Where does the smoke go? Penny couldn’t help but wonder. Sometimes, it still felt like she was new to this magic thing.
Emery closed the door behind them and then sealed it with a spell to lock Marie out. “Darius,” he said, strutting over to the table.
“Yes, Mr. Westbrook, welcome.” Darius stood from his chair, looking fresh as a daisy. His hair was perfectly styled, and he had on a three-piece suit. The guy could do suave in his sleep. “Miss Bristol.”
“Oh my God.” Tears welled in Penny’s eyes. “Darius, you have to help. Reagan has been taken! The elves—”
“Yes, I know. Please.” He gestured to one of the chairs. “Have a seat. Would you like something to eat? I had a meal prepared. I can send someone to get you something. It’s probably not wise for you to leave these chambers just now. Not with your…theatrics a moment ago. I’ll need to smooth a few things over before you are free to roam.”
Penny wiped at a tear that got away. “You know that Reagan has been taken?”
“Yes.” He glanced at Emery before resuming his seat, clearly not planning on pressing them to sit with him. “I received word a couple days ago. She was being tortured for information.”
Penny sagged under the knowledge. She’d known that would be the case, but it was still hard to hear, and his blasé tone stuck something sharp in her middle. “Do you even care?”
Emery was there in a moment, trying to guide her to a seat. She waved him away.
“Do you even care?” she repeated, louder. “Did you actually even love her, or was that just a vampire trick?”
Darius scribbled something on a parchment before laying down the pen and leaning back, his focus narrowing on Penny. “I have spies in and around the elf castle. Word was sent to me that she was taken by the elves. From then, I’ve received regular updates. Of her torture, of her rescue, of her current situation…”
Penny held Darius’s gaze as she stilled the magic gathering above her head. “Her rescue?”
“Yes.” Darius braided his fingers together in his lap. “Lucifer got word of her entrapment before I could get her out. He stormed the castle, as it were, and took her with him back to the Underworld. She is now in his inner kingdom, heavily guarded but looked after. Safe, for the time being. News of her has not spread through the Underworld. Not yet. I am not sure what that means in relation to our situation.”
This time Penny let Emery help her to a seat. A few tears escaped her eyes, the stress and anxiety of these last few days giving way to a different form of stress and anxiety. “Safe?”
“Yes. For the time being. He does not plan to kill her.”
“But does he plan to let her go?” Emery asked.
Darius’s eyes narrowed slightly. “That is the question, is it not? I would guess the answer is no, but she has only been in his care for a day. It’s hard to say how things will progress.”
“Okay, well…” Penny looked at the papers and parchment spread across the circular table and nearby desk, maps and notes and drawings with labels she couldn’t read. “Okay.” She took a deep breath and wiped the tear streaks from her face. “Now what? How do we get her out?”
Darius studied her for a long moment. “First, you rest. We can do nothing with you at this level of fatigue. You need to eat, sleep, and restore yourself to optimal levels.”
“But—”
“She is safe right now, Penny.” Darius’s gaze took on a keen edge. “She is treasured, and she is not alone. A druid was seen leaving the elves’ castle within Lucifer’s fold.”
“Cahal?” Emery asked, pulling a chair from the table and sliding it nearer the wall, putting distance between himself and the vampire.
“I would guess so, though I cannot be certain. He is the only druid I can think of that is capable of entering the Underworld.”
“Not to mention he has a vested interest in Reagan,” Emery added.
“Just so. He will guard Reagan, as best as he is able,” Darius said. “He will steer her, guide her. He is her best chance at keeping her head.”
“Keeping her head?” Penny sat forward. “Why? What’s down there?”
“She has been through trauma, and now she will be a treasured pet to the man who is the master of lies. She will discover how much Lucifer cherished her mother. Listened to her mother. Left when her mother asked him to. That will be alluring to Reagan. It’ll make her think she has some control in this situation—that his fondness for her mother will translate to a similar fondness for her. She is only stubborn to a point. Her mother is a weakness. Lucifer will exploit that weakness to gain her trust. I am hoping Cahal, when the situation arises, can shine a light in a dark place.”