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Nick was getting really irritated "In where? Trouble? Synch? Between?"

They exchanged an auess

"You’re warm," Caleb said with an evil twist to his lips

Yeah, that cloas definitely possessing hirave; du voile," Kody said

Nick scowled "The world behind the veil?"

She nodded "Why do you think they call this neutral ground?"

"Because the Creoles in the Quarter," he pointed to the left side of Canal, "and the Aht, "couldn’t stand each other So they let weeds and crap grow up to be a barrier between the two parts of the city Later, they started s Since they were conducting a for all the round"

"Yeah … you keep on believing the lies our kind feed to the huainst Nick’s shoulder "Haven’t you ever wondered about the Spanish Plaza behind this place?"

Was he on demon crack? "Uet my feet hen I was a kid"

Kody juh, the fountain in the center of it and its surrounding area bears a scary reseht down to the way it lays with the river?"

"No But that has a lot to do with the fact that I don’t knoho or what Xibalba is"

"Mayan underworld," Kody explained "The word itself means ‘place of fear’ And all over the world, there are doorways from this world to others Doore can use to access alternate places"

Nick glanced up at the sinister statue "Well, that explains Mr Creepy Clown being here, doesn’t it?"

A slow smile curled one side of Caleb’sto be some twisted fun"

"Malphas!" Kody snapped "Don’t you dare!"

Walking backwards, Caleb spread his arot to I can’t resist It’s pulling reat physical pain

Kody growled at Caleb before she took Nick’s hand and pulled hi his feet, but he couldn’t do that if this really would get hi, then launched hiht up to the very narrow pedestal the clown stood on Nick gaped at what had to be a twenty-foot ju about the size of a narroo-by-four

"Forget quarterback You ought to play running back"

Ignoring him, Caleb reached to the smaller jester head on a stick that Nick had named Mr Little Creepy

Nick curled his lip "Don’t touch that thing You’re gonna get rabies or scabies or parvo or soh, Caleb touched the head

"Get your finger out of , Nick jumped three feet back as the statue ca was a minion of hell!"

The jester went slack-jawed as he turned his head toward Caleb "Please tell me he isn’t one of us"

"Hate to disappoint you, Sal"

The jester ony "How far de our fa heavily, he shook his head Then he glanced back to Caleb "I suppose you want in?"

"Yes, we do"

The jester held the small head out toward Caleb "You know the cost of ader, then allowed nine drops of blood to fall onto the smaller clown head

The jester tapped his heart with the little head, then waved it high above As he ht flickered so fast that for a s

"Thanks, Sal" Caleb juhtmares? Sure Will now have plenty of them, Cay, merci beaucoup"

Caleb snorted "You’re such a baby"

Yeah, right "I’m not the only person who doesn’t like clowns, you know?"

Kody patted his shoulder in syiant Lafayette horse statue beside the Trade Center, Lafayette lifted his tricorn hat to them as his horse reared up on its pedestal The statue rider jerked its reins and it settled down "Malphas," he said in greeting

Caleb inclined his head to him "Gilbert Good to see you"

"Et toi, rave; bientôt"

His jaw dropping, Nick blinked at Caleb "I think I nohat it is you do when you’re not with me How much time do you spend here?" Apparently, a lot

Caleb passed hi about"

Sure he didn’t…

Without another word, Caleb led theh hundreds of times in his life Norous, ornate fountain would be on the right and an oyster bar straight back

Tonight, the air seemed to shiver around theht blinded Nick for the ain, the Plaza had a dolow ht as day And the water in the fountain appeared to be blood

"What is this place?" he whispered to Kody

"Think of it like an a station It’s where demons ant to enter the human world can stay until they find a way in Or dele with nonhuestured to what appeared to be a row of stores and a building that had strangefrom it "There’s even a demon brothel and bar"