“Surprise,” Rylee said. Liam let go of her and ran to the doors, locking them down. They only needed Orion. No one else; certainly not the president’s men.

The demon was put together like a body builder, his shoulders and neck stacked so high with muscle that it looked as though he had no neck. A bald shining head and red glowing eyes the color of fresh blood topped off the image.

He gathered himself together quickly, standing and folding his arms over his chest. “Rylee, how lovely of you to drop in. What can I do you for?”

It was only then that Liam realized the demon was not alone in the Oval Office. The president sat behind him tapping furiously at whatever panic button he had. “Mr. President, we’re only here for Orion. Not you,” Liam said.

That didn’t seem to calm the leader of the free world, not one bit.

Rylee held her hands up. “I want to talk about a truce. Terms that we could both live with, demon.”

Orion’s eyes widened. “Why?”

“You threatened my daughter. I take that fucking seriously. If I can keep her safe, even if it means the world goes to shit in a poorly woven hand basket, then I’ll do it.”

It took everything Liam had to keep his mouth shut, to not grab her and shake her. She had a plan and whatever it was, he would trust her.

No matter how damn crazy it sounded.

“Ah, a mother’s love. A powerful motivator. What do you have in mind?”

She held out her hand. “A simple truce. You stop killing my family and the supernaturals, the elementals too. And we will stay out of your way.”

Orion stared at her hand as if she held a serpent out to him with fangs bared. “A simple truce?”

She nodded, her hand not wavering for a second.

Orion lifted his eyes to her, then back to her hand, then back up to her eyes. Liam tensed as the sound of fists and guns pounding on the door behind him took up a rather desperate tempo.

“Oh, pretty Tracker. An offer like that before you were trained as a Slayer . . . that would have been an offer I would take. But now”—he spread his hands wide—“I think not.”

She lowered her hand. “That’s too bad.”

Liam had to fight not to tense, he knew her too well to think she would give up. Not when they were directly in front of Orion.

I’ve invoked the bite. Faris whispered to him from the recesses of his mind.

With a burst of speed that was inhumanly fast, Rylee leapt at Orion. The demon backpedaled right over the president’s desk and into his lap. “I’ll kill him.” He held the president up with one hand and Rylee shrugged.

“Go for it. That’s why we have a vice president.”

Orion threw the limp president away from him and Rylee was on the demon in a flash. He tried to jump the Veil but she grabbed his left hand and dug her nails into him.

The Veil opened up in a slash and Orion pulled her through, closing it behind them.

Liam stared at the spot where they’d been, unable to believe what had happened.

Are you really that surprised? This is Rylee, after all, when have her plans gone right?

Though Faris had a point, Liam didn’t want to hear it. The door behind them shattered and the tips of guns stuck through the door. “Faris, right now my bigger concern is getting us the hell out of here.”

The window. It’s still dark on this side of the building.

That, it was. He bolted across the room and hit the window as the men burst into the room. The window shattered and he fell from the sky, landing with a soft thud in the green grass below. He didn’t wait to see if the president’s men were going to shoot at him, he was certain of it.

Rylee had the armband, so at least she could go back to the Rim if she needed to escape Orion.

Out of the frying pan and into the fire, trading one demon for a horde of demons. The problem was, he couldn’t decide which was worse.

CHAPTER 23

RYLEE

ORION SCREAMED AT me as we slipped through the Veil. Liam was going to be pissed as hell that I’d left him behind. Again.

There were flashes of color: metal gray, murky water, an American flag, the words SS BOSTON in broken spray paint on the wall. We hit the deck of the ship hard and water splashed up around us, but I didn’t let go of the big bastard. My brain struggled to make sense of where we were. Because the only ship I’d been on that looked like this was supposed to be at the bottom of the harbor in Boston.

Orion tried to fling me off, snarling as his face twisted into a rictus mask. I swung my legs around in a wide circle, and slammed into something hard and cold. The crack of my shin bone being smashed into whatever unbending material I hit seemed to please Orion.

“Let me go, Tracker, and I’ll make your death quick.”

“Fuck you, asswipe.” I dug my nails in harder, and took a breath. This was going to be my one shot at binding him to me.

“Don’t you dare,” he hissed, his eyes glowing even as he scrambled backward from me. His free hand pulled back and then slammed into my face.

The words slid from my lips. “I bind thee to me. My death will be yours, and your death shall free your soul. Demon to Slayer, these two souls are now twinned.”

Around us, the roar of voices emerged, along with a brilliant flash of orange light. Sparkles floated down around us like fireflies that had lost their wings. I let go of Orion, and searched for his threads inside me.

Except they weren’t threads like I was Tracking someone. No, they were the emotions and sensations like I’d gotten from Blaz. Like a distant conversation I was always a part of, even if I wasn’t welcome to the party.