“Never.” She shuddered. “I’m leaving this type of sinner to the boys. They’re better equipped than us to deal withthem.”
“I wasn’t—he wasn’t . . .”Forher.
“Try to find me sinners who don’t look like walking nightmares, okay?” Evesaid.
It was silly—I was missing so many feathers still—but the desperation that had tinged Celeste’s gaze had fanned my desire tocompete.
“He wasn’t for you,” Iadmitted.
Truth was, he wasn’t even for me. However frantic I was to complete my wings, I didn’t have the backbone to help a human like the one before me lower his sinner score. Besides, deep down, I believed the truly terrible sinners merited Abaddon and the years of torture their heinous crimes nettedthem.
The system displayed his name, current address, and the length of time he’d been in the Ranking System: 124 months. It also displayed how many points he’d earned back in that time—1—and how many Fletchings had signed up to help him—3. What it didn’t display were the names of those Fletchings. Since the man’s sinner score had gone down by a point, I imagined one of my peers had beensuccessful.
I felt Eve’s gaze swing to my face. “Youwanted to take himon?”
I palmed my knees through my silky dress. “I don’t know.Maybe.”
She shifted on the pebbled leather stool. “I thought you wanted to be a Malakim,Leigh.”
Although I was still holding out hope to become a soul messenger, my ambition was selfish. If I could help Celeste and other hybrids earn the same rights as Verities,then—
A beep resounded against the curved walls and domed glass ceiling. One of the girls had picked a sinner. I didn’t look over my shoulder to see who’d found their next mission. I just kept staring into my friend’s unblinkingeyes.
Eve leaned forward. “Well, then, let me help you find someone who’s not going to endanger yourvirginity.”
My heartstilled.
She rested her hand on mine and squeezed my fingers. “I don’t want you to gethurt.”
Relief curled through me. Relief that Celeste had been wrong about Eve. That my friend truly cared aboutme.
She began to scroll through the feed but then sucked in a breath and sketched a name with her fingertip across my glass panel. “I have theperfectsinner foryou!”
My holographic feed flickered, and the face of a man with a bladed jaw, unruly dark hair, and eyes so black they seemed made of sin and starlight appeared beforeme.
My stomach dipped and lifted, tightening at the sight of such a beautiful, dangerous face. I slashed my finger across the glass panel to scroll down to hisdescription.
JAROD ADLER (201months)
Leader ofLa Cour desDémons.
Two-hundred and one months? He’d been in the systemseventeen years? How could that be when he didn’t look much older than I was? I flicked my finger across the image to bring up hisscore.
100
My stomach paused its strange contortions. “He’s aTriple?”
Eve’s arched eyebrows slanted as she also studied him. Since she’d brought up his profile, I imagined it wasn’t her first glimpse of thesinner.
“What isLa Cour desDémons?”
“The Court of Demons,” shetranslated.
“I understand French, Eve.” Understanding every tongue was an angelic prowess. “What I meant was,whatdoes this demonic court do? Terrorism? Massmurders?”
As she studied the Triple’s hooded eyes, she said, “It’s just a prettier word for the ParisianMafia.”
My lips pulled apart. “He runs the mob? How is he safer than arapist?”
