go to them?”
“She'd be perfectly safe, Jacob,” Silas said. “They would never hurt their mate.”
“But we can't be sure that's what they believe. I mean, Indigo isn't their mate, right? She can't be. She loves me.”
She loves me, Jake's words echoed in my head. No mention of him loving me back.
Silas's eyes went wide. “Well, I don't know. I suppose she could be.”
“She's not!” Jake roared.
“All right. Calm down,” Silas said. “I'm counting on her not being their mate too, Jacob. If she were their mate, we couldn’t trust her.” He slid his stare my way. “Her natural inclination would be to side with them.” His stare narrowed. “Do you feel inclined to side with evil, Indigo?”
I rolled my eyes, but inside, I trembled. Because I did. And it made me not trust myself. Was Garret really evil? He admitted to being a hellhound. Although, when I replayed the conversation in my head, I recalled him disputing that label. He said he was one of the good guys—the guards who went after escaped souls. He had made so much sense. Everything he said had rung true with me. Ugh! There I went again, wanting to believe Garret. Meanwhile, Silas and Jake were staring at me. Right. I hadn't answered beyond that eye roll.
With distinct disdain, I said, “I do not feel inclined to side with evil.” It rang true, even with me, because it was true. I just wasn't sure who the evil ones were.
“Well, then, we can relax,” Silas said. “If she isn't feeling drawn to the demon, she can't be his mate.”
Jake looked at me.
“I'm not,” I said. Now,thatwas a lie. Luckily, Jake wasn't at his best, what with being possessed and all, so he didn't spot it.
Instead, he nodded and kissed my forehead. But then he glared at Silas. “I didn't bring her here to play spy games with the most dangerous demons on the planet!”
“But she is the one woman who is safe from them,” Silas said. Then he added, “Until they figure out that she's not their mate. But that could take weeks.”
“What if their real mate shows up?” I asked.
“They've been waiting centuries for her. The odds are against it happening now.”
“Centuries?” I narrowed my stare at Silas. “I thought they had just arrived? That's why you're only now creating an army to fight them.”
“I never said that. In fact, if you recall, I said they have spread across the world and woven themselves into human society. Did you think that happened overnight?”
