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Haidee’s tanned skin gloith health and vitality, a rosy blush stained her cheeks and a shts in her hair, her arms were sleeved with tattoos, and she wore an adorable Hello Kitty dress Zacharel refused to so ed her, yet Annabelle battled the urge to walk over there and hug her

Why?

Better question: Harpies, goddesses, huin--what else was out there? What else was Annabelle ignorant about?

A glint of silver caught her attention and Annabelle bent down to pick up…a dagger Sweet! The battle was over, yeah, but better safe than sorry, considering what surrounded her

"You’re glaring atat irl…person?" The redhead stepped into Annabelle’s personal space, clai on her tiptoes to pat her on the top of her head "Never uess You think that because they’re possessed, they’re pure evil Well, news flash, china doll The deuys who house thehtirl She lifted her gaze to Zacharel, who stood as unyielding as an iron fence, silently asking if he would get into trouble if she knocked Kaia around Did no one know the difference between Chinese and Japanese?

He gave a negative shake of his head "Never mess with a Harpy"

"I still have no idea what a Harpy is," Annabelle pointed out

"A death machine, that’s what," Kaia said

"But…"

"No buts, Annabelle" Zacharel looked to the redhead "And, Kaia Behave"

"Fine But only because you soht, so I’onna do you a solid and obey Want to kno you did that, huh, huh? Good, I’ll tell you" She barely paused to pop a bubble with her gu sister, but look at you now You’re pulling a Paris and dating a Hunter, aren’t you, and they’re the worst of the worst!"

Pulling a Paris? A hunter?

Zacharel must have sensed Annabelle’s confusion "The Hunters are fanatical slayers of the paranor, even destroy an entire city of innocents, to oals"

"I am not a Hunter," she snapped

"That’s what they all say, honey"

Zacharel released a long-suffering breath To Kaia, he said, "Annabelle hasn’t yet learned that ahiht the evil and win, and that tooon what they feel and see rather than believing that they can have more, do better, like the Lords And I can’t blame her I have only recently learned this lesson ainst the evil of their demons and won? Such a victorythe nuht and lost Respect for theer--only to realize Kaia had wrapped her hand around her wrist, claws sinking past skin, probably even into bone Scalding heat radiated froritted out Hotter than Zacharel’s hands sometiht! But my twin sister is way hotter, I proan, as Annabelle said, "Let go of ic word?"

"Kaia!" Zacharel and Strider said in unison

"Nope That’s not it"

Annabelle blurted out a rough, "I’ll kick you in your lady balls if you don’t"

"Bingo!" One by one, Kaia pried her nails loose, leaving little red welts on Annabelle’s skin

"I think you’re the weirdest person I’ve ever roused

"And you’re the sweetest So tell ood lover? Because I’ve got bighands, and he really knohat to do with them on a battlefield, but have you ever tried to banter with hiure the same cluelessness extends to the mattressat her Including Zacharel "He’s, uh, great?" Never had she been more uncomfortable

"Oh, man" Kaia’s shoulders slumped

Strider, the demon keeper of Defeat, whooped and fist-pumped the air "Told you, baby doll I told you"

Kaia spun, piercing hilare "The fact that you won a bet about anotherabout, you idiot"