Nefri was certain he was right. The smell alone was enough to make her stomach clench. And there was something else. Something as dark and ancient as time.
But she’d been sent by the Oracles for a reason. She couldn’t turn her back on her duty.
“Merci, Levet, but I must know what’s happened.”
“A massacre,” the tiny gargoyle breathed, reluctantly stepping aside as Nefri rounded the corner and moved toward the open door.
She’d barely reached the edge of the threshold when Santiago was angling to put his body between her and whatever was waiting inside, his sword drawn and his fangs exposed.
She rolled her eyes at his protective manner. She was one of the most powerful demons ever to walk the earth. The last thing she needed was a knight in shining armor. But even as the clan chief in her warned she needed to nip his Neanderthal behavior in the bud, another part was wryly accepting that Santiago was far too stubborn to be properly trained.
A knowledge that should have annoyed her, not sent a tiny thrill of excitement shooting through her heart.
The inane thought was swiftly forgotten as Santiago came to a sharp halt, his broad back tensing. “What the . . .” He made a sound of disgust. “Cristo. It looks like the set of Saw.”
She frowned in confusion. “What?”
“A horror flick.”
Nefri shuddered. Her time behind the Veil meant that she wasn’t always up to date with human entertainment, but she did know that the current trend in films included a lot of blood and violence.
Steeling her nerves, she forced herself to step past Santiago’s large body and studied the carnage spread across the room.
Levet had been right.
It was bad.
Even by demon standards.
The victims were all human, some male and some female, although it was nearly impossible to tell in the hideous mix of body parts, some of which were still shackled to the walls while others were piled in the middle of the blood-soaked floor.
“Were they tortured?” she asked, pointing to the knives and even an ax that were nearly hidden beneath the gore.
Santiago returned his sword to its scabbard, his expression grim. “Worse.”
“What could be worse?”
“They were forced to torture themselves trying to escape. The room reeks of . . .”
“Fear,” she finished for him, the lingering terror in the room crawling over her skin like an insidious disease.
They fell silent as they considered the slaughter. With an effort, Nefri coldly stripped away the horror of what she was seeing to concentrate on basic facts.
There were five—no six—humans spread across the wooden floor. They were all young, perhaps in their early twenties, and what was left of their clothing suggested they hadn’t been homeless. Local college students?
They’d been held in the room for at least a week and occasionally fed and watered if the amount of waste mixed in with the mess was any indication. They’d been physically fit. There was no other way they could have endured such punishment for such a length of time.
And all were mutilated beyond the point of recognition.
To have been able to keep so many suffering people hidden behind the illusion for such a length of time took more than the usual enchantment.
She took a step further into the room, allowing her senses to flow through the thick air. She should be able to pick up something. A scent. A lingering trace of power. A stray piece of DNA left behind.
But there was nothing.
Which spoke for itself.
“This isn’t Gaius’s doing,” Santiago at last broke into the heavy silence. “At least not on his own.”
“No,” she softly agreed.
Strong, slender fingers closed around Nefri’s upper arm and Santiago pulled her back into the hallway, turning her to meet his piercing gaze. “Nefri, this is no longer a game.”
“I never said it was.”
“Then tell me what the hell is going on.”
She tilted her chin. “You know I can’t discuss this.”
“Are you freaking kidding me?” he hissed.
“No.”
His raw power swirled through the air, reminding her that he wasn’t one of her docile clansmen. Santiago was ruled by primitive passions and male impulses.
“Do you see that massacre?” he snapped, pointing toward the open door.
She met him glare for glare. “I can hardly miss it.”
“And you still want to play politics?”
Her hands clenched at the unfair accusation. The last thing she wanted was to be caught in politics. Wasn’t that the reason she’d retreated behind the Veil in the first place?
“If you want answers, then approach the Oracles and ask your questions,” she informed him in icy tones, turning on her heel to walk away.
It was that or tossing him through the nearest window.
“Nefri.” In the blink of an eye he was standing in front of her, blocking her path. “You’re not leaving until you tell me the truth.”
She lifted a warning hand, her fangs extended. “You’re a typical alpha male, Santiago, but you’re not stupid.”
His eyes narrowed. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I give orders, I don’t take them.”
Gaius’s new lair in Wisconsin