He flashed a sly grin my way. "Since the invention of cars. The newer models are harder, though. That's why I picked this one. It's big enough for Brutus and old enough not to have an alarm, let alone better safety measures beneath the wheel."
I felt bad about stealing someone's car, but consoled myself with the thought that if the person knew why we needed it, he or she wouldn't mind. What was a little car theft compared to trying to stop a demon apocalypse?
"Here," Adrian said, handing me Costa's cell phone. "Pull up directions to Chasse-sur-Rhône. I don't think it's far, but it's been a long time since I've been in this area, so I could be wrong."
I did, feeling encouraged when I saw that it was only twenty miles away. Then I googled information about the chapel. Back in the fifteen hundreds, it had been called the Chapelle de St. Martin de Sayssul, and while I couldn't find an exact location for the old site, it said that it had been along the Rhône River Valley. Since Chasse-sur-Rhône was only three square miles in total, my plan was to start by the river and keep walking until I felt something hallowed. With luck, we'd grab the staff and be back in the nearest light realm before the owner of this van even realized that it had been stolen.
If we weren't lucky, then the police coming after us for a carjacking would be the least of our concerns.
"I'm sorry," Adrian suddenly said, giving me a guarded look. "Are you okay?"
I took in a deep breath, knowing he wasn't talking about traversing through the realms. "No, I'm not okay that we were sold out by a close friend, and I'm even less okay knowing that you still think it was Jasmine. She wouldn't do that, Adrian. No matter how much she doesn't like you, she'd never risk my life that way. I know her."
He let out a short grunt. "I know Costa, too. If he wanted me dead, he'd come at me head-on, not sneak behind my back, and if it's not him, then it has to be her."
"It's not," I said, my tone sharper. "I'd bet my life and yours on that, and since you know how I feel about you, you should know I wouldn't say that unless I was sure."
The look he gave me was gentle, and when he spoke, his voice was soft. "I believe that's true of the Jasmine you're remembering. But this one spent several weeks being tormented by Demetrius. That would break anybody, so the person she is now isn't the same person you grew up with. This Jasmine is hard, or she wouldn't have survived. This Jasmine might even think she's protecting you by getting rid of me, and she might have rationalized the danger she put you in by betting that I'd sacrifice myself to save you, and in that, she'd be right."
Some of my anger drained away as I looked at him. Yes, Adrian had proved more than once that he'd sacrifice himself to make sure I was safe. It didn't mean I agreed with him about Jasmine, but it meant I'd forgive him for doubting her.
And, when he finally realized that it had been Costa, I'd be there for him. That kind of betrayal bit deep, especially given Adrian's absolute belief that it couldn't be his friend, but simple numbers meant that if it wasn't Jasmine, it had to be Costa. After all, I knew it hadn't been me, and of course it hadn't been Adrian...
A dark thought teased my mind. I rejected it at once, mentally slamming the door shut on it. Adrian would never do that, destiny be damned. I'd been willing to bet my life that it wasn't Jasmine, and I'd bet it again that it couldn't be Adrian.
Yet that nagging thought continued to worm its way through my subconscious, returning as fast as I kept rejecting it. He's half-demon, it whispered, and he's betrayed you before. With 50 percent of his nature contaminated by evil and 100 percent of his destiny predicting that he'd be the one who would deliver me to demons, could I really be sure that it wasn't him?
Yes, I thought fiercely. And in about twenty minutes when we got to the former chapel site, I'd prove it by hopefully finding the staff and letting Adrian remove it from the ground. That's how sure I was that he would never betray me again.
Just like your ancestors, that thought mocked. They'd been sure, too. So sure that they'd bet their lives, and lost them.
CHAPTER THIRTY
I HAD NEVER been to France before, but if I didn't die and the world didn't get splattered with demon realms, I'd love to come back. The tiny commune might not be nearly as popular as France's other cities, but it reminded me of a secluded glen, and the river we walked along only made it more picturesque. Adrian had his arm around me, and the relative silence of the early morning cast a hushed, peaceful lull over the area. If not for our circumstances, it might have been romantic.