Page 53 of Sleep With Us

I snatched it up, shoved the case back under the bed, and hurried from the apartment.

I had it.

My heart thumped.

I had what we needed to free every single demon here.

Zodiac’s show had ended, and another demon was on stage, grinding against the pole, but after the splendor of Zee’s show, almost everyone had gone back to drinking, chatting, and getting frisky with the staff.

“Ben . . .” I leaned against the bar, breathing hard and grinning like an idiot. “Where did Zee go?”

“Hey there! I didn’t know you were here. D’you see the show? Fuck, Zee kills it every time.”

“Yes, yes, where is he?”

He jerked his chin toward Sebastien’s booth. “Where he always is after a show like that—with the boss.”

My heart stuttered, and my grin cracked. I followed Ben’s glance, and saw Sebastien with Zee. Which wouldn’t have been so bad, if Sebastien didn’t have hold of the chains around Zee’s neck, making it clear who Zee belonged to.

Zee didn’t seem to mind. He chuckled at something one of their group said, but his eyes were flat, his heart far away.

This ended now.

I stole someone’s drink on the bar and gulped it down. The potent mix hit me like a slap to the face.

“Hey!”

“Sorry!” I wheezed, and shoved from the bar. The liquor mixed with the rage already burning in my gut, churning over. My head spun. It was fine. I might throw up, but everything was fine. I fought a path to the stage. Adam Vex—quiet, shy, always hiding, always running. But for this, for Zee, hiding wasn’t an option.

I clambered onto the stage, and squinted into bright lights.

The demon who’d had the impossible task of following Zodiac, stopped dancing, and eyed me up and down. “Book club’s two doors down.”

“Oh, uh, no. Hello. Do you mind if I, erm, just say a thing, and then you can continue your work?”

He rolled his eyes. “You need to sit back down, demon bait.”

“It’s just, erm . . .” I turned around. Mercy, it was high up. And bright. And I couldn’t really see the faces of everyone in the crowd, but I was fairly certain a few of them had begun to notice me. I raised my voice. “I just . . .” I squeaked, then cleared my throat and tried again, a bit louder. “Can I have everyone’s attention please?”

The music stopped.

Silence fell over the club.

Someone coughed.

“Show us your dick!”

“Oh, uhm. I don’t think that would be appropriate.” I reached into my pocket and removed the crumpled addendum. “Addendum dated February, twenty twenty-five—” My throat closed. I cleared it with a cough.

“Adam Vex.” Sebastien’s wing tips glittered out of the crowd first, then his spiraling black horns, and then he emerged at my feet, near the front of the stage. “Get naked or get off my stage.”

“I think I’ll stay.” I shifted uneasily, uncomfortable in the spotlight. “Addendum dated February, twenty twenty-five⁠—”

“You said that part,” a voice piped up. I shielded my eyes, to try and get a look at who was listening, but my sight blurred as my anxious insides turned over.

“Get your clothes off!”

I cleared my throat again. “Right, yes, just . . .” Holding the addendum in trembling hands, I blinked at its words, acutely aware of Sebastien’s narrowing eyes glaring up at me. “Copernicus to Sebastien,” I said, louder, trying to project my voice to the back.