“A Lilin?” Beth echoed incredulously. “But I read that they hate cities.”
I nodded. “That’s true. The only reason one would come to a city this big is to breed.”
Sara held up a hand. “Wait. Don’t Incubi have one baby at a time? Why would he take more than one girl?”
“A Lilin is not like a normal Incubus,” I told her. “The older they get, the more offspring they want, and some are said to sire as many as twenty in one cycle.”
“Twenty?” Sara choked out.
Beth put a hand to her mouth, her eyes rounded in horror. “But those girls are so young. Jessica and Tracy are only seventeen. So is Mei.”
I rubbed the back of my neck. “A Lilin will only breed with strong, healthy females between the age of sixteen and twenty-one. Incubi can sense if a human is diseased or sick, so they know which ones to take.”
“Now we know why there were only teenagers at the club,” Jordan said. “The rave was a perfect cover for them to check out the girls and choose the ones they wanted.”
Sara looked ill. “Those poor girls. We have to find them before he…”
Nikolas took her hand in his. “The Lilin will wait until the peak of his cycle, when he’s most fertile, to breed. He has to prepare the females first by feeding them his energy. And he won’t breed until he has all the females he needs. As far as we know, only three girls have been taken. The attack at Luna tells us he’s still looking.”
“And now we know what we’re looking for,” I said.
Beth frowned. “But there are thousands of girls that age in Los Angeles. How will we know who he’ll go after next?”
I sat on the arm of a chair. “We don’t. But a Lilin won’t go unnoticed long by other demons in this city, especially by other Incubi and Succubi. Lilin are like royalty among their kind, and their mark is easily identifiable to anyone who knows what to look for.”
Jordan tapped her chin. “He’d need somewhere to keep the girls. Or would he take them back to his lair?”
“He’d have to keep them near him so he can feed them every day,” I said. “And a Lilin never takes females from his own territory, so we know his permanent lair is not close to Los Angeles.”
“Then they’re still in the city,” Beth said.
She wore a determined look that made my stomach clench. I didn’t want her anywhere near this one, and if I had my way, she’d be leaving Los Angeles tonight. Once this Lilin figured out we were onto him, he was going to feel threatened, and a cornered Lilin was unpredictable and deadly.
“Okay then.” Jordan looked from me to Nikolas. “Where do we start?”
“The first thing we do is reach out to our most trusted contacts in the demon community.” I looked at Sara. “Can you work with Kelvan and David to see if you can find where the Lilin is staying? It will be a large, secure property, most likely rented within the last six months. And tell them we have to be discreet so we don’t tip off the Lilin.”
“I’ll call them as soon as we’re done here.”
“Good.”
“What about us?” Jordan asked.
“You work with Raoul. Find out everything there is to know about Luna and whether or not there are similar places we haven’t heard about. If anyone can find a party, it’s you.”
“Sounds good.” She smirked at Beth. “Let’s party.”
“Beth won’t be working with you on this one,” I said, earning startled looks from them.
Beth opened her mouth to protest, but I cut her off.
“New warriors pair with experienced warriors for this job. You will work with me, and Sara will be with Nikolas. Mason will work with Brock. If we need to switch it out for any reason, we will, but this is how it will be for now.”
Beth’s lips pressed into a mutinous line, but it had been ingrained in her to follow the orders of the senior warrior in the field. It would take a few years for her to start breaking free of those restraints – unless Jordan’s rebelliousness had rubbed off on her. I sent up a silent prayer that wasn’t the case. I didn’t think I could concentrate on my job, knowing she was out there with a Lilin loose in the city.
And I wouldn’t pretend I wasn’t happy with this arrangement for other reasons. Working together would give me time with Beth, to talk and to get to know each other again. She’d done her best to avoid being alone with me since I’d declared my intentions toward her, but she also hadn’t tried to break the bond. She might say she didn’t want me, but until she made it official, I’d do everything in my power to win back her trust.
“What will you and I be working on?” Beth asked in a tight voice.
“Tomorrow, we’ll pay a visit to one of our informants. If anyone knows about a Lilin in Los Angeles, Adele will, and this is not something I want to talk to her about over the phone.”
“You need me with you to talk to her?” Beth asked skeptically.
Sara scoffed. “More likely he needs you to protect him from that she-demon.”
“That, too.” I smiled at Sara, who did not try to hide her dislike of the succubus. I turned back to Beth. “Talking to informants is an important part of our job, and I think this would be good practice for you.”
She looked only slightly appeased by my answer. “Okay.”
Nikolas leaned forward with his arms resting on his knees. “We don’t have to tell any of you how serious this situation is. A Lilin is single-minded when it comes to breeding, and he will let nothing get in his way. If by some chance you encounter him, do not engage him. Chris or I might take him in a fight, but he is stronger than the rest of you combined.”
“Hey!” Sara poked Nikolas in the ribs.
“Except for Sara,” he amended, capturing her hand. “But I don’t want you anywhere near him either.”
“This is not like any demon you’ve met so far,” I told Sara. “He is highly intelligent and ruthless. His offspring are fanatics when it comes to serving him, and they will gladly give up their lives for him. Plus, their bond with him makes them stronger than the average Incubi.”
Jordan grimaced. “I can attest to that.”
“You sound like you know him,” Sara said to me.
I shook my head. “This isn’t the first Lilin Nikolas and I have hunted. They all share certain characteristics that help them survive so long.”
Sara frowned. “They must have some weaknesses.”
Nikolas nodded. “Like all demons, a Lilin can be killed with a silver blade to the heart, beheading, or fire. But they are stronger and faster than most demons, which is why it would take an older warrior to match them in strength and speed. The only time a Lilin is weak is at the peak of their cycle right before they breed and during the pregnancy. They drain their power by feeding it to the females to help them through the pregnancies. But by then, they are safe inside their lair.”
“Great,” Jordan muttered.
Sara got to her feet. “If you guys don’t mind, I’m going to call David and Kelvan. The sooner we get working on this, the better.”
I nodded, and she pulled her phone from her pocket, dialing a number as she walked toward the control room.
“And I’m going to find Raoul and give him the great news about his new partner.” Jordan stood, wearing a Cheshire grin. “You coming, Beth?”
Beth darted a glance at me then back to Jordan. “Might as well.”
She got up, and the two of them followed Sara. I watched Beth until she was out of sight. All I could think of was her in that tunnel and what could have happened if the Incubus hadn’t been alone, or if he’d chosen to fight instead of run.
“I know what’s going through your head,” Nikolas said, pulling my gaze back to him. He smiled sympathetically. “I wish I could tell you it gets easier, but you’d know I was lying. You saw what I went through with Sara.”
I gave him a pained look. “Don’t remind me.”
“All you want to do is take her and get as far from Los Angeles and the Lilin as possible. If Sara wasn’t as powerful as she is, I’d try to take her away, too.”