"Guardian," she prompted.

"Goddess." He forced his lids to open gradually, slowly revealing the glow of her beauty. Up close, she was not as perfect as he had thought. She was better. A smattering of freckles dotted her sweetly sloped nose, and dimples appeared with the curve of her half-smile. Exquisite.

What did she think of him? he wondered.

She probably thought him a monster, hideous and misshapen. But if she did, she did not show it. Only curiosity rested in those starlight eyes. For the wall, he suspected, not for him. Even when he'd been human, women had wanted nothing to do with him. Sometimes he'd wondered if he'd been tainted at birth.

"Those cracks were not there yesterday," she said. "What has caused such damage?"

"A horde of Demon Lords rise from the pit daily and fight to break out. They have grown tired of their confinement here and seek living humans to torment."

"Have you their names?"

He nodded. "Violence, Death, Lies, Doubt, Misery. Shall I go on?"

"No," she said softly. "I understand. The worst of the worst."

"Yes. They bang and they claw from the other side, desperate to reach the mortal realm."

"Well, stop them." A command, laced with husky entreaty.

In that moment, he would have given up the last vestiges of his humanity to do as she wished. Anything to repay the daily gift of her presence. Anything to keep her just where she was, prolonging the sweetness of her scent. "I am forbidden to leave my post, just as I am forbidden to open the gates for any reason but allowing one of the damned inside. I'm afraid I cannot grant your request."

A sigh slipped from her. "Do you always do as you're told?"

"Always." Once he had fought the invisible ties that bound him. Once, but no longer.