check on me. The mage had foolishly sent the vampires after the shifters following our dinner, something that hadn’t ended well for the vampires, and the basajaun had heard the fighting through the trees.
“I called the closest office of magical mercenaries,” Sebastian said. “They’re sold out. They had access to fifty contractors, but they wouldn’t tell me if the same person took them all.”
“There’s an office for that stuff?” I asked, leaning my elbows on the table.
“Of course,” he replied. “How else would you hire them?”
“That seems awfully civilized,” I murmured.
“Tell me about the banquet hall,” Kingsley said, sitting beside his brother.
Austin leaned back and rubbed his fingers through his hair. “It’s a large facility used for weddings or special events, able to house…three hundred, probably. The inside is mostly open—there are four rooms: a main room, an entrance area, and a kitchen and dining room grouped together. Very few places to hide. The grounds are geared toward pictures and parking, mostly. There’s a large lot with plenty of space for us to maneuver the limos. The trick is that the place is on a rolling hill leading up a mountain. Great views, but the only way in and out for a car is a narrow two-lane road with very few pullouts. Block that road, and you block road transportation.”
“What do we care about road transportation?” Kingsley asked.
“Why do we care about road transportation?” Ulric asked with a laugh. “That sounds like the perfect setup for fliers.”
“If you go in,” Kingsley told Austin, “you cannot leave until the battle is done. If you go running, it’ll undermine Ivy House and your territory. Mercenaries for hire can be strong contenders. They have advanced weapons and are capable of handling all manner of magical creatures. Fifty or so of those plus whomever he’s called in from home, plus the people we didn’t take out the other night…”
“Failing to show won’t look any better,” Austin said. “Though we could just refuse his—”
“We’re not going to fail to show, and we’re not going to go running,” I said. “I gave him an opportunity to leave. He chose to double down on being a dick. So now we’ll send a message.”
Sebastian nodded, still watching the basajaun. So was Edgar, quietly sitting at the table, his champagne untouched. Why anyone had poured him any, I had no clue.
“Kingsley, can I have a word?” Austin said before glancing back at me. “Jess?”
We walked a few paces away from the others, and I wrapped us in a soundproof bubble.
Austin’s voice was low despite the spell protection. “I’ve dealt with mercenaries around here before. They are unnecessarily vicious and they don’t fight fair. They aim to kill, and they can do it from a distance. They’ll go for the most powerful first.”
“Mercenaries are the same everywhere.” Kingsley’s hands stayed at his sides, but he somehow gave the illusion of flaring them wide, bracing for a fight. “His people were nothing. Those mercenaries will be our real adversaries.”
“His people can be used to create chaos.” Austin squared off with his brother, and I realized there was something behind the scenes here that I didn’t understand. “Sheer numbers can dominate in something like this, and he’ll have those numbers, I can feel it. They’re going to try to trap us.”
“Let them,” Sebastian said, stepping toward us. Austin and his brother shot him fearsome looks, and he grimaced. “No one else can hear you, just me. Jess’s spells are really coming along, but she hasn’t fixed this one. It’s pretty easy to circumvent. If I may…” He sidled closer, hunched a little and with his hands up—a defensive posture—and I expanded the bubble to include him. “They’re trying to trap you. Let them. We have two powerful mages and the most fearsome alpha in the world, whose rage is tethered by a deteriorating leash. That’s all we need to win.”
“Two of the most fearsome alphas,” Kingsley growled.
“You have a family at home, Kingsley Barazza,” Austin replied, his eyes hard. “This isn’t your fight. You’ve been an incredible help to me, but my little niece needs a father. I nearly took you from her once. I will not do it again.”
“Your little niece isn’t so little anymore, and she would scold me if I walked away from Uncle Auzzie at a time like this.” Kingsley leaned in a little, and my small hairs stood on end. “We’re brothers. I’ve got your back, no matter what. I’m in this.”
They stared at each other for