Phei drew another sigh, the sound ragged and bone-deep, as if the very air in his lungs had turned to lead.
He sat in the back of the car with Sierra curled against his chest, her black hair spilling across his shirt like ink on parchment, her breathing slow and even with the exhausted peace of a girl who had screamed at her father, run away from home, and finally collapsed into the arms of the only person who made her feel safe.
She didn't know.
She had no idea what her mother had just told him... no idea that her father had already signed her death warrant in exchange for the privilege of hosting an ancient devilin his flesh at maximum potency.
No idea that she was sleeping in the arms of a boy who was now carrying the weight of her survival on shoulders that had already been bearing too much.
One wrong move, one moment of hesitation would end with Sierra die screaming on some Maxton altar for awakening First Devil.
