“No.” He breathed in and out through his nose and closed his eyes. “I’m going to kill him. Who the fuck does he think he is?”

He turned away, and I grabbed his arm. “Don’t. Wait. Listen to me.”

Mal’s chest heaved. “What is it? You feel sorry for him? What?”

“I—”

“It doesn’t even matter. He doesn’t touch you again. You stay away from him, and whatever you do, don’t mention this encounter to Az. You get me?”

My face grew hot. “But—”

“The kiss in Limbo…” He caught his bottom lip between his teeth. “I thought that was just you doing whatever it took to save Keon’s ass, but this…” He shook his head, emerald eyes sharp and cutting as they landed on me. “No. You need to put a cap on it. Now.”

My heart was pounding way too hard against my ribs, part indignation, part shame, and that sparked my anger. “I thought you guys wanted me to be honest?”

He rubbed a hand over his face. “Fuck, Fee, of course we do, but this is Keon we’re talking about. He’s a fucking monster.”

My nape grew warm as the rising anger pinched my throat. “He’s not a monster. Just because he looks different—”

“Whoa.” Mal gripped my shoulders, his brows pinching. “This is not about the fact he’s a daemon. This is about the fact that he works for Lilith. He will kill you if she asks him to.”

He didn’t know the side of Keon I’d come to know. He hadn’t looked deep into the daemon’s eyes.

I bit the insides of my cheeks. “I don’t think he will.”

Mal’s face contorted in pity. “Fee…You don’t understand. He won’t have a choice. If she orders him to kill you, he will be compelled to do it. Keon is dangerous because he isn’t his own person. He’s a possession, and he already belongs to someone else.”

Oh, God…Keon… I hadn’t realized the extent of the chains that bound him. My chest ached for him. No wonder he’d bolted earlier.

“This isn’t fair.”

Mal’s smile was wry. “Life isn’t fair, Fee. Az, Grayson, and I swore to keep you happy, and all Keon can bring you is pain. Trust me. Don’t go there. He can’t be one of us because he can never put you first.”

I sucked in a breath and nodded. He was right. This was for the best, for me and for Keon.

I smiled, shutting down the feelings that were threatening to bloom for the beautiful blue daemon. “So, where are we going?”

He studied me for a long beat and then pulled me into a hug. “Come on. Let’s get the fuck out of here and grab some carbs.”

“I could kill for a cinnamon swirl.”

“I’ll buy you a whole fucking box.”

I should be happy. The Beyond was safe, which meant our world was safe. I wanted to be happy, to enjoy this time with my guys before they left for the Underealm, but there was a worm of dread in the pit of my stomach that told me there was something on the horizon. Not the war with Mammon. Not the search for Hunter or the super vamps or even the hooded figures. Something…else.

Something that lurked at the back of my mind.

Something that wouldn’t be beaten back so easily.

Chapter Eighteen

Cora

The small office space looks like it’s been disinfected and scrubbed. It’s so clean I could probably eat my dinner off the floor.

“This is a waste of time,” Jasper says from behind me.

I ignore him and carry on scoping out the place. It’s a rental. The company who owns it says that it was leased for a month, but it looks like it’s been empty forever.

The name and details the company have for the renters are duds. Ursula confirmed it twenty minutes ago, so I’m looking for clues. Anything that can tell me what the fuck happened to the humans that went missing.

“There is nothing here,” Jasper says. “Except the stench of your desperation.”

I want to tell him to shove it, but talking to him means acknowledging his presence, and I don’t want to do that. I want him to piss off and leave me alone.

This is my fourth stop today. Four alarm locations, and all clean of any clues. Too clean, which suggests foul play. The human police have no idea about these locations, they think there’s some kind of cult recruiting acolytes. I mean, this many people can’t go missing without some kind of trace. There are no dead bodies, no sign of struggle or foul play, and then we have to consider the numbers—forty humans missing in two weeks. It’s strange, and they have their people working on it.

But they won’t solve it. Not without Magiguard help, and that’s where I come in, except I don’t have shit.

“You don’t have shit,” Jasper says, annoyingly echoing my thoughts.

I whirl to face him, angry words hovering on the tip of my tongue, and lose my train of thought because for a moment, I don’t recognize him. He’s wearing a black V-neck, long-sleeved top and black skinny jeans, paired with hiking boots, and his hair…He’s gone and cut his hair, and now every angle and plane of his beautifully ruthless face are on display. His cruel mouth lifts in a thin smile.

“What’s the matter, Cora? Cat got your tongue?”

Like hell. He can dress like us, walk and talk like us, but he will never be one of us. He’s something else, something evil, and he’s my curse.

“What are you doing here, Jasper? I didn’t call for you.”

His lip curls as he advances toward me. “I’m not a pet that needs to wait to be summoned.”

I hold my ground, keeping my gaze locked with his cold one. “You don’t intimidate me.”

“No?” He reaches out to run his icy finger down the curve of my neck. “No, I don’t suppose I do.” My breath hitches at his touch. He leans in closer, crowding me with his taut body. “I excite you.”

I clench my teeth to staunch the quiver in my chest and control the surge of heat in my blood and smile at him coldly. “You’re a good fuck, Jasper, I’ll give you that. But that’s all you are.”

I turn my back on him and close my eyes, expecting him to attack at any moment. Expecting his hand on my arm, waiting for the aggression that is his prelude to sex.

But it doesn’t come.

He’s still here, though. Still behind me. Watching me. What am I doing? Why am I even entertaining this fucked-up dance?

I turn to face him again. “What do you want, Jasper? Why are you here?” I’m not mad anymore. Just tired, and it bleeds into my tone.

The harsh lines of his face soften a fraction. “You’re upset. Agitated. I came to check on you.”

Check on me, my ass. He just wants to make sure his anchor to this world is safe. I’m just a possession to him, and why does that bother me?

“Yeah? Well, I’m fine. I’ll be even better when you piss off.”

He shrugs. “I’ll see you tonight then.” His eyes gleam, and desire shoots through me.

“Wear the blue panties and bra,” he says. “I want you on all fours.”

My body responds to his words by sending pulses to the apex of my thighs.

Urgh. I close my eyes. “Please leave.”

When I open them, he’s gone.

I take a moment to allow my heartbeat to slow to resting pace and then survey the room one final time.

Jasper is right. This is a waste of time.

Fuck, I hope Grayson’s having more luck with his search for Hunter.

Grayson

“This is the place,” Bobby says from the passenger seat of the van.

I kill the engine and look across the street at the small American-style diner. Our search for Hunter has led us here, a half-hour drive from the pack house in Regency Pack territory. His credit card was used at a hotel a few minutes away, and according to the owner of the bed and breakfast Hunter stayed at, he’d come here.

“He stayed close,” Bobby says.

“Yeah, he did.”

The mating. Fee. He can’t help himself. I get that. I don’t like it, but I understand.

“Thank you for bringing me with you,” Bobby says for the third time.

He thinks I’m doing him a favor. I sigh. “You’re here because you’re smart and you’re diplomatic, and Hunter won’t be threatened by you.”

He nods. “I know. I’m still grateful for the opportunity.”

It hits me that maybe I need to look at Bobby’s role at the pack house. He’d been brought in as a grunt, but that was before…before Fee opened my eyes to the wrongness of it. Bobby is bright, and intelligence is a powerful weapon.

I pop the lock on the door and climb out of the van. The diner looks empty, but then breakfast has just finished, and it’s a weekday; most humans will be at work.

There are posters stuck to the windows advertising rental space and screaming that help is wanted. My gaze slides over a call for blood donations. The logo is strange—a snake eating its own tail.

The bell above the door rings as we step through. It smells of bacon, coffee, and muffins. There’s a waitress wiping tables and another behind the counter. They both stop to stare, and then they exchange glances and the one wiping tables beams at me and strolls over, hips swaying.

I stifle a sigh because I recognize flirty when I see it, and I’m in no mood, but I need information, and I’ve been told my smile has magical properties.

I relax my facial muscles and show her my pearly whites. “`Hi, I was hoping you could help me.”

“Of course, anything.” She doesn’t even look at Bobby.

“I’m looking for a friend of mine. I believe he came here a few days ago.”

She makes an O with her mouth. “We get a lot of customers.”

“Oh, you’d recall this one,” Bobby says. “Tall, dark hair, intense dark eyes, and Adonis vibe, dripping with sex appeal…”

What the fuck? I stare at Bobby. Who is this person?