“Besides, I love it here,” Viansa said. “I’ve met the most amazing people! So ambitious. So eager to please. So…insatiable.”
Her smile fell, lips pursing into a sad little pout.
“So what’s the problem?” Jaci asked. “Is that not what you want?”
“Every human I fuck becomes instantly obsessed with me anddiesfrom all the sex. Like, literally. Sometimes right in the middle of it.” She rolled her eyes and downed her shot, leaving a lipstick print on the glass. “It’ssoboring.”
Jaci bit back the urge to ask how high the body count had gotten. After yesterday’s initial wave of orgies, they hadn’t heard anything unusual in the news or on social media—just endless recaps about the unexplained “mass hysteria” that had momentarily gripped New York. But Viansa could’ve killed dozens of humans since then, their bodies yet undiscovered.
“Maybe you should find a supernatural plaything instead?” Jaci said, forcing a casual shrug. “Might last a bit longer in bed. You’d have to unfreeze them, though.”
She narrowed her eyes and wagged a finger. “Nice try.”
“Worth a shot.”
“Jay, if you wanted your pals to remain conscious tonight, maybe you should’ve cast a spell to protect them? I mean,you’rethe witch-mutt, but that just seems like Magic 101 to me.”
“Thanks. I’ll keep it in mind for next time.”
Viansa toyed with the shot glass, rolling it in a circle on the bar. “Truth be told, I considered banging a vampire, maybe a shifter or two, but supernaturals aren’t as docile as humans. Takes longer to break them in, if you get my meaning.” She sighed, then righted her glass and gestured for a refill. “Trade-offs, right? Besides, as much fun as I’m having in this crazy-ass city, I can’t lose sight of the mission.”
“Mission?” Jaci poured her another shot, this time waving away the offered cash, hoping to keep in Viansa’s good graces. To keep the bitch talking.
Viansa was manipulative and clever and scary-powerful, but she was also a vain little asshole. If anything was to be her epic downfall, that was likely it.
“I’m not just here for a pleasure cruise, Lab Rat,” she said. “I need to find a way to smash open those hell gates for good.” She downed the second shot, then grinned, her eyes glinting in a way that sent waves of panic rolling down Jaci’s spine. “And I’ve had the most brilliant idea ever!You’regoing to help me.”
“Your dark-mage pals aren’t pulling their weight?”
“No, the mages are great. They do everything I ask—sometimes even before I ask it. It’s just… This particular project is a bit beyond them.”
“Beyondthem, but not me?” Jaci laughed. “You just lectured me on Magic 101. How the fuck do you expect me to mess with hell magic?”
“Hell is your home. It’s in your blood.”
“I haven’t been there in years. And even when Iwashome, I could never cast the sort of magic you and Mom wanted.”
“I know! Believe me, when you first left us, I never would’ve thought you’d be capable of something so… so big. But look! You’ve survived all this time on your own. Snagged yourself a royal vampire super-hottie. Something tells me you’ve still got a few more tricks up your sleeve.” Viansa plucked a cherry from the garnish tray and ate it, pit, stem, and all. “Besides, it’ll be fun! Jaci and Vi, together again. Just like old times.”
“Old times. Right. Like the old time you tied me to a post and sprayed me with acid? Or maybe the old time you slit my throat and portaled me to the Salt Flats, turning me into bait for the demon vultures? Or… I know! The old time you force-fed me a hundred live centipedes. Ahh, those were the days.” Jaci’s stomach roiled with nausea at the memories of all the tortures her sister had inflicted, all the realms of hell she’d forced her to endure, all the pain.
But Viansa waved it all away as if it were no more than a bit of sibling rivalry. “Mother’s healers patched you right up. No harm, no foul. Seriously, Jay. Holding on to the past is the surest way to get stuck there. Just as any of the poor souls in the pits.”
Fury sizzled in her veins. Jaci couldn’t evenpretendto tolerate her. Not even for the intel they so desperately needed. “If I had the means, I’d kill you where you stand.”
“Now you’re just being dramatic. Look, this will be good for us. A way to reconnect. Start fresh. Besides, once the demons take over up here and I become queen, I’ll need a right hand. Prove your loyalty now, and the world could be your oyster. That’s a thing, right? The world is your oyster? Or is it lobster?” She wrinkled her nose and shrugged. “Either way, it’s yours.”
Is she fucking high?
Jaci folded her arms over her chest. “And if I refuse? I’m not big on seafood.”
“Hmm.” Viansa tapped a black-lacquered fingernail against her lips. “Let’s consider how that would play out. First,you’dbe like, ‘No, Viansa. Irefuseto help you, even though you’re my flesh-and-blood sister. Sadly, I never learned the concept of loyalty, so I’m afraid you’re on your own.’ ThenI’dgetsuperpissed, and I’d go, ‘Okay, Lab Rat. Have it your way.’ And then—this is the best part—I’dgo…” Her grin stretched wide, the sight of it sending Jaci’s stomach into free fall. Glancing behind Jaci, she said, “Gabe, honey? You look absolutely famished. When was the last time you fed?”
She wasn’t just role-playing. She was speaking directly to Gabriel, whose hollow gaze had suddenly locked onto Viansa’s, his fangs flashing behind a hungry snarl.
“Don’t,” Jaci warned, trying to position herself in front of Gabriel, as if she could shield him from her sister’s evil machinations. “Whatever you’re thinking, just—”
Viansa snapped her fingers, and Gabriel broke out of the freeze, sidestepping Jaci and blurring right over the bar.
