Garden of Serpents (The Demon Queen Trials #3)(25)
“There’s us.” He seemed uncharacteristically at a loss for words, and he raked a hand through his hair. “Rowan—of course I respect you. Of course I—“ His mouth closed, and his gaze slid down my goosebump-covered arms. The next thing I knew, he was wrapping me in the soft cream blanket from the bed. “We can turn the heat up in here.”
The cashmere felt amazing against my skin, but my thrill also came from his warm, smoky scent curling around me. This blanket was my armor. I could resist his charms. Unwilling to let him off so easily, I glared at him. “Okay, so let’s talk about avenging the Lilu. I want you to understand something about mortals and your theory about how they’re the root of all evil.”
He sighed and leaned against one of the bookcases, folding his arms. Annoyingly, that only served to show off his biceps, which seemed to strain the fabric of his white shirt. “I’m listening.”
My eyebrows rose in surprise. He was actually willing to hear me out? “Demons and mortals are alike. It’s not that complicated. Some of us are evil, some are good, and some are fanatics who want to destroy anyone different.”
“Are you calling me a fanatic?” he asked dryly.
“Yeah, I am. You’re the demon equivalent of Jack Corwin.”
His muscles tensed. “I’m what? That is, I think, the worst thing you could have said to me.”
I shook my head. “I meant only in fanaticism. Not your charm or intelligence or whatever else. His demon hunters want to kill all of us, and you want to kill all of them. You’re both extremists.”
He seemed to relax a little. “Go on.”
“And yes, I know you’ve catalogued every instance in history of mortals committing atrocities, and there are plenty to choose from. The same goes for demons. But what about the good things mortals have done?”
He cocked his head. “Do you have a single example?”
I bit my lip, wishing I’d prepared a little better for this conversation—maybe I could have used a PowerPoint and academic references. “Keanu Reeves,” I blurted. “He’s amazing. He donates money to cancer research, to children’s hospitals. He gives up his subway seat on trains! What kind of maniac wants to kill Keanu Reeves?”
“I have no idea who you’re talking about.”
My eyes widened. “Right. Of course you don’t! The world stopped for you four hundred years ago. For you, time froze, and you came out wanting to murder the people who hurt you. And you know what? The mortals you encountered back then fucking sucked. No one likes Puritans. No one. But they’re gone, and the world kept moving on for everyone else. You missed several centuries of human existence. So maybe you should learn more about the people you want to murder, you know? I have more examples.” I lifted a finger. “Steve Buscemi.”
“These are friends of yours?”
“Ha! I wish. No, but he was a firefighter, and then he became an actor. And when some fanatic mortals flew airplanes into skyscrapers in New York City, he got on his old firefighting gear, and he put his life at risk to help save people. Not just him, but lots of firefighters made a huge sacrifice trying to get people out of a burning and collapsing building. Tons of them gave their lives to help people they didn’t even know.” I was on a roll now. “And in Fukushima, a nuclear reactor was melting down after an earthquake, and people actually volunteered to help clean it up, even though they would die of cancer. These were mortals saving other people. Saving strangers.”
His eyes shone brightly as he listened to me. “I haven’t read about these things.”
“It’s all pretty new. It wouldn’t have been in your ancient dungeon books, and it’s not like you use the internet.” Now that I’d started thinking about heroic mortals, I couldn’t stop. “John Robert Fox! A lieutenant in World War Two, he intentionally gave his own coordinates to the Nazis to give the rest of his unit a chance to escape. He died in enemy fire to save his crew. These were all mortals, Orion. As a whole, they’re not any better or worse than us. Some of them are fucking terrible, and some are heroic. The only difference I can see between mortals and demons is that mortals kill with weapons, and demons use magic. And the mortals out there now are not the ones who killed your family. Killing them isn’t vengeance. It’s insanity.”
His gaze slid to the window, and I had no idea if I was actually getting through to him. “You and Amon both,” he said quietly.
“What do you mean?”
“He’s on your side.” He let out a long sigh. “But the fact is, Rowan, the mortals have too much control over us in the modern world. One bomb could take out our walls, and then we’re done. That’s what the curse means. And what sort of king would I be if I didn’t prioritize the safety of my own subjects over outsiders?”
He was almost sounding reasonable, which was making it hard for me to keep my resolve. So reasonable that I nearly forgot that several people were claiming he’d sent someone in to try to kill me tonight.
And here was the real question: what did I have to lose by taking the crown from him?
The simple fact was, if I were in control, I wouldn’t have to worry about who to trust.
I straightened and lifted my chin. “Listen, Orion. There are only two options for this trial. If I win, I decide what happens. Or you win, and that’s when you can prove to me that you do really want me to rule with you. Because right now, you have all the power. Of course you want me to give up. Let’s see you offer me an alliance when it actually counts.”