“Not at all,” Kraven said, regaining that hateful, twisting smile. “Thought you might have run off already.”

“Not yet, but it’s tempting.”

Bishop didn’t look happy. Whether he was more upset with the direction of their argument or that he’d resorted to violence to end it, I wasn’t sure. Personally, I was secretly thrilled he’d defended me like that. He wouldn’t have done that if I was only a means to help him find his team, would he? That had been personal.

Still, I was a little surprised that he’d let Kraven’s cheap shots bother him. He’d obviously never gone to a public high school. I’d known guys like Kraven all my life. All talk. Emotional manipulators. And yes, jerks. Just because he was a demon didn’t mean I didn’t have his number.

Him I could deal with. The angel—well, he was brand-new for me. The whole situation had me so off center that I had to focus on keeping my balance.

That seemed to be the entire reason behind their mission. Keep the balance. Get rid of the threat that was consuming the souls that Heaven and Hell needed to keep their all-important universal balance. I got that. It was insane and scary and way too big for my head to wrap completely around, but I got the gist of it.

“You want to go home now, don’t you?” Bishop asked. The question wasn’t filled with anger or accusation. He searched my face for the answer, his hands still tight at his sides.

I swallowed hard. “More than you know.”

“We need you.”

“So you say.”

“It’s true.”

I looked at Kraven before summoning my faltering bravery and moving closer to him. I wouldn’t let him believe I was afraid of him. I couldn’t give him that kind of power over me.

“Do you need me, too?” I asked.

He sneered at me. “No.”

“Can you see the lights to find the others?”

He stepped closer to me as if challenging me back, and he reached down to take a tight hold of my wrist. I tensed but didn’t try to pull away. “You’re kind of bright and shiny, gray girl.”

He held my gaze, half his mouth turned up in that patronizing grin.

And suddenly I could read his mind.

I saw past his bravado, past his sneering exterior, down deeper into those amber-colored eyes of his. It felt a little like what had happened this morning, when I’d zapped him to protect myself. This ability drew from the same place. Eyes were the windows to the soul, I’d heard. Since demons didn’t have souls, I figured I was just seeing down to Kraven’s true self.

I don’t know if I can do this. Not with him here. I didn’t know it would be this hard.

It was his thought, not mine. I knew it. I felt it. It was crystal clear to me.

“You’re doubting yourself,” I said aloud. “You’re worried you’re going to fail. You’re just like Bishop that way. You two have way more in common than you might admit.”

He snatched his hand back from me. The amusement had completely left his expression, replaced with confusion.

“How did you—?” he began.

“They wouldn’t have picked you if they didn’t think you could do this.” If Kraven had been sent on this mission, he must be skilled. Someone who could be counted on to come through in a tough situation. Didn’t he realize that?

“You don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.” He cast a dark glance at Bishop, who stood watching us intently.

Bishop raised an eyebrow. “See? I told you she was special.”

Kraven turned his fiery glare back on me, and this time it took a lot of effort not to flinch. “Don’t do that again.”

“You don’t want anyone to see the real you?”

“You don’t want to see the real me, trust me on that.” He shot a look at Bishop. “You don’t want her to see the real me, either, do you? Or how about the real you?”

“I’ll take my chances,” Bishop replied evenly.

Kraven’s steely gaze met mine again. “How did you do that?”

Whatever it was felt natural. Felt easy. Like it was simply an extension of who I already was, which I knew made no sense at all. “I honestly have no idea.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“That’s your problem. And you didn’t answer my question.” I tried to keep my voice steady. “Not properly anyway. Can you see the searchlights that lead to the others?”

He answered through clenched teeth. “No, I can’t.”

I nodded. “Well, I can. And I’ve spotted a new one, so I guess you do need me. And if you keep looking at me like you want me dead, I can’t say I’m all that interested in helping you out.”

“Kraven,” Bishop growled. A warning. “Be nice to Samantha.”

The demon studied me a bit longer with that disturbed and angry look on his handsome face before a smile finally snaked across his expression. It didn’t reach as far as his eyes. “Of course. Welcome to the team, sweetness. Looks like we’re going to make a big fat exception for you.”

Great. I’d never been much of a team player before and, if I had been, I would never have picked one like this.

I nodded and pulled my coat closer around me, cinching the belt tightly at my waist, and tried my best to swallow my fear. “Okay, then. Follow me.”

Chapter 9

Bishop’s gaze stayed on me as we walked—a heated sensation on the side of my face that I couldn’t ignore even if I tried to.