“Thanks for coming,” I told the detective.

  “It’s the least I could do after your help last night.” Juke smiled at me. “Everyone is safely in the temporary shelters. Over the last week you’ve proved to the police that you and Bishop can be counted on to help keep the peace—and assist when humans are in danger.”

  It was a heavy burden, and one that I’d assumed willingly. But now I felt the weight of that, and worried that I wouldn’t live up to Juke’s and her department’s expectations—especially if Bishop wasn’t available to help, or if I ended up facing demons that were more powerful than the ones we’d come across downtown.

  Juke patted me on my shoulder. “You done good, Alvaro. And I’m happy to be the police liaison to your group of vigilante helpers.”

  I couldn’t help but laugh at that, thinking that two years ago the police would have rather slit their throats than work with a group of vigilantes, especially ones that weren’t human.

  Juke headed toward the others at the bar, but Isha stayed behind and reached out to pluck the sleeve of my T-shirt.

  “Eden. I’m sorry, but Fi…well, she’s kinda with Kevin on this. And I don’t blame her. I mean, pack is pack. My pack is neutral on the whole thing, but I owe you a personal debt, and honestly that makes me part of your pack, if that makes any sense to you.”

  It did. I impulsively hugged her, thrilled to have the wolf by my side. I’d seen her fight in the arena and again at that disastrous press conference where our governor and Doriel, the demon who was supposed to be in charge of New Hell, were killed.

  That gave me a team of four, not including my actual family, or Bishop and HB. Telaney, Addy, Blister, and Isha. These four were what I’d consider to be first-round draft picks, and I was thrilled to have them on my team.

  Although it wasn’t like poor Addy really had any choice in the matter. Still, looking at her over at the bar, chatting with Telaney and Juke, she seemed happy. And that was a huge improvement over the angry, lost, depressed woman she’d been less than a week ago.

  “Go over to the bar and get a drink,” I told Isha. “We’ll begin soon.”

  I went into the kitchen to herd Blister back into the bar only to find her eating two raw hamburgers on buns with an excess of condiments. She’d tucked a dish towel into the collar of her shirt, and it was splattered with blobs of ketchup, mustard, and mayonnaise.

  Rolling my eyes, I left the kitchen.

  Giving everyone a moment to get settled with their drinks, and for Blister to finish the rest of her burgers, I hopped up on the stage the bar used for bands, and got the meeting started.

  “Everyone’s here,” I announced. “We’re getting ready to start.”

  “Cool.” Blister took off her makeshift bib and tossed it on a table before pulling a large square of paper out of her backpack and waving it at me. “Map’s right here. I marked it.”

  We both stared at each other for a few awkward seconds. Didn’t she understand that I needed her to present at this meeting? We couldn’t exactly strategize and plan if we didn’t know what the fuck was going on in New Hell, and it wasn’t like she’d had the opportunity to brief me ahead of time.

  “Go ahead and tell us what you’ve found out, Blister.”

  “Me?” she squeaked, pointing at her chest with a long, pointed nail.

  I hopped off the stage and walked over to her. “Yes you,” I whispered. “You’re the one who’s been gathering intel. You’re the one with the vital information. I need you to share that with the team.”

  She gaped. “But I’m a Low. You’re supposed to get the information from me, then announce it as if you found it out yourself through some special, super-secret means. That’s what the heads of demon households do.”

  “I don’t have time for that bullshit,” I said. “And my ego isn’t so fragile that I need to claim your work for my own. You’re my spy, my information gatherer. The team, or household or whatever, needs to respect your skills and know that they’ll also be recognized and valued for what they bring to the table.”

  Oh my fucking god. That sounded like some middle-management motivational speech. But the weird thing was, I meant it.

  “You want me to present the information?” Blister hissed. “Fine. But that’s one more reason you’re a shitty demon and a terrible head of household.”

  It was a common refrain from the Low, but this time, the words didn’t carry the heat they normally did. She was flattered. And she liked getting the recognition and respect. I might not be a typical demon, but I got the impression that Blister was starting to enjoy my unconventional ways.

  We pushed a few tables together and Blister spread a giant map of the greater Los Angeles area on top of them. It drooped over the sides, making it a little hard to see the places around Torrance to the south and the upper part of the Valley to the north. Oh well. We’d just have to scoot the map around when we discussed those locations.

  “Where…where did you get this thing?” HB wrinkled her nose.

  “Bus station,” the Low told her.

  It was the perfect place to get a giant map of the city. Besides, it wasn’t like they were using it any more. Public transportation had left as soon as the demons had arrived.

  “What’s that stain?” the mountain lion shifter pointed, her face scrunched with an expression of disgust.

  “Probably pee,” Blister told her. “Just ignore it.”

  I knew HB couldn’t ignore it. It was just a faded, yellowish patch to the rest of us, but the shifter could probably smell the ancient urine from halfway across the room. Isha probably could as well. That was most likely the reason she’d held back, standing a good ten feet from the map.

  “Wait.” Telaney went behind the bar and came back with a bottle of clear liquid. She sprayed the corner of the map, then blotted it with a rag. HB’s eyes stopped watering and she sighed.

  “Good idea,” HB said. “I picked up that enzyme spray a few months ago when the wolves and the big cats literally got into a pissing contest at trivia night. Didn’t realize it would work on human urine as well.”

  I eyed the bottle, wondering if it would work on hellkitty pee too. Mittens liked to poop at random locations of my house in spite of the multiple litter boxes with a variety of litter in different rooms. Thankfully he hadn’t peed on the floor yet, as I assumed it would burn right through the hardwood.

  “It looks like you’ve already marked the map sections in highlighter.” I gestured to the the Low demon. Take it away, Blister.

  She glanced around, slugging down a gulp of tequila from the bottle gripped in one hand and eyeing the crowd for a few seconds before speaking.

  “Within days of Doriel’s murder, the demons trying to gain control of New Hell went from twenty to five. In the last twenty-four hours, two of those demons have been killed, and we now have three major players. My current intel says that the three have reached a tentative agreement to split New Hell among them. These are their territories as they stand right now. The northern sections from the Valley up to the Alaska border are still being disputed, as are the areas south of Tijuana. But all three demons are drawing clear territory lines here in LA.”

  Everyone leaned close.

  “This area outlined in yellow.” Blister stabbed a pointed nail at the map, poking a hole in it. “Is being claimed by a demon known as Itinder.”

  I snorted at the name, thinking immediately of the dating app.

  “He’s a high-level plague demon,” Blister continued. “Normally plague demons work solo or with small households of four or five, but this guy’s household is basically a standing army of two thousand.”

  Juke sucked in a breath. “He’s claiming the Valley. What does that mean for us that a plague demon is claiming where we live?”

  “Death and disease, that’s what it means,” HB said. “Spanish flu? Small pox? Polio?”

  “They were all due to plague demons?” Juke eyed the map nervously.

  “Assisted by plague demons,” Blister told her. “They mutate normally occurring diseases to make them more deadly, or faster spreading, or whatever. In the past, plague demons couldn’t stick around for long or they’d get dusted by the angels, so either human medicine had a chance to deal with it, or the disease itself burned out without the plague demon around to spur it on.”

  “But that’s not the case here.” Telaney’s voice was low and halting. “We’ve got no angels to chase this guy out, and our medical care here in New Hell is shit at best.”

  We did have an angel—two of them if I was counting me. But I understood what she meant. We weren’t back in the times when a handful of demons who’d made it through the gates from Hel would be harassed and possibly killed by a squad of hunter angels, here specifically to hunt them down. New Hell was overrun with demons, and Bishop and I would have no other angelic help.

  “Are all of them plague demons in this army?” I was really worried at the thought of two thousand plague demons tearing through northern section of New Hell.

  “Some are.” Blister shrugged. “Most of the are mid-level generalized demons. He’s got a few greed demons and imps, and a handful of low-level war demons. About ten are pestilence demons, since pestilence and plague tend to get along—well, get along as much as any two demons can, that is.”

  I frowned, thinking of the demonology book I’d been studying. “But warmongers and greed demons don’t seem like they’d be all that friendly with plague demons. Imps either. They all want healthy humans to fight, embezzle, and play tricks on. Bedridden, dying humans aren’t their thing.”

  Blister jabbed one of her pointed nails at me. “True. And that’s something we might be able to exploit. These demons with large households have constant power struggles and arguments. Sometimes they can quell them with their own clout. Sometimes they’ve got a strong steward to keep the rabble under control. But even in the best household, there are weak points. There is always that one demon who felt slighted that one time, or one who resents another who got recognition he believes he deserved. And there are often demons who don’t like the direction their leader is taking and are actively planning a way out.”

  I nodded, but wasn’t sure how I could exploit that weakness. These demons would laugh if I offered them a spot in my household to betray Itinder. I could keep an eye on them, watch for signs of factions, and do what I could to help them implode, but how could I watch two thousand demons? Especially when there were two other major players to deal with as well. Plus, I only had one actual demon in my household. The rest of us were in no position to get close to disease-spreading demons. And my only demon, Blister, was a Low, and would be at just as much risk of being killed on sight as the rest of us would be.

  So…this Itinder,” Addy said. “Any idea what his plans are? And does he intend on keeping his army of two thousand in his new territory or sending them back to Hel once things are solidified as far as the power structure here?”

  Blister shrugged. “He’ll probably keep at least some of them here in case he gets challenged by the other two players. I can’t see him keeping all two thousand here for long because if he can’t keep them busy, they’ll start fighting amongst themselves.”

  “How about the other two territories and the demons who hold them?” I asked.

  “Here we’ve got Barstonel.” She stabbed at the blue outlined section of the map. “He’s a warmonger, but an Ancient. That means he was an angel during the war and part of the Fallen. He’s not top-of-the-heap as far as the Fallen go, but he’s no weakling. His household isn’t as big as Itinder’s but he’s got better control over them. He wants to fight. Doesn’t matter if it’s humans, shifters, or the other demons. He’s probably the biggest threat over the other two face because he just doesn’t give a fuck about boundary lines or peace treaties. The other two will probably try to keep him occupied fighting someone or something else, just so he leaves them alone.”

  I eyed the blue section, realizing that it encompassed the south LA area where the Disciples had their home base. The gang was formidable, and might keep the warmonger busy for a few months at least. There were a few good-sized shifter groups in that area as well. I looked over to Isha and saw from the worried frown on her face that she was thinking the same as I was. Her pack was in that warmonger’s territory. And shifters defended their pack and lands with their lives.

  “And this…” Blister shot me a sympathetic look then stabbed one of her fingernails into the orange outlined section. “This is Desiree’s territory.”

  Everyone was quiet, eyeing me while trying not to make it obvious. Desiree had most of LA proper, including the Los Feliz neighborhood where I lived, and the Silver Lake area where Telaney’s home was located. Hollywood. Bel Air. Beverly Hills. Brentwood. Everything from the mountains to the shore, bordered by the Valley to the north, and stopping at Santa Monica and South LA to the south.

  “She’s a greed demon,” Blister continued. “Desiree has a huge household and they’re very loyal. She’s a master at negotiating and getting demons what they want so they’ll ally with her. Plus, she’s been here even before the demons claimed the territory two years ago. She knows this area. She knows the humans and shifters and the power structure here. That’s her primary advantage over the other two. Power-wise, she’s less of a threat than the other two. But given her knowledge and her allies, in my opinion she’s the biggest threat. She’s wily and a total weasel—no offense to any weasel shifters here—but she’s not likely to cause mass casualties like the other two. Well, not unless it would ultimately be to her benefit.”

  Everyone eyed me again. If this wasn’t Desiree, I might think about approaching her and working out a deal to take the other two demons out. But this was the woman who’d bought the favors I’d owed the tax office. That plus the favor I’d promised her myself meant she didn’t have to do anything for me. I wasn’t in a good position to negotiate. And I didn’t trust Desiree to hold up her end of any bargain I made with her.

  “What about this section?” I pointed toward the area Downtown where none of Blister’s highlighters surrounded.

  “No one’s claimed that right now because of the dragon,” Blister announced.

  Chapter 7

  Everyone inhaled.

  “Hell no, a dragon?” Telaney muttered.

  “Maybe he’ll do us all a favor and eat the demons,” HB drawled.

  “Or eat the humans and shifters,” I pointed out. “I’m not sure that just avoiding his territory will keep anyone safe. The guy’s gotta eat, and anyone in the neighboring area is probably on his menu.”

  “Before now the dragons just looted and left,” Blister told the group. “They’d come, fly around, steal shit, then go back to wherever their home was. Sometimes demons would cut a deal with them where they’d basically pay the dragons to hurry them along. No demon wants a dragon mucking up their game. From what I’ve heard, dragons are smart. They have egos the size of a small planet. They’re really hard to kill and really easy to piss off. And once they make a nest somewhere and start stashing their hoard, they’re not gonna budge unless you kill them. Which is pretty fucking impossible.”

  “Can we make a deal with him?” Addy asked. “Offer him a museum if he takes out the plague demon and his army. We can even stuff the dead demons in industrial freezers so he’ll have food for at least a few months.”

  “It’s not a bad idea,” I mused, thinking of all the shops on Rodeo drive as well as those abandoned mansions. There were a couple of problems with that plan, though. One, most of the posh places were in Desiree’s territory. Two, I wasn’t sure that the dragon wouldn’t fry me before I managed to get one word out about our offer.

  It was still worth further consideration, though.

  “Any other suggestions?” I asked, because I had nothing.

  After a few seconds of silence, Telaney stepped forward. “I say we leave the dragon alone and focus on trying to take out this plague guy somehow. I don’t know how. A whole warehouse of Lysol, maybe? Tons of Clorox wipes? If we attack him with a pressure washer full of bleach, can we kill him?”

  “Not before his two thousand demon army takes us out,” Addy scoffed. “I’m voting that we approach the warmonger and partner up with him to kill the plague demon and his crew. And then maybe Desiree.”

  “Which leaves us with a warmonger in charge of everything,” Isha pointed out. “I agree that he’s probably the lesser of three truly terrible evils, but if we go that route, we need to have a plan to get rid of him as well.”

  “Desiree would be eager to cut a deal to take out the other two,” Blister said. “And while her household is loyal, she’s probably the least able to manage a territory as large as New Hell on her own. I don’t want to deal with any of them one-on-one, but if I had to pick, I’d choose working with her over a plague demon or a warmonger.”

  I glanced over at HB and Isha.

  “Shifters will be less affected by the plague demon than the warmonger,” Isha told me. “We could help fight against this Itinder, but we’d at more of a disadvantage fighting a warmonger. And I really don’t want to think about what Desiree could do to us.”

  I was sure Desiree could do plenty to hurt the shifters. She’d nearly killed HB, and she was the one luring shifters into traps and making them fight in the gladiator games south of the city.

  “I think we should focus on taking out Desiree first,” Addy chimed in. “She might not be the strongest of the three, but I think she’s the most dangerous.”

  “I say we partner with either Desiree, the dragon, or the warmonger and take out the plague demon first,” Telaney countered. “He sounds like the biggest threat to me.”

  I turned to Juke, wanting her opinion on this.

  “Every option sucks,” she informed me. “But no matter which we pick, we need a combination of offense and defense. We need to work at dismantling these mini fiefdoms, and protecting the residents from harm.”