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Feeling like an ass, I took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. I know you’re doing the best you can.”
Orpheus executed a dignified nod. “Just as I know you and Adam will make sure Maisie gets home safely.”
“And once you find Maisie,” Rhea said, “we can figure out how to best use Tanith’s defection to our advantage.”
“One thing’s for sure,” I began, “Tanith won’t have a chance in hell of taking over as long as Lavinia’s alive.”
“That may be true, but finding Maisie is your priority.” Orpheus looked me dead in the eyes.
“Of course it is,” I said automatically.
“That said, if you get an opening, take it.”
A quickening began in my midsection. It was one thing to want to kill my grandmother. It was something else to be ordered to kill her by the leader of the mage race. It was like getting a green light from the universe. Then a thought occurred to me. “The Queen is down with that part of the plan?”
“She wants to capture Lavinia for questioning.” Orpheus winked. “But she couldn’t complain if you accidentally killed that bitch during a rescue attempt.”
A slow smile spread across my lips. “Now, that’s a plan I can definitely get behind.”
“We thought you’d enjoy that,” Orpheus said.
Rhea shifted uneasily. “I wish we’d had more time to train. Your skills are still too raw. Plus there are the emotional aspects of the task in front of you …..”
Up until recently, the silver-haired mage had spent weeks training me in the finer points of magic. We’d only just gotten to the good stuff when all hell broke loose in New York. The good stuff being my ability to harness the Chthonic magic I’d inherited from my long-dead mage father. Chthonic magic is what most humans call black magic. The truth is, no magic is entirely black or white. But, even on the grayscale, Chthonic magic definitely trended toward the darker side with its emphasis on death and fertility magic. I still didn’t know enough to commune with the dead— not that I was eager to do that — but I did know how to torch someone from twenty paces. So that was something.
As for the emotional aspects she mentioned—
“Don’t worry,” I said. “I won’t let my temper get the best of me.”
Four dubious expressions greeted my statement. I put my hands on my hips. “Okay, fine. We all know I’ll lose my temper, but at least I’m better at channeling my anger now.”
Rhea patted my arm. “Yes, you are. Just remember that Lavinia’s going to try to knock you off balance. Use your head and you’ll be fine.”
Giguhl threw an arm around Rhea’s shoulders. “Don’t worry about Sabina. She’s got us to back her up.”
Rhea frowned at the demon. “Wait, where’s Valva?”
Giguhl cringed away from Rhea with a hiss.
“Ixnay on the Alva-vay,” I said under my breath. After the “incident” at Fang’s strip club just after we arrived in Los Angeles a couple of days earlier, Valva had become She Whose Name We Dare Not Speak.
Rhea’s expression bordered on dumbfounded. “Sorry?”
Luckily, Adam stepped in with an appropriately diplomatic response. “Let’s just say she won’t be joining us and leave it at that.” He shot a pointed look toward the pouting demon. Rhea’s mouth formed an O and she nodded.
“Understood.”
“As much as I hate to interrupt this intriguing discussion, we need to get moving. The Queen wasn’t happy when I told her you’d want a word with Tanith before you left.”
I frowned. Normally Orpheus was the man in charge. Hearing him admit he needed the Queen’s leave worried me.
Rhea nodded. “I’ll just go call Zenobia now and let her know to expect you tonight.” She excused herself to make the call while Orpheus, Adam, Giguhl, and I went back to where Tanith and the guards stood.
As we approached, Tanith’s eyes stayed on me. I met her stare with one of my own. I didn’t see any point in pretending she was anything other than my enemy until she was proven otherwise. Orpheus dismissed the guards.
“I trust everything is in order?” she asked Orpheus.
He nodded. “Yes, Sabina has agreed to the terms.”
She nodded. “Including the one we discussed out of the Queen’s hearing?” I knew immediately she meant the part about killing Lavinia.
“You bet your ass,” I said, crossing my arms.
She pursed her lips and looked me over. “I almost wish I could be there to see that battle.”
“Really,” I said, my tone heavy with boredom.
“Of course. How could it not be a spectacular show?” She paused and speared me with a challenging stare. “One wonders, though, do you really think you have what it will take to best your grandmother?”
“As much as I appreciate your concern,” I said, my tone heavy with sarcasm, “It’s wasted on me. Killing is what I do, remember?”
“The forbidden fruit doesn’t fall far from the tree, child. You inherited that bloodlust from your grandmother. You’re also not the only one driven by an allconsuming need for revenge.”
I didn’t have to ask what my grandmother wanted avenged. After all, my own desire for vengeance was intimately connected to her own. When my vampire mother and mage father decided to ignore centuries of law forbidding relations between the dark races, they put into motion a series of events that led to this crossroad. From my parents’ deaths to my betrayal of the Dominae to Maisie’s kidnapping a few days ago, the past lay out behind me like a roadmap of pain. And it was now up to me to put a stop to Lavinia before she could punish Maisie and me further for a situation we did not create. Not to mention, if Lavinia had her way, she’d destroy everyone else I cared about with the senseless war she’d been trying to ignite among all the dark races.
I looked around and saw that several of the beings I cared about— Adam, Giguhl, Rhea, and Orpheus— had formed a protective circle around me. I smiled at Adam, who wore a particularly fierce expression as he stared down the Domina. Yeah, I had a lot of reasons not to lose.
I took a deep breath and looked Tanith in the eye. “As much as I appreciate your heartfelt concern, there’s no reason to worry about me. I have advantages Lavinia couldn’t dream of.”
4
Flashing into New Orleans was like diving into a lukewarm bath. I grew up in Los Angeles, so I was no stranger to warmish Octobers, but the humidity was a new and not very welcome experience. Not only did the wet air heighten the sour scent of trash and body fluids in the alley, but my hair also instantly kinked.
