Kester sighed. “The gods have been warring for a hundred thousand years. They always will. If they strike a deal, it’s because they think they can get some advantage over the other. My guess is that they both think they can use you in some way. I imagine Emerazel hopes you’re going to spy for her.”

“Lovely. So no matter what happens, I’m going to enrage at least one of them, and probably both.”

“You’ll need to be very careful. You’ll need my guidance, of course.”

She took a sip of her whiskey, rolling the peaty taste around her tongue. Her muscles still burned, and she still hadn’t managed to sleep more than an hour at a time. Every time she’d closed her eyes in her bedroom, a vision of the void had haunted her. Was that where Bael was now? Her chest tightened. Maybe Nyxobas had chosen to spare him. Bael was terrifying, but she didn’t want to be responsible for his fiery afterlife.

Her gaze slid to Kester, his skin a beautiful gold in the warm lantern light. “Why would Emerazel want me to be her spy? I don’t even know what I’m doing. Isn’t that obvious?”

He held her gaze. “You’re not a normal hellhound.”

“There are normal hellhounds?”

He smiled. “More normal than you. Hellhounds who don’t burn when they encounter their goddess. Hellhounds who don’t repel incubi, and who have a basic grasp of their own history.”

Cold dread prickled over her skin. “I’d seen Nyxobas before. I saw his eyes in my dreams.”

Kester eyed her over the rim of his drink. “You’ve certainly earned your nickname.”

“And you yours.” The whiskey leant her boldness. She had to know about Kester’s past. She took another sip, and it burned her throat as she swallowed. “Who was Oriel?”

Surprise flickered across his features, and he studied her face for a moment, as if deciding whether or not to tell her. At last, he spoke. “My sister.”

“Were you close to her?” She must have died centuries ago.

“I was.” His eyes glistened with pain. “Until Abrax stole her soul, sent her to the shadow void.”

A lump rose in Ursula’s throat. “Because you were a hellhound?”