"How much time do you have left?"

I didn't want to think about it. Days were speeding by too quickly. Weeks had become valuable months. Winter had turned to spring a long time ago. Spring had become summer a while back.

After a pause, I answered, "The deadline is November ninth."

I thought what could be considered pity swept across Bane's face, but he masked his expression so quickly I couldn't be certain. "She deceived you, Rhiannon. She knew you were desperate and took advantage." Bane had never been one to mince words or beat around the bush. The scar along his face shifted and moved like a living, breathing creature. Although it should have been an ugly thing, I didn't see it that way anymore. It was simply a part of him. "It's despicable and means she'll probably lose favor with God." The way he said it—the certainty in his voice—sent a tendril of fear down my spine. "I suppose she doesn't care about that. If I was in her situation, I'd feel the same way."

"What do you mean?"

"She wants out."

I still didn't get it and had to know. "What's wrong with me?"

"You still have the timeframe allotted, she can't change that, but she's already doing what she intended when you agreed to her terms." He retrieved the knife at his back and tried to hand it to me. When I didn't move, simply staring at it, he instructed, "Take it and look at your eyes." Making sure I understood him, he ordered, "Really look at them."

Despite the fatigue in my arms, I carefully accepted the weapon. I moved it so I could gaze at my reflection. My right eye was its normal brown hue. The left had taken on a bright lavender shade.

"I don't understand." I'd already seen the change. "What do you expect me to see?"

He opened his mouth to respond but stopped himself. "When you struck your bargain," he finally said, "she had to have told you something."

"She told me lots of things." It was difficult to recall. I'd been so full of anger back then, driven to exact revenge. She'd been understanding and soothing, almost comforting.

"Take your time." Bane took the knife from me. "Think back."

I tried, but I didn't know what he wanted me to tell him. "What am I looking for?"

"Was there a warning?"

"How do you mean?"

"As one of the fallen, she'd be obligated to provide one. Even though they don't meddle in trickery and chaos, they can fashion words with hidden meanings just like a demon. The bargain doesn't mean shit if she didn't give you complete information. She had to tell you her intentions. If she didn't, the contract is null and void." His eyes locked on mine. "Considering what I'm looking at, she was crystal clear, even if you didn't realize it at the time. Go back to that meeting, remember every single word she said to you."

I didn't want to, but I closed my eyes and returned to that awful day.

I remembered making my aching and bloody body climb up the stairs to the bedroom I shared with Disco. I'd changed my clothes and prepared physically and mentally for what was to come. I'd been so angry, upset, and furious I wanted to claw at my own skin. I'd pulled my hair back, armed myself, and went to the mirror to summon Marigold. Back then I knew she was the only one who could possibly help me, especially as she'd done so before. When her face appeared before mine, mirroring my reflection, I'd already made up my mind.        

Those who had wronged me and mine were as good as dead. I would do anything to make it happen. They'd taken things I cherished beyond reason, spit on them, abused them, and treated them like shit on mud. Then they'd cast them aside like unwanted and broken toys. For that alone I wanted to see them on their knees before me, begging for forgiveness as I took them down and sang a joyous tune at their demise. I knew I would bathe in their blood, dance around their corpses, and wouldn't feel an ounce of remorse for doing so.

At that time—in that moment—all I understood was vengeance and pain.

Pulling back those dark emotions, I focused on the grief I'd experienced. I was used to suffering. In an odd way, it gave me clarity. As I found my place in it, I tried to recall my precise conversation with Marigold. She'd been angry by my summon, as I'd yet to fulfill our previous bargain. As we spoke and she recognized my rage, she knew I'd avenge those I lost even without her help. I'd already made up my mind. But it was a battle I'd never win. Even the strongest necromancer stood no chance against half-demons and numerous vampire families.

She knew I'd never repay my debt to her. I'd be dead.

I'd banked on it when I summoned her.

Without a body, she'd remain in hell forever.  

So she'd listened to what I offered, going over my terms, and she'd agreed to them. I bowed my head as my stomach knotted.  I hadn't bargained with Marigold. Not entirely. I'd made demands of her. In retrospect, I'd backed her into a corner. We'd struck a deal because I'd given her no choice in the matter.

She'd told me when she took over my body and dealt with my enemies that we'd share memories. She'd warned that merging souls was a dangerous business. I'd felt something off when she made the confession, cautious and edgy by what she meant, because she wasn't being completely honest. So I'd questioned her, telling her I knew she was holding something back, asking what it was.

Recalling her answer sent a tendril of awareness down my spine.

"Because I am. If I tell you everything, despite your determination to face the monsters who have taken so much from you, you might say no." Then she'd reminded me why she'd been summoned in the first place. I could still hear her voice in my head. "Find me, Rhiannon Murphy. Return me to my true form. Demons cower when an angel spreads its wings."

I leaned forward, weighed down by my own stupid actions.

Oh no. Oh shit.

"What?" Bane questioned. "Tell me."

I got hold of myself and met Bane's level gaze. "She warned me." I didn't dare look away. He'd already glimpsed portions of what he wanted to know. "I was so angry at the time, I didn't care. I was only worried about myself and the people I wanted to save. I only thought about getting what I wanted."

His gaze drifted from mine, and I understood what he wanted me to figure out on my own. Since he was light and dark, he must have sensed I'd mucked something up along the way, not the fallen angel I'd made a deal with. He'd been kind enough to let me sort through the mess myself and come to final conclusions. That's why he'd handed me the knife and told me to take a real look at myself. He'd expected me find what I should have after the first attack. To be fair, with the exception of my eyes, the changes weren't all that significant. They could be passed off as something else.

That's why I'd mistaken them.

The fallen angel crafted the bargain for self-preservation. She hadn't meant for me to return her to true form. She didn't expect me to find her remains. Why would she? I'd proven myself unworthy. I'd disregarded our initial bargain, gave her an ultimatum, and had given her no reason to trust me. As such, she didn't owe me shit until I fulfilled the terms of our agreement.

She'd set a trap, and I'd walked right into it. In all honesty, it was a lure of my own making. That's why my eyes had taken on an irrevocable shift. It was also why my skin had turned youthful and the lines in my face were vanishing. The consumption of Disco's blood wasn't the issue, it was something else entirely.

The fallen angel didn't need my assistance. Not anymore. She could revive herself on her own, she just needed to get out of Hell first.

She'd found access to a body that allowed it.

One she'd done everything to preserve and protect.

Mine.