Page 51 of Forbidden

“You’re starting to sound like your prophet, Wolfman.”

“It’s not clairvoyance. Any idiot can see we’re heading toward a fight.”

The paladins strode from the VIP hall, Michael muttering, “Fucking disgusting.”

Malachi muffled his snort against Luke’s spine.

They went to the office door next. When the knob refused to turn, Michael whirled around and pointed at it. “Open it.”

“Can’t,” Wolf said calmly. “Only the boss has the key to that door, and she hasn’t been in tonight. Nobody’s been in there since yesterday.” He gestured to the storage room behind the bar. “Do you want to look in here, too?”

Michael drew his sword as he moved behind the bar, pointing it at Wolf, Xyra, and Shadrach. “Yes, as a matter of fact. I do. Move.”

They filed around the far side of the bar, staying well out of reach of the holy blade. Michael checked the storage room—and Wolf heard breaking bottles as he went. A nuisance, to be sure, but a far better alternative than getting into a fight.

“He’s not here,” Michael said to the other paladins as he emerged.

“Just like we said,” Alex said.

“I don’t believe you know nothing,” Michael snapped. “But he’s not here, so we’ll go.”

Storm was on his feet now, hunched over and holding his stomach. He shuffled out of the way as the paladins strode to the stairs. When Michael pushed the door open—it slammed shut in his face, and he wobbled on the step as he struggled to keep his balance.

“What—”

Shadrach held one hand up as he prowled slowly toward them. Leviathans didn’t have to gesture like a magician to make their powers work, but the movementdidlet the paladins know who was responsible.

“Let me be clear.” Shadrach’s cold voice rang out, wholly unaffected by the way the paladins drew their blades and took defensive positions on the staircase. Even the other halflings in the room scurried to get away from the angry leviathan. “If you ever come back here and threaten us again, you won’t be walking back out. I will coat this fucking dance floor with your blood and hang your entrails from your guild’s holy gates. Even God wouldn’t dare to come back here a second time and piss me off.” With a flick of his fingers, the door opened loudly. “Get the fuck out of my goddamn sight.”

They heeded the warning, rushing from the room and out into the night. Wolf waited just a handful of seconds and then ran toward Storm.

“I’ve got to check on Storm. Alex, let them know it’s safe to come out! Xyra, guard the door. Let’s make sure they don’t try to come back for round two.”

He hauled one of Storm’s arms around his shoulders and helped him over to the bar as Xyra darted up the stairs to watch the door. Ira and Talon were there now, standing with the others. Storm staggered, and Wolf helped him sit on the floor, leaning up against the bar. His shirt was sticky with black blood, and Alex knelt beside them, peeling the fabric back to look at the wound.

“He’s been stabbed,” Alex said. “Tal, would you go get the first-aid kit out of the trunk of our car? I think he’ll be okay if we can clean the holy oil out of the wound and stop the bleeding.”

The humans probably knew more about first-aid and wound care than any of the demons, who normally healed too quickly to worry about such things, so Wolf stepped back to let Alex and Luke work.

Ira launched himself at Wolf, knocking the breath from both of them upon impact. “I’m glad you’re okay. Talon said there were paladins out here and I thought—I didn’t see anything about this, and I didn’t know what was going to happen and?—”

“Shh,” Wolf murmured, drawing him up for a kiss. “It’s okay. We’re all okay. They were here looking for you. I’m just glad they didn’t find you. They would’ve tried to take you away from me, and then therereallywould’ve been bloodshed.”

“What the fuck is going on out here?” a shrill voice interrupted, and Ira drew back to look up at Wolf with wide eyes.

Out of the pan and into the fire. Lilith had emerged from her office.

“I hear the music stop, my bouncer is bleeding, and there arenohuman customers left in the building.” Her heels clicked on the concrete floor, her generous, leather-clad hipsswaying. “Do I have you to thank for this?” she asked Talon, who was carrying the first-aid suitcase toward them.

“Me?” he repeated. “I was up there with you. How could this be my fault?”

“It was paladins,” one of the halflings out on the dance floor said. “They showed up and made some threats. They were looking for this one.” She pointed at Ira.

Lilith arched a brow at Ira. “You told me I had nothing to worry about.”

“I told youwewouldn’t harm your business. We’re not paladins, remember? I have no idea what they’re doing anymore. I didn’t know this was going to happen, or I would’ve warned you all, I swear. I didn’t want to see Storm or anyone else get hurt because of me.”

There was no warmth in her crimson gaze, and Wolf wanted to snarl at her.

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