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They’d given up their weapons at the last checkpoint. No one was allowed any sort of weaponry in this part of district three. Lilith preferred her subjects dummied down to their basest natures—which, considering they were in fact demons, meant that a lot of physical pain was doled out hourly. Disagreements were settled the old-fashioned way. If you didn’t like someone, you kicked the crap out of them and moved on.
The two of them slid through the crowd, avoiding spilled beer, the occasional mess of spilled guts, and an abundance of crude jokes and come-ons. A band was onstage, loud guitars wailing and hypnotic vocals falling from the singer.
He ignored all of it and stayed the course, following a direct path to the doors on the opposite end of the club. They led to the square, the central gathering place here in Lilith’s corner of District Three. From there they’d make their way to the bitch’s palatial estate.
He shouldered his way outside, grunting from the effort it took. He knew Lilith would never stash something as valuable as those children anywhere but close to her.
He gritted his teeth. He knew exactly where they’d be, or at least hoped he did.
The square was empty, which wasn’t surprising considering the party was full tilt inside Succubus Blues.
“Unreal,” Ana whispered as they walked along the silent street. Shops lined either side, facades that said Gucci, Tiffany and Harrods.
“Lilith loves Hollywood. Everything about it. Her favorite movie is Pretty Woman.” Hell, she quoted the lines verbatim, played the role of Vivian with ease, whore that she was, except she didn’t have the required heart of gold.
“I’m not surprised,” she murmured. “This has got to be the craziest, most screwed-up place on earth.”
Declan snorted. “You haven’t seen anything yet.”
They continued along the street until they reached the end where a wall of black hid anything beyond a few inches. It was as if the world, or this world, ended.
“This way,” he said, a little impatiently as she hesitated.
“But there’s nothing here.”
“Not that you can see.”
Declan glanced around and when he was sure there was no one about, drew a spell in the air. His fingers sizzled with the powerful energy inside him, and he smiled harshly as the translucent weave of magick shimmered and then disappeared.
He’d have to thank Lilith if he got the opportunity. She’d fed him steadily for six months.
He let his hands rest as the blanket of dark peeled away like the rind of an orange.
“Jesus.” Ana moved a few paces away. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Declan paused as he gazed across the vast expanse of manicured lawns and gardens. He saw two black swans in the distance, slowly circling the large pond that was dead center. Behind them, sitting upon a hill, was her home.
“It looks like—”
“Buckingham Palace, I know.”
“Is this Alice in Wonderland? ’Cause it sure as hell feels like it.”
Declan grabbed Ana’s hand. “We don’t have a lot of time.”
He pushed her through and followed as he waved his hand in the air. Instantly the darkness slid into place behind them.
The soft strains of a harp drifted on the breeze. A garden party. How she loved her garden parties. The notes were sad, melancholy, and some were off key, the pitch all wrong. The music was laced with a dark undertone. Such was the way of it here, nothing was as it seemed.
Declan nodded toward the trees. “The serum will block our signatures but we need to proceed with caution. I want as little contact as possible.”
Once they gained the cool interior of the pine forest that lined the estate, he came to a full stop, his eyes falling to Ana’s pale face. She looked up at him, her expression earnest, fierce, and the wave of longing, the intense love he felt for her tightened his chest. He found it difficult to breathe and rasped loudly as he bent over, his hands resting upon his upper thighs.
If something happened to his vampire . . .
Her hand was at his back and slowly traveled up until she sank her fingers into the thickness of his hair.
“Declan.”
