by Nina Bangs
Brynn blinked to make sure he was seeing what he thought he was seeing. The gasps from everyone else in the elevator verified he wasn’t hallucinating.
Glowing bubbles filled the darkened elevator. Big, bright bubbles with gleaming red eyes peering out of them. Evil eyes that even scared him, and he’d thought he’d seen all there was to see over five centuries.
“Everyone down!” Kim’s voice was coldly professional and not to be disobeyed.
Brynn hit the floor with everyone else in the elevator except Kim. She whipped Fo from her pocket, pointed, and pushed the red button. As each bubble popped, Mary squeaked her alarm. Finally all the bubbles were gone, and darkness settled around them.
Just as suddenly as the lights had gone out, they came back on. The elevator lurched into motion again.
“What the hell was that?” Herb sounded breathless.
Brynn wasn’t even going to try to concoct a lie. People were in danger. “I’m Brynn McNair. My brothers and I run the castle. I think Mary and you need to check out as soon as possible. The castle will compensate you for any inconvenience.”
Herb stared into his eyes, and whatever he saw in Brynn’s gaze evidently convinced him to not ask questions, because he simply nodded.
“Did Reverend Abby say she’d given the bubbles to any other couples?” Kim picked up the empty bubble container and studied it.
“I don’t know about that, but she gave us a whole bunch to put in the lobby.” Mary’s voice quavered. “She said the little cakes were great promo items.” She glanced at Herb. “In fact she said she would’ve done it herself, but she’d hurt her leg and couldn’t get around right now.”
“More likely the gargoyles kept her ass out.” Wade’s murmur echoed Brynn’s thoughts.
Kim clasped Mary’s shoulder. “This is important, Mary. Did you put any of those cakes out?”
Mary shook her head. “They’re all still in our room. The reverend said to take them down to the lobby and just scatter them around. But we thought we’d better ask for permission before we did that.”
Brynn couldn’t hide his relief. “You did the right thing. Kim and I will be going into your room to get them. Don’t go back there until the cakes are gone.” He attempted a smile. “Go have a good meal on the castle. By the time you’re finished, it’ll be safe to return to your room.”
“Is this some kind of plot to ruin your business?” Herb was reaching for understanding.
“Yeah, kind of.” Brynn didn’t know what else to say.
“Well, I hope you catch whoever’s behind it. I had my own business, and a man works damn hard to build up a good reputation. No one has a right to take that from him.” He patted Brynn on the shoulder.
The elevator doors slid open, and the couple left quickly. Brynn put his hand up to stop anyone from getting onto the elevator. “Sorry, folks. There’s something wrong with this car. It’s out of commission for a while. The management apologizes for any inconvenience.”
Grumbling, the people wandered toward another elevator. He turned to Kim. “Can you tell anything about the bubble container?”
She nodded. “It’s lined with some type of metal. Maybe lead? But whatever it is, it got the demons past the gargoyles.” Kim shivered. “If those bubbles had been released in a room full of people, the demons would’ve had their pick of hosts. Thank heaven Mary and Herb didn’t put out all the others.”
“What’s the point, though, if the gargoyles kick the demons out on their butts as fast as they take human hosts?” The demon bubbles had managed to push the fishing tournament from Wade’s mind for the moment.
“You’re right.” Kim stared at the container. “But we’ve seen examples of this archdemon’s power. If he can cloak his own presence from the gargoyles, why can’t he cloak an area in the castle from them, too?”
“Like the lobby.” Brynn looked grim.
“Where all the Vaughns will be meeting at midnight.” Kim felt grimmer.
Red flickered deep in Wade’s eyes. He was into the moment. “Looks like the chapel might be your portal. Don’t think this Abby is your archdemon, though. The archdemon could get past the gargoyles any old time he wanted. He wouldn’t need someone to bring in stuff for him. I’d say the Abby demon is a minion who’s been filling the containers for the archdemon, and when she had enough, she used a convenient human carrier to get them past the gargoyles. Probably the big guy was busy doing something else, so he couldn’t do it himself.”
“Yeah. Like out catching a hundred-pound redfish.” Kim wondered how long the archdemon had been using her uncle.
Wade looked at her blankly for a moment, and then his eyes blazed bright red as Kim’s implication sank in. “That son of a bitch.”
Kim sighed. “I’ll have to clean up these piles of ash. We were lucky Mary and Herb were so rattled they didn’t notice them. I think they’ve had enough weirdness for their wedding day.”
“I’ll take care of the ash.” Brynn touched her arm. “You and Wade go on to the meeting. Tell everyone I’ll be there in a minute.”
It was pitiful how even a light touch on her arm managed to momentarily erase everything else from her emotional chalkboard. Without comment, she went with Wade to the conference room where everyone waited.
Holgarth harrumphed to call attention to her lateness.
Okay, she’d used up every last damned bit of her patience for the day. She narrowed her gaze on the wizard. “You will not make even one snide comment, or I’ll come across that table and screw your pointed hat into your tiny brain.”
Holgarth raised one brow. “A bit grumpy, are we?”
She glanced at Brynn as he came in and sat down next to her. “You bet. We have some serious stuff coming down.”
Kim had everyone’s instant attention. She put the bubble container on the table. “Brynn and I think the archdemon has possessed my uncle Dirk and that Ye Olde Victorian Wedding Chapel is the portal to hell.” Just saying it sounded ludicrous, but it was the only thing that made sense. She’d let Brynn explain the whole mess while she figured out what she’d say to Lynsay and what they’d both say to the other Vaughns.
A roomful of humans would’ve all started talking at once. The nonhumans grew still and intense as they waited for Brynn to explain.
Brynn took a deep breath and told them everything Kim and he knew—Gabriel’s unique abilities, Dirk’s murder of Sergei, the demonic bubbles, and the fact that Dirk steered Mary and Herb to the chapel.
When Brynn was finished, Wade added his postscript. “And the prick didn’t scare the crap out of any of your guests today because he was too busy screwing me out of first prize in the fishing tournament. A freakin’ hundred-pound redfish. Only demonic power could’ve put a redfish that big on the end of his damned line. I’ll find a way to have him disqualified.” His eyes blazed red at the unfairness of the whole thing.
Ganymede burped loudly, calling attention to himself. “You have to get rid of those demons in a bubble first. Kim needs more detectors than just Fo to take care of them.” He looked at Sparkle. “You know, I’m a sensitive kind of guy, and all this talk of demons has upset me. I crave a big dish of ice cream to settle me down.” He leaped from the chair. “Coming, sweet stuff?”
Sparkle looked uncertain but stood to follow him.
“Aren’t you going to do battle against the demons?” Asima sounded scandalized.
“Battle demons? Hmm.” Ganymede rolled his eyes to the top of his head in pretend thought. “That sounds a lot like work. Nope. Don’t think I will.”
Sparkle studied her nails, but her heart didn’t seem to be in it. “You know, I wouldn’t like to see anything happen to anyone here.” Her pointed stare said Asima was exempted from Sparkle’s “anyone.”
Ganymede yawned. “Look, there’re enough of you here to take care of the demons. A little ice cream, a little nap, and you can call me if you need me.” He stared at the closed door, and when it swung open, he padded out of the room
with tail waving in the air.
Sparkle made her decision. She sat back down.
Holgarth sniffed. “Well, those of us who care about something other than ourselves will go forth to defeat the forces of evil tonight.”
“Oh, brother.” Sparkle rolled her eyes.
Wade didn’t look too enthusiastic about battling the forces of evil. “Umm, I’ve had a long day on the water.”
Brynn stood. “No one leaves until Kim talks to Lynsay.” He glanced at Kim.
Kim pulled out her cell phone. Thank heavens Lynsay answered. “I need at least three more detectors. We have some demons to take out. Don’t bring any Vaughns with you, just the detectors. Meet me up at room . . .” She glanced at Brynn. He mouthed the room number. “Meet me at room one forty-five.”
Holgarth took over. “Kim, Brynn, Eric, Lynsay, and I will destroy the demons. Conall, Donna, Asima, and Sparkle will start looking for Dirk. Oh, and while you’re looking, make sure none of those bubble containers are lying around anywhere.” He speared the Dirk hunters with a gimlet stare. “Do not, I repeat, do not engage the archdemon if you find him. Notify me immediately.” Finally, he cast Wade a dismissive glance. “Since keeping the world safe from archdemons ranks somewhere below catching the perfect fish, I didn’t include you.”
If Holgarth was hoping to shame Wade into a commitment, he failed. Wade shrugged. “I’ll tag along with Kim and Brynn just for the heck of it. Then I’ll go to my room and catch up on my sleep. Had to get up before dawn this morning.” He yawned to demonstrate his exhaustion from reeling in his thirty-five-pound beauty.
Asima leaped onto the table to face off with Holgarth. “Why does Conall have to hunt for the archdemon? Sure he’s strong, but physical strength means nothing to a malevolent entity like that. He’ll flick Conall aside like a piece of lint from his belly button. I think—“
“Shut up, cat! I’m a warrior, and I’ll do a warrior’s work.” Conall’s thunderous roar made everyone wince.
Except Asima. She simply hissed at Conall. But she didn’t finish telling everyone what she thought.
Kim didn’t waste any more time. She and Brynn led the way to Mary and Herb’s room.
Lynsay waited for them at the door. “What’s up, Sis?”
“Where’s Deimos?” Up until now, he’d been attached at the hip—and other places—to Kim’s sister. Where was he now when they might actually need him?
“He’s watching the candy store for Sparkle.” Lynsay sounded like right now she’d rather be hawking gummi bears.
Amazing, since destroying demons had always been Lynsay’s reason for being.
Kim took a deep, fortifying breath. Okay, Lynsay needed to know what she was up against. She also needed to know that nonhuman entities were fighting on her side. No specifics. Just enough info to keep her from freaking if Holgarth or Eric outed themselves during the fight. She firmed her lips and her determination. Her sister didn’t have to know anything about Brynn or Wade.
As quickly as possible, Kim filled Lynsay in on Dirk, Gabriel, Ye Olde Victorian Wedding Chapel, and the bubble demons. She also hinted that several of the men who’d be going into the room with her were, uh, more than men.
“Holy crap!” Lynsay cast uneasy glances at Brynn, Eric, Holgarth, and Wade. Then she looked at Kim. “Let’s get those bubble bastards. And later on we’ll talk about this ‘more than men’ thing.”
Brynn stepped forward and used his master key to open the door. The pile of plastic wedding cakes lay on the coffee table. Lynsay handed Eric, Brynn, and Holgarth demon detectors.
Lynsay frowned at Wade. “Sorry, I only brought three.”
Holgarth sniffed. “Wade is a noncombatant. He doesn’t need one.”
Eric turned and stared at the door and then did the same to the window. “I’ve put a shield across both exits. If a demon gets past us, it’ll be trapped in the room.”
Lynsay’s eyes widened, but she didn’t say anything.
“We’ll open one container at a time. From what I saw on the elevator, we’ll only have to blow once to empty the container of demons.” Brynn glanced at Wade. “Since you don’t want to be involved in destroying the demons, you can blow the bubbles.”
Wade’s face lit up. “Hey, cool.”
Kim suspected Wade’s inner child wasn’t far from the surface. “As soon as Wade blows the bubbles, we destroy them. And make sure the bubbles are far away from Wade before you zap them. We wouldn’t want to hit him.” Message sent to everyone except Lynsay—they didn’t want to be sweeping up Wade’s ashes.
Eric, Holgarth, and Brynn got the intense expressions on their faces that told Kim they were instant messaging telepathically. Probably reminding each other to make sure none of the demons got near Kim or Lynsay, the only two beings in the room the demons could possess.
Kim took Fo from her pocket. “Ready, Fo?” At this point, she didn’t give a damn if Lynsay heard her.
“I’m pumped.” Fo’s purple eyes shone with battle lust.
Wade unscrewed the first container, dipped the ring in the liquid, and blew. As in the elevator, the lights went out and the big brilliant bubbles with the evil eyes floated into the room. Other than an amazed squeak from Lynsay, everyone was silent as they aimed their detectors, pushed the red buttons, and . . . nothing.
Fo was the only one that worked. Frantically, Kim ignored everyone around her as she focused on the demons and kept pressing the button.
When she heard Lynsay’s startled yelp, she knew the “more than men” were going into action. A bubble disappeared in a puff of smoke, and Kim glanced over to see Holgarth pointing his wand at another one.
Lynsay’s reaction escalated to a shriek. Eric. Kim took care of a demonic bubble that was floating near her sister. Out of the corner of her eye she saw that Eric had changed to vampire form. He wasn’t touching the demons physically, but Kim knew what kind of power he wielded mentally. Bubbles started exploding in showers of light.
When the last bubble was gone, Wade carefully put down the empty container and looked around the circle. “Y’all have some defective equipment there.”
Lynsay’s face was pale as she glanced at the men. “A vampire and a real wizard? I don’t want to know what the rest of you guys are. My brain isn’t processing this too well. Right now, I have to deal with the fact that none of the detectors are working except for Fo.”
Kim responded to the terrible suspicion in Lynsay’s eyes. “Just like your detector stopped working when you first got here.”
Brynn nodded, his expression grim. “I’d bet none of the Vaughn detectors are working. No wonder the archdemon is so confident. He’s disabled every weapon that could stop him and his demon army.”
“Except for Fo.” Lynsay stared into Fo’s wide eyes. “Why is that?”
Kim shrugged. “Who knows.” Because Fo is a sentient being with a free will, not a mindless machine.
Holgarth straightened his pointed hat that had gotten a little off center during the excitement. “We have to destroy the demons in the other containers with whatever we have.”
Lynsay stared at Brynn. “I didn’t notice you zapping any bubbles.”
Brynn smiled at her, that sensual smile honed over centuries, able to melt women from the inside out. “My talents lie in other areas.”
And Kim’s sister reacted accordingly. Her smile was soft. “I just bet they do.”
Wade picked up another container and unscrewed the top. “Between Fo, Eric, and Holgarth, we can finish this job.”
Fifteen minutes later, they stood staring at the empty containers and the many small piles of ash scattered around the room.
Brynn reached for the phone. “I’ll get housekeeping to bring up a vacuum so I can get rid of this ash.”
But suddenly he stilled, along with Holgarth and Eric.
Lynsay cast Kim a puzzled glance.
“Telepathy.” She moved to Brynn’s side. “Have they found Dirk?”
“Yes.
He’s sitting down in the lobby.” Brynn picked up the phone to finish his call to housekeeping. “Probably waiting for Mary and Herb to show up with the cakes so he can scoop them up.”
“And turn his army of demons loose on the Vaughns at midnight. Without their detectors, none of them could stop the demons from taking them as hosts.” Kim raked her fingers through her hair. “It would be even more satisfying to the archdemon than killing them outright. The ultimate irony.”
“Conall has hotel staff unobtrusively moving people out of the lobby.” Eric removed his shields from the door and window.
“Like the archdemon isn’t going to notice the lobby emptying?” Wade nudged a pile of ash with his toe. “He’ll know you’ve made him.”
For once Holgarth wasn’t wearing a supercilious smirk. “Let’s hope he’s arrogant enough not to care. But we can’t move on him until all the humans are safe.”
“All the humans?” Lynsay edged closer to the door. “That sort of sounds like there’re more nonhumans in the castle.”
Kim sighed. “Yeah, Lynsay, there are. Now let’s hope there’s enough nonhuman firepower to bring down an archdemon.” She just wished she felt a little more confident.
20
Every primitive instinct in Brynn had howled for him to rip Fo from her hand, shove Kim behind his back, and have at those cursed demon bubbles. Even though he knew she was a professional and had the cool, calm courage to do the job herself. Even though he knew she’d tear a strip off him if he dared try to take Fo away from her. But damn it, his need to protect his woman had almost turned him into a grunting Neanderthal.
His woman. And that’s who she was. Maybe she didn’t know it yet, but he suspected she did. So now he had a problem. How could he say words he’d never said in five centuries? How about, “Hey, babe, love ya. Don’t know if the compulsion will ever come back, and I might still be a demon, and I can’t give you kids or much of a life, but how about runnin’ off and marrying me, huh?” Right. That would make her realize what a great prize he was.
He’d whispered sensual words to thousands of women, but he didn’t know how he’d say “I love you” to the only woman who’d ever been important to him. Maybe this was a show-don’t-tell situation.
