A/N: ****Spoilers for Ever After****

I also just realized something. Its possible that I might spell some spells and names wrong because I never actually read the books, I listened to the audio books. (I recommend those, btw. Marguerite Gavin reads them sooo well) So sorry in advance for that. You can correct me on stuff if you spot something

Ivy was home when I got back and I plopped down on one of her comfy armchairs beside the couch where she was lounging. "Long time no see, stranger." I said.

She looked up at me from her phone, face stoic. "Nina called," She told me. "said she thought someone was following her."

"Following her? Again?" A bad sign. After Nina had shoved a master vampire out of her head a couple weeks back, she'd been having some trouble being on her own. The vampire himself was after her, forcing Nina to take up residence in a secret safe house every night from sun down to sun up.

"Living Vamps. He's sending them after her during the day, now. Probably hoping to discover where she goes every evening." Her face showed no emotion, but her voice gave everything away. Ivy was worried and if she wasn't sure what to do then we had a serious problem. "I was thinking about spending the next few nights with her. Starting tomorrow night."

"You should." I agreed. I'd seen first hand what a Dead Vamp could do to a Living one. Piscary had melted Ivy down to a raw shadow of sorrow and pain in a single night. Nina was strong willed, I guess but she's no Ivy Tamwood… and Felix was so old. "Felix is out of his Turn blasted mind."

"That he is." She shifted on the couch in her black silken lounge pants and matching top. "So where were you?"

"Trent's." She lifted a brow but never took her eyes of the screen of her iPhone. "I brought him that curse I was telling you about, visited with the girls a while." Then I sat up, remembering something odd. "Al went to visit Trent a few days ago. Popped right into his house."

She looked at me then. "I thought he wasn't going to do that anymore."

"Same here, and I thought Trent would be pissed but he said it was 'fine'."

Her brows furrowed ever so slightly. "Trenton Kalamack." I nodded. "And your Demon."

"Yep. Fucking weird, right?"

"I thought they hated each other."

"Me too. Oh yeah and something else weird. On my way out of there I could have sworn I smelled vamp incense." I thought back to when I'd reached for the handle of the car door. I'd caught only a faint whiff of it but felt no one around me. I was completely alone for sure. It could have been some of Ivy's scent on my clothes. She had bought my new jacket for me, but I knew it was more then that when her eyes widen and she stood.

"I'm gonna order pizza." She blurted, as nervous as I'd ever heard her.

"Ivy…?" I questioned accusingly, rising to follow her into the kitchen. "What are you not telling me?"

"I was thinking a Super Combo sounds good. You want anything else?"

"Ivy." I reached for her phone as she lifted it up to her ear, which was stupid. How the hell was I going to snatch something out of Living Vamps hand?

She pulled it out of my reach before I could snatch it and eyed me. I eyed her right back and her pupils started to dilate, the room filling with her delicious scent. She shook her head abruptly, snapping herself out of it and stalking to collapse in her chair.

"What?" I insisted again once she looked like she had more control.

"Ren might have asked about Trent a week or so ago." She said sourly.

"And?" that wasn't so bad. There had to be more.

She let out a breath. "He was curious about your change of heart regarding Kalamack. You've been rushing around, sticking your neck out for that man lately when last year you would stop at nothing to see him in jail. I told him he saved your life and maybe that had something to do with it." She still wasn't telling me anything and she actually winced when I kept eying her, worrying me further. Ivy didn't wince. She might grimace or scowl… but she never winced. "I may have mentioned the, um, soul in a bottle thing… Now he thinks if you cant save our soul, Trenton probably can."

"What?" I growled it.

"He thinks if Trent can remove our souls during the moment of death, capture it before it goes wherever it goes and then put it back after we revive, we will be saved."

"And where does that leave us, exactly?!" This could be really bad.

"Well I thought he would have talked to you about it. That's why I didn't say anything about it sooner. But I guess he didn't want you to know. Which is bad." I hated seeing her so nervous. "If he was planning on keeping us in on the boat you would know by now."

"But you know?"

"I was eavesdropping." She sighed. "He was in his office on his private line. I heard him going over things before I got to the door."

"Well shit, who was on the other line?"

She leaned forward, looking angry, but I knew it was just a front for her fear. "I have to fucking idea, Rachel…" She snapped. "But whoever it was it isn't good."

So what? He's sending scouts over to Trent's now?"

"Let's not jump to conclusions here. I'm sure its Cormell but is there any other explanation for Vampire scent to have been present there?" Her thumb and index finger of her right hand were pressed together, the other three fingers spread wide as she gestured in the air as if marking down an imaginary list.

"No." I told her. "I thought it might have been your scent on the jacket you bought me but the wind was blowing too hard tonight. The scent traveled to me. Plus Trent has absolutely no Vampires on his staff. Even if he did hire some that I don't know about, he sent everyone home. Gave them all time off accept for a handful of people, most of which weren't even there tonight." God I hate Dead Vamps. "Ren doesn't even know if Trent's bottle trick will work! Why stalk around his place?" And Trenton would never help him anyways… right?

Trent had told me once that he would do anything, whatever he had to, to save the ones he held dear… If Ren threatened his family would Trent grant the Vampires their souls? Would he let Cormell destroy Ivy and me to save his family? Would he stand by while someone hurt Bis or Jenks and his kids? I had no idea what Trent would do and I was furious. I didn't have a problem with giving Vampires their souls back or saving them before they were lost to madness. I just wasn't a fan of the way Cormell was doing it and I was particularly fond of most of the Vampires that could be backing him on this. Cormell was all gravy in person, pleasant, very human-like but some of the others were so old they didn't give a shit anymore and any one of them could be who he was chatting with on the phone..

"I'm sorry Rachel. You, Jenks, Bis and the kids might need to find a safe house of your own. I'd say just stay on hallowed ground but Newt ruined that plan. Ren hasn't cut you loose completely, Rachel. But he does have higher hopes for Trenton."

I roared wordlessly. How could Vampires be so… so fucked up and uncaring? Breathing heavy and pacing the kitchen, trying to calm down I said, "I'm not angry with you. I want you to know that. Those bastards are manipulative and evil and I know you didn't tell him knowing what he would do." And she really wouldn't have. Ivy would do just about anything to keep the church safe. We'd worked so hard to protect this home. We'd bled, cried, killed, sacrificed and gone to war against the biggest baddies this city had to offer to keep this place. She would never jeopardize that.

"This is just worst case scenario, of course. Otherwise I'd have moved into the safe house days ago. But if he's already sent someone to scout out Trent's place for any reason, we might need to move. This whole Felix thing is really throwing him through a loop."

I remembered back to the night Felix and Ren had both shown up in my kitchen. I remembered the look in Ren's eyes when he told me he would not end up like Felix. He'd been afraid, frantic almost and it had been real, true emotion, something that was exceedingly rare among the Undead Vampire. "I'm gonna talk to Al." I said, hoping my Demon teacher would have something that would help me.

"Trenton too." Ivy said.

"Yes I'll call him but not just yet. Quen and the girls are leaving for Ellasbeth's tomorrow morning and if I say anything it will screw things up even more."

"You might need Quen's help, Rachel. He should be here for when I cant, for when I'm with Nina."

"Quen is healing right now. He's in pain and unstable. He needs to be wherever the girls are and very far away. If he knew there was any danger he'd flip and I wont do that to him. If Trent knows Quen will notice something's up. I'll call after their plane leaves."

She sighed. "Yes that's probably best… and maybe I should just head to the safe house tonight."

"You don't think he's watching us too? Wait until morning, will you?"

"No. I mentioned to him that I would be checking on Nina tonight. He knows where she is. Once I'm in I'll let my people there know the situation. The witches have wards all over that place. Not enough to hold off an army of the dead but for Felix and any of his or Ren's people, they'll do just fine. Ren will never come himself. Not if he wants to keep a positive public image and the man is all about politics…"

"Tink's little red dildo, Rache!" I was so frustrated I hadn't even heard Jenks fly in until he spoke. "You look like fairy shit, what's the matter?" I sighed and told him everything Ivy and I had discussed. "Damn it Rachel, we just got out of trouble and now were back in the hole! What the hell am I gonna do with you?"

"It isn't my fault…" I growled. "It isn't any of our faults. Ren Cormell is being unreasonable because he's afraid. He's the shitty one, not me. Now, I'm going to call Al. If I have to go over for a while are you and the kids going to be alright?"

"Its chilly out but we'll stay on watch up in the belfry with Bis and Atude." My face warmed suddenly and I calmed down, having forgotten Bis's father. The enormous Gargoyle had really taken to the church after the hunting of Ku'sox. He'd said it was a sturdy young thing for such a small building. He'd made plenty of excuses to stay in the graveyard about protecting the Worldbreaker and his Sword and how the Gargoyles wanted someone older to keep watch around here. But really, I think he just missed his son. Bis had invited him up to the steeple just yesterday and I would feel so much better leaving everyone alone with Atude around. If an enemy did approach the church he'd ruin them.

Ivy packed her things and was gone and Jenks, Belle who'd come in shortly after our discussion riding the cat and a whirlwind of shrieking pixy children whisked up into the belfry to be with the gargoyles. I was sitting Indian style on my bed with my scrying mirror in my lap in the new silence. I placed a palm firmly on the red-tinted glass and tapped a line before letting the energy swirl down into the mirror. Feeling the familiar hum of the demon collective flow through me I smiled. It had been feeling a lot softer lately, smooth and contented almost. The Demons were resting for the first time in a long while. It would never last, but for now, it was very pleasant.

Al. I said Calling Al. Pick up, Al.

My demons annoyed and utterly masculine thoughts slipped through the collective and slithered into my mind. Hello, Itchy Witch.

I couldn't help another smile. There had been a time when I'd dreaded speaking to him and his use of the nickname he'd given me spelled trouble. Now it was just… kind of nice, familiar. Hey, Al. I think I have a problem.

You always have a problem, Rachel. I thought it was funny how his smug British cadence could calm me down. When I was in trouble he usually knew what to do. Ready with a quick curse and a smart comment to save the day.

But this problem involves Elves and Undead Vampires… I said.

Rachel, Rachel, Rachel… He admonished, Why must you insist on messing around with those nasty little buggars.. What did you and Trenton Aloysius Kalamack do now?

I'm not sure if Trent knows what's up just yet… And that reminds me, What the hell were you doing at his house the other day?

I was putting him into the demon collective. I told him to tell you…

He did. I cut him off. Well, as much as you can cut someone off with a thought. But I thought you weren't going to pop in there anymore. You promised.

Well he didn't seem to mind. Al said, and it bothered me. I didn't know why. In fact you'd think I should be happy about it. Trent and Al never got along which was a major pain in the ass considering Al was my go to guy every time Trent hired me and got us into trouble… Something was strange about it the stillness between them. It was stupid to dwell on it but there was something in the pit of my stomach telling me to dig deeper on the subject. Later, though. I'd get to it another time. Now what is this problem you're going on about? Mother puss-bucket it so damned quiet over here its driving me mad. I need something to do Rachel Then he paused and I felt a zing of delight flow from his thoughts and into me. I know, his voice was thick with excitement; I'll pop over there!

I sighed, it being too late to disagree with him because he'd already broken our connection. I hadn't even had the chance to get up off my bed before he appeared in my room. I yipped; shocked before I remembered Newt had defiled the church again and now Al could pop in and out of any room he wanted.

"Rachel!" He exclaimed, having thrown open my top dresser drawer and scooped something out. "I knew you were a black lace kind of girl…" He waved my panties in the air, a flurry of midnight frill.

"Al, put those down!" I yelled at him jumping at the skimpy thong in his fingers. It really wasn't a thong… but they did cover almost as little when they were on.

Al moved his arm in the nick of time to dangle my underwear above my head before I could get to them and I smacked into his rock hard chest. Any other day I would have indulged him in his childish antagonizing games so he would do what I wanted him to but tonight I was serious, damn it. "Oh come on Rachel," He leaned in closer. "A Demoness is supposed to be quicker than that."

Then, much to his genuine shock, I reached not for my panties but for his frilly collar, gripping it tight enough to choke him and yanking him down to meet my eyes. "Do I look like I'm in a playing mood, Demon?" I glared hard at him, the cloying scent of Ever After snaking through my nostrils.

Anger flickered across his face shortly after the shock and then a sly, seductive grin spread across his lips. "I should steal your panties more often, Rachel. You get all rough and sexy…"

"Oh for the love of..." I let go of his collar with a shove and he staggered back before tossing the lace back into the drawer and going to collapse across my bed. I frowned, knowing that my sheets would smell like burnt amber for weeks but then again, its wasn't like I'd be entertaining anyone in here…

"It sounds like Ren Cormell is starting to think I'm less important to him than he originally thought." I grumped, looking at the ceiling with my hand on my hips, too aggravated to stare at him. "He's more interested in Trent, actually and Ivy thinks its possible he might cut ties with the two of us completely…"

"Which means?"

He sounded like he was still joking around and I looked down at him to find that same bullshitter grin plastered to his face. He was reclined against my pillows, crushed green velvet clad and looking as smug and confident as he usually did, which frustrated the hell out of me. God, he might be a crazy demon but I'm not blind… There was a hot sexy man on my bed and I, for numerous reasons, was really not allowed to touch him. Thank you, Universe, just what I ordered. Angry Undead Vampires and a tall glass of sexual frustration to wash it all down.

"Which means…?" He repeated, grin spreading to his eyes as he noticed my gaze lingering on his body.

"Well, I don't really know, but it had Ivy spooked enough to take off to a safe house with her girlfriend and tell me to watch my ass." I huffed and came to sit on the edge of the bed. "I think he might come after us if he decides he doesn't need my expertise anymore. He wanted me to find a way to save Vampire souls so they'd have them when they became immortal."

"So you told me." He was starting to sound more serious and that pleased me.

"Well, he found out about how Trent put my soul in a bottle to save my life and he thinks Trent could use the same spell to catch the Vampire soul and save it until there bodies revive, then put it back in." Al stayed silent for a while and I looked back to find him deep in thought. "What?" I asked, slumping and suddenly wishing he'd go back to being a clowny bastard.

"That actually might work…"

"What?!"

"Well, yes. If the spell works the way I think it does. But I would think it would only do the job for Vampires who are just turning. If he himself wants to be saved, someone would have to locate his soul and put it back… but he lost his a long time ago and there's no telling where it is."

"Ren would definitely want us dead if he thought that Trent could give him everything he needed. He'd want to capitalize on it big time, obviously and wiping us out would leave only Trenton knowing how the job is done."

"Leaving Cormell to monopolize the entire Vampire soul operation." He said.

"Yeah but if he thought we were the only ones who could save his soul, we'd be back on the 'do not kill' list."

"Correct."

"So… cant we do that…?"

He gave me one of those frowns that reminded me of how very old he was and how young and fragile I was compared to him. "You mean do I know how to do it and will I reveal all my secrets to you and let you sell them to a dead man…?"

I gave him sad puppy dog eyes, knowing he'd know I was joking. "Yes… please." He didn't look like he was ready to give in so I added. I'll let you dress me up and take me to a party at Dalliance…"

He raised a brow and gave in to the smile that was creeping over his face. "You'll let me put you in anything?"

I frowned. "Anything that covers me from the waist down and doesn't have the nipples cut out"

He laughed out loud great and big and the sound melted me. Damn it I was gonna blush like a smitten little school girl if I didn't hold it together. "Alright I'll see what I can do…" He disappeared with a pop of displaced air and then reappeared beside my dresser with my panties in his hand again. "But I'm taking these, too." And then he was truly gone.

"You son of a bitch!" I shouted, jumping from where I sat and knowing everyone in the belfry could hear me. "Oh god…" I shivered, collapsing back onto my bed face down and stirring the lingering burnt amber scent from the sheets. There was another scent there too, though, something earthy and masculine, strong. Even though my lids were closed and my face was pressed against my comforter I rolled my eyes, knowing exactly what the smell was. It was Al, and he smelled good, too. I took a guilty deep breath of my teachers scent and exhaled long and slow.

What the hell was wrong with me? I missed stealing shit from Trent and breaking into his house in a cat suit and I was rolling around in burnt amber and the scent of my sadistic Demon instructor. Trent was probably going to end up marrying Ellasbeth, the fucking Ice Queen of the Withon family and on top of being an A Class prick sometimes, he was The Lord of the Drug Cartel in his spare time. Al, on the other hand, was a demon. I'm a demon too, but I'm younger that thirty. Al is over five-thousand years old. Five-thousand , and I'll stop there with him because that's not even the worse of it.

And oh my god what was he going to do with my underwear…? I moaned all of my frustration wordlessly into my mattress, mental images of Al naked and rubbing himself with the black lace.

I couldn't bear it, flushing red and going to the closet to snatch up a spare blanket and pillow. My room reeked of Al and the Ever After and I wasn't in the mood to change sheets. I crashed on the couch surrounded by Vampire incense dreaming of drums beating to the pulse of wild magic and little blue butterflies…