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“Read it.” Shade was staring at me, concern creasing his face.
I cleared my throat and held up the paper.
Rumors are running rife through the grapevine, but I assure you, this is no wives’ tale. A white dragon was recently seen in the halls of the Demon Underground, hanging out with a snow monkey. He is not welcome here, but no one dares tell a dragon to leave.
Camille: Scuttlebutt is that he’ll be marching in your direction soon. He’s made it known that you and your husband are on his hit list. And frankly, though you and I disagree on the method, all allies against Shadow Wing are valuable at this point, and I may need to call on your aid at some point. So be cautious and don’t get yourself killed.
Trytian
I shuddered, letting out a long breath as the world crowded in too closely around me. Hyto was in the area.
Hyto had thrown a fit when he found out Smoky had married me. It had driven the already dangerous dragon over the edge, and now he had a vendetta going against us.
And now, he was on the rampage. A dragon as lecherous and deadly as any demon ever could be, he’d tried to kill Smoky’s mother for denying him. He’d decided I was to blame for his being thrown out of the Dragon Reaches and turned pariah. And now, Hyto wanted both Smoky and me dead—worse than dead. Hyto wanted revenge.
Smoky’s pleasant demeanor drained away and his eyes began to swirl. Very softly, very slowly, he spoke. “My father has just signed his death warrant.”
“Crap.” Menolly leaned against the wall. “He’s here, in Seattle? Not the news we needed right now.”
I fingered the paper. “What’s a snow monkey? Why would he have an ape with him?”
“Trytian’s not talking about an animal,” Shade said. “A snow monkey is slang for a monk from one of the upper monasteries in the Northlands. Usually, snow monkeys are rogues—having been either kicked out of their order or leaving of their own accord. They’re most often mad as a hornet, and they don’t give a damn about anybody but themselves. It’s not hard to buy one of them off. And if one’s taken up with Smoky’s father, then he’s bound to have been offered plenty of money. They’re dangerous.” He gave me a sad smile. “I’d start watching my back if I were you.”
“Like we haven’t been already.” Sighing, I leaned against the wall, letting them talk around me.
Mad monks were bad enough, but the thought of Hyto being so close—the thought of him actually being in the city—made me want to run screaming home to Otherworld. But I couldn’t do that, either. My father had exiled me from Y’Elestrial. Oh, I could go back to OW, but I couldn’t go home again.
Smoky’s father . . . Hyto hated me. He hated my breath, my life, my very existence. He had nothing to lose. He’d been cast out of the Dragon Reaches, denied by his wife, disowned by his children. And he blamed it all on me. The memory of his hands on me the one time we’d had the misfortune to meet still gave me the creeps.
My cell phone rang, and I flipped it open. Caller ID told me it was Chase Johnson. I punched Talk and answered.
“Camille—I was hoping you were back. I need you down here. We’ve got a problem in Tangleroot Park, and I am pretty sure it’s magical in nature. In fact, I almost pissed my pants when I saw it. There’s some really funky energy running around lately. I’ve got my guys blocking it off for now, but I’m scared to try anything before you come have a look-see.”
“It? What are you talking about? A monster or something?”
“I don’t think so. Honestly? I’ll bet you my paycheck it’s a portal of some sort. And I can hear singing through it. The voices call to me, Camille. I hate to say it, but I’m afraid. I get near and all I want to do is run through it.”
My blood ran cold. Hyto was my big worry right now, but he wasn’t standing here in front of me. First, if Chase was right and there was a portal opening up in Tangleroot Park, we could be in for big trouble of a different sort. Because the random portals that had started showing themselves around the city were rogue, and could lead anywhere—and could have anybody on the other side, waiting to come through. Second, if it was calling loud enough that Chase could hear it, who else might sense its presence?
“We’ll get our asses over there right now. Meanwhile, don’t let anybody touch it or go near it.” As I shut my phone, it occurred to me that my life was quickly coming to resemble a roller coaster, and right now, we felt at the peak, poised to take a long, dark ride down the tracks.
Chapter 2
Smoky was all for killing the daemon, but I shook my head. “Better to keep Trytian on our side. After all, he did warn us about your father. And if we kill the thing, Trytian will be in our face about it. Right now, we don’t need that.”
“We can’t just let it run around the streets loose. What will people say?” Shade stared at me for a moment, then burst into a peal of laughter. “I can’t believe I just said that, considering some of what you’ve told me about your exploits, but still . . . a daemon?”
Menolly held up her hand. “Let me attend to it.” She disappeared inside the room, and a moment later she came out, the daemon in hand. He flashed her a guilty look, then cleared his throat.
“I’ll cause no more trouble. Any return message for Trytian?”
I blinked. What the fuck had she said to him? Oh well, whatever it was, it seemed to have worked. “Tell him we’ll be on the lookout and do our best to stop the dragon. Tell him . . . thank him for the information. He didn’t have to tell me.”
The daemon nodded, then started to head for the stairs.
“Wait!” I called out. He turned around. “Let me cast a cloaking spell over you. You simply can’t go wandering around the streets looking like you do.”
A sly smile stole across his face. “You want to try, girl?”
