"From Roslyn's stash of costumes at Northern Aggression," Finn said. "Where else would I get such come-hither clothes?"
Since leaving the Pork Pit, Finn had used his various connections to find out that there was a theme to tonight's masquerade ball-Fire and Ice. How ironic. Finn had even managed to get photos emailed to him of what some of the other folks would be wearing in order to help Owen and me blend in. Hence all the leather.
"You look like a completely different person," Bria said from her spot on the couch.
I turned and looked at my baby sister, who had an unreadable expression on her face. After closing down the restaurant, I'd come over to Fletcher's house to tell her what was going on-and exactly what I was up to. Bria hadn't liked it, hadn't liked my making another run at Mab, but there wasn't much she could do about it. Not without getting captured by Gentry or one of the other bounty hunters and making the mess we were in that much worse.
"I don't know. I think I like Gin's costume a lot better than mine," Owen rumbled and stepped into the den.
If I was the ice-queen dominatrix, then Owen was my eager client for the night. He also wore leather pants, although his were black and topped by a jacket and matching vest crisscrossed with silverstone chains. The magical metal clanked with every step he took. The two of us looked like a pair of sexual deviants ready to get our freak on, but according to Finn's info, our costumes would be among the tamer ones at the party.
Owen and I were already late, so I checked my knives one final time, then turned to him.
"You ready?"
Owen nodded. "As I'll ever be."
"We should go then," I murmured.
I looked at Finn, then turned to Bria. My sister hadn't said much while we'd been making plans and getting ready, but worry tightened her face-worry for me. The emotion made my heart twist and soar in my chest all at the same time. Despite what I was, despite all the people that I'd killed, Bria had somehow come to care for me, at least a little bit. It was more than I'd ever dreamed of-and somehow, it made everything that I'd suffered over the years worthwhile.
Bria leaned forward and grabbed my hand. Then, to my surprise, she reached for her Ice magic. For a moment, I wondered what she was doing, but then I felt her cool power trickle into the silverstone ring on my right index finger. Her ring, the one that she'd given me for Christmas. A slender silver band with a spider rune stamped in the middle of it.
Lots of elementals wore jewelry made out of silver-stone, since the metal was capable of absorbing and holding their magic. By wearing pieces of the metal, elementals could have access to an extra influx of power should they need it. Like, say, if they decided to duel another elemental, to test their power against the other person's. It wasn't cheating, not exactly, since everyone did it, but it was still sneaky.
The two rings on Bria's left index finger hummed with her Ice magic, as did the primrose rune that she wore on the chain around her neck. My ring was small and thin, but the silverstone still soaked up quite a bit of Bria's power, until it felt like a band of Ice pressing against my skin. The sensation wasn't an unpleasant one. If anything, it comforted me to be taking a piece of my sister with me into battle.
"Thank you for that," I said. "I had been meaning to store my magic in the ring, but hadn't done it yet. I'm not one for wearing jewelry."
"I'd noticed that," Bria said in a wry tone. "And I know that you prefer to use your knives, but you just never know what you might need. Especially... tonight."
I nodded, not sure what to say. I didn't want to offend my sister or push her farther away, but we both knew what I was planning to do tonight-kill Mab in cold blood the way that I had so many other people. Even if she deserved it for everything she'd done to us, part of Bria would have preferred to handle the Fire elemental through legal means, to throw her in jail and let her rot.
Not me. I just wanted Mab dead, and I wasn't picky about how she got there.
"Just-just be careful, Gin. Okay?" Bria asked, staring at me.
I squeezed her cold fingers with mine. "I always am, baby sister. I always am."
Thirty minutes later, Owen steered his BMW up the driveway that led to the Five Oaks Country Club, where the masquerade ball was being held. Five Oaks was the snobbiest, most expensive, and highfalutin country club in Ashland, and only the insanely wealthy and powerful were allowed to be members.
I stared out the window at the snow-covered buildings of the club. The last time I'd been here was several months ago when I'd been stalking Alexis James, the Air elemental who'd tortured and murdered Fletcher. Alexis had managed to outmaneuver me that day, taking Finn and Roslyn hostage and escaping before I could kill her. I couldn't afford to be that sloppy tonight, not with Mab, or I'd be the one who wouldn't be leaving the club alive.
"You ready?" Owen asked in a soft voice.
I let out a breath and nodded. "As I'll ever be," I said, echoing his words.
Owen leaned over in the darkness of the car and pressed his lips to mine. For a moment that was all too brief, I just let myself feel-Owen's lips warming mine, the faintest rasp of his stubble against my skin, his fingers sliding down my cheek. I breathed in, letting his rich, earthy scent fill my nose.
And then the kiss ended, and I was the Spider once more.
A valet came and took the car away. After we made note of where he put it, Owen and I strolled inside the country club arm in arm. Owen gave his engraved invitation to the tuxedo-clad vampire manning the interior door. The vamp waved us on, and we stepped into the main ballroom. We moved to one side of the open doors, getting our bearings and watching the ebb and flow of people.
Five massive, circular buildings comprised the Five Oaks Country Club, including the ballroom before us, which covered several thousand feet and towered four stories into the air. Multiple sets of stairs led to the upper levels, each of which featured a balcony that circled the entire ballroom. The walkways made it all the better for the rich snobs to look down on their peers. A glass dome arched high overhead, forming the ceiling. Through the glass, I could just make out the soft curve of the moon. The bright silver sliver peaked through the thin clouds that wisped across the sky like a child playing peek-a-boo. Now you see me, now you don't.
Floor-to-ceiling glass windows lined the back wall of the ballroom, along with doors that led outside. In daylight hours, the sweeping view would show off the club's acorn-shaped swimming pools, several tennis courts, and, of course, the green carpet of the back nine. Tonight, though, only darkness and snow peeped through.