Sheba's fists clenched hard as Jezebel's search touched Cooper Silverdale, but again, Jezebel merely observed.
«Well, well,» the horned demoness murmured. «Wow. Sheeb, I've got to say it, I'm impressed. You got a gun in. And a motivated hand-full of alcohol to weaken his free will!» The older demoness smiled with something that looked strangely like sincerity. «This is really evil. I mean, sure, a middle demon working homicide or mayhem or maybe riots could set something like this up at a prom, but a human-form child on misery detail? What are you, two, three hundred?»
«Just one-eighty-six at my last spawn day,» Sheba answered brusquely, still wary.
Jezebel whistled a tongue of flame through her lips. «Very impressed. And I can see that you aren't neglecting your assignment, either. That's one miserable crowd in there.» Jezebel laughed. «You've ended nearly every promising relationship, broken a few dozen lifelong friendships, made new enemies… three, four, five fights brewing,» Jezebel counted, her mind with the humans. «You've even got the DJ listening to you! Such attention to detail. Ha-ha! I can count on one hand the humans who aren't completely wretched.»
Sheba smiled grimly. «I'll get to them.»
«Ghastly, Sheeb. Seriously nasty. You do our name proud. If every prom had a demoness like you involved, we'd own this world.»
«Aw, Jez, you're making me blush,» Sheba said with heavy sarcasm.
Jezebel laughed. «Of course, you've got a little help.»
Jezebel's thoughts twisted in a circle around Celeste, who had just twisted herself around a new boy. Jilted girls cried, while the boys Celeste carelessly tossed aside flexed their fists and glowered wrathfully at their competition; burning with lust, each was determined that Celeste was finishing the night with him.
Celeste was doing half the work tonight.
«I use the tools available to me,» Sheba said.
«What an ironic name! What an evil mind! Is she fully human?»
«I passed her in the hall, just to check,» Sheba admitted. «Pure, clean human scent. Revolting.»
«Huh. I would have sworn she had some demon in her ancestry. Good find. But, Sheba, asking a date? Pretty amateur, involving yourself physically that way.»
Sheba's chin jabbed upward defensively, but she did not answer. Jezebel was right; it was crude and time-consuming to use one's human form rather than one's demon mind. However, it was the results that counted. Sheba's timely interference had kept Logan from discovering his true love.
«Well, it in no way diminishes your accomplishments here tonight.» Jezebel's tone was conciliatory. «You pull this one off, and they'll put you in the baby demons' textbooks.»
«Thanks,» Sheba snapped. Did Jezebel really think she could flatter Sheba into letting her guard down?
Jezebel smiled, and her mists curled up on the edges, mirroring the expression.
«A tip, Sheba. Keep them confused in there. If you can get Cooper to pull the trigger, then you might make some of these wannabe gangsters think they're under fire.» Jezebel shook her head in wonder. «You've got so much potential mayhem here. Of course, they'll bring in a riot demon if it really gets hot… but you'd still get some of the credit for stirring it up.»
Sheba grimaced, and glimmers of red flashed at her ears. What was Jezebel doing? Where was the trick? Her mind ran over and over the humans she was assigned to torment, but she could find no trace of Jezebel's distinct brimstone flavor in the ballroom. There was nothing but the misery Sheba had caused herself, and the few little pockets of repellent happiness that Sheba would attend to shortly.
«You're certainly helpful tonight,» Sheba said, being deliberately insulting.
Jezebel sighed, and there was something about the way her mists rolled back in on themselves that made her look… embarrassed. For the first time, Sheba felt a hint of doubt about her assumptions. But Jezebel's motives had to be malicious. That's the only kind of motives demons had.
With a rueful expression on her face, Jezebel asked quietly, «Is it so impossible to believe that I might want you to get promoted?»
«Yes.»
Jezebel sighed again. And again, the way her mists writhed in chagrin made Sheba uncertain.
«Why?» Sheba demanded. «What do you get out of this?»
«I know it's all wrong-or rather right-for me to be giving you advice you can work with. Not very evil of me.»
Sheba nodded cautiously.
«It's in our nature to trip up everyone, demons, humans-even angels if we get the chance. We're evil. Naturally we're going to backstab, whether it hurts our side or not. We wouldn't be demons if we didn't let envy, greed, lust, and wrath rule us.» Jezebel chuckled. «I remember-how many years ago was it?-Lilith almost got you booted back a few grades, didn't she?»