“Done.” I knew I shouldn’t be trusting this demon, but so far, Faris hadn’t let me down. However, my chest tightened in sudden doubt. Faris was a demon, after all, and he could easily kill me.
Oh, god. What was I thinking?
My grandfather let out a cry of outrage, but he quickly squelched it at my scowl.
My heart pounded in anticipation. “So? Who is he?”
Faris smiled at me with seductive delight. “Vorkol, my dearest Samantha... is not a he, but a she. And she’s the Greater demon Vargal’s wife.”
13
How do you catch an ancient vampire skilled with magic? With bait. Want to guess who the bait is? Yours truly.
Okay. So this was at the top of my stupidest plans list, but I didn’t have much else to go on. I was desperate, and guilt gnawed at my gut.
Witches were being murdered because of me.
As I connected the dots, it was all making sense now—the recent murders of female witches, the higher demons trying to kill me. The two were connected. I was sure of it. I just didn’t know how exactly.
This all had to do with Vorkol. Somehow, she’d hired a vampire to kill me too.
I’d killed the Greater demon Vargal, and now his demon wife was out to get me. Fantastic. I could add that to my list of accomplishments. I’d pissed off a creature of the Netherworld while trying to save human lives. What else was new?
If the dark witch court found out the killings were my fault, I had no doubt they’d hand me over to her. I was to them, after all, something pitiful, lame, and weak. But I wasn’t going to make it easy for them. Or for anyone.
According to Faris, Vorkol was a ruler of sorts with many demon armies under her. And of course, she was also a Greater demon. If Faris was telling the truth, she had a higher rank in the demon hierarchy than her late husband. I was all for female empowerment—just not for lady demons who wanted to kill my ass.
But first, I had to stop the vampire from killing any more witches—including me. Then, I’d deal with the higher demons and Vorkol.
I pulled on my boots, zipped up my leather jacket and turned to Faris, who’d thankfully demon-magicked a pair of black pants, shirt and polished shoes. He looked ready for a night out on the town, not dressed for vampire decapitation.
“You ready?” I asked, standing in the foyer as I adjusted the strap of my messenger bag.
Faris raised his brows suggestively. “For you, Sammy baby, always.”
Poe made a disgruntled sound in his throat from the coat rack on the wall and rolled his eyes. “This is going to be a long night.”
I caught a glimpse of my grandfather’s white hair down the hall before he disappeared into the kitchen. “I’ll be back soon, Grandpa,” I called. I waited a few seconds, listening. “Giving your granddaughter the silent treatment is very childish,” I yelled.
“Going on a hunt with a mid-demon is also very childish,” he called back, and I heard the clank of a glass hitting the marble counter.
I smiled. Yes. We were both very immature, and that’s how we liked it.
I flexed my fingers, the leather gloves cracking. My sigil rings shone in the soft light. I’d performed a few pre-spells before getting ready to leave. I needed to make sure I could still do magic with a small trace of the death blade’s poison still in me. As it turned out, I could.
Smiling, Faris stepped closer to me, way too close. I was expecting the scent of sulfur, the normal demon smell. Instead, an aroma of chamomile and honey filled my nose. Whatever glamour he was using was damn good. Clever bastard.
I didn’t want to give Faris the satisfaction of knowing his closeness was making me uncomfortable by stepping away, but I needed to open the door.
“You think I’m right. Don’t you?” I asked the mid-demon. “About the vampire?”
Faris inclined his head. “She knows higher demons are useless under the sun. So, she’s put a vampire on your tail. It doesn’t surprise me. When she wants something done, she goes all out. She’s not taking any chances with you. She must really want you dead.”
“Maybe,” I said, unease trickling through me. “Then why is the vampire killing those witches? If he wants me, why kill them?”
The demon shrugged. “I’m not sure. I think perhaps now that he’s tasted witch blood, he can’t stop himself. Or maybe Vorkol told him to kill all witches that match your description. That’s more like her. Go out with a bang, that sort of thing.”
I felt ill, but something still didn’t fit.
I sucked in my breath through my nose to get rid of some of my tension, grabbed the doorknob and pulled open the door—
My heart leaped to my throat and stayed there.
Logan stood on the platform.
Why was he always doing that? Heat rushed to my face before I could control it. Cauldron be damned. Why did he have that effect on me? And those snug blue jeans were making it harder. That’s what happened when a girl hadn’t been on a date in months—hormones out of whack and all.
“Logan?” I said, trying to formulate complete sentences with my heart in my throat. “What are you doing here?”
The handsome angel-born stood facing me, his brown eyes searching my face. He wore a black motorcycle jacket over a tight gray t-shirt that looked painted on. Jaw clenched, his face darkened when Faris stepped into view beside me.
“Have no fear, the boy scout is here,” teased Faris with an obvious, underlying threat in his voice. “A baby angel-born. How nice. Did you forget your pacifier?”
“I came to see how you were doing,” said Logan. His eyes were back on me, though the irritation was clear in the tone of his voice at seeing Faris with me.
For some reason, I believed him. Granted, it just made things a lot more complicated.
“She’s fine,” interrupted Faris, stepping closer to the doorframe. “Can’t you see? Now, run along. I think I can hear your mommy calling.”
Great. I didn’t have time for this. A tingle of worry brought me stiff. “It’s late, Logan. You shouldn’t be here.”
“That’s right, boy scout,” said Faris, his eyes wide in mock concern. “Is that... is that Gerber on the side of your mouth right there?” he added, as though speaking to a small child.
Logan didn’t move. “I’ll leave,” he said, his gaze sharpening on me, “if that’s what you want.”
Crap. Now, why did he have to say that?
“Yes,” answered Faris before I had the chance. “Please leave,” said the mid-demon with a tone of finality.
“We could use your help,” declared Poe suddenly, and I turned around to shoot him a look.
“Help with what?” Logan’s posture stiffened. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing that concerns the likes of an angel-born,” replied Faris as he straightened.
I let out a breath. “We think the vampire attacks on the witches and the higher demons that tried to kill me are connected,” I said quickly. “The higher demon Vorkol—”
“Vargal’s wife,” interjected Poe.
“Is trying to kill me,” I finished. “Payback for killing her husband.” Yada yada yada.