Chapter 4

Four

P hillip took a deep breath.

Okay, it was time to make the call. He had a command center set up at the rodeo, which was staying put for as long as it took to get Cody back. Thankfully, they were somewhere in Oklahoma, and they could play sold-out shows for weeks, if need be.

He had Selena out looking for Cody. He had the backing of every soul who worked for Darque and Knight. And he had run every scenario he could think of three or four times.

He was as ready as he was going to be.

So he pulled out his phone and called the number he knew would get him to who he needed to talk to.

"Darque Industries."

"I need Jean-Luc Darque."

"I'm sorry, he's?—"

"This is Phillip Darque."

"One moment, Sir."

That was what he had thought.

He waited silently, not fidgeting. Not pacing. Just sitting. The way to get around this entire ridiculous situation was to remain calm. Quiet.

Patient.

His uncle didn't do patient, so the way to outwit him was to sit and outwait him.

"Well. Hello there, nephew. Obviously, you're not as stupid as I thought you were."

"What do you want?" He didn't waste time on pleasantries. He really didn't care. He knew what Jean-Luc wanted. Someone wanted the same thing he'd always wanted.

The Seren Ddu.

The Black Star jewel had been stolen from one of the kings of Hell, and it had been the reason that their family had been so successful over the years. Using blackmail and whatever they needed to protect it from retrieval, they had kept it safe from all comers.

Phillip had won it from his uncle in a poker game, and Jean-Luc had been foolish enough to believe that Phillip wouldn't keep it.

But he had.

For a very long time.

"You know full well what I want, and I expect it to be sent to me, or we'll start delivering pieces of your beloved vampire." Jean-Luc chuckled, the sound bubbling with a vicious mirth. "I don't think he's quite sane anymore. I could start with one of his eyes. I mean, I'm not sure they work at all now. He would hardly miss it. I could scoop it out with a spoon."

"Are you quite finished, or shall I let you ramble on and leave you on speaker. I have things to do." Phillip was raging, boiling inside, but he didn't even let a squeak of it out. Pure control. "As I'm sure Knight's told you, I don't care. We're not in item."

"Don't lie to me."

He allowed one corner of his mouth to curl, knowing that Jean-Luc would be able to hear it in his voice. "Now, Uncle. Would I lie to you?"

Selena was moving, sliding through the night unseen and furious. He could feel it. Once she found Cody, she would raise the alarm.

"I'm serious. I'm tired of playing. I want the stone back. I have something of yours. You have something of mine. Simple."

"It wasn't yours anymore. You wagered on it, and you lost. Then it became mine."

"Regardless, the family needs it. You are still a Darque. If you know what's good for you, you will give it back."

He shrugged. "I made my own way in the universe. The name does amuse me though. It goes so well on the rodeo tents."

A long snarl slid through the phone line. "I'll take one of your precious rodeo people a day, until it's returned to me."

"That's not possible."

"What?"

"It's no longer in my possession." He let the truth of that ring out, knowing Jean-Luc would hear it.

"You lost it?"

"I gave it away."

"You… you gave it away?"

"I did." And it had been one of the best trades of his entire life, if he were honest, which he tended to be.

When it amused him.

"No." Jean-Luc's voice hardened. "No you did not. How could you? You're still one of the richest men in the human world."

"What can I say?" He shrugged one shoulder. Jean-Luc couldn't see him, but Phillip knew gestures came through in his voice, allowing him to sound as insouciant as he needed to. "I'm good at making money."

"We're talking about war in a demon dimension, you little fuck. That could spill over into your realm."

"There's always war in some demon dimension, Uncle." Come on. I need a hint. Where is he?

"Yes, but there hasn't been one in my holding in three centuries, and I don't intend to start now."

"So Cody is with you?"

Jean-Luc sneered. "I would not sully my holding with his flesh."

That meant Cody was on the mortal plane. That made it much easier.

"Heavens forfend," he drawled.

"Watch your mouth!"

"It's hard to do, Uncle. My eyes don't look that direction. Look, I can't give you what you want, but I'm willing to meet and talk about it." There. He'd worked in what he really wanted. Tell me where you are, you bastard.

"You'll bring me that stone, or I'll cut your vampire into bits!"

"I'll let you know where it is." Find him, Serena. I need him back with me. He's in this world. And he would make Cody whole again if it killed him.

That was the least he could do.

"I thought you didn't have it."

"I don't. But I know where it is."

Suddenly his mind was flooded by the image of a semi-truck in an abandoned parking lot in the middle of nowhere.

He could work with that. Show me anything that stands out, lovely. Road signs. The horizon.

She could do it. He knew she could.

"Are you listening to me?"

"No. You're getting shrill." Shit, what had he missed? "And I'm bored."

"BORED!"

"Uh-huh."

He got Route 66 and a flash of an old Oklahoma flag, a worn-down truck stop. Perfect.

He cleared his throat. "I'm done now, old demon. Oh, and by the way, trust me—I'm a great big fuck."

Then he hung up, going to the door. "Someone get me Kelly. Now."