by Lexi Blake
He wasn’t a stupid man.
“You don’t think Mr. Bellamy got where he is through his own efforts?” Winter’s brows had risen, an amused grin quirking his mouth up.
“No,” Matthew shot back. “Humans aren’t that smart. He had help.”
Winter began to lead us down a hallway. My heels clacked against the marble, and I was lucky Gray had such a good hold on me since they nearly slipped out from under me more than once. Again, sneakers wouldn’t have done that.
“My partner is a wily one. Apparently, Brandon met someone from an alternate plane. The technology on her plane was quite a bit more sophisticated than this Earth’s. He stole the tech from her and reverse engineered it.”
“Stealing is such a specific word.” A lanky man with red hair stood in the middle of the library, a glass of what looked to be Scotch in his hand. “I like to think of it as liberating an important asset. Besides, I’m sure she found another one.”
“Other Earth?” I asked the question of Gray, quietly I thought.
Demons have supergreat hearing. The duke was more than happy to answer my question. “Oh, yes, my dear. The planes are infinite. The plane we occupy now is actually quite remote. It’s not easily accessible. The old Fae used to cross the veil. There are a few demon species who can move easily from one to another. Usually though, there has to be some form of magic involved. There are some mirrors in this very house that I wouldn’t recommend you stare into for long, lest you find yourself in another place, another time.”
The red-haired billionaire shook his head. “Which is a shame because I really do like looking at me. I’m pretty attractive. I guess I’ll just have to look at you, sweetheart.” He walked my way. “What do you say? You up for hanging out with Time’s Man of the Year?”
“Are you up for getting your balls shoved into your body cavity by my foot?” Gray asked.
I was totally going to ask Bellamy if he was up to me pulling his balls off his body and treating them like tennis balls. Sometimes Gray and I totally are soul mates.
Bellamy put his hands up. “Touchy. This one’s the full breed, right?”
“Not at all. He’s the halfling, but don’t think for a second he can’t take you apart. Brac, I’ll take a Scotch. Why don’t you see about getting our guests drinks as well.” The duke was good at playing the kindly host. “Dinner will be served shortly. I thought we could spend this time discussing some of the problems we’ve come up against. Were either of you aware the king has a new Nex Apparatus?”
My blood went pretty much cold, but I simply smiled and told the butler I would take a white wine spritzer. I was told I couldn’t order a beer under any circumstances, but I would need to look like I was indulging. Apparently beer isn’t feminine and it makes me burp. Burping isn’t feminine either. So Gray got to order a beer. It was totally cool for him to burp. Sometimes my job reminds me that life can be fucking unfair.
“I had heard rumors,” Gray said, seating himself on one of the wine-colored couches.
Matthew sat beside him and Tristan gracefully placed himself on the floor, his head going to Matthew’s lap so the demon could pet him.
I nearly crashed on my way down, but Gray caught me, guiding me to the carpet.
When the important men were seated, the duke continued. “I believe we can confirm the rumors are valid. While I haven’t been able to place a man close to the king, I do have a few in positions around the club his partner runs. They’ve heard talk of a Nex Apparatus, and I believe he might already be at work.”
“What makes you think that?” Gray asked, his hand moving on the nape of my neck. He toyed with the small gold and diamond necklace he’d placed around my throat. My “collar” was nothing like Tristan’s.
Winter sat back. “The clinic where I was running trials was breached yesterday. Whoever it was, they were savvy enough to not get caught on camera, but my servant called in prior to being killed. I only heard a few moments of the exchange.”
I kept my eyes on the floor and concentrated on keeping up my mental shields. I had no idea what kind of powers the duke could claim outside of the whole freezing my limbs off shit. He could potentially feel my panic. I focused on presenting a calm front.
“I don’t suppose anyone mentioned a name?” Matthew asked. “That would have been helpful.”
Winter shook his head. “Alas, my man was shot before he could say much, and apparently the call disconnected when he fell. I do believe we have a clue. My servant touched the Nex Apparatus. I had imparted a bit of my power to him, so we’re looking for someone who’s been injured. Likely this man lost whatever limb my servant touched. Ask around. I’d like to meet with him.”
Panic gone. There I sat with two whole arms. They were apparently the best camouflage ever. Though I wondered why he thought I was a dude. My voice isn’t that low. Is it?
“I’ll certainly ask around,” Gray murmured.
“And I’ll get better security,” Bellamy said with a shake of his head. “There are some programs I’ve got in the pipe that no hacker can get through. My problem is being able to roll things out without the government cracking down on me. If I look too good, they’ll have someone watching me. Believe it or not, those assholes say they want free enterprise, but at the end of the day, they want all the new tech for themselves.”
“I’ll see what I can do to keep the government off your back,” the duke murmured. “The point of this meeting is to talk about a wider distribution of the drug. The brothers here believe they can do a better job than we’re doing.”
“Getting the drug introduced into Ether is our goal,” Bellamy explained.
The butler returned with an elegant tray. He passed out our drinks and we all settled back in. This was starting to get interesting. I needed to know how and when they planned to move the drugs into Ether. The how would be especially nice. If Gray and his brother got the job, it would be easy to thwart that particular plan, but what I really wanted to know was Winter’s endgame.
Was he trying to kill off supes on the human plane? Trying to start that war I’d been worried about since I’d met the man?
I took a sip of wine as Bellamy began to talk about production. They were planning a large shipment in the near future.
“That’s a lot of product.” Gray took a long sip of his beer. “I suppose we could find a way to move it. Matthew, do you have any thoughts on the subject?”
“I don’t believe we can sell it in the club. Security is far too tight. The key is to get the shifters hooked on it so they come looking for us,” Matthew mused. “What we likely need is a way to liquefy the product. Right now, it’s the form of a pill, correct?”
Bellamy nodded. “It’s injectable as well. At first, those were the only two ways to get enough of the drug into the user’s system. Injecting the drug almost always killed the subjects. Even the demon subjects.” He sat forward, his hands on his knees. “Unfortunately, the true subject turned out to be difficult to deal with. We couldn’t get him to take a pill and we certainly couldn’t inject him without bringing his father’s wrath down on our head. So I’ve spent a good deal of my time refining the drug so it’s odorless and tasteless and easy to slip into a drink.”
“Demons?” Gray asked. “I thought you said it didn’t work on demons.”
Winter’s smile was the only steady thing in the room. “Brimstone doesn’t, but then Brimstone was a smoke screen for my side project. You see, in my line of business, the boss tends to eat you when you don’t obey. I have to have something of value to present to Lucifer Morningstar. He doesn’t like dissent among the ranks. When I kill Donovan and start a war, I have to have…well, a saving grace, and everyone knows what Lucifer values most in the world.”
Gray set down his beer. “I’m not following. What’s this side project?”
“Yes, I’m interested in that, too,” Matthew stated. “I’m beginning to feel like we’ve been brought here on false pretenses.”
“No
t at all,” Winter explained with a wave of his hand. “I’m simply trying to explain that the end goal is a bit more involved than I formerly mentioned.”
“I get it.” Matthew’s tone had taken on a distinctly irritated air. “You want to start a war for the Earth plane. You think if you have an army of drugged out werebeasts and shifters, it tilts the balance to our favor.”
“That’s what I don’t get,” Bellamy stated with a shake of his ginger hair. “Demons are like the strongest things I’ve ever seen. How can a vampire compare?”
“Oh, but we aren’t particularly strong on this plane. Vampires belong here. Demons aren’t native to this plane with the exception of the halflings, but our culture negates them for the most part,” Matthew continued. “So if Winter wants his war, wants to wipe out the vampires who are actually quite an effective guardian for the humans, he’ll bring in native creatures he can control.”
It all sounded pretty shitty to me. Vampires are the single most powerful creatures in the supernatural world, but again nature had found a balance. Vampires are rare. Wolves and shifters had numbers. If the wolves and shifters became the demon’s meat puppets, it could be a very quick and bloody war.
“We’re forbidden from breaking our contracts with the vampires,” Gray argued. His hand was on my neck. It was odd, but I could feel the heat coming off him.
I glanced up and he was sweating a little. It wasn’t hot in the room. Or it hadn’t been a moment before. I felt a wave of heat roll over my skin, making me the tiniest bit nauseous.
“He thinks if the wolves kill the vampires, he can argue he wasn’t the one who broke the contract,” Matthew explained with a sigh of disgust. “He’s wrong. That contract is ironclad. Our glorious leader will likely cut off your head for it. I don’t see how you get out of this with your brains intact. Everyone knows the only thing Lucifer would give up his precious balance for is…” Matthew stood up suddenly. “Grayson, we’re leaving. Right bloody now. They’ve been after you the whole time.”
My vision began to waver, and the glass I’d been holding fell to the floor with a crash.
But I definitely fared better than Matt’s boy toy. He sat up, turned a brutal shade of purple, and died right there before my eyes.
We were fucked.
Chapter Eighteen
“Eww, that’s what it does to humans? That’s awful.” I could barely hear Bellamy over the roaring sound in my ears. “Is the girl going to end up like that? That would be a shame. She’s kind of hot.”
I glanced down and saw that Tristan’s skin was rapidly decaying.
God, I hoped I didn’t do that. It was nasty.
“Only if she’s actually human. Which it appears she’s not. Someone is lying,” Winter agreed. “Mr. Sloane, I wouldn’t try that if I were you.”
Gray had his pistol out and he was trying to aim. The trouble was his arm kept twitching. The gun fell to the ground.
Matthew picked it up. He wasn’t having the same trouble Gray did. He stepped over Tristan’s rapidly deteriorating body and pointed the gun at Winter like it would actually do something to him. “What did you give him?”
Gray hit his knees. My mind was fuzzy. I reached for him, trying to hold on to something.
Gray’s face turned up, his eyes going a dark violet. They widened. “Who the hell are you?”
I hadn’t even noticed the new guy. One minute the space was empty and the next there was a young man standing beside me dressed in jeans and a concert T-shirt. He had thick dark hair and even through my haze, I could see his blue eyes. Unlike Winter’s, they were warm and seemed infinite.
Winter seemed delighted at the newcomer. He slapped his hands together and stood up before waving a hand Matthew’s way. There was a horrible crunching sound and Matt’s neck snapped around in a way no neck ever should. He fell to the ground beside Tristan.
It didn’t seem to bother Winter at all. He smiled at the newcomer. “Welcome, Jacob. You’re here to bear witness and that can only mean that I’m going to be successful.”
The young man, who couldn’t be more than nineteen if he was human, slowly nodded. “I am. I’m the last of my kind. The final one my father made. There was a reason for that, demon.”
I struggled to my feet because Gray had curled in on himself. “What is happening?”
“Sit down, you whore,” the duke said. “Actually, I don’t care what you are. I don’t need you anymore.” He raised a hand.
The young man stepped in front of me. “I don’t think you want to do that. If you kill her, your new toy will be extremely angry. Better to keep her around and use her as incentive.” He looked down at Gray. “If he survives the transition.”
“Who is that guy and why isn’t the girl dead?” Bellamy asked. “At that dosage, even a shifter should have died.”
“She’s far more interesting than a shifter and this man is named Jacob,” the duke explained. “He’s been walking this plane since before humans. He’s a prophet. He felt the birth of his brother.”
“I felt a sickening hole open in the universe as we know it. What have you done? He’s a demon.” Jacob stared down at Gray, and for a second, I was worried something awful was going to happen.
I moved over Gray, protecting his body with my own. The stupid, tiny skirt I’d been given to wear was riding up my hips and the corset wasn’t doing me any favors. I didn’t bother trying to get the gun. It wouldn’t do a damn thing to Winter. I needed to find a way out of here and now.
I glanced at the windows, but they were covered with heavy drapes. Jamie couldn’t see in. There was no help coming.
“Calm yourself, youngling,” Jacob said, his eyes warming again. He reached out and touched my face, a rush of peace flowing over me. “I see many roads and you are on most of them. You are important and he is stronger than they believe. I rushed to judgment, something I never do. Come and sit with me. Your lover needs a moment to compose himself.”
I started to tell the dude that his ass was crazy and I wasn’t going to sit and gossip with him while Gray was potentially dying, but that weird peace thing happened again and I found myself on the couch, trying to ignore the dead bodies at our feet.
Jacob shook his head. “Do not worry, child. The young one will be happier in his next life and the other, well, he’ll bring you much pain, so don’t weep for him. Tell me how Marcus is doing. Does he still curse my name?”
“You were Apollo.” Somehow I felt safe with this boy. Though he appeared younger than me, he’d watched humans evolve. “He’s pissed about the whole companion prophecy. I think he believes the baby thing is a joke.”
Jacob stopped for a moment and then a laugh huffed from his perfectly sculpted lips. “Such a silly mistake to make. Tell Marcus that people who forget history are often doomed to repeat it. He should remember. I know the king does. The king mourns for her every day of his life. Tell Marcus if he wants his death, he must ease the king’s heart. That’s where he’ll find his prize.”
“That’s very helpful information. You know what’s more helpful? A name. Names are great.”
Jacob chuckled. “Yes, they are, but I’m bound by certain rules.” He glanced over at Winter. “You will tell me what you’ve done, though it appears it didn’t work.”
Winter and Bellamy were both frowning as Gray stood up. He was shaking, but he stood tall.
“I’m fine. My body metabolizes poison quite nicely.” Gray reached out for me. “So unless you want to be the one to have killed both my father’s sons, I believe I’ll take my girl and leave. And don’t think my brother isn’t in Hell right now telling my father everything.”
Winter shook his head and sat back down. “Oh, silly boy. Who’s plan do you think this was in the first place? He didn’t drink enough. We need to force more down his throat.”
The door behind me opened and I watched as a powerfully built man stepped out. He was immaculate in his three-piece suit and shiny loafers. And the resemblance to Gray was unca
nny.
“Kelsey, get behind me.” Gray’s hand shook as he tried to physically move me behind him.
“Hello, Hunter. It’s good to meet you,” Papa Sloane said. “I’ve heard so much about you.”
It was time to put some distance between us. I tugged on Gray’s hand. We needed to get to a place where Jamie could see us. I wasn’t sure how much of a cavalry we had waiting for us, but Jamie would call the king and someone would surely come.
“Not so fast.” The butler had moved in behind us and he had a nice-sized gun in his hand.
Gray’s shoulders slumped. “Brother?”
Apparently Matthew had switched bodies and fast. “I had a chat with Father on the Hell plane. He explained that this is all part of the plan, Gray. Do you understand what’s happening?”
“No.” Gray pulled me close. I wasn’t sure what he thought he could do against two much more powerful demons and a gun, but his arms wound around me as though they could keep death at bay. “Winter tried to poison me.”
I looked at the boy on the couch. He hadn’t moved, merely sat watching. “Please, Jacob.”
“As I said before, youngling, I am bound by more rules than you can imagine.” His eyes rolled back in his head and that warm blue was replaced with a milky white. “I see a crossroad. What happens here tonight changes everything. Choose wisely, Grayson Sloane.”
“I don’t think I have any choices at all,” Gray said bitterly. “I’ve been a fool all along.”
“Trying to do good is never foolish,” the prophet said. He turned those endless eyes on Winter. “I would like an explanation. My father is the only one who can make a prophet. He has allowed the others to join him. Only I walk this plane now. Only I see the possible futures and only I choose whether or not to alter them.”
“Your father?” I wasn’t sure I wanted that particular name.
Jacob’s lips curled up slightly. “More correctly our father, though you should understand I use the masculine term simply because it’s traditional among humans. My father is infinite and wears as many faces and bodies as there are species walking the planes.”
