Page 20 of Demon's Bane

For a few long seconds, the shop is completely silent as I take in the scene before me.

Seren, standing frozen just inside the door, and one very pissed-off looking demon with his focus entirely on her.

Rhett stands from his seat, a deep frown marring his glamoured expression. “Who are you?”

Seren ignores him. “Joan? Everything okay?”

“Everything is fine,” Rhett rumbles. “What’s not fine is that you just broke in here. Joan had those doors locked—”

“You know what he is?” I ask Seren.

“Of course I do,” she says with a careless wave, like it’s no big deal she can see through a glamour created by the High Priestess herself.

“Joan. Who is this?” Rhett’s voice is low, with a graveled, ominous edge as he keeps his gaze fixed squarely on Seren.

“Let’s… take it down a notch,” I tell him, all the fine hairs on the back of my neck standing on end.

Rhett finally tears his gaze from Seren to look at me, and I swear his eyes flash crimson. My breath catches in the back of my throat.

“Rhett, this is Seren. Seren, this is Rhett. He’s here from the demon realm, and as luck would have it, he’s actually here to talk to you.”

“Me?” she asks, with a bit of her trademark humor and irreverence creeping back into her tone. “Well, he sure knows how to make a witch feel welcome.”

Rhett, apparently still not amused and still not any more relaxed, continues to glower at her.

This is… great. Just perfect.

I wasn’t even sure Seren would come tonight. When I texted the group chat to set up this little get together, everyone had responded but her.

It’s not out of the ordinary for her not to reply and then to just show up anyway, but I hadn’t wanted to get my hopes up.

And now that she’s here?

Apparently I’ve got more to worry about than whether she’s going to want to help us.

“How did you break the lock to gain access to the shop?” Rhett asks, and he sounds like he did that first night in my apartment, making way too much fuss about the safety measures I have around here.

She levels him with a mock-stern look. “I could tell you, but then I’d have to kill you.”

A displeased growl lodges in the back of his throat. “Tell me. If this place isn’t secure, if it leaves Joan vulnerable, then we need to—”

“Damn,” Seren interrupts. “Not really a fan of jokes, are you? I’m a seeker. Tracking things down, breaking wards and locks, circumventing enchantments, whatever, to get them, it’s all part of the schtick. Joan’s locks are good, I’m just better.”

She says the last part with a little wink that only seems to rile Rhett’s temper further.

“Are there a lot of your kind? Witches who could break in here at will and—”

“And nothing,” I interject. “I don’t know how many times I’m going to have to repeat myself, but I’m not in any danger here.”

Rhett opens his mouth like he’s going to keep arguing the point, but I hold up a hand in warning.

“I’m well-aware Seren can get past my locks, and she has my permission to do so. So let’s all dial it the hell back and sit down.”

Seren nods her agreement and crosses to the table where Rhett was sitting, and I join the two of them.

“You could have told me you were expecting her,” Rhett mutters, taking his seat again.

“She wasn’t,” Seren says cheerfully, sitting across from him and giving him a long, searching look.

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