Page 116 of Cold Curses
Claudia’s eyes narrowed, but a caress from her female lover had her relaxing again. So she was back to her normal, prickly self.
“Ask,” she said, turning her gaze to the dancers.
“How do we defeat the demons?” I opted for a broad question, afraid a narrower one would result in a “Monkey’s Paw”–type answer. But I still missed the mark.
She rolled her eyes. “Demons will never be defeated. Not as long as they are lured from their dimension by the furies and follies of humans.”
“Then…how do I defeat Jonathan Black?”
She shook her head. “You ask questions predicated on knowledge you do not have. It is not a method that eludes you; it is the information.”
The information? We needed all sorts of it.
“Who does Jonathan Black work for?” Connor asked, and was rewarded with a less pitying look.
“The wolf prowls closer. But I believe you know he works for no one.”
I had the urge to slap the goblet out of her hand for clearlyhaving information we needed and demanding we play her game to get it. But she did it because she was fairy; there was no point in punishing her for that.
Since my temper—or monster’s—was rising, I looked down, tried to think.
Black had been angry with me. Why? Because I’d interfered with his plans? Not just generally but because he believed I had something he was owed. Something he should’ve had.
So what was that thing?
No, I thought, that wasn’t the important question. It mattered less what it was than why he believed he should have it.
I looked up at Claudia, found her gaze on me, curiosity dancing there.
“Who is Jonathan Black?” I asked.
She watched me a moment longer and then, almost imperceptibly, inclined her head.
“Read your history,” she said. “And remember—sorcerers love fire.”
* * *
We were escorted out of the hall after she made that pronouncement. And if those escorts had any idea what she meant, they didn’t tell us.
“What do you think she meant by that?” I asked.
“That we need Petra.”
I nodded. “I asked her to look into Black’s history. Wasn’t much there previously, but she’s very good at digging.”
My screen buzzed, and I found a message from Aunt Mallory:it’s heading your way.
“It?” Connor asked, glancing around for whatever threat that might have been.
We felt it, the shift in air pressure, the faint and quick scent ofmagic. I looked up, saw a brief iridescent shimmer. And then the world stilled again.
The demon wards were in place.
For a moment, standing in front of the vehicle in front of the fairy castle, I closed my eyes and let myself breathe.
We wouldn’t know for sure if the defenses were fully operational until they actually repelled a demon trying to get through. But if they did, this was the first step toward normalcy.
My screen buzzed, and I answered the call. Heard only screaming at first and was afraid someone had been squished by the bubble, one new problem instantaneously replacing the other. But then I heard Lulu’s voice.
