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A chill slinked down my back as I studied the depiction in the book. “Where is it?”
She blinked the haze from her eyes and slowly lowered to her cushy chair. “It’s a demon artifact and currently within one of their lord’s possessions.”
My muscles tensed, and my fingers curled into the book's edges until it felt like a million paper cuts tore at my skin.Please tell me this thing is not with Lord Ruin Bacchus.
“Recent rumors have started to fly about the Infernal Sol, catching the attention of creatures who would use it for evil. I can’t have that.” The captain grabbed her ceramic coffee cup and took a sip, the caramel beverage no longer steaming. “We need to get it out of demon hands before others steal it. We’ll secure it in a safe place whereno onecan find it.”
The hair on my arms and nape rose as if the picture itself had power. “Why me?” The question came out as a whisper, but the uncertainty surrounding it screamed into the room. “Shouldn’t you give this mission to a raven with more experience? I only went through initiation yesterday.”
“You’re the one I need.” Coltrane leaned back in her chair, her head tilting as she scrutinized me. “You’re special, Tate. I knew that the moment I saw you standing over the body of a high demon. Not many could have done what you did that night. You were barely seventeen, untrained, and completely ignorant to the supernatural, and you still managed to take out a high demon and survive.”
My gaze lowered to her desk as acid seeped up my esophagus from the images trying to overwhelm me. “What if that was a fluke?”
“It’s not.” Her chair creaked as she shifted to rest her hand on mine, pressing it into the book. “Your determination, fearlessness, and grit aren’t the only things I need you for. You can move like a ghost. You can make yourself nearly unnoticeable in an empty room or a crowd.”
Memories from my childhood bubbled up, and I shifted uncomfortably in the chair. A few good foster homes sent me back because they’d noticed that trait. I could move through a room without catching their attention or I’d walk in, quiet as a mouse, and scare the shit out of them when they finally spotted me.
My foster parents would give me this look and pretend not to be uneasy, but fear pulsated off them. And then social services would show up to get me.
But I was thankful for this ability in the bad homes. I would have had it worse if some of my foster families had noticed me as much as the other kids.
“I’ve seen you do it out in the field.” Coltrane’s voice brought me back to the present. “You sneak in under the radar, and no one sees you coming until it’s too late. And even when they do, they don’t expect the storm you bring.”
Had the high demon I killed felt that way when he realized the fight he had on his hands? Was he utterly dumbfounded that this petite girl had bested him?
“I need a ghost and a fighter for this mission, Tate,” Coltrane said, removing her hand from mine and sitting back in her chair. “You’re both.”
“What exactly do I have to do? You haven’t told me anything about the actual mission.” I prayed it didn’t have anything to do with Lord Ruin since I’d already piqued his interest. It wouldn’t be easy to sneak around him.
“Before we get to that, I need you to know that this is a dangerous assignment and beyond anything you’ve ever faced.” Coltrane opened a drawer and pulled out a dossier outlining the mission's details. “I won’t force you to say yes, and I won’t think any less of you if you decline but getting the Infernal Sol out of demon hands and safe will save so many innocent lives.”
“I’ll do it.” Protecting others from harm was my job. I wouldn’t refuse something just because it was dangerous. My life had always been hazardous. At least I had a purpose now.
The edges of her lips twitched. “I was hoping you’d say that.” She flipped the packet over and pushed it toward me. “The Infernal Sol is with a demon lord named Karn. He rules the city of Vlehull—in the Underworld.”
My head snapped up as her words echoed like warning bells during a silent night. “I have to enter the Underworld?”
Captain Coltrane nodded. “You leave tonight.”
ChapterEleven
A bouquetof lavender tulips on my dresser surprised me when I walked into my room after the meeting with Captain Coltrane. Only one person in this place had the balls to break into my room.
I snatched the tiny card and yanked it out of the envelope.
Roses are red.
These tulips are purple.
Please forgive me.
I couldn’t think of anything that rhymed with purple.
Geez, I’m not a poet. Sorry.
A succession of happy face emoji stickers preceded Hawk’s name.
Despite my anger, a snort slipped out at the very Hawk-like sentiment. Kind of half-assed and lazy but a little cute and funny.
