Kenta nodded. “That’s not bad—we should offer a reward if anyone’s seen him—or better yet, found him.”
The prince grinned. “I think I can provide a sizable reward for Sam.”
“Sounds like we have a plan.” Princess Imogen beamed at all of us. “I think you all know what this calls for.” She stuck her arm straight out in front of her, palm down.
Her little flame groaned, and even most of her friends looked less than enthusiastic.
I leaned close to Madeline. “What’s she doing?”
The reporter shrugged.
The princess threw her head back and huffed. “Oh, come on!”
Her friends and husband reluctantly circled up around her and stacked their hands on top of hers. Madeline and I followed suit, and I found myself turned sideways, smashed between Yann, the big redheaded dude, and Rhonda the Seer.
“One—two—three—Go team take down Ludolf and find Sam!” Princess Imogen threw her hand up and the others and I followed suit, though I had no idea what I was doing. As awkward as it was, I just felt grateful—and jittery with nerves. The royal group was on my side, and we were actually going to take down Ludolf… or die trying.
15
THE DOOR
After some discussion, we decided it’d be best to move the shifters who were still trapped in their animal forms out of my apartment and into the much safer—and larger—royal palace. I knew Heidi would miss taking care of them—especially the sloth, who she carried everywhere like a baby—but it’d be way safer for them and her.
Ludolf’s goons had been keeping an eye on my place. And while Peter had made sure to send police patrols around as often as he could, it still made me uneasy that Heidi was there alone so much of the time.
Amelia, the event coordinator, had promised to pop over to the jail and pass a message along to Peter, filling him in on our plans. I knew he wouldn’t like that I was going down into the sewers, but when it all turned out fine, I was sure he’d forgive me. Hopefully, it would turn out fine.
A few of the group stayed behind, but Prince Harry; Princess Imogen and her flame, Iggy; Maple; her boyfriend, Wiley; Cat; Francis the vampire; and Rhonda the Seer snuck out of the palace and came with me back to the Darkmoon District.
I bit my lip and glanced at the royal group to gauge their reactions as we passed three drunk men stumbling through the street, arms over each other’s shoulders, singing sloppy sea shanties. One of them rushed to the gutter and vomited up his dinner.
I bit back a grin, half worried, half amused. Welcome to the Darkmoon.
But the princess just shrugged at her blond friend, Maple. “Eh. No worse than the Rusted Wreck on a Saturday night.”
Maple giggled.
The prince leaned close to me to be heard as we passed a lively bar, dancing spilling into the street, a bass beat thumping so loud it made my teeth rattle. “The Rusted Wreck is our favorite dive bar in Bijou Mer. We visit it anytime we’re in town.”
I shoved my hands in my jacket pockets, chilly from the fall night air. Clouds drifted across the moon, and bats winged overhead, chirping.
Weeeee!
Josh—bugs over here!
I frowned, amused. “No offense, but I have a hard time seeing you lot hanging out in a dive bar.”
We took a shortcut down a dark, narrow alley. The ancient buildings leaned in overhead to the point that they nearly touched.
Wiley, the tall one, fell in behind me, Cat riding on his shoulders. The strange little creature chirruped and chittered, and I had the uneasy sensation of again not being able to understand him. I’d gotten so used to speaking to animals that it felt deeply uncomfortable to not be able to converse with this one.
Wiley chuckled. “If you’d have met me a couple of years ago, you wouldn’t have a hard time picturing it. I practically grew up in dive bars.”
Maple let out a disapproving noise.
“Those days are behind me now.” Wiley dropped his voice to a stage whisper. “Mostly.”
Maple clicked her tongue. Someone was in the doghouse. I grinned to myself—Daisy would not have approved of that saying. Weird—I kind of missed the furry mutt.
We emerged from the alley on the other side and wound our way toward my home. I tried to take as many alleys and side streets as possible to avoid the busy shopping and dining areas. Francis and Rhonda were so well known that despite their disguises of sunglasses and hats, it’d be hard not to recognize the world’s last vampire and the famous psychic—who pulled down her glasses and winked at her reflection in every window we passed.
I checked my street and found it mostly clear—except for the debris blowing through the gutters, the pulsing bar below my flat, and the usual beggars, partiers, and general riffraff. I turned and waved the group forward.
I grinned back at them. “Now, prepare to be underwhelmed, this isn’t quite on par with your palatial digs.”
The princess snorted. “I lived in what was basically a closet back in Seattle, so don’t sweat it.”
“Before you burned it down?” Iggy sweetly asked.
She shot him a look, and he cackled.
There seemed to be a story there.
“Oh!” I held up a finger. “And to the tall guys, watch your heads. The stairwell’s steep and—” I stopped dead in my tracks. The metal door to my apartment—the one we’d given Heidi strict instructions to keep locked—stood ajar. Icy dread flooded my stomach.
“Oh, no no no no no!” I rushed forward, shaky with panic. My door was plastered in peeling band posters and graffiti and through it all, a symbol had been carved into the metal that looked like a crooked letter t—Ludolf’s symbol.
“No! That sea slug!” I pounded my fist against the door. It boomed like a drum as the swinging door slammed against the brick wall.
“What’s wrong?”
“You okay?”
The voices of my new
