Page 62 of Hell Burns Between Us

Alright. What was the very first thing she needed to tackle? Either from the wine or the focus of a plan, she found her mind slowly calming. The largest of her problems being the Rune of Entrapment binding her to the Holy Circle. Curled in her bedroom closet, she promised herself that the choice to remain in the Holy Circle, to leave it, or to return to it was her decision and nobody else's. Hers.

The other thing she knew for certain was that she would be keeping Slang’s Bite a secret from everyone until she had a better idea about what it meant and what she was to do about it.

Valus interrupted the flow of conversation, his voice cutting through the room with finality. “None of this has anything to do with me. I’m going to walk Peri to her Religious Course.”

Peri bristled at his audacity, but in the middle of her indignation, a thought struck her—he would be heading her way soon.

She couldn’t afford to be caught drinking pixie wine in her closet, especially with the coin announcing that she’d been eavesdropping. The coin was easy enough to crush and erase as evidence. She clenched it in her fist, and it quickly crumbled to dust. In a hidden corner, the silver coin did the same, collapsing into a small mound of powder that could be swept away before anyone was the wiser.

In a rush of panic, she threw all of her notebooks into her last hiding place for forbidden things, slamming the lid shut and shoving the large hope chest back over it. Scrambling out of the closet, Peri dashed to the bathroom to wash the sweat from her and clean her teeth to hide the smell of wine.

By the time Valus arrived, she had composed herself, an eerie calm washing over her. She wondered if he would even notice if she were acting strange.

Likely not.

Demons as a whole were not known for their observational skills, and Valus was by no means an exception.

Chapter

Nineteen

PERINE WILDER

Curate Auckland meandered into the room, calmly pulling long curtains across the windows lining the walls to drape the room in darkness. His quiet demeanour built him up as someone wise or knowledgeable, qualities his actual intellect rarely managed to uphold. He was, however, remarkably good at regurgitating information—which was why he was one of the most popular lecturers in the Holy Circle.

In all her life, Peri had never sat in a class actively ignoring what was being taught.

Taking notes, followed by reviewing and debating said notes had been a favourite pastime until now. Part of her still wanted to care about what was being said, yet another part resented having these classes forced upon her.

Still, she pulled out her Silver Book like a good little demoness as Curate Auckland crossed the room to his podium. An orange light flickered on beside where he stood, illuminating a square of the wall with the text they’d be learning today.

Sia slid into the chair beside her, whispering, “I’m so excited we get to see each other more often now.”

Peri glanced at Sia sidelong. They might have gone on walks in a nearby meadow, met regularly for games of cards, or shared late night slices of cake and tea. But sure, sitting in a darkened room next to each other while some demon instructed them how to be a proper mates was equally lovely.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Peri whispered back.

Three hours into the lecture, Curate Auckland handed out a page depicting four stacked shields—the largest at the top, the smallest at the bottom.

Bold letters stretched across the top of the page: Submitting to Authority.

He cleared his throat. “This is an allegory to help demonesses understand their proper role in the family.”

Auckland tapped on the orange-lit board in front of them, and the same shield diagram from their papers slowly expanded, growing until it loomed over the room.

He struck the top shield with his pointer, snapping Peri from her trance of ignoring him. “Here we see the Devil. He alone holds the authority to forgive our sins, and he graciously bestows this authority upon us, his curates.”

He gestured to the second shield. “The curate’s duty is to protect our faith from corruption. We also defend and oversee the husbands.”

He smiled benevolently as the demonesses around Peri scribbled furiously in their notebooks.

Peri’s pen, however, tore straight through her paper.

“Ah, and here—everyone’s favourite shield!”

Soft laughter rippled through the room. Auckland chuckled, indulging them before he continued.

“This shield represents your mate. His role is to protect you and provide for your family. He is your leader, and you,” his gaze swept across them, “must learn to submit to him so that he can properly protect you.”