Page 26 of Dancing with Daggers

Zia rattled off their location and hung up. Ares seemed to have snapped himself out of his killing haze because he was now staring at Zia like she had grown another head.

"How the fuck does Tarael Vanth owe you a favor?" Ares asked, eyes wide. "Who the fuck are you?"

Zia let out a small laugh. "You mean apart from the woman of your dreams?" she teased.

Ares nodded. "Yes."

"I'm the last woman you ever want to fuck with," she replied with a saucy wink. Ares's eyes narrowed, but he didn't push it. He had just finished washing the blood off his face and hands when Vanth arrived ten minutes later with two of his helpers and a med-mage.

"Lucrezia, always a pleasure," he said by way of a greeting.

"Hey, Tarael, thanks for coming so quickly," she replied with a grin. "I hope I didn't interrupt anything important."

"Always have time for you," Vanth replied. To anyone who didn't know better, Tarael Vanth was just a half-fae goth boy with long black hair, tattoos, and a chunk of his pointed ear missing. He was tall and lean, loved dark Nordic metal, and had an endless collection of band and anime shirts.

He also had an uncanny talent for the dead that made him the most powerful necromancer in Inferno. He used his considerable skill to be the preferred cleaner of the rich and powerful. There was nothing his ghouls wouldn't or couldn't eat.

Vanth looked Ares over and tsked. "Girl, what are you doing fucking about in Volso business?"

"Family affair," she said with a shrug.

Vanth was one of the few people who knew exactly who her real family was, and he only let out a low whistle.

"Tough. Okay, get the fuck out of here so I can work," Vanth said and waved them away. He turned to his waiting crew. The med-mage was already stabilizing Samuel. "Okay, minions, get the breather into the second car so we can get him to a hospital. I'm going to need my black bag for this. Glass knives, Zia? Really? Why do you want to make my life more difficult."

Zia pouted. "I know you love a challenge."

"Get the fuck out of my sight before I change my mind." Vanth turned back to the body, Zia and Ares already forgotten. He was always more interested in the dead than the living. His two ghouls were already carrying Samuel away.

Downstairs, Ares took Zia's hand. "One day, we are going to have a long, honest conversation about what the fuck that was all about."

Zia stood up on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. "One day, but not tonight. I think you owe me some dinner and a foot rub."

Ares put an arm around her and kissed her temple. "Thank you."

Zia leaned into him, savoring the feeling of being enclosed by him. She would enjoy him for one more night because tomorrow she would have to let him go forever.

18

Ares was expecting a call from Corven the following day but didn't expect the family to be summoned for a meeting. He had woken up to an empty bed, which he didn't like, but he had been too busy to catch up with Zia.

Yet. He would pin her down after Corven's meeting and tell her exactly why not waking him before she left was unacceptable.

Erik and Camille were in the elevator when it arrived, and Ares cautiously stepped inside. They both looked nervous.

"Any idea what this is all about, Ares? Corven usually gives us more warning than this," Erik asked and took a hit of his vape.

"Corven does as he wishes. Why? Do you have something to be nervous about?" Ares asked. His fingers itched to punch Erik in the face again, especially after the shit he was going to have to sort out with Galen and Thor.

Camille sniffed. "We haven't done anything. You don't have to glare at us, Ares."

"That's just his face, darling. You know that," Erik said, his vision hazy.

Ares shook his head. "Getting high is a great idea."

"Fuck you, Ares. We aren't all uptight like you are."

Ares was grateful when the doors slid open to the shared penthouse. There was a low murmur of voices that Ares followed to the board room. Corven was sitting in his usual chair with Emilia on his right. Zia was dressed in a suit, her hair slicked back into a neat bun, and she was still standing on his right with a black portfolio. She didn't look at Ares, and his stomach plummeted. Something was very, very wrong.

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