Azh didn’t doubt he could eventually force them to talk, but he didn’t have time to figure out who had information and how to get the truth out of them. It was easier to go to the top of the food chain. The one creature absolutely certain to know everyone and everything happening in the city.
Saxton, the Cabal leader of Britain.
Ducking his head to get through the door of the noisy pub, Azh was relieved to discover the ceiling was much taller than most older establishments in the city. Probably because the gathered goblins and fey were much larger than normal humans, even if their blood had been thinned over the years. He still towered over the crowd, his gaze impatiently scanning for the owner. It took a moment to pick out the large goblin in the corner. The square-faced male was wearing a white dress shirt that was unbuttoned to reveal his hairy chest, as if compensating for the lack of hair on his bald head, and black leather pants. He had small dark eyes that glittered with satisfaction at the numerous customers squeezed into the cramped space.
Currently, he was leaning back in a wooden chair with a heavy club lying across his lap, although it was his dark crimson aura that warned most demons not to piss him off.
At Azh’s entrance the place went quiet. Not the quiet of a group of friends suddenly confronted by a stranger. This was the terrified quiet of prey realizing that a predator had just strolled into their den. Even the loud music screeched to a halt.
No one wanted to attract his attention.
Unaware of Azh’s entrance, the owner abruptly shoved himself out of his chair and swaggered forward, the club held tight in his fist.
“What’s going on here?” he bellowed. “Turn the music back on.”
Azh moved to stand in the direct path of the approaching demon. “Contact your master.”
Jerking to a stop as he nearly plowed into Azh, the male’s square face flushed with fury. “What the... Get out before I rip off your head and shove it up your ass.”
Azh narrowed his gaze. “I will ask one more time before I burn this place to the ground. Call your master.”
“Ah. You want to go?” Too stupid to sense his danger, the goblin lifted his weapon. “Okay, then, let’s go.”
Azh snapped out his arm, wrapping his fingers around the male’s thick neck. Then, releasing his flames, he allowed them to crawl over the goblin from head to toe.
The male screamed. The fire was hot enough to scorch his skin, although Azh was careful not to do any permanent damage. Not yet.
“Last time,” he snarled. “Contact your master. Now.”
“Right. Yeah, just calm down,” the goblin choked out, dropping his club to reach into the pocket of his slacks and pull out a phone. “I’m calling right now. See?”
Azh sensed movement behind him. Slowly turning his head he watched as a female goblin tried to creep toward him, her fingers wrapped around a long dagger that shimmered with powerful hexes. The owner’s mate? No. He studied the bright crimson aura. She was the true power. With a hiss, Azh released a bolt of lightning, splintering the floor planks just inches from her toes.
The female froze, her eyes flashing crimson as the shoulder-length black hair floated on the electrical currents that sizzled in the air.
“Easy, dude. I just have to take a piss,” she hastily lied, trying to hide the dagger behind her back.
“Don’t move,” he warned, his attention shifting toward the open door.
The sharp chill slicing through the air warned a vampire was approaching. A very powerful vampire.
That was quick.
It was no surprise that the goblin had sent a frantic SOS to the Cabal leader, but it was amazing the leech had managed to get here so quickly. Either he’d been in the neighborhood or he’d sensed Azh’s presence in the city and had been keeping a close watch on him.
He was betting on the latter.
Frost coated the large front windows a second before a slender male wearing an expensive gray suit and silver tie stepped over the threshold. His dark hair was brushed from his narrow face and his black eyes smoldered with a commanding power.
He looked like an elegant aristocrat who’d been polished by the finest boarding schools that money could buy, not a monster who sucked the blood of his victims.
“You’re the leader of this Gyre?” Azh demanded, not giving the male the opportunity to gain control of the confrontation.
The vampire gave a stiff nod of his head. “Saxton. Leader of the British Empire and member of the Cabal.”
Satisfied, Azh glanced back at the goblin who trembled in pain as the fire swirled over him. Dousing the flames, Azh shoved him away.
“Leave.”
