“How…how do you know what it wants?” he asked.

Anger flickered to life in my chest. “It’s a he, and he wants an answer to his fucking question.”

I walked over to stand beside the seraphim and look down at Ivor.

Ivor shook his head.

“What did you do with my daughter? Tell me!” the seraphim demanded.

Ivor’s squeal was covered by the seraphim’s roar.

I kicked Ivor’s boot. “Answer him!”

“We ate the foal,” he blurted. “Drake youngling meat is a delicacy.”

The seraphim’s body had gone very still.

My heart beat hollowly in my chest. “He’s not a drake, you fucking bastard, and you just told him you ate his daughter.”

The seraphim didn’t speak, but a lone tear gathered at the corner of his eye, silver like mercury, before tracking down his cheek. I felt his sorrow and his fury, and I knew what needed to be done.

I looked down at the cowering demon. “I hope it hurts.” And then I strode from the barn, taking the others with me.

Ivor’s screams filtered through the barn door. They went on for several minutes, and neither Conah, Mal, nor Nirma said a word. Good, because if they had, I’d have lost it.

“Hey! You!” Several figures came running toward us from across the moonlit lawn—a portly male demon and three females.

I’d forgotten about the family who lived here.

The portly man had to catch his breath when he came to a stop. “You kept your word.”

He was looking at Conah.

“With help,” Conah said. “Your family is free.”

“What’s going on?” one of the younger women said. “What were you doing in the barn with Bunty?”

Bunty? “You named the seraphim Bunty?”

She looked down her nose at me. “Bunty is a rare drake, and he’s mine.”

Her tone, her posture, all of it screamed spoiled, rich bitch. Unlike her mother, sister, and father, who were dressed in tatty, dirty clothes, her gown looked new and freshly pressed.

“Get out of the way,” she snapped. “I want to see him.”

“Clemine!” her father admonished.

But she ignored him and strode toward us, confident we’d get out of the way. This was one bitch used to getting what she wanted. But not with me. Not today. I grabbed her arm and yanked her back.

“Ow, how dare you?” She looked genuinely shocked.

Rage simmered beneath my skin, wanting out. My palm itched to slap her face. “Did you eat the foal?”

She glared at me. “The drake foal?”

There was no point in correcting her. “Yes. Bunty’s foal?”

She made a sound of irritation. “Yes, so what? Our guests wanted a fancy meal, and foal is a delicacy.”

“Drakes are intelligent creatures,” Nirma said. “Highly intelligent, and not to be consumed. It’s Underealm law.”

“They’re animals,” Clemine snapped. “Just animals and lots of people do it.”

“It was your idea,” Conah said, realization dawning on his handsome face. “You suggested it.”

She looked at him, raking him over. Fucking bitch was totally checking him out, and yep, there it was, her sneer melting into a pretty smile.

“I was merely trying to keep them happy so they wouldn’t hurt us.” She fluttered her lashes. “You saved us, and I’m in your debt.”

And I’ll pay it with pussy was the unsaid part. Fucking ho. But the fact that Conah was looking at her like he thought she was a crazy bitch calmed me down a little. She must have realized that there’d be no support forthcoming from Conah because she twisted, trying to break free of my hold.

“Let go of me,” she demanded. “I have a right. The drake is mine.”

I shoved her. “He’s not a drake, you stupid bitch, he’s a seraphim, and you murdered his daughter.”

The barn door splintered and cracked as the seraphim burst into the night. The mangled, partially burned body of Ivor was visible behind him.

Clemine’s gaze shot to it, and she let out a strangled scream, but the seraphim was bearing down on her, his nostrils flaring with each furious breath.

“You did this. You took her. You did this,” the seraphim said.

His belly began to glow white, and the glow spread upward to his chest, headed for his throat. It was as if a celestial fire was brewing inside him. Shit. He was about to blast her with fire.

“Please!” The old man threw himself in front of his daughter. “Please don’t take her from me. Please don’t hurt my daughter.”

The seraphim fixed his gaze on the man, staring at him as if he was reading his soul, and then the fire in his belly went out, and his head dipped in defeat.

He turned away from the family. “I cannot bring myself to take a daughter from a father.” His eyes gleamed with the silver sheen of tears.

I touched his shoulder lightly. “I’m so sorry.”

He turned his head and nudged me slightly. “I am in your debt.”

“No, you’re not. We helped each other. We’re even.”

The seraphim curled his wing inward and turned his head to pluck a feather from it. It wasn’t one of the huge ones, but a smaller one from the underside about the size of my palm. “If you should ever need me, burn this, and I will come,” the seraphim said.

“Thank you…I don’t know your name?”

“Esmael.”

“Esmael, my name is Seraphina, but everyone calls me Fee.”

“I will remember you, Fee.” He backed up a few steps, wings stretching out.

I took a step toward him, suddenly worried. He was grieving. He shouldn’t be alone right now. What if he got captured again. “Will you be all right? Where will you go?”

“Anywhere but here.”

He launched himself upwards, wings beating the air, ready to shoot off.

“You can’t do this,” Clemine cried. “He’s mine.”

But Esmael was already in the air, rising higher and higher.

Clemine let out a wail and her father grabbed her and shook her. “Enough. You’ve done enough.” He looked at us. “Go in peace. I give you my word that we will not speak of what happened here this night.” He turned and dragged his daughter toward the house.

They vanished around the side of the building, and I turned to the guys. “I don’t think it’s safe for us to take the drakes and carriage we brought. The person who sent the mercenaries after us knows the route we’re supposed to take.”

“We can take an alternate route,” Mal said. “We can head over the River Enmity and into Hankarin, Asmodeus’s region. He’ll help us. We can stop at his estate and borrow a carriage for the rest of the journey.”

“You’re sure he can be trusted?” Conah asked.

“I was his protégé for a decade,” Mal said. “I know him. He hates politics. Besides, the seal on the letter was royal…”

He left the implications hanging in the air.

Conah fell silent.

“I’m sorry,” Mal said.

“I don’t believe Lilith would order this,” Conah said, but he didn’t sound so sure.

“Evidence says otherwise,” Mal reminded him. “We need to be cautious.”

He was right. “We don’t tell anyone about this. Not even this Asmodeus guy.”

They both looked at me.

“We say our carriage broke down, and we took a detour. We keep quiet. We act like nothing is out of the ordinary, and we watch and see what happens.”

“Flush out the culprit,” Conah said.

“Exactly.”

“I’ll meet you at Asmodeus’s estate,” Conah said. “I would take you with me, Fee, but I’m not at full strength yet, and the fight drained me. Transporting another person would be too risky right now.”

“I can take her,” Mal said.

The thought of being wrapped around Mal, up close and personal again, made my pulse thud painfully in my throat.

“Here.” Nirma handed me the amulet. “You’ll need this.”

I took it with a smile. “I promise I’ll get it back to you in a week.”

Her eyes smiled. “I trust you, Fee. You know where to find me.”

I slipped on the amulet, and my skin prickled. Conah shook his head. “I still need to get used to this.” His mouth parted as if he’d just thought of something, and then he groaned. “Asmodeus…”

Mal groaned too.

They’d obviously thought of something. “What?”

“Asmodeus never takes what isn’t offered freely,” Mal said to Conah.

“You know him better than I do,” Conah replied.

“It will be fine,” Mal assured him. “Besides, what other choice do we have? It’s a few hours’ layover there, or the risk of a tavern where our location could get back to…whoever is after you.”

“I could travel alone,” Conah said.

“Like hell,” Mal replied. “We stick together.”

Seriously? “Hey, how about filling me in on what the fuck you’re talking about?”

“Asmodeus likes men,” Mal said. “Young men. He has women too, but men are his preference.” The way he said it made me wonder if he and Asmodeus had been lovers in the past. “He won’t take what’s not offered, though,” Mal said. “But he is a master of seduction so…be on your guard.”

“I can take care of myself. Trust me.”

Conah’s shoulders relaxed. “Okay, now that’s settled, I’ll see you there.” Conah winked out.

Mal turned to face me and held out his arms. “Hop on.”

Mouth dry, heart pounding, I wrapped myself around him. His hands settled on my hips and then smoothed down to cup my ass. I bit back a moan.

This was going to be a long ride.