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"All right," I said, drawing in a breath "Here's e're going to do "

Chapter 28

An hour later, just after eight o'clock, I slipped onto the Dubois estate

The h bluff, and a set of stone steps led fro the Aneirin River I'd had Finn dropthe riverbank until I ca up the into the woods at the top of the bluff There weren't even any security cameras for me to avoid No ical trip-wires strung in between the trees in the woods Lax security all the way around Then again, Salina wanted people to co again

Noas hidden in the trees, dressed in h a pair of high-powered binoculars

The woods bordered the north lawn, and I scanned the spectacle before one all out Tables covered with blue-green linens had been set up on the lawn, and I could see the glitter of crystal and silver on the with the faint flickers of lit candles She'd even sprung for a couple of bars made of elemental Ice Sharp peaks had been carved into the surface of the Ice, representing water, waves, and the ocean, along with Salina's h my binoculars Deadly beauty, indeed

According to the inforathered, the dinner wasn't supposed to officially start until eight thirty, but a crowd had already gathered on the srass The owns Even frooers wore, as the jewels vainly murmured of their own faceted beauty

I'd been right when I'd told Finn that all the power players would bring their bodyguards Men and wouns could be seen aiants, but there were a fearves, vamps, elementals, and humans in the mix too All of theuards with cold, hostile intent Everyone was on their best behavior, and it was obvious they didn't like it one bit

Waiterstrays of bite-size food, while severaldrinks as fast as they could A couple of them were Ice elementals whose job was to keep the curvedin the May heat Their eyes flashed blue and white in the twilight as they held on to their ic

But the fountains hat caught and held my attention

There were seven of the different shapes, all with a water theme One fountain was relatively flat, with e, as if the floere really floating on the surface instead of being anchored in place Another fountain featuredsteady streams of it up into the air The other sculptures featured ns They were all beautiful, and I could tell that Cooper had crafted the else he made

I focused on the largest fountain, the centerpiece of the lawn It was another fucking , flowing, metal hair covered the er crooked out, inviting folks to co that she was really luring the s here tonight

Finn had been right about what Salina wanted the fountains for They were arranged in a wide circle, with all the tables and people situated in between theaps between the fountains A kill zone if I ever saw one Given Salina's ic, she could easily flood the whole area ater from the fountains, then let loose with her eleet out unless she wanted them to - and I doubted she'd offer anyone that mercy

Eyeing the fountains, I wondered how long Salina would let the water just bubble, foa the rippling surfaces into soe she'd waited so long for

On the ground beside h