“Usually there are far less demons around.”
That already disgusting smile twisted into a too-wide grin.
“I know.”
Riley shivered as the two went back to staring over the edge of the cliff. The woman’s eye held a dangerous glint that forced her to take a step back. The two were absolutely insane. She had warned them about the devil and the death god.
And these two were excited. At least the woman was.
Taking up the armored man’s offer of leaving wasn’t looking like such a bad idea any longer.
Chapter 032
Eva smiled as she leaned back, enjoying the warm rays of the sun.
It was a nice day out. A nice blue sky with a few clouds, just enough to provide the occasional spot of shade. There wasn’t much wind, not even a light breeze. Eva wasn’t complaining. It wasn’t hot enough in early April to need a breeze and the lack of wind kept her long hair from flailing about.
The only things truly off about the day were the violet streaks that hung overhead. They were almost invisible against the blue hues of the sky, so much so that some people around Brakket Academy might not have noticed if no one pointed it out.
Despite being aware of them, Shalise didn’t appear to care in the slightest. She basked in the sun with a dopey smile on her face.
She had dragged out a set of chairs for the two of them. Shalise did not want to spend more time inside the women’s ward, even if this one was in a completely different plane of existence. It was too much like a real prison, rather than the home that Eva had intended it to be.
While she could see where Shalise was coming from, Eva quite liked the prison. It wasn’t the most aesthetically pleasing thing around, but it felt secure.
At least, it was supposed to feel secure.
Eva tensed as she noticed a human circulatory system approaching, her hand slowly reached for her dagger at her back. She only had a scant few vials of Arachne’s blood left to fight with and would have to make do with her own should that be consumed.
But Eva did not make any overtly offensive moves. Everything was ready to strike, but only out of sight. She was desperately hoping that she wouldn’t have to fight anyone at the moment.
“Hello, Lynn Cross,” Eva said to the approaching person. She kept her smile on her face and her tone of voice as polite as possible.
Not having Arachne around had her feeling far from secure.
So many people that Eva trusted were just gone. First Juliana–Genoa by extension–and Arachne. Even Ylva was no longer at the prison. Serena wasn’t around, she had been far too afraid to get close to Ylva. Now that Ylva was gone, maybe she could be convinced to stop by. But for the moment, no one was around.
Counting it up like that, it did not sound like all that many people. But felt like half of everyone she knew.
Upon hearing her name, Lynn shot a death glare at Eva. Her eyes narrowed to slits as her lips curled back in an expression of pure disgust. As she had done every time they accidentally found themselves in one another’s presence over the past four days.
Eva was fairly certain that she had Shalise to thank for Lynn not trying to murder her the moment they had got out of Hell. So at least she could count on Shalise being a good person and having her back.
Though her friend had definitely gained an increased respect for Lynn. Perhaps even adoration.
Shalise perked up upon hearing Eva’s voice. A wide smile spread across her face.
“Lynn?” came Shalise’s hoarse voice. Ever since the ritual, she had a slight rasp in every word. It probably hurt to talk as well; she hadn’t been talking all that much. When she did talk, she kept her responses short and to the point.
Eva kept her polite smile even as Shalise jumped up from her chair. She watched as her friend bounced on her feet as to cross the distance to the former nun.
Lynn’s harsh expression melted off as Shalise wrapped her arms around her.
Since Eva had dumped her in Hell, there would have been plenty of opportunities for Lynn to tell Shalise just who her mother was. Eva could not tell if she had done so or not. Shalise still called her by her name instead of ‘mother’ or anything similar. But they were a whole lot closer than before.
Given that Lynn had made up a majority of Shalise’s human interaction in the past months as well as removed Prax, perhaps that wasn’t so surprising.
“What are you going to do now?” Shalise asked.
“We are going to leave.”
Shalise made to object, but Lynn held up a hand.
“You’ve had a few days to relax while I made preparations. Say your farewells and let us be gone.”
“But–”
Eva cut in. “Is it wise to take her with you? It could be dangerous, especially for Shalise.”
“Are you threatening us?” Lynn Cross’ eyes once again narrowed to thin slits.
“Not at all. I’m just saying that I might have overheard a certain Sister Cole talking about you getting what you deserve. How well can you, on your own, stand up to the Elysium Order hunting you down while protecting Shalise at the same time?”
Lynn’s face twisted into a sneer. More of a sneer than she already had on, anyway. For some reason, Eva got the impression that it wasn’t actually directed at her for once.
“They won’t hunt me down. They lack the resources at the moment. Your pet ensured that.”
It was a good thing that Ylva wasn’t around to hear that insinuation.
“And someone just broke into a cathedral to steal a priceless artifact. I’m sure they’ll have their hands busy dealing with that little pest for the foreseeable future.”
“There was nothing left behind for their augurs to track.” Technically, large chunks of Arachne were probably all over the floor of their main chapel. Eva somehow doubted that they would get anything useful from that until Arachne returned to the mortal realm. “I ensured that.”
“You’re underestimating them.”
Eva shrugged, not letting her smile slip from her face. “Perhaps. With said priceless artifact having been dropped off on their front porch, I doubt that they will be too interested in chasing me down. No harm, no foul, as the saying goes.”
Lynn opened her mouth to argue.
Eva cut her off. “Even if they do manage to track me and decide to attack me, they won’t be interested once they realize where they’re looking at. You did just mention that Ylva decimated the Elysium Order inquisitors. Will they really risk another confrontation?”
“Your pet isn’t here.”
“Not here here. But she’s around.”
Come to think of it, Eva considered, the prison is going to be empty these days.
No Arachne. No Ylva. Devon had run off and Eva had not seen him since visiting the Elysium cathedral.
He’d probably turn up just in time for her treatment, only to literally explode in rage at finding Arachne gone.
But, with no one else here, Eva wondered if she shouldn’t move back to the Brakket Academy dormitories. She would have to find a new room. Her old one was currently uninhabitable. It had a round-the-clock guard and several shackles set up by her around the entrance, though there had been no incidents apart from the first time.
Ylva was going to take a look at it sometime soon and see if she couldn’t sever the connection.
If Shalise left too…
Eva’s smile almost slipped from her face.