The two vampires on the sides were in full-fledged panic mode now. Even Vlad had started to get worried when his claws wouldn’t break through my magic.

“You can see that I am an extremely valuable asset, can you not?” I yelled, surging more energy into the fire and speeding up the stakes. “Trust me, you want me on your side. You want me to lie low and train. To get stronger, and better. What you don’t want is to anger me. I get crazy when I’m angry.”

I stripped away the fire and stakes and quickly pulled them back to the ground. The chairs settled with bumps. The two vampires on the sides were both in their monster forms, blood running down their chests and torn clothes strewn across their seats. Vlad had a placid, assessing expression at odds with his blood-soaked shirt. Not one hair was out of place.

I had no idea how he did it.

“Darius will not get punished,” I said quietly into the sudden silence. “I will not have to deal with any of you. Only him. Our bond will remain intact.” I paused, and then figured, why not, I should go for it. “And I can visit the unicorns whenever I want.”

The vampire on the right changed back to his human form and glanced down at his chest. “Give her what she wants,” he said. “Give her anything she wants.”

The other vampire changed back as well and palmed her breast, which really wasn’t where the wound was, but whatever. She nodded her assent. “She is valuable. Beyond what you said, Vlad. If she is loyal to Darius, so be it. She is still within our faction. That is enough. We are lucky she agreed to bond at all. Enter her in the books.”

Vlad steepled his fingers again and tilted his head to the side, watching me. A slow smile crept up his face. “You make a very compelling argument, Ms. Somerset.” His eyes sparkled as his gaze slid to Darius. “The find of the century, Darius. I applaud you. I hope to one day outdo you, though how, I cannot imagine.”

“I warned you of her response to all this,” Darius said, walking toward me.

“Indeed you did. Though I admit, I thought you were grossly overexaggerating. It seems the jaunt into the Dark Kingdom has done her good.”

I snapped. “I almost forgot. Leave my neighbor alone. He was just looking out for me. Don’t involve him in any of your plans.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it.” That smile wasn’t reassuring. The fear he’d felt in my fire prison was much more so. I was contemplating giving him another scare when Darius slipped his arm around my back and pulled me close. He turned us back the way I’d come before I’d made up my mind. “Reagan,” he said in disapproval, and I knew I’d get in trouble for risking the knowledge of my magic for him. “What did you spill on yourself?”

My mouth dropped open. Maybe not.

Moss fell in behind us. “I apologize, Mr. Durant,” he said. “I know you said not to involve her, but I didn’t see any other way. Vlad had things pretty well wrapped up.”

“Though it grieves me, you were right to bring her. I knew Vlad’s resolve, but I hoped to talk the others around. Those two elders are firmly in his pocket. They have too much power, all of them. I will need to do something about that.”

“Who’s hungry?” I raised my hand, answering my own question, as we made our way out. Vampires crowded around the puddles of sticky goo from the two vamps I’d killed. They looked at us solemnly. Darius ignored them entirely. “Who wants to make dinner?” I pointedly looked at Darius.

“How does Louisiana keep enough food to feed her?” Moss grumbled.

“Jealous?” I grinned back at him, and he lowered his brows. He totally was.

We made our way home, Darius and I hand in hand. I had wanted to stay away from vampires, and when that had proven impossible, I’d wanted to avoid getting intimate with one. When that had gone to hell, I’d forbidden myself to bond. Another strike against me. And now, here I was, utterly, irrevocably, in love with one.

So much for doing the smart thing.

“I love you,” I said softly.

He stopped me (and waited for Moss to keep going) before brushing his lips across mine. “You are more precious to me than anything in my eternal life. You are my everything, and I vow to protect you always.”

I smiled like a lovesick girl and pulled him down for a deeper kiss. He should have been all wrong for me, but he felt so right. He was my family now. My chosen mate. And if life should ever take a turn, and I could ensure we were safe, I wouldn’t be totally averse to expanding that family, if he biologically could. We were as close to normal humans as I ever hoped to get, and that was fine by me.

He swooped me up into his arms and carried me the rest of the way.

Chapter Thirty-Three

I knocked on the door to a pretty swank little spot in upstate New York. Roger had some dough, it seemed. The elves clearly paid well.

Darius waited off to the side, staring out at the lovely trees dotting the landscape, starting to lose their leaves as summer waned. I would’ve snuck off and done this without him, but he owned the jet that had gotten me there.

After putting Vlad in his place, I’d tracked down my loose-lipped were-dog friend, Red, to get Roger’s whereabouts. I needed to call off Roger’s efforts to amass an army. I figured he’d need to hear it directly from me. Since Darius owned his own jet, hasty travel plans weren’t a big deal. Money was great. It really smoothed out all life’s annoying problems. Well, except for the whole “being Lucifer’s daughter” thing.

I had raised my hand to knock again when I heard footsteps behind the door. The handle jiggled before the door swung open, revealing a tight-bodied Roger, wearing jeans that hugged his muscular thighs and a white T-shirt that outlined his broad chest. The guy could really work the laid-back look.

Surprise didn’t register on his face when he saw me, but his expression did harden when he caught sight of Darius.

“I had to bring him. He insisted.” I shrugged. “Can we come in? Or just me, depending on your vampire-tolerance level.”

“Red told me you were coming,” Roger said, stepping back.

I hooked a thumb behind me. “Is he a yay or nay? We’re not here for any trouble.”

Roger jerked his head and turned to lead us inside. Darius was behind me a moment later, closing the door after him.

For a man with a casual dress code, Roger really did up his house. Plush furniture and matching decor set off a rustic look that really worked with the surroundings. Time, effort, and money had been poured into the situation, and it had turned out well.

I pointed at a grand piano as we entered a sitting room. “This is going to sound like a dumb question, but do you play?”

“I play some. I prefer the guitar. I have a setup for a band, and the piano rounds it out when someone competent sits at it.” His gaze flicked to Darius. He was correctly assuming Darius was someone competent.

Roger put out his hand to indicate we should sit on the leather sofa. “Do you want something to drink?”

“No, I’m good, thanks.”

Roger looked at Darius. “Vampire?”

“No, thank you for asking.”

Roger lowered into the love seat, and while he leaned back and crossed an ankle over a knee, only an idiot would assume that meant he was relaxed. I didn’t know if alphas like him ever relaxed. “What can I do for you?”

“Information share. We’ve been busy.”

“We?” Roger glanced at Darius.

I toggled my thumb back and forth between Darius and I. “We, yeah. I’ll start from the beginning, shall I?”

I didn’t, at all, start from the beginning. Or tell the whole truth. I told him about calling the demon, about Vlad’s efforts to spread news of the coming demon attack, then made up a rambling story about forcing the demons to do our bidding. He couldn’t know we’d gone to the Dark Kingdom ourselves—it would give me away, and besides, he didn’t need to know. He just needed an assurance the threat was canceled.

At the end of my tall tale, he stared at me quietly with that hard alpha gaze. My magic pounded in my middle, but I kept it at bay. While the new me still did not react well to challenging stares, I could keep from punching people in the face. Mostly. I’d matured a little.