Chapter Eight
“He isn’t here today?” I asked.
“Sitri says he’s busy. I dunno what to tell you. There’s not a man in Hell who can order that demon around.” Apollo gave an exaggerated shrug and shook his head.
This marked day four of Sitri locking himself away in his chancery. He’d vanished from my world overnight, only surfacing from his work to greet the strange demons who showed up at his door. It no longer surprised me to see a place setting and an empty chair at the head of the dining room table. I wasn’t sure if it was a burden or a relief.
His routine had changed since our visit to the mushroom forest.
In my heart, I knew he hadn’t been the only one affected by our outing.
My priorities had shifted just as surely as his. He’d given me a glimpse behind the curtain, allowed me to see the secrets he kept. I longed to cast light on them, to finally know if Sitri was friend or foe, and what he wanted from our arrangement.
His isolationism made that nigh impossible.
“Let him go hungry if he wishes,” Mara said, laying a plate of sautéed mushrooms on the table. “His absence from meals is expected in times of war. When he’s ready to eat, there will be food.”
The two demons sat down to dine without further concern for their Prince. I would never have thought his servants cared so little for his well-being. Even with danger on the horizon, they didn’t seem to mind their leader starving himself behind closed doors.
As I brought my fork to my lips, a realization struck me. This was an opportunity. If Sitri was alone and hungry, and his servants wouldn’t look after him, perhaps I should. Apollo had suggested I try to get on the Prince’s good side, and he’d inadvertently given me a chance to do exactly that. If I were lucky, I could glean some information, earn a little slack in my lead, and put the pieces of this puzzle together.
I scarfed my dinner down, set my dishes aside for washing, and turned my attention to Sitri’s empty place. For his meal, I piled the plate high with meat and mushrooms, and filled his glass from the pitcher of vile, bitter oils that supposedly passed for water in Hell.
“And just what do you think you’re doing?” Mara asked, fork hovering in midair, eyebrows raised, and glare sharp enough to cut.
“Sitri hasn’t eaten in days. He’s going to starve himself if he stays locked up in his chancery. I thought I’d bring him something to eat before it came to that.”
“How much has our good Prince told her, Apollo?”
Mara glanced at Apollo, and he shrugged. Her gaze centered once more on me. I gave her a half-hearted smile, hoping it looked more genuine than it felt. Under her scrutiny, it wavered. I held her stare for many moments, our eyes locked and the air tense.
The demoness sighed. “Fine. Go on if you wish. I will warn you, though; he is in a foul mood these days. Pull any funny business, and it will be your head on his wall, human.”
With that, she turned back to her food and continued eating as if I’d ceased to exist altogether. I gathered Sitri’s meal, took a moment tosteady myself, then made for his chancery.
When my plan had first occurred to me, I’d been confident. As I drew near his domain, a tremor set into my hands. Anxiety fluttered in my stomach. We hadn’t come face-to-face in several days, and I wasn’t sure what version of the Prince I’d find. Sitri was a noble monarch, a voracious predator, my warden, and my guardian, all in one.
He had so many faces, so many masks, and I still wasn’t sure what lay beneath them. I hoped today wouldn’t be the day I found out.
I knocked, and Sitri called for me to enter. When I opened the door, light poured out to greet me. Lanterns hanging overhead and candles on his desk bathed the room with their glow. Thanks to them, I got a clear look at the shelves filled with baskets, clothes, and scrolls that lined the walls, as well as the Prince’s tall, dark form sitting on his black leather throne.
When he caught sight of me, his eyes widened. His eyebrows raised, and a smile crept across his lips. “Always full of surprises, aren’t you, Lillia? What is this you’ve brought me?”
“Just some food,” I answered. “I don’t want you to starve.”
Sitri sat up straight as I set the meal on his desk. He eyed it for a moment, then pulled it close. He selected a piece of meat, ran his fork through it, and took it to his mouth. I winced as it deformed under his pointed teeth.
“Of all the visitors I’d expected today, you were certainly not on the list,” he mumbled through a mouthful of food. “If I didn’t know better, I might be inclined to call this fondness.”
“It’s a good thing youdoknow better, then.”
“Do I really, though?”
Every muscle in my body locked at Sitri’s words. His incessant flirting never failed to get under my skin. He didn’t seem to understand how much I had to lose—or maybe, just maybe, he did.
Maybe the problem was that he knew far too much about what I hadat stake.
“There must be something you want from me, darling. Have a seat. Why don’t you tell me what it is?”
