The only sticking point was Paige.

They couldn’t fool her. So, wisely, they wouldn’t try. They’d kidnap her and keep her out of the way while “Lucas” took over the Cabal. In the meantime, he’d continue searching doggedly for his wife-suitably heroic and sentimental. By the time he found her, she’d notice he wasn’t himself, but her protests would be chalked up to post-traumatic stress. Besides, he had changed-she’d left “Lucas Cortez: Cabal-fighter” and returned to “Lucas Cortez: Cabal leader.”

Whatever Paige’s reaction, Jaz assured me the path was predetermined. Divorce.

“Irreconcilable differences. Completely understandable under the circumstances. She’ll get a nice settlement, and I’ll be free to marry you.” He grinned. “It’ll be perfect. Lucas and Paige, estranged by tragedy and circumstance, parting civilly, and then, after a suitable period, who does he turn to? The beautiful half-demon who helped him find his wife, catch his brothers’ killer and save his father, then stood by his side through it all. A fairy-tale ending.”

The only thing left was for me to call Paige. And I would, because here was the fatal flaw in Jaz’s plan.

Two years ago, when I thought I’d been working for the council, I’d pictured them as a powerful group overseeing perhaps dozens of field agents. That was the perception many supernaturals had…and one the council knew better than to dispute, because it was far more intimidating than the truth: the delegates did all the work themselves. Jaz had heard enough of my conversation with Karl that night in the apartment to figure out I worked for the council. So, to him, I was one of that presumably vast network of operatives.

If that were true, and Paige knew me only as an employee, then the story he’d concocted seemed plausible enough. I’d been seduced into Jaz and Sonny’s scheme by my demon side, but now my real nature was asserting itself and I wanted to make amends. The person I’d naturally turn to was the one outside the Cabal. The one who was powerful in her own right. And the one with a reputation for being unrelentingly fair and merciful.

Had I really considered betraying the Cabal, then changed my mind, Paige was indeed the one I’d turn to. And she would help me…if she believed me capable of such a thing. Between Paige and Karl, they’d know this was a trap. She’d never accept my invitation at face value and show up alone. No matter how careful Jaz and Sonny were, they were only two men. No match for a Cabal SWAT team.

So I called.

“CAN YOU FEEL it?”

We stood in an office building alcove, tucked into the shadows. Jaz moved behind me and put his hands on my hips, leaning against my back. When I stiffened, he only chuckled and bent to kiss my neck.

“Not so fast, huh?” He rubbed my hips. “That wasn’t a problem before. We both felt it. Fast wasn’t nearly fast enough. It was like…”

He rested his chin on the top of my head. “I can’t even describe what it was like. I’m at a loss for words. Can you believe that? It’ll be like that again, Hope. I know, right now, you’re probably thinking ‘fat chance, you son-of-a-bitch,’ but you’ll see. We’ll pull this off and I’ll serve you the Cortez Cabal on a platter.” His arms slid around me. “Yours, mine and Sonny’s. All the power you’ve ever wanted. All the power you deserve. It’ll be…” A shiver ran through him. “Perfect.”

For just a moment, feeling that rising lick of chaos, I saw his dream glittering before me.

He was right. We did have something. I was a half-demon starving for chaos, and he was a chaos feast. Maybe if I was what I feared I was, I’d hear the rumble in my belly, urging me to partake.

I did feel a rumble, but it was only my stomach churning. Minutes to go. Could I pull this off? I had to.

I glanced around, searching the shadows alongside every darkened building. Looking for Karl, even as I hoped he wouldn’t risk coming so close.

Paige had agreed to meet me. She’d been smart enough not to give anything away on the phone, in case Jaz or Sonny was listening, just like she’d been smart enough not to press for details. But I could tell by her tone that she understood.

And so, as we waited for her, the Cabal SWAT team would be taking up position two blocks away, near the meeting site.

Jaz gave another low laugh, and his fingers traced a line under my left breast. “You do feel it. Your heart’s racing.”

His voice dropped, breathing accelerating as his fingers slid over my breast. He squeezed my nipple. I wrenched out of his grasp and wheeled. He backed up, hands raised, palms out.

“Sorry, sorry. I didn’t mean that, Hope. I’ll never-I won’t push. I swear it. I just…”

His gaze traveled down me, eyelids half closing as his lips parted. Then a sharp, full-body shake.

“Damn, damn, damn. We were so close. It would have made a difference. I know it would have. I wanted you so badly and you-” Another shake, harder, then a roll of his shoulders. “Okay, okay. Not the time, I know. Right now, we need to…”

His lips pursed as if he’d lost his train of thought.

“I need to meet Paige in five minutes,” I said.

“Duh, yes. Sorry. Let’s get moving.”

I WAS SUPPOSED to meet her at a parking lot. From there, we’d walk to a newly opened club a block away. This area of downtown Miami was peppered with office towers and didn’t see much of a nightlife. Scores of lights illuminated every building, but the sidewalks and roads were nearly empty, giving the street an eerie, deserted look. I shivered and blamed the cooler night air. The Metromover whirred past, making me jump.

As we approached the parking lot, Jaz spoke. “So you’re okay with the plan, right?”

“Meet her out front and cut down the laneway to the east. If she balks at taking the service road, circle the block and you’ll grab her from the other end of the lane.”

“Good, good.”

Another half-block, then he laid his hand on my arm. “Don’t do anything stupid, okay, Hope?”

“I’m not-”

He stepped in front and lowered his face closer to mine. Worry creased a line between his eyes. “I mean it. Please, please, please, don’t screw this up. I made a deal with Sonny. He’s not happy about bringing you in, but I swore you’d be smart, and if you aren’t…” He rubbed his throat and cleared it. “Just don’t. Please, Hope. Sonny will have you guys covered the whole time. If he sees anything go wrong-you deviate from the plan, Paige takes out her cell phone…He’s a crack shot.”

“I know.”

He nodded, squeezed my arm, then sent me on my way.

RIGHT ON SCHEDULE, Paige emerged from the dark depths of the lot. As she approached, her gaze tripped along the street. Every few seconds, a car passed, more when the lights two blocks down changed. Across the road, a couple walked, presumably heading to the club. Jaz had been meticulous choosing this location. Empty enough to avoid witnesses. Busy enough that it wouldn’t spook her.

I’d worried whether the parking lot itself would be a problem. It was almost empty, and only sprinkled with lights, as if they didn’t do enough business after dark to warrant more. For a guy, not a problem. A woman might think differently.

Paige blinked as she stepped from the shadows and the streetlights hit her.

“I hope you locked your car,” I called as she approached.

She started and pulled up short. Lost in her thoughts?

“Your car,” I said. “Did you lock it?”

“Um, right. Yes.”

Her voice was pitched higher than her usual contralto and her gaze kept darting along the road. Nervous, and not doing a very good job of hiding it. I told myself I was projecting my own tension on her. But as she drew closer, I could feel her anxiety, the chaos tickling along my nerves. I caught snippets of her thoughts. Random worries that she was making a mistake, that she never should have agreed.