I shifted my head to get up, slowing when my neck complained. I put a hand to it and pulled my legs under me to find an upright position. The sound of my leather pants scraping the floor was soft, the echoes nonexistent. My eyes opened, but I couldn’t see a difference. One hand on my neck, one sort of propping myself up, I tugged David’s coat out from under me and took a slow breath. I was wet—my hair damp and the taste of salt water on my lips. The cool certainty of charmed silver rested upon my wrist. Swell.

“Trent?” I whispered. “Are you here?”

There was a rough harrumph, chilling me.

“Good evening, Rachel Mariana Morgan.”

It was Al. I froze in panic, trying to see. There was a click six feet in front of me, and I scuttled backward, crying out in surprise when my back hit a wall. Fear was a sharp goad. I tried to rise, and my head hit the ceiling a mere four feet up.

“Ow!” I yelped, falling down and moving like a crab until I found a corner. My pulse hammered, and I strained to see. Everything was black. It was as if my eyes were gone.

Al’s low, mocking laugh grew in depth, then faded with a bitter sound. “Stupid witch.”

“Stay away,” I demanded, pulse hammering and my knees to my chin. I wiped the last of the salt water from my face and pushed my hair back. “You come near me, and I’ll make sure you never engender any little demons. Ever.”

“If I could touch you,” Al said, his accent clear and precise, “you’d be dead. You’re in jail, love. Want to be my shower buddy?”

I wiped my face again, slowly letting my knees fall from my chest. “How long?” I asked.

“Have you been here?” Al murmured lightly. “Same as me. All day. How long will you remain? Just until I get out, and then I’ll be back. I’m looking forward to joining you in that tiny box of a cell you’re in.”

Fear slid through me, then was gone.

“Feeling better?” he almost purred. “Come over here by the bars, love, and I’ll rub your aching head for you. Rub it right off your skinny little shoulders.”

Hatred nearly dripped from his soothing voice, still so elegant and refined. Okay. I was in jail. I knew why I was in jail, but why was Al? Then I winced, wondering if I could have pissed the demon off any more. He’d warned me not to tell anyone I knew how to spindle line energy. And then I went and did it in front of Minias. They had caught Al in a lie of omission, and I didn’t think he could put any kind of spin on it to make it look good.