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EMBER WOKE UP AND STRETCHED luxuriously. At first, she had no idea why she felt so comfortable, then she realized she was in her human form and she was lying on a soft bed. She turned her head to see Raum slumbering beside her and smirked. He was exhausted from bringing her so much pleasure all day long.
Too wide awake to go back to sleep, she rose and took a shower in his opulent bathroom. She used a thick, fluffy white towel to dry herself. Still in her human form, she crossed to his closet to search for something to wear. One half of his closet was filled with masculine clothing, but the other side was full of beautiful gowns and other clothing designed for women.
Ember touched an emerald green gown, wistfully wishing she could try it on. She had no idea who the clothes were for, but figured Raum must invite human women to his lair frequently. She chose a black blouse, matching trousers and underwear and tried them on. They were a perfect fit, so he definitely had a type. She found some black boots and they also fit her as if they’d been made for her.
Nightfall was still a couple of hours away and she needed to leave before the demons began to stir. Azazel thought she was dead, so she couldn’t change into her demon form. She would have to remain in her human body and leave while she still could. The black wallpaper caught her eye again when she shut the closet doors. She frowned when she realized it was the same wallpaper that had appeared in the small cave that used to be her lair.
Pausing to glance at Raum, she admired his perfect profile, then left his bedroom. She had to partially change into her werewolf form to be able to pull one of the gigantic black doors open. Her human body was too weak to open it. The gray guards were asleep. She silently crept past them and didn’t see it when they both cracked an eye open. Raum hadn’t given them orders to prevent her from leaving, so they didn’t stop her.
Ember crept out of the catacombs using one of the unguarded exits, then stripped naked and changed into her demon form. After her disastrous attack on Lord Dallinar, she decided to follow Lord Kreaton this time. She knew she couldn’t kill the trio on her own, but she wasn’t ready to trust Raum yet.
The demon lord had proven he could bring her pleasure in bed, but he was sly and manipulative. All demons were the same and he was the worst of the lot. She’d have to be crazy to agree to become bonded to him. Beleth and her other two masters had owned her body, but they hadn’t owned her soul. It was the one thing that still belonged to her and her alone.
She still had plenty of time left before nightfall, so she flew to the Shifter District to store her borrowed clothes in the empty apartment she’d been using. Ember’s stomach rumbled and she sighed. “I could eat an entire chicken right now,” she complained. A moment later, a roast chicken appeared on a plate on the counter in the kitchen. Ember stared at it in surprise. Steam was still wafting off it, so she strode over and devoured it before it could go cold.
When she was done, the bones and plate vanished and the grease disappeared from her mouth and hands. “Okay, that was weird,” she said, then patted her full stomach. Raum was the most powerful demon in their District. He could call on the magic of Nox at will. Some of the magic must have rubbed off on her from having sex with him for several hours. “I could get used to that,” she murmured, unsure if she was talking about having a full stomach for once, or spending all day in bed with Raum.
Ember left the decrepit building and flew to the Vampire District. She perched on the roof of Lord Kreaton’s house and watched the sun go down. It was drizzling, but the rain didn’t bother her. She was captivated by the sunset that she rarely got to see. The only time Beleth had let her out of her cage had been to abuse her. Now that she finally knew what freedom felt like, she was never going back into slavery again.
The master vampire she’d come here to stalk rose shortly after nightfall. She listened to him moving around, getting dressed and drinking a glass of blood. He spoke to one of his minions, then headed downstairs to wait for a carriage to turn up.
Ember saw skeletons driving through the twisting, narrow streets to pick up the wealthy and privileged master vampires. Most of them would be heading for the Vampire Guildhall to begin their work for the night. They had to share carriages, since there weren’t enough to go around.
Lord Kreaton had a vehicle to himself when one pulled up. He told the driver to take him to Lord Graham’s house in the Shifter District, then climbed in. Ember wasn’t surprised to hear what his destination was. Her mood grew dark when she figured the Immortal Triumvirate would be meeting there so they could drain some more rogues.
She followed the carriage across the city, then kept her distance from the rulers when they stood out front of the alpha werewolf’s house to chat. Lord Dallinar teleported them away and they disappeared from her view.
Cursing beneath her breath, the hellion flew towards the shifter woods. By the time she found the Immortal Triumvirate, they’d already drained some rogues. She moved closer just in time to overhear Lord Kreaton speak. “Now to locate some masterless fledglings,” he said and looked at Lord Dallinar expectantly.
“Raum was right,” Ember said sourly when the trio vanished again. “They are draining the leeches as well.” She flew to the Vampire District as quickly as she could and sensed the Immortal Triumvirate in one of the poorer suburbs. She hid behind a chimney of a house and watched them knock on a door. A weak, emaciated bloodsucker opened the door and invited them inside. Ember caught a glimpse of the vampire when the door opened again. It wasn’t surprising that he was now aged and withered.
The three rulers spoke quietly for a couple of minutes, then the fairy teleported them away again. Ember didn’t care about the vampires, but it was unsettling to see they were suffering the same fate as the rogues. If she’d been a full blood demon rather than a half-breed, she wouldn’t have cared at all. Since she was half shifter and could turn into a human, it seemed she had a conscience. Ember had grown fond of the rogues who had claimed her as their alpha. She couldn’t stand to see them being drained and hidden away like garbage.
“They need to be stopped,” she murmured. The hellion had already learned she didn’t have the power to take them down by herself. The Night Cursed gypsy and Drognar had both told her that she needed to trust Raum and to become bonded to him. She would boost his power and she would gain strength in the process. “It’s the only way,” she said with a scowl. In order to stop the Immortal Triumvirate, she was going to have to relinquish her soul to the demon lord.
