Page 59 of Sin

Prickling awareness made the hairs on the back of my neck rise as soon as Sin was out of the hot seat. Here it came. I had a lot to answer for, questions I’d been asking myself the moment the demons breached our walls. I stiffened and turned around to find Grim standing a fair distance from me, arms crossed, jaw set, eyes boring into me.

“Explain.”

The one word carried the promise of endless pain and suffering if my answer wasn’t what he wanted to hear.

Chaos settled in, still fuming as he leaned against the island.

I cleared my throat, suffering none of the same illusions as Sin.

“I’m not sure what you want me to say. Our security system can’t account for winged demons dropping onto your balcony.”

“That seems like one hell of an oversight,” Chaos muttered.

I threw my hands up in the air. “What do you want me to say? It’s not like they set off any of the proximity alarms until after they were already breaking the door. We didn’t get advance warning like we would have if it was a helicopter or something. No one would have been able to prevent this.”

“How did they find us?” Grim demanded.

“Well, you live in a great bloody penthouse, Grimsby. Not exactly subtle.”

“Protected by wards that conceal my identity. To the rest of the world, I’m a reclusive billionaire, not a horseman of the apocalypse. And no one knows we have her.”

“But you’ve lived here for decades,” I pointed out. “And there are many who do know who you are and where you reside. It’s an open secret. Anyone could have outed you for the right price.”

“I don’t think it wasusthey found. He was surprised we were here, remember?” Chaos said, his eyes finding Grim’s.

“So they managed to track down Merri,” I mused.

“Fine, but only Lilith and her pet know where Merri is. So how didtheyfind out?” Grim pressed.

“Loose lips sink ships.” Even as I said the words, I knew they weren’t true.

“Lilith can’t be bought. She’s unflappable,” Chaos added with a shake of his head. “It had to be something else.”

“There’s only one option. Merri’s camming site. It’s her only link to the outside.”

“I thought you said you took precautions that would make her untraceable,” Grim accused.

I shrugged. “If you know where to look, nothing is truly untraceable.” It was a blow to my ego, but it was the truth.

“Fine. The camming is out.”

I shook my head at Grim’s heavy-handed ultimatum. “That’s not an option. Merri has to feed.”

His stare was icy as he focused on Chaos. “Yes. She does. Which brings us to a bigger issue. If the Princes are already being released, time is of the essence. We don’t have the luxury of a slow courting process to make her love you. The clock is ticking. Lucifer nearly took her from us in a matter of days. We cannot afford to waste any more time. Breed her.”

Chaos straightened and scowled at both of us. “I’m not taking something she’s not willing to give.”

Dark laughter left Grim as he adjusted the cuffs of his sleeves. “Then you and Sin better get to work and do whatever it takes to ensure she gives everything to you. I don’t care how you do it. Make her want you. Get it done.”

Grim stormed from the room, and Chaos looked at me. “Has he met her? No one can make that girl do anything. She’s as stubborn as he is.”

I snickered, giving his arm a pat as he brushed past me. “Better you than me.”

He cocked an eyebrow at that. “You’re not as impervious as you pretend to be, brother. I saw your face and heard your fear. You care for her.”

“I could say the same about you.”

“I do not.”

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