“Cain will kill you.”

“I’d be disappointed if he didn’t try. Now, let’s see if Cain loves you more than his kingdom.”

***

The partial name Faye had given him could only mean one thing. “She’s at the Montague crypt. Our family’s crypt. He has easy access to it.”

Cain looked over his shoulder at Haven who sat in the back seat. Wes was driving. Blake was riding in the second SUV with John and Nicolette. They’d split up and driven toward different sections of New Orleans to cover as large an area as possible once they got word of Abel’s position. But Thomas hadn’t been able to pinpoint Abel’s cell phone. He hadn’t replied to the text message Cain had sent from Baltimore’s phone, probably guessing that his minion had already been taken down.

“Where is that?” Haven asked.

“St. Louis Cemetery number 3. It’s on Esplanade Drive, just south of City Park.” He glanced at the dashboard’s clock. “We have less than twenty minutes till sunrise. I’ll drive, Wes!”

Cain reached for the steering wheel and motioned Wes to change seats with him. Through the opening between the two front seats Wesley squeezed into the back, while Cain jammed his foot onto the gas pedal and slid into the driver’s seat. He knew this city best and, right now, every second counted. They had to reach Faye before the sun had a chance to shine into the crypt.

“Call John and have them meet us there. He knows the crypt. Tell him Abel knocked a hole into the ceiling and the wall and chained Faye to a grave right below it.” The thought of what would happen to her if he didn’t get to her in time sent a shudder through his body.

“Shit!” Haven cursed. “Fucking asshole.” He pulled his phone out and called John. “John listen, we’ve got Faye’s location. Meet us . . .”

Cain didn’t listen to the rest of the conversation, because his own cell phone started ringing. He looked at the display. Abel, it said.

He answered it. “You—”

“Oh please, spare me the accusations. We have no time for that. You have about fifteen minutes to rescue your precious Faye, so let’s get down to business.”

Cain kicked the gas pedal down farther, accelerating the car to a speed of over eighty miles an hour on the almost deserted Lake Pontchartrain Causeway. To either side of the road was only water.

“What do you want?” he bit into the phone.

“You know what I want. My kingdom. It was always supposed to be mine. We agreed to it when we disposed of the old king.”

Cain remembered all too well that this had been the plan. “The people didn’t want you as their king. They chose me instead.”

“Because you played the hero. But this time they don’t get to choose. I’m going to be king. And you’ll make sure of it. Or Faye will burn to death. Is that what you want?”

“You harm one hair on her head and I’ll—”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Heard it all before. What are you trying to do, bore me to death?” An evil chuckle came through the line. “Now listen carefully. You’ll pull all your men off the palace grounds instantly. That includes all members of your personal guard. Call me when it’s done.”

“You must be out of your mind! The Mississippians are still in the area. It would leave the palace undefended.”

“But that’s the whole point, isn’t it? It’s called killing two birds with one stone. Victor will get what’s coming to him. And don’t play any games, or I’ll play games with your bride. I have somebody watching the palace to make sure you comply.”

A click in the line confirmed that Abel had disconnected the call.

“Shit,” Cain cursed. Why would his brother make the palace vulnerable to the attack of the Mississippians? He had to know that they would take over the moment the guards had left. But he couldn’t worry about what Abel had meant with his cryptic remark about the leader of the Mississippi clan. Faye was more important than his kingdom.

“I heard it,” Haven confirmed. “Do what he says. It’ll buy us some time. How much longer to the cemetery?”

“Five minutes.”

“I’ll call Thomas,” Haven said. “Wes, you’d better come up with some spell to help us out.”

***

The cemetery still lay in darkness, but at the horizon Cain could already see the new day dawning. He jumped from the car.

“There should be protective gear in the back,” he called out to Haven and opened the trunk. Haven rushed to his side and together they rifled through the items at their disposal: one dark jacket, one hoodie, and gloves.