Ari's day officially hit rock bottom the second a dude twice her size threw her into the backseat of a black SUV like she weighed nothing.
"Hey! My lollipop!" she protested as it flew out the window.
Zayne Knight sat beside her, stone-faced, like abducting girls from funerals was part of his morning routine. "You'll live."
Ari glared at him. "Your face looks like it hasn't smiled since the 1800s."
Zayne gave her a look. The kind that made most people run for their lives. Ari just blew him a kiss.
The car pulled up to a mansion that looked like a vampire's summer house. Massive iron gates, creepy statues, windows so tinted she couldn't tell if someone was watching — but she could feel it.
"I'm not living here," she announced.
"You don't have a choice."
They walked in, and immediately a black blur darted past them. Ari grinned. "Lucifer!"
Her black cat, Lucifer, came sprinting from the shadows like a demon on four paws. He leapt gracefully… straight onto Zayne's lap. And clawed him.
Hard.
Zayne barely flinched. "Get this demon off me."
"He's just saying hi," Ari shrugged, scooping up her pet. "He only attacks people he doesn't like. Congratulations."
Zayne muttered a curse under his breath as they entered a dimly lit room. A long table sat in the middle, surrounded by old men in dark suits — faces like they'd killed people before breakfast.
"Welcome home, Miss Moretti," one of them sneered.
"I see the retirement home let you all out early," Ari grinned.
The guy's face darkened. "You will show respect, girl."
Ari tilted her head, then casually smacked his glass of whiskey off the table.
The silence was so loud you could hear a dust particle drop.
One of the other men choked on his drink. Zayne actually smiled — a tiny, dangerous smirk — before quickly hiding it.
"Try me again, Gramps," Ari said sweetly.
Later that night, as she wandered through the mansion, she swore she saw a shadow moving in the upper hallway. Goosebumps prickled her skin.
"Must be the air conditioning," she muttered, even though there was no air conditioning.
She pushed open a door labeled "Weapons Room", saw a wall full of guns, knives, and a literal flamethrower.
"Is this the kitchen?" she called. "Where's the popcorn?"
Zayne appeared behind her like a ghost. "You need to start taking this seriously."
Ari spun around, backing up as he stepped closer. "Whoa, personal space, Dracula."
"You're in danger," he growled, eyes glittering.
She glanced down at his hand resting on the wall beside her, trapping her in. Then looked up, smirking. "You always this close, or do you charge for it?"
His jaw ticked. His ears turned slightly pink. And then — because Zayne Knight was emotionally allergic to feelings — he turned on his heel and walked away.
Ari grinned. "That's what I thought."
But her smile faded when she got to her room. On her mirror, scrawled in dark, sticky red letters, were the words:
"You shouldn't be here."
Lucifer hissed at the empty room.And for the first time all day… Ari felt a flicker of fear.