Even nukes weren’t always effective against some of the demon hordes. But we’d play hell trying to convince the government to lay down their automatic weapons and pick up silver swords.

I managed to cross three lanes of moderately heavy traffic in time to veer onto our exit as we headed into the heart of industrial Seattle.

The city here was less than pristine. The buildings were as gray as the sky, stark concrete and metal, with parking lots that held a thousand cars. Train tracks ran everywhere like a crazy jigsaw puzzle. If we followed the road we were on long enough, we’d wind up curving north again, toward the lower ports of Seattle. But before we got that far, we needed to turn south onto Lucile. From there, we’d wend our way through the narrow streets until we came to Finley Avenue SW.

The Industrial District looked a lot different during the day than it did at night. During the daylight, all the concrete and metal was just depressing. At night, the area was downright spooky. It didn’t help any that the district had become home to a number of the Supe clubs, including the infamous Fangtabula, one of the most popular vampire clubs in the Pacific Northwest.

Roz jabbed his finger toward the building, which had been painted with bold black-and-white stripes and was as solid as a bomb shelter. “Menolly sure doesn’t like that club.”

“She’s right not to. The owner’s trouble.” I shook my head. “Terrance isn’t an old-school vamp—he doesn’t get into the whole black-cape-goth-boy thing—but neither is he a good candidate for the newest member of Vampires Anonymous.”

“Why?” The incubus blinked as we passed by the nightclub. There were no signs of life, nor would there be until after dark.

“Terrance likes to live on the edge. Menolly told me that she has a bad feeling about him—that she can easily see him becoming another Dredge, give or take a thousand years. Rumors are the club caters to blood whores, but there’s no evidence to prove it. There’s nothing we can do to close them down. If he walks on the wrong side of the law, he’s been covering his tracks damned good.”

“What makes you think there’s anything shady going on?” Roz asked.

I bit my lip. We’d been keeping an eye on the Fangtabula for over a month now. “Tales have trickled out about some questionable parties involving underage FBH girls. Whispers of rape and blood feasts, but nobody ever seems to remember the details, and there’s nothing Chase can do to check them out without official complaints. The vamps would smell undercover cops a mile away, and they’d make sure everything was under wraps. So Menolly and the VA group keep their ear to the rumor mill, hoping for something we can pounce on.”

I swung onto Finley Avenue. Camille turned right behind me. Vanzir leaned forward again. “Three blocks down, to the left. Pink house with brown trim, weathered paint, two-story. The venidemons are in the basement, along with their ghostly sentinel.”

The house could have been any weathered house in a rundown neighborhood, but as I pulled up to the curb on the other side of the street, the hairs on the back of my neck began to rise. Even if I hadn’t known about the venidemons, my body would have told me that something inherently evil lurked here. As I sat there, staring at the flakes of pink that were peeling from the siding, I had the distinct impression we were being watched by something behind the windows that were covered with heavy gray drapes.

Camille pulled in behind my Jeep as I opened my door and swung to the ground. Followed by Roz and Vanzir, I headed back to her car. Camille and the boys emerged from the Lexus to meet us.

She motioned to the house. “Bad. It’s bad. I’ve never encountered a venidemon, but I didn’t think they were as nasty as the vibes I’m getting.”

Vanzir shook his head. “They aren’t. I mean, they’re bad, and they can be deadly, but this . . . this is bigger. Maybe it’s coming from the spirit, but don’t count on it. I think we’d better be prepared for the worst.”

“The worst would be Shadow Wing, and this isn’t anywhere near what his power would feel like,” Camille said.

“Well, that’s one thing in our favor.” Roz leaned against the car. “But I smell trouble ahead.”

Camille nodded. “You and me both.”

Smoky and Morio glanced at her. “Battle order?”

Camille motioned to me. “You fight better than I do, but I’ll need space to cast spells. Same with Morio, so he and I should stay on the same side.”

I nodded. “I’ll take the left, along with Roz. Morio and you take the right. Vanzir, you and Smoky follow. Both of you are fast and can speed past us if you have to.”

“Sounds good,” Roz said, opening his duster to examine the arsenal he routinely carried like some psychotic peddler. I had no idea how he ever made it past a metal detector. He ruffled through the inner pockets of his walking armory and held up a couple of white orbs that looked suspiciously like golf balls. “These are ice bombs. They’ll send a bone-chilling wave of frost in front of us. Once we get in with the venidemons, I’ll toss one. It should give us a little edge; the spell lasts for at least sixty seconds, and it will take them a while to regroup.”

“It’s cold and drizzly. I can try for a spell of freezing rain. Morio?” Camille closed her eyes and began to prep for invoking the moon magic.

Morio shook his head. “I’ll send a wave of confusion through them. That should add some chaos to the party.”

“I guess we’re ready.” I glanced at Smoky and Vanzir. “I’m using my silver dagger as usual. Roz has his pick of weapons. Smoky, I’ve seen you fight; I don’t even need to ask. Although if you have something in the icicle range, that would be good. Vanzir, I take it you’ll be hands-on?”

He nodded. “I can use minor fire spells, but they’d just lap it up like candy.”

There was nothing more to say. “We’re ready, then. Shall we?” They waited, so I swung in front, together with Camille, and we headed across the street. “I guess the front door is as good as any entrance,” I muttered.

Camille snorted. “Just so long as we don’t have to ring the bell and play Avon lady. I’m not giving my makeup secrets to a bunch of blowflies from hell.”

“What about Tupperware?” I let out a snort of nervous laugh. We were in the yard now, cautiously approaching the house. “I have the feeling we’re being watched,” I muttered.

“I know we are,” she countered. “And you can bet they’re ready for us, so I suggest we just get our butts in there and clean them out.”

As we came to the porch, I glanced at the men. “Good to go, boys?” Everyone nodded. “Then let’s play exterminator.”

Camille was right: They knew we were coming, and we knew they knew, so there was absolutely no use pussyfooting around.

I raced up the stairs, spinning as I came to the door. My motorcycle boots were good and heavy, with thick soles and steel-clad heels. Letting out a war cry, I rammed my foot against the door, grinning as the wood around the lock splintered. A flurry of dust came rushing out as the door slammed open. Woohoo! My kickboxing lessons at the gym were paying off in a big way.

I leapt into the room and darted the beam of my flashlight around, my nostrils flaring. Something smelled nauseating. Camille dashed in on the other side, leaving room for the men to enter. All of a sudden, light flooded the room as another crash ripped through the air. Camille had grabbed one of the curtains and yanked it hard, tearing down the rod and all so that the entire room was filled with the overcast shimmer from outside.

Well, that would take care of any vampires who might wander into the living room, that was for certain. And possibly any light-sensitive specters, too. The room was large, with scuffed hardwood floors. Motel art hung crooked on the wall, and the paint was chipped in several places. Two archways, one on either side of the back wall, led out of the room.

A broken-down sofa sat in one corner, along with a table filled with so many filthy takeout boxes that I almost lost my breakfast. They smelled putrid, and there were maggots crawling on some of them, but in the back of my mind I knew that they weren’t what was causing the horrid stench. A very nasty thought crept into my mind, one I didn’t want to explore, but it wouldn’t go away.

Camille and the boys glanced around the room. “Nothing here,” she said. “Let’s spread out.” She motioned to Smoky and Morio. “We’ll take the right arch. Delilah, you guys take the left.”

Roz and Vanzir slid in behind me as we headed toward the left archway. I mirrored Camille’s actions, flattening myself to the wall next to the entrance. As I edged my head around the corner, I saw a long hallway. Empty. There were several doors on either side.

Camille did the same, then pulled back and shook her head. “Kitchen,” she mouthed. Given that all of us had exceptional hearing, it was as if she was talking at a normal volume. Unfortunately, chances were our opponents also had acute senses. “Looks empty. There’s one door, which probably leads out to the porch.”

“I don’t want to split up,” I said, motioning to her. “Come on, we’re doing this together.” I was leery of traps.

“How well can venidemons hear, anyway?” Camille asked.

Vanzir frowned. “I don’t know. Hell, I don’t even know if they have ears or can hear. But the ghost or specter or whatever it is, is probably aware we’re here.”

“We’ll go together.” I stared at Camille. She usually took the lead, but I had a strong premonition about this, and I wasn’t in any mood to be proven right. When she frowned, I added, “Please, just listen to me on this?”

Slowly, she nodded. “Whatever you like, Kitten. I’m not getting a whole lot of guidance on this, except for the creepy feeling I got coming up the stairs. What about you, Morio? Smoky?”

Morio closed his eyes. “Squirmy. The energy feels like it’s squirming. It’s all over the place, and I can’t pin it down.”

Smoky stared at the walls. “There’s Netherworld energy here, along with demon stench.”

Netherworld energy. That confirmed it. Ghosts, specters, and wights were all from the Netherworld. Although the Netherworld was linked to the Underworld, there was a big difference between the two.

The Underworld was usually a peaceful—if somber—place where a number of spirits journeyed after they left their mortal forms behind. The Netherworld, on the other hand, was filled with wandering souls and angry dead and generally pissed-off spirits. Of course, the undead also included vampires and ghouls, but they seemed to hang out with the Demonkin.

Somebody really needed to write a handbook on how to keep track of who was stationed where. Actually, if I remembered my OIA training right, they’d taught a class on the subject, but for the life of me, I couldn’t remember anything from it.

“That seals it. We stick together.” I motioned to Camille, and we swung into the hallway, Roz and Morio right behind us. Vanzir and Smoky brought up the rear. As we edged toward the first door, I swallowed my fear and put my hand on the knob. I looked at the others.

Camille gave me a nod. “Do it.”

“Here goes nothing,” I said, yanking open the door. As I did, a cold shaft of wind gusted past, and my skin broke out in goose bumps. I stared into the room, thinking I’d been prepared for just about anything, but this took the cake. Nope, no way had I expected to stumble onto a portal first thing. Wide open, the portal led right into the heart of a glacier by the feel of the energy pouring through. Oh yeah, this was going to be a fun ride.

CHAPTER 4

“Holy crap, where the hell does this lead?” Morio said.

Smoky cleared his throat. “At first I thought it was the Northlands, but the energy is tainted, not clear. I’m thinking the Netherworld.”

“Oh shit,” Vanzir said. “Then we’re open to invasion from a bunch of spooks of the worst kind. They might even be able to summon the venidemons, though I’m not sure if that’s what happened in this case.”

“Great.” I stared at the shimmering energy, wondering just how big of a zap it would give me if I touched it. “So the spirit world has decided to take up residence over Earthside, too.”

Camille folded her arms over her chest and stared nervously at the opening. “Who are we going to call in to watch over this one? I don’t know many Supes who are very effective against denizens of the Netherworld. It’s not quite the same as a troll or goblin, whom you can take out with one good thump over the head. Spirits can be dangerous on so many levels.”

I squinted, trying to think of anyone who might be able to help. “I can ask Venus the Moon Child. He might know of somebody.” The shaman of the Rainier Puma Pride was an incredibly powerful Were, and if anybody would know how to deal with ghosts and spirits, it would be him. He’d been intensively trained when he was young, and I had the feeling he’d traveled to Hell and back more than once.

“Good idea,” Morio said.

“Meanwhile, that just leaves us with finding the venidemons and whatever creep’s protecting them. Considering where we think this portal leads, well . . . it could be anything or anyone.” I glanced down the hall. “Want to make a bet the venidemons are belowground? If I were a giant demonic blowfly, I’d hide in a basement.”

“Ten to one you’re spot-on, babe,” Roz said, winking at me. “Now to find the staircase down.”

I ignored him, not feeling up to playful banter. Another portal meant more havoc to guard against. And the Netherworld wasn’t some scenic spirit amusement park. No, there were creatures there that could swallow your soul and spit it back out, blackened and empty.