Bitten Beauty (The Deadly Beauties Live On 3)

“They don’t have an anointed, but they want one. And they could be responsible for drawing attention here by using the jinn. They may be trying to trap an anointed. They also need the bloods of the firsts, and they’re somehow recreating them. I’ll keep searching the books for rituals that could predate the magic we know that would require this.”

He blows out a breath before running a hand through his hair.

“Alyssa can help me, but I’m limiting what she knows. I’ve already sent her home. She can barely stand up right now. The baby is sucking all the energy out of her, and the less stress, the better. One thing is for sure, he or she will be very powerful. Not even Ella weakened her like this.”

Ella sits down close to me, and I squeeze her shoulder. She’s carrying a lot of weight on her shoulders since she’s the strongest one of all of us.

“So to sum it up,” Dice interjects, “the baddies need the bloods of the firsts, they were entangled with two of the baddest bitches ever known, and they’re brutal enough to attempt to massacre a town just to catch an anointed. Oh, and let’s not forget they desperately want Gavin back. Apparently it’s hard to replace him. They were desperate enough to send Morgana to seduce Zee. Who would go through all this elaborate scheming? Definitely a fucking woman.”

Ella glares at him. And well, so does every other woman in the room.

“Interesting theory.” A new feminine voice has us all jerking our eyes to the front door that is closed.

Gage jerks it open to reveal a familiar face I sure as fuck wasn’t expecting to see. Chaz is coming down the stairs, but he immediately goes back up when he sees her.

Kya is leaned against the doorway, just barely out of reach of the perimeter spell Gage has up.

“Should have cast a soundproofing spell if you don’t want eavesdroppers. I suggest you get on that, dark user,” she tells Gage.

The smug look on her face doesn’t match the broken girl Kimber explained her to be when she first met her.

Gage glares at her, but she just looks bored before asking, “Care to let me in?”

“Why the fuck would we do that?” I ask before anyone can stupidly oblige.

Her eyes flick to me, and then her gaze drops to a weary Karma. “For one, Karma will die if you don’t let me in.”

Everyone exchanges a look, and Kya’s eyes come back to mine. “We’re immortal. There’s no death unless someone kills us,” Dice growls.

“You’re not taking her symptoms as seriously as you should,” she says, crossing her arms over her chest. “She and I are half human. Immortal? Yes and no. We can live forever, but only if we feed properly. You assholes go savage if you starve yourselves for too long. We actually die. Believe me. I was brought back from the brink of death numerous times after starvation tests. They barely revived me once.”

She looks at Dice, eyeing him curiously. Any alliance of Slade’s can’t be trusted, though.

“And we’re just supposed to trust you and let you in?” Gage asks skeptically.

“You think I came to hurt her? Or any of you?”

She rolls her eyes when no one speaks.

“Why would I come here and announce myself? I’m not stupid. If I wanted you dead, you’d already be dead. Be thankful Slade has bigger issues, or he’d have probably already killed you himself for constantly getting in our way like the Scooby gang meddling in ghost stories. You’re trying to fight battles, and we’re fighting a war. Never mind. I’m not here to talk about your stupid politics and shit. I just came to save her and to teach you how to properly take care of her. We need a special diet.”

“

Demons don’t have diets,” I remind her.

She brings her gaze back to mine. I swear she’s fighting a smirk. “True demons don’t. They possess a body and live off of what it needs. They don’t have bodies of their own. But we’re not true demons; we’re half human and half demon. Turns out our human half is drained constantly by the fey half.”

“What does she need?” Dice growls. “I’ll get it for her.”

“It’ll take too long. Her body is on the verge of shutting down. It’s not like you can just conjure up what’s needed. I’ll share with her, then you can help her hunt.”

“Hunt?” Thad asks suspiciously.

“Yes. Hunt. Let me in.”

Karma doesn’t speak. Honestly, I don’t think she trusts her any more than we do.

She groans before continuing. “Let me guess; she’s been possessing someone often?”