“He’s right.” The words sound dragged from Rylan. “I knew there was a risk.”
I finally look at him. Even now, with the bond mostly sated, I feel the urge to cross the room and press my mouth to his skin. I clear my throat. “I knew the bond was being affected by avoiding each other, too.”
“You couldn’t know what it meant.”
That’s about enough of that. I level a look at each of them in turn. “I am not a child who needs others to make the decisions for me or take responsibility for my actions. Maybe I didn’t know the parameters of the bond, but there hasn’t been a living seraph in three out of four of our lifetimes. None of us have experienced a seraph bond before. As a result, there will be mistakes.”
“He almost ripped out your throat.” Malachi’s staring at me like he wants to wrap me up and shove me into a cage. All in the name of safety, of course.
This isn’t an argument I’m going to win. It’s written across all their expressions. I didn’t expect this seriousness from Wolf, but he’s surprised me a lot lately. Or maybe his self-preservation is stronger than his wildness. No one knows for sure what happens if I die, but we’re all convinced it’s bad.
Better to change the subject and circle back when I have an argument that might actually make them hold still long enough to listen. “You were awfully tense when I came in here.”
Suddenly, they all find other things in the room to look at, avoiding my gaze. Alarm bells blaze through my head. “Have they found us again?”
“No. You’re safe.”
“Don’t lie to her, Malachi. She’s not safe. None of us are.” Rylan’s staring out the window as if seconds from stripping and shapeshifting into some animal so he can run as far and fast from this conversation as possible.
If my father’s people haven’t found us and it’s not about last night… What else could possibly go wrong now? I glance from one to the other, finally settling on Wolf. The other two can hold out indefinitely if they decide I need to be left in the dark. Wolf won’t. “Tell me.”
“I—”
“Wolf.”
Malachi’s sharp warning is like waving a red flag in front of a bull. Wolf laughs and slouches further into the chair. “Nothing much, love. Just ways it might be possible to break the seraph bond without killing all of us in the process.”
The possibility leaves me breathless. I slump back into my chair, my legs suddenly boneless. “We can do that?”
“Probably not,” Rylan says darkly, still staring out the window. “If it could be done, more people would know about it.”
Wolf rolls his pale blue eyes. “As I was tellingyou, seraphim were all but legend to most people until this happened. Just because you’ve never heard of a way doesn’t mean it isn’t possible.”
Something almost like excitement flickers through me. “How do we do it?” If there’s a way to remove the bond, then my chance at freedom isn’t gone after all. “What do you know?”
“So eager to be free of us.” Wolf laughs again, a high, mad sound that raises the small hairs on the back of my neck. He drops his foot to the floor and straightens. “I know a guy.”
“You know ademon,” Malachi cuts in. His expression is carefully closed down, offering nothing at all.
I blink. Wait for someone to laugh and let me in on the joke. No one does. They’re all watching me with devastatingly serious expressions on their face.
Demons.
Demons exist.
I don’t know why I’m surprised. Seraphim are, at least according to a number of human religions, the holier counterparts to demons. Considering what my people have done to other supernatural creatures, maybe demons are cuddly do-gooders. I clear my throat, striving to sound like my world hasn’t shifted on its axis yet again. “Are demons trustworthy?”
Wolf gives another of those wild laughs. “They’redemons, love. Demon deals have the reputation they do for a reason. They’re an option of last resort, reserved for the desperate.”
“Ah.” I press my lips together. “Well, we’re desperate. How do we get a hold of a demon?”
Rylan frowns as if deciding to be present in the conversation for the first time since I walked into the room. “You’re serious.”
“Of course I’m serious. I know you think I’m a monster who wants to put a leash on your cock, but I didn’t choose this bond any more than you three did. If it’s not in play, then I have a chance to actually be free.”
“Mina.” I hate how reserved Malachi sounds. He’s studying me with those dark, dark eyes. “Even if your father doesn’t know that you’re part seraph, he will hunt you until he’s dead or you are. He can’t afford to let you escape.”
Because if I can escape, supposedly powerless bastard dhampir that I am, then anyone can.