I angled my head in reluctant approval as Nathaniel deployed Hunter and Naomi back to their territory, and they immediately jumped into action.
The Alpha met my eyes. “Strategizing, demon?”
I gave him an icy smile. “No more than you are, wolf.”
The close contact between my people and his was now leading to tension and spats. And yet I’d caught a few of my demon females giving his wolves interested looks.
The gods help us all.
Nathaniel bared his own teeth at me in a feral smile. Evelyn chose that moment to walk in, her eyes hard.
“Please tell me you’re not both swinging your dicks around.”
Evie was already turning away, sticking a photo on one of the whiteboards. But I caught the flicker of the wolf in the Alpha’s eyes and shook my head. Poor bastard.
At least his future mate is here with him, and not in the hands of his enemies.
Fury burned low in my gut, and my tone was harsh.
“What do we have?”
* * *
DANICA
I spent the next two days exploring the palace and the grounds. I knew now why Lucifer had kept me in my rooms when he was ‘entertaining’. This place… it was hellish.
On the outside, the palace looked as shiningly beautiful as it must have been when Samael’s grandfather ruled. When his mother had birthed two babies here, watched them play in the gardens and run through that throne room.
But the more I crept around, invisible, the more I saw beneath that false front.
The dungeons weren’t the worst place in this palace. No, the people there were mostly ignored, left to rot. There were other rooms, other dark holes where people who were considered a threat to Lucifer’s rule were kept.
And the sounds that leaked from behind those doors…
It took everything in me to keep walking. To not hunt down a weapon and kill whoever was causing people to make those horrifying noises.
I could take out a few of them before I was noticed… but then…
No. As much as I wanted to make these evil assholes pay, the cake wasn’t worth the bake. Even if that cake would taste fucking delicious. I needed to bide my time and wait.
Still, I could barely meet my own eyes in the mirror each morning.
Skulking around at night had its advantages. The guards were more lax, focused on sneaking down to seduce the maids, drinking, and gambling.
My most important job was to speak to the guards Samael’s spies believed might join with us. It wasn’t easy. Everything I said to the guards had to have a double meaning, as I slowly felt out who could potentially be convinced to join us. I struggled to eat. The stress of watching every word—of communicating that I spoke for Samael, without ever saying anything that could be directly repeated to Lucifer—made my stomach continually churn.
And always, always, I watched Lucifer. I learned his moods, his habits, and the people he most often kept around him. I watched him when he didn’t notice me, and I made a note of everything that seemed relevant.
Each night, when I was done wandering the palace, I snuck down to the dungeon. I brought both Keigan and Kyla extra food, although my friend no longer seemed to recognize me. She would usually let out a low growl, snap up the food, and then turn her back on me.
After visiting the dungeon, I’d meet Samael in my dreams and pass on everything I’d learned. Then we’d touch each other with a desperation I’d never felt before. Both of us knew what would likely happen if Lucifer caught me. If he knew that while the cuff around my wrist may prevent me from communicating with Samael during the day, the night was ours.
I was well aware that waiting was one of the most difficult things Samael had ever done. If he could, he’d march into this palace tomorrow. But while Samael the man wanted to do just that, Samael the ruler was experienced, patient, and smart. We needed our allies. We needed a pocket realm to hold our armies. And we needed the dragons.
On the fourth day, Yusilin was braiding my hair when my door slammed open. My eyes met Pischiel’s, and he studied me like he’d never seen me before.
“Out,” he ordered.
