I left the hotel room with a smile and a signed, sealed contract. That vampire’s soul was mine if he didn’t deliver Vivinity’s head on a silver platter. The reward? Control of a little strip of Egypt where the fae drew power, where I was once worshiped and would be again if Alejandro succeeded with the other part of the deal.
Next stop, Prince Terrance Trifoli, to make sure he kept denying the little brat her inheritance.
“You know, I just might put your daughter’s head in a jar where I can show it to you every day,” I told her. I’d kept her out, watching through my eyes and hearing through my ears. She had witnessed the entire negotiation, and I’d delighted in the anguish I’d felt from her. She was so weak! What had Osiris ever seen in her? I was a full demon and so was he, we were made for each other, destined to rule together forever! Now I wanted more, I wanted it all. After I had Vivinity’s head, I would have Osiris’. “When you’ve had a thousand years to live with their heads haunting you every day, I will kill you too. Maybe.”
My step was light and my smile was wide, tonight was a good night to be on earth.
I wanted to kill something, anything! My lady was hurting and it tortured me that I was helpless. We were sitting around the living room, trying to make a plan. Two gnomes and a witch rounded out our team and I was not confident in any of them.
Vivinity didn’t want me to kill the vampire, or her step-father I presumed, though I didn’t get a specific no on that one. It would be hard to kill Prince Trifoli, he was a powerful fairy, and it may not even do any good. His death wouldn’t necessarily release her inheritance to her and certainly not by tomorrow night.
“You’re seriously going to unleash Alejandro onto the fae across the veil?” Jackie was aghast at Vivinity’s plan.
“Are you kidding me? Do you have any idea what kind of monsters are in there? Way worse things than vampires inhabit that place, and he won’t stand a chance, of course he won’t know that. He will think, as does everyone else, that the realm of the fae is inhabited by defenseless fairies and sprites. They forget that it’s the land that bore all of the Egyptian gods, the Roman gods, the Greek gods! And all of their beasts too. That place has more monsters in it than you can imagine. He’ll walk through the door and he won’t make it ten steps before something eats him, because he won’t be expecting it.” Vivinity spoke proudly, confident in her plan.
“But the key, how are we going to find it in time?” Jackie asked with a frown.
“Falcon will know where his father keeps the key,” Vivinity said, her eyes darting to the door where her brother slept because of me.
I frowned. “He’ll be out for a while yet.” I hadn’t seen any reason to go easy on the guy at the time. I wanted to be sure to have lots of private time with my soulmate.
“How much sleeping potion did you give him?” Vivinity asked carefully, her blue eyes darkening slightly.
I was surprised to see that she had a care for the fairy, even after his betrayal. Her heart was pure, no matter how deeply it was buried beneath scars. “Enough to keep him harmless for a day, don’t worry. He’ll wake up.”
She frowned. “We don’t have time to sniff around for the key everywhere. We don’t even know if it’s at his house or his casino. Falcon would have been an asset; if he could talk.”
“I will find it,” I assured her. I would be the only asset she could ever need or want. My eyes slid over her body appreciatively. It had fit perfectly against me, soft in all the right places, and she smelled like heaven. Even now, the memory of holding her so close in her bed made me want to rush across the room and take her to my bed, and there would be no leaving it, not for days. I would provide her with all the sustenance she needed from my body. She would never have to look anywhere else for anything. I would be her everything.
I met Vivinity’s gaze and tried to impress my intense feelings onto her, but she looked away quickly. Why was she shielding against me so hard? I knew she’d felt something when I held her, I’d felt the tremble in her small body. It had stoked my own desire into an almost unbearable inferno that was still liking at the insides of my body demanding release.
“It’s definitely at the casino,” Jackie piped in, distracting me from my erotic thoughts.
I raised an eyebrow at her. Vivinity gave her a questioning look. “Its magic right? Well, I could feel it pulsing in the place. Something like that gives off a very old magic vibe. It’s in there alright, or something equally old and powerful that we could try and trade.”
“Witch, you have proven yourself useful!” I gave her a broad smile.
“Okay, so we go back in. We can’t let anyone see us, including Alejandro and his vamps.” Vivinity’s words were heavy with doubt.
“How do we manage that?” Jackie grumbled. “Oh! Send the little guys in through the vents!”
“Sure, but we still need to know where to send them. We need to know where the key is in there,” Vivinity groaned. “It’s not exactly a small building.”
“I can sniff it out,” I offered casually.
“A jackal wandering around a casino will definitely be noticeable.” Vivinity’s eyes glanced over me and I gave her a half smile.
I puffed out my chest. Her eyes landed there for a moment and her face tinted the slightest pink. I would give anything to know her thoughts right now.
“I don’t plan on going in as a jackal. I can smell just fine in human form, I am not a were, I was not bitten, I do not live life as two different things. I am a jackal, born into a body with two forms. I am still the same being in either, all of my senses are heightened at all times. I can smell the stench of sadness mixed with alcohol wafting from your guest room. The smell of love making still clings to the little gnomes—even after their shower—and the witch,” I looked at her with a cocked head. “The witch smells of deep magic, the kind usually gifted to the very old. You, Vivinity, on you I smell the blood of Osiris, the blood of your most recent victims, and most importantly, the pheromones of desire that tell me you’re my intended, my mate, my lover, my wife.”