Page 4 of The Party

“Who’s Martha?” Mae asked carefully.

“One of the angel statues in the graveyard.” Mila grimaced. “They have a crush on her, so they gave her a name.”

Nikolai stared. “This place has a graveyard?”

“It’s the home of the LeBlancs, one of Chicago’s founding families,” Mila explained. She made introductions. “Mae, Nikolai, this is my brother Caspian.” She directed a warning look at her brother. “Don’t hit on Mae.”

“Why would you assume I’d hit on her?” Caspian said innocently.

“Because you’re like a dog in heat most days and Mae is pretty,” Mila said curtly. “I’m telling you right now, Nikolai will gut you if you try to cop a feel.” She paused. “Hellreaver might too.”

Caspian studied the sorcerer and the weapon nonchalantly.

“I’m an Immortal. They can gut me all they like.” He shrugged. “I’ll just keep coming back.”

Nikolai’s eyes glittered with a dangerous light. “A little bird told me you guys struggle with decapitation.”

Caspian’s face fell. “Dude, that’s cold.”

“Violet is such a tattletale,” Mila muttered.

“It was Bryony, actually,” Mae admitted.

Bryony Cross was the High Priestess of the New York coven and technically Mae’s highest ranked subordinate. Not that she acted like a subordinate most days. Mae swallowed a sigh at the thought of the piles of paperwork that would be waiting for her upon her return to New York. Running the world of magic was no easy task.

If it wasn’t for Bryony and Abraham, I would have ditched that job a month ago.

The gates rumbled open presently.

They climbed back in the SUV and followed Mila and Caspian’s Cherokee.

A potent wave of divine energy pressed down on Mae when they crossed the threshold into the estate. The way Nikolai stiffened and Brimstone and Hellreaver stilled told her they’d felt it too.

Violet and Miles had mentioned the barrier that protected the property. It had been erected by the goddess who had given birth to Artemus and his twin brother Drake Hunter.

They drove up an access road lined with trees.

Moss-covered tombstones dotted the woods crowding the grounds of the estate.

“Am I the only one who thinks having a cemetery on your doorstep is creepy?” Nikolai said.

Mae studied the graves. “You gotta admit, compared to Hell, this is positively cheery.”

The outlook opened up ahead.

A sprawling Gothic mansion appeared at the end of the driveway.

Set over three floors, its roofline was topped by steeply pitched gables with spires and decorative wood trimmings, brick chimneys, and dormers. There was even a tower with crenellated parapets. Lights shone through the leaded windows, giving the place a warm and cozy feel.

They parked next to a bevy of vehicles and got out.

Mae observed the house guardedly as Mila and Caspian began unloading grocery bags from the Jeep.

My witch, Brimstone said quietly.

I know.

Though she could not visualize their cores like she could magic users, she could sense the incredible energies of the people inside even from where she stood.

---