Page 16 of Beauty At Stake
Then Killian looked at me. “Should we scry the others?”
“Can we wait?” I winced under his sharp look. “They're going to want to come, and there's no sense in that. They'll just make everything more difficult.”
Killian snorted. “I'll be sure to tell them you said that.”
I lifted a brow at him.
“Yeah, all right. Maybe you have a point.”
“Do you want Dad to send the Star's Guard out?”
“No,” he muttered.
“Then let's wait until we have more information.”
“You two are hilarious,” Sal drawled as she got up. “But this shit interrupted my fuck time, so I'm not in the mood. Can we go?”
I got up, looking around the group. Nine Demons. But with my Demon and Angel magic, I could lalek them together, no big deal. It was even better than Twilight Magic, which required the use of a rath or it had to be twilight—the hour when that magic was at its strongest.
“Come on then.” Killian stood up and waved toward an open spot at the end of the room. “Form a circle.” He frowned at the size of that space and added, “A small circle.”
“Or we could go into the corridor.” Rathi waved at the door.
Killian switched directions with a nod. “Yup. You right.”
I rolled my eyes and went into the corridor with the rest of the Demons. We clasped hands, and I didn't bother with any instructions. They knew what to expect. They had done it themselves thousands of times before. So I just laleked them to Thailand without warning. Specifically, to the yard of the vex house.
The house was lit up brighter than before, with floodlights illuminating the garden as well. It made the transition from day in Hell to night on Earth less obvious. Extinguisher Tanya Murdock was out on the porch, talking on her phone.
She flinched back, then said into the phone, “They've just returned, sir.” A pause. “Yes, sir. They brought Demons with them.”
Sallales chuckled.
I glanced at her, then crossed the bridge to the porch.
“Yes, sir,” Murdock said. “She's right here.” She looked at me. “Yes, sir.” Then she held out the phone. “Ambassador, High Councilman Reginald Murdock would like to speak with you.”
“Of course, he would.” I glanced at Killian.
Kill laughed and patted my shoulder. “Have fun with Reggie, babe.” Then he waved the Demons inside. “This way.”
I took the phone.
“I'll be inside when you're done.” Extinguisher Murdock ran away too.
I shook my head. The High Councilman was a grumpy old man, but he wasn't fearsome. Hell, my daughter, Shahzadi could be more terrifying than Reginald. And yet everyone tiptoed around him. He knew it and I think he liked to hang out near the Council's crystal ball so he could be the one who answered scries just so he could freak people out. At least this was a phone call and not a scry, so I wouldn't have to deal with his admonishing expressions.
Holding the phone to my ear, I said, “Hello, High Councilman.”
“Hello, Ambassador,” High Councilman Murdock said. “I've heard about the escape. I assume King Astaroth is going to assist?”
“Yes, sir. His team is investigating now.” I may be a queen, but when I was working as an ambassador, high council members outranked me. I believed that ranking had to be respected. Being raised as an extinguisher probably has something to do with that.
“Good. Keep me apprised of the situation. The fucking Coven is breathing down our necks. They keep spouting crap about the alliance only being good for humans and fairies.”
“What does that mean?”
“Oh, it's political nonsense. They're trying to make us feel responsible so we'll help them.”
