Good, that cunt deserves a wake-up call.

“Are you sure you want to posture against me?” Constantine’s voice rattles around the room with the power of his monster. An involuntary shiver runs down my spine, but my shoulders pull back as I once again call for my demons. “Snap her fucking neck.”

I don’t know who the command is directed toward, but I suck in a sharp breath, willing my magic to work faster. I call for my demons again, but they don’t magically appear.

I really hope whatever or whoever the council has that intermittently blocks my magic isn’t here, doing that exact thing at this very minute.

ChapterTwenty-Seven

Wraith

“Get back in the fucking jar,” Knight growls, jabbing a finger at the djinn currently on my last fucking nerve.

This showdown has gone on for the better part of five minutes, and my patience is running very thin.

“Fuck you,” Athos snorts. “If you’re so fond of it, then maybeyoushould climb inside.” He rubs his hands together. “I’m free, motherfuckers. No way you’re getting me back in that thing.”

Knight snarls, swiping a claw at the infuriating monster. “We have places to be!”

My skin sizzles, calling us to Nadia. “Get in the container before we shove you back in forcefully.”

“No, I think I’ll pass on that,” Athos says, turning to grayish-blue smoke and swirling away.

“Our witch is in mortal danger,” I hiss. “I’ll reap your soul if I have to, just to be done with this situation.” Technically, since Nadia bound us, we don’t need the relic, but it’s valuable. Extremely so, now that we know the jar holds a wish-granting djinn. “We’ll let you back out once we’re settled in the human world.”

“Fuck you! Would you go back in that tiny, cramped jar? It’s worse than Hell! I’m your built-in backup,” Athos says, smiling dangerously. “I thought we were friends. Friends don’t force friends back into the jar.”

“We don’t have time for this,” Knight mutters. “If you betray us, we will murder you.”

“It’s been ages since I was allowed to participate in a good bloodbath.” His light blueish-silver skin glints as he moves. “Let’s do it.”

Nadia’s terror rips through my chest as my eyes meet Knights. “Let’s go,” I growl, grabbing the jar. “Hopefully, you’ll be sucked through with us.”

“As long as you hold my vessel, I will be,” the infuriating djinn says.

“That’s good enough for me.” Knight disappears in a cloud of black shadow.

A half second later, I’m ripped through the veil too.

“Fuck, it’s been so long that I forgot how disorientating siphoning is,” Athos grumbles.

I immediately halt time. There are so many souls, it takes considerable effort. Twenty-four individuals, to be exact, and that’s in this room alone.

“Oh, thank God,” Nadia whispers.

“You can thank your demons.” Knight crawls onto the bed next to her. “Right after I spank your ass for being all up on someone who isn’t the wolf or the vampire.”

“It wasn’t exactly like we had a choice.” She wraps an arm around his neck, pulling him in for a kiss. “And it’s not Garth’s fault, either. The council is to blame and they need to be handled...” She goes on to explain exactly what happened before we arrived, and it feels like my blood boils inside my skin.

“Point me to where you’d like me to start.” Knight chuckles darkly. “That table smells especially delicious.”

“Yeah, that’s them,” she confirms.

“I’ll help.” I stride forward, climbing the steps to the bed. “This is extremely valuable. Keep it safe for me while we handle the problem?”

“Of course.” She smiles so brightly that my heart beats funny. I brush my lips over hers, handing her the canister.

“Now I see why we were in such a rush.” Athos appears at my side, bending at the waist. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”