Demon Marked

increase. The woman looked to him and grinned.
    “You know what he is, don’t you? He had a Gift to see the truth for eight hundred years, and he can still see it. So don’t even try to lie.” She glanced at Ash. “Or try, if you want. It’s a lot more fun that way.”
    “Or maybe he’ll lie even when he hears the truth,” Nicholas said. “How can we know?”
    “That’s your first thought? Your mother really fucked you up, didn’t she?” The woman studied him for a long moment. “He won’t lie, not when he’s here to see the truth. And not when I depend on him to tell me when you’re lying.”
    “If he sees it, then he knows I told the truth when I said she wasn’t like other demons,” Nicholas said.
    “Well, I don’t need Hugh to tell me that. It’s written all over her face . . . and from the little I can see, it’s also written all over the rest of her. Lucifer named you Ash, is that right? Because after you sacrificed yourself to save St. Croix’s life, you’re not Rachel Boyle anymore.”

CHAPTER 14

    Through his own shock, the immediate denial, Nicholas felt Ash tense behind him.
    “I’m not Rachel.”
    “Not anymore,” the woman agreed, but her gaze moved between them, and Nicholas could almost see her calculating, weighing. “You don’t know. Neither of you know.”
    “We know she’s not Rachel,” Nicholas said.
    The woman’s eyes flattened. “No, because Lucifer stripped most of Rachel out of her. Didn’t he? Not everything, because she’s talking, and I’m guessing she didn’t have to relearn her ABCs, but the rest is gone, isn’t it? Relationships, emotional connections, and the deeper they were the harder he dug. Then he ripped them right out, and took everything that made Rachel Rachel with it. And he made you with what was left.”
    Ash made a soft noise—of pain, of terror. The sound tore at his heart. Nicholas spun, caught her in his arms.
    Behind him, the woman continued speaking. “You might not remember all of that, because it was Rachel who’d have made the decision. She’s the one who’d have agreed to the transformation, the bargain. But you . . . you’re the one who is stuck with it. The one with the spell on your face and the fate of the world on your shoulders.”
    Ash began to shake. Almost convulsing, her teeth rattling. Tears stood in her eyes. “I remember. I remember him tearing me apart.”
    Jesus. Nicholas wanted to rip the woman’s tongue out. Couldn’t she see what this was doing to Ash? Was this what the Guardians did? Fuck them. Fuck them all.
    “What the fuck are you doing? What kind of Guardians are you? Just get out. Get the hell out.”
    “We’re not Guardians. Or rather, Hugh isn’t anymore. He used to be. But me, I used to be a halfling like her.”
    Ash’s breath caught. “A halfling.”
    “We start out human, but are given the powers of a demon. Lucifer didn’t take as much from me. Just my name. Now I’m Lilith. Even though I’m human again now, I’m still Lilith.”
    “Human again,” Nicholas repeated, looking into Ash’s eyes. “How?”
    “Lucifer did that, too.”
    Her footsteps indicated her approach. Nicholas half turned, trying to shield Ash with his body, trying to make certain he could watch for any attack.
    “So you see why we sent Sir Pup in here first to determine exactly what sort of demon she was and to take your weapons. It would have been a shame if Ash had shot either one of us. That would be breaking the Rules.”
    And that meant Nicholas couldn’t use the Rules to his advantage, either. Fuck.
    “I heard wings,” Ash said.
    “We needed a ride.” Lilith looked up, as if through the roof. “Now they’re up there, a full phalanx. Waiting. Because that spell on your face means that you are a danger to everyone. Ideally, we’d hide you in Caelum, but a demon—even a halfling—can’t be teleported to that realm. So we’ll take you to Special Investigations, where we can protect you until we hunt down the demon who holds your leash. Your choice is simple: Either you leave with us, or you don’t leave this cabin alive.”
    Fury slammed through him. “Fuck you. You aren’t touching her.”
    “I prefer not to slay her. But understand this, Nicholas St. Croix: I’m willing to sacrifice one to save the lives of many. That sacrifice won’t be necessary, though, if she agrees to protection, so that the spell can’t be cast.”
    “I’ll protect her.”
    “You?” Lilith laughed.