Page 24 of The Hellhound's Mate
“They aren’t the type of demon to be summoned.”
One of the women fanned herself, and Ambrose leaned into her and giggled behind his hand. I didn’t understand why.
“Maybe not by their charges,” the human said, “but we’ll see what we can do for you.”
They thought to summon my keeper? To what end? Igmaloch had known what had happened to me when Gaufrid enslaved me last time. He’d done nothing to intervene. It hadn’t been his job. Trorak, a higher level demon, had given me the choice of position afterward on my mother’s order. Neither had mentioned that they could have stopped the necromancer or done anything to help me.
“Demons don’t help anyone,” I told them. “Not me. Not you. No one.”
They shrugged. “They’ll do a lot to keep the balance.”
“A necromancer doesn’t unbalance good and evil.”
“They do actually, but you have to know who’s attention to get.”
I looked to Ambrose. “Whoisthis person?”
He shrugged and pointed at the woman he’d laughed with. “They’re part of LaRhonda’s coven. We’ve never met.”
“A witch?” I looked at them again, confused. Normally, I could see a witch’s power like an aura around them. This person had nothing.
“Call me Morning,” they said and held a hand out to me.
I hesitated to touch them, but wasn’t sure why. When I shook their hand, at the very first contact, a spark shot between us like a tiny bolt of lightning.
Morning smiled. “Thank you, Saph.”
They walked away from me, the rest of the coven following them, and I felt a bit like I might have given something away that I hadn’t meant to part with.
Ambrose came over and held both my hands. No physical sparks, but something still felt like it passed between us.
“I’m sure they’re harmless,” he whispered. “They mean well and all. And sometimes I think LaRhonda’s spells are comforting. Like just knowing that someone’s willing to try and help, you know?”
I grunted noncommittally because I had a feeling Morning was leaps and bounds above LaRhonda in talents.
“Anyway, they jumped at the chance to help, though I think it’ll be more of a moral support than actual fighting. Vera’s nephew does MMA, so she’s sending him and his friends for the actual ass-kicking stuff.”
I liked Vera, but she was another person who had no business coming here to fight the agents of a necromancer. “Vera’s not coming, right?”
“Goddess no,” Ambrose said on a chuckle. “Can you imagine?”
I could and very much didn’t want to.
Cupping Ambrose’s flushed cheek, I told him, “When this begins, I want you inside the house.”
“Nope.”
“Ambrose…”
“I’m serious about helping you.”
I took a deep breath and closed my eyes for a moment. He was coming from a place of loyalty and devotion—I couldn’t forget that. Misguided and naive though he was, his determination to stay by my side made my heart fit to burst.
Helovedme.
“Then I need you to pay attention to everything,” I asserted, “and recognize when there’s nothing more you can do.That’swhen you take everyone and run.”
He stared into my eyes for a long moment before he nodded. “Okay.”
