“The god of demons doesn’t exist,” Asa said, reflexive, because he couldn’t count the number of times that this had been his response to his mother.

  His mother.

  All of this time—Asa had been like a brood parasite, inserting himself into a home that wasn’t his.

  Had he stolen another Asahel’s life?

  Galatea shaped her fingers into a rectangle to look at him through, her eyes narrowed, as if she was trying to take a picture of him. There was a growing haze of red around her, pulsing like a heartbeat. Asa had never seen his mother do this. He looked at Galatea—her face almost as familiar as his own to him—and he didn’t know who she was. But then—he wasn’t sure who he was either, now.

  Asa’s body reacted in a rising panic, heart beat speeding up like a pod careening around a corner of the Station.

  “Yes,” Galatea said slowly, with satisfaction, finally lowering her hands. “I know exactly what I’ll do with you.”

  Asa felt a small hand creep into his, and he startled badly, looking over to see that Mouse was awake. She slid next to him, Asa’s demon still asleep on her lap. “I want to leave,” she said, shaking his hand a little. “I don’t like it here anymore.”

  “You can leave if you like,” Galatea said casually, making her way to her desk. “The House guards are outside my door, and the Gold Seal Syndicate is posted at varying vantage points surrounding the House.”

  “You should at least let Mouse go,” Asa said quietly. “There’s no reason to keep her here.”

  “There’s all the reason in the world to keep her here,” Galatea said, flicking through paper files in her desk drawer. “Either you sign the contract that I have offered, or—” she looked up at him with flat, dark eyes. “Mouse stays and works for me.” She looked at Mouse with a speculative look in her eye, as if she was weighing the price of fruit. “She has the potential to be a very powerful apprentice.”

  Asa didn’t like the sound of that statement. Mouse’s hand gripped his tighter. Asa knew what it was to be an apprentice at his House. He had an even worse feeling about what it would mean to be an apprentice at this House. Galatea Rex’s Vermilion House. Mouse edged even closer to him, the demon in her lap spilling onto his, and Asa reflexively placed his hand on the demon to steady him.

  “Let’s go,” Mouse said into his ear. She probably thought she was speaking quietly, but Galatea’s face was interested and a little amused.

  “We can’t go,” Asa told her. “The guards would catch us before we even left this room.”

  Mouse still looked at him with a terrifying amount of trust on her face that he would get them out of this situation.

  “Fine,” he said, ignoring the way his entire body clenched with dread. He looked at Galatea. “Give me the contract. I’ll sign it on the condition that you let Mouse go.”

  Galatea clapped her hands together. “Wonderful,” she said and then handed him a wholly new contract. It was over ten pages with tiny, dense print. Asa grimly started to read through it.

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  The demon, who had been heat-seeking in sleep, curling close to Asa’s stomach, started to yawn, which exposed sharp little teeth. Then the demon started to sleepily sniff, as if smelling food, with his eyes still closed. “Ooh, a contract,” the demon said, opening his big golden eyes to put his little snout near the contract to sniff it more deeply.

  Mouse started to pet the demon’s head, and the demon leaned into it. “Ahh, that’s the good stuff,” he said. “This makes having a corporal body worth it.”

  Asa sighed, aggravated. “If you’re not going to be useful, then be quiet,” Asa said sternly.

  “I see how it’s going to be with you,” the demon grumbled.

  Galatea continued to watch them with interest, as calculating as a demon herself.

  “This is going to take me time to review,” Asa warned her.

  “Take all the time you need,” Galatea said, smiling.

  Asa felt a shiver travel down his spine, as he returned to the blood red symbols of the contract that looked just like his mother’s handwriting.

  When Asa was six years old, he witnessed the breaking of a demonic contract for the first time. Asa had reported to Madame Katusha’s office to grind ink for contracts, as she had specially told him to do. But when Asa entered, Ariad was already standing there.

  “Really?” Ariad had said to Madame Katusha, not looking pleased to see Asa. “You brought him here for this?”

  “What’s going on?” Asa had said, confused.

  “Come sit by me, Asa,” Madame Katusha said calmly. When Asa settled himself at the smaller desk next to hers, she said, “You’ve advanced to the rank of Novice. It’s time for you to learn something very important.”

  Ariad had looked so sick when she said that, Asa had immediately become afraid.

  “Don’t do this,” Ariad said tightly.

  “Ariad is under demonic contract to the House,” Madame Katusha said to Asa. “Do you know what that means?”

  “She has to follow the rules,” Asa said dutifully.

  “Or what?” Madame Katusha said.

  Asa had watched Ariad with wide eyes. “She gets punished,” Asa whispered.

  “Ariad has broken the rules of the House,” Madame Katusha said, her voice serious. “Hyssop.”

  Hyssop gathered from the dark shadows of the office, coalescing into his full form: an enormous Class 1 demon with oil-slick feathers.

  “Madame, please,” Ariad begged. “Don’t let Asa see this.”

  Asa couldn’t read Madame Katusha’s face. She only nodded to Hyssop, and then—his mouth opened, and then kept opening, until all Asa could see was teeth.

  “Be brave, Asa,” Ariad said in a choked voice.

  And then Hyssop swallowed her whole.

  Into the ringing silence, Madame Katusha said: “Your mother is under contract to the House in your stead.” She didn’t look at him. She watched the empty space where Ariad had just stood. “Your behavior reflects on her. You would do well to remember that.”

  And Asa had.

  Asa looked at Mouse, who watched him with trust that he hadn’t earned and didn’t want. He had never signed a demonic contract because his mother had signed one for him. She was under contract to the House twice-over because of him. Asa didn’t know anyone else other than himself who had never signed a contract. Rose had been a baby when he was signed over to the Golden Seal Syndicate, having been found abandoned on the doorstep of the children’s home. Rose had never even had a choice. Asa’s mother had given him the most priceless gift that anyone could give.

  “Have you ever signed a contract like this?” Asa asked Mouse.

  Mouse shook her head.

  Asa looked directly into Galatea’s eyes when he said to Mouse: “Don’t.”

  Galatea smiled.

  Asa pricked his finger on the ritual knife to drip his blood into the inkwell. As Asa signed the contract, he could feel what he had never felt before: the perforating hook of demonic magic digging into his soul. The contract lit up, the lettering glowing red, before the demonic symbols scurried off the parchment like mice and shot toward Asa, sliding onto his skin. The symbols wriggled up his arms to stream across his clavicles—he could feel the heat of the magic as it sank into the thin skin of his throat.

  The contract parchment was now completely blank, leached of all writing, which meant that the contract had fully set.

  “I look forward to working with you,” Galatea said, smiling wider, with teeth.

  “Wish I could say the same,” Asa said bleakly.

  He had signed his first demonic contract. It was done.

  And it couldn’t be taken back.

  [Contract Established]

  Demonic Notary: ???

  Skills Unlocked: ???