The Sinner

“Lucy Dennings,” he said, his voice as old as the grave. “The girl my beautiful prince cannot relinquish. At last, we meet.”

“Let me go.”

He leaned in. “You first.”

I stared, the sheer malevolence in his empty blue eyes making my insides shiver. His breath had my eyes watering—a stink that was everything rotting and spoiled in the world. He released me from his gaze but held my wrist tight.

“Your hold on Casziel has been a nuisance for centuries. His weakness for you disgusts me. A liability I can no longer tolerate. Your infatuation for him is equally baffling. Do you know who he is, your beloved?”

“Yes,” I managed through a dry throat. “I know exactly who he is. Finally…”

Ashtaroth snorted and the stench intensified. “I’m not speaking of the man you knew in one pathetic lifetime thousands of years ago. The lifetime you both cling to like barnacles on a sinking ship. I mean who he is. What he has become under my care.”

“Care?” I barked a laugh, short and fearful. “Doesn’t matter. He’s still himself. You failed—”

“Failed? Failed?”

Ashtaroth’s voice boomed so loud that I felt it in my chest. I glanced around for help and let out a small cry. The entire room had frozen, every person in it an unmoving tableau. As if this were a movie and Ashtaroth had paused it mid-scene.

“I don’t fail, girl,” the demon sneered. “Others fail me and must be punished. And replaced.”

“No.” I shook my head, marveling at my own defiance. “You failed because love is stronger than whatever you tried to do to him.”

“Love.” He scoffed. “Love cannot save him. He’s a liar. A sinner. A fiend of the highest order. Did you believe his little tale about his redemption?” He laughed, mirthless and cold. “Foolish girl. There is only one way out for him.”

“H-how?” I asked through trembling lips.

“A trade. A soul for a soul.” Ashtaroth traced a line down my cheek with one long fingernail. “So sweet, Lucy Dennings. So ripe and good. How deep does that goodness go, I wonder?”

I squeezed my eyes shut, dread squeezing my heart just as hard until I couldn’t breathe.

“Casziel has sacrificed his eternal soul for want of you. I can’t imagine you would allow him another millennium of agony. Not if you loved him, sweet Lucy. And you do love him…” He cocked his head with mock curiosity. “Don’t you?”

The demon released my wrist and stood up, snakes slithering at his feet and across the bar. He touched my chin with the side of his finger, tilting my head up, studying me. I could feel his dead-eyed gaze everywhere on my skin. A wormy tongue touched the corner of his mouth.

“So ripe…” He exhaled, and the fetid stink of rot and decay gusted over me. “I’ll be listening, Lucy Dennings.”

Ashtaroth disappeared into the crowd and then the scene around me began again, everyone resuming their lives, unaware. I rubbed my wrist, feeling as if a hundred showers wouldn’t begin to wash his touch off me.

Casziel rushed to me, his sharp gaze scanning the room. “Something’s happened. I felt it… Why are you so pale?”

“Ashtaroth,” I managed. My hands were shaking.

Cas’s eyes widened and he bit off a curse. “Gods, no…”

He led me away to a less-crowded section of the deck. I took deep breaths of cool air. Overhead, the clouds were thickening.

Casziel gripped my shoulders, his eyes boring into mine. “Tell me everything. What did he want?”

“Me.”

He froze. “What were his exact words?”

“A soul for a soul. Me for…you.”

“What did you tell him?” he asked, his tone hardening slightly.

“I didn’t have a chance to tell him anything. I—what’s wrong?”