Demon Revealed (High Demon Series #2) (29 page)

"I know. I just don't want to see that look on your face,
like we're about to jump out of your closet and attack you."

I wanted to ask him why he was bothering to tell me this. After
all, I'd seen him and his brothers operate. Frying people in the middle of the
floor wasn't a good way to reassure anyone, in my estimation. And the Hardlows?
They'd just as soon kill someone as look at them, from what I'd heard. They
liked my cooking. That had kept me safe so far. And Astralan had said that Wilffox
would have hired me. Well, Arvil had adopted me. Not the same thing. Not by a
long way. I still got shaky every time I remembered how caught in the middle of
this I was. I was ASD and the ASD was looking to either kill or imprison all
these people. Astralan would do his best to kill me where I stood if I told him
that right then.

Wilffox, Wilffin and the other two warlocks wandered in while
Astralan was finishing his second cup of tea. They sat down at the island while
I handed out plates of food. Talk began about the impending harvest and the meeting
and reception that Arvil planned. With everything else that had happened, that
event had completely escaped my thoughts.

"I think we want a menu with perhaps three items
offered," Wilffox said. "I want the yaris fish as one of the choices.
Perhaps that special ox-roast you make for another and a fowl selection, maybe?"

"Yes, that would be a good cross-section," I agreed.
"Will there be any vegetarians?" I had a few things I could put
together if that was the case.

"I don't think so," Wilffox looked to his brother. Wilffin
was shaking his head. Well, they knew the crime kingpins from their part of the
galaxy, I didn't.

"What do you have planned for today?" Wilffox asked.

"I was thinking about going back to those two fields that
we were having trouble with—make sure the problem wasn't spreading to any of
the others," I said.

"Sounds good. We'll come along," Wilffin announced.

Nenzi drove us. The fields were the same as before. The affected
plants were stunted and brown-leaved, but outside a narrow swath in those two fields,
no other plants were disturbed.

"We might get a partial harvest from these," Wilffox
was examining the branch of a plant Farzi showed him. Farzi knew a lot about
growing things, as did most of his brothers. Nenzi, though, was the one who was
mechanically inclined.

"Yes, and harvest starts on first fields next
eight-day," Farzi agreed. I still felt the heat I'd experienced the last
time I'd come, I just chose to keep it to myself. No need to alert the Hardlows
or their warlocks to that little anomaly.

"Let's go to the barns, then, and check on the shipments
of crates and packaging materials," Wilffox suggested. Nenzi was quite
happy to drive us everywhere. We went to the barns, a place I hadn't been as
yet and looked over pallets and pallets of crates, in addition to boxes and
boxes of sealable, waterproof packing material. They weren't concerned with the
expense involved to make sure the drug got to its intended recipients. That
drug was worth countless Alliance credits when it reached its destination, after
all.

"Reah, don't ever touch this shit." Astralan's hand
dropped to my shoulder as I gazed at the barn filled with shipping supplies.

"Don't worry," I replied. Farzi gave a quick look at
Astralan's hand on my shoulder, but he didn't say anything. That wasn't Farzi's
way. If he or any of his brothers wanted someone dead, they'd do it later in
the stealthiest and quietest way possible. I wasn't worried about Astralan any
longer, and I couldn't say why that was.

We stopped by one of the fields to check on the workers we'd
hired. They were spraying weedkill when we arrived. I think they knew not to
aggravate any one of us. Farzi spoke to the ones in charge, asking them about
the upcoming harvests.

"We have everything ready—the equipment is in good
repair," the man nodded toward Nenzi. If I knew Nenzi, that had been a
labor of love.

"You'll get a bonus if it's brought in ahead of
schedule," Wilffox promised. The man nodded respectfully to both Hardlows.
We left shortly after. Time had gotten away from us, so I served lunch by the
pool while the plantation staff went about their duties.

"I love these drinks," Wilffin settled on his lounge
chair with a sigh of pleasure. "Too bad I don't have anybody to give me a
massage."

If he were hinting, I wasn't about to take that bait. Wilffin
could afford the most expensive courtesan anywhere. He was welcome to ask his warlocks
to pick one up for him. Astralan offered to find a masseuse.

"Make sure she's pretty," Wilffin waved a hand. He
went back to sipping his drink in the early afternoon sun.

Astralan came back later with three women, one of whom was
short with pale, blonde hair. He sent her in Wilffin's direction. I faded from
the pool area, Farzi right behind me. He'd already sent his brothers away
earlier.

"They will be having relations out there," Farzi
hissed as we walked into the kitchen.

"That's all right, Farzi," I gave him a quick hug. "We'll
just stay away."

The courtesans stayed for dinner, playing with Wilffox,
Wilffin and the warlocks. "Sweetie," one of them said when I served
her food, "You'd be stunning if you let your hair grow out."

"The haircut wasn't my idea," I told her and went
on.

* * *

"How are things going?" Teeg asked when he called
later. He always seemed to catch me when I was brushing my teeth. I'd had to
rinse really quick to answer his call.

"Fine," I sighed. "We checked the fields today,
and then Astralan brought in three women to keep everybody happy."

"Wilffin didn't bother you, did he?" That question
had me raising an eyebrow.

"Only an obscure invitation to give him a backrub,"
I said. "Astralan brought in the courtesans after that."

"Good. Anything else?"

"Not really. How about you? What happened to the last of
Delvin's bunch?"

"Dead. Easy kill. No tourists were hurt. Only lost four
security guards."

"Well, it could have been worse," I mumbled, hoping
I didn't know any of the dead.

"Definitely," Teeg acknowledged. "I'm going to
interview people tomorrow; Arvil wants to replace his entire stable of wizards.
You wouldn't believe how many applications we received."

"I'm not surprised—I hear the money's good," I said.

"Want me to buy you something, baby? Since we left you
alone?"

"Teeg, I don't need anything."

"Sure you do. You need a dress and some jewelry for that
fiasco Arvil has planned. I'll see about getting something for that."

"Arvil and I aren't going to match, are we?" I
teased him a little. Arvil planned to leave Teeg on Campiaa during the
gathering, to watch over things there.

"No. Who would do something like that?" He was
grinning at me.

"You'd be surprised," I said. People used to come
into Desh's all the time, looking exactly alike. It frightened me.

"Well, I can't give any guarantees over what the others
will look like, but I'll make sure you and Arvil don't match." Teeg ended
the call shortly after.

"Ready, our Reah?" Farzi stuck his head inside my
door.

"I'm ready," I nodded. He and Nenzi crawled into my
bed only a few moments later. I hugged Nenzi's length against me as Farzi
coiled up at my back. It made me feel safer to know they were with me.

* * *

 The crash woke me an hour before dawn. Terrified, I reached
over to turn on my bedside lamp. The image that greeted me will perhaps be
burned on my brain forever. Wilffin was standing in my doorway with a ranos
pistol in one hand, his other arm draped around the blonde courtesan.

Chapter 14
 

  Wilffin and the blonde were barely dressed; Wilffin was
waving the pistol and giving me a drunken leer. The woman, however, had a hand
clapped over her mouth in terror. All eight lion snake shapeshifters had their
heads raised high, prepared to strike if Wilffin and the woman came any closer.
The courtesan wasn't the only terrified person there.

How was I going to get out of this? I didn't want Wilffin to
shoot any of my lion snake protectors, and if Farzi or his brothers bit either
of my uninvited guests, then Wilffox would see that they were killed if Wilffin
didn't get them first. If Wilffin were allowed to come in as he wanted, I was terrified
of what he intended to do. "Farzi, please stay back," my voice shook.
Fear for my own safety took a back seat to my fear for the lives of the
shapeshifters. At least Wilffin might leave me alive afterward.

"Wilffin, you will go back to your bedroom now and make
love to this fine woman." Teeg and Astralan were there behind Wilffin
somehow. Wilffin blinked at Teeg for only a moment before nodding and pulling
the woman away with him. Farzi and the others relaxed visibly the moment
Wilffin walked out the door.

"Thank the stars," I muttered, realizing only then I
had a death grip on my sheet and blanket.

"Farzi, I'll take things from here," Teeg nodded to the
proper lion snake, even. Farzi and his brothers slipped out of my room. "Thank
you, Astralan," Teeg nodded toward the warlock.

"No trouble," Astralan said and disappeared.

"Sweetheart, that shouldn't have happened," Teeg
settled on the side of my bed. I realized I was trembling uncontrollably when I
let go of my covers. "Here, just slide over a little," Teeg scooted
me over in the bed. "Now, just lie here with me," Teeg kissed my
forehead and pulled me against him. My heart was still pounding when he reached
over and turned off the light.

* * *

"Reah, just act like it never happened," Teeg told
me the following morning. He'd let me sleep late and woke me with a kiss around
mid-morning. It made me wonder what the others had done for breakfast.

"They got something from the staff," Teeg murmured
against my throat—he was placing kisses there.

"Are you going back to Campiaa?" I was trying to
fend him off so I could ask questions.

"Reah, I have to," Teeg nipped my neck. It caused my
entire body to flush when he did that.

"But I'm afraid to stay here with them." I was
whining, but I was terrified, too.

"Reah, sweetheart, they won't bother you again—I promise."
How could he say that? He wasn't the one in the bed the night before, faced
with a drunken crime kingpin waving a pistol. "I know you're worried, but
I've alerted Astralan and his brothers. They'll watch out for you."

That was fine for him to say—I wasn't paying the warlocks, the
Hardlows were. I think they'd do what their employers said, rather than
choosing to protect an unimportant woman.

"Let Farzi and his brothers do their job. They and the warlocks
will take care of you, sweetheart."

"Fine." Teeg realized he was finally getting what he
wanted—my cooperation—both in and out of bed. Still, when Teeg left—Astralan
took him back to Campiaa before returning—I watched my back and made sure I was
never alone near Wilffin. The three women did stay several days, even after
Arvil came back to plan his drakus seed harvest party.

* * *

"Here's the menu, pending your approval," I handed my
comp-vid to Arvil. He was using Grish's old study, staying in close contact
with Teeg and his newly hired assistant. Arvil had brought three new wizards
back with him to Zephili—he'd hired them in record time. I was wary of all of
them. The bad news was he'd left Ry and Tory with Teeg for the time being. "The
wine choices are attached, but we don't have what we need here. Is there any
way I can get to Campiaa to buy it?"

"This looks good, Reah. I'll see if Wilffox will lend
Astralan to you for a day, just so you can pick up all of this. Bring a full
staff of cooks and assistants back with you—as many as you need." Arvil
was giving me permission to do whatever I wanted with this. "Will you
serve the soup I like?"

"It's there, with the fish choice," I nodded toward
the comp-vid.

"I see it. It'll be a good night. I just know it. We'll
have a victory out of this, Reah. The Alliance is within our grasp and we will
crush it from existence." I watched as Arvil's fist closed around an
imaginary enemy. I nodded and ducked my head. I felt ill when I left Arvil's
temporary study.

Vice-Director?
I must have sounded shaky when I sent
the mindspeech to Lendill Schaff.

Reah, what's wrong?
Lendill got back with me right
away.

Has Ry or Tory told you about the big party that Arvil is
planning shortly after the first few fields are harvested?

I only have sketchy information. What do you know?

That Arvil is inviting the biggest and the worst,
I
sent.
This party will coincide with the first shipments going out. I'm
supervising the menu and the meal preparations. Arvil just admitted to me that
he intends to crush the Alliance
.

Is the party all he plans?

No, he's going to take all of them out to the seed fields
and show them how extensive the crop is.

Before or after?

The party is set for early afternoon, with the visit to the
seed fields immediately after. They're bringing in luxury hoverbuses just for
the occasion
. I was kneading dough in the kitchen, pounding it harder than
necessary as I held my mental conversation. I could never forget Arvil's
mission or how ruthless he could be in obtaining his goals.

We have your location pinpointed on the Zephili map
,
Lendill informed me.
We
wanted to wait until the shipping station got
the first crates so we can get the shipping addresses. Anyone expecting seed
will get a visit from the ASD instead. This is too perfect, Reah. I think we
can arrange for a surprise for Arvil's visitors while they're looking over his
fields. We need you to stay with them until we make our move, though, so they
won't suspect anything. Just promise that you'll skip away at the first sign of
the ASD attack.