Eyes sparking, River sniffed. “Interesting.”
“Is that what happened?” Caim demanded.
She pursed her lips, and then sniffed again. “In a way, yes, though there’s more to it than that. Eva didn’t interrupt the spell. It had already been completed when you knocked the orb from Charlie’s hands.”
I took a step back, my heart thundering.
Her luminous eyes swept across me. “By shattering the orb, you stopped the demon from going to Charlie. Instead, it went to you.”
I stumbled back.
“Impossible,” Caim muttered, though I could barely hear him over the roaring in my ears. This couldn’t be happening. It just couldn’t. “She’s mortal. Her wounds, they don’t heal.”
“Yes, it seems as though she hasn’t fully transformed. Her body is fighting to remain mortal while the darkness grows inside of her. All it would take is one...” She snapped her fingers, and I blinked. “One tiny thing. And the mortal is gone.”
12
Caim
My heart pulsed beneath a sudden tightness in my ribs. Jaw clenched, I wound my arm around Eva’s back to steady her. As River explained what had truly happened that night, Eva’s breathing became erratic and her face paled.
Trembling, she leaned against me, but her gaze stayed locked on the fae.
It was just as I’d feared. I’d sensed something wrong these past few days, and the cult’s explanation didn’t make sense. They would need more than the orb’s power to transform themselves into demons. The fact Eva’s blood went black was the first red flag.
And then the doctor’s notes. Her inflammation had gone down.
Clearly, she wasn’t fully a demon. Not yet anyway. Her body was fighting against it. Knowing how my world worked, the fight would only last so long before the demon took control.
“I’m so sorry, Eva,” I murmured, closing my eyes. After everything she’d been through in her years on this planet, she shouldn’t have to face this now. She deserved a normal mortal life with friends and family, holidays and parties, love and laughter. Not this.
If the demon took control, she’d no longer even be herself.
Eva whipped toward me, her eyes as wide as the moon. “Please tell me this is some kind of cruel joke. There’s no way I can be a demon. My wounds don’t heal. Just like you said. If I were immortal, I wouldn’t still have a massive gash on my arm from where they cut me. My bones wouldn’t ache. My body wouldn’t feel like it was on the verge of total exhaustion. Right?”
I nodded. “That’s right. But...”
“That’s only because your transformation isn’t complete, love,” Bael said gently from beside me. “When it’s all over, you’ll be one of us.”
Except that wasn’t true. Not even close to it. Eva would be a newborn demon with no willpower or strength to control herself. Death, destruction, and vengeance would reign over her mind and her body. The Eva we knew would be out on the streets, searching for ways to corrupt humans. Searching for ways to rain fire down on the earth.
Her face suddenly flushed, and she whirled back toward the fae. “Can you put a stop to this? You’re a magical being with superpowers. Reverse it or something.”
River’s eyebrows shot up, and I bit back a groan. Glee flickered in the depths of her eyes. I knew that look. I’d seen it enough times to know what came next.
“If I could do that, I certainly wouldn’t give it away for free.” She smiled. “I’d want something in return.”
“You’re impossible,” I growled, fighting back the urge to slam my fist into a nearby tree. My hands shook from the effort. “You’d hide information about this? Just to get a fucking favor? You don’t even want demons to show up to your court unannounced. What are you going to do when there are even more newborns in the skies? Ones who are very much not like us. Ones who will attack every human they come across. Burn things. Rip things apart. What will you do then, fae?”
“Careful.” River gave me a sharp smile as an unseen wind rustled the pink hair around her shoulders. “One might think you’re threatening me, Caim.”
“We’re not the ones who are threats to you.” I pointed vaguely at the city streets, hidden beyond the trees. “It’s the newborns, the ones who want to open the hellgate and bring the flames here.”
Her face paled, and her mouth slightly parted. She didn’t know about their focus on the hellgate. Good. Maybe she’d actually listen.
“We need to put aside our differences and work together, River,” I said. “I know you don’t like demons. And right now, I’m not too fond of fae. But if we’re not careful, the unease between us will be the least of our worries.”
“Alright, I get you,” she blew out, eyeing up Eva again. “Tell me, child. Do you have any odd cravings? Are you blacking out at all?”
