“Don’t!” I yelled.

The man looked up at me with haunted eyes.

“Don’t you dare,” I said breathlessly, going to the girl’s side. The man slowly lowered his arm, seeing Kopano and Blake watching and not wanting to chance it.

I helped her up by the arm. Yes, it was stupid of me, but my secret had already been revealed. I was working for the other team, so these demons could just kiss my heavenly ass.

“Donna?” the drunken girl mumbled.

“No. Do you have a friend here named Donna?”

She looked around, bleary-eyed, without responding. I led her to the end of the bar, half carrying her, and reached over to take napkins from a pile. I wiped her face and dabbed at her hair. Another girl her age ran up to us, out of breath.

“Oh my gawd! There you are, you stupid hooch! I thought you were going to the bathroom. Rob keeps asking about you. He bought us another round. Come on.”

“Are you Donna?” I asked.

“Yeah. Why?” She looked at me for the first time.

“Your friend just got sick. Maybe she should go back to her room.”

“Excuse me? Who do you think you are, telling me—”

I didn’t have time for this. I used my influence. “If you care for your friend, take her back to the room.”

She looked at me with big eyes as she dealt with her inner turmoil. Then she glared at me, pulling her friend’s arm around her shoulder and walking off in the direction of the exit.

Oh, thank goodness. I sighed. A whisperer swooped down on me, then another, shouting their telepathic messages.

What was that? You disgust us!

Kopano sidled up, looking serious.

“Leave her,” he told the whisperers in his low, ominous voice. “She’ll get what she deserves soon enough.”

It worked and they left me alone, a shiver rippling over my skin at the double meaning of Kope’s words, whether he meant it or not. Would I survive this night?

The demons had to be destroyed. If it took my death to make that happen, so be it. It broke my heart to think of Kaidan left behind without me and how he would cope with that, but he would cope. And we’d be together again someday, in a different way, but together nonetheless. I tried to gain confidence from these thoughts, but my heart was too heavy.

My Neph friends had formed a box around me, and I wondered if they were trying to protect me from whisperers, or keep me from helping anymore humans. Whatever the reason, their close presence gave me strength.

Kaidan returned to us with a double shot of something amber-colored over ice. I got a strong whiff of bourbon, which made me want to kiss him again. His eyes captured mine and held them as he tipped back the glass until it was drained.

The sons of Thamuz returned to us, holding their drinks and looking disgusted by our presence. They signaled for us to move, and we followed. The music thumped through my whole body. The fierceness on the faces of my surrounding allies fueled me.

We came to a set of double doors with a sign saying lunar room. My body was alight with adrenaline. In the Lunar Room of the Galaxy club, heaven and hell would meet.

Pharzuph practically burst through the doors, his avid eyes on me. He frowned.

“This isn’t exactly what I had in mind when I said to get her different clothes,” he said to Kaidan. Pharzuph grabbed my arm and pulled me forward, not caring to hear a response from his son. I met Kai’s steely stare and knew those eyes would be on me all night.

With a deep breath in my chest, and a prayer in my heart, we entered the summit.

Life, although it may only be an accumulation of anguish,

is dear to me, and I will defend it.

—Mary Shelley, Frankenstein

UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE

HarperCollins Publishers

..................................................................

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

LUNAR ROOM

Nine sets of blood-red eyes landed on me, making adrenaline run a race through my body. Everyone was there except my dad, Rahab, and Jezebet. The nine Dukes present looked me over with complete disdain before nodding at Pharzuph with admiration for my capture.

Pharzuph shoved me forward, a proud look on his face, and said, “Go sit down until we’re ready to deal with you.”

I moved, sensing my allies close behind me, and took in our new surroundings. I’d never been able to picture this final summit—and now here we were. I wouldn’t have imagined this most deadly fight taking place in a swanky VIP lounge.

The room was all black, like the main club, with similar stars twinkling overhead. The same music played, only at a lower volume. Tables shaped like phases of the moon and modern, black leather seats filled the floor space. The lounge area surrounded a circular dance floor with a gleaming black surface that reflected the ceiling’s stars. Next to the entrance was a bar with a middle-aged male Neph bartender I didn’t recognize. He ignored us and focused on the Dukes, who gathered around the bar, talking and laughing as if this gathering were nothing but a social event..

Long, black couches lined the walls of the room. We went to the end of the lounge and sat against the wall. Kaidan, me, Marna, then Ginger sat on a couch together. Blake and Kope sat on the next one. We didn’t have to wait long for others to begin arriving. The Neph all came to this far side of the room, then spread out their numbers along the wall couches, acknowledging one another with nods, but never talking.

Kopano’s two older brothers approached and sat next to him. More allies! My hope grew at the sight of the three of them sitting on the next couch in stoic silence. His brothers had the same large body frame as him, but their eyes were a deep brown.

A gross sensation slithered through my belly when Caterina came in, the tight bun in her hair looking like it would give a normal person a migraine. As she walked toward us and sat on a lone couch, she smiled at me—the creepiest smile I’d ever seen. I guessed she knew why we were gathered and was looking forward to it. I found the twins glaring murderously at her, so I gave Marna a discreet elbow to the arm to make her stop.

Duke Jezebet walked in then, and Caterina sat up taller, watching the Duke of Lies with adoring reverence. The stunning Russian woman in her crisp gray suit never even glanced at her daughter. Instead she scanned the Neph until she found me. Our eye contact lasted only a brief moment, but seeing the lack of hate in her eyes and knowing she was an ally lifted my spirits, while also making me long for my father.

I felt Kaidan stiffen next to me when Pharzuph and Astaroth looked our way. Then Astaroth gave a shake of his head and they went back to drinking. Marna inclined her face toward me and Kaidan, leaning forward enough to check our bond. She gave a small nod. We were good. Kai relaxed again. It made me wonder how long his buzz would last and hide the bond. Probably not long. All of our secrets would be revealed soon.

Watching the Dukes socialize, unconcerned about a so-called mercenary Neph girl, gave me a strange sense of resolve. They believed they were untouchable. They saw their enemy tonight as just one girl. One stupid girl who might be working with someone, but their complete lack of concern showed their weakest flaw.

Foolish pride. We would use it against them.

Though my resolve fueled me, my body still behaved with traitorous nerves when I thought about how I no longer had the sword, and no clue how else to physically get rid of these demons. Kaidan bumped his leg against mine when I started chewing my thumbnail. I dropped my hand. Okay. Nobody was going to try to kill us this very minute. I sat up straighter.