“Who are you?”

I held my breath and closed my eyes. The ticking from someone’s watch pounded loudly in my ear. When I opened my eyes, I saw an older man across the road. He walked beside his son, and they were headed into a house. The voice didn’t come from him, but it was connected to them. I just didn’t know how.

I said, “I thought that man was your father.”

Damien had been watching me. His eyes were knowing as he nodded. “We’ve been connected since I first started talking to you. I didn’t realize how powerful you were until you slipped into my memories. I had to block you after that. I’ve been blocking you since, well,” he regarded Kellan, “until last night.” He gestured beside me. “You and Kellan fully bonded, and that ended the connection you and I had.”

“What does that mean?”

“Wait. I have more to confess.” We could see the actual pain on his face. He paled, his eyes and mouth straining at the ends. “I’m the one who revealed your hiding spot to the demons. They attacked you because of me. I thought if the other side took you, I wouldn’t have to deal with Sachiel.”

It was because of him.

I leaned forward, saying softly, “We were protected there.”

“I know.” His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down.

“We were safe there.”

“I know.” His eyes darted to Kellan’s, and his lips pressed together. Flinching. “And you guys defeated them.”

“You arrived the next day.” Kellan’s eyes were narrowed to slits.

“I was there before. I tracked where you were through my connection to Shay.”

I closed my eyes. I’d been betrayed through my own blood. I whispered, “They took Aumae.”

“Child.” She rested her hand over mine. “He’s confessing now. That’s all that matters.”

Kellan grunted. “I’m not that forgiving.”

Aumae insisted, “Let us hear the rest from him. He’s repenting and he’s trusting us now. He’s making himself vulnerable when he never had to. We must remember that.”

My own blood—I couldn’t get over that. A dagger was inside of me, cutting away around where my heart should be resting. It was becoming hollow, more and more, but Aumae was right. I could hear the forgiveness in her voice and I clung to it. I let it wash over me.

“I can’t track you anymore, if that makes you feel better.”

“It doesn’t.”

Damien’s head hung down, and he didn’t say anything more. I knew he had more to say, but for a moment, I needed him to shut up. For once, Kellan wasn’t the one ready to commit murder. Damien was my brother, and he had betrayed me. He hurt someone else who was good, who should have never been harmed. I glanced to Aumae and she was watching me back. Her eyes were so loving, so giving. She smiled at me. She was trying to convey the same peace to me, so that I would forgive him, but I couldn’t.

I sighed. “You can’t connect to me anymore because of Kellan, right?”

Kellan added, “You’re a part of my blood now. It’s like we’re married, Shay. You’re my family.”

My eyes went wide. Oh. “Okay.” I wasn’t surprised, not really. “That makes sense.” I guess…

Kellan grunted, hiding a smile. “I thought you knew.”

“I think I did.” I laid my hand over his. “I still would’ve done it, been with you, if I’d known the full ramifications. I’m okay with it. I am.”

He turned his hand upside down, lacing our fingers, and pulled our hands to his lap. They were hidden from the others. Damien had been waiting, he cleared his throat. “Like I was saying before, there’s a war going on above, and Sachiel is a big contender for one side.” He faltered, his head bowing slightly. “Uh…this is hard to say because this was what I was supposed to encourage. Shay, I told you before that you should bond with Kellan because then you’d be too powerful for your father to take on. That isn’t true.”

I knew where this was going.

He said further, “Sachiel wants you to bond with Kellan, because he intends to take your powers. Both of yours.”

I felt Kellan’s anger mounting and snuck a peek at him, but he wasn’t showing anything. His face was unreadable. His eyes gave nothing away, and he even held my hand in a gentle and loving way, but I felt his demon stirring away. My messenger side was awakening as well, and she wasn’t pleased.

“The truth is that neither of you is a match for Sachiel, and he knows that. I was supposed to get close to you, Shay, and get you to bond with Kellan. That was the first part of my job.”

A knot formed in my stomach. “And the second?”

“I’m supposed to deliver both of you to him.”

“You know how to call him?”

Damien nodded. “The messengers aren’t watching like they had been before. He was surprised at how you guys were able to fend him off, and how Shay killed the other messengers. He thought you guys had bonded and to be honest, so did I.”

“You told him where to watch for us?”

Damien glanced to Kellan. “Yeah. That was me. I came to get you guys and take you back there. That’s why I showed up when I did.”

I said, “And that’s why you didn’t want to help us rescue Vespar and Giuseppa?”

He lifted a shoulder, turning away for a moment. “I worried about what he would say, if it were reported to him that I helped save two demons. That was part of the reason. The other part was because they’re both demons.” He sneered, saying the last word. “It is beneath our kind to help them.”