My lip curled in disgust. The two guys that had hired her were obviously vampires and not the nice kind. They hadn’t even sealed their bites.
One of the vamps glanced over his shoulder, his eyes narrowing when he saw Prisha and me. I gave him a wicked grin. He scoffed and turned back around.
Prisha stepped closer to me as the nightclub loomed. “So who exactly are we looking for at the Black Underbelly? Someone like those two?” She nodded toward the vamps.
“No, I don’t think he’s a vampire. I’m guessing he’s a werewolf because of his name, but honestly, I’m not entirely sure what species he is. He’s a hunter, though, who works solo. Apparently, he’s the best of the best. Jenkins said if we’re looking to hire somebody outside of the law, he’s the one.”
“Sounds expensive.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of.” I could only hope I had enough to cover his fee.
“So what’s his name?”
“They call him the Fire Wolf. Have you heard of him?”
Prisha’s eyes turned to saucers. “We’re on our way to hire the Fire Wolf? Um, yeah, I’ve heard of him. Are you saying you don’t know who he is?”
“Not exactly.”
“Tala, seriously. He’s one of the most notorious hunters in the community. How do you not know that?”
I shrugged. “Because if you hadn’t noticed I’ve been trying to avoid all things on that side of the community for several years now.” The extensive witch magic I possessed would be coveted by anybody with nefarious intentions. I would be the perfect weapon, and Prisha knew that. And then to combine my witch magic with my hidden power, sheesh, I would be a force to be reckoned with, something any crime lord would desire.
My bestie leveled me with a hard stare. “Which is probably why you, of all people, should know more about them than anybody. You know that whole keep your friends close but your enemies closer thing? Just a heads up, the Fire Wolf is deadly and he’s said to be one of the most lethal hunters that ever existed. If you cross him or piss him off, you can kiss your life goodbye, and he won’t make your departure pretty. Apparently, torture isn’t above him.”
An image of Star Tattoo Guy filled my mind. His hands on Tessa. His arms around her. Her screams of terror. Icy rage churned in my stomach as my hands fisted. “Maybe I need someone who doesn’t mind torturing every now and then.”
She snorted. “Be careful what you wish for.”
The throbbing music grew louder as we neared the end of the street. The vamp thugs dipped into the Underbelly, another supernatural doing the same after them.
We’d almost reached the entrance when the sound of fists hitting flesh and the scent of sizzling magic caught my attention. I eyed Prisha. She cocked her head. Neither of us said a thing.
We dipped simultaneously around the corner—as usual, we functioned as one—just as another smack resonated through the air. A grunt followed. I winced. That impact sounded like it hurt.
“You’re going to pay for what you did,” a huge supernatural—probably a half-demon, given the red glowing tattoos on his bare forearms—said to a man who was being held against the wall by two other half-demons. “When Damascus told you to back off, you should’ve listened.” His fist flew through the air and landed in the center of the guy’s stomach.
The dude doubled over, his breath rushing out. Blood trickled down the side of his face, and one of his eyes was entirely swollen. He was beaten up so badly that his features were distorted, but what I could see told me he wasn’t a lightweight. Even beside the half-demons holding him to the wall, he was bigger and taller. His chest was broad and sculpted, his arms coated in sinewy muscle.
But despite his strong build, he’d obviously gotten in over his head with whoever Damascus was.
“You can tell Damascus to go fuck himself,” the man replied, spitting blood. “Oh wait, I hear he does that regularly when he’s not after little girls. Wasn’t there a girl he took a liking to last month? Katarina Varga?”
“Who Damascus takes a liking to is not your concern.” Another sickening punch landed when Red Tattoos hit the man square in the face.
“Still keeping those pets in his warehouse?” he wheezed.
The half-demon laughed and punched him again. The crunch of bone followed, and the guy groaned. “Pets are always best kept locked in cages.”
Prisha and I took a step forward. My blood hummed with rage. I’d encountered many bullies in my life, yet none as sick as pedophiles who kept children as pets and hired half-demon thugs to beat up supernaturals who couldn’t defend themselves.
“Do you really want to do this?” Prisha said under her breath.
“Do you really want to walk away from this?”
“Not particularly.”
My sights focused on the three half-demons in front of us. Magic simmered inside me, rushing so quickly to the surface that it burned.
“Let him go,” I said just as Prisha slipped another blade free.
Power sparked on my fingertips, energy throbbing through my entire body just begging to be released. The heat inside me grew. Gods, it was as if I was burning up. So much power and magic that wanted out, and our odds were good. Three against two.
Red Tattoos swiveled toward us, moving surprisingly gracefully for such a large man. “And what do we have here?”
“Here to save the day?” One of the other half-demons smirked as his gaze raked up and down Prisha and me.
“More like end it,” I taunted, but a rush of apprehension flowed into me. While I wasn’t one to run from a fight, I also wasn’t stupid. We didn’t know the extent of their magic, or if they had backup somewhere, so anything could happen.
Red Tattoos took a step toward us, malice gleaming in his eyes as the beat-up dude straightened against the wall.
Prisha widened her stance, drawing her blade over her head as a line of blue fire erupted across its sharp edge.
I swirled my hands together, magic crackling between my palms, as I readied a telekinetic spell. “Let him go. Last chance,” I called.
Red Tattoos tipped his head back and laughed. I was about to let my spell fly loose when a sudden wave of dark energy hit me with the force of a battering ram. I faltered, staggering back. My offensive magic receded, no longer at the tips of my fingers.
“Tala?” Prisha whispered, her blade lowering.
Dark magic pummeled me again, trying to fill my insides. What the fuck? I staggered back farther, some instinct telling me to run.
Like me, Red Tattoos had doubled over. His face twisted into a grimace as he glanced at his hands, but then he abruptly straightened at the same time as I forced myself upright.
“Want to play, pretty girl?” he rasped, although his expression looked pained.
“You’re seriously going after two chicks?” the dude called who was still being held against the wall.
My gaze connected with Beaten-up Dude, and for the merest second, a wave of heat, magic, and intense earth-shattering power barreled into me. A zap as strong as lightning followed, and I doubled over again.
WTF?!
But then it was gone.
Gasping, I bolted upright, but the swagger in my step faltered even though my magic hummed back to life. Still . . .
“Okay, I don’t know what the hell is going on with you,” Prisha whispered, “but we’re leaving.” She sheathed her blade and clamped a hand around my arm before dragging me back. “On second thought,” she called loudly to Beaten-up Dude, “these chicks are outta here, so he’s not going after anyone!”