Page 8 of Dark Wings

A server showed up as soon as Mr. Green and I entered his booth. She handed him a martini and asked me what I wanted.

I almost said nothing, but I didn’t want to stand out. “Red wine, please.” She nodded and left.

Mr. Green sat in the booth, closer to the railing overlooking the dance floor and stared at me. Not liking this one bit, I took a seat across from him, my back to the demon’s booth.

“I’ve never seen you here before,” Mr. Green said. “Is this your first time?”

“I've come here a couple of times,” I lied. “I’m not big into going out.” That wasn’t a lie. “I prefer training.”

“Right. So you can win your fights.” He leaned forward, one of his elbows resting on his knee. “My offer stands, Arwen. Tell me what it’ll take for you to fight more than once a week.”

Here was my chance.

I glanced over my shoulder. The demon had sat down and was talking to another male. The two girls in red dresses hovered close by.

I frowned and faced Mr. Green. “Once a week is enough—for now.”

Hopefully, I wouldn’t have to do it at all.

“You’re a mystery, Arwen.” He tilted his head and a small smile spread over his lips. “I like mysteries.”

I suppressed a shudder, lest my current employer see how much he disgusted me.

Two men entered Mr. Green’s VIP booth: Carlos and Jonas, the jerks from the fighting club.

“Look, it's Princess Arwen,” Carlos said. He grabbed my glass of red wine from the server and sat beside Mr. Green. “Didn’t expect that.”

Jonas sat beside me. “Me neither. I thought the little princess would be training nonstop.” He turned a deadly eye at me. “I still want a rematch.”

Mr. Green chuckled. “Come on now, boys. We didn’t come all this way to talk about work.”

“Of course not,” Carlos agreed, but his expression read murder.

I bet I could kick both their asses at the same time, and something in me wanted to challenge them right here, right now, but I didn’t want to waste time.

I was here for something else.

“Excuse me,” was all I said as I got up and walked away from the booth. I turned to the demon’s booth.

The women were now dancing around the other males, but the demon wasn’t there. I glanced around and saw his black-haired head going down the stairs.

I started after him, but the demon was slippery.

The humans seemed to part for him to pass, while they crowded around me, slowing me down. If I had my magic, I would smite them all and?—

I stopped that thought. No, I wouldn’t smite them all. That was not what an angel did. I had spent way too much time on Earth and with other supernaturals. Their ways were clearly leaving a mark on me, and not a good one.

The demon was tall, taller than most humans, and I saw his head across the dance floor, heading to the exit.

Shit.

When I finally made it outside, I glanced around and didn’t see him anywhere. There was still a short line before the bouncer, hoping to get in, a couple crossing the street to the parking garage, and nothing else.

I had lost the freaking demon.

I fished my phone from where I had tucked it into the waist of my pants and searched for Sylvie’s number. She was sure to know where else I could find him. If not today, then tomorrow, or sometime this week.

I would have more of her potion on Wednesday, but I couldn’t go on like this. I couldn’t fight to get money and spend almost all of it to buy a potion to mute my aura, so I could keep on hiding from the angels for the rest of my life.