Hunted

chair, her back to Lord Gabreel and the members of the Order. She studied us, one at a time. “All you have to do is hand over the Kris Dagger, and I’ll get her.”

Remy inched closer to her, the expression on his face saying exactly where he’d like to send Solange. “Do you think we are that stupid? That we would trust you to keep your word?”

“I have the upper hand here, handsome. That means I call the shots.” She glanced at me and sneered. “So what is it going to be, little sis? The dagger or your friend?”

That was a no-brainer, but I now understood why the Goddess Xenia had transferred the powers of the dagger to me. She’d known Solange and her minions would come after it. Had she also known they’d kidnap Kim?

“You can have it.” I pulled the dagger out and stopped the power inside me from connecting with it, rendering it useless.

Bran gripped my arm. “No. We will meet somewhere neutral for the trade. Away from humans, her followers, or the Order.”

“That’s out of the question,” Solange said. “I take it now or you forget your friend ever existed.”

Remy growled.

Solange studied him. “What? Is she someone special to you, or do you just hate me?”

“I wouldn’t waste an emotion on you, Solange,” Remy retorted. “You touch a hair on her head and you are mine.”

Solange faked a shudder. “I can’t wait. I haven’t had fun with a Guardian…” she winked at Bran, “since our time together. If my memories are correct, it was exciting.”

Now I was the one vowing to hunt her down. How dare she bring up her past relationship with Bran!

“You have fifteen minutes to bring Kim to the old train station or we are coming for you, your father, and his army,” Bran added.

Solange laughed. “Now who’s underestimating the other? First, you have no idea where my hideout is. Second, I’m not walking into a trap. Third, we don’t have an army.” Solange threw a hasty look over her shoulder at Lord Gabreel and his cronies, then stood. “I’ll mingle with the others in the common room while you discuss my terms, then do as I say.”

But we had seen her reaction and reached the same conclusion.

Bran chuckled. “They don’t know about your little army, do they?” He glanced at the demons behind Solange. They hadn’t said a thing since she arrived. “Do you? She and her renegade friends are the ones kidnapping your children.”

“Is this true?” Lord Gabreel roared.

Solange glared at the demon. “No, it’s not. Why do I need an army when I have Coronis’ Athame?”

Bran blocked her path when she started for the door. “Or maybe it is not an army you are after. Maybe an unlimited supply of power is what you and your father need. Living in the pit can be a bitch when you can’t self- heal. Does he have blistered skin from being vanquished? Maybe the flesh is falling off his skin from infection?”

“You don’t know what you are talking about.” Solange gripped the hilt of her dagger and backed up.

Bran followed her, reckless with his taunts and his life. I inched closer in case my crazy sister forgot we were in the room and did something stupid. The others positioned themselves around the room, keeping an eye on the Order in case all this was staged.

“How many demons does he drain a day?” Bran asked. “The young men and women you rounded up just don’t cut it anymore, right? He needs the unlimited power of the Kris Dagger, and you, his dutiful daughter, decided to get it for him.”

“He doesn’t need anyone’s energy,” Solange said with a sneer. “He’s stronger than ever, and the wielder of the red Athame is the one that drains psi energies. I am the wielder, not him.” She pulled out the dagger, the blade glowing red. “I could drain your powers where you stand, Bran Llyr,” Solange threatened in a cold voice, her eyes changing color until they were the color of her blade.

The monkey on my back leapt and shot toward my right hand. I didn’t care if the archangels locked on us when I used my powers. The Red Athame was a leech, a life-sucker, and my sister wasn’t using it in my presence.

Contain your powers, Bran warned me.

I got them under control, but one false move and she’s dead.

A smile flickered in his emerald eyes. I got this.

“No one forced those demons to join us. We offered them a better life and leadership than they did,” she jerked her head to indicate the Order. “You have your army, and so do we.” She raised the dagger in the air and red light streamed from it, passing through the paneled ceiling.

“What is she doing?” Lunaris asked.

“Sending a signal,” Remy ground out.

In a second, Lord Gabreel went from seated to Solange’s side, his hand wrapped around her neck, his fangs elongating. For one brief moment I was sure he would tilt her head and sink his fangs into her neck. Solange must have thought the same because color drained from her face.

“My sons and daughters are your father’s power source?” the Nosferatu asked, speaking slowly. “You will tell me where he is hiding.” He bared his fangs. “Now.”

Solange shifted into smoke form, her laughter echoing eerily in the room. Before it stopped, screams from the hall split the air, sending a chill up my spine. A loud crash followed, then the door collapsed under the weight of demons in costumes. Some still wore their masks. Others tripped on their gowns before bursting into flames as energy balls hit them from behind. I shoved the Kris Dagger in its sheath and pulled two knives from the straps around my thighs.

“Leave…go…teleport out of here,” Lord Gabreel yelled to his followers as they poured into the ballroom.

“Where do we go, Lord Gabreel?” one demoness asked.

“Check into human hotels and wait for my signal.”

“Bunch of sissies,” Sykes said, lips curled in distaste, his hazel eyes already glowing as he switched to battle mode.

“They are not fighters,” Lord Gabreel snapped. “Most of them are Civilians, and this is their home.”

“Then get them out of our way,” Bran called back, already moving toward the hell pit in the other room.

We followed.

“Bring me the Kris Dagger.” Solange’s words floated into the ballroom, and a feeling of deja vu washed over me. Coronis had said the exact same words a year ago.

Bran paused, moved to my side, grabbed the back of my head and kissed me. It wasn’t a soft kiss. It was hard, merciless and an affirmation of his feelings for me under the circumstances. “I love you, Sunshine, but right now, I want you to do whatever it takes to put her under your spell. I don’t care how you do it…knock her out, get inside her head just stop her from leaving. She’s the key to finding Kim.” He turned and disappeared in the chaos.

Remember, don’t use your powers, Remy reminded us telepathically from somewhere in the atrium. The last thing we need is Raphael and his army finding us.

Yelps and screams sent another jolt of disgust through me. The stench of dying demons—a mixture of rotten garbage and a sickly scent like baby powder—hung heavy in the air.

Izzy shoved something in my pocket before she disappeared. I dug into the pocket and touched crystals. Someone grabbed my arm and I responded instinctively—raising my dagger and bringing it down.

“It’s me, Lilith.” Lord Gabreel let go of my arm and teleported out of the way before I made contact. “We thought you had our children and we were willing to negotiate a deal for their return. We didn’t know one of our own was doing this.”

“Why are you telling me this now?” I asked impatiently.

“Don’t trap Solange. Kill her. The more people she drains, the stronger and hungrier for power she’ll become. Just like Coronis. Kill her now.”