“You are not helping your situation,” my demon informed him calmly.
The younger brother opened his mouth to argue again before freezing completely mid-sentence. His expression changed instantly. One hand pressed sharply against his chest like something actually hurt.
Nina froze. “…Why do you look sick?”
Before I could answer, every silver flame lining the street shifted color at once.
Blue.
The entire crowd around us went dead silent. One demon nearby whispered quietly, “…Oh no.”
The younger brother stared directly at Nina now with the expression of somebody realizing their life had just become catastrophic.
“No,” he said horrified.
Nina took one nervous step backward. “Why are you saying no like that?”
A slow smile tugged at my demon's mouth for the first time all day. “Oh, this is unfortunate.”
“What is happening,” the younger brother demanded.
“You’re doomed.”
“I beg your pardon?”
A glowing symbol appeared around the younger brother’s wrist. At the exact same moment, the same mark flared faintly across Nina’s hand.
Nina dropped her gaze, then jerked her head back up, panic written all over her face. “Absolutely not.”
The glowing symbol wrapped around her wrist like liquid silver fire before settling beneath her skin in sharp curling lines. The younger brother was genuinely horrified.
One random demon somewhere in the crowd whispered loudly, “Oh he found his mate.”
The entire street erupted instantly. Demons started talking over each other everywhere around us while several nearby pedestrians openly stopped walking just to stare at Nina and the younger brother like they were witnessing celebrity drama in public.
“Oh this is catastrophic,” the younger brother muttered.
Nina pointed aggressively at her glowing wrist. “I don’t even GO here.”
“That does not usually matter.”
“What does THAT mean?”
My demon seemed thoroughly entertained now in a way I absolutely did not appreciate. “It means Hell assigned him personal problems.”
The younger brother turned toward him. “You think this is funny because it is not happening to YOU.”
My demon raised one eyebrow at him. “You mocked me first.”
“That was before destiny personally attacked me.”
Nina's gaze bounced between both brothers in complete disbelief. “Hold on. HOLD ON. Is this like a soulmate thing?”
The younger brother recoiled at the wording. “We do not use human terminology.”
“Amazing. Then what horrifying phrase do you use.”
An answer didn’t come right away before a much quieter voice finally said : “…Demonic life bond.”
