He smiled, instantly transforming him to the mocking angel I usually knew. “Believe me, Daughter of Lilith, I wish I could take credit for these things. And if it comes down to it, and I have the means and ability, I will try to protect you. For now, I’ve still got to stay out of this.”

“House calls aside.”

“Just a visit between friends.” He winked and stood up. “I really do wish I could help more, but you’re going to have to find another way. Be careful, whatever you end up doing.”

“You’re not warning me away from all this?”

He arched an eyebrow. “Should I be?”

“No,” I mused. “But everyone else is. They say it’s dangerous.”

“It is dangerous. But these are dangerous times, and honestly? You’re the only one that I think has the means or desire to get us out of this mess. Good luck, Georgina. And don’t leave the house without checking your hair.” He vanished.

“Fucking angels.”

I realized then that I was starving for real food, not sugar-filled sweets. My kitchen was sparse as usual, so I decided to risk the world and go pick up something. I was tired and certainly incapable of running a marathon, but Mei’s healing really had gone a long way. I could manage the one block walk to a nearby take-out Chinese restaurant. I placed the order, and by the time I was out of my robe and out the door, the food was ready. I stopped at a convenience store as well to pick up some pop, and the whole endeavor only ended up taking about thirty minutes. From the look on Aubrey’s face, you would have thought I’d been gone a whole day, but then, she just wanted my orange chicken.

I changed back to my robe and relaxed with the food, pondering how to spend my day. As I’d told Dante, I didn’t want to go traipsing about town, but I wanted some leads on the medallion. Erik was probably my best bet at this point, and I hoped he’d be able to ID my symbols from phone descriptions. Before I could do that, I heard a knock at my door. I expected it to be Hugh making a house call, but to my astonishment, it was Seth.

“Hey,” I said, stepping aside so that he could come in.

“Hey,” he returned.

I stuffed my hands into the ratty robe’s pockets, wishing I hadn’t been so hasty to change back to casual mode. My hair was undoubtedly a lost cause, so there was no point stressing over that. “How’s it going?”

“Okay.” He met my eyes frankly, something he hadn’t done in a while. It sent a tingle down my back. “I was just nearby and wanted to . . . well, that is . . .” He sighed. “I just wanted to apologize for what happened yesterday . . .”