Darker (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #6)(78)

The dragon on my arm itched and burned. He had used it to find me. The thought was unsettling.

“Not at all. I was just leaving.”

“Are you just going to leave him like this? For the police to find?” His tone held a note of warning, and he raised a brow, his expression disapproving.

“Yes. I highly doubt they’ll walk in here and immediately assume a werewolf did it. You are aware of what century this is, right?” I was snarky, and I wasn’t sorry about it. The demon didn’t share his business with me. Mine was certainly no concern of his.

“Veryl employed you to keep activity like this quiet.”

I shoved by him and let myself out of the room, assuming he would follow. “Yeah, well Veryl’s dead.”

Shya fell into step beside me. Even with his wings absent from sight, he carried himself with an intimidating air. “And, if the FPA catches wind of this?”

“Then, it’s their job to keep it quiet. They don’t want the public to know about us anymore than you do.” I headed down the street in the direction of my car. So much for enjoying the high, Shya was a real bring down. “Did you come here to lecture me or to talk about Lilah?”

“She didn’t just take your sister; she’s got Gabriel, too. I’ve been summoned to her sordid soirée tomorrow night. I believe she plans to force both you and me to make some hard choices.”

I looked sharply at him. An ill sensation began in the pit of my stomach. “Why would she want Gabriel? How much leverage is he over you?”

Shya clasped his hands behind his back, a grave mask replacing his usual bemused grin. “She knows I need him. Grabbing him is her way of ensuring I show.”

“What are we walking into, Shya? How bad is this going to be?”

“It’s hard to say.” He shrugged. “She’s been targeting my demons, as she has been doing with your wolves. We are the two biggest threats to her throne. She wants us vulnerable. There’s no telling what she will do to see us that way.”

A shout followed by gunshots several blocks away accompanied us as we walked. I quickened my pace. I couldn’t possibly get out of the crime-riddled neighborhood fast enough.

“What are you up to that has her so keen on bringing you down?” I asked, making no effort to hide my suspicion. “Aside from the obvious play for power. Why do you need people like Gabriel and me? What are we to you?”

Shya nodded appraisingly. “I admire you, Alexa; I do. I can feel the fear I instill in you, and still you never let it keep you from speaking your mind. There are demons that have existed since the beginning of time who are not so brave.”

“You’re not answering my question.”

Our eyes met, and I saw within Shya a glimmer of pride. He was too confident with himself. It didn’t sit well with me.

“I plan to overthrow Lilah’s kingdom, to claim it as my own. I need something specific to do that. I need a coalition of those with exceptional skill to help me maintain a stronghold on this city and the power within it. The less you know, the better. It would be a shame if one of my foes were to torture information out of you.” He said it as if it wouldn’t be a shame at all, merely an inconvenience.

“And, why the hell would we want to help you? What makes this city so special?” I hoped he would keep talking. Even a little info from Shya could shed light on the mysteries of his plans.

“There’s something here… a door that must be opened, if you will. You, Hound, will help me with that.” He was being purposely vague, as if he enjoyed making me ask questions that he didn’t intend to answer directly.

I was growing impatient. With a snarl I spat out, “Let me guess. My blood will open this door.”

“No.” He grinned, enjoying this moment. “Your death will.”

I was dumbstruck. Breathless and stunned, I struggled for the words that disappeared on the tip of my tongue. “Sorry if I don’t think that’s as f**king funny as you do.”

Shya’s look changed to one of disdain. He so easily tired of my mortal antics. “If you had any sense at all, you’d know an opportunity when you see one. Once you die your mortal death and rise as a vampire, there will be no mortal constraints on your power. No headaches. No nosebleeds. No limits.”

The bastard demon always had talked a good game. I wasn’t buying it. “When I die, the balance shifts. Arys and I won’t have the balance of light. We will just be dark. I get it. You’re a demon. You like the dark. That’s not my world.”

“Ah, you silly mortal girl, it’s always been your world.”

Considering the scene I’d just made in the motel, it was hard to argue with him. My pulse raced, and my breath came fast. He was scaring me.

We reached the Charger, and I pulled the keys from my bag. “I won’t be controlled. Not by you, not by Lilah and not by the goddamn FPA. I’m sick of you all telling me what to do and when to do it. I’m not a sixteen-year-old newbie wolf anymore. If I have as much pull in this city as you all think I do, then you should know better than to f**k with me.”

The angry tirade spilled out. This shit had to stop. I was nobody’s puppet.

Shya’s expression grew absolutely venomous. His wings appeared with a loud snap, spread wide to intimidate. He shoved me hard against the car, closing in to trap me there.