“I’m not defenseless. I can weaponize happiness if I need to. Between the two of us, we can leave anytime. But breaking out right now will draw attention and we won’t get any info. Let’s meet this bloke, get a feel for what’s really going on here and whether he’s the nameless one that has the demonic community so shook up. Maybe he’s reasonable. Maybe he’s not. Either way, we’ll have more info than we came with. Break out now and we detoured for nothing.”
“Ugh. That all makes sense.” I don’t want it to. I sit in the middle of the floor and pull out my cell phone. I almost dial my mother, then change my mind and dial my safest option. Cillian.
“Nina?” He sounds bored. “Shop is dead, as usual. How’s things in London?”
“Um, fine. We got a kitten.”
“A kitten? No! You didn’t! Oh my god, I’m so excited. What does it look like? I’ve been brainstorming perfect kitten names for years. But I think I need to see it in person first. Don’t they say that? You need to see the baby before you can name it?”
“Well, they might say that. About babies. But this is definitely a kitten. Orange. Female.” I lower the phone. “The kitten’s going to be okay in the car, right?”
“It’s not that cold,” Doug says. “She’ll be fine.”
I switch back to Cillian. “Anyway, I wanted to check in. See how everyone is.”
“Jade’s a right nightmare. Please take her with you next time. I wasn’t even going to come into the shop today, but I couldn’t handle another minute of her barking orders. Rhys barricaded himself in the library with his grandma. Your mother was sharpening blades in the gym last I saw. Everyone’s fine. Any luck at the convention?”
“It was … surprising. Sean attacked. I think. Might not have been Sean. It’s complicated.” So very complicated.
“What? Are you all right? Should I call Rhys?”
“Nah. I handled it.” Mostly. Not at all, really. “Anyway, we’re making sure Doug’s cousin gets home safely, so we’ll be later than originally planned. Let the others know? I’ll text when we’re ready to head back.”
“Sounds good.” He pauses. “You sure you’re all right?”
I pause too. Cillian’s my friend. I could talk to him about Artemis. He won’t judge her. But why am I so worried about people judging her? She’s the one making reckless choices.
It’s a sister thing, I think. I can be pissed off at her and judge her and we’ll still be sisters. And she knows that. So it won’t stop her from coming home.
“Oh!” Cillian interrupts my thoughts. “Hermeowone Granger! No. The cat’s a ginger. And I don’t want to name a cat after Ginny. No offense to Ginny. Too bad it’s not a male, then we could make a play on Prince Harry. I’m on it, though. Don’t worry about a thing. I’ll have the perfect name by the time you get back.”
“That’s a load off, then. Thanks, Cill.”
“Cheers!” He hangs up. I pocket the phone, then lean back.
“They say the truth will set you free,” Doug says.
“So will ripping this door off its hinges.”
“So will I,” a pleasantly clipped voice says as a man steps into view and takes us in with a curious glance. He’s white, his thinning salt-and-pepper hair slicked back, dark eyes as sharp as the lines of his suit. “Assuming you’re in the mood for a game.” He smiles, and though he’s one hundred percent human, all my instincts scream threat.
“Okay, but I’ll warn you right now, I’m really good at Monopoly.”
He laughs. “I had something in mind that’s a little more suited to your skills, Slayer.”
13
IAN VON ALSTON STIRS HIS tea with a delicate silver spoon. The china is so fine it’s almost translucent, hand-painted with delicate flowers. “None for you?”
“I prefer root beer. Also, I don’t generally sit down for tea parties with people who are holding my friend captive.”
He tsks, setting his cup in its saucer. The room we’re in looks like the Queen of England vomited Buckingham Palace’s rejects into it. It tips right past impressive into absurd. A few years ago I would have been afraid to even breathe in a room like this; now, I kind of want to wander around and “accidentally” break things. But he has Doug for the time being, and I need information.
“You can hardly chide me for my behavior,” he says, “considering you came here under false pretenses. Clearly you had no intention of selling that demon to me. But I’ll give you a chance to get your friends.”
“My friends?” I raise an eyebrow. Plural. Does he have someone else from the castle? How did he know we were coming here? My heart races, and I look at the entrances and exits to the room. I could grab him, threaten him. I tense, but he raises his hand.
“Calm yourself. The other Slayers are perfectly well.”
“The other Slayers. Right. My friends, the other Slayers.” It turns out it’s a good thing we came, after all. I want to ask more questions, but I’m trying to pretend I have any idea what’s going on. So instead, I criticize. “You can’t just take people.”
“Did you know it’s illegal to bring undocumented animals into the country? They brought a creature all the way from the Himalayas. Imagine what strains of disease they might be introducing. What they might expose our beloved country to.”
“What kind of animal?” I ask, wary. What gets the attention of this dude?
“The kind that is best hunted on nights like tonight.” He pauses, waiting for something. The look of expectation on his face sours. “A full moon.”
“My Slayer friends brought a werewolf into the country?” I pick up a teacup to cover my confusion, accidentally snapping the delicate handle off. “Whoops. Slayer strength. You know how it goes.” I smile innocently.
His left eye twitches. “That cup was hand-painted by King George’s mistress.”
“Shouldn’t have given it to me, then. You know how Americans feel about King George’s tea.”
“Not that King George, you imbecile.”
“I mean, you’ve had one King George, you’ve had ’em all, am I right?” He’s not amused. I wanted to channel Buffy, or Artemis. Hells, even more Honora at this point. It’s hard when you’re trying to project an impression of someone other than yourself. No one is intimidated by Nina the Vampire Slayer. All I’m doing is annoying him. Last I checked, irritating enemies is not among my innate Slayer strengths. Or maybe I’m just special.
I half wish the seething darkness that keeps popping up at inopportune times would roar to life, but it seems semi-sated by what I did at the demon conference and deeply unconcerned about this sitting room. I set down my teacup. “So you’re hunting a werewolf. And you need me for what?”
“To be part of the hunt, of course.”
“Didn’t you already capture him? Seems a little unsporting to capture him, let him go, and then hunt him. Doesn’t your particular brand of wealth prefer birds? Foxes? Much younger women? Go buy an island or something.” I lean back, folding my arms. “Werewolves are people, you know.”