“You intend to blow them up?” she asked between clenched teeth.
He rolled his eyes. “Nothing so mundane.”
“Then why do you want C-4?”
“We’ve wrapped the explosives in a powerful mortem curse.” His voice was smug. “When the C-4 goes boom, it will spread the hexed shards. Any creature inside or near the lair will be destroyed.”
His words chilled Brigette to the bone. After spending time with Maryam in the tunnels, she’d started to hope that the woman was all talk and no action. It was easy to hide in the tunnels and send out small bands of demons to create chaos. It was another to strike out and incur the wrath of the most powerful vampires in the world.
But Roban’s words proved that she not only intended to try and take down the clan chiefs, but that she had a sophisticated plan already in place. A powerful curse could destroy any demon, even a vampire. And to have it attached to a combustible object that could spread it through the air…
She had never heard of combining human technology with magic, so she couldn’t begin to calculate how many lives would be snuffed out.
Too many.
She swallowed the sudden lump in her throat. “How are they triggered?”
Roban shrugged. “Magic.”
They turned into a passage that was barely more than a hole dug in the earth. There was no cement and less than a handful of timber supports to keep it from collapsing.
Brigette, however, ignored the tons of dirt waiting to fall on her head. She was far more concerned with how she was going to halt the potential apocalypse.
“What kind of magic?” she demanded.
Roban managed to look even more smug. As if he was personally responsible for the lethal devices.
“That’s the beauty. Each lair has been planted with explosives that are wrapped with different spells,” he told her. “Some are designed to explode when a word of power is spoken. Others are set to explode on a certain date and time. The ones that guard these tunnels are designed to be triggered by intruders. Or by Maryam leaving the lair.”
She sent him a sharp glance. “She’s left before, and nothing exploded.”
“The layers of magic were a recent addition. Very recent.”
Brigette suddenly realized what was behind the illusions that she could sense throughout the tunnels. Crap. Where was Maryam and just how soon was she planning to leave?
“So what’s the next phase of the grand plan?” Brigette demanded, her thoughts churning through various strategies to get to Xi and escape the tunnels without being noticed. “Am I supposed to set the bombs in Styx’s lair?”
“The bombs are already set.”
Brigette blinked. She’d overheard both Maryam and Roban whisper about triggers and surprises and vague threats to the clan chiefs. She’d even seen the map in Maryam’s office. But to be told in gloating tones that countless vampires and lesser demons were about to be massacred was like a physical blow.
Suddenly, the need to escape from the tunnels wasn’t just about survival for her and Xi. It was about being able to warn Styx that they were in danger.
“They’re set to go off?” she forced herself to ask.
“Of course. We have them spread around the world. Along with a very special one for Chiron. As soon as Ulric walks through the door of his Vegas casino…” Roban smiled, spreading his hands as he made the sound of a massive blast. “Boom.”
“Why Chiron?” Brigette demanded. She already knew the answer, but she had to keep the dog talking long enough to formulate a way to get away from him and locate Xi.
“He turned his back on the rebels.”
“Maryam told me it was her decision to leave Chiron.”
“She still considered herself a rebel, until Chiron agreed to kiss Styx’s ass. He betrayed everyone who’d suffered at the hands of the Anasso.”
“The old king is dead.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Roban slowed his pace. “They’re all the same.”
“Even the King of Weres?”
A low growl rumbled in Roban’s throat, a sudden heat blasted through the air. Was he nursing a personal grudge against the King of Weres? Or just a general hatred toward authority?
“Especially the King of Weres,” he snarled.
Hmm. That seemed personal.
About to demand to know what his problem was with their king, Brigette belatedly realized they’d come to the end of the passage. In front of them was a dead end.
“Why are we here?”
He turned to face her. “I have something you need to see.”
“Careful, dog.” Brigette narrowed her eyes, pulling her dagger from the holster at her lower back. It never occurred to her that Roban might a physical threat to her. “You show me anything I don’t want to see, and I’ll chop it off.”
He wrinkled his nose, as if he was morally offended by her words. “Relax, female, I don’t screw traitors.”
The sneering words rolled off Brigette. She couldn’t care less about his opinion. Of course, she wasn’t above taunting him with his hypocrisy.
“You know why you hate me so much, don’t you, Roban?” she drawled.
“Because you betrayed your pack.”
She waved her dagger beneath his nose. “Because you’re afraid you are just like me.”
The musk of his wolf choked the air a second before his hands reached up to shove her backward.
“I’m nothing like you, bitch.”
Caught off guard, Brigette stumbled backward. She expected to slam against the dirt wall and instinctively braced herself. Once she regained her balance, she fully intended to carve the male into tiny bits of Were. She’d learned all she needed to know about the rebels’ ultimate plan. Now it was time for the traitor to die.
But she didn’t slam into the wall. Instead, she continued to tumble backward, landing flat on her back in the middle of a cage. The wall of the passage had been an illusion disguising the shallow alcove where the cage had been tucked away.
Shit. She’d known this was a trap, and yet she’d allowed herself to be led to it like a lamb to the slaughter.
The air was knocked from her lungs as she gazed up at the silver bars above her head. Struggling to breathe, Brigette forced herself to her feet even as Roban slammed shut the door of the cell. He smiled, reaching into his pocket to pull out a small box that he attached to the lock.
“What are you doing?” she snapped, trying to pretend that panic was thundering though her.