I pointed an accusatory finger at my lover. "You didn't just watch, Dev. When I was doing that thing that Daniel really wanted me to do..."

"It's called a b.l.o.w. .j.o.b, sweetheart." He had no discretion at all.

"When I was doing that you didn't watch, Dev. You just joined right in."

A slow, satisfied smile spread across his face and he sighed. "Well, lover, that soft, sweet part of you looked very lonely and neglected. I couldn't stand to see it looking needy, not when I was so capable of filling it up."

I laid my head in my hands to hide the embarra.s.sment. I just couldn't talk about this the way Dev could. I looked up at Neil, who was playing with his cell. "Oh my G.o.d, are you tweeting?"

Neil shoved the phone behind his back. "No," he said in a way that meant yes.

Dev's eyes widened as though he had a sudden revelation. "Has this event made you think of me differently? Perhaps you no longer love me because I shared you with your husband. I hadn't considered that. I was so happy to be using that magic again that it never occurred to me you would be upset I was willing to share you s.e.xually."

"Dev, I didn't say that." He didn't understand me at all, but then I didn't understand me either. I'd been given everything I wanted and I kept poking at it, trying to find holes in it.

"I shared you with him because you love him. I place value on your love, not my singular possession of your body. I thought last night was something all three of us would enjoy. I didn't realize it would make you think less of me." He looked like he was trying to think of what else he could say. He was looking for some way out of the trap he thought he'd fallen into.

"Stop it." I tossed my embarra.s.sment away like a tissue I no longer needed. I sat in his lap and brushed the hair back from his face. "I don't think any less of you. I always knew you were a h.o.r.n.y, dirty, filthy man, and I love you. You're right. I'm being ridiculous."

"We aren't normal, Zoey," he said quietly, and there was a certain sadness in that admission.

"I know," I replied and kissed him. I was still worried about Daniel and what would happen when he wasn't under the influence of Dev's magic, but I needed to rea.s.sure my lover. "Can we get to the part where you cuddle me now?"

There was a knock on the door. Neil got up muttering something about how lunch had taken its d.a.m.n good time getting here. He hadn't wanted breakfast. Apparently there wasn't enough meat on the buffet for him so he'd order a couple of cheeseburgers. I hadn't even eaten breakfast yet, but I was suddenly busy as Dev kissed me and let his hands wander across my legs. He flipped me over so he was on top of me with my back pressed in the couch.

It was a flirty thing with no real intent. He smiled down at me. "Now you can tell me how good I was. I've taken your silence after our times together as human silliness, but now that I love you, I feel I should be able to ask for the things I need. I need praise."

It was a selfish thing for me to have forgotten. I'd grown up around a Fae couple, and they complimented each other constantly. I let Dev praise me but never thought to return the favor. "Which part of you do you need compliments on? They're all worthy."

Dev smiled, happily winding his arms around me and settling in. "Let's start with my c.o.c.k. I think that's a good place."

I laughed. "A most worthy place to start. I love your c.o.c.k, Devinshea. It is simply sublime."

I was going to say something more, but one minute Dev was in my arms and the next he was gone. His body was lifted straight into the air. I sat up as Dev was hauled up by a hand around his throat.

"Zoey, Marcus is here," Neil explained uselessly since I could already see that Marcus was here and p.i.s.sed off.

I certainly hadn't expected any vampiric visitors, but Marcus was a daywalker. It was his specific talent to be able to move about during the daylight hours. Apparently, today he decided to come calling. He had to be looking for me since Daniel would be asleep for hours.

"Marcus, put him down." I scrambled to my feet, not an easy task given the fact that Dev's shirt was huge but still didn't cover enough of me.

"You think to touch a companion?" Marcus ignored me. He growled his question at Dev. I was really glad he didn't have Daniel's claws or my lover's throat would have been a mottled mess.

"I do more than think about touching her, you son of a b.i.t.c.h," Dev choked out. Even with hands tightening on his throat, he was going to spit out some vulgar defiance. "I f.u.c.k her on a regular basis. She won't be grateful if you kill me."

Marcus growled and shoved Dev against the wall, the force making the floor beneath my feet shake. I dove for my purse where I had a revolver loaded with some specific rounds.

Neil did have claws, and he changed his right hand. "Let him go, Marcus."

"Stay out of this, wolf," the vampire replied. "I will handle it."

"Can't do it, Marcus." Neil grabbed the vampire and tossed both men across the room. Marcus let go of Dev in midair. Marcus landed against the window, which managed to take his weight and bounced him back onto the carpet. Dev landed in a heap on the sofa.

I ran to Dev and stood over him, waiting for the vampire to recover because I knew he would. Dev caught his breath and started to get up. "Stay down or get behind me," I ordered as I aimed over him. "I mean it, Dev."

He held a hand up to let me know he would behave. He slid off the sofa and got up behind me.

Marcus sprang up, showing no effects from his encounter with the werewolf. If anything, he looked even more p.i.s.sed. He pointed at Neil. "You, wolf, you will pay for your interference. You are tasked with protecting your master's possessions and you let her wh.o.r.e for that pezzo di merda? I will see your head on my mantle, wolf. You have failed your master."

Neil changed quickly, his clothes tearing around him, and then that big white wolf was at my side growling threateningly. He thumped his tail to let me know he was ready to go when I gave the word.

"I'd like to try to talk some sense into him," I said to Neil because the ramifications of this whole scene were just starting to hit me.

We needed Marcus on our side or we could all be declared outlaws. Marcus held an enormous amount of power over us. It would also be hard to explain why I'd had to kill a member of the Council. It suddenly scared me just how much control Marcus could exert over us if he chose to.

"You won't be able to reason with him, sweetheart," Dev said quietly. "He wants you, and he's p.i.s.sed I've had you. He isn't being rational or he'd think to ask certain questions."

"I do not have to ask questions, fottuto." Marcus spat out a litany of Italian I didn't understand, but I was pretty sure there was a lot of cussing going on. "I can see plainly that Mrs. Donovan has committed adultery. I could kill you, Zoey, and no one would question it."

"Daniel would," I muttered, but Marcus wasn't listening.

"Daniel will have to wake up to your faithlessness. He has indulged you, but that time is done. I will have you brought to my villa. Daniel can take his time training you there. You will be properly trained and submissive before you are allowed to see the light of day again. I hope you have enjoyed your Lancelot, piccolo puttana, because he might have cost us everything," Marcus snarled as he stalked toward me. "If you wanted another man in your bed, I would have been more than willing. You did not have to go slumming."

I might not know Italian, but I know when someone calls me a wh.o.r.e. "These rounds are silver, Marcus. I will shoot you. When I get done filling you up with silver, I'll let Neil finish you off."

"It should be interesting to see how many shots you can get off before I take your lover's head," Marcus offered.

"As amusing a situation as this is, I have to ask you not to shoot him, Z," Daniel said as he walked out of the bedroom. He'd put his jeans on but that was all. He rubbed his forehead with his palm. "I actually think I have a f.u.c.king hangover. The sound of gunfire might crack my skull. Dude, how can you drink that much and still stand up?"

"It's a gift, and I did more than stand. I performed quite heroically." Dev relaxed behind me. He seemed comfortable that Daniel would handle the situation.

I just stared at Danny, my eyes wide with wonder.

Daniel yawned and scratched his chest. "Got into trouble, Z? I'm sure it was Dev's mouth. He's gotta learn to tone it down."

"I have authority issues," Dev admitted. "Marcus there has some issues of his own. He plans to kill me and wolfie here and set his place up as your pleasure palace. He thinks our girl needs some training."

Daniel looked around as I lowered my weapon, and Neil sat back on his haunches. Marcus looked from Daniel to Dev, a confused expression on his face.

"I get Dev, man. There have been plenty of times I wanted to kill him, but why Neil?" Daniel asked.

I just stood there with my mouth open, waiting for someone to figure out what was wrong with this picture. Why were we talking about Marcus when there was a much more pressing issue?

"I caught your wife and her lover." Marcus looked at me long and hard, his eyes traveling the length of my body. "The wolf tried to protect her lover. He is obviously involved in their deception. He should have killed the interloper. I am sorry you must discover the truth about her in this fashion."

Daniel stared at Marcus. "Neil is supposed to protect my property. My wolf does his job. He stopped you from damaging that which belongs to me. Or do you claim rights to all I own?"

Dev piped up and pulled the collar of his robe back, showing off the fang marks on his neck. "Just one of the questions you should have asked, a.s.shole."

"You have taken the faery as your lover?" For the first time since I'd met him, Marcus seemed genuinely shocked.

Daniel faltered, uncertain how to answer that question, but Dev didn't have a problem with it. "Zoey has certain fantasies Daniel likes to indulge. I come in handy from time to time. I a.s.sure you Daniel and I observed all the rules of a devil's three-way. There was no eye contact. We managed to communicate through a series of hand gestures. Put your mind at ease, Marcus. We were all about the girl."

"Is anyone going to comment on the fact that Danny is awake at three in the afternoon?" I asked quietly.

Everyone stopped. Neil was suddenly a very naked human male standing next to me.

Dev came to my other side, a satisfied look on his face. He crossed his arms across his chest. "I'm a bada.s.s."

"Zoey, this is what we've been waiting for." Marcus's prior rage morphed into something like excitement. "This has been his weakness. Daniel, I told you she could make you strong. I told you her blood and her s.e.x would make you strong. Whatever you did to him last night, companion, keep it up."

I thought about that strange magic of Dev's that filled the room to bursting last night. Vampires can use s.e.xual energy to strengthen themselves. Dev's magic was all about s.e.x. "I don't think it was me."

Daniel and Marcus turned their heads to Dev, who had gotten himself a new drink and was smirking as he relaxed on the sofa. "Oh, it was definitely me. There's no question of that."

"How?" Marcus asked.

"I'm a priest. You know about Fae priests, I a.s.sume. Apparently all Daniel needed was some extraordinarily powerful s.e.x magic." Dev crossed his legs, looking very proud of himself.

"You are Miria's son, the wild one?" Marcus asked. "I knew your grandfather. He was extremely powerful. He used to be able to simply walk by a group of men and women and they would be overcome with l.u.s.t."

"That was Granddad," Dev acknowledged. "He was always a good time. I really hope everyone used protection in this hotel last night, otherwise there's a lot of stuff that happened in Vegas that won't be staying in Vegas."

"It was a fertility ritual? That is very powerful." Marcus looked at Daniel with thoughtful eyes. "You have chosen your friends very carefully, Daniel. If this one is who I think he is, he can be very useful. You can make inroads to Faery with him. His brother will take the throne one day. It's said his brother would do anything to mend the rift between them. He's a powerful p.a.w.n."

"He's more than a p.a.w.n, Marcus," Daniel said. "He knows the rest of the supernatural world. He can advise me in a way that you cannot. He can get me meetings with people who wouldn't talk to you."

Marcus nodded, but hadn't taken his eyes off me. I was aware that I was half naked and standing around with a pistol.

"I can accept all of that, Daniel," Marcus continued. "I am finding it difficult to accept that you would wh.o.r.e out your queen to bring him into the fold. Surely some other arrangements could have been made. If you needed a third, I would have been more than willing to indulge her perversions."

Suddenly the pistol was a welcome weight in my hands because I'd had just about enough of Marcus. I stepped over the couch not caring what I revealed because I needed to make that vampire understand something. I shoved the muzzle of the gun under his chin and he stilled. "Look here, Vorenus, Daniel didn't choose Dev, I did. I'll put this in terms you can understand. He is mine. If you even look at him the wrong way again I will kill you. I know you seem to think that a companion is a submissive piece of a.s.s to be dealt with as you please. I can't change thousands of years of history, so you need to stop thinking of me as a companion and start referring to me as your queen. I will not submit to your will, Marcus. Is that understood? And if you call me a wh.o.r.e again, I won't be responsible for my actions. I'll get that silver sword my husband, who I also choose to sleep with, carries and I will separate your head from your body. Do I make myself clear?"

"As crystal, mio regina," Marcus replied with a savage smile.

Daniel took me by the arm and looked at his patron. "I would like to speak with my wife now. Can I trust you not to kill my advisor?"

Marcus straightened his tie. "Yes, I did not understand the relationship. My instincts took over my good sense. I can certainly work with the prince. Please go and speak with your queen while I smooth over this situation."

Daniel stopped, his eyes finding Dev's and a moment pa.s.sing between them. "Dev?"

My boyfriend's lips curved up in a soft smile, his eyes on me even as he spoke to Daniel. "I'll take care of things, Dan. I don't think you need any more disturbances this afternoon. Enjoy the sunlight."

"Thank you. I will. And Neil, go put on some freaking pants. What's with you and pants?" Daniel pulled me back in the bedroom. He turned me around and looked at me seriously. "That was a mistake, Z. He'll want you even more now. Your forceful personality is the reason Marcus is interested in you. That was practically foreplay in his mind."

"That's not my fault. Am I supposed to let him walk all over me? He tried to kill Dev. I'm not going to sit back and let that happen because defending my lover might get him off."

"I just think you should be careful around Marcus," Daniel explained. "Just know what he wants from you and be careful. He's not a bad man, but he is a product of his time. Can I kiss you now?"

I looked at him, surprised at the turn of his thoughts. "I thought you would be upset about last night."

"I don't have time for that, Z. Unless you've decided to forget this whole insane plan to save Sarah, I can't waste time worrying about the fact that we had a threesome last night, and we aren't in college anymore so we can't call it experimentation. All I know is you came back to me last night. We have to work things out, but we have to do it later. Have you changed your mind?"

"No, I have to do this."

"Then let me kiss you and, G.o.d, go over to the window and let me see the sun hit your hair again." Daniel pulled me close. I let my hands feel the warm skin of his chest, and it was all right because Dev was fine with this. Last night had changed something, and it didn't feel wrong to show Daniel I cared. "I can see the sun, Zoey."

I kissed him, and he held me for the longest time. After a while I walked to the heavy drapes and pulled them open. Daniel stepped back out of habit, but we were facing the east so there was no direct light this late in the afternoon. I opened the balcony door.

"Come on, baby," I said, asking him to come outside with me.

His shielded his eyes from even the indirect light but after a moment he was used to it. He stood behind me and rested his chin on my head, his arms going around me. "It's so beautiful. I never thought I would see this again."

I squeezed his hands in mine and thought about the fact that this might be the last time I saw this. I was so glad I got to spend this time in the warmth with Daniel. I was grateful for every moment with Danny and Dev and Neil, and if I was successful, Sarah would have a chance at this again. There was a part of me that wished I could walk away from her and just enjoy my men and my friend but I couldn't. I would feel her loss the rest of my life. I would spend it knowing that she suffered while I sat back.

"Shh, Zoey," Daniel said, brushing my tears away. "We'll get her back. It will be all right."

We stood there together until the sun finally left the sky, and it was time to get ready for the night. Daniel was right. We would get her back or we would die trying.

Chapter Twenty-Two.

The thing about having a really good plan is realizing, no matter how carefully you have constructed the design, no matter how you have planned for every contingency, something will always happen to f.u.c.k up your previously perfect plan. It's even worse when that perfect plan you should have come up with is actually a half-a.s.s plan that requires an enormous amount of improvisation. Improv might work well for a comedy routine, but it sucks when planning a theft.

As I looked at myself in the mirror just hours before the heist, I realized how much I couldn't control about tonight's operation. The best heists run something like a play. All the actors know their lines and when to enter and exit. There is only one plot and it follows through. Tonight there were enough plots to confuse even the most avid follower of the theater, and I wasn't even aware some of them had been written into my play.

As Kelly dressed me and instructed the hair dresser how to fix my hair, I considered all the things that could go wrong. The list was close to endless. The first pitfall I thought about was how I was going to leave the party and enter the h.e.l.l plane. I doubted there would be a neon sign blinking "exit" so I was going to have to figure that out on my feet. Once I got onto the actual plane, I had no idea how big it was. What if I had to walk for miles? There were so many variables I couldn't account for that I had to admit there was a high probability of this plan falling on its over-bloated a.s.s. I was going to have to be prepared to call the whole thing off.

"Or you could just have a little faith," a soft voice said behind me.

I looked up at the hairdresser who I had previously paid no attention to. Felicity Day's face smiled down at me. "Hey, don't move, you're going to ruin my curls." She directed my head to face forward. "Demons aren't the only ones who can sense doubt, Zoey."

"It's an insane plan," I said, looking at her reflection in the mirror.

"Yes, but some of the best plans are born of desperation. You don't have to save her, you know. Most people would leave her to rot after what she did. You could walk away, and no one would really care except you and Neil. Daniel and Devinshea are only going along with the plan because they know you would do it on your own if they didn't."

"I should have found a way to save her before she got dragged to h.e.l.l. She was on my crew. She was my responsibility."

Felicity wrapped another lock around the curling iron. "No, she wasn't. Her path was set before her birth. It only changed when she met you. She's not your responsibility. She made her own choices. Have you considered what you are risking to save this one person, Zoey? You risk many more people for the justice of one."

"Are you trying to talk me out of this?" I sort of needed Heaven on my side here.