tumbled completely, but my bag wasn’t so lucky. It slipped from my shoulder and crashed to the floor a few feet away.
I saw the box a fraction of a second before she did. Throwing myself forward, I shot it across the floor toward Lukas. It skated over the concrete, coming to a jarring stop when it hit his feet. He grabbed it and whirled to the wall. Chained by Meredith’s magic, Kendra, still controlled by Envy, had no place to go.
“I’ll make your eternity more painful than you can possibly imagine,” she snarled.
There was no hesitation. No retort on Lukas’ part. In one swift motion, he had the latch undone, the box opened and aimed. For a moment, nothing happened. Then, as a bright green light began to form, Kendra’s eyes went wide.
“NO!” Kendra’s body bellowed. Her scream was cut short as the light surged up her throat and out her mouth, diving for the box. Finally free from Envy, Kendra, slumped forward, eyes closed and silent.
One down. Two more to go. I left Lukas to recapture the other Sins and was on my feet again, lunging for my parents. Somewhere behind me, I heard Vida scream and saw a flash of dark blue light shadow across the wall. Lust had been banished. Only Pride left.
“Why didn’t you just shadow out?” I panted as I fumbled the knife.
Dad held out his wrists, bound in thick rope. “Soaked in quartz.”
I got the blade to the rope and was about to slice when I was jerked backwards. The knife flew from my hands and clattered to the floor, just out of Mom’s reach.
“Not so fast. We have unfinished business.”
I climbed to my feet. Lukas was inching his way around the room, behind Meredith and over to where Amari—AKA Pride—stood against the wall.
“Your family has been a thorn in my side for over one hundred years. Simon Darker threatened me.” Meredith laughed. “Me!”
She held her hand out and I was stuck again. This time, the ward was useless. She’d underestimated me last time. Not again.
“He told people I’d killed my parents. And Lukas.”
I couldn’t help it. “You did!”
“And then you come along and try to take what’s mine.”
Lukas was almost to Amari.
Meredith glared at me, then, with a smile, whirled toward Lukas. Pointing to Amari, she said, “
“
Like someone had dropped a building on my shoulders, my knees buckled and I crumbled to the ground just as Lukas had before. With each word she spoke, the pain intensified. Lukas had said it was like being pulled apart and set on fire. That didn’t even come close. It started in my legs, spreading like poison throughout my entire body. A pulling sensation accompanied by fierce heat. A thousand tiny fingers were gripping my skin, tugging hard enough to remove it from my bones. With my eyes closed, I could almost see them. Ripping and shredding my flesh.
Meredith’s palm, sticky and wet, rested against my forehead. “
A scream ripped from my throat.
“
Most of the breath left my lungs in a single, painful push. One word. I only needed to be able to say one more word. “Val—” The rest was lost to an involuntary scream as the remainder of the air squeezed from my lungs.
Meredith grabbed a handful of my hair. Jerking me forward, face in mine, she whispered, “
I couldn’t gather the air to scream it, but I did manage a whisper. “Valefar…”
Meredith was close. She heard the word and, for a minute, looked utterly confused. She blinked several times before pulling away, eyes wide.
Everything went silent. Mom’s yelling. Lukas’ curses. Even the occasional dripping pipes had stopped. It was like the entire room just…froze.
“Stand, Jessie,” a deep voice boomed from behind me.
Like someone had opened a window on a cool, spring day, the air rushed back and most of the pain faded.
Valefar stood in the middle of the room. He was wearing the same clothing I’d seen him in earlier, along with the same amused expression. Part of me was surprised. Deal or no deal, in the pit of my stomach, I was afraid he’d find a way to weasel out.
“Free your parents.” His voice was even, but something underneath it all gave me the chills. Like the eye of a hurricane. Dormant and waiting to decimate. In that instant, I felt sorry for Meredith. If the look on the demon’s face was any indication, she was
Grabbing the knife from the floor, I made my way to where Mom and Dad were bound. With a little pressure, the blade sliced the rope like it was cutting through pudding.
I was so focused on freeing my parents that I didn’t notice Dad’s expression. Once his hands were free, he reached for the black crystal on my neck. I’d tucked it under my T-shirt, but in the confusion, it must have slipped out. He tugged it—lightly at first—then harder. The string stayed firmly in place. Like a shackle, I couldn’t help thinking.
“What did you do?” he whispered.
“What I had to.” I turned to Mom and cut through her ropes. She said nothing, looking back and forth between Dad and me with a slightly panicked look on her face.
“We had a deal,” Meredith cried as I stood. My dad was helping my mom off the ground, while Lukas came to stand beside me.
Valefar laughed. “
Meredith was shaking her head. In fact, her whole body was shaking. There was a good chance she was going into shock. “I—”
“I don’t understand,” Lukas said. “You helped Meredith in 1882 for a favor, but how did you know you would need one? Joseph hadn’t been born yet so you had no way to know he’d go back on his.”
Valefar winked at him. “I make it my business to secure favors whenever possible. Deals. It’s what demons do, boy. You never know when something might come up.”
Meredith ran her hands through her hair and let out a whimper. She was looking at the ground and rocking back and forth. Valefar patted her shoulder and leaned close to whisper in her ear. The witch stiffened, eyes growing wide.
Straightening, the demon flashed us a smarmy grin. “I knew Miss Wells had a tie to the Scotts. The Scotts have a very interesting history with the Darkers. And the Darkers have always been…interesting to me. I freed Meredith from Simon Darker’s earthy prison and arranged for her to get the box. I promised that she would get what she wanted—an opportunity for revenge—and instructed her to ensure Damien opened it. By involving Damien, I surmised it might eventually lead Jessie to seek my aid. When she arrived on my doorstep, it provided me with the opportunity to satisfy the deal Joseph Darker made.”
“That’s so…contrived,” I said.
Valefar turned to me and tipped an imaginary hat. “I’m a demon, Sugar Plum. It’s how we roll.” His grin faded. “You requested my aid in freeing your parents. I have done so as promised. You plan on honoring your end of our deal, correct?”
“What choice do I have?”
“No!” Dad roared. He whirled on Valefar. “Do not do this. I have served you faithfully for the last thousand years. Spare her.”
