Shea’s conspiratorial look connected with his. “Trust me, you aren’t missing anything.”
“Just ask,” Lincoln told her, holding out her phone.
She chewed her bottom lip. “Man, I feel sick. What if he says no? All this time will have been wasted.”
“Don’t let him say no. You know him. Use everything you got,” I encouraged.
She took a deep breath and dialed his number on speakerphone, then started to pace.
“What do you want!” he barked the second he picked up. She’d worked for him for six years, so of course he’d have her number saved in his phone.
Shea stopped in her tracks and rubbed her sweaty palm on her pants leg. “To give you a million bucks for Kate Atwater’s demon contract,” she replied, voice as smooth as butter.
Grim laughed good-naturedly. “Don’t waste my time with fairy tales, angel lover,” he spat.
My bestie chewed her lip. “I’m not. I just need you to get me four passes into Demon City so I can sign up for Fight Night. When my team wins, I’ll give you the money. All of it. In return, you release Kate’s contract.”
Silence. Long-ass, terrifying silence. Did he hang up?
“You can’t win. You’ve no doubt gotten weak in Angel City. Don’t waste my time.” Then he hung up.
He freaking hung up.
“Bastard!” Shea screamed at the phone, then sat down on the floor, and started typing furiously on the keyboard.
Frowning, I walked over. “What are you…？” My question faded when I noticed she’d pulled up Grim’s picture from one of his strip club websites.
“I’ll show him who’s weak.” She started to rock back and forth, chanting and moving her hands left and right as dark blue magic leaked out, covering the phone.
“Is that light magic?” Lincoln’s voice held concern.
I raised an eyebrow, but Shea ignored his question.
“It’s, make his horns fall off, magic,” she declared, and I blanched.
“Shea—” Before I could talk her off the ledge, the phone lit up with a call from Pansy-Ass Boss Man.
Shea stopped her magic and grinned, answering with a purr, “Why, hello there?”
“What are you doing!” he roared. I could practically imagine the spittle flying from his mouth.
“Who’s weak now?” Shea sneered into the phone. “Two months ago, I helped kill four demons, so don’t tell me I can’t win. That million bucks is mine,” she growled.
Silence.
More silence.
“No, it’s mine. You’ve got a deal. Now, stop fucking with my horns,” he rumbled and hung up.
Shea smiled as we all looked at each other in shock and relief. Two minutes later, he texted her a one-hour travel pass for four people from Angel City.
“Let’s ride,” Lincoln called out.
Chapter Three
The next day, we set out to register for Fight Night. After getting past the border with our passes, Shea instructed Lincoln on how to get to Tainted Academy. The longer we drove, the more Noah and Lincoln shifted in their seats, looking uncomfortable.
“How come Shea and I don’t feel like shit when we’re here but you do?” I asked Lincoln.
He gave me a side glance. “Shea doesn’t feel it because only Celestials do, and you don’t because…” He eyed the mark on my chest.
Ah. Interesting. Because I wasn’t a full-fledged Celestial, I was a Lucifer hybrid.
Ugh. Sorry I asked.
“Left down this alley,” Shea added, leaning forward.
We careened between two brick buildings and down a skinny alleyway. When we reached the end, there was a black wrought-iron gate guarded by a demon slave who looked like a WWE wrestler. He was clutching a sleek black gun in his oversized left hand.
Lincoln rolled down the window and the guard glared at him, nostrils flaring.
“What are you doing here?” he spat.
Lincoln handed him his phone, which had the barcode showing we were approved to be in Demon City. “We’re here to enroll in Fight Night,” Lincoln told him.
The guard glanced at it and shrugged. “Says you can be in Demon City. Doesn’t say I have to let you in Tainted Academy.”
Dammit.
I was about to speak when Shea rolled down her window, directly behind Lincoln. The guard snapped his eyes in her direction.
“What’s the matter, sugar tits? Afraid you’ll lose to a couple Fallen Academy kids?” Shea questioned.
He glared at her, his eyebrows drawing together to form one bushy scowl. “You the one entering?”