“All these cells,” I say distractedly, my heart still hurting from the death window I accidentally opened.

“Bars were put up on Simpleton doors. They couldn’t break through them at one time, and it was necessary. They panicked easily when there was a storm at this altitude,” Vance tells me as he gingerly rubs circles on my back, his hand slipping inside my coat, fingers lightly grazing my skin before his hand settles on my hip.

His skin is so warm that I certainly don’t complain. My heart is still beating too fast, and him touching me really is comforting.

“It found me in Caroline’s room, so maybe it’s protective of that spot,” I suggest.

Arion’s eyes narrow on me, and Vance stiffens just behind me.

“What?” I ask in confusion.

“How would you know which room is Caroline’s?” Damien asks as he turns the corner, just as much suspicion in his eyes.

Their eyes dip to my open coat, as Vance releases me and slowly steps away.

“That really is nice underwear,” Vance states, just as much suspicion lacing his tone as what’s glinting from Damien and Arion’s gaze.

Ah, so this is what life is like with Idun on the surface. Just peachy.

“So her strongest tool is casting webs of paranoia and doubt when you’re with someone else,” I say like it’s all adding up.

“Little odd you screamed my name when falling, love. After all, you’re falling much harder for the Van Helsing, and everyone knows he’s the hero of the bedtime stories,” Arion adds, piling on by this point.

“Is there a quick way for you three to know for certain it’s me standing here and not Idun? Let’s skip to that,” I say, glancing between their very confused gazes now.

“Quickest way is to give Arion a sampling,” Damien says, head canted like he’s studying me really hard.

“I’m curious,” I say as I absently lift my hand to my throat, deciding that’s a terrible idea, “who dressed me in this suspicious underwear I’m wearing right now.”

“Emit dressed you,” they all three say at once.

“While we were outside,” Damien adds, eyes still narrowed.

“And he’s conveniently missing at current,” Vance adds tightly.

Instead of thinking about it too hard, I walk over to Arion, whose gaze narrows more and more the quicker I approach. The second I’m right in front of him, I expose my neck to him and screw my eyes shut.

“Make it quicker than last time. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m really not a fan of pain,” I state on a tired breath.

Arion roughly tugs me flush against him and starts to lean over, when Damien cuts in. “From the wrist, Arion. Not the neck.”

Arion blows out a frustrated breath that trickles down the side of my neck, before I feel his fingers closing around my wrist and lifting it. I keep my eyes shut, dreading the impending pain, as he barely presses a kiss to my pulse.

“Idun would never let him sample her so easily,” Vance says as he steps up behind me.

“Just taste me so you’ll know it’s me, and come up with a better system in the future, please,” I state a little angrily.

Maybe Idun will be a little bit of my damn problem if this is going to be the new normal.

Sharp points pierce my skin, but it’s not anywhere close to as painful as last time. Just a small prick, and then soft, gentle, almost erotic suckling follows. My knees surprisingly wobble, and there’s a very inconvenient throbbing starting between my thighs.

What fresh hell is this?

Arion groans against my wrist as he sucks a little harder, and his hand tightens on my ass as he draws me closer.

“I don’t know if we can trust him. Not with anything pertaining to Idun,” Damien says, as Arion grows more insistent, pressing me completely to him as he continues to drink.

How long does a sampling take? Why doesn’t it hurt like it’s supposed to? Why is it freaking turning me on?

The front of Arion’s jeans begins to draw my attention, because he presses the hard ridge there against me. My breath gets shaky as a warmth buds through my core, and in the next instant, a barrage of scandalous images flood my mind—images of Damien and I surrounded by mirrors as he had his way with me that first time.

My gaze drifts to him, seeing the heat in his eyes as he studies me, while Arion shoves my coat open and drags one of my legs up on his hips, still drinking from my wrist, as he works down my underwear.

My body is so on fire that I can’t think or act or even care what’s going on. I want them all right now.

Arion’s mouth quickly detaches from my wrist, and his mouth moves to my neck so fast that no one registers it, until a sharp prick is quickly smoothed by a gentle mouth.

My breath hitches, and I lazily reach out an arm for Damien, as those images continue to assault my mind, making me crave more touch.

Damien is suddenly in front of me, and his lips crash against mine, as I moan into his mouth.

Arion’s hand slides up my bare thigh, but it stops just in front of where I want it—where I want to be touched more than anywhere else.

His lips break from my neck, as his breathing grows labored, and Damien continues to kiss me stupid.

“Definitely not Idun,” Arion groans. “Why the fucking hell did you mess with her head, you bloody prat. I could’ve had her if you didn’t do that. Now it’d get me in trouble while she’s not of sound mind. Right? It would get me in trouble?”

Damien says nothing as he drags me away from Arion, and my legs immediately wrap around the illusionist’s waist when he lifts me, kissing me even harder.

“It’s a little wrong for you to do this right now, as well, Damien,” Vance points out dryly, but the sexual deviant starts carrying me away when I reach down to start undoing the front of his pants.

“If he gets to touch her right now, then I shouldn’t be stopped either,” Arion argues.

A very familiar, sharp growl has Damien tearing his lips away from mine, breathing heavily, as I struggle with his zipper…but finally succeed at last.

I don’t even care about the unknown beast right now. They can handle it. I just want to be—

“Ahhh… She was talking about Blue. I idly wondered as much,” Vance states.

“I forgot about the eyes,” Arion murmurs thoughtfully.

I have no idea what they’re talking about, nor do I care.

Damien stills my busy hands with just one of his, his breaths rasp and shallow, and the fog slowly lifts from my mind. A small chill settles in, raking over all the glorious heat Damien’s powers apparently provide when he’s using his darker gifts.

“Definitely not Idun,” he assures them, though they seem to already be convinced.

Wanting the heat back, I drag him down and start kissing him again, causing him to groan as he shoves me against a wall.

In an annoyed tone, Arion says, “Bloody fucking hell. She was in my arms, and he literally took her from me when I was—”

A shriek bubbles out of me, and I break the kiss, leaping off Damien, because I hear that growl again, and this time I’m not too distracted.

I end up whirling around to see the glowing yellow eyes peering out from under a wall’s crack.

“What is that?” I hiss, backing into Damien now.

“Blue,” they all three say at once, like it’s no big deal there’s a yellow-eyed demon staring at us from under the crack of the wall.

“He must have spent all this time hiding in the creases,” Damien adds with the same conversational tone, kissing the side of my neck, as his hands start moving under the coat. “Don’t work me up and leave me hanging, sweet Violet,” he murmurs.

“There’s a homicidal maniac on the other side of that wall, and you’re all calling him Blue like he’s a harmless Chihuahua. I’ve seen its teeth. And you used your sex deviant mojo on me to get me worked up that first go around,” I remind him, patting his arm and pointing to the creepy demon eyes.

“Are we going to end up in a ball of flames on the ceiling? Because I think I’ve seen that in a movie or something involving yellow-eyed demons,” I add like it’s really crucial, because it is.

Burning sucks. It takes forever to heal. At least a day or two.

It certainly takes a lot longer heal from than it took Damien to heal from the broken leg I think he had earlier.

“Anyone have any idea what she’s talking about? I’ve been underground too long to catch half her meanings,” Arion says on a frustrated breath.

“Liar. You’re more current than everyone, aside from possibly Emit,” I argue absently, as the unidentifiable beast snorts under the wall. “Any chance Blue’s sharp teeth are misleading and he’s secretly a vegan?”

“I’m not entirely sure what he eats. I doubt he’d settle for kibble,” Vance states as he brushes by me and whistles like he’s calling a dog.

The beast snarls and growls a few seconds before it lunges at the wall, and barks like a feral sadist thirsty for blood.

An embarrassing, shrill sound escapes me, and somehow I end up tucked next to Arion’s side.

“Easy, love,” Arion says like he’s amused. “He’s already scared. Don’t terrify the poor hound.”

I stare up at him like he’s lost his damn mind.

Vance’s flashlight is bigger and much better than mine was. He shines it around the wall’s edges.

“What are you doing?” I snap as he starts searching the wall like he’s trying to look for a secret panel or something.

“I was going to get him out of here. I feel bad knowing he’s been left here for a thousand years, forgotten.”

“Now? Now you elect to grow a conscience? Do you have any idea how terrifying that thing is? It tried to eat my face!”

Blue snaps, and I end up wrapped around Arion. Somehow.

My legs and arms are tightly twined around his waist and neck. Cautiously, I peer back over my shoulder and crack one eye open.

“I’m a little worried that Blue’s scaring you,” Arion says next to my ear, as he easily holds me to him.

“Why wouldn’t a crazed, feral monster scare me?” I snap, feeling him grin next to my cheek.

“You’re curled around one far worse than Blue, love,” he dutifully informs me.

“Try to eat my face, and I promise I won’t be coiled around you,” I assure him, tightening my grip when Vance studies an odd stone for far too long.

“Says the girl who’s been eaten by the monster she’s clinging to. Twice,” Damien says, holding up two fingers.

“Says the monster who’s fed off her far more than I,” Arion chides.

“Are you trying to talk me out of liking you?” I cut in, just as the stone pops, and Blue comes racing out of the wall in front of me instead of the one I was expecting.

I scream as Arion darts to the side, still holding me, and I hear a whimper and whine that has me looking over once again.