Portaling was Denise's favored form of traveling. She had lived for so long that she knew safe locations all over the world and could transport almost anywhere. She had also become accustomed to its effects.

Her hands gripped my shoulders and pulled me upward. I hadn't realized I'd slumped over until then. She slipped a small vial, the color of lemon pie, into my hand. Drinking it in one gulp, my body revitalized, and I felt clear-headed again.

"Thank you," I said with genuine appreciation.

"But of course, dear. Now let's go get this done. Shall we?"

With a nod, I hooked my arm into hers and we made our way through the doors of the Black Hole. My skin prickled with the magical barrier that kept out minors, unclaimed humans, and violent intended fae. Other entrances were warded differently, depending on the business being conducted within. There were shadier characters who frequented as much as the normal clientele.

The stench of dark magic flooded my nose, like it always did. Similar to earlier in the night, the sweet aromas of elixirs, magic-infused spirits, and helpful magic helped. Focusing on the sweeter smells, I was able to ignore the nastier ones.

The first time I'd come here, I wondered what everyone else smelled. Each race and magic wielding being had their own magical signature, an aura of their own magic. Laws prohibited any individual to allow signatures to flaunt, but some didn't care about the laws. Along with the signatures, spell casting and potion making exuded their own diverse smells, sounds, tastes, and feelings. Get too much in one space and it could overwhelm weaker fae.

Shadows swirled in front of us as we walked through the main tunnel of the club. Denise moved to angle her body in front of mine. The hulking mass of Quinton Phipps, the owner of the Black Hole, materialized.

"What an unwelcome surprise." His voice was as charming as a frog shifter mixed with lifetime smoker. "Back so soon, Sadie, and with company? If it isn't the all-powerful witch. What do you want?"

With a smile, Denise approached the huge shadow demon. "Not just a witch, but it will suffice. I'm here for a drink and good entertainment."

"I doubt that," he said as he crossed his arms as two large shifters stepped up behind him. Although his attention remained on her, his eyes darted to me for a brief moment.

"Are you calling me a liar?" Denise's tone was daring with a sharp edge. Against Quinton's tailored suit, I could see the white glow and knew what Denise was doing.

Smirking at the transaction, I watched as the broody, black-market crime boss moved aside for us.

As we made our way into the main room, I tried not to stare. I really hadn't ever taken in the main room of the club before. The entire upper floor, where the primary, more secure, office was, was all reflective surfaces. Magically suspended in the center of the open ceiling were shimmering crystals, enchanted to continuously turn and rotate to create new patterns.

"Sadie?" Denise brought my attention back to her. "How are we going about this?"

"Not we, just me."

"Fine, I'd rather be drinking anyway. If you run into trouble, shout." She smiled at the waiter as he delivered her drink. "Suggestion," she added as she leaned into the table, swirling her glass. "Cast a forgettable spell with a blur and you could walk through the club with little issue. Start there and then plan as you go."

Of course I'd take her advice. With a nod, I closed my eyes. I focused inwardly, like she had taught me. My magic worked a lot like Denise's did. I didn't need a magic artifact, wand, or other conduit to control the paths of my powers. She taught me to visualize spells and call them to my mind when I needed them, all while funneling my energy to ignite it.

"Almost there, keep going," encouraged Denise.

The words flowed through my mind, making my body feel electrically fuzzy. Then it snapped into place making my skin feel tight and charged.

When I looked up at her, she had her head at an angle and eyes squinted. "You're getting better, but I'd say you have about twenty minutes to get what you came for."

Shit! That wasn't a lot of time.

Although I wasn't sure where my bag was, I'd seen one of the guards take it as I made my quick exit.

I slipped from the seat and made my way to the hall leading to restrooms and the entertainments' changing rooms. No one paid any attention.

The door to the lower office was locked but no other defenses. With a quick glance over my shoulder, I hovered my hand over the door handle and envisioned the knob opening easily for me. With a pop, the lock released, and I entered the office.

The lamp on one side of the office caused dramatic shadowing and I used them to my advantage.

The glow on the desk beneath me alerted me to my own powers flaring. "Seek and find the item entwined," I said in Latin. Glancing around the room, I looked for the glowing of the spell. My bag had to be there. My gaze swept over the room. The boxes of files, filing cabinets, dirty sofa, and cracked tile of the floor before I saw a bin. "Is that the fucking trash can?" I whispered.

With a groan, I pulled my bag out. To be fair to whomever had thrown it out, it did look similar to a black grocery bag filled with trash. Thankful for the enchantment, I picked it up and envisioned the plastic bag into a stylish clutch that matched the top Denise had fashioned for me. The paper napkins and small river stones inside the bag transformed into money and gemstones.

Reaching into the small, magical clutch I could feel that everything was there. My fingers brushed over the cool surface of one of the exquisite gems I'd found. Distracted by my reunion with my goods, I hadn't heard the lock snap and looked up in time to see the door to the office opening.

I slipped into the shadows of the corner, blending into the darkness and edging towards the door. Curiosity hit me hard when what emerged from the hall was a tall dark figure.

My eyes strained, but I could have sworn I had seen horns recede into his long brown hair. As he turned, I held my breath and watched as his eyes went from fully black to a sky blue. Demon.

Lifting his chin, he smelled the air of the room and I hoped the spell I had casted would hide me enough that I could make my way from the room. His head whipped back to search the room; running his large hand along the filing cabinets and boxes looking for something. His moves were agile and precise; realizing he was meant to be in this office as much as I was supposed to. The long black jacket he wore seemed to camouflage with the shadows as he passed them.

I knew I should have moved, but he rounded the desk and faced my direction, rooting my feet to the floor. He still hadn't shown any signs of being aware of my presence. I took him in. The sharper angles of his jaw and cheekbones made him incredibly handsome, and I had a feeling he knew it.

He was someone I needed to avoid for my own damn sake. The blue eyes, hair hanging in his eyes, and his tanned skin were a complete fantasy package for me. I could have a lifetime of dirty dreams about this man.

As he searched the drawers and surrounding area for something, my attention was drawn towards the door. I'd been too distracted by another pretty object that I hadn't moved. Two male voices moved towards us, but when I looked to where tall, dark, and dangerous had been, he wasn't there anymore.

I should have cared more but my focus turned to the door.

It had been unlocked and swung wide, nearly hitting me. Turning my face in time to avoid a smack to the nose, I didn't see him coming. As the door closed, the faint smell of sulfur wafted into my hiding place. Turning back slowly, the man I'd watched a moment ago was now so close to me, I could feel his breath on the top of my head.

His smell was intoxicating. He smelled like whisky and fire. I closed my eyes and inhaled him. When I dragged my eyes up his massive and muscular chest, a cocky half smile on his perfectly sculpted mouth.

Fuck...

He bent his head low to my ear and whispered, "Fancy that... Meeting a pretty girl in an office neither of us should be in."

I kept my silence and tried to peer around him. The two men milled about the office, one at the desk, writing something as the other chatted about the night's events.

"I'm Regan, by the way," the man in the shadows with me said as he held his hand between us, expecting me to shake it. I didn't.

The man chatting said something that caught my attention, and I perked up to listen.

"Can you believe that chick tonight? No one fucks with Octavion; she must have some massive balls."

"What chick?" His companion asked, stopping what he was doing to look up at the other.

"Fiery little witch with a head full of dark curls, really nice ass. I overheard one of Octavion's men say she even tried to play with the hellbeast he sent after her."

I blocked the rest of their conversation out and groaned inwardly, then realized Regan was holding back laughter. "Is that you, they're talking about?"

"And if it is?" I quipped back.

"We should be friends?"

"Why would I want to be friends with you?"

"Seems we may have more in common than you think, little witch."

"Doubtful."

He moved impossibly closer, and I felt lightheaded with his closeness. "I think we both want similar things," he said as his gaze fell to the clutch under my arm and his eyes flashed to fully black.

"Finders, keepers. I also don't play well with others," I said, doing a poor job keeping my focus and running out of time.

"Isn't that interesting," he began as his gaze raked over me. His eyes were a fathomless abyss of Cobalt blue and my breath hitched. "I play very well with others, and I think you'd be very fun to play with."

Hiding his effects on me I tucked my chin and said, "Never going to happen, Reagan—"

Before I could finish the thought, Regan pressed his body against mine, forcing my head up with a knuckle beneath my jaw, and pressing me into the wall.

I gasped and his warm hand covered my mouth as he whispered in a darker tone, "The next time you tell me my own name, you will be naked and beneath me. You'll beg me for it."

Acting on instinct, I expelled him backward and the briefest gape of shock crossed his features before pure amusement.

The men in the room whirled on us, ready for a fight.

Using my petite frame to my advantage. I ducked under Regan's arm, swung open the door, and said confidently, "Wishful thinking, Regan."

Slamming the door behind me, I threw up a quick and effortless protection wall to slow them down.

There was a crash followed by a loud boom and then smoke billowed from beneath the door. I moved away and slowed my pace to a stroll as I approached the table.

"Problems?" Denise asked before taking a long sip.

"None that I couldn't handle."

She swayed in her seat as the beautiful woman on stage sang a slow and seductive tune.

The large stone on her chest drew my attention as it glowed with blue, red, and some green accents, making its overall appearance look purple.

Black smoke- no it hadn't been smoke; shadows swirled from the hall I'd just come from. Stepping through was Regan. Wicked horns stood taller than his hair and his eyes, blacked out with his demonic power, now displayed glowing golden irises.

I gulped hard as his gaze found mine. He managed to take one step in my direction before someone shouted his name. He had stopped. His chin dipped, and he turned his head in the direction of his summoner.

"I don't have time to fuck around. Come," the person who had called out to him commanded.

Was he someone's pet? The thought of him with a collar, invisible or not, was amusing and I hadn't hidden it from my features.

His eyes locked to mine. He was dangerously beautiful and I watched him as his eyes changed back to an icy blue, horns dissolved into shadow that dissipated into his hair, and his jacket, I realized, solidified.

"Best be on your way, Prince Shade," Denise said beside me.

Prince!?

The silence spell, to prevent eavesdroppers, she had drawn on the table had been broken and she was standing at the end of our booth.

Regan's eyes moved to Denise, recognition flaring, and he bowed slightly as he greeted her.

He began turning and then paused to say, "I look forward to playing with you again, little witch." He retreated to the entryway of the club. The person who had summoned Regan was a someone I knew.

Octavion, the man I'd cheated and who had sent a damn hellbeast after me. He looked like Regan in a long white-haired version.

Before I could ask the question in my mind, Denise said in a hushed tone, "Do not be foolish enough to get involved with the prince or his father. The Shades are not a family to fuck with."

Too late...