“What?” Tammi knocked over her nail polish, and a pool of crimson stained her duvet.

“Josiah is my ex-boyfriend, but he’s also my Guardian in the Brotherhood,” Rosalind said. “He dumped me because the Brotherhood forbids novice and Guardian relationships. And I’m supposed to be reporting to him in about fifteen minutes, so he can fire me for screwing up.”

“He can wait. This is fucking huge. I did not have you pegged as a Hunter. I wasn’t even sure if Hunters were real. Can you even fight?” Tammi stood, her face flushed. “Start from the beginning. How long have you been a part of the Brotherhood?”

This really was a long story. “I became a Hunter at eighteen, but I’ve been in the Brotherhood since I was five. That’s when Mason adopted me. The one good thing he ever did for me was introducing me to the Brotherhood. The order gave me stability and a sense of belonging—everything Mason failed to give me. I always thought a future with the Brotherhood was my destiny. I thought I’d be promoted to Guardian someday, leading a group of novices in the ancient tradition of the hunt. And then, tonight, I messed everything up. Again. They can’t risk having incompetent people fighting demons. It’s too dangerous.”

“What happened?” Tammi asked breathlessly.

An image of the mage’s cold, icy stare flashed in Rosalind’s brain, and she shuddered. “I’ve already racked up two failed kills. Three, and you’re out. Tonight, I was supposed to kill a redcap, but I let the situation get out of control.”

“You let him get away?”

“Not exactly. He bit me.”

“Holy shit, Ros. Why aren’t you dead?”

“Because a really hot mage showed up, ripped out the demon’s heart, and then healed me. And then I let the mage get away.”

Tammi stared at her, open-mouthed. “Jesus, Rosalind.” She pulled her hair off her face. “Look on the bright side. At least you made it out alive. And it can’t be that terrible to get saved by a hot guy.”

Rosalind flinched. “I don’t think the Brotherhood will be so impressed with those things.”

Tammi frowned. “Don’t you think we should be making peace with the demons, or at least the mages? I’m just a little wary of the Brotherhood, since they don’t do trials and all…”

Rosalind didn’t need to hear this lecture right now. When demons were trying to feast on your guts, you didn’t always have the luxury of putting them on trial. “Did the mages give us a chance to make peace when they murdered a hundred kids in Boston? Did that redcap ask for peace when he ate the two cashiers in Market Basket? The vamps have killed two people on campus in the past month. Tonight, this guy was going to slaughter ten times that.”

“I guess so…” Tammi said doubtfully.

Rosalind could feel the blood rushing to her head. “The Brotherhood have been protecting humans from dark magic since the dawn of civilization. Without Hunters, demons would enslave us all. And the demons aren’t going to wait around for us to put everyone on trial while they rape and eat their way through Boston’s citizens. Demons don’t respect weakness. We have to fight back.”