I was going to kill him. I’d kill her, too, but I’d be gentle about it since she wasn’t the one who’d constantly reminded me that we were married. That’s why she’d barely feel it when I murdered her. But Ian? Oh, yes, he’d feel it.

“Hard whisky, no chaser, coming right up,” she said in a bedroom-voice purr, then turned and went to the bar.

A black-haired demon with skin as pale as Ian’s filled the space next to him on the couch. “Michael,” Ian greeted him. “Long time, mate.”

“Long time,” the demon agreed. “I’m surprised to see you here, especially with the rumors I’ve heard.”

Ian let out an indulgent laugh. “Which ones?”

Michael smiled, but no humor lit his red-tinged eyes. “The one where you and some Halfling murdered dozens of my kind.”

That turned more than a few heads. I stiffened, but no one did anything more than look. Yet.

“A Halfling, how exotic.” Ian sounded bored. “Tell me, how did I and this curious creature slaughter so many demons?”

The waitress returned with Ian’s drink, pausing Michael’s reply. Ian saluted her with his glass before pressing a hundred-dollar bill into her hand.

“Keep ’em coming, poppet.”

She tucked the bill into her cleavage, then made a show of fluffing her breasts as if the cash had somehow managed to flatten them.

There goes your painless death!

“Details are sketchy,” Michael said once she’d walked away. “Some say the Halfling is a demon-vampire hybrid. Some say she’s a vampire-witch hybrid. Some wonder if the story is just bullshit meant to scare other demons into backing Dagon.”

“Eh, Dagon,” Ian said as if he remembered everything about the demon. “Always trying to mastermind something.”

Michael’s brows rose. “You’re saying none of it is true?”

“Tell you what is true, I need to speak to Ashael,” Ian replied, and raised his glass. “Ashael, this is Ian. A bag of jewels is yours if you come to me at once.”

With that unusual toast, Ian downed his shot and waved for a new one, which his very attentive waitress handed him. Then he repeated the toast and drank again.

Not a toast, then. An alcohol-based summoning ritual. Ashael was either very powerful to hear Ian’s call with such a weak conduit, or he was so attuned to booze that he should get an AA sponsor immediately.

Then again, Ashael could also be very clever. By giving people a weakened summoning ritual to use, Ashael could choose to ignore it, whereas the usual blood, specific symbols, and true-name ritual made a demon’s appearance mandatory, not optional.

Michael grunted. “You’re brave to summon Ashael. If he believes these rumors, he’ll slaughter you on sight.”

Powerful and clever, then. My teeth ground. Stop calling him, Ian! You’re already in over your head.

“You’re still on about that rubbish?” Ian scoffed. “Would’ve thought you were too old to believe in fairy tales.”

“So, it isn’t true?” Michael persisted.

Ian gave him a tolerant look. “Mate, if it were, would I be drinking all by myself in a place like this?”

Yes! I silently screamed. Because you’re trying to be the first vampire to kill another vampire from sheer stress alone! Gods, there were days when I missed my former, blissful apathy. Caring about someone this much was exhausting.

Michael shrugged, but none of the intentness left his gaze. “I suppose we’ll find out.”

The other demons started drifting closer to Ian’s table. Worse, it sounded like more demons were now coming from the mine to gather near the room’s only exit. I began pulling power from wherever I could feel water. There wasn’t much due to the decades-long underground coal fires in this town. I stretched my senses further. My other nature roused, rattling the bars on her cage. As if I didn’t have enough to deal with.

“Playing hard to get, Ashael?” Ian said, raising his glass as if he didn’t notice the trap closing around him. “I’ll make it two bags of jewels, but only if you get your arse here now.”

Sure, keep trying to bring another powerful demon! I silently raged. Forty or fifty demons against two are suicidal odds, but forty or fifty-ONE against two is a party!

Michael leaned back, flashing Ian an arrogant look as the demons in the room now loomed around Ian’s table, while new demons formed a barrier at the exit. Even the band abandoned their instruments to join the menacing crowd.

Ian eyed them as he set his empty shot glass down. “Wouldn’t come any closer if I were you, mates.”

Michael’s brows rose. “Why is that?”

Ian smiled with luxuriant menace. “Because you won’t like what I’ll do. Moreover, from her scent, my wife is already brassed off, and you do not want to meet her when she’s angry.”

From her scent . . . Ian knew that I was here?

Michael laughed. “You, married? That’s almost as funny as you threatening us with someone who isn’t here.”

“Oh, she’s here,” Ian replied, sounding amused now. “It’s dangerous, and I told her not to come. That meant nothing could keep her away.”

I wasn’t even insulted. So you do still know me, I thought with dark appreciation.

Michael’s expression hardened. “Enough stalling. We’re going to collect that bounty on you now—”

“Not before I get my two bags of jewels,” a smooth voice interrupted.

I hadn’t seen anyone teleport in here, and I’d been watching. No, the tall man with the closely cropped hair, handsome features, dark brown skin, and a stubbled jaw had appeared as if all the room’s shadows suddenly coalesced into a person. Power rolled off him, too, the kind I normally only felt from a Master vampire. If that wasn’t enough, the demon then turned to stare right at the corner where Leah and I floated.

I didn’t move. Maybe this demon knew our general location because he could scent me the way Ian had. But since he couldn’t see me, he couldn’t truly be sure where I was . . .

“You can drop the clever camouflage,” the demon said, bowing in our direction. “I will allow no one here to harm you.”

“Ashael?” Michael looked around. “Who are you talking to?”

“The person poised to slaughter all of you, should you make another threatening move toward Ian,” Ashael replied silkily.

One of this demon’s abilities is seeing the source of every person’s magic, Ian had said. Was that how Ashael could “see” me even when I was invisible? If so, it also explained his other comment. If he sees you, he’ll spot your half-demigod nature before you can say hallo . . .

“Hello,” I said, dropping from Leah’s arms. As soon as I did, I became visible. Every demon looked stunned except for Ashael, who stared at me with an inscrutable expression.

“My lovely bride,” Ian drawled. “Good of you to join us.”

Chapter 16

I told myself it was the tenseness of the situation that made me pick the bitchiest reply. “Oh, now you remember we’re married? You didn’t seem to recall that when you were giving your waitress the visual version of a mammogram earlier!”