Page 75

“Good morning, Mr. Vex,” they droned in their smooth, syrupy voice.

“Hit the Road Jack” played in my head, or maybe I’d heard it coming from the bar. Plastering a big grin on my face, I sauntered toward the desk. “Agent Leomaris. How . . . nice, you’re here.”

Leomaris reached inside their long coat and withdrew a notepad and pen. “Do you have a few moments to discuss the events of last night?”

“Events?” I blinked too fast. “Last night?” This was fine. Nothing to worry about. I tried to lean casually on the front desk, and missed, almost toppling. “Oops, wow, has that moved? No. Never mind. Nothing happened last night. Nothing at all.” I definitely was not looking at Madame Matase’s pinched frown. Nope.

“Then you were not at the royal vampire estate, and these additional guests you have staying here weren’t victims of a plot to summon the vampire queen by way of ritual sacrifice?”

Oh, my stars, they knew so much. I opened my mouth but all the excuses got stuck. Seconds passed. Time dragged. I had to say something. “Oh that happened? Right. It slipped my mind. Yes. Uhm. Sure. Ritual sacrifices. Yup.”

Did Leomaris know Zee had chopped off the queen’s head?

Agent Leomaris’s piercing eyes skewered me to the spot. “And the recent blaze at Reynard—correction—Cain Technologies. There are reports of a casually dressed human, a demon, and a man who fits Baron Reynard’s description walking away from that scene shortly after the building was razed. Would you happen to know anything about that?”

“Whaaat?” I squeaked, then cleared my creaking voice with a cough. “There must be other vampires, demons, and humans out there who like to hang out with each other in that area?”

“It’s possible, but unlikely. Especially given your personal feud with Gideon Cain?”

“Feud?” I chuckled. “Me and Gideon? What feud? Gideon and me? My pal, Gid? We’re like this.” I hooked two fingers together. “Best friends, really. Why, has he said something about me?”

Leomaris was not impressed. “Are you going to assist in this investigation, Mr. Vex? Or are you going to make this difficult? I can do difficult, if you wish, but the protracted outcome will be the same.”

Help. I needed Victor, right now. He could talk people around and bamboozle Leomaris with big words. “Of course we’ll help. We’re all about helping here at the SOS Hotel. Uhm . . . I just need to, uh . . . do a thing . . . If you’ll wait here? I’ll be right back. After doing . . . the thing . . . Wait, right there.” I backed toward the elevator. “Right there. I’ll be back. Just . . .”

Madame Matase and Leomaris stared after me.

I hit the elevator button, and after the doors opened I stepped in and jabbed the button for the doors to close again, forgetting the Out of Order sign. It didn’t matter. The elevator had been fine for years. We’d only sealed it off because of McDongle’s advice.

The doors creaked, got hung up, then sprang free. “Everything is absolutely fine,” I muttered, eyeing the painfully slow doors gradually coming together. “Find Victor. He’ll know what to do.”

A guy dressed like a tourist slipped between the closing doors moments before they clanged shut.

The old floor-indicator arrow gave a judder, cables clanged, and the elevator groaned underway. Finally, I had a moment to breathe and think.

Leomaris was a problem. One of those problems that weren’t going to solve themselves. They were clearly on our scent trail, but what did they want? Was it really justice? Or like any bounty hunter—which Leomaris had been long before working for the SSD—could they be bought for the right price?

Thoughts awhirl, I bowed my head, and caught a glimmer from a thick signet ring on the guest’s finger.

A signet ring marked with the letters GC.

I looked up, spotted the sunglasses, and my heart sank.

I’d been so preoccupied with Leomaris’s arrival, I hadn’t noticed the guest beside me was no guest at all.

Armin removed his shades. “It’s over, Adam Vex.”

“Wait—”

He lunged. Steel-like fingers grabbed my neck. My back slammed into the wall. The car lurched, screaming to a halt. Armin’s sneering face filled my vision. His fingers cinched tight, choking off air. The sudden, unexpected attack had me stunned. It didn’t seem real. How was this happening? Why hadn’t the wards activated? I tried to pry his fingers off, tried to swallow air, but none came. My heart pounded, my head throbbed. Too fast. It couldn’t end like this. I had to get control. I was stronger than this.

I pushed off the wall, shoving Armin across the car. The protective wards poked at my head, warning me not to attack. But what choice did I have? The elevator rocked around us, swinging in the shaft. He sneered, fangs gleaming, while his grip crushed my throat.

The car spun, or my vision did. Pixies danced.

Oh wait, those were actual pixies.

Jimmy’s pixies. They flew at Armin’s face.