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WHEN RAUM WOKE UP IN his bed the following night, he felt Ember’s arm lying across his chest and smiled. Then she tweaked his nipple and he rolled over and pinned her down with a mock growl. In all of his thousands of years of existence, he’d never truly been happy. As he plunged himself into his mate’s perfect body, fear rose inside him at the thought of losing her. He’d only formed a triumvirate with Sebastian and Kade so he could gain more power. Now he had another incentive to win the coming war. He needed to keep Ember safe and to make sure she never suffered again.
Ember luxuriated in the pleasure that Raum wrung from her. She moaned his name and urged him to go harder and faster. Her fingernails raked his back and he bit her ear in retaliation. They barely drew blood from each other, but the small amount of pain added to their enjoyment.
The demoness climaxed first, but Raum was right behind her. They showered together again, then got dressed. Ember chose jeans and a sweater rather than an elegant gown. The demon lord only owned suits and didn’t have any casual gear. They sat down at the dining table to eat the meal that appeared.
A letter arrived shortly after they finished eating their dinner. Raum opened it and scanned it. “It’s from Kade Sinclair,” he said. “He wants us to join him in an hour.”
“That gives us plenty of time to have sex again,” Ember said with an inviting smile.
After enjoying each other again, they used the new secret exit to leave the catacombs. Raum picked Ember up and flew them both to the Night Cursed District. He landed on the rooftop of the insane asylum and instantly became drenched when he changed back to his human form.
“Nice weather we’re having,” the hellion said sardonically.
“I can do something about that,” Sorcha said as she and Kade arrived by teleportation. She erected an invisible barrier above them all, but she didn’t need to dry the pair off. The magic of Nox did it for her.
Sebastian and Eden arrived moments later. The master vampire set the succubus down and they pushed their hoods back. “So, I guess you gave in to the demon,” Eden said when she saw the hell spawn holding hands. Sorcha extended the barrier to shield the new arrivals as well.
“Yep,” Ember said. “He’s mine now.”
“And Ember is mine,” the demon lord said silkily.
“We’ve all finally found our partners and there’s only three months left until Halloween,” Sebastian said. Lightning flared and thunder shook the air, making them all pause for a second.
“Do you have the artifact?” Kade asked.
Sebastian reached into his pocket and drew it out. He’d placed it in a black velvet bag so he didn’t burn himself when he touched it.
“It’s a silver stake,” Ember said incredulously when he opened the bag to show them the weapon. “You could have bought one of those from one of the stores in the Fae District.”
“It has a spell on it,” Sorcha told her.
“It’s bound to Sebastian and it will target any vampire he considers to be his enemy,” Kade added.
“Will it kill Lord Kreaton?” the demoness asked skeptically.
“Probably not, mademoiselle,” Sebastian admitted as he slipped the stake back into his pocket. “But it will hopefully weaken him enough so we can kill him.”
“Have you made any further progress at destroying the shields Lord Dallinar crafted for himself and his allies?” Raum asked.
Sorcha nodded. “Kade perfected the spell last night and we’ve practiced using it a few times.”
“Speaking of shields, Sorcha and I would like to cast the shields around all of you,” the warlock said. “We’ve already cast it around ourselves. We’ll be protected from all physical and magical attacks when it’s in place.”
“We’ll be just like the Immortal Triumvirate,” Ember said with a hint of worry.
“Except we’ll destroy their magical protection and they’ll be vulnerable,” Raum added with a fierce grin.
The warlock and sorceress cast shields around their allies. “Let’s see how well this works,” Ember said. She pointed at Raum and hellfire washed over him. She was surprised that she could use it in her human form.
The demon lord gave his mate a look that promised retribution as the demonic fire hit his invisible shield. “It would seem the shields are working,” he said.
Sebastian heard a strange humming noise far in the distance and turned towards the City Square. Raum heard it as well and frowned, trying to place the noise.
“What is that?” Eden asked when she heard it.
“What can you hear?” Kade asked. Neither he, nor Sorcha had supernatural hearing.
“Letters,” Ember said. “Lots and lots of letters,” she added when the fluttering sound increased.
White envelopes swooped through the air. They came from somewhere to the north and were heading towards the Vampire, Fae, Shifter and even the Demon Districts. Six letters veered towards the Night Cursed District. They fluttered over to the rooftop of the asylum and hovered in front of the small group of allies.
They opened the letters and read the message.
You are cordially invited to a Halloween party.
Everyone must wear an authentic Halloween costume.
Food and drinks will be provided for everyone in the
Vampire, Fae, Shifter and Demon Districts.
A contest will be held in each District
for the best costumes.
Prizes will be awarded to the winners.
Penalties will be handed out to anyone who
fails to create a suitable costume.
Special guests will be attending in celebration of
the 50th anniversary of the creation of Nox!
“I don’t like the sounds of this,” Eden said uneasily. Instead of vanishing once their messages had been read, the invitations remained in their hands. Only the envelopes disappeared.
“We must all work on our partnerships, so we can become as strong as possible,” Sebastian suggested. “We must be united when we face the Immortal Triumvirate in our war.”
“It won’t be easy, but I believe we now have everything we require to succeed,” Kade said confidently.
“Let’s hope we do,” Raum said. “If we fail, death will await us all.”
“Way to bring down the mood, Raum,” Sorcha said with a scowl.
“We’ll win,” Ember said. “We have to, or the Immortal Triumvirate will keep draining the rogues and vampires of their energy.”
“You mean through the Energy Tax?” Eden asked.
The demoness shook her head, then described what Lord Dallinar had done to the shifters and leeches. “It’s up to us to put a stop to it before it’s too late,” she added bleakly when she was done. Raum put a hand on her shoulder in support and she leaned against him.
“We all know what we need to do,” Sebastian said. “We’ll meet regularly with each other and with our other allies to cement our plans. We have three months to prepare ourselves. Let’s hope it will be long enough.”
The master vampire, warlock and demon lord had spent the past nine months searching for the dangerous and powerful women Xiara Evora had told them to find. Now that they’d achieved their goal, they had a far greater chance of winning their battle against the leaders of Nox.
