“They brought Abaddon’s soul here,” Lir reminds us, swirling a fingertip on the stone with a faraway expression. “We’ve angered them, that’s why this is happening. We were never supposed to be here. Clearly, it was a fluke.”

“Yet here we are.” I cross my arms with a rare frown. “You know, I hate to say it, but maybe Malice was right in one aspect—that we don’t need Abaddon. Maybe the fates want us to be here. Maybe this was always how it was supposed to b⁠—”

“Gods, the sound of your voice is making my head pound.” Lir brings his clawed fingertips to his temples and massages gently. “It’s clear the only thing the fates want us to be is dead. Otherwise, we wouldn’t be in this mess.”

“I don’t know…” I bring a finger to my lips, staring off into the distance, deep in thought. “I still think they want us to live.”

“Wrong again, cottontail.”

Malice’s face appears in the shadowed hallway just outside the cell door, the twin sconces hanging from the frame casting eerie shadows along the harsh panes of his face. Silent as a cat, he steps toward the bars with a smirk, stopping just shy of the iron rods.

“And what the hell would you know?” I snap, narrowing my eyes in a glare. “You’re in the dark just like us.”

Malice’s lip curls back in a sneer. “It must be nice to have a mind absent of thought. No, cottontail, I am not in the dark. I kicked, and clawed, and scraped my way to the light. I know more than your smooth little brain could comprehend.”

“Care to share with the class?” Lir asks, glowering at the red-eyed demon.

Malice smiles, but it holds no joy. “I will. In time.”

I roll my eyes. “Sounds like he’s talking out of his ass again.”

“Why you…” Malice stops, forcing his eyes closed and taking a deep, steadying breath. “I don’t know why I’m speaking to you. You’re not the one I came here for.”

Malice turns toward Lir, though his wicked words project into all three of our minds, carried by the bond we share as parts of Abaddon’s soul. And he only says four little words.

Be quiet. They’re listening.

He slowly reaches through the bars, his hand inching toward the sconce hanging from the frame of the cell door. His eyes hold a different emotion than his tone as he says, “I came to check on you lot and make sure you weren’t up to anything nefarious.” His eyes glow as he stares into Lir’s eyes, a slow smile creeping over his face as he raises a hand to the sconce, something small and glittering clutched in his palm. “I’m glad to see you’re just as I left you.”