“Anybody that ties you to a chair at gunpoint is a bad guy. Do I really need to explain this?”

“Big words from a guy who's trussed up like a turkey. What are you going to do, wobble over here like an upside- down turtle to snap me in half?""The logistics of breaking you are easy. The only question is when.”

“I make a show of lifting him and puttinghim into the chair, grunting and staggering as though he’s terribly heavy. I want the watchers to think the angel is as heavy as he looks, because maybe then they’ll conclude that I’m stronger and tougher than I look in my underfed five-foot-two frame.Is that the beginning of an amused grinforming on the angel’s face?Whatever it is, it turns into a grimace of pain as I dump him into the chair.”

“I stick to Raffe as close as I can manage without having to explain why I'm hugging his back.”

“Obi sits on the cot and ties my ankles together. I'm tempted to make a quip about requiring dinner and a movie before getting so kinky, but I don't.”

“Pretty soon, you’ll end up being a full-fledged member of my clan. I always knew you would. You’d make an excellent archdemon.” His smile dries up. “Too bad I don’t care to have you as my boss.”

“...."Penryn, who are you talking to?" My mother sounds almost frantic now."Just my own personal demon, Mom.Don't worry.He's just a little weakling."........"Oh." She sounds calm suddenly, as if that explains everything....”