Page 155 of Smoke, Mirrors, & Misdemeanours

Outside, she exhaled—shallow, quick, her chest hitching against the cat curled in her arms. She pressed her cheek to the top of his head and held on.

Anuck pressed his face into her shoulder.

She stood in the fading gold of the afternoon, in her mother’s garden, where the rosemary had gone a little wild and the lavender still bloomed without permission. She hadn’t told anyone of her plans to sell. She knew her friends would be furious. Heartbroken. But they would’ve tried to stop her. She couldn’t let them.

“I’m sorry I have to sell our home,” she whispered thickly into Anuck’s fur. “I can’t sell the bakery. It’s what pays the bills.” She brushed a thumb along his ear. “I thought I was ready. But I feel like I’m letting go of another piece of them. It’s like losing them all over again.”

Anuck placed a paw on her arm, stretched his neck, and licked a tear on her cheek. She scratched behind his ear, taking comfort in his instantaneous purr, the warm vibrations within her arms.

The garden gate creaked open. Cassia stiffened and whirled around, instinct tightening her grip around Anuck. Her pulse lurched before she could stop it—that stupid, treacherous half-second where her heart decided who it wanted to see before her eyes caught up.

But it wasn’t Ark standing there. It was⁠—

Delphyne.

She looked immaculate in a silver suit and coat, a plush fur shawl draped over one shoulder—so real-looking Cassia wondered what sort of charm had matched its colour to the thick braid falling over her other shoulder. A single, heavy rope of silver-white hair.

“Did . . . Did Ark send you?” Cassia stammered.

The Daemaris’s voice was calm. “No.”

“Oh.”

Her shoulders dropped before she could catch them, hope crumbling somewhere she couldn’t reach. She recovered—or tried to. Spine straight. Grip tighter. She quickly loosened it when Anuck let out a small, indignant squeak.

“Kassenor did,” Delphyne told her. “He said you looked like you were going to do something foolish.” She tilted her head toward the ‘For Sale’ sign and arched a brow. “He was right.”

Cassia tensed. “I don’t have time for a lecture.”

“Then don’t waste my effort by making me give you one out here,” Delphyne replied, already walking the garden path toward the house. “Let’s go inside.”

Cassia hesitated. A stubborn part of her wanted to plant her feet just for the satisfaction of it, but her curiosity won the battle. She followed.

Inside, the couple had brought out wallpaper samples, pressing them against a wall to see how it’d look in the light.

“. . . practically transforms the whole space!” the wife happily chirped.

The three froze when Delphyne strode in, the click of her heels striking the floorboards like a judge’s gavel. Surrounded by the quaint interior, the Daemaris looked even more terrifying in her otherworldly beauty.

The demon looked around, a small, admiring smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. Cassia had never thought she’d see the Daemaris in a place like this—let alone approve of it.

“Ah, yes,” she murmured. “Wonderful.”

The agent blinked at her. “Excuse me. We have a scheduled showing, and my clients aren’t finished⁠—”

“This house is no longer for sale,” Delphyne interjected. “Take your clients and get out.”

The couple exchanged a look. The agent’s jaw tightened.

“What—”

“It can’t be!”

The agent glared at Cassia. “Wait a moment. Are you trying to avoid paying commission by bringing your own buyer?”

Cassia opened her mouth, but the elf husband interjected, “We are interested!”

“Very interested,” his wife chimed in. “This is the nicest house we’ve seen within walking distance to Ms. Saphira’s Prestigious Academy for Gifted Young Elves. We can write a cheque for the deposit now.” She elbowed her husband hard. “Give her the cheque. Hurry.”