Page 31 of Baking and Angels

“I seduced her,” he interjected. “I wanted to stay here, and it wasa means—”

“Rafferty!” Helena barked. “You don’t need to do that. You don’t need to lie to protect me.” She turned back to Scarlet, her hands out, urgently pleading with their chosen judge. “He went back on his own to save me from paying the price of himstaying.”

Scarlet didn’t look at her. Her gaze remained fixed on Rafferty, an intense haunted depth inher eyes.

Desperate, Helena continued. “We… we fell in love. Truly. He’s not a monster. He’s not like what other demons are. He would never hurt anyone if not forced to—”

Rafferty closed his eyes, wincing at her words. To her, they weren’t lies, she truly believed everything she said, but to him… he knew better.“Helena—”

“You’re not!” she insisted. “You’re a good person who made some terrible mistakes. Why can’t yousee that?”

“Helena, leave him be,” Scarlet commanded, fully in control of herself once more. She gestured at Helena. “Continue.”

Helena’s whole body shook, but she obeyed. “And… and then the night of the Winter Rose Ball came, and when the chef didn’t show up… I didn’t know what else to do so I… I summoned himfor help.”

Falling silent, Helena hugged her arms around herself, having reached the end of her confession.

Instead, Rafferty took over. “I summoned many demons to that kitchen to make a feast fit for kings.”

“And you let them free once they had?” Scarlet asked. Her gaze returned to him, and Rafferty felt as he had all those centuries ago when he had been face-to-face with the King of France. Though, to him it felt like only a couple ofyears ago.

Hewouldtell her the truth, though he also was sure she wouldn’t believe him.

“I ordered them back and they all went. I had bound them tomy word.”

Helena’s eyebrows creased.

“So Yosef summoned him back,” Scarlet finished for him. “He called the demon from the circlehimself.”

“But how do you know that?” Helena asked.

“I was there when he did it,” Scarlet said, her long gaze hauntedand heavy.

Rafferty licked his lips and continued. “What most likely happened is he spoke with a demon while it was under my thrall. That would be enough. The demon would have told him how to summon him back and offered him something he wanted more than anything.” All things any demon could and would have done. “I was too preoccupied to have noticed, but that is not an excuse. I took a huge risk, and he paid the price.” He shookhis head.

“Therefore, we would have gotten away with a demon summoning that night if he had not done what he did,” Scarlet said as if she were perfectly okay with that. Like it was something she would have done herself in those circumstances. Maybe she had. He didn’t know much about Scarlet, but her lack of appalled reaction made him think this had not been her first encounter with the demonic before. “And he bargained…for this.”

Scarlet held up her hands, the wrinkled skin now tight over her bones, the flesh restored to supple strength. Gently, those hands probed at her angelic face. “He traded his youth… his life… to restore mine.”

“If I were to guess, yes, as the… deal was completed, all the essence that was Yosef transferred to you. You are now the same age in body as he had been,” Raffertyconfirmed.

A coughing laugh escaped Scarlet. “God. To be twenty-six again.” She closed her eyes once more, sorrowfully. “I wanted it more than anything, but never at this price.”

Abruptly, she stood up, zeroing in on Rafferty. He didn’t move away as she approached, but he did flinch as she raised her hands to his cheeks. He waited, expecting her to slap him, to punish him for what he had done toher lover.

But when it didn’t fall, he opened his eyes. Her face was fixed into an expression he hadn’t expected to see.

Compassion.

Her hands gently cupped his face, holding him and his gaze locked with hers. “You are a demon?” she asked softly. He wanted to recoil from the question but didn’t have the will to pull away fromher grip.

“I… I’m not sure anymore,” hebreathed.

“I saw you both drop through the summoning circle,” Scarlet continued, as if she were afraid to voice her fears aloud. “I thought you both had to be dead. But if you were a demon, then you chose to protect her instead of dragging her there? You guided her through hell and out again?”

“Sh-shesaved me,” he said, Scarlet’s eyes compelling him. Her eyebrows pinched, and then she set a hand against his chest. Those same eyebrows popped up with realization.

“You are alive,” she whispered. Her gaze drifted down to her hand, and he knew what she felt. His thumping, beating heart, pounding fast againsthis ribs.

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