I fought to keep my disdain off my face as the leader of the warlocks continued to doubt my plan.
Emir had been growing bolder over the last couple of years. He was forgetting that all the power he and the other warlocks had amassed for the last few decades was only because Balor had allowed it.
My liege still believed the warlocks would play a vital role in our fight to free him and the rest of the army from that godsdamned realm. I had my doubts, but I kept that to myself.
Balor was rarely wrong, and it was not my place to question him. Just as it was not Emir’s place to question me.
I’d let my attention drift during his nonstop complaining to the seraphim guarding the door to the space I’d taken over as my office. She was tall and strongly built like most of them. I wondered how much fire ran in her blood and if she could call it forth.
In my time here, I’d learned that for the most part, only the higher-ranking seraphs could wield blood magic.
But sometimes they would do something idiotic and get demoted.
Her light brown eyes flicked to mine and held my stare. Hmm… fire magic or not, I suspected she’d be fun to fuck later. The seraphim loved to fuck as much as they loved to fight, and they enjoyed both as rough as possible. This might be a backwater realm, but it certainly had its perks.
“Have you heard anything I said, Lir?” the warlock before me growled in frustration and I blinked, returning my focus to him once more.
“You’ve been saying the same thing for the last hour, Emir,” I snapped, letting a little of my irritation come through. “Nemain and the others need to be knocked off kilter. They already set back our plans in the dragon realm, and I’ve received reports about that valkyrie who runs around with them being seen in the seraphim realm. If they haven’t already figured out what we’re doing with the humans, then they will soon.”
“They don’t have the numbers to do anything about it,” Emir argued. “We should be focusing on strengthening the warlocks and vampires. Once the fae and daemons start to actively get involved, they’ll slaughter the lot of us. We need more power.”
“And you’ll get it. “But without knowing how the sorcerers created the damn vampires in the first place or having access to the original devourer they used for the spell, it’s not exactly easy to make improvements to their situation. I already have them yapping in my ear about still not being able to walk in the sun, and I don’t need your voice there too.”
Emir’s mouth flattened into a hard line, but he didn’t push me. Good. He was a solid leader for the warlocks, and he kept them all in line. If I killed him, I’d have to find someone else, and I had neither the time nor the patience for that.
“I’m surprised you were able to get the vampires on board with this plan,” Emir said, his tone careful. “Nemain will rain down all kinds of wrath on them for doing this.”
“They’ve been wanting to go after her for a while now. The business with Magos and Mikhail, plus those vampire children who ran off a couple years ago, still angers the Council members.” I shrugged. “I have no doubt that a lot of their numbers will be depleted, but I’m putting in a great deal of effort to figure out how to improve their magic. It’s time for them to have more skin in the game.”
“And if she wipes them all out?” I gave him a hard look, and Emir raised his hands defensively. “I’m not questioning your plan. Just trying to account for all possibilities.”
I retorted sharply, “We have the seraphim. They’re arguably better soldiers than the vampires anyway.”
Not nearly as smart, but I didn’t say that out loud given that I’d setup my main base in their realm.
“The dragons who allied with us are still recovering from the blow they were dealt in their realm and the loss of the leadership, but they’re making progress. And I’m sure we can find others as needed.”
Emir nodded and rose from where he’d been sitting across from my desk.
“Alright, I’ll return to the human realm and continue helping the Vampire Council to make sure they have everything they need and check in with Artemis as well. The timing is going to be tricky; we have to snag them both in one go, otherwise the plan will fall apart.”
“Do not fail in this.” My words were a command as much as a warning.
“We will not,” Emir assured me. “Preparations are underway. It’ll take a few more months, but no longer than that.”
“Good.” My lips curved up into a cruel smile. “It’s time for Nemain to get a taste of just how much she’s going to suffer for defying me.”
* * *
The story continues in A Shift in Death
Cruelty. Deception. Wrath. The gods have come to claim what they’re owed.
Nemain has finally found her family—blood ties and chosen allies who’ve stood by her through thick and thin. But when a routine birthday party takes a dark turn, she faces her worst fears: once again, those she loves have become targets.
A Shift in Death comes out August 2024. Preorder now to get it automatically delivered to your eReader!