An invitation. Telal almost cursed or laughed. The damned lilit had been sending him letter after letter for nearly eight months now. He could still remember the words as clearly as if he'd just read them.

You looked down at me with that frustrated scowl you always wear when you look at me, but then leaned down and kissed me.

It was impossible after reading that not to think about doing just that. Her lips were well made. Damn, even he knew that was a lie. They were much better than that. Shit, before he started idolizing her lips he shut the train of thought down like a bad leak.

“She's up to something,” he said.

Tyrian sighed. “The Bellums always are, I'm afraid.”

“Let's get onto business.” He didn't come here to talk about Lily or any of the foolish Bellum sisters. He had better things to do—like learn to knit.

Tyrian retrieved a piece of paper from his desk. He handed it to Telal. “This is what I need. Ten thousand of them.”

Telal raised an eyebrow. “You want them enspelled? That's new.” It also wasn't really something he specialized in. Manufacturing an array of weapons—yes. Enspelling them? Not so much.

“I know you can do it or at least know someone who can. I want them enspelled with electricity. One of my warriors had a run-in the other day with a few escaped idummi demons. They managed to completely disarm him, but something strange happened. It was storming and my warrior eventually managed to retrieve his sword and stab the demon. Lighting struck the demon and literally killed him in an instant.”

“Electrocution killed him?”

A nod. “If we can enspell these weapons to produce electricity then it could make for better weapons. What do you think?”

Telal's mouth flattened into a grimace as he thought it over. Was it possible?

“It'll cost.”

“Cost doesn't matter. I want it done. How long do you think it will take?”

Telal thought it over. “Two months tops.”

“Fantastic.” They shook hands on it.

As he was walking back to Kearnyn to transport them back to the office, Tyrian said something that brought his feet to a halt.

“You will take care of her during her new moon.” It wasn't a question.

He almost didn't answer. The whole situation was so ridiculous he could barely wrap his mind around it. What the hell had Frank Bellum been thinking? Leaving his youngest daughter to him as her Protector? It was madness.

He turned back to Tyrian, letting him see the anger in his eyes. “I will not be her Protector, and I will not sleep with her.”

For a moment, he thought Tyrian was going to laugh as his lips twitched, but then he flattened them and gave him a hard, deadpan stare. “You'll change your mind.”

This time Telal didn't deign to answer. Reaching out he grabbed Kearnyn's shoulder without so much as a goodbye and transported them back to his office. When they appeared, Kearnyn gave him a watchful stare.

“A succubi's new moon is a fantastic thing. My friend mated with one before her twenty-ninth year too. He said it was the wildest sex he'd ever had. She craved it.”

Telal marched to his desk and slammed the weapon's contract Tyrian had given him onto it, knocking over his pen holder. “Good for him.”

“You've never said. Why do you despise the woman? You always have a reason.”

Telal poured himself two fingers of aged Scotch and chugged it before answering. “She and her sisters summoned Karr, an ancient demon. Her foolish activities could have had dire consequences. Even Lyonis was killed by the beast.”

Kearnyn stood silent for several moments. “But they still managed to kill the demon, both of them, once and for all. And you saved the Alpha shapeshifter.”

A pounding formed in his temples, beating a hard staccato beat like it was trying drill a hole out of his head. “If I hadn't been there, he'd be dead. If they hadn't heeded my advice, Karr and the demon he'd summoned could easily be killing thousands at this very minute.”

Kearnyn made a thoughtful noise then strode forward pulling a piece of paper out of his back pocket. “I wasn't going to bother giving it to you since you hate getting them. But she wrote you again. It arrived this morning.” He tossed the small envelope on his desk then left the room.

Telal glared at the envelope. The paper she used looked fine but felt thick like parchment and the ink heavy. He knew it well.

“Damn,” he cursed. He went to his desk and dropped into his chair making it groan in protest.

He ignored the letter.

Opening up the paperwork he'd been working on earlier, he set to work on it. Several times his eyes darted back to the menacing four-by-five envelope, but he caught himself each time and went back to work. Hours later, he rolled his stiff neck and leaned back in his chair with a sigh. The clock on his desk showed it to be the early morning hours. He flexed his hand to work out the cramp that had knotted in his palm.

His eyes strayed to the letter again. “I'm not a bloody coward.” He snatched the letter up and viciously tore open the top. He flattened the small letter out on his desk and read.

Dearest Telal Demuzi; Demon Warlord,

I cordially invite you to my birthday party this Saturday at my home in Louisiana. Presents are not mandatory, but acceptable. Address information is below.

Hope to see you there!

Lily

The letter crumpled in his fist. He strode to the door that led to his bedroom and went inside, flicking on the lights as he went. As he hit the switch, his fireplace flared to life with crackling flames.

He stood before the fire and stared into the burning embers. And then he tossed the letter into it.

Lily revved the engine of her Ninja 250R motorcycle and raced past the slow beat-up truck in front of her. The truck honked in outrage but she merely gave a dainty wave as she passed it.

Leaning down to get better speed, she pulled back on the handle of the accelerator. Cars littered the highway with families and couples going out to spend the Saturday. The bright clear sky made perfect weather for riding, too. She spotted a small green sign on the side of the road and slowed to read it.

Now entering Atlanta, Georgia.

She smiled so wide her cheeks hurt. Telal Demuzi, here I come. She threw her head back and screamed, “Woohoo!”

Whether it was from the dead-like sleep she’d had the night before or the fact that she was finally going to do this, she didn't know, but for the first time in the year since her papa died, she felt free, her heart light as air. She brought her eyes back to the round, and then screamed for real.

She saw a flash of yellow paint and part of a license plate number before she slammed into the yellow car in front of her. The crunch of metal and bone sounded horrifically loud to her ears, vibrating her tender eardrums like an explosion. The driver slammed on the brakes and her head rocketed forward, helmet meeting the metal trunk like it was trying to see what was inside.

It seemed like the squealing tires went on forever before it finally stopped. Her body hurt everywhere in an instant as her body curled around the bike and into the car which had become sandwiched together. Her lungs felt compressed like an anvil sat on her chest, and her limbs screamed at her in fiery agony.

Lily swore her eyes were open yet everything was turning a hazy gray, darkening. Was she still on the car? Was she on the ground? She had no clue. She tried to take note of the damage to her body but couldn't particularly feel anything except the screaming pain engulfing her. Hot burning sensations filled her lungs and stomach while sharp stabbing pain like little needles pricked her skull, arms, and legs. She heard a voice, young, male, and frantic.