“Cemetery?”
“Never sign anything at a funeral.”
Before she could ask if he was serious, Lilith took the podium.
Tonight’s dress was the color of arterial blood.
“Good evening, everyone.” Her voice carried perfectly without amplification. “Before we begin, I wanted to congratulate Victor on his new… arrangement.”
Every eye in the room turned to their table.
“It’s so refreshing to see him taking an interest in domesticity.” Lilith’s smile was razor-thin.
Uncomfortable laughter rippled through the crowd. Victor’s hand found Ava’s under the table. Squeezed once in warning.
“Though I do hope this one lasts longer than poor Celeste.”
Around them, demons exchanged glances, some amused, some uncomfortable. Whoever Celeste was, everyone in this room knew. Everyone except Ava.
She turned to look at Victor. His face remained perfectly composed, but his jaw had tightened. Pain, maybe. Or anger. His thumb stroked across her knuckles, but the gesture felt different now. Protective. Like he was holding onto her.
Celeste. She filed the name away. Later. She’d ask later.
“Actually,” she heard herself say, standing despite Victor’s grip tightening, “I think that’s enough.”
The room went silent.
Lilith’s smile sharpened. “Do you? Careful, little human. You’re in very deep water.”
“Good thing I’m an excellent swimmer.” Ava raised her champagne glass. “To new arrangements.”
She sat down in the ringing silence.
Victor’s hand covered hers. He was trembling. It took her a moment to realize he was trying not to laugh.
Lilith’s face cycled through several expressions before settling on ice. “Enjoy your dinner, honored guests.”
She swept from the podium, and conversation slowly resumed. Ava caught dozens of glances their way: curious, calculating, impressed.
“That was inadvisable,” Victor said mildly.
“It was necessary.”
“She could kill you.”
“She could try.” Ava took a sip of champagne, letting the bubbles steady her. “But then she’d have to explain to the senior partners why she murdered someone under your protection. Bad for business.”
He studied her for a long moment. “You’ve been reading the employee handbook.”
“Derek gave me his annotated copy. Did you know there’s an entire subsection on justifiable homicide?”
“Section 843, paragraph 4.”
“You memorized it?”
“I wrote it.”
The waiter brought something that looked like salmon. It appeared to be pulsing. Ava focused very intently on the silverware.
