Storm and Fury

by Jennifer L. Armentrout

  I wanted to push, but he was right, so I dropped it for now. The hall we walked was long and narrow, and when it curved to the right, I saw what appeared to be a restaurant packed with human-shaped forms.

  Roth spared me a quick grin. “Told you it’s not what you expected.”

  “You were definitely right,” I murmured, turning my attention to a young woman who stood at the hostess desk.

  She barely looked at me as she focused on Roth, her already thin lips becoming nonexistent. “You again.”

  “Rowena, did you miss me?” Roth smiled as he rested his forearms on the hostess stand. “I missed you.”

  “No,” she said, taking a step back from him. “I did not miss you. Are you here to see Faye?”

  Roth nodded as he straightened.

  The woman sighed so loudly there was a chance she cracked a rib in the process. “Follow me.”

  Rowena led us through the maze of tables, past people who looked like, well, normal people. They all stared at Roth like they knew exactly what he was and none of them seemed overly thrilled about it as they scooted their chairs in, giving him wide berth.

  I didn’t know what I was expecting exactly. Okay. I was expecting women in a long black dresses and men in robes, chanting mystical words and fires—lots of fires. I was not expecting people in jeans and summer dresses eating fried calamari.

  I was kind of disappointed.

  We came to a round booth that was occupied by a pretty young woman with short dark hair. She looked up as Rowena deposited us there, surprise splashing across her face, quickly followed by wariness.

  “Hello, Faye,” Roth said.

  “Roth.” The woman started to stand up. “This is a surprise—Oh!”

  Something happened.

  Something really weird.

  A...shadow drifted off her body, breaking apart into a million tiny black dots. They dropped to the floor and spun together, swirling and rising back up, together forming a—

  “Holy crap.” I jumped back, pressing my hand to my chest as my grace sparked alive inside me and a huge snake, at least ten feet long and as wide as me, appeared no more than a foot away.

  The snake threw itself at Roth, its thick body weaving and wiggling as it rested its diamond-shaped head on Roth’s shoulder, its red tongue darting in and out, wiggling.

  It wasn’t trying to kill me.

  It wasn’t trying to kill Roth.

  My mouth dropped open. It reminded me of a happy dog—if a happy dog was a giant freaking snake, but it was squirming around, its tail thumping on the floor. Wait. Did snakes have tails? I had no idea, but I felt like I needed to sit down.

  “Hey, girl, miss me?” Roth scratched the giant snake’s head. “I know. It’s been too long.”

  I blinked slowly. “That’s...that’s a giant snake.”

  “It is.” Roth kissed its nose. “This is Bambi.”

  “The snake’s name is Bambi?” I squeaked.

  “I have a thing for Disney,” he answered, and I found that even more disturbing. “She’s one of my familiars, but she’s currently on loan to this witch—”

  “That wasn’t the deal,” Faye said, and then shut it when Roth sent her a look I couldn’t see.

  A familiar? Holy Moses, I’d read about them, but of course had never seen one. They looked like tattoos when resting, but came off the skin and were alive upon summoning. Only the most powerful of Upper Level demons had them.

  My gaze shot to his arm. The kitten tattoo was still there. Was that also a familiar? A kitten?

  “Bambi, this is Trinity. She’s a friend,” he continued as the snake weaved and then twisted its long, thick body toward me.

  My eyes widened.

  “And what do we do to friends?” Roth said. “We don’t eat them, Bambi.”

  “She...she eats people?” I asked.

  “She eats all manner of things. Sometimes demons, sometimes people. She hasn’t eaten an angel. Yet. Thumper, on the other hand, has fried an Alpha,” Roth answered.

  “Thumper?”

  Grinning, Roth pulled up the side of his shirt and all along his taunt waist was a vibrant blue and gold...

  “Oh my God, is that a dragon?” I whispered.

  He winked. “That it is.” He let go of his shirt. “Have a seat, Trinity.”

  Giving Bambi wide berth, I scooted into the booth opposite Faye, and Roth sat down next to me. A second later, Bambi flopped across Roth’s lap, and I scooted as far as I could go as the snake stared up at me with unholy red eyes.

  “What can I help you with, Roth?” Faye asked, glancing at me curiously.

  “We’re in need of information,” he answered as he idly rubbed the top of Bambi’s head.

  “That much I figured.” She tucked a short strand of hair back from her ear. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to sound rude, but who are you?”

  “A friend of Roth’s,” I said, thinking that was a sentence I’d never thought I’d say before, and based on the way the demon was smirking, he thoroughly enjoyed that statement. “I’m looking for a friend. A Warden who was taken by a demon.”

  “A demon who’s suddenly become very active in the city,” Roth added. “His name is Bael.”

  “You know that we rarely...consort with demons.” She reached for her glass of red wine, her hand trembling slightly.

  Faye was nervous.

  “I know you consort with demons and all kinds of things when it benefits the coven,” he replied smoothly. “So, let’s cut the political blessed-be bullshit about how you guys are good witches who worship trees and hold hands, singing ‘Kumbaya.’”

  My brows rose.

  “You and I both know differently,” he said, the teasing grin gone from his lips. “A large posse of humans attacked a Warden settlement. They were working with Bael, and there is no way he possessed all of them.”

  “Which begs the question of how one demon could amass a small army of humans willing to die for him,” I chimed in. “I think I know the answer.”

  Faye stiffened.

  “As do I.” Roth tipped forward. “Has your coven, perhaps, aided a certain demon with an enchantment spell? Possibly one that allows you to control humans? And let’s not pretend that such a spell does not exist.”

  Her lips pursed. “There is such an...enchantment—a spell. One not often used and typically forbidden.”

  I was momentarily distracted by the sound of a little engine running next to me. I glanced down at Bambi. Was that snake...purring?

  Bambi looked at me, showing its forked tongue.

  Alrighty, then.

  “But you guys like to do what’s forbidden,” Roth countered. “Did you help Bael with such a spell?”

  Taking a drink of her wine, she then shook her head as she swallowed hard. “You’re not a Warden,” she said to me.

  “No, I’m not.”

  “So why would you care about an attack on a Warden settlement?” she asked Roth.

  “Did I say I care?”

  I shot him a withering look.

  “Did your coven help Bael with this enchantment?” he asked.

  “If we did, and that’s a big if, we’re not responsible for what he did with the spell,” she said.

  My brows snapped together. “Not responsible? That’s like setting fire to a bush and walking away from it and then that fire spreads to an apartment building and takes out the whole thing. You didn’t intend for it to happen, but you’re still responsible. What did you think he was going to do with such an enchantment? Use it to convince a group of humans to do charity work?”

  Roth snorted.

  The witch’s grip tightened on the wineglass.

  “I’m growing bored with this conversation, Faye.” Roth leaned back. “Did your coven have contact with Bael?”

 
She was quiet for a long moment. “You do realize how much this could blow back on us if it gets out we were divulging...others’ activities?”

  Roth continued petting Bambi’s head as he looked over to me and smiled. “And you do realize I don’t give a flying crap about what blows back on you? You should be more worried about getting on my bad side.”

  “Well, of course, but—”

  “But what you don’t realize is that you really do not want to get on her bad side,” he continued, and I lifted a hand, wiggling my fingers. “Answer the damn question.”

  Faye eyed me for a long moment and then she shuddered. “Just so you know, I advised the coven against aiding anyone with such a spell, but I was outvoted. It wasn’t a demon who came to us two months ago.”

  Hope had sparked and then died in my chest. “It wasn’t a demon?”

  She shook her head. “It was a human who came and asked for that spell.”

  I looked at Roth, wondering if she was telling the truth or not.

  “Who was the human?”

  Faye pressed her lips together as she gave a little shake of her head. “It was... His name is Josh Fisher.”

  That name meant nothing to me.

  “Josh Fisher?” Roth repeated. “Do you happen to mean Senator Josh Fisher, the Senate Majority Leader? That Josh Fisher?”

  I felt my heart skip a beat as Faye nodded. “That would be him.”

  “Why in the world would a senator want that kind of enchantment?” I asked, dumbfounded. “And not use it to, I don’t know, sway votes or something?”

  “I don’t know why he needed it—”

  “Do you get people looking for that enchantment a lot?” Roth demanded.

  Faye stiffened. “Well, no. This was the first—”

  “So we can safely assume that this enchantment was used to virtually turn humans into cannon fodder.”

  “Bael was seen with someone two nights ago. We don’t know who it was or if the person was human or not,” I told Roth. “But the senator would have to know demons to know that witches could do something like this, right?”

  “Right.” Roth eyed Faye. “Unless he was a witch, but I’m going to go out on a limb here and say he wasn’t a witch, right?”

  “Right,” Faye muttered.

  I tipped forward, resting my arms on the table. “Do you know why he wanted the spell?”

  “We didn’t ask.” She finished off her wine. “Some things are better not known. He offered a rather large sum of money.”

  “How convenient,” Roth murmured. “You cannot tell me that not one of you was a wee bit concerned about what a goddamn senator would do with such a spell? Was money that desperately needed?”

  “Money isn’t the only thing he offered,” she said, crossing her arms. “He offered something else that’s highly coveted—something none of us have.”

  “And that is?”

  “A nephilim,” she whispered.

  I stilled as I stared back at the witch. “And why would you want a nephilim?” I asked even though there was a part of me that already knew.

  “There are many spells that need...parts of a nephilim,” she answered. “Bones. Tissues. Hairs.”

  Anger flared as I glared at the woman who was talking about my parts like they were seasonings for a pie.

  “And why do you think a senator would have access to a creature that was wiped out a millennium ago?” Roth asked.

  That creature was currently getting nudged in the thigh by a giant freaking snake. I glanced down and Bambi stared at me with big, hopeful red eyes.

  Faye looked around before saying, “Because he said he knew one was alive and that he knew how to get it.”

  “How?” I asked.

  “He said he had the nephilim’s Protector.”

  My skin pricked with the need to reach across the table and punch the witch in the face. “Did he happen to tell you where he had this...Protector?”

  She shook her head. “Only thing that he told us is that he expected to have this nephilim by the end of the solstice.”

  “The solstice is in a few days,” I said as Bambi nudged me again.

  “It is,” she said with a shrug. “So we’ll find out shortly if he’s able to hold up his end of the bargain.”

  “He won’t be able to.” I reached down, barely touching the top of Bambi’s head. The scales were rough and cool to the touch. “That you can count on, so I hope that money was worth those innocent human lives.”

  A muscle flexed in her jaw.

  “You’ve only interacted with this senator?” he asked. “Not Bael?”

  She shook her head. “Correct.”

  “You can find out where they have this Protector, can’t you?” I asked. “Can’t witches do...scrying spells?”

  “Not on Wardens or demons,” she answered. “It only works on humans.”

  “We don’t need that to find the senator,” Roth advised.

  Bambi pressed up against my palm, obviously not pleased with my lack of effort. I grimaced as I put a little pressure on the snake’s head. She hummed in response.

  “Is there anything else you can tell us?” Roth asked.

  Faye sat her empty glass on the table. “I know he wasn’t working alone. When he came to us, he was on the phone constantly with someone who appeared to be giving him the orders,” she explained. “That’s all I know.”

  That was news and not great news. One Upper Level demon to deal with was bad enough, and if there was a possibility of more?

  I sank back against the booth.

  “Thank you for being so helpful,” Roth said with a hint of sarcasm. “I think it’s time that we leave.” Tapping the snake, he leaned back as he lifted her head from my leg and withdrew from the booth, allowing both of us to stand.

  “I’ll see you soon.” Roth patted Bambi’s head and then gestured at Faye with his chin. “Go back to her.”

  The familiar wiggled and then let out a very human-sounding sigh before breaking apart into the dots that formed a thick shadow. The mass drifted back to Faye, inking itself on the witch’s arm.

  “Roth,” Faye called out as we stepped away from the booth. “We’ll be leaving soon. You should be doing the same.”

  A chill swept down my spine as the prince turned back to her.

  “The whole coven is leaving,” she continued.

  Tiny hairs on the back of my neck stood up. “Why?”

  “Something is here and we want no part of it.” Her dark gaze slid to me. “But I have a feeling you’ll find out what that something is sooner rather than later.”

  “Well, that’s creepy and not remotely helpful, but thanks,” I said, shaking my head as I turned away. Roth followed me into the hall. “You think she was talking about this demon that’s killing Wardens and other demons?”

  Roth lifted a shoulder. “I don’t think it’s a demon.”

  “Then what could it be?”

  He looked at me curiously.

  “I just don’t get it.” I stopped in the center of the hall. “Why is a senator involved with this? What does he think he can gain? It can’t be money. And if this senator has already bartered away most of me, then what does Bael plan to do with me? Just kill me?”

  “Well, he is a demon. Demons like to kill stuff, especially...” He leaned in and whispered, “Angelic stuff.”

  I rolled my eyes. “That can’t be it. It cannot be that simple and stupid.”

  “Some demons are that simple and stupid. So are a lot of humans,” he went on. “Sometimes the most obvious answer is the stupidest one.”

  I stared at him a moment. That was about as helpful as the witch. “This is good news, though. We find out where the senator is, we should be able to find out where Bael is, right?”

  “Should,” Roth answered
. “If Bael has let the senator know where he is. The senator could always be possessed.”

  “Don’t rain on my parade,” I told him.

  “I’m just thinking of all the possible avenues,” he replied. “There could be a lot of dead ends, Trinity. If Bael is using this senator to do his dirty work, there’s a good chance that Bael was smart enough to cover his bases. This may not be as simple as going to this senator’s house and getting all your answers.”

  “I know.”

  He inclined his head. “Do you?”

  I did, but I was hoping it was that easy. I turned and started for the elevator, mulling over what the witch had told us and the creepy warning that I had a feeling had to do with whatever was killing both Wardens and demons. This meeting might not have given me all the answers I wanted, but it wasn’t a complete loss. We had another avenue, and it might be a dead end like Roth suggested, but I was going to find out. I reached for the call button on the elevator.

  Roth spoke then, three little, earthshaking words. “Zayne loves Layla.”

  31

  Every muscle in my body locked up. “What?”

  “He’s been in love with her since they were kids,” he said. “And Layla loves him. She’s loved him since she was a child. They were even together for a while.”

  Slowly, I turned to face the demon prince. We were close enough that I could make out his expression. There was no smirk or laugh to his lips, no animosity to his amber eyes, no malicious intent.

  “Layla just loves me more,” he continued. “And I know, if Layla and I had never met, she and Zayne would be together. Hell, sometimes I’m surprised that she didn’t choose him over me.” He sighed. “He’s a far better man than I could ever hope to become.”

  So thrown by what he was saying, I was at a loss for words. All I could say once I got my mouth to move was, “He loves her?”

  Roth leaned against the wall. “Yeah. I mean, as of six months ago, he did. I can’t imagine that kind of love—you know, loving someone for years and years and years—has faded that quickly.”

  A tiny fissure opened in my chest, proving to me just how much I’d come to like Zayne—how much I liked him without even realizing it.

  Why should that be so surprising?