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“So our kidnapper could touch the Eye and have nothing happen if you’re already bound to someone else?”

The demon inclined its head in acquiescence

“There’s our answer,” said Mick

Sophie stared at hiut “I don’t understand”

“We have to make a deal with the devil”

~~

Sophie looked stricken, but the expression of anxiety rapidly shifted to one of stubborn fury “No Mick you can’t” She shook her head, h Mick wasn’t sure if it was to deliberately block hi with the Eye would do to you No matter your intent, that kind of power could warp you No one who’s ever wielded the Eye did so with good intentions”

She turned to look at the demon, obviously desperate for backup “Tell him”

It lounged against the work table, deceptively casual in stance, but its eyes burned with interest “It is true that I have, over centuries, taken on the characteristics of my former masters And I, in turn, have shaped them”

“So it was always sought after by the power hungry,” said Mick He took Sophie by the shoulders, willing her to understand “I’ the Eye at all, just tying up its power long enough to et Liza”

“And then what?” she demanded “Be bound to a demon for the rest of your natural life? To have that kind of power at your beck and call, just waiting for an excuse to be used? Even the most noble of men would bow to that eventually You may not even have to consciously decide to use it For all you know, the demon can act on your desires, whether they are voiced or not”

That gave him pause Mick was confident he could control his own actions, but his desires? That was another matter entirely He looked to the demon for confirmation “Can you?”

It shrugged “It is a syhts and desires of my host But I have never had one who did not act on those desires, so, truthfully, I do not know The Eye is not the tool of honorable men”

“Then it’s time you had an injection of honor to reo He took a step toward the table where the Devil’s Eye lay, but Sophie countered,into him

“What about the rest of your Pack? What happens to them if the Eye corrupts you?” she demanded