“I don’t know,” I said, because it was all I could say.
Sagitta shook his head. His brows were knitted in concentration. “As demons go, imps are weak.”
“That thing was supposed to be weak?” I interjected. “It took a chunk out of your leg!”
“Yes. Imps are the weakest of all demons. They’re not even strong enough to break through the veil on their own. They...”
He trailed off with a sudden tension that made me hold my breath.
“They what?” I asked, already dreading the answer.
Sagitta’s mouth was a thin line. “They have to be summoned.”
I frowned. “Who would do that on purpose, though?”
Suddenly, as if his leg wasn’t injured at all, Sagitta stormed back inside Hartford’s office. I barely caught up before I heard his icy voice demand, “Where’s Cygnet?”
And then, a different voice replied behind us: “Right here.”
18
Sagitta
Ignoringthe pain in my leg, I whirled around to glare at my younger brother. He stood at the perfect angle for the morning sun’s blinding rays to block his view. When he stepped beneath the roof’s shadow, I saw his expression clearly. He looked as furious as I felt.
Even his sudden appearance was cold and calculated. I scoffed at his over-the-top drama. I was too pissed off to play his games.
“It was you, wasn’t it?” I demanded. “You summoned that imp to Chase’s apartment.”
Cygnet narrowed his dark eyes, and the corner of his lip curled in annoyance. “Yell it louder so the whole temple can hear you.”
Chase and Hartford both choked—Chase on his spit, and the doctor on his stale coffee.
“Wait, what?” Chase asked. He stared wide-eyed at Cygnet until he finally put two and two together. “Youput that demon in my house?”
Hartford slammed his mug on his desk loud enough to momentarily seize everybody’s attention. Droplets of coffee sloshed onto some stray paperwork and he swore under hisbreath. He pushed the documents aside, shook his head, and sank back into his chair.
“Listen, I don’t care if y’all fight over classified bullshit, but at least shut the damn door so it stays private,” he ordered. “The last thing I need is to be dragged into this shit as an eyewitness...”
Cygnet raised his heeled boot and kicked the door closed without taking his glare off me.
In the tense moments of silence that followed, Chase looked thoroughly confused. He looked to me for guidance, but I wasn’t a good role model at the moment. I was too busy fuming.
“Cygnet,” I said slowly. “Did you or did you not purposely summon a demon into the mortal realm?”
He pulled out a small red handbook from beneath his black cloak and flipped it to a specific page. “Yes, I did. And according to our code, that’s permissible for fighting other demons.”
“You put it in a civilian’shome!” I snapped.
Even Hartford’s brows rose to his hairline, but he kept his mouth shut.
My accusation hung in the air for a few charged beats. Then Cygnet’s mouth curved into a nasty, smug smile.
“You’re right. It’s too bad Chase doesn’t count as a civilian.”
“What are you talking about? Of course he—”
My blood turned to ice.
