He chuckled. “She is not.”
“Are you sure?”
He blinked, and in that moment I saw his doubt. He believed that she could put her essence in a demon. And he worried that she might be in him. I was trained not to sympathize with demons, but in that moment, I felt genuinely sorry for him.
“Let’s find out,” I said, glancing over my shoulder at Eric.
He pulled the ruby from his pocket. He put it in is palm and held it out as in an offering.
“Touch it,” he said.
Eliza looked between me and Eric. “What’s going on?”
“Quiric knows.”
“A ruby will turn black when touched by even the essence of she that came first.” His brow furrowed. “This is not well-known among humans.”
“We do our job well. Now touch it. Prove to us that she is not within you.”
He reached for the ruby, then hesitated. “I confess…” he began and I held my breath, my body tense and ready for an attack. Around me, I saw Eric, Marcus, and Eliza shift, too, readying themselves for whatever came next.
“Confess what?” I asked.
He lifted his chin and met my eyes. “I confess that I am fearful.”
I relaxed. Just slightly. “Why?”
“I do not believe that the she-beast is within me. But how can I be certain?” He looked to each of us. “How can any creature ever be certain of what is truly within them?”
“Very philosophical words coming from a demon.”
“Perhaps you do not understand our kind as much as you think you do.”
I glanced at Eric. “I understand you just fine. Touch the stone.”
He hesitated, but then he reached out and took the ruby. He closed his hand around it. At the same time, Marcus edged Ren and Ana further back, and Eliza moved closer, her stiletto aimed right at his eye.
He opened his hand.
The stone was red.
I sagged with relief. And, I noticed, so did Quiric. I would never fully trust a demon, but he was right. There was no way to truly know what was inside anybody.
“I thank you, Katherine Crowe, for showing me my true nature.”
“Don’t think you’re baiting me. We both know my name.”
He said nothing, but I saw his smile. A kind of dark malevolence. And I knew that despite this reasonably civil conversation, he was truly still a demon.
“An offer,” I said, with a glance toward Eric. “We need him.”
He tilted his head. “It’s risky,” he said, confirming that he understood what I was thinking.
“Worth the risk?”
A moment passed, then he nodded. He turned to Quiric. “Lilith ordered one of her soldiers to take Allie. A boy.”
“Ah. He has turned one of your students into one of her pets.”
