Dante

  He'd had him. Dante had just had him hours ago. The cocky bastard.

  Dante knew something had been off. And yet, instead of just decapitating him and keeping his head in a fucking jar-

  "Fuck!" He snarled towards the idiot twin. "You knew this entire time and had us goose hunting? Where? Where were you supposed to meet? Where was the drop point?"

  "They didn't say!" he shouted. "Once I had the necklace they said they'd message me. But I was taking too long. I'd tried to give him something else once I knew but he damn near broke my arm.”

  “Who?” Dante snapped at him.

  “One of the goons. A Caster. The other goon called him, um, Jax. He seemed pissed when the other one said his name.”

  Dante swore again, earning a worried look from Simon when he'd mumbled a disgruntled concern about his phone. He was afraid he'd get struck again but this time Dante was fuming at himself.

  He'd been so damn stupid. He'd played right into Arcturus’s hand. His goon had been Dante's first lead. The Caster who'd sent him to what Dante now realized was probably Arcturus’ goddamn warehouse.

  . The Caster's words from earlier replayed in his mind, spiking his anger again.

  "What did the text say?" Lowell asked, finally able to pry the phone from Dante's grip.

  "I know what to do." Dante sighed though his rage never simmered.

  Simon was still throwing out meaningless apologies or bullshit explanations and attempts. His words ricocheted in Dante's mind like bullets.

  He turned and, again with minimal effort because if he'd actually wanted to kill the boy it was more than possible in that moment, struck his fist out and knocked him out again. The second time aiming for his eye since Dante knew he'd broken his nose with the first.

  His parents gasped at the unexpected second blow but no one, not even his mother, helped him up this time once he'd crumpled to the ground.

  "Was that part of the plan?" Lowell looked between his brother and Dante skeptically.

  No, it wasn't. But not only did it shut him the hell up, it made Dante feel the tiniest bit better. ameba-sizedzed amount.

  "No. And you're not going to like the actual plan.” He looked towards Monroe's SUV. “We need to get to the bar.”

  Monroe removed his keys from his pocket and they sprinted back down towards where he'd parked.

  Their mother stayed behind with her unconscious son and the father nearly got in the back seat with their other, but Lowell stopped him.

  “No, we've got this. We'll find her.” Lowell's tone was firm and held a confidence that didn't ease the dread creeping into Dante's heart like ice.

  Richard almost argued but knew he'd only slow them down, and Eva didn't have time.

  On the road, the three men were tensely quiet as Monroe sped through the city. Finally, they reached the bar and Dante rushed them to the back, whistling at the Nightborne to follow.

  Once in the office he went to his records and searched for the tome he needed.

  “Boss?” The boy looked between the two new, very human guests in Dante's office.

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  “Ignore them. They aren't here.” He'd found the book and brought it to the desk to begin flipping through it intently. “I need one of your Nexarian vials.”

  Unlike Danai, the boy couldn't go between worlds as he pleased. He was only a Nightborne, a fledgling. He'd have to request the vials from his district's Proxy or get them from the black market. Dante had never questioned how he'd acquired them. He'd never cared.

  When he didn't move from his spot and questioned why, Dante snapped his gaze on him.

  “I do not pay you to ask questions.” He snarled. “Go.”

  “I only have one left.” His words were hushed while he looked between the other two men.

  “Figlio di puttana, I swear by my fathers flames.” Dante's voice went dark. “If you do not your , Rémy.”

  Dante had never said the boy's actual name before. He was still fairly new and was still in Dante's obligatory hazing phase, but with it the boy seemed to finally understand the halfbreed meant business.

  With wide eyes, he rushed from the office. Dante went back to flipping through the book, ignoring Monroe's question of what he was looking for.

  Finally, he found the portal symbol he needed and its instructions. He handed the book to the Keeper along with a large mason jar of Lycan blood to give it more power for the three bodies entering it.

  “Draw.” He instructed, dragging a struggling Lowell by the back of his jacket. He pointed down at the spot he normally used to descend. He turned to the Reaper and held up a finger. “Stay.”

  Dante sprinted to the other side of his office where there was another bookcase and tugged gently at its corner, opening a passage to a hallway. He looked behind himself to make sure both men were following his orders and saw the perplexed look on both their faces.

  “This was the one good thing I learned from your organization.” He smirked before dashing down the hall towards his armory.

  Over the span of his long life, he'd been able to acquire a lot. Some were harder to find, steal, or barter, but in the end he usually got what he was after. For Jax, he chose two of the talismans that would protect the two men's minds so their ambush wouldn't be revealed and a blade with runes that would draw out the magic from its victim. It wouldn't drain them completely nor stop them from using it, but it would slow him down so Dante could use a necklace casted with a spellbinding symbol.

  Dante never smelled Arcturus on the Caster, or the Caster at the warehouse so he doubted they'd ever been in the same proximity. Arcturus had been using roundabouts to keep himself in the shadows and Dante in the dark. It wasn't going to be easy finding either but Dante knew to start with The Oracle. It's where he'd originally encountered Jax in the first place.

  Dante had been putting on different weapons when he heard Monroes’ bulky footsteps enter his armory.

  “I told you to stay.” He didn't look back at him, just kept putting his smatchets in their proper places.

  “I'm not a dog.” He tried to spit out but Dante could tell he was more dumbfounded by how much was actually in the room than focusing on his anger. “ shouldn't have any of this.”

  “You weren't questioning it when I was saving her life.” He turned and with three long strides pushed the duffle into the man's chest. “Carry this. Let's go.”

  He pushed Monroe from the room easily, though his feet did drag before remembering the urgency.

  Back in Dante's office the boy had finally returned and was staring down at Lowell who'd just finished his task.

  “Okay.” He sighed, tossing the wooden handle he'd broken from a mop he'd found. “That smells foul. What is this?”

  “You're taking them to the Nether?” The boy's confused question was just above a breath, causing Lowell's head to snap towards Dante.

  “You can't take us there. There's never been a documented case of a human coming back.”

  “They didn't have me.” He placed the small stones in both their pants pockets. “Don't lose those.”

  Monroe nodded and looked at Lowell. “And just because there's never been a documented case doesn't mean there haven't been survivors.”

  Lowell eyed him and questioned quietly if there was something the Keeper's didn't know. Monroe shot him a look of disbelief at the very idea his organization would keep information from them.

  "As if humans don't lie." Dante pulled out two of the three vials he'd placed in his jacket pockets, keeping his true thoughts to himself. He sprinkled the ashes of a demon he'd once slain onto the men's shoulders.

  "And Demon's don't?" Monroe's snide remark was replaced with apprehension. “What is this? It smells awful.”

  Dante placed the vials on his desk. “Basically sulfur and brimstone. You'll need to smell like them while we're there or–”

  The Nightborne did a chomping motion with his now elongated teeth to emphasize the fact they'd be eaten if anyone smelled they were human. It wouldn't last long, so they needed to be quick.

  "You know you'll need–"

  "Got it covered." Dante cut the boy off. They'd need a vial to go and one to come back. That was the remaining vial in his pocket; the one he'd taken from the warehouse. "Leave. You never saw them here.”

  "So snippy today.” He smirked, going onto his toes before plopping back down on flat feet. “Enjoy your trip."

  He left them, and once the door closed, Dante pulled both men into the circle by their jackets.

  “Okay, hold your breath, brace for a drop, and steady your feet.”

  With that, he smashed the Nexarian vial beneath them and began a deep chant.