Chapter 14 Battlefield
Battlefield
REBEL
Angelo and Damon have been my friends since the Kellys took me in when I was a kid.
We never talked about how much older they were than Arch, Javi, and me, nor what their parents’ mob got up to.
Our recent integration into that part of their lives has opened my eyes to how much they didn’t want to discuss the demonic parts of their existence.
I don’t blame them; while Graciella and Odhran weren’t great, this is eye-opening, to say the least.
Especially when I know Angelo’s taken the brunt of the responsibilities with this shit to protect D.
Looking around with a grimace, I tune out the moans and groans—whether of pleasure or pain.
I’m game for a lot of kinky shit and so are the rest of the guys, but this is pretty extreme.
It shouldn’t surprise me—supes with a proximity to death like demons, vamps, and their ilk are usually the most twisted beings in the bedroom.
That’s my experience, at least, and I’ve heard no different.
Ang and D might hold back with our girl, testing her to see where her lines are since this whole ‘mated group’ thing is new.
“What are you thinking so hard about?” Rogue hisses as she leans into me. “You’re making the face.”
I roll my eyes, knowing she’s probably right.
My stepsister has always been able to tell when I’m too far in my head and she swears it’s because of a specific expression I make when I’m overthinking.
“I was thinking about how none of us have ever ventured into the demon aspect with the twins, and now I’m sort of regretting it. ”
Her embarrassment filters through our Guardian bond, and I know she agrees. “Yeah, I feel shitty about that, too. They never made a big deal, so I didn’t. This shit makes me question why the hell I didn’t push it with them because… I feel like a real asshole.”
The sound of a cough gets my attention and despite not being able to see well, I turn to look.
Angelo is smirking as he shakes his head.
“Whatever you two are muttering about regarding us? Don’t.
When Luca moved us up here, he wasn’t as big a deal as he is now.
Bay City is the last place we moved to and had to pretend to be much younger than we actually were.
Once he consolidated power here, we knew this would be more permanent, and we went looking for actual connections. ”
Damon hums his agreement, then says, “It was safe to have friends, go to the school, and everything else when we knew he wasn’t going anywhere.
But we sure as hell didn’t want to drag any of you into their web.
Demons have a different perspective on the surface dwellers and don’t mesh with the major supe factions well because of it.
Like the Fae, they prefer to be on visitor passes here and call their own realm home. ”
“You don’t claim Hell—neither of you want to go back there,” Rogue points out. “So why stay mum on all this… alternative lifestyle… stuff?”
The echoing scream ahead of us is bone chilling, and we stop as the twins step to the front of the group to survey the area carefully.
There are various hot spots of demons and guests fucking or doing what definitely amounts to torture on one another, but nothing that seems dangerous to us.
At least, not unless any of them run over here and drag us into their little games.
The younger twin pushes his glasses up, squinting as he puts his hand in the air and swishes his tail back and forth.
I have no idea what he’s doing, but it’s interesting.
“I sense the chaos getting stronger. We’re nearing a much bigger concentration of demons.
That was only a random echo carried by the architecture down here.
” He frowns as his expression hardens and his partial shift gets closer to halfway.
“The energy is rife with every type of our kind, which means everyone needs to be very cautious. You’ll see chaos and vengeance demons like Ang and me, but also pits, drudes, dreamers, Cubi, shadows, fear…
They’ll all be eager to see how tough your shielding is. ”
Rogue groans, putting her hands on her face, and I arch a brow.
When she removes them, she sighs heavily.
“I fucking hate some of those assholes, and these will be the worst examples of their genes. Between the team and the club, I’ve seen my share of demons—not like our boys, mind—but enough to know that I’m going to stab someone if I’m not careful. ”
Angelo grins, his expression barely concealing his eagerness to see that spectacle. “Princess, if you stab someone, I’ll gladly vouch for you when they drag us to the center court. But the sooner we end up in front of my folks, the less intel we can gather from their minions.”
“Damn it,” she mutters as she kicks the floor in irritation. “I so rarely get to do actual damage. This party sucks more every second we’re here.”
Javi chuckles, shaking his head as he reaches out to pat Rogue’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, Sparkles. I’m sure there will be something violent to do, eventually. The odds are against surviving this trip unscathed when our new friends had to fight a fucking orc in Fae territory.”
My stepsister’s face brightens and she practically beams. “True. Good point, birdie. Someone will attack eventually and I’ll get to do my thing for once. Alright, fuckers, let’s get moving.”
“Only our mate would get so damn excited about being ambushed,” Archie says to me as we move again.
I grin back, shrugging. “She’s always been bloodthirsty, man. You guys have never seen her in her element, but I have. This will be hot AF and you’ll have to hold yourself back—trust me.”
It’s what I’ve been doing as her partner in crime for years.
We were much quieter as we approached the first crowded section of the bottom level of Luca’s big ass compound.
Angelo was accurate in his statement about trying to lie low as we make our way through the crowd of demons and supernaturals gathered around a chalk-drawn ring with a big ass demon in armor fighting an equally dangerous looking Minotaur.
The bovine mythical also has on armor, and they’re both wielding weapons crusted with fresh blood.
My eyes dart around, noting the pile of dead bodies in a nearby corner.
This little fight club doesn’t give a fuck who sees it, much less who’s talking about it.
That lack of remorse means the only exit from that circle is victory or death—fabulous.
“Do not get drawn into that ring,” I mutter to Rogue as she strains to look at the snarling beasts as they clash. “Check the meat sack dump over there.”
She turns, making an annoyed huffing sound as she sees the gory evidence of this sport. “Guaranteed, there’s someone running book on these.”
“The Greed line will have demons working the crowd,” Damon says as he moves closer to us.
“As you saw with the royals, it could be anyone. The heir looked more like a singer from My Chemical Romance than a revered thief who has served the crown for many centuries. Our kind are very good at blending in when we come into this realm.”
“Huh,” Rogue says as she looks at him curiously. “I got the impression those guys didn’t change anything except getting fancy clothes. Betcha they look exactly like that all the time, D. Their littlest member is easier to read than you men realize. At least…. for me.”
Frowning, I think about the eight demons for a moment, wondering what she’s talking about. I didn’t notice anything other than their obvious regal bullshit, though the kid seemed fun. “What does that mean, little sis?”
She gives me a smug smile. “For me to know, Reb. I’m not in the habit of spilling secrets that aren’t mine. All of you eejits should be happy about that. I’ve seen you all wipe out spectacularly over the years. It would be truly humiliating if I started spreading those moments around.”
I’d argue, but she’s definitely got shit on me, so I’ll let that go.
“I thought they were pretty cool, Wheels,” Archie says.
I turn to look at him, sensing the aura of his cat as he gets closer.
His eyes are golden and I know the scent of blood is probably tickling the inner animal.
Luckily, his control has always been fairly good—his dads were strict about him learning it very young.
Angelo taps my shoulder, his gaze cutting to a group of demons and what I believe are hybrids standing by the wall. “I’m going to ingratiate myself. Keep them over here, Rebel.”
Nodding, I wait until he slips away, then point at the fighters. “That Minotaur isn’t just a cow. See the energy around the mace?”
Rogue grabs my arm, pulling it down as she squeezes. “Damn. That fucker is part Harvest, isn’t he?”
“Yep. He’s got Fae in him, though I don’t know how recently in his genetics. Those guys shouldn’t be able to wield magic on their own.”
Damon studies the way the huge shifter moves for a moment before he asks, “Are you sure? He could have an enchanted weapon he bought. Demis, magicals, and Fae sell them on the black market to species that shouldn’t have them all the time. Luca has a dealer; I’ve seen the invoices.”
I arch a brow, his admission getting my attention. “Do you have access to all of his books, D?”
The chaos demon nods, not taking his eyes off of the bloody battle as his tail swishes.
“Mmhmm. At least, I think I do. He and Lola could have secret ones full of shit I don’t know about.
I wouldn’t put it past the motherfuckers.
Ang and I had no idea they’ve been meeting with malcontents like Darkstar until recently.
It makes me question how much they have going on that even my twin is unaware of. ”
A thought that will keep me up at night, for sure.
“Why would they hide them from you, Damon? If you don’t know what they’re doing with the shit, it wouldn’t spark your scrutiny, right? Seems counterproductive to have to employ two different people to track the stuff. I’d bet they’re hiding their corruption in plain sight.”
Javier is emanating heat like an oven as he joins us, and I know the phoenix inside of him is probably screeching at the injustice and disrespect for life being shown here.
His bird is less demanding than Archie’s lion, but that doesn’t mean his nature is less vociferous about its desires.
Rogue reaches her hand out, resting the free one on his forearm lightly until the fire in his eyes cools.
“I think Javi has a point, don’t you, Ang—” Her brows furrow when she realizes the elder twin isn’t standing with us anymore and I groan inwardly. “Where the fuck is Angelo?”
Hearing the barely suppressed fury in her tone, I murmur, “He’s checking out a lead, but we need to let him do it on his own. Calm down and keep quiet—otherwise, we’ll draw attention.”
“I don’t enjoy being in the dark,” she says as she flicks her hair over shoulder.
A triumphant cry echoes off the walls as the Minotaur claims its victory, tossing the gross demon out of the ring with its horn before strutting around the ring.
“And he’d better come back soon, because I don’t want to end up on the roster if they’re picking new competitors for Sir Beefcake over there. ”
“Why? Afraid you’d lose?” I snark playfully and she gives me a deadly serious expression.
“No, I’m concerned I’d beat his ass in a split second and we’ll all end up in front of the Geminis.”
Knowing her, that’s a valid concern… more than the others know.