Pity. Alice, ever-suffering Alice, chained to a man old enough to be her father, still dreaming of love in a world that rewarded only constant suffering, offered her pity. Pity, because the Devil had offered her a sum for what Alice had been taught to at once guard and then give away for free.

The Devil was the most reasonable man she’d ever met.

“Thank you, Alice.”

She accepted the basket. Pity would fill their stomachs tonight, and Lory?

Lory would buy a nice new dress after this.