Page 14 of Mastering Mayhem

“How so?” she returned to her potion station and sprinkled dried oregano into a bowl while Miles opened his laptop.

“The auction protocol will be the same,” he said. “The only difference will be the wards. I’m sure they’ll be using magic to guard the relics in addition to firepower.”

“Less firepower than they would have at a mundane auction, I’ll bet.” I drummed my fingers on the table. “Not only that, but if any humans are there, they already know magic is real. If it goes south, we can use our powers openly. This is good. Finally, something is going our way.”

“Mmm…” Ash pressed her lips into a thin line.

I flattened my hand on the table. “What?”

“They know artifacts can be magical.” She poured a potion into a bottle and corked it. “I doubt they’ve witnessed someone shoot flames from her fingertips.”

“So I’ll say I have an artifact that gives me fire power.” I rose and rested my hands on my demon’s shoulders. “It’ll be fine. We’ve got this, right, Mayhem?”

“Indeed, we do.” He clasped my hand, angling his head to look up at me. “Together, we can accomplish any feat.”

His words warmed my chest and made my stomach tighten. At least the moths had settled. “We go in as planned. Big Oil Boyd and his plus one will ask to see the amulet ahead of the auction. While I’m charming the guards with my mad people skills, Mayhem will slip the stone into his pocket, and then we’ll jet.”

“Hecate, help us,” Shade said. “You don’t have people skills.”

“I do when I want to.” I crossed my arms. “Do you have a better idea?”

“I do, actually.” He stood and joined Miles at the counter, leaning his hip against it. “I’ll go with you.”

I barked a laugh. “You think you’re better with people than me? Please.”

“Ember and I can handle it.” Mayhem stood next to me. “We don’t require assistance.”

Shade bristled, squaring his shoulders toward us. “Like you didn’t ‘require assistance’ at the Formorian’s shop?” He made air quotes.

My nostrils flared with my hard exhale. “We’d have been fine if Ash hadn’t said my name.”

“Sure. Blame it on your sister like you always do.” He crossed his arms. “Poor, incompetent Ash. Always the scapegoat. How convenient.”

Mayhem tensed beside me. “Theassistanceyou provided made you a liability. If it hadn’t been for Miles, you’d have bled out on the floor.”

“Stop it. All of you.” Ash spread her fingers and shot three separate flames.

One hit Mayhem in the mouth as he tried to speak. He pushed it out with his tongue and sent it back to Ash. Another hit me on the cheek, the impact stinging before my skin absorbed the fire.

The third she directed at Shade, the flame singeing him before she called it back.

“Ow!” He clutched his neck where she’d burned him. “What the hell was that for? You know I’m not fireproof.”

“Your arguing is giving me a headache. Keep it up, and I’ll burn the whole building down.” Her eyes narrowed, her brow lower than I’d ever seen. Something about her expression reminded me of a wild animal that had been backed into a corner and was ready to lash out against its foe.

She looked downright feral.

The sigil on her arm glowed a deep red, and the tension in her jaw eased, the vein near her temple no longer protruding. I glanced at Chaos. He kept his gaze trained on my sister, but the worry in his eyes was unmistakable.

She exhaled, her posture returning to normal, her expression softening to neutral before she scrunched her brows. “Why is everyone staring at me?”

Shade laughed dryly. “I wonder.”

“I remember seeing a burn salve in Ash’s bag.” Miles rummaged through the satchel and pulled out a jar of blue goo.

“Who got burned?” She looked perplexed.

I made eye contact with Chaos and then Mayhem. Concern etched lines into their foreheads.

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