• • •

Screw Misha, screw Barbara, and screw this whole stupid mess. I called my sisters to inform them of my absence, but couldn’t reach them. I did finally end up talking to them—on the plane.

I jumped out of my seat when they boarded Misha’s private jet. They smiled and waved, and apparently had been shopping. They slipped off their long coats to reveal matching camouflage tanks and cargo pants. They even wore army boots. I think they were trying for military chic, but the results were more like Special Forces Barbie. Taran sat down as if she owned the plane, tossed back her dark hair, and began applying another coat of lip gloss. God forbid we take on demons with chapped lips.

Emme tried to give me a small smile, but when she caught my not so cheery expression, she quickly sat next to Taran and shrank back into her seat.

“What the hell are you three doing here?”

Shayna finished adjusting her ponytail and grinned like I was the flight attendant welcoming her on board. “Misha called and told us you were going on another assignment. We’ve missed your last few so we asked him if we could come along.” She tugged on the strap of her tank top as it fell off her right shoulder. Unlike Taran, she didn’t have the goods to fill out her stretchy shirt.

If Misha had arrived I would’ve staked him in the ass. “It’s more like he manipulated you into coming along!”

Taran closed her compact and huffed. “No shit, Celia. But that doesn’t mean we don’t want to help.” She eyed me up and down. “Why the hell are you dressed like that? Aren’t we headed for a jungle?”

The vamps and I wore shorts and T-shirts. I rubbed my temples to fight off the headache pummeling my brain with each passing second. “The plane is not going to drop us in the jungle. We still have to drive by jeep to the Bosawás Reserve. We’re trying not to stand out. But forget how I’m dressed. Are you out of your minds? There’s no way you’re coming!”

Taran jutted out her chin and narrowed her blue eyes. “Look, Ceel. We’re going with you whether you like it or not. Those ass**les tortured you guys and pissed on my birthday brunch. Now they’re trying to kill you.” She pointed an irate finger. “That’s just goddamn rude.”

I reached for my cell phone. “Oh, really? Well, I think your wolves may have something to say about that.” I hit Koda’s number on speed dial, knowing he’d be the most furious.

My sisters exchanged panicked glances. Emme ripped the phone away from me with her force and held me in place when I lunged for her. I opened my mouth to tell Koda everything the moment he answered the phone, but my voice was immediately silenced. Taran’s irises blanched and I felt my vocal cords constrict. I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t scream. I couldn’t even whistle.

The vamps watched the drama with quiet and wide-eyed enthusiasm. The bastards didn’t even lift a finger to help.

“Celia?” Koda’s deep voice reverberated through the cell. “What’s wrong?”

“No, puppy. It’s me,” Shayna answered.

He paused, already suspicious. “Why are you calling me on Celia’s phone, baby?”

“Um . . .”

Emme’s eyes widened and sweat beaded on her forehead. Her head smacked against the cushioned chair as I pushed against her power. “Hurry up and tell him something. She’s too strong. I can’t hold her.”

I smiled to myself and stopped thrashing. My sisters never could grasp how great our hearing was.

“What’s going on?” Koda growled. “Who is Emme holding back?”

“Oh, puppy . . . what could possibly be going on?” Shayna answered, laughing a little too hysterically.

“Put Celia on now!”

Taran covered her throat with one hand and motioned for the phone with the other. Shayna gave her the phone and Taran began speaking, using my voice. The words she used and the way she spoke screamed loud and clear that it wasn’t me. “Relax, man. We’re just out shopping for tampons and stuff.”

I laughed silently. I could almost hear the vein on Koda’s forehead pop. “What the hell is happening? This isn’t Celia!”

“Pssst. Pssst. Sorry, puppy . . . psst . . . The phone is breaking . . . psst . . . up. Don’t wait . . . psst . . . up . . . psst.” She disconnected and gaped at the screen.

The vamps roared with laughter. Emme blushed two shades deeper than usual. “Taran! Did you have to tell him we were buying feminine products?”

“Emme, why do you have a goddamn problem saying the word ‘tampon’? Just say it. It would be so liberating.”

“Taran, the vampires are listening—”

“Tampon, tampon, tampon!” Taran sang.

Shayna’s head whipped from the phone to us. “Forget the tampons! I think puppy knows I lied to him.”

Taran rolled her eyes. “No shit, Shayna.” She scooted to my side. Her irises blanched to crystal; as they deepened to their blue color, my vocal cords relaxed.

I touched my throat with the tips of my fingers. “How did you do that?”

“I’ve been practicing harnessing Tahoe’s magic.” Taran shrugged. “Sometimes it works; most of the time it doesn’t.”

I nodded. “Interesting— Oh! But guess what. You’re still not coming.” I grabbed hold of the plane door just as it was about to shut.

“Oh, yes, we are,” Taran shot back, right before she put me to sleep.

CHAPTER 9

The villager called the nest El Hogar del Diablo. The devil’s home.

Taran’s spell had knocked me out for the entire trip. I woke cranky as hell and ready to make evil my bitch. And yet the young woman’s fear gave me pause. I may have been residing with vampires, but she was living among monsters.

Emme’s face blanched at the name despite the choking heat and humidity. I tried asking the young woman more, but she shook her head and hurried away. The residents of the small Nicaraguan town knew of the evil lurking in their forest, but they were too frightened to speak of it. I pulled my out-of-control curls into a ponytail and nodded my head toward an approaching male. Maria smiled and licked her lips. You didn’t need a GPS with a vampire around.

“Can I eat him? He looks so tasty.”

I held up a finger. “One bite. That’s all you get.”