Devilish Game (Shadow Guild: The Rebel Book 4)

by Linsey Hall

  “No longer,” he said. “We’ve broken the bond.”

  Her gaze moved between the two of us, brows raised. The relief in her gaze had been replaced with curiosity. “Really?”

  “Really.” I nodded.

  “Hmm.”

  “Quit with the ‘hmms’.” I turned to Grey, vowing to ask Mac more about her knowing noises. “Spill what you know. How do we find the kidnapper? And more importantly, how do we find them.”

  “It’s not that easy.” Grey leaned against the door jam and crossed his arms over his powerful chest. “Even if he’s the one responsible, he has such a powerful and expansive underground network that finding the people he’s taken is going to be nearly impossible. Deadly.”

  “I’m used to that. I just need a lead. Who is it?”

  “Anton the Deceiver. A crime lord out of Monaco.”

  My heart thundered. A real lead, with a real location. I could so work with this.

  “Yikes.” Mac grimaced. “I’ve heard of him. Bad business, that fellow.”

  “Well, I’m going after him.” I met Grey’s eyes again. “Any tips?”

  “I’m coming with you,” he said.

  “You can’t. You heard what Cyrenthia said. We shouldn’t be around each other. It’s too dangerous.”

  “Why?” Mac demanded.

  “We can’t . . . fall for each other.” I hesitated, feeling weird saying it in front of her. “Our bond as fated mates is broken, but fate is powerful. It could override the spell if we . . .”

  When I trailed off, Grey interrupted, clearly not liking the train of conversation. “You’ll never make it into Anton’s place alone. You can’t just break in. And if you did, you’d be dead if you got caught.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Anton owns a casino in Monaco, in Monte Carlo. It’s worth millions, and security rivals that on the Crown Jewels.”

  “I could.” I crossed my arms over my chest.

  He studied me for a moment, then nodded. “I do believe you could. Perhaps. But once you’re in, you wouldn’t be able to access him. It’d require more luck than exists in all the world, and if they catch you, there’s no trial. There’s no eviction. There’s just execution.”

  The chill in his voice made me flinch, and I thought of the mob bosses we’d studied at the police academy. I’d seen what they were capable of, and they were the human ones. What could an evil, magical one do to me?

  “I can get you in, and with a bit of luck, we can get an audience with Anton. Then you can ask your questions.”

  “But Cyrenthia…”

  “I know the risks, Carrow. But the alternative is the lives of those who have been kidnapped. Your life if you get caught trying to break into Anton’s place.”

  Shit. He was right.

  There was so much at stake. Beth. The young girl. There was no time for me to be waffling about this. I needed his help, and I had the willpower not to fall for him. Especially now that our bond was broken. Half the work was done for me, for fate’s sake.

  “Okay, we do it your way,” I said. “What does that entail?”

  He thought for a moment, clearly running over the options in his mind. “Anton will be at his casino, though what he’ll be doing is anyone’s guess. He could be playing a game, watching a show, or torturing a minion.”

  “Sounds like a delightful guy,” Mac said.

  “He’s unrepentantly terrible.” Distaste curled Grey’s lip. “I could set up a meeting, but it’s unwise. It will put him on the alert, and he never wants to give a competitor what they want. If I had something to offer him, it would be different. But I don’t.”

  “And we don’t want to give a bastard like that anything,” I said. “Especially not an inkling of what we want. He could hurt the victims if he knows we’re after them.”

  “Precisely. So we need to be subtle. You and I will go to his casino as if we’re out for a night on the town. Once there, we figure out what he is doing for the evening and find a way to join him.”

  “Then we kidnap him and question him?” I asked.

  “Not quite, though it’s an option. I’d like to avoid it due to the fact that he’s bound to have dozens of guards and can lock the place down in a heartbeat. And my mind control powers will be blocked by the casino. The place is imbued with magic that makes him almost impervious.”

  I frowned. “How do we get him to talk, then? We can’t bring him in for questioning legally. I’ve got no standing with any police.” There actually were a few police in Guild City, though not as many as there would be out in the real world.

  “And police can’t touch him,” Grey said.

  “Truth serum, then,” Mac said. “Or something that will make him susceptible to the Devil’s mind control.”

  Grey nodded. “That’s what I was thinking. We get close to him and try to dose him. I know a potion that will lower his defenses so that I can question him. The casino’s protections shouldn’t be a match against the combined magic.”

  I grimaced, thinking of how hard it would be to snag his drink and empty something into it.

  “I can do it,” Mac said.

  I turned to her. “What?”

  She shrugged. “I’m a bartender. You guys do your plan—get close to him. Get ready to ask your questions. I’ll join the bar staff. It won’t be hard to blend. When it’s time, you signal me, and I bring him a spiked drink.”

  Grey gave her a considering look. “He’s likely to have a specific server who deals with his drinks.”

  Mac shrugged. “I’ll get clothes from the Fae shop that outfits spies. They’ll definitely have something to help me blend. And for good measure, Eve can give me a potion to make me look like the server that I need to impersonate.”

  “That’s possible?” I asked.

  “Yes,” Grey said. “Though those potions don’t last long.”

  “Good thing I’m quick.” She grinned. “And I know my way around a bar so well that no one will suspect me.”

  “It’s too dangerous to break in,” I said.

  “I won’t. I’ll go to the server’s entrance dressed as a server. People don’t pay much attention to the staff.”

  Grey nodded. “I like this plan.”

  I didn’t. It was too dangerous for Mac.

  As if she could read my thoughts, she gave me a hard glare. “I’ve got this, Carrow. Beth was taken, remember? Not to mention the other girl. I’m going to help.”

  “Fine. Fine.” I raised my hands in a placating gesture. “I know you do.”

  She nodded. “Damn right. And worse comes to worse, you carry a serum on you, just in case I need to bail.”

  I liked that safety-out. “Okay, it’s a deal.” I looked at Grey. “We can do this tonight?”

  He nodded. “You’re going to need clothes like the kind you wore to the speakeasy in Brasov.”

  I thought of the amazing magical dress that had made me punch harder and the stilettos that had felt like trainers. “I still have those.”

  “Their magic is dulled. You need new and better. Let me take care of it.”

  “Still taking care of me?” I hated to admit I liked it. “I thought we weren’t bonded.”

  He opened his mouth, then closed it. Finally, he said, “I insist.”

  “Okay.” I nodded, not wanting to fight.

  “I’ll meet you when you’re done getting ready.” He didn’t wait for a response. Just turned on his heel and left.

  Mac turned to me. “I don’t know about this whole bond breaking thing, mate.”

  “What?” I frowned at her.

  “There’s still something between you.”

  I swallowed hard. “Yeah, well. I care for him.”

  “How much?”

  “I honestly don’t know.”

  Mac hovered her hand over my arm. “May I?”

  “You want to read my future?”

  “As much as I can.” She gestured between me and the space where Grey had once st
ood. “Because I know you broke the mate bond, but things aren’t over yet.”

  My heart began to thunder. If Mac had answers, I wanted them. I thrust my arm out toward her. She rested her fingertips on my bicep and closed her eyes. Her magic swelled, and I waited.

  Finally, she opened her eyes. “I wasn’t able to see much, but this thing between you . . . this breaking the bond . . .it doesn’t mean it’s over between you and Grey. Even this feels fated. Like it was meant to happen.”

  “Is fate really that powerful?”

  “You have no idea.” She shook her head. “You were trying to divert the course of fate by going to Cyrenthia and breaking the mate bond. But fate can’t be tricked.”

  “Shit.”

  “Cyrenthia is right, though,” Mac said. “If you want any chance at keeping the mate bond broken and saving Grey’s life, you should try to stay away from each other.”

  Carrow

  Hours later, after an amazing—though brief—visit to the Fae dress shop—Grey and I arrived in Monaco using a transportation charm. Monte Carlo, specifically. It was warm here, the scent of the Mediterranean wafting on an ocean breeze. The sound of waves crashing in the distance was audible over the low hum of traffic.

  After getting kitted up in a generic bartender’s uniform created by the Fae shop, Mac had taken a transport charm right to the casino, where she was currently sneaking in for her “shift.”

  Grey and I had appeared farther away since we needed to make a specific type of entrance. I turned to study the city. An infinite number of lights glittered all around, the gorgeous city lit up for the evening. Nestled on the coast between France and Italy, it was a dream destination for the likes of me.

  Considering the fact that I was with Grey, it could have been a dream—broken bonds or not.

  He looked like a million bucks, of course, wearing a tuxedo that had clearly been made especially for him. He was here to play a devilish game, all lethal strength and elegance, impossibly beautiful despite the cruel cast that had shadowed his face as soon as we arrived.

  “You look different,” I said. “Something about your face. Your expression.”

  His gaze flicked to mine, the coldness briefly replaced with warmth. “You can show nothing, here. Anton feeds on expressions like a shark.”

  I nodded, recognizing the same iciness he’d shown me when we’d first met. I’d thought he’d looked like the most beautiful statue I’d ever seen, so cold and hard and impenetrable that it made me want to crack him open even more.

  “You look lovely,” he said, his eyes warm.

  Pleasure flushed through me, then I scowled. “No compliments. I’m a sucker for compliments, and I can’t fall for you.”

  “Of course. You look like a hag.”

  I laughed, unable to help myself, and turned toward the street. My dress twirled around me, a glittery gold confection that made me feel like a princess. In addition to being gorgeous, it repelled blades and magic. It also enhanced my own powers, making my gift the slightest bit stronger, which I would need for what was to come.

  The stilettos on my heels once again felt like trainers, and I knew I could sprint a mile in them. Hell, I could probably leap over a building in a single bound. The gem at my neck was actually a vial of truth serum, though no one would recognize it. Eve and the Fae dress shop owner had worked together to create it, though I might not have to use it. They’d done the same for Mac’s uniform, and it would allow her to blend in with the rest of the staff.

  As the sound of ocean waves crashed in the distance, Grey and I stood on a bustling city street, not far from Anton’s club. An enormous Rolls Royce pulled up to the curb, gleaming brilliantly. It looked like something from the past, all elegance and beauty. The driver leapt out and opened the door for us, and I looked up at Grey. “For us?”

  He nodded. “We need to blend in when we arrive.”

  He helped me into the car, his touch a brand. I barely resisted a shiver, and he withdrew his hands quickly.

  “I’m sorry.” His voice was low. “That was unwise.”

  Indeed, it was. Touching was about the dumbest thing we could do right now.

  Inside the opulent car, I shifted over on the seat to make room for him. He folded himself gracefully into the vehicle, and the driver took off, whisking us through the glittering streets of Monte Carlo.

  “This is a lot different than the life I trained for,” I mused, thinking of police college.

  “Preferable, I hope?”

  “Very.” I stole a glance at him, then looked away, unable to bear his impossible beauty.

  A few moments later, the sleek car pulled to a stop outside an enormous, ornate building. Golden lights lit up the marble facade, and a fountain shot sparkling water into the air. An aura of incredible wealth and danger gleamed around the place, and my heart raced, hope flaring.

  With any luck, we were going to save the kidnapping victims tonight.

  5

  Grey

  I climbed out of the car first, scanning the ornate courtyard for Anton’s guards. Immediately, I spotted eight of them. I cataloged their weapons and species—what was visible, at least.

  “Hey, let me out.” Carrow’s voice sounded from behind me, where I’d blocked her into the car on purpose.

  Satisfied that it was safe, I turned and reached for her hand. She laid her palm in mine, and satisfaction surged through me.

  No.

  I couldn’t feel those things anymore.

  I shouldn’t. The bond was broken.

  My heart and body didn’t seem to care, but I tried to shove the feeling aside anyway. I helped her stand, forcing my eyes off the way the glittering golden silk clung to her curves. Her eyes gleamed with interest as she looked around.

  I turned, tucking her hand into the crook of my arm, and tried to see it through her eyes.

  All around, people in glittering finery strolled up the stairs, looking beautiful and bored. It was an obscene amount of wealth on display, and distaste flickered through me.

  “Is this not your scene?” Carrow asked.

  “Hardly.” I turned toward the massive entryway where Anton’s goons guarded the doors.

  They couldn’t have looked more like a mob boss’s henchmen if they tried. Big shoulders stuffed into tight suits, slicked back hair, and their magic on full display, the way humans would wear their guns visible.

  I could feel their magic from where I stood, a billboard of a threat that was meant to keep the supernaturals in line. Not everyone in the crowd was magical, however, and the humans had no idea.

  Sheep.

  As if she read my thoughts, Carrow leaned close and whispered, “Are there humans here?”

  “Yes. So no magical fights on the casino floor. Anton has a spell blocking most powers, especially around the gambling tables, but the goons are here to keep order as well.”

  “Ah, I see.”

  I caught the eye of one of the bouncers and raised two fingers in a clear signal. We wouldn’t be entering through the normal way.

  The man snapped to attention and turned, leading us to a side door.

  “This way,” I said. “We need to go through a different type of security.”

  “All of these wealthy people tolerate security?” she asked.

  “To get in here, they do.” I nodded toward the crowd we’d left behind. “Humans and low-power supernaturals go that way. More powerful supernaturals go this way.”

  “What is Anton looking for?”

  “Any kind of threat. Magical weapons or particularly dangerous powers. If we tried to sneak through the human entrance, the sensors would catch us, and we’d be evicted.”

  She shivered. “You were right about this place being heavily guarded.”

  “We’ll be fine. But we won’t be able to use a transport charm until we are out of the building, so keep that in mind.”

  She nodded.

  We neared the hulking guard, and he turned to open an enormous go
lden door for us. I led Carrow into a spacious lobby. Crystal chandeliers gleamed overhead, shedding a sparkling light on the gold and velvet opulence of the interior.

  It was Anton.

  Like a petty king with too much money and no taste.

  Two guards stood waiting for us, each at least seven feet tall. It was rare that I met someone taller than me, but it was immediately obvious that their size slowed them. Each wore a suit and held a slender black wand.

  I leaned down to Carrow and whispered, “These men will check you for magical weapons, but they won’t touch. Try to suppress your power as best you can.”

  She nodded, and I could feel her trying to draw it into herself. She’d become so much more proficient over the last few weeks, but her power had also grown. I could feel it inside her even now, expanding. Could she tell that it was doing that?

  I had to assume so.

  I did the same, making sure my magic was under lock and key. The men approached us, hovering their wands over our chests, then moving them around our bodies. I waited for the telltale vibration that indicated it had sensed something and was gratified when there was only silence. We didn’t need to draw any attention to ourselves.

  “They’re clean,” one of the guards murmured to the other.

  One of the guards nodded. “You’re done.”

  “Thank you.” I took Carrow’s hand again and tucked it into my arm.

  We left the men behind, strolling into the main part of the casino. As we entered the enormous space, Carrow gasped. “Wow.”

  “I suppose it does make quite an impression.” A lofty, vaulted ceiling was hung with even larger crystal chandeliers than the lobby. They were the size of cars, in fact. The gambling tables were gilt-edged, along with everything else in the godforsaken place.

  “You really don’t like it here, do you?” Carrow asked.

  “No. It’s an obscene use of wealth. And beyond that, in poor taste. Too much gold, too fussy, too ornate.”

  “Yes, I can see how you might not like that.”

  I looked down at her. “Know me so well, do you?”

  She shrugged. “A bit.”

  I found I wanted her to know me better. I shouldn’t want that now—our bond was broken. But I did.