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Unfortunately, all the demons had fallen under her spell as well. Mulan’s magick didn’t discriminate.

“That’s a very cool trick. I have a quickie spell that glues people in place. It’s one of my favorites,” I said to her, while I surveyed her handiwork.

“They will sleep for one hour—no more. Get busy. Earn your keep.”

I went to Rasmus who was holding his neck. “The wound is still bleeding. Are ya feeling light-headed?”

“I’m fine,” he ground out through clenched teeth. “Find out who that monster is that nearly killed me. He’s as strong as Conn.”

“Not really, but I know why ya would think that,” I said, pointing to the side. The man still dangled in Conn’s chokehold. His face was turning blue from lack of oxygen. “Let up a little, Conn. I want to talk to him.”

The man continued to fight.

“Who are ya?” I asked.

When he didn’t answer, Conn shook him.

“Unless ya want yer neck snapped, I suggest ya start talking to us.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Mulan stoop to pick up the sword the guy had used to cut Rasmus’s throat. I lost my train of thought and turned to her. “What are ya doing?”

“Collecting spoils of war,” she said.

“That’s not...” I stopped. If it kept her happy, what did I care?

I turned back to the guy. “Who are ya? And what are doing here?”

He gripped Conn’s enormous fingers and shoved against them. “I do not recognize the sovereignty of the daughter of The Dagda.”

My face scrunched up. “Is that supposed to hurt my feelings? Am I supposed to care? Explain this to me because I don’t really care what happens to ya. I’m looking for the demon queen.”

The man glared at me in disgust. “You will show the demoness mercy. You will save her because you are weak.”

I fisted both my hands on my hips and glared at him. “Ya don’t even know me. This situation is like walking into the middle of a movie. I don’t know what’s happening or who the bad guys are. Why aren’t ya jumping up and down to explain it to me?”

“Because you control a demon.”

I snorted while I pointed to Conn. “How can ya be so sure? Maybe Conn controls me. Maybe we take turns controlling each other. I still don’t see how my relationship to Conn is a problem for anyone walking the planet. We’re like the police of demon kind. We’re the good guys.”

“You are not worthy. You let them all live,” the dangling man said.

My sigh was loud. “No, the gods let them live. I could easily obliterate every demon I encounter, but it wouldn’t stop them from returning. Surely, ya know that, if ya know anything at all about demons.”

“You lie,” he said, renewing his fight.

“No, I don’t lie. Trust me, I wouldn’t be in trouble half as much if I could lie effectively.”

Conn turned to growl at me. “This is getting us nowhere. Let’s kill him so he won’t be a future problem.”

“Let’s see if we can compel him,” I said, but then I had a thought and looked at Mulan. “Got any tricks to make him tell us what he knows?”

Mulan gave me what I was beginning to call her “ya-lazy-shit” look. Every time she looked at my hair, I got glared at with a similar expression.

“No. Do your job, witch.”

Rasmus, despite the blood oozing down the front of him, chuckled at our discussion. But with Conn using most of his strength to hold our hostage, dropping my energy armor was definitely not a good idea.

“I need a cage to hold him first,” I said, voicing my wish out loud.