“No. We go back tomorrow.” Zane paused and glanced around. His uncle would be watching him, and ears were everywhere. “Are you prepared?”
Sam sat up, green eyes sparking. “Yes.”
“Good.” Enough said.
“How did it go? Did the king react to your being half-demon?” Sam asked.
“No.” In fact, the king had appeared bored the entire day. Impressive effort to remain unaffected, actually. Zane’s gut rolled. “Don’t worry about me—you need to find Logan before all hell breaks loose.”
“I know.” Sam wiped a grimy hand over his brow. “I have feelers out everywhere, but I don’t have a location yet. There’s no way to get word to him.”
Zane swallowed. Their youngest brother Logan was only in his early twenties and shouldn’t be fighting alone. “My guess is Suri sent Logan to deal with the African shifter uprising.” A group of African shifters was trying to force all demons, vampires, and witches out of southern Africa, and the fighting had reached a brutal level. By keeping Logan so far away, Suri held a deadly trump card over Zane. “Suri won’t tell me where he is, but I’ll see what I can find out.”
Sam frowned. “Be careful. Suri’s twitchy with peace near, and he’s gonna want to get rid of you at some point. You’re too much of a threat to his rule.”
Zane had already figured that one out, although nothing in him wanted to rule the demon nation. Ever. Once he took care of Suri, he’d be a dead man, anyway. “For now, I’m useful because of my ties to the Kayrs family. Janie and I have spoken for years, and I saved Garrett Kayrs from the Kurjans a while back.”
“The Kayrs family probably wants your head on a mantel about now,” Sam drawled, the concern in his eyes contrasting with his low tone.
Zane nodded, keeping his face stoic. Sometimes in life there wasn’t any choice. “Not sure I blame them.”
“They’re all about family and should understand that we are, too. Even when it fucks up our lives royally.” Sam scratched his chin. “For now, keep on your toes. The second you’re no longer useful, Suri is going to have you killed.”
Zane was more worried about his brothers. “I’ll have a contingency plan in place for Mom, just in case.” At the very least, he’d be able to get their mother to safety.
Sam shook his head, his eyes blazing. “I need to get home to back you up. Now.”
Zane hardened his face into an expression he’d learned from his sadistic uncle. “No, you need to find Logan and get to safety. Period.”
“Zane—”
“Enough. You have your orders.” They couldn’t go into details on the phone. “Wait for my signal.” He clicked off.
Lead weights seemed to hold down his shoulders. A clock ticked over his head, and he truly had no clue how to protect the people he loved.All of them.But as the moon glared over the snowcapped mountains, he continued to plan.
He’d have just one shot, and if he failed, all was lost.
Chapter 4
Janie Kayrs eyed the three full shot glasses lined up at the bar. A tumultuous Oregon storm raged outside, throwing up whitecaps from the turbulent ocean, but the entertainment room behind her remained quiet and empty. She lifted a glass and tossed down two fingers of tequila.
The liquid burned her throat, and she sputtered, taking a deep breath.
“I’ve found tequila doesn’t fix much.” Cara Paulsen sauntered into the room, her voice clear and concerned.
Janie turned to see her mother skirt the pool table to sit on the adjoining bar stool. Cara’s blue eyes were clouded, her face pale. Smudges of dirt marred her sweater and jeans. “You’ve been in the lab?” Janie asked.
Her mom nodded. “Yes. I was working on genetic mutations of some African plants that might have healing properties for Virus-27.”
Janie took a deep breath, her face heating. Feeling sorry for herself was stupid, especially since her mother was fighting a deadly virus and apparently losing, if her pale skin provided any indication. “Any luck?”
“No.” Cara eyed the alcohol and grabbed a glass. “What the hell.” She tipped back her head and swallowed, coughing immediately.
Janie smiled and patted Cara on the back. How odd that they now appeared to be about the same age. “You just said alcohol doesn’t help.”
Cara set down the empty glass. “True, although it does numb things a little.” She pushed Janie’s hair out of her eyes. “I’m sorry about Zane. A demon? I truly would’ve never guessed it, although it does make an odd sort of sense, considering we’ve never been able to find him.”
Janie nodded, the lead ball in her stomach heavy. “I just can’t figure out why I’ve never had an inkling about Zane. So many psychic visions have flashed through my head for years, and not once did I see the truth.” Maybe she hadn’t wanted to see the truth? Hurt cut through her chest. “How could he not tell me?”
