“Just wondering why Sitri’s pet is so ill-informed. The Kingdom of Lust and Lies doesn’t train them like they used to, eh?”
“I’ve been a demon for less than two weeks,” I snapped. “In case you haven’t noticed, war is coming, and no one’s spared the time to teachme. Are you planning to help fix that problem, or are you just going to keep contributing?”
My muscles tightened as our eyes locked, and Bronwen held my stare. I thought I could manage in close quarters with the demoness. I’d been wrong. Sitri seemed able to shake her insults off, and Apollo was too busy to deal with her directly. If it weren’t for this damned injury, I wouldn’t have to put up with her, either.
But I’d rushed in, barely survived my encounter with Mara, and gotten stuck here.
Withher.
For many moments, Bronwen was quiet, as if deliberating just how willing she was to involve herself in my affairs. She shrugged.
“Alright. I’m an open book. Ask, and I’ll answer.”
I blinked, then narrowed my eyes. Unlike Sitri, who reluctantly accepted Bronwen’s counsel, I couldn’t quite bring myself to trust her. With the magic of lust and lies in my hands, I didn’t need to. I unfurled the threads of my gift, casting a web in my mind, hoping to expose any deception she concealed.
Desires came to me like visions, one cascading after the other. A sunlit patio in the evening, covered in plants, the air filled with birdsong and chirping insects. A bathtub overflowing with jasmine-scented bubbles, and the hiss of a bath bomb beneath the water’s surface. The purring of a cat kneading in my lap, the warmth of it settling against my legs, its eyes narrowed in contentment. My brow furrowed as I took them in.
Bronwen laughed through a mouthful of food. “What’s wrong, tenderfoot? Can’t find what you’re looking for?”
My lips curled back in a snarl. “What are you playing at, Bronwen?”
“Relax,” she said with a wave of her hand. “That little trick is the reason I’m here. Haagenti is the President of Alchemy, Alteration, and Anarchy. We warp magic, among other things.”
“And why would that be a reason to bring you here? Why would Sitri bother hosting another noble’s demons, knowing they could lie and keep secrets from him?”
“Because it works onotherkingdoms’ gifts as well. Odds are, Vapula has a seer or two; demons who predict the future. Suppose he asked those seer demons to divine your Prince’s strategies. Wouldn’t it be a shame if they got faulty intel?”
I paused, processing that information.
Demons who predicted the future. If that was true, then the ambush at the gorge was no unfortunate accident, and the enemies who’d recognized me… they’d known I’d be there, been prepared to find me. Zaleos, too, had known exactly where I’d wake in the badlands. He’d brought supplies for me, clothes in just the right size, and he hadn’t been lying when he promised me safety in Sitri’s care.
In hindsight, it was hard to believe I’d missed something so obvious. Then again, I’d been sheltered from other kingdoms and the gifts they possessed. Sitri said there were seventy-two of them, each with their own innate skills. I couldn’t even begin to think of what other powers they might manifest.
“So you’re here to jam the signal, to come up with strategies Vapula won’t predict?”
“Now you get it, girl.” Bronwen flashed me a grin. “But I can’t control my talents, not like you can. I’m a catalyst. Your magic starts arunaway reaction. Don’t bother trying to use it on me.”
“Thank you for telling me. No one else has.”
“That much is perfectly clear.”
Bronwen shoveled the last of her food into her mouth. Without even a glance at me, she stood from the table and ducked into the kitchen. The clatter of dishes against wood told me they hadn’t been put down gently. I grimaced. With Mara gone, Bronwen as stubborn as a mule, and both Sitri and Apollo occupied, tending the dining area had become my charge. And there she was, wrecking it.
“Be careful with those!” I shouted to the room over, rising to my feet.
Before I could make my way in, she emerged from the doorway, nonchalant as ever. She breezed by me, and I bristled.
“A few broken plates won’t matter soon, Lillia. When was the last time you went outside?”
“The least you could do is show a little respect,” I shot back. “This isn’t your kingdom, it isn’t yourhome,but it is mine. Do you really need to throw things around like that?”
“When?” she repeated. The demoness paused in the doorway, hand on her hip, crimson eyes trained firmly on me.
“Three days.”
Bronwen shook her head. “Come on, we’re going for a walk. There’s something you should see.”
She waved for me to follow and waltzed right out of the room. With a groan, I complied. Bronwen led me through the mansion, walking the halls as if she knew them by heart. She must have been sent here before. To torment Sitri, no doubt.
