“I am Hurin, and I am a Guardian.”
“A Guardian!” Angus’s brows raised in surprise, then lowered, as something like a scowl descended on his face. “You could have come forward to let us know, and we could have avoided all these alarms of the past weeks. Why are you here now?”
Hurin inclined his head toward Naomi. “That one should not have been able to sense my presence, yet it was clear that she did. Her years of exposure to true evil has made her sensitive.”
“Then why did she sense you, if you’re not evil?” Beth challenged. Naomi was impressed at her sister’s bravery.
Hurin didn’t seem to take offense. “She sensed the danger I represented, the potential threat. Her sister also likely has this ability. This will be a boon to your community here,” he continued, his gaze returning to Naomi. “Your instincts are excellent. Learn to trust them. Remember what it felt like, when you sensed me. Any time someone elicits those feelings, do not question it but report it to one of the elders of this community immediately. If needed, they can call a Guardian for verification.”
“What is a Guardian?” Beth asked, just as Naomi was about to ask the same question.
Hurin’s gaze moved to Beth. “We are a cadre of mythicals whose stated purpose is to root out the evil amongst the supernaturals. Word reached us of the activity of the Rogue here, and of the existence of the females in Florida who were apprehended by your Council. I was sent to make sure no others were lurking.”
“Had you come to us,” Angus said, the angry note in his voice remaining, “we could have reassured you about Naomi, and indeed, her sister.”
Hurin’s gaze turned stern. “We do not accept the assurances of others. The charge to judge, and to act, is laid on the Guardians. With the exception of those such as Lady Flora.”
He gave Flora an oddly courtly bow. “You conceal your presence well, M’Lady. Had I known, my concern would have been allayed. None of your kind would remain where darkness lurked.”
At Naomi’s side, Liam stirred. “So you are judge, jury, and executioner, then.”
“It must be so, for the sake of us all. You shifters have done well, policing your own. But you cannot be everywhere, nor can you see into the heart and soul of another. Nor should you wish for that burden.”
Naomi frowned, trying to make sense of this. “You came here and have been watching me, to be sure I wasn’t a Rogue?”
“In essence, that is correct,” Hurin inclined his head toward her. “As I did with the others in Ohio.”
“Lady Flora, she told us that… that we are not related to them by blood.”
“That is so,” he affirmed.
She gulped, and she and Beth exchanged glances. She worried at her lower lip with her teeth, striving to find the words to ask the questions burning in her mind.
“Those women you thought your sisters also are not related to the older ones,” he told her, and Naomi’s eyes widened.
“You can read my mind?”
He shrugged slightly. “If I wish. In this case, your thoughts were so loud I could not but hear them.”
Lady Flora nodded her agreement, giving them a faint smile. “I concur with that.”
“The other sisters are irredeemable,” Hurin stated. “Whether they were born with the darkness in them, or it was taught to them, is unknown, and immaterial at this point. They fully embraced being Rogue, and there is no return from that.”
“Wh-what will happen to them?” Beth asked hesitantly, her voice trembling a little.
“They will live out their lives in the Sanctuary of the shifters.” A faint curve of his lips, not quite a smile, relieved the severity of his features. “And no, I will not execute them. It is not needed. However, I have taken in their essence. Should they escape the Sanctuary somehow, I will be able to track them anywhere in the world, and I will end them.”
He turned his attention to Angus and Renee. “I have spent weeks scanning this area. There is no hint of evil, no darkness in the paranormals. You’ve done well, keeping this area safe. Should you have need in future, Lady Flora knows how to contact me, and I will come.”
His gaze returned to Naomi and Beth. He bent from the waist in the kind of old-fashioned courtly bow like he’d given Flora, his hands spread in the universal gesture for peace.
“My apologies for the discomfort you have experienced from my surveillance.”
And with that he was gone, striding back to disappear around the corner of the inn.
Questions hovered on Naomi lips, but she held them back. Angus’ face was still set in firm, determined lines, and Renee’s narrowed eyes were fixed on the inn presumably watching Hurin’s retreat.
Slowly the older couple seemed to relax, and after a minute, Renee turned to smile at them.
