Dominic yanked my hair, throwing me onto the marble floor of Selena’s living room.

I winced as my sore hip hit the floor.

“It looks like my demons are still fighting some of this siren’s men,” he said, snarling. “I guess we have no choice but to wait for them to finish before we make our way back to the cars. I have a private jet waiting for us in Charleston. Cost quite a lot of money to charter a jet on such short notice, but I know you’ll make it up to me, won’t you, Eva?”

Dominic walked over to a large butler’s pantry and opened a bottle of wine. He poured himself a glass and took a sip, as casually as if he were at a dinner party.

“Very nice,” he said, nodding to Selena. “You have fine tastes, my dear. You’ll fit right in back home. I can’t wait to show you off to all of my friends.”

One of his more powerful demon underlings came into the room and whispered something in Dominic’s ear. The two of them began a heated discussion about something I couldn’t understand.

Selena backed against the wall and slid down to the floor, her tears still pouring down her face in waves. For someone so ancient and powerful, she looked terrified. And I honestly couldn’t blame her.

Trying not to draw Dominic’s attention, I crawled over to her. He still hadn’t thought to tie ropes around my hands, which meant I had one good shot at bringing him down before he realized his error.

“Where did you put my purse?” I asked her as quietly as I could.

She jerked her head toward me, her eyes questioning.

“My purse?” I asked again.

As long as she hadn’t removed it, my dagger was still inside of it. I wasn’t sure it would be powerful enough to kill a demon like Dominic, but I at least had to try.

Selena lifted her chin, motioning for me to remove the black mask around her face, but that was too risky. She obviously hadn’t been able to successfully lure him with her song the first time, and as soon as Dominic realized I’d set her free, he would be on us both so fast, we might as well already be dead.

I shook my head and asked about the purse again. Before she could answer, though, I felt the energy shift in the room. Someone else was in here with us, but I couldn't see anyone nearby. Still, I could feel a presence.

His presence.

I searched for Nik, somehow knowing in my heart he was here.

As soon as Dominic’s man bowed and left the room, I caught sight of movement near the dining room door.

Nik appeared out of thin air, his hand raised. He threw something down onto the floor with great force. A glass vial broke open and long, green vines began to shoot across the marble floors and up the walls. It happened so fast, not even Dominic had a chance to react before the entire room was covered in thick vegetation.

The moment I realized what was happening, I grabbed Selena and pulled her deeper into the jungle of growth in the room. When I’d gotten several feet away, I stopped and went to work on the red ropes binding her hands.

As soon as the ropes were untied, she tore at the black mask around her face, gasping for air the moment she’d removed it.

“Thank you,” she said.

“Listen to me very carefully,” I said. “It won’t take Dominic long to get rid of these vines. Tell me where you put my purse. I know you’re scared, but if we both want to make it out of this alive, we’re going to have to work together.”

Selena nodded. “Jennings put it on the table in the front entryway,” she said, her body trembling. “But why is your purse important? What can we possibly do against him? He had me bound before I even knew who he was or why he was here. That’s never happened to me before. I can usually control men so easily.”

“Dominic isn’t a man,” I said. “He’s a demon. An ancient one. But if you have any songs that work against demons, it’s time to get them ready. I’m going to try to get my dagger out of my purse. I need you to stay close, and if you see any sign of him, you start singing. Do you understand?”

Wide-eyed, she nodded and grabbed my hand.

I stared down at it, hardly believing that the woman who’d just captured me and thrown me in her dungeon just an hour or so ago was now clinging to my hand like a lost child.

I squeezed her hand back. “It’s going to be okay,” I said. “We can do this. Let’s move. Can you lead me to the entryway?” I asked.

She nodded again and kicked off her heels. She led me through the maze of vines that were already starting to wilt to a dull grayish green. I followed as quickly as I could and soon, we had passed out of the dining room and entered a large entry with enormously high ceilings and a grand marble staircase.

I kept my eye out for Nik, but I couldn’t see him anywhere. I hoped that meant Dominic couldn’t see him, either.

Selena pointed to a glass table that held a ridiculously large vase filled with roses, hydrangeas, and peonies. There, next to it, was my purse. Hope shooting through my chest, I ran forward and reached for the purse. My hand caught the leather strap, but some invisible magic lifted me up and threw me across the room.

My body slammed hard against the marble floor, and I winced as the contents of my purse scattered across the slick surface. The dagger slid just out of my reach, but as I tried to lunge toward it, Dominic stepped across my path.

The vines from whatever Nik had thrown on the floor were now all shriveled, the mess that had helped hide us now nothing but a few stray vines and a cloud of green dust. Nik emerged from the dust-cloud, his hand raised with another potion, but this time Dominic was too fast. He grabbed Nik’s hand and with a mere flick of his wrist, the demon threw Nik across the room, his back slamming against the wall with a loud thud.

The sound was so similar to the one my mother made that day when, as a child, Dominic’s demons stole her life and took me captive. This couldn’t be happening again.

But just as Dominic turned his attention on me, the first notes of a gorgeous song rang through the hall.

Selena stood, her eyes locked on Dominic’s face. He was frozen in place, as if he couldn’t look away from her. And for a moment, neither could I.

But as she continued to sing, I realized this was my only chance. My one hope to end this now and forever.

I lunged forward, wrapping my hand around the hilt of the dagger.

I stood, positioning myself directly behind the demon who had taken away my childhood, killed my mother, and nearly taken away my life.

With one swift motion, I buried the dagger into his heart from behind.

He screamed and fell to his knees, flailing his arms as he tried to remove the dagger, but it was too late for him.

His body withered, aged, and slowly turned to dust at my feet.