the clock struck midnight, the door behind me opened. Darius paused in the threshold, his eyebrows high in surprise and his salt-and-pepper hair ruffled as though he’d run his hand through it a few times.
“Robin,” he murmured. “What brings you to my office so late?”
I closed the book. “I have information about the attack on Odin’s Eye.”
“We just finished our meeting. Is this something you couldn’t share with the group?”
“It, um … it would’ve been difficult to explain how I know.”
He closed the door and circled his desk. Sinking into his chair, he steepled his fingers. “What did you learn?”
“Zylas figured out that those golems were made using demon blood.”
“Demon blood?” His expression shifted from surprise to contemplation. “I see. That explains some things.”
“It does?”
“We debated whether the golems had been altered to be longer-lasting or more powerful, and others noted that blood may be a component—but we didn’t realize it was demon blood.”
I leaned forward in my chair. “I think Claude is behind these demon-blood golems.”
“The summoner Claude Mercier?”
“He was using demon blood to make vampires stronger. I think he’s been experimenting with combining demon blood and Arcana.”
Darius rested his chin on his hands. “I recall several reports last month about unusual vampire activity—none from you, though.”
I winced. “Uh … I … well, it’s hard for me to report things because—”
Crimson light blazed across my infernus. The power streaked out of the pendant and pooled on top of Darius’s desk. Zylas materialized on the desk, crouched atop the GM’s paperwork.
“Ah,” Darius murmured. “Zylas.”
My demon swept his tail sideways, sending a cascade of papers onto the floor.
“Because of my demon,” I finished with a heavy sigh. “Zylas, why are you out of the infernus?”
“You are talking about pointless things.” He rocked forward on the balls of his feet, getting in Darius’s face. “Tell us what you know about the golems, na?”
I grabbed the demon’s wrist and yanked him backward. He shifted maybe two inches, but at least he straightened so he wasn’t obnoxiously close to the GM.
“The golems aren’t Claude’s,” Darius told us bemusedly. “They belong to a dark-arts sorceress named Varvara Nikolaev, who’s in the midst of a power-grab here in Vancouver. She orchestrated the guild attacks over the last three nights.”
“Varvara Nikolaev?” Disappointment sank through me at the unfamiliar name. “So … not Claude?”
Zylas sat on the desktop, one leg folded and a knee propped up. “The summoner does not fight. He is the ūdrash that builds a trap in the night and waits for zh’ūltis prey to walk into it.”
“Ood-rash?” I repeated. “What’s that?”
“It is … an animal with …” He raised his hands in a gesture that indicated something about the size of a car, then grimaced. “Not important.”
“Good point, though.” I looked back to Darius. “Claude spent years pretending to be my uncle’s friend for a chance to steal more demon names, and with the vampires, he was manipulating them into becoming his personal bloodsucking army. His plan only failed because he didn’t realize one of the vampires was actually a darkfae.”
Darius’s eyebrows shot up.
“Claude had his demon watching everything while he stayed out of danger,” I continued. “Do you think Claude could be using Varvara in the same way?”
“Varvara is too experienced and cunning to be used. I think it’s more likely that, if Claude is involved, he and Varvara have some kind of arrangement. He’s providing her with a more powerful form of golem, and she’s providing him with something in return.”
“But what would Claude want from her?”
“That is the crucial question.” Darius rubbed his short beard. “Tomorrow night, combat teams from the Crow and Hammer and Odin’s Eye will ambush Varvara and her followers before they can ravage another guild. We have a plan for disabling her golems, but Claude could provide further assistance to protect his interests … whatever they may be.” His gaze shifted to Zylas. “I’m particularly concerned about his demon.”
Darius, Girard, and Alistair had fought said demon, and though they’d inflicted some damage, they hadn’t come close to defeating him.
Zylas smirked. “Nazhivēr will crush all the hh’ainun.”
Before I could admonish Zylas, Darius nodded.
“Which is why you two will join us tomorrow night.” The GM leaned back in his chair. “While our teams deal with Varvara and her rogues, you can ensure that Claude, his demon, or any other pawns don’t join in.”
“I’m not sure we can do that,” I admitted. “Even Zylas is no match for Claude’s demon.”
“Could you distract the demon, giving us time to withdraw?”
“Uh, yeah,