"Because I am not truly a demon anymore."

"Then what are you?"

"Ruby, I'm sure he doesn't want to talk about this," Carrow said, clearly growing nervous.

The witch had all but signed Malkom up to be a protector for the child but hadn't revealed what he was? Out of shame?

The old anger simmered up, that rage he'd felt at being turned into an abomination against his will. Made into something hated.

Carrow acted as if she could accept it, but she didn't want others to know.

"I became a Scarba," he said.

"What does that mean?"

Something that must not be. Neither a true vampire nor a demon. "A vampire demon." Neither a true vampire nor a demon. "A vampire demon."

"V-vampire?" Ruby's eyes went round. "You drink blood?"

"I do," he said. "I have drunk Carrow before."

Ruby swung her gaze to Carrow, who looked like she wanted to throttle him.

"Did it hurt, Crow?"

"Yes, witch, did it hurt?"

She faced him with a determined glint in her eyes, then turned to the girl. "No, honey. It's like a hug. It's what Malkom and I do when we want to feel close to each other." She turned to him once more. "Isn't that right, demon?"

His lips parted.

"In fact, I could use a bite right about now."

Woman, I would kill for another taste of you!

Their gazes held.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Ruby demanded. "I'm not supposed to talk to vampires. Unless they're married to Valkyrie."

After a laden moment, Carrow dragged her gaze away to answer Ruby. "Because I wasn't sure that Malkom wanted you to know. Besides, he's not a vampire."

"He's not?"

I'm not?

"Nope. You remember how Peter Parker got bitten by a spider and had superpowers?" The girl nodded. "But he's not a spider, is he?"

"Of course not!"

Who is Peter Parker?

"Malkom got some superpowers from a vampire, but he's still a demon," Carrow said decidedly.

"Ohhh, so he's like a superdemon."

Carrow's lips curled at him. "The stuff of legend, honey."

Malkom sat there, wound up with tension, grappling with what Carrow had said. Was that truly how she saw him? Not as something less less but somehow as something but somehow as something more more?

In that cell with Kallen ages ago, Malkom had vowed to find a way to become fully demon again. In Oblivion, he'd even briefly considered asking the witch to help him. Now I do not know Now I do not know....

"So, are you going to let me win back my sh.e.l.ls?" she asked the girl.

"But I want Malkom to play," Ruby said with a pout.

He and Carrow shared a look. Would she tell the child he couldn't read the symbols?

"They might not have cards where he comes from. Maybe he could team up-"

"With me!" Ruby bounded over to him, dropping her cards all over to grab his arm. "You can be on my team." She pulled him until he relented and joined them on the floor.

Carrow looked surprised. "Okay, then. The object of the game is to get to twenty-one points without going over."

"The cards with people on them are worth ten." Ruby displayed a card that depicted a crowned man.

Carrow said, "And aces can be one or eleven."

Ruby showed him a card that looked like all the rest. "This is an ace. It's got an A on it."

Reading and and ciphering. Any remnants of his relaxation disappeared. ciphering. Any remnants of his relaxation disappeared.

"Ruby, since you're on vacation from school, why don't you do all the adding? Ask Malkom if you can."

"Can I, Malkom?"

He gruffly replied, "As you will ..."

The next hour flew by in a haze of numbers and even some amus.e.m.e.nt. Additional rules to the game were revealed, which made it even more interesting. Soon he could recognize aces, and he'd even learned some of the number symbols-easy enough to deduce when Ruby counted on her fingers with many of the cards.

At one point, the girl had cried, "Double down!"

He'd frowned at their hand hand. "What does that mean?"

Between peals of laughter, she'd said, "I don't know!"

But in the end, he and Ruby had won more than they lost, and Carrow had finally run out of sh.e.l.ls.

"You guys were merciless. But I want a rematch soon." She turned to him, caught him staring at her before he gazed away. More softly, she said, "That was fun."

Surprisingly, it had been.

Though the child's energy had begun to wane, Ruby said, "We can give you more sh.e.l.ls." She scooped up a handful, solemnly offering them to Carrow.

"Nope. Time for bed."

The girl grumbled but did rise. "Good night, Malkom." She leaned in and kissed his cheek, then trudged toward Carrow.

"And to you, deela, deela," he muttered brusquely, not liking Carrow's delighted smile.

"Come on, kiddo." As she squired Ruby to bed, she glanced over her shoulder. "I'll be back in a minute." She bit her bottom lip in that way that drove him crazy.

G.o.ds, he desired her, still craved her, but taking her would be reckless. Cannot do what my father did. Cannot do what my father did.

Then stay away from her.

As per Ruby's request, Carrow had promised to hold her hand until she'd fallen asleep, a.s.suring her that she and Malkom would be close by if she woke up.

Naturally, when Carrow was dying to get back to Malkom, the girl had been chatty, talking about her day with him. Already, Ruby nursed a serious case of hero worship for the demon.

Makes two of us. When he'd freed Ruby from those rocks ... no one else could have done it. When he'd freed Ruby from those rocks ... no one else could have done it.

Once Ruby had drifted off at last, Carrow crept out of the room, her heart racing.

He was gone.

Earlier, by the fire, he'd been looking at her with that dark, hungry expression. She hadn't known if it was an invitation or not.

a.s.suming it was, she set out to find him, wearing only a sweater, her leather skirt, and a blanket wrapped around her. She found him on the calm side of the cape, deep in the water he'd earlier fished.

"What are you doing?"

His breaths fogged over the freezing water. "Learning to swim."

"I could have taught you." She laid out the blanket, sitting down to wait for him.

"I figured it out." He seemed to have gotten the hang of it, swimming with fairly sure strokes. Eventually, he made for the sh.o.r.e.

She was just about to ask him if he was cold when he rose up, naked and magnificent. Her lips parted. Not cold at all.

As he stalked toward her with his long-legged strides, she nearly whimpered with need. Water lovingly sluiced down his torso, drops clinging to chiseled abs before reaching his muscled thighs, his narrow hips ... and between. He stiffened under her gaze, his length distending.

He'd gotten her used to enjoying him almost hourly. Now she'd gone a week without him. She needed release-but she also merely wanted to be close to him again.

"What do you want, witch?"

"To talk to you. Have you thought about my plan?"

He reached for his clothes. "I told you I will consider it."

"Just look at me." A shake of his head. "No? You couldn't keep your eyes off me tonight."

Finally he faced her. "You are the one who put us in this situation. I am just trying to get us through it."

"By not talking to me? By not touching me?"

He stabbed his legs into his pants, hissing in a breath as he fastened them over his erection.

She rose, sidling closer to him. "I know you still care about me. When I'd drowned, you were a mess. You were relieved to see I was going to be all right."

"I did not want my fated female to die, no."

And he's learned snarkiness!

She touched his arm, but he flinched. "What can I do to earn back your trust?"

"Leave me be, so I can think on my own."

"Okay. If that's what you want. I just thought you needed more, from the way you looked at me."

"And what if I did need more? What would you offer me, wife wife?"

"s.e.x. I'm offering to have s.e.x with you."

He gave a bitter laugh. "All you would be doing is keeping a vow you already made."

"That's true."

"If you are so eager for it now, why did you not let me claim you in Oblivion?"

"I don't have s.e.x with just anyone, Malkom. You were out of control at first, frightening me at times. And then when I did offer, y-you bit my breast!"

"Which I paid for dearly."

"Yes, you did. But the fact remains that I offered myself to you because I had feelings for you. Undeniable ones."

In a scoffing tone, he said, "You were that sure of me in Oblivion? When you had no fated tie to me?"

"I was well on my way to being sure. I trust my instincts. And they were screaming that you were the one for me."

"A pretty story from a deceptive witch."

"Malkom, I know it'll take time for you to trust me again. But I also know it will will happen. Maybe we can enjoy each other until it does? I'm asking you to make love to me." happen. Maybe we can enjoy each other until it does? I'm asking you to make love to me."