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“Eden?” A voice bleeds through the door. “You home?”

Oh, God. What is she doing here?

If she comes in here and sees a silver-skinned demon in a crop-top vest watching a dating show, I’m finished. Piper doesn’t do ‘supernatural anomalies.’ She does emergency services. She’ll have the police, a SWAT team, and a priest at my door before I can draw in a decent lungful of air. The last thing I need is my overprotective sister getting caught in this fresh pack of bullshit.

“Eden, hmm? That’s your name,” he muses. “Fitting. A garden full of thorns and bad decisions. Who is our guest? Don’t tell me you have another boyfriend as well as the dead one?”

I whirl on him, pressing a trembling finger sharply to my lips. “My sister,” I hiss. “Do not say a word. Do not move an inch.”

“Oh, a sister?” He coos, settling deeper into the cushions, stretching his legs out. “How quaint. Should I be preparing to charm another mortal? I mean, you’re my favorite, obviously, but if she’s even half as pretty as you⁠—”

“Stop,” I whisper-yell. “Please. I’m begging you.”

“Eden! I know you’re in there,” Piper yells from the other side of the door. “I can hear you talking. Open the door. I swear to God, if you’ve done something⁠—”

“Just—one second!” I croak.

In a moment of pure, adrenaline-fueled insanity, I lunge forward and grab his wrist. My hand wraps around his silver skin in a white-knuckled grip, and I yank. To my shock, he actually follows, stumbling to his feet with a look of amused surprise.

“Oh,” he murmurs. “This is exquisite. I’ve always enjoyed a good kidnapping.”

Vesper lets out a sharp, high-pitched trill, weaving between his ankles with treacherous speed. He nearly trips over her, shoulder clipping the doorframe.

“Coming to join your favorite demon?” he whispers down to her with a wink.

I give him a final, desperate shove, pushing him over the threshold. “Be quiet,” I grit out, my face inches from his. “Do not speak. Do not touch any of my things. Do not breathe if you can help it.”

“Open. The. Door.” Piper’s voice is borderline furious now.

“Yep! Coming! One second!” I slam the bedroom door in his face and scramble toward the front door, wiping my sweaty palms on my shirt. My hands are shaking so hard the deadbolt feels like it’s made of ice, slipping through my fingers twice before I finally manage to throw it open.

The moment I click it back, the door swings open with enough force to make me jump.

Piper stands there like a storm cloud, a flask tucked under one arm and a reusable grocery bag looped over her wrist. Her brow is furrowed into a single, deep line, and her eyes scan me in one sharp, scowling sweep.

“What the fuck, Eden?” she snaps, stepping in without waiting for an invitation.

“Wow,” I manage, plastering on an awkward smile. “Good to see you, too.”

“I could hear you talking to someone. Who’s here?” She says, dropping the stuff onto the side-table.

I freeze, brain stalling, mental gears grinding up against each other.

What am I supposed to say? “Oh, no one, Pipes. I was just trying to hide a demon from Hell in my bedroom. It’s a whole thing. Don’t worry about it.”

I can’t exactly tell her that. I can’t tell her anything.

“The TV!” I say quickly, gesturing shakily toward the screen. “I was… I was arguing with the TV. The dating show. You know how those things go. They’re super frustrating. Total nightmare.”

She turns slowly. “You were whisper-shouting at the TV instead of answering the door that’s ten feet away?”

Dammit, why did I go with that? I should’ve just said I was talking to Vesper.

“Well. Work called me,” she says tightly. “They said you didn’t show up. Said you weren’t answering.”

Work. Of course they rang her. She’s been my emergency contact since Matthew died, a safety net I’d forgotten was even stretched under me. But I didn’t think they’d call her because I’ve missed one morning.

Before I can scramble for a lie, she reaches out, pressing the back of her hand to my forehead.