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“It’s as safe as it’s going to be,” Ash said.

“Going off what we’ve heard, there seems to be several factions of demons standing against Luc.

He doesn’t seem to have allies. If he did, he wouldn’t have come to the Human Realm alone, so even though we’re going into his territory, we’ll have the upper hand. ”

“We need to take advantage before he can turn the tables on us,” Dante added. “Then, once Luc is imprisoned, we can try and fix the rest of his mistakes.”

“Fix them how?” Ollie asked. Wasn’t punishing Lucifer the end of it ?

“We aren’t the only demons who deserve freedom,” Dante said. “We couldn’t free anyone else before, but once Luc is subdued, we can steal some of his power and destroy his containment spell completely, freeing everyone.”

“Everyone?” Harper caught Ollie’s eye, seeming to read his mind. “Won’t having so many demons in the Human Realm be dangerous?”

“Dangerous, how? Magic has already infected humankind. The greatest damage is done.” Dante sounded regretful even though it had been over a thousand years and not his fault.

“Demons aren’t any worse than anyone else, no less moral than any other group.

And I can’t sit here with my mate, knowing they’re all trapped and kept from theirs. ”

“I get that.” Harper shifted to sit up straighter. “It’s still going to be a huge change for the magic community.”

“It will be,” Onyx agreed. “But it’s the right thing to do. We can’t shy away from change because it’s hard.”

He was right. They couldn’t enjoy freedom at the expense of others.

“We aren’t freeing everyone tonight,” Dante reminded them. “Working out how to extract Luc’s magic will take time. Meaning we can prepare and get the word out that change is coming. We’ll do this right.”

“Yeah, we don’t want to upset every single witch and vampire on Earth,” Onyx said, but Ollie couldn’t tell if he meant it tauntingly or not.

“Okay,” Ollie said mostly to himself. He had to step back and see the situation objectively, not through the cloud of his growing unease and personal desire to keep Dante close. “So, tonight, you’re going to take Luc by surprise, imprison him, and come back home?”

“Yes.” Dante cupped his cheek. “And we’ll keep you somewhere safe while we’re gone. ”

“What do you mean? Shouldn’t we stay at the apartment?” Harper glanced around as if he expected to see his protections broken.

Ollie didn’t want to leave home any more than Harper seemed to. “We’ve been safe here up until now.”

“Yes, but not if something goes wrong. Luc knows where you live. It’s better if he’s unable to find you,” Dante said, and understanding dawned on Harper’s face.

But something going wrong wasn’t an option. They’d said the odds were good.

But they couldn’t let confidence make them careless. If Dante, Ash, and Onyx didn’t return, nothing would stop Lucifer from breaking into the apartment eventually.

“What about the nature reserve?” Ollie asked. He’d be comfortable waiting at Dante’s house. Harper too.

Ash hummed agreeably. “That would be safer.”

Dante shook his head. “Unless Maxwell and Lillian decide to tell Luc they got past my counterspells and discovered I had the whole area protected. They could trade the information for power or safety or change sides for any number of reasons. In that case, Luc will know exactly where our mates are. All he’ll need to do is bring a few demons to help break in. ”

Harper looked dismayed. “We’d be trapped. I can’t go up against multiple demons. Lucifer nulled my powers completely when he kidnapped me. It wasn’t even a fight.”

Onyx bounded off the couch. “How likely is it that Lillian and Maxell will suddenly see Luc as the better ally? They didn’t seem much fonder of him than we are.”

“But he is in charge of the world we sent them back to. We can’t be completely sure,” Ash grumbled.

Ash and Dante would never leave Ollie’s and Harper’s safety to chance, and trusting demons who attacked them would be foolish any way you looked at it .

Ollie’s stomach twisted, gnawingly empty. “So if we aren’t going to the reserve, where will we go?”

Harper grabbed Ash’s arm. “What about Nico?”

“That’s not a terrible idea,” his mate agreed.

Onyx wrinkled his nose. “Who the hell is Nico?”

“My boss. He said he’d help me and Ollie. We can trust him.”

“A witch?” Onyx choked like he was trying not to laugh. “What good will he be? He doesn’t even know what’s going on.”

Dante and Ash shared a look. “He knows about us, Onyx.” Dante quickly explained what happened at the apothecary.

Onyx’s face was bright red by the time Dante finished. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me someone learned our secret.”

“Don’t be mad at Ollie and Harper,” Ash warned.

“Ollie and Harper? Why would I be mad at them? It’s our responsibility to guard our secret, not theirs. And you didn’t tell me like it wasn’t important.” Or more like Onyx wasn’t important.

Ollie’s chest pinched. “I’m sorry.”

The fire burning in Onyx’s eyes dimmed. “I’m not mad at you, Ollie.

I don’t like being kept in the dark.” His attention returned to Dante and Ash.

“You always ask for my help, but you don’t bother treating me like I’m on your stupid little team.

Then you act all offended when I don’t jump the second you glance my way. I’m sick of it.”

“Are you backing out?” Ash growled, shifting Harper off him so he could stand.

Onyx’s fire flared. “No, I’m not because Dante is right. We need to do something about everyone being trapped, and my brother can’t get away with hurting your mates. But if you want my help again, fucking act like having me around matters. Stop keeping things from me. ”

“We’re sorry.” Dante laid a hand on Onyx’s shoulder, but Onyx pulled away.

Ash approached, mumbling, “Sorry.”

Onyx released a long, measured breath. “Whatever. We’ve got shit to do tonight, and I can’t deal with this too. At least you threatened this witch with my wrath. Can’t have him thinking we’re all like you hopeless saps.”

Ash snorted. “Don’t let him meet you, or he won’t be scared long.”

Ollie caught Harper’s eye, and Harper looked at the ceiling. Yeah, his mate sucked at apologies.

“Fuck you. I’ll meet Nico if I want.” Onyx straightened his spine. “I’ll put the fear of Hell in him. I’m much scarier than you, Ash. You’re just big. It’s not that impressive.”

“Let’s get going,” Dante said before Ash could jab back. “We haven’t given Nico much notice, but I’d still rather not delay.”

Harper called Nico and explained that the demons had to take care of some dangerous business and that he and Ollie needed a safe place for the night. “He says we should meet him at his friend Rowan’s place.”

“Who?” Dante and Ash asked in unison.

Harper spoke into the phone. “Um, his vampire friend? Heads a local coven. Rowan’s properties are more secure than Nico’s, and Nico says Rowan will help without question.

Apparently, their friendship is like that.

Nico can take us somewhere guarded by the coven, so we’ll have a small vampire army at the ready. ”

“But we don’t know Rowan,” Ash said like he wasn’t sure if he wanted to growl or not. Likely because he was talking to Harper, not Nico directly.

“It’ll still be better to hide with him.” Ollie hated to admit it. Was he ready to meet vampires? “No one will have any idea where we are. None of us are connected to Rowan, and if something goes wrong, finding us at Nico’s house or the apothecary shop won’t be too hard.”

“Lucifer probably stalked me and Ash to The Herb Emporium,” Harper said.

“But—”

“Then it’s settled.” Onyx clapped his hands, cutting Ash off. “Mates with the vampire coven and the witch. But if any vampires find out about us, blood will be spilled.”

Ollie would never feel great knowing Dante was walking into Hell, so he braced himself. He couldn’t ask Dante not to do this. It wasn’t all about what Lucifer did that day on the beach, even if that had spurred Dante into action.

Dante needed to focus and get back as soon as possible. If their mission was successful, it didn’t matter where Ollie spent the night.

“Where are we meeting Nico and Rowan?” he asked.

Harper’s cheeks turned pink. “A strip club.”