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RAUM PERCHED ON THE top of the Demon Guildhall in his demon form and watched some buildings throughout Nox burn. The fire elementals had hit the Vampire, Fae and Shifter Districts. They’d only targeted empty buildings and the Night Cursed firefighters had responded quickly. It almost seemed as if it the attacks had been orchestrated. To his knowledge, there were only a small handful of fire elementals in the city. He’d flown over the other Districts to see there were over twenty buildings on fire.
The demon wondered if Crowmon was behind it. The jester was cooking up something and this time, Raum didn’t have his finger in the pie. His strange little ally was branching out into new territory and Raum wasn’t sure where it was going to lead. His instincts were telling him that things were about to change in Nox. So far, he’d walked a tightrope between several different alliances, but all partnerships had to come to an end eventually.
As his glowing blue eyes studied the burning buildings in the Shifter District to the east, Raum thought back to a meeting he’d had with Xiara Evora and a gypsy fortune teller called Madam Quilla Astrid twenty-four years ago. It had happened the night Tannic, the incubus, had overstepped his bounds and had been executed for his crimes. Raum had foreseen his demise coming and had banned the incubus from entering his territory. He’d made sure Ms. Evora had gotten the message and he’d wanted to see her reaction to it. His spies had told him the Guardian of Nox was heading towards the seer’s boutique, so he’d flown there to speak to them both. He’d overheard Xiara Evora speaking to the seer as he’d arrived. The memory was still crisp in his mind after almost two and a half decades.
“Can you do a reading about Raum?” Xiara asked.
“I’m not sure that’s such a good idea,” Madam Quilla replied.
“Why not?”
“He’s a powerful demon and their type of black magic is unpredictable. He might sense what I’m doing and try to put a stop to it.”
“Forget it,” Ms. Evora said. “It’s not worth risking it just to satisfy my curiosity.”
“Too late,” the gypsy said in a mischievous tone. “Now I want to know what his future is. If he turns up and kills me, I’ll just come back tomorrow night.”
“He’ll probably kill me, too, so we’ll die together,” the huntress said wryly.
“Now, now, ladies,” Raum said as he pushed the door open and stepped inside. “There will be no need for anyone to die tonight,” he added as he closed the door behind him.
Madam Quilla let out a squeak of surprise and Xiara whirled around to stare at him suspiciously. He wore a black shirt beneath a charcoal gray suit and he knew how attractive his human form was. He flashed them both a wicked smile and the gypsy sucked in a breath. “Raum,” Ms. Evora said in cautious greeting. “What brings you here?”
“Why, I wish to have my fortune told, of course,” he replied and gestured at the seer. “I’ve heard that Madam Quilla is the best seer Nox has to offer.”
“Did you hear us talking about you?” Quilla asked with a mixture of suspicion and fright.
Raum laughed, but it did nothing to put them at ease. “No, my dear,” he refuted. “I assumed Ms. Evora would wish to speak to me after my minion passed on my message to her. I was informed that she was here, so I thought I might as well kill two birds with one stone, so to speak.”
The women exchanged glances, then Madam Quilla decided to accept him as her client. “Take a seat, Mr. Raum,” she said.
Raum could sense another presence in the room and glanced at the invisible fae creature that was sitting on a chair. He wasn’t sure what it was, but it often hovered near the Guardian of Nox. He crossed to another chair and carried it to the table to sit between the two women. He gave the gypsy a pleasant smile. “What do I need to do, Madam Quilla?” he asked.
“You just need to focus on the information you need from me,” she said and pulled her crystal ball and silver stand from her pocket. “Is there something specific you want to know about your future?”
Raum rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “I have certain alliances that are highly unstable,” he said at last. “I would like to know whether my allies can be trusted, or whether I should end our alliance before they become more trouble than they’re worth.”
It was enough for Quilla to go into a trance. She stared into the crystal ball as colors began to swirl around inside it. “You can’t trust those who you hope will give you the power you crave,” she foresaw. “They’re using you and they will discard you like the incubus Xiara executed tonight. Your only chance to gain the power and freedom you seek is to forsake the alliances you’ve painstakingly built. You will need to take a leap of faith and put your trust in beings who will have no desire to trust you in return.”
“When might this new alliance occur?” the demon asked. His tone was mildly inquisitive rather than annoyed that he’d apparently wasted his efforts at building alliances that would amount to nothing in the end.
“Many years will pass before you will meet these men,” Quilla replied, peering deeply into the crystal ball. “Things will soon change in Nox. The cursed will become persecuted, rebellions will form among the uncursed and infighting will become the norm. The Guilds will rise in power and will become a force to be reckoned with. Our leaders will become complacent, thinking they have absolute control over the City of Night. They believe they control their fates, but they will find that they are mistaken.”
Madam Quilla slumped in exhaustion and her crystal ball turned opaque again. Raum looked at her in astonishment, sensing her reading wasn’t just a sham. He flicked Ms. Evora a speculative look and Wrath appeared in her hand at the silent threat of impending violence. “Don’t even think about killing us,” she warned him. “You know I’ll remember this even if I die.”
Raum gave a small sigh, then nodded reluctantly. “I suppose killing you would be rather pointless,” he said regretfully. He hardly ever got to slaughter people anymore. “Now, did you have any questions for me?” he asked politely.
“Why did the Immortal Triumvirate use an incubus to impregnate female prisoners?” Ms. Evora asked.
“Is that what they’re doing?” he said in faux surprise. “I was asked to loan the incubus some of my power for a short time. I assure you, I had no idea what their intentions were.” The Immortal Triumvirate hadn’t confided in him, but he’d made a few guesses about what the offspring would be used for.
“What did you get out of the deal?” the huntress asked next.
Raum smiled coyly. “I’m afraid I’m not at liberty to reveal the details of my deal. Doing so would be a breach of my contract. I for one have no wish to anger the Immortal Triumvirate.” He rose, then gave them both a bow. “It’s been a pleasure, ladies,” he murmured, then he stepped outside and closed the door behind him.
Thinking back to that reading now, Raum was convinced that the seer was the real deal. Everything she’d foreseen had come to pass. The Immortal Triumvirate had dumped him like a used tissue after they’d drained the Night Cursed populace. He and Crowmon were no longer needed. While Raum had gotten what he’d wanted out of their deal, it wasn’t enough. He craved true power and being the Demon Guild Master wasn’t his ultimate goal.
His spies had told him about a secret meeting between a master vampire, an unknown magic user and Efrem Prager in the Vampire District several weeks ago. He’d had them all watched, but the trio hadn’t met again yet. Raum had a feeling he knew exactly who the master vampire was. He’d heard that Sebastian, Lord Kreaton’s nemesis, had been on his way to Nox three months ago. Perhaps it was time to form a new alliance the gypsy had foretold. He couldn’t think of anyone he should trust less than a vampire, a mysterious magic user and an unstable werewolf.
