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undercover, he had read Legion communiqués on them, and shared what he felt was prudent with the Sibyls.
    I have to find Jake, find out if it was him in the alley. Maybe he dumped that paint to help us. Nick closed his eyes. Opened them. Found himself staring at his twin. I have to give him a chance. I’d do the same for you, wouldn’t I?
    “There’s no real indication that we have more Astaroths on the loose,” Nick said. “This is probably some Legion revision in the creation of Asmodai. But to be safe, let’s get the intel before we move on the Bronx house.”
    And give me some time to figure out what the hell I’m going to do.
    Before anyone else could speak, Nick stood. For a few seconds, he wondered if he might fall, but he managed to shake off the dizziness.
    “Here on out, Cynda doesn’t stay alone.” He glanced around the room, searching for any sign of disagreement, and found none.
    Riana, however, looked more uncomfortable than usual. She shifted on the edge of the big table, seemed to argue with herself for a second, then come to a decision. “I know this is a lot to ask, Nick, but when Merilee and I aren’t with Cynda, will you see to her safety?”
    At the stunned looks from Andy, Merilee, and Creed, Riana added, “He was one of them for a time. He knows how the Legion thinks, how it operates better than any of us. Plus, he’s Curson—and stronger for it.” She clasped her hands in her lap. “Cynda would scorch anybody else who tried to protect her.”
    “Consider it done,” Nick said without hesitation. “You didn’t even have to ask.”
    Riana gave him a grateful look, which impressed Nick, since the two of them definitely hadn’t hit it off. Riana had wanted him to submit to experiments into the nature of Curson demons, but Nick had told her—politely at first, then not so politely when she persisted—where to put that idea. Since then, there had been a major chill between them. The fact that Riana would stuff her pride and ask him to protect one of the women closest to her heart said a lot. More than anything, it proved Riana would do whatever she had to do to take care of her own.
    In that, we find common ground, Nick thought. Out loud, he said, “I want to see Cynda now.”
    “We, uh—we haven’t told her about Nori, the Sibyl who died.” Merilee sounded more than a little worried. “After debriefing, Cynda meditated to heal herself, and she’s been sleeping it off ever since. We were planning to give her the bad news when she woke.”
    “I’ll take care of it.” Nick glanced toward the kitchen door. “And the bodyguard thing, too. I’ve got at least a fifty-fifty shot of not spending the next six months in a burn unit.”
    This made Merilee laugh. Creed smiled. Andy just shook her head.
    Riana got up without speaking and started for the kitchen.
    Nick followed her, aware of Merilee, Andy, and Creed trailing after him. He walked behind Riana as quietly as she walked, across the tile floor of the kitchen, through another door, and down a set of stairs to the bedroom Riana usually shared with his twin. New smells reached him as he approached the bottom of the steps. Lavender, like Riana. And, to his surprise, some sweat and leather and woodsy guy odor, too.
    Way to go, bro. Invade her domain. Throw your gym shorts in every corner. Conquer the place by inches if you have to, but get the job done.
    When Riana opened the bedroom door and moved out of his way, all of Nick’s inner sarcasm vanished. His chest tightened, and he stepped inside the quiet, cavelike space alone. Everyone else stayed in the hall, and he pulled the door closed behind him.
    Candles lit the room, reflecting from mirrors on the dressers and walls. In the soft yellow light, he could see Cynda’s long-legged form lying still in the bed, beneath cream-colored satin sheets that were pulled up under her arms, just above her breasts. The sheets outlined her perfect curves, not to mention the swell of those