King of the Underworld by RJ Kane

460

Sephie

I really had to hand it to the guys. They were so attentive to my needs this time. They were struggling just as much

as I was about being here. They were all trying to hide it, but I could tell every single one of them was just at

nervous as I was. It seemed to help them deal with that when they could be closer to me, just as it helped me. I

wasn’t going to complain.

Adrik kept me close. He did have to let go of me a few times when greeting people, but for the most part, he kept

one arm around me while he shook hands with literally every person in attendance. It meant I could feel what he

felt when he touched people. It was fascinating.

Most people here were overwhelmingly good. When Adrik would shake their hand, it was a momentary feeling of

joy. There were a few, however, that had some darkness behind them, but nothing that made any of us worry. Only

once did I feel Ivan’s bubble go up. Strangely, it was for one of the hospital administrators who had stopped to

speak to Adrik. He had very soft hands and an even softer handshake. The kind of handshake that gave you the

creeps right away.

I happily stayed blissfully cut off from that conversation while it happened. I took the opportunity to ask Ivan if he

could see anything. He showed me what he saw when he looked at the administrator. He wasn’t completely

consumed by his demon, but it had a very tight hold of the man. The demon itself was clearly defined. The man

was older, with a slightly bent over posture, like he’d spent hours pouring over balance sheets. Once I saw what

Ivan saw, I wondered if it wasn’t the weight of the demon on his back that was causing his poor posture.

I turned my head away from Adrik and the administrator, making eye contact with Stephen as I pretended to

cough. I cut my eyes toward the administrator, which meant Stephen was to find the opportunity to speak in front

of him to see if we could scare the demon away. He stepped closer to us, to get a sense of the conversation that

Adrik was having and interjected a question at the perfect moment.

We all watched as the man suddenly had a coughing attack, almost like he was choking. Ivan still had his bubble up

around me, but he was still showing me what he could see. The demon was making a last-ditch effort to get inside,

trying to get away from Stephen, which is what was causing the man to cough. His body was trying to reject it.

Stephen was standing just on the other side of Adrik, slightly behind him. I held my hand out to Stephen, who

readily took it. He could then see what Ivan was seeing. He spoke a second time and even went to help the man. As

soon as Stephen touched the man, Ivan could see the demon just vanish. Stephen’s eyes went a little wide, but he

kept himself under control. Once the man stopped coughing, Stephen returned to stand just behind Adrik

once more.

This time, he grabbed my hand, showing me what had just happened. When he touched the man, he could feel the

rage from the demon, who actually spoke to him. I could clearly hear it say, “you’ll never get all of us.” Then, it

laughed as it was vanishing.

I got chills as I watched what Stephen had seen. Adrik and Ivan both felt it immediately and I was hit with a wave of

fiery anger from both of them. I didn’t mean to laugh, but I did. It caused everyone to look at me. It appeared that I

was laughing at this man having a coughing attack in front of me.

I cleared my throat, looking at the man. “Sorry. I laugh when I’m nervous,” I told him, hoping that was enough of an

explanation to grant me some grace and make me not look like a giant a*shole.

The administrator surprised me by laughing with me. “It’s okay. That came out of nowhere, but I actually feel much

better now,” he said, excusing himself as he grabbed someone who was walking by.

The guys took the opportunity to close in on me and Adrik, cutting anyone else off for just a moment. I quickly

shared what we’d just witnessed with both Andrei and Misha as Ivan shared it with Adrik.

“That was different,” Adrik said. “He’s the only one so far tonight. Honestly, I was expecting more.”

Battista took the opportunity of us being mostly alone to walk to the mayor. He interrupted the conversation the

mayor was having and pulled him toward us. It was good to be ridiculously wealthy, apparently.

Before they could make it all the way to us, Adrik made sure I was okay. “You’re okay now? I felt you get cold.”

“I’m okay. You and Ivan are really quick now. It wasn’t like it was with Ilya this time. I just got the chills when I heard

it speak to Stephen, but I appreciate the heat boost. I’ll never turn that down,” I said, smiling up at him.

1/3

460

He smiled softly at me, pressing his lips to mine once again just before the mayor walked up. The guys stepped

back enough that Battista and the mayor could talk to Adrik, but made it so no one else could approach them and

interrupt the conversation we’d been trying to make happen for hours

now.

Adrik’s hand was around my waist as he shook hands with the mayor. I felt a moment of joy when Adrik touched

him and nothing else. Ivan shared what he saw. The mayor still had a dark form over him, but it couldn’t gain a hold

of him. It was still trying. It would move when the mayor moved, but it wasn’t completely attached yet. I discreetly

offered Stephen my hand so he could see what Ivan was seeing and so he’d know what to do. He once again

stepped closer, paying attention to the conversation, waiting for the perfect time to interject.

Adrik and the mayor had spoken before, but they tried to keep their interactions limited. It was obvious that Battista

had also spoken to the mayor before, as those two were familiar with each other. There was a level of comfort

between them that only happened when you’d had several conversations with a person.

Doug, the mayor, told Adrik quietly, “I’ve been speaking with my district attorney. We’re really working hard to find

something definitive on the doctor so we can charge him. Honestly, I don’t want you to turn him over to us until I

know we have something that will stick. He’s wreaked havoc on this city for a very long time. If we can’t get the

justice system to take care of him, then you need to.”

“I might have what you’re looking for,” Adrik told him. “We’ve come across some records from the boss that paid

him to create brawn in the first * place. They’re quite detailed. Before I turn them over to your DA, I’d like to meet

him, however.”

Doug looked momentarily surprised, which made me tense, but he followed it with, “I just assumed you’d met him

before.” He looked around the room, adding, “he’s here somewhere, but if you don’t get a chance to meet him

tonight, I’ll arrange a meeting. Somehow. I’m fairly certain that Henry is having me followed,” he said so quietly

that we almost missed it.

“What does your DA think about Henry?” Stephen asked. Doug looked surprised that Stephen spoke, but when he

saw that Adrik was waiting for an answer, he continued with the conversation. As he did, Ivan shared what he was

seeing once again. Just like with the hospital administrator, the demon that looked like a dark cloud just behind the

mayor was frantic to get in.

Doug answered, “he’s ready to charge him. If you have more information on him, I would love it.” He barely got his

sentence out and he, too, started coughing uncontrollably. Almost violently. Once again, Stephen reached out and

touched the mayor’s arm, asking if he was okay or if he needed help. When he did, Ivan could see the dark cloud

behind the mayor disappear.

“That’s twice now that someone has coughed uncontrollably in front of us. People are going to start wondering

what the hell we’re doing, “I told Ivan.

“Saving lives is sometimes messy business, princess,” Ivan said. He glanced at me, giving me a wink

Stephen let go of the mayor, returning to his spot just behind Adrik. He discreetly grabbed my hand, passing on the

information he’d gotten when he touched the mayor. Unlike the administrator, who’s demon was starting to attach

firmly, the mayor’s demon was barely hanging on. I wasn’t sure if that had something to do with the fact that the

first one could speak, but the second one made no sounds when it vanished.

Andrei, who had been quietly watching everything pushed what he could see to me. It was clear that the mayor had

holes in his aura. He needed Viktor. The only problem was, we weren’t sure how to get him to agree to it and we

couldn’t do it here, in front of everyone. We weren’t sure if Kostya could hide himself and hide the effects of what

he was doing when he and Viktor fixed someone. For us, it was visibly obvious. We weren’t sure we could do it

discreetly yet, so we didn’t want to take that chance.

Viktor, to his credit, had somewhat come around since Stephen had forcibly helped him. He did, however, seem

completely relieved to know that he was mostly off the h**k for his special services tonight when we discussed it

prior to coming to the hotel. This time, I didn’t get the feeling from him that he was avoiding us. It was more that he

was overwhelmed with making sure we, mostly me, would be safe while we were at the event. Knowing he would

somehow need to also use his gift while we were there was too much for him to handle.

We would figure out a way to help the mayor at a later date. We’d bought him some time tonight, but he was still

vulnerable.

2/3