As I babbled at her, I watched Sarah sneak back toward the open door. Toward the phones we’d left on the coffee table at the other end of the apartment. All I needed was to keep Andrea distracted for a little while. If Sarah could contact Caim, his wings could get him here in less than five minutes.
Although...that still might not be quick enough. Not unless I conjured up some more books to throw at her head.
She sneered. “I don’t want to rip you apart, Eva. Not yet. That would make things far too complicated. But I will if I have to.”
“Um, so you plan onripping me apartat some point? Why on earth would I willingly go with you after you’ve just told me that?”
“Fine. I’ll do my best to avoid that scenario as long as we do this the easy way. Come with me, willingly, and I’ll make sure you’re taken care of.”
I gave her a flat stare. “I’m not sure I like the idea of more demons let loose on the world.”
“Says the girl who is sleeping with one of the Princes of Hell.”
“That’s none of your business.” I flushed. “And you two are nothing alike. I think we both know that.”
“We’re far more alike than you think,” she said with a harsh laugh. Suddenly, she shot forward, reaching for my neck. I only managed to get out of the way by the skin of my teeth. The whisper of her hand rushed by my ear. Heart hammering, I darted away from her, edging back toward the window.
Sarah still hadn’t returned. Good. Hopefully, she’d been able to get into contact with Caim.
“What makes you think I want to make more demons?” she asked sweetly, eyeing me, clearly considering how she might trap me with her next move.
“I mean, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that out, Andrea. You need my orb blood to make them. You’ve already done it once. There’s literally no other reason you would be here if you didn’t want to make more.”
Her smile merely widened, and the implication hung dangerously over my head like a scythe.
My heart thumped. “What other reason could you have?”
“Come with me, and I’ll tell you.” She took a step closer, and this time, I didn’t budge an inch. My feet were latched into place by a horrible sensation whispering across my skin. The feeling that there was far more to this than we’d ever guessed. “Wouldn’t you like to know the truth about your mother? The truth about you? Your illness? Your pain? The death sentence that has hung over your head every waking minute of your life?”
Flinching, I ground my teeth and stepped back. Tears threatened to fill my eyes, but I had to bite down on those emotions. This was nothing more than a trick. A way to get me to yield to her. Whatever she was up to now, it had nothing to do with my mother and my illness. That had been in my life far before the demons had come into the picture. She was just trying to knock me off my game.
“Nice try,” I finally ground out. “But I’m not an idiot, Andrea. I know what you’re trying to do.”
Her laughter scraped down my spine like sharp fingernails. “You think you do, Eva. But you have no idea. And I can’t wait to see the look on your face when you finally learn the truth.”
10
Caim
“Caim.” Sarah’s whisper crackled through the phone. “We’re in trouble.”
My entire body clenched where I perched on the roof of my apartment building. I yanked my heightened gaze away from the streets far below. “Tell me what’s happening now, Sarah.”
I’d been crouching on the roof for the better part of the day—and then the night—while the rest of the Legion were scattered throughout the building. We’d set a trap for the Cult of Lilith. If they so much as blinked in our direction, they were dead. My apartment would likely be the first place they’d search, if not the club itself. Stolas was down in my loft watchingInfernal’ssecurity feed just in case. We could be there in less than two minutes if they showed up there.
A strangled sob echoed over the line. Dread curled through my gut as I ground my teeth. “Sarah?”
“Sorry,” she whispered. “I was just making sure Eva was still okay. One of those cult people showed up here. A lady. She’s got Eva trapped in her bedroom and she’s trying to abduct her again. For more blood. To make more demons. So far, Eva has kept her talking, but I don’t know how long that’s going to hold her off. You need to get here ASAP, Caim. The lady. She’s definitely a demon now. Neither one of us are going to be able to fight her off.”
“Grab a knife from your kitchen if you can. To protect yourself,” I growled into the phone, my entire body trembling with terror-charged tension. “If she gets her hands on Eva, cause some kind of distraction and then hide.Or run.If she finds you...”
I trailed off, hating that I had to put Sarah in this position. She was a human, just like Eva. Innocent and full of a fierce loyalty to her friend.
“Okay,” she whispered into the phone.
“And Sarah,” I said before hanging up. “Don’t try to be a hero.Hide.”
I slammed my finger against the screen to end the call and whirled toward Phenex, who had been scouting on the opposite end of the rooftop. His expression was grim. He’d heard every word.
