“So how did you find this place?” I asked Ray D in a conversational tone. “It’s really nice.”

He looked pleased to be addressed. “Oh, I do a little handyman work from time to time. A guy I met at the bar hooked me up with this gig.”

“Mr. Cassopolis?”

He beamed. “You know him?”

I rotated my aching shoulders. “Yeah, I do.”

“My Raymond’s a very good handyman,” Mary Sudbury said helpfully, reaching up to stroke his jaw. “Very skilled.”

Ray bent his head toward her, and they smiled at each other, a pair of blissful ghouls in love. I might have felt sorry for them if the continued existence of their relationship didn’t necessitate generating incredible amounts of anguish and misery, which I was apparently next in line to provide.

Somewhere out there, Stefan was zeroing in on my location. Maybe, just maybe, Cody had tracked down a lead from Mr. Cassopolis after realizing the address I’d phoned in was bogus. Unfortunately, both would lead them straight into an ambush.

Okay, so it was past time to start using my wits. I just wished they didn’t feel so scrambled. But whatever cards I held, it was time to play them.

“You two seem really happy together,” I said to Ray and Mary. “It’s too bad Hel’s issued a death sentence for you.”

They stared at me. Mary’s pupils dilated fiercely. “You shouldn’t say such things! Liars make the baby Jesus cry! Liars get their mouths washed out with soap, little lady!”

I’d be willing to bet somebody was channeling an evangelical Mommie Dearest. “I’m not lying,” I said steadily. “Read my emotions and see. I’m Hel’s fucking liaison, and I’m here telling you that Hel has decreed you’re both to be dispatched for your sins.”

“For what?” Ray seemed genuinely bewildered.

I nodded at the mermaid’s tank. “What do you think? For that.”

“But we needed her!” he protested.

“No.” I shook my head. “You wanted her. You wanted this—this whole sick Sid and Nancy scenario. And you were willing to overturn Hel’s order to have it.”

“We didn’t do anything!” Mary said indignantly, pointing at Dunham. “He’s the one who did everything. We just took care of her.”

An incredulous laugh escaped me. “Took care of her? Is that really what you’re going to call it?”

Mary might just be crazy enough to believe it, but I saw a slow awareness dawn on Ray’s face. He was stupid, but he wasn’t that stupid. “Them boys didn’t really hurt her none,” he mumbled. “She’s a tough old gal.”

I didn’t bother to dignify it with a response, glancing at Johnny instead. “Hel’s prepared to banish Stefan if he can’t administer her justice to his own people. If you take over, these two become your problem.”