Demon Moon

proved a double-edged sword.
    And though she knew he didn’t want to, if they left him no other alternative he would make his point with bloodshed. Not one vampire—or even several together—would have a chance against him. As no one moved to pick up the blade, they must have realized it, as well. Perhaps they’d seen him fight the wyrmwolf; if so, there could be no doubt of his ability to take out anyone who challenged him.
    Their fear wouldn’t engender their trust, though.
    And raising her shields might have eased his frustration and helped him regain control—but it also might lead them to think she was lying or hiding.
    Savi placed her hand on Sir Pup’s ruff and said in her halting Latin, “Remove knife table.”
    The sai disappeared; Darkwolf’s eyes widened and Arwen visibly startled, probably attributing it to her words, as if it had been a spell Savi had cast instead of Sir Pup’s hammerspace.
    Although to anyone unfamiliar with hammerspace, it would likely have been as amazing as a vanishing spell.
    “The problem is not power,” Savi said. “Not your lack of it compared to Guardians and demons, or the humans’ lack compared to you. Physical power means very little. Do you have any idea what happened last year? One human managed to trick Lucifer— Lucifer —into closing Hell’s Gates. Another found a way to rid the city of the nosferatu who slaughtered your elders. Guardians—and Colin—assisted, but it was humans who defeated them.”
    Colin released a long breath against the back of her neck. “What Miss Murray is trying to tell you is that your ignorance is dangerous by itself; but if you seek truth from demonkind, those answers will kill you. Or I will.”
    Gina’s eyes flashed with anger, and her lips pulled tight over her fangs. “It’s not as if you’ve been all that forthcoming with answers.”
    “No,” he agreed easily. “And I was in error.”
    As if deflated by his admission, she sat back and frowned at him. Arwen did the same. Not, Savi noted, looking to Darkwolf for his reaction, as they had only minutes before.
    Darkwolf’s wry smile told her he saw the difference, as well. “So this is your offer? To raise us from the depths of ignorance? I find it hard to believe, considering that you’re connected with an agency that has been nothing but secretive.”
    “Raise you?” Colin’s brows winged upward, and he shook his head, laughing softly. “No. I’ll make information available, and assist in reconstructing the community the nosferatu destroyed. But I’ll not prod you into action, or pat your head in reward. Dalkiel preys on this community because it is weak; I’ll give you the tools to strengthen it—and to resist any other demon who would take advantage of you.”
    “But he’s still powerful enough to kill us,” Arwen pointed out.
    “Yes. And so relations with the Guardians and Special Investigations must be maintained—they would kill any demon or nosferatu regardless, but with communication we can identify threats and remove them more quickly. Their secrecy is not aimed at you, but to prevent the general public from panicking.”
    “At least for now,” Savi said. When Colin glanced at her in surprise, she clarified, “I don’t mean that Michael or SI will eventually keep things from vampires again. It’s too late for that, and the communication is too valuable.” Particularly with Guardian numbers still so low. “But that it won’t be long before humans find out. I imagine not more than a decade, at most.”
    “We’ve done well thus far, sweet. We’re not more than a dream to most, fiction in books and movies.”
    “Yes, but that was before satellites that can read license plates from space, and before Regular Joe could access those images from his home computer. Before the explosion in the vampire population. Before security cameras on every corner. Before hundreds of rogue demons fled Hell, and are—for the first time—acting for their gain rather than Lucifer’s. And how long do you think it’ll take before they stop fearing the repercussions of Lucifer’s anger if they are worshipped for themselves? The Gates are closed for five hundred years. Someone’s going to get cocky—already one demon grabs for power here. On a small scale, sure, but it’s still something he’d never have attempted if Lucifer had access to Earth.”
    Colin nodded thoughtfully. “If that’s the way it’s to be, then far better to align ourselves