Once he got rid of this new threat, he could make Valentine comfortable with him at the house. For better or worse, the Night Bloode were his kin. His sire had accepted it. He would finally accept it too. Besides, he loved his lab. And Rolf had grown on him. Mostly.
Which reminded him. He pulled out a phone and dialed.
“Yo.”
“Rolf, it’s Khent.” Behind him, someone screamed, and hellish laughter filled his ears. “Sorry. We’re having fun near Volunteer Park in Capitol Hill.”
“Was that a demon?” Rolf sounded piqued. “Wait. Are you having fun without me?Again?”
“Duncan and Macy distracted me, or I would have called you sooner.” Then, to get the draugr off his back, he lied. “I told them to call you. They didn’t?”
“Those assholes! I’ll be there in a few.” He disconnected.
Rolf must have meant a few seconds, because a circle of darkness appeared right near Khent. Overhead, runes sparked, and a fiery burst of energy created a portal.
Rolf stepped through, his eyes red. The portal vanished.
Enraged, the draugr let loose his famous battle cry, which stopped everyone around them. Then he grinned like a demon himself. “Who’s ready to have somefun?”
From some distance away, Khent heard Duncan groan. “Hell. Rolf’s here. Macy, Cho, stay close to me in case he forgets you’re both friend and not foe.”
Rolf exploded into action, a whirling dervish of death as he used fangs, claws, and magic to tear through the demons and dead now streaming toward him.
Leaving Khent to search for Vladimir.
As much as Khent wanted to kill the necromancer, he knew his mate deserved the man’s death. Revenge could be so satisfying. He didn’t want to rob her of that.
Walking away from the destruction all around, he noticed a few things that stood out. Demons who didn’t look like those he’d seen in Irkalla. These looked more like imps and cambions—combinations of demon and human that stood on bent legs with leathery flesh and human features.
Several horned beasts raced toward a cluster of running humans who didn’t run fast enough. While the beasts dined, a few MEC agents jumped in.
Khent let the action distract the person trailing him. So that when he turned and jacked the individual against the tree behind them, he had a firm hold of someone he hadn’t expected to see again.
“Ah, the reaper,” Sebastian Castle said, dangling from Khent’s hand, his voice mangled.
“Pazuzu, why am I not surprised?” Khent didn’t relax his grip.
The demon god hiding in the body of a deceased sorcerer only smiled and rasped, “What’s up?”
Khent sighed and dropped him.
Pazuzu rubbed his throat. “Still got those reflexes. Nice to see mating hasn’t slowed you down.”
The demon had been spying. Interesting. “Why are you here?”
“Thought I’d lend a hand.”
“By killing humans?”
“By letting a few friends have fun while Nergal gets ready to unleash the apocalypse.” He stared into Khent’s gaze, not at all as intimidated as he should have been. Khent liked him for that, though he’d never admit it.
“I’m surprised that you’d want an end to life when you’re finally able to live it.” Like Nergal, Paz had been trapped in Irkalla for eons, serving in that dull world until a witch had tried to trap him in a deal, which hadn’t worked out so well for her.
Paz sighed. “Don’t get me started. Anyway, I’m here, doing favors for my old friends, keeping you and yours occupied while thereal actionis going onelsewhere.”
Khent froze. “The bazaar.”
Paz nodded and gave him a wide smile. “What? No way. That’s crazy to think that while you’re here goofing off, Nergal is tempting Vladimir to finally show all his cards and turn over the Staff of Blight.”
