The door to the house opened and a young man stepped out onto the wide porch, his blond hair shining in the last of the day’s light.
“Finally!” he called, his expression worried. “Talk about cutting it close, Archer.”
“Chill, bro. We were always gonna make it.” Vine said, earning him an elbow from Corson. “Ouch! What was that for?” The others all ignored him.
“We ran into more difficulty than we had anticipated,” Archer said, as though what we’d been through in the last few days had only been a minor inconvenience rather than one near death experience after another. He hesitated, then added, “And we neglected to find the third piece.”
“But I see you found the witch.”
The man turned his attention toward me, his sharp blue eyes feeling as though they could see deep within my very soul. There was something about him that was inherently sexual, his gaze washing over me in a wave of heat that was blatant and somehow not at all threatening. I could tell right away that he was one of the most powerful incubi I had ever encountered.
That thought was reinforced when Archer wrapped his arm around my waist and hauled me against him, a low growl in his throat and possession radiating through the bond.
“I did findmywitch.”
“Relax, brother,” the man chuckled, raising his hands. “I have my hands full with a woman of my own. But I sure would like an introduction.”
Archer hesitated, then took a small step back, ushering me before him but not releasing my hand.
“Asmodeus, King of Hell and High Commander of theUmbra FratrumLegions, may I introduce Delilah Everwood.” He paused, his fingers tightening on mine before he added, “My mate.”
The words curled inside me, lighting me up with the depth of their meaning. At my throat, the collar purred, as if it were as pleased with the announcement Archer had just made as I was. The demon King eyed the collar, one eyebrow raising in surprise, but ultimately said nothing about it.
“A pleasure, my lady,” Asmodeus cooed, just to rile Archer up.
Which worked.
“And please, call me Modi. Now, show me that relic. I’ve got a deadline to meet.”
Taking a deep breath, I removed the necklace that Genevieve had given me from my pocket, the black diamond catching the light of the setting sun as it hung fromthe string of pearls. Modi hissed, his eyes wide as he stared at the jewel.
“Pride. Gluttony. Lust.” Modi took a deep breath, closing his eyes as he let the power of the stone was over him. “And the other pieces? Show me!”
Reaching into the neck of my shirt, I withdrew the silver chain, holding up the white diamond where it hung next to my clay pendant.
“Greed, Envy, and Wrath,” Archer offered, and Modi smiled wickedly.
“Fucking beautiful.”
“We never found the the final piece,” I admitted, disappointment creeping through me. “The piece for Sloth.” Corson and Mal had been unable to find any record of its whereabouts, leaving us all stumped.
“You didn’t need to find it,” Modi said, gesturing to my necklace. “It’s been with you all along.”
Confused, I held up the silver chain, letting the two pendants dangle from my hand next to the piece from Genevieve. The first stone, the one from Boston, looked the same as it always had, a beautiful white diamond with a silver wire frame. I didn’t see what Modi was talking about, but apparently Archer did.
“Impossible,” he breathed, leaning close to inspect the items I held. “Asmodeus, tell me you didn’t know this all along.”
“Know what?” Vine asked, crowding in beside Archer, one hand cradling Pandora’s pouch the same way I always did. Those two appeared to be inseparable now, and I loved that for both of them.
“You said this necklace belonged to your mother?” Archer asked, his fingers coming up to trace the symbol of the tree that was pressed into the clay.
“Yes.”
“A promise kept,” Mal said, the same words he had spoken to me in my room in New York.
“Indeed, my friend,” Modi said, then looked behind him. “Moonrise approaches. We must make haste. Delilah, if you would be so kind as to remove that necklace, I believe I can clear some things up for everyone.”
Startled, I closed my fist over the pendant, feeling a bit of panic.
