The lights came back and she was restored to her fleshy form, her coat darker than night and as glorious as ever. I pressed my face to her snout and pet her. She snorted in delight but was antsy to run.

“Let’s ride,” I said, getting on her back.

I’d been driving around Neo Atlantis beating the shit out of pretty much everyone in an attempt to get someone to squeal. This last hole-in-the-wall pub hadn’t been a total bust like all the others. I got some information that would come in handy, hopefully. It would be more a trick than a true ace up my sleeve, but trickery was something all us sidhe knew how to wield like a well-sharpened weapon.

I looked at the pub windows, faces pressed against the glass, bloody and bruised, their eyes as round as saucers. Lightning flashed, the street lights went out again, and for a moment not only was Diabhal a flaming horse skeleton but I was a battle-hungry giant draped in hellish black armor and entirely missing my head.

The street’s lights came back on and I watched the men behind the glass falling over themselves to find safety further back in their little hovel.

I yelled out for Diabhal to go and she took off, the flames of Hell licking at her hooves and the outstretched arms of souls blooming up from hell like noxious spores. I headed towards one of the Lycan Stalkers’ dens, Fenrir. Roman would be there and he was now first on my list of people to talk to. A little snitch told me Remington had talked to Roman and I was more than a little interested to hear the details of that chat.

A bird flew down and then transformed into a mare, its dark mane whipping around in the rain and wind.

“What have you found?” I boomed out to Puca over the downpour. Her large golden eyes twisted to look at me as they kept pace with my steed.

“Nothing,” Puca admitted.

“Keep looking,” I said as we raced into the industrial district. I reached out with my left hand and petted her flank. Puca said nothing and didn’t move away. I took it as a good sign their anger had burned out.

“I’m going to the wolf pack.” I pulled my hand back and gave the mare a smack. Puca made a shrill noise of surprise and I laughed.

“Go find Tu Shen that Lacey mentioned. Maybe he knows something,” I said. Puca snorted in agreement. When we reached the next intersection, I went right and they went left.

The brick industrial building that hid Fenrir inside was standing steady in the storm. When I jumped down from Diabhal she took one look at the stormy sky and blinked at me, clearly upset.

“Go to Hell then,” I sighed. She snorted and did just that. A portal opened on the ground, looking like a tar pit thick with smoke and flame. She sunk into it and was gone to the other realm before I opened the door to Fenrir and stomped inside. They were closed but that didn’t stop me from ripping the inner door open.