Page 85 of Dating the Dealing Demon

“So? It’s not as if I can give it back. Hell, I don’t even want it if it keeps burning me.” I resist stealing some of the hedgie’s water to soothe the blisters stretching from my collarbones to my navel. The last thing we need right now is a pissed-off magical hedgehog.

Nic keeps her distance from both the hedgie and Monty. “Gilly plans some sort of supernatural showdown at the location where you two met.”

“The haunted house?” I ask.

“It’s not haunted,” Theo says. “At least not currently. I hired a reaper and his mate to clear out the ghosts months before you and your friends arrived. The worst thing there right now are the…” He trails off, shooting a look at Nic.

“The ley lines that mean unlimited access to other realms through portals,” she says.

“Fuck,” Theo mutters.

“Someone explain,” I demand, not caring who does it. I’m too tired, cranky, and hurting to figure out portal puzzles right now.

Theo rests his tail on my thigh, staying clear of the hedgie and Monty’s zoomies with his toy. The gentle touch tells me whatever he’s about to say, it’s going to be bad. “I picked the house because it stands atop a vortex of magical power. The leylines act as an energetic highway. With royal demon blood, I can hold one portal open at a time, but with the magnification of the magic that the lines provide, I’m able to sustain multiple paths at once. It’s how I could send your friends through to their fated mates without any risk to them or their monsters. At the house, I could hold the portals open simultaneously.”

“Except it went all wrong.” The memory of that day with Rosemarie vanishing from the library, of Meg never returning from her tour, of Theo telling me how Ava had been taken? It sends shudders through me. I remember what he claimed had happened to send the gargoyles crashing into the house and had Theo chasing after Ava and her kraken mate. “Because someone opened a portal you didn’t anticipate. You think Gilly was involved in stealing Ava?”

“The ocean realms couldn’t have pulled it off without a demon royal,” he says. “It could’ve been Dupree, but I would wager it was Gilly, and she’s returning to the scene of her crime.”

“We won’t go,” I insist. “It’ll be a trap.”

“Of course it will be.”

Nic raises a claw. “There’s more. The guards finished going through Gilly’s estate as well as Dupree’s house and his rooms here at Shadowvale. Dupree certainly wasn’t innocent in this mess, but it appears Gilly has always been the mastermind…” She trails off, hugging her arms to her middle as if she can protect herself from what her sister has done.

“No surprise there,” Theo says, but the hurt in his voice? It’s awful. “Our sister might have betrayed us, but she has never lacked brains. Did she leave any evidence of their plans?”

“No,” Nic says. “But Dupree did. We managed to unlock his video journal by cracking his epic password.”

“Let me guess. He used the actual wordpassword?” I’ve seen the same level of stupid in scientific geniuses at theuniversity’s labs. Rocket science? Easy for them. Systems’ security? Not so much.

“Worse,” Nic says. “He used—and I quote—DatStudDupreewith an exclamation point at the end.”

“More likeDatDouchebagDupreeorDatDoubleCrossingDupree,” Theo says.

“OrDatDeadDupree,” I add. They both stare at me, scarlet gazes assessing. “What? Too soon?”

Theo leans so close his horn brushes my temple. “You’re perfect.”

“This burn needs to heal immediately so we can put that forked tongue of yours to good use,” I whisper.

Nic clears her throat.

Oops. I forgot about supernatural hearing. Geez. As if this situation wasn’t already uncomfortable. I fidget, and the robe catches on my burn, making me hiss. I’m about two seconds from screaming for everyone to get out of here while my body feels like it’s on fire, please and thank you. Nothing Dupree might’ve said interests me enough to overcome the hellacious level of hurt I’ve got going right now.

Monty curls on my lap, and the hedgie chitters until I pull him from the tub. He immediately goes into full strike mode, rolling into a ball, puffing out his spikes, and screaming at Nic as though he’s an angry infant. It’s the cutest thing ever.

The pixies and gnomes flee.

Nic backs away. “Shit, don’t let that hedgehog change its form.”

“He won’t.” Or at least I hope he doesn’t.

“What did Dupree say?” Theo asks.

Oh yeah, we were discussing what the douchiest demon could’ve said that might be remotely interesting or intelligent.

Waving a hand toward the wall, Nic says, “Shadowvale, can you play the parts about Val’s friends for us?”

---