and width. The floor is packed dirt. The pit’s walls, however, are lined with bright shining barbed wire. I suspect it’s at least tipped with silver. There’s a hum in the air that doesn’t seem like it’s coming from the floodlights. That’s when I notice two generators hooked up to cables that lead to the barbed wire. Electrified wire.
Whatever is going to happen in that pit, it’s not good. I squint upward, trying to see past the lights. The ceiling has big square hatches in it. If I’m calculating it right, they’re all placed directly beneath the cages.
Something wet splashes on my coat sleeve. I whip around, terrified that I’ve been caught. A demon with brilliant red, symbol-carved skin grimaces. “Sorry. So bloody dark in here. And now I need a new beer.” He raises one scar-where-an-eyebrow-should-be, grinning hopefully at me. “Can I get you one too?”
“You’re not my type,” I blurt. Then I cringe. Pissing off a demon in the middle of enemy territory is not a good idea. “Girls!” I say. “I like girls!”
He laughs. “Me too.” Winking, he wanders away. Here’s hoping all my demon encounters this night are so easily solved.
He reminds me to take better stock of the crowd, though. It’s mostly human, but there are a few demons like my would-be suitor scattered throughout. There’s one line to buy drinks, and another where people are exchanging money for slips of paper. Maybe I did make the right call in not killing the vampire. If this group knew there was a threat, I definitely couldn’t take them all out. And I shouldn’t, either, with so many humans.
A large glowing board behind the exchange table flickers to life, and an amplified voice echoes through the room.
“Good evening, ladies, gentlemen, and those who are not quite so categorizable!” A demon next to me rolls its eyes. All seven of them. “Welcome to tonight’s event!”
A man in a sleek suit with an equally sleek ponytail is standing on a raised platform holding a microphone. Next to him is a woman wearing head-to-toe dull gray leather. I can’t see her face in the shadows, but she’s not the vampire from the room upstairs.
Where is Cosmina? How do I find her? If Artemis were here, she’d know what to do.
I steel myself. It was my dream. My instincts. Cosmina needs me, not Artemis.
“We have something special for you during tonight’s dogfight.” The announcer pauses, mugging in the spotlight. “I kid. We would never actually hurt dogs. What kind of monsters would do that? No, we’re here to make Dublin a safer place! Because this is our city, innit?”
The crowd roars, lifting their drinks in the air.
“And if we’re entertained and make some money in the process, well, good on us.” The announcer gestures to the board. “We have all the usual categories. Time in the pit, which breed will last longest or have the most survivors, you know the drill. But tonight, my friends—tonight we have a wild card.” He pauses, savoring the anticipatory silence. “Tonight, we have . . . a Slayer!”
My heart seizes. I spin in a circle, ready for attack. I can see the exits. If I run fast enough . . .
The room erupts into noise as everyone shouts. I duck, covering my head, but they all shove past me to place more bets. No one is coming for me. A few of the more demonic types slip free of the crowd and disappear. I want to follow their lead and get out. But a good Watcher would stay and learn all she could.
What would a good Slayer do? I have no idea. Probably start punching things. I try to look inconspicuous. They said they had a Slayer. It’s obviously not me. Oh no. No no no. That means it’s got to be—
A door in the center of the ceiling opens. Cosmina falls through, her hair a brilliant streak of blue. She lands hard in the middle of the pit. This is so much worse than one vampire.
I rush to the barricade around the perimeter of the pit. Cosmina stands, breaking the ropes that had bound her. She doesn’t seem to be hurt from the fall, but her face is bruised. She squints up, shielding her eyes from the blinding lights. Then she lifts her index and middle fingers and flips off the crowd, British-style.
Gods. She’s cool. If our situations were reversed, Cosmina would know how to help me. Would already have done it.