Darkness Unmasked by Keri Arthur, now you can read online.
Chapter 1
The office phone rang with a sharpness that jolted me instantly awake. I jerked upright, peeled a wayward bit of paper from my nose, and stared at the phone blankly. Then the caller ID registered and I groaned. The call was coming from Madeline Hunter, the bitch who was not only in charge of the Directorate of Other Races, but was a leading member of the high vampire council, too. She was also the very last person in this world—or the next—who I wanted to hear from right now.
Unfortunately, given that she was now my boss, she was not someone I could—or should—ignore.
I hit the vid-phone's ANSWER button and said in a less-than-polite voice, "What?"
She paused, and something flashed in the green of her eyes. A darkness that spoke of anger. But all she said was, "I have a task for you."
A curse rose in my throat, but I somehow managed to leash it. "What sort of task?"
But even as I asked the question, I knew. There was only one reason for her to be ringing me, and that was to track down an escapee from hell. She had not only the Directorate at her command, but a stableful of Cazadors—the high council's elite killing force—and they dealt with all manner of murderers and madmen on an everyday basis.
I even had one following me around astrally, reporting my every move back to Hunter. Trust was not high on her list of good traits.
Not that I think she had all that many good traits.
"A close friend of mine was murdered last night." Her voice held very little emotion, and she was scarier because of it. "I want you to investigate."
Hunter had friends. Imagine that. I scrubbed a hand across my eyes and said somewhat wearily, "Look, as much as I absolutely adore working for you, the reality is the Directorate is far better equipped to handle this sort of murderer."
"The Directorate hasn't your experience with the denizens of hell," she snapped. "Nor do they have a reaper at their beck and call."
So I'd been right—it was an escapee from hell. Not great news, but I guess it was my fault that these things were about in the world. It might have become my task to find the three lost keys that controlled the gates to heaven and hell, but the only one I'd managed to find so far had almost immediately been stolen from me. As a result, the first gate to hell had been permanently opened by person or persons unknown, and the stronger demons were now coming through. Not in great numbers—not yet—but that was thanks only to the fact that the remaining gates were still shut.
Of course, given the choice, I'd rather not find the other keys. After all, if no one knew where they were, then they couldn't be used to either permanently open or close the gates. But it wasn't like I had a choice, not anymore. It was either find them or die. Or, when it came to the choice given to me by my father—who was one of the Raziq, the rogue Aedh priests who'd helped create the keys, and also the man responsible for having them stolen—watch my friends die.
"Azriel isn't at my beck and call," I said, unable to hide the annoyance in my voice. "He just wants the keys, the same as you and the council."