Sweet Evil (The Sweet Trilogy #1)(51)

“Hollywood!” I wasn’t up-to-date on celebrity gossip, but it sounded exciting, and I wasn’t ready to settle down yet.

We were focusing on road signs when I happened to notice writing on a small mountain.

“Oh, my gosh, Kai, look! The Hollywood sign!” I bounced in my seat and pointed to the giant white capital letters standing on the mountainside. His head tilted to the side, peering at me.

“You called me Kai.”

“Sorry,” I said.

“No, it’s okay. That’s what my friends call me.”

“Your friends?” I asked.

“As close as I have to friends, yes. Four Neph. Two I’ve known since childhood, although I’m not particularly close with any of them. It’s more like we’re all in it together.”

“Will I get to meet them?”

“I don’t know. I’m not going to tell them about you, because I think you need to lie low. But that doesn’t mean they won’t hear about you through word of mouth. The Dukes and demons are worse than a bunch of gossiping old women.” That was a funny image.

“What are your friends like?”

“Well, there’s Blake, the son of the Duke of Envy. He lives out here on one of the beaches. He was born in the Philippines. His job is the best, because all he has to do is get his hands on the latest material things and date the most beautiful women. I’ve wondered if he even feels a pull to sin. He’s completely mellow. I’ve seen him jealous only once, and it got ugly.”

“What was he jealous about?”

“A girl he liked was chatting up another bloke. Anyhow, he’s a thrill seeker. Likes all the extreme sports. He travels the world to surf. He’s got freakishly good balance. And then there are the twins, Marna and Ginger.” His voice went a little sour as he spoke of them. “Daughters of the Duke of Adultery, Astaroth. They’re dancers. I spent a good bit of my childhood with them, sharing tutors and whatnot. They still live in London. Marna can be a joy, but Ginger has not been pleasant for quite some time.”

“Are they expected to break up marriages?” I asked.

“They just turned eighteen, so they’ll be expected to now, but before they worked on other teenage couples, getting them to cheat. Neph are to steer clear of sins with adults or any spotlight while we’re underage to avoid any scandal to our fathers’ reputations among humans.” He paused, switching lanes and swiping hair from his eyes. His face and tone were grim as he continued. “The twins’ father, Astaroth, had a daughter in his last lifetime who was caught having an affair with a politician when she was only fifteen. Astaroth was dabbling in politics at the time, and there was a huge public uproar. Her actions affected his influential position, so he staged her death to look like suicide. Then he left his body and started the life he has now. Everyone thought his heart gave out from stress.”

“He killed her?” I shouldn’t have been surprised.

Kaidan gave a dry laugh of contempt. “Had her killed, most likely. Wouldn’t want to exert his own self.”

I shook my head, imagining what fear the twins must face.

“Marna and Ginger both have a special talent, like you—the female thing,” Kaidan said.

“Oh, yeah? What’s theirs?”

“They can sense bonds between people when the feelings are mutual. Attraction, romantic love, commitment. Their father sees the bonds, too. That’s how they know who to go after.”

“Wow. Girl power, only in a disturbing way. Okay, so that’s three of your friends. Who’s the last one?”

“Kopano.” He said this name with a slight frown and a tone akin to annoyance. “His father is Alocer, Duke of Wrath.”

I shivered at the mention of Wrath. “Is he mean?” I asked.

Again with the dry laugh and strange tone. “No. He’s practically a celibate monk.”

“And where does he live? Kopano.” I tried out his name.

“He’s from Africa, but he’s at college here in the States now. Kope’s situation is very hush-hush. None of the demons know about this except his father, but Kopano is lucky to be alive. A few years back he turned to God and was prepared to die rather than do his father’s work. But when he told Alocer, he allowed him to live.”

“Why?”

“Alocer loves Kope, or respects him, at the very least. It’s unheard of among our kind.”

I studied Kaidan’s face. There was something wistful in his voice. Jealousy?

“Kopano is a mystery,” he stated. “Here’s the exit.”

We ended up on the Hollywood strip. I was ecstatic to see palm trees everywhere, some short and squat, some tall with skinny trunks stretching high. But my excitement faded when I caught sight of the general emotional climate of the people crowded together everywhere. There were some happy tourists, just passing through like us, but the primary sins were present in abundance, pressing in on me. I could sense the undercurrent of addiction in so many people that I found myself clutching the door handle. I gulped hard, willing the jitters to leave me.

An attractive woman passed, keeping her head down, and from a certain angle I could see that her face was not right—not natural. Her skin was tight, her lips were overly full, and her cheekbones stuck out sharply. She was dark with self-loathing. I wondered how many plastic surgeries she’d had. It was clear that underneath all of the changes, she had been a beautiful woman to begin with.