Swiftly, I slipped away from the wall and out of his grasp. As soon as I got far enough away to breathe fresh air, my sanity returned.

  I had almost kissed him.

  The thought was like a bucket of cold water over my head.

  Idiot. I was dumber than a box of rocks.

  Clearly, despite the lovely things he’d said while under the influence of the potion, he was still a bastard when he had control of his mind. Kissing him would be insane.

  He turned to me, confusion in his eyes.

  And I still had one question left. “Will you kill me, even if you don’t want to?”

  “Yes.”

  That was all. Just yes. He didn’t elaborate, but the truth serum was still in his system. He really would still kill me. And yet, his gaze was shadowed, his jaw tight. The idea hurt him, but he’d do it anyway.

  “Just for vengeance? Are you really that much of a bastard?”

  Awareness flashed in his expression, followed by anger. “You gave me something. I never would have told you those things otherwise.”

  “Truth serum.” I grinned, but my stomach turned. I was sure he could see the fear in my eyes if he looked closely.

  “I’d forgot exactly how cunning you were,” he said. “I should have expected you to creep in under my guard.”

  “You’ve never met me before.”

  “You know I have.”

  I didn’t know it, but I was starting to fear it was true. I moved away from the door and gestured to it. “I think it’s time for you to leave.”

  He stared at me, and I wished I knew what was running through his head. How had he managed to say such lovely things to me, followed by such horrible ones?

  He’s a monster.

  The thought echoed in my mind as he strode to the door.

  “Tomorrow morning,” he said as he walked out. “We’ll finish this.”

  I swallowed hard, hoping like hell I would come up with some kind of genius plan overnight. Because otherwise, I was screwed.

  14

  Drakon

  * * *

  I rose before the sun, grateful for the few moments of quiet before we needed to meet the rest of the society. The challenge would begin early today, but I needed to get my mind in order before then.

  Mac.

  What the devil was I going to do about her?

  Last night, when she’d disappeared from the house, the pain of being parted from her had grown worse, nearly freezing me solid. Then, when she’d returned, she’d dosed me with truth serum, for fates’ sake. Too clever for her own good. Clearly too clever for mine.

  But I respected it.

  I didn’t appreciate the truth serum—hell, I loathed the fact that she’d got past my guard a second time. If I was going to keep being so stupid around her, she deserved to get the better of me.

  But there was just something about her that muddled my senses. Not the Bride Bond, though it was certainly at play. But her.

  I couldn’t resist her.

  Last night, my nightmares had been interspersed with dreams of her. Dreams of touching her, kissing her, drinking her blood. A raging hunger lit inside me, making my fangs throb.

  I’d never wanted to bite another so badly in all my days.

  And yet, she’d taken that damned potion that had polluted her blood.

  Wise of her. If she hadn’t, I’d have tasted her already. The self-control that I prized wouldn’t have survived this long.

  Killing her was becoming less and less appealing with every minute spent in her company. Soon, I’d be unable to bear the thought, and that was unacceptable.

  I groaned and rubbed my hands over my face, rising to head to the shower. I needed more than a few minutes to clear my head of her influence, that was for sure. To help the process, I turned the water to boiling and tried to roast myself alive as I prepared for the day. I forced away thoughts of Mac and turned my mind toward my goal.

  I could feel someone suffering.

  Her words made my stomach turn. That had to be Dorian. What did they want with him here? If it really was a ruse to draw me in, then why? It couldn’t just be that they wanted me as a member of this damned society. There was much more at play here.

  Soon. I would figure it out soon.

  Finished in the shower, I dressed quickly. As I stepped into the hallway, Mac’s door opened. Anticipation surged through me, annoying in its strength. I couldn’t help but want to see her, and I hated that weakness.

  She’d dressed in tall boots and short shorts, along with a crop top and leather jacket. The outfit was far more risqué than those favored by the prospective members, and she grinned when she saw me eying it.

  “You delight in being different than this crowd, don’t you?” I asked.

  She nodded. “They’re awful,” she said, and spun in a circle. “I had to shorten the top and shorts myself, but there was a handy pair of scissors in the bedside table.”

  I repressed the small smile that threatened to tug at my mouth. Of course she’d hacked away at the clothes. The fact that she had revealed miles of smooth golden skin didn’t seem to faze her, but I wasn’t so lucky. It took everything I had to turn my gaze away. Just the sight of her was enough to lower my guard and muddle my mind.

  “We’re nearly late. Come.” I strode away, knowing that my voice had been unnecessarily harsh but not caring.

  “Dick weasel,” she muttered.

  The smile finally broke free and tugged at the corner of my mouth, though I was glad she didn’t see it. I didn’t know what a dick weasel was, but it was clearly an insult. An irreverent one, at that. And I liked it. A lot.

  I’d spent the millennium of my existence being feared and respected. It was useful and convenient, but boring after a while. The fact that my Bride was a foul-mouthed seductress with a penchant for blowing things up was somehow perfect.

  No.

  I couldn’t afford to think like that. Fate might have decided she was the person for me, but fate didn’t know what the hell it was talking about.

  Fortunately, we’d reached the orangery already. I needed the distraction from Mac. A crowd had gathered in the glass-walled room, and rain pounded on the clear crystal ceiling above. Massive orange trees surrounded us, scenting the air with the intoxicating aroma of citrus—pleasant, though not as intoxicating as Mac’s scent. I shook the traitorous thought away and searched for Valerie in the crowd. Surely she’d explain what was happening next.

  I found her on the far side of the room, surrounded by tall lemon trees. Her cunning gaze swept the crowd as she inspected the prospective members. Interest flickered in her eyes as she met mine, and I nodded.

  “It appears we are all here,” she said. “And just in time, too. You won’t have long for this second and final challenge.”

  The crowd murmured, and she continued. “Joining our society offers many benefits to members, the most obvious of which is access to prized information. We are a veritable treasure trove of secrets and lies. But we require something in exchange. Each member brings information and treasures of their own, contributing them to the society.”

  I glanced around the room, looking for anything out of the ordinary. Unfortunately, I found only rapt faces.

  “This final challenge is meant to test your skill at bringing something of value to our group. The society has pinpointed four valuable objects hidden in different parts of the world. After the deaths of the unworthy, there are ten competitors left. Some of you are pairs some alone. But you will each compete against another competitor to retrieve one of those objects.”

  “So we have to beat them to the treasure?” asked Ben Torres, the man who’d sat next to Mac at the first dinner.

  “Precisely. At the end of the day, if you have succeeded, the society should have four new treasures. And four of you will have been eliminated.” She smiled coldly, and it was clear what eliminated meant.

  If their competitors didn’t take out the losers, then the society would. There could be no one left alive who knew of them but wasn’t a member. The best-case scenario for the unfortunates would be a potion to erase their memory, but the society was so immoral and bloodthirsty that I doubted they would go with that option.

  None of my concern. I would save Dorian, kill whoever had taken him, and be on my way.

  “We will be handing out cards with just enough information to get you started,” Valerie said. “Good luck.”

  The crowd began to murmur as she broke off and began to hand out the cards. I turned to Mac and kept my voice low. “It appears we will actually have to try in this round.”

  “Try and win.”

  “Of course.” I scanned the crowd, wondering who we would be pitted against. It was too much to hope they would have information for me, but I could still try to get something useful out of them.

  Valerie approached, a small smile on her face. Her gaze never left mine, heat flickering within. She was a beautiful woman, with her dark hair and curvy figure, but the invitation in her eyes was her most interesting feature.

  Hmm. This might be an excellent avenue for information if others dried up. I wasn’t above seducing someone to get what I wanted.

  And yet…

  I could feel Mac’s gaze on the two of us. Her interest all but burned into me, and the knowledge that she was watching me singed the back of my neck.

  I liked it.

  Hell, I liked her.

  And it made the idea of seducing Valerie very unpleasant.

  Damn it, that was unacceptable. I couldn’t be swayed by Mac. I shouldn’t be…and yet, I was.

  Frustration seethed through me as Valerie handed me a card. I nodded. “Thank you.”

  She shot me a small smile and turned away. I looked down to read the information:

  * * *

  Potion of Ataxia, The Rift.

  Magic Side, Chicago.

  * * *

  “What does it say?” Mac leaned over my shoulder to read the card. “Isn’t The Rift a biker bar? Or drag racing club or something?”

  “I believe so.” I’d never been, but I’d heard of the place. Dangerous. Owned by demons and frequented by the most violent of Magic Side’s inhabitants. The city was like Mac’s Guild City, a supernatural town hidden within a larger city full of humans. I visited rarely, but I wasn’t surprised that there were valuable objects hidden there.

  “I wonder who we’re up against,” she mused, her gaze traveling over the crowd.

  “We’ll know soon enough. Let’s go and get a head start. It will be late at night there.”

  She nodded. “The bar should be packed at this hour.”

  “All the better for us to sneak in.” I held out my hand, and she gave it one brief, wary look before clasping her palm to mine.

  Electricity raced up my arm, and I bit back the low noise that tried to escape my throat. Desire pulsed at the base of my spine, too strong for such an innocent touch.

  But she was my Bride. There was no denying it.

  Quickly, I called upon the ether, using it to transport us to the Midway Dens in Magic Side. It was one of the more dangerous parts of town, located on Razorback Avenue and lined with small brick shops that offered everything from potions and weapons to sex toys and gambling. The neon lights that gleamed over the buildings made it look like a miniature Las Vegas.

  As soon as we arrived on the busy street, I dropped Mac’s hand. The loss was palpable, and therefore annoying. The crowd surged around us, drunken revelers heading from bar to bar as they shouted at their friends. They parted naturally around me, and Mac stepped closer to avoid being run over by an unusually large demon with black horns and a snub nose.

  Faint pleasure surged through me. I liked that she approached me for protection, even though I shouldn’t. Hell, I should be the thing she feared the most.

  Then she glared at me as if annoyed with herself.

  Ah, yes, that was better.

  “Let’s go.” She strode across the street toward the black brick building. Dark glass cubes were stacked to form windows, but they didn’t reveal any of the interior. Cars of all colors lined the street in front, each of them heavily modified for racing. Supernaturals congregated around them, drinking beer and liquor as they talked and inspected the vehicles.

  “They do drag racing on these streets,” Mac said with interest. “Always wanted to try it.”

  That was no surprise. And oddly, I found that I wanted to give her the opportunity.

  I shook my head and nodded toward the door. “Let’s go in.”

  We approached the massive blue-skinned demon who stood next to the door of The Rift. He had to be the bouncer, and he frowned as he saw us coming straight for him. There was a queue to get in, but there was no way in hell I’d wait. Normally, I kept careful control of my magic, not letting the entirety of my signature show. This time, however, I relaxed my defenses so that the bouncer could get a hint of what I was capable of.

  His frown faded into a grimace, and he stepped aside.

  As we passed through the door, magic sparked across my skin. Damn it—a protection charm. I wouldn’t be able to use my teleportation inside the building. If anything went wrong, we’d need to make it out before I could get us away from Magic Side.

  As we entered the bar, Mac leaned close and asked, “Does the bouncer know you?”

  “He doesn’t need to.”

  “I suppose not, with a signature like yours.”

  “It’s useful.” I called it back to myself, exerting the iron will that kept me at least somewhat incognito. My face was fairly recognizable after so many years alive, but only to those who were part of vampire circles. Still, the crowd parted as we approached the bar at the back.

  The room was dark and smoky, lit by weak red lamps that shed a sinister glow on the crowd of supernaturals. Danger rolled through the air, almost like thunderheads hovering on the horizon before a storm.

  “Sure are a lot of demons here,” Mac murmured. “More than I expected, even for a demon-owned bar.”

  Demons were a rare exception in the supernatural world. Members of most species chose their destiny—evil or good—but demons couldn’t. Their nature was set from the moment they were born in the underworld. Cruelty was hardwired into their brains. The desire to cause mayhem and destruction, combined with their lack of respect for life, meant that they generally weren’t welcome on earth. This was a rare pocket of space where they congregated in larger numbers.

  The bar was crowded, but when I released some of my magical signature, several demons parted to let us slip between them. A bartender with red skin and long dark hair approached, her midnight eyes moving up and down my body. She looked like she didn’t take shit from anybody and ruled the bar with a bat. A smile quirked the corner of her mouth when she asked, “What’ll it be, handsome?”

  “Wine cooler for me,” Mac interrupted.

  “Wine cooler?” The woman arched a brow. “It’s not the—”

  Mac leaned forward and grabbed the thick gold chain that hung around the woman’s neck, yanking her toward the bar so that they were face to face. “Don’t even say it. Just get me the drink.”

  The woman was a good foot taller than Mac and far more muscular, but her red skin paled to pink, and she nodded.

  “Thanks.” Mac’s smile was friendly as she released her.

  “Whiskey for me,” I said, my gaze on Mac. That had been unexpected. The woman left, and I turned to her. “Coming on a bit strong, don’t you think?”

  Mac shot a pointed look around the bar, her gaze landing on the various demons who were now looking at her with a bit more respect. “Watch and learn.”

  “You’re a bartender. Do people often drag you over the counter?”

  She laughed as if the idea were ridiculous. “What do you think?”

  Even I had ended up unconscious when I’d visited her bar, so I had to imagine that they didn’t.

  The bartender returned quickly with the drinks, setting them down carefully in front of us. “On the house.”

  “Thanks.” Mac grinned widely. “Is the boss in tonight?”

  Suspicion flashed on the woman’s face. “Why?”

  “I’m Macbeth O’Connell, and I’ve got a little proposition for him.”

  At the sound of Mac’s name, recognition lit the woman’s eyes, along with a little bit of fear and a lot of respect. Her mouth twisted, but I could see the compliance in her eyes. “He’s out tonight. Care to leave a message?”

  Mac shrugged. “I can find another buyer.”

  She turned from the woman and leaned against the bar, loosely gripping her wine cooler by the neck of the bottle.

  I stood beside her, tilting my head so that I could murmur, “What are you doing?”

  “Proving my worth to your little endeavor. Like I said, watch and learn.” She sipped her drink and stared out at the crowd.

  My curiosity got the better of me, and I decided that I would give her a few minutes to prove herself. What the hell was she up to?

  Within three minutes, a slender demon with sawed-off horns approached. He wore an impeccably tailored business suit that stood out like a sore thumb, and he carried himself like someone with more confidence than delivery. He stopped in front of Mac, eying her up and down in a way that made me want to punch him. “I hear you have something to sell?”

  She arched a brow. “If you think I’m selling it to a middle manager in an oddly well-tailored knock-off Armani, you’re crazy.”

  Red flushed through his gray skin, and his dark eyes glittered with malice. “I can have you thrown out.”

  “Can you?” She tilted her head and nodded slightly toward me. “When he’s my date?”

  I felt my brows rise, but I got the message. Quickly, I relaxed my hold on my magic, letting my signature flow freely. The demon grimaced and stepped back, raising his hands. “My apologies.”

  “That’s what I thought.” She tilted her head. “Now, why don’t you run along? I’m here for a bigger fish.”

 

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