When she finally sensed my presence and turned her face toward me, a smile stretched across her lips, lighting me up from the inside.
“Emilio,” she breathed. She set down her cards and mug, fighting her way out of the lighthouse blanket that’d tangled around her legs.
“Don’t get up. I’ll come to you.” I took off my coat and my holster, then joined her on the couch, pulling her legs into my lap. She snuggled in closer, tucking her head beneath my chin. Her hair tickled my neck, and I breathed in her sweet scent, wrapping my arms around her, holding her close.
If I had my way, I’d never let her go.
“Tell me the update,” she said.
“Do I have to? I’d much rather pretend we’re here on vacation, taking a break from a long day of… well, whatever it is people do on vacation.”
“That sounds nice,” she said dreamily, letting us both live in the fantasy a little longer. I pressed my lips to the top of her head, kissing her hair.
She sighed contentedly, but despite her outward calmness, I felt the anxiety spike in her energy. She needed to know where we were at with the hunters.
Blowing out a breath, I said, “Once they came to, we brought the three Deirdre’d knocked out in for questioning.”
“Any sign of the prison?”
“Jael picked up the signature of fae spellwork near the sight, but he said it was an inactive spell, already fading. There were no signs of any cave entrances or activity in the area. No footprints, no litter, no disturbed plant life. None of the things we usually see when we’ve got activity in an area near the beach. Ronan and Darius are still combing the shoreline, looking to see if we missed anything.”
She arched an eyebrow. “So Ronan let Darius out on good behavior?”
“He seems to have mellowed out a bit since your… encounter.”
She lowered her eyes, her cheeks darkening. The scent of her desire drifted on the air, threatening to send me into a frenzy. God, she was beautiful.
“Did the hunters give you anything to go on?” she asked, shifting so she could look up at me. The movement of her legs made my cock stand up and take notice.
Not a good time, bud.
“Not… especially.” I shifted, trying to steer my wayward thoughts back to the topic at hand. The case, not the gorgeous witch sitting in my lap. “Lansky and I did the good cop, bad cop routine for hours, but all we managed to learn was that Jonathan has gone missing, and no one knows what the hell they’re supposed to do now.”
“I’m pretty sure he’s still trapped in my realm,” she said. “I… connected with Liam earlier, and he said he’s been tracking him there, trying to make sure he doesn’t get out. Even if he does, though, I doubt his men would even recognize him anymore.” She shuddered against me, undoubtedly remembering her encounters with the deformed creature formerly known as Jonathan in the Shadowrealm.
I ran my hand down her back, calming her.
“It’s hard to differentiate fact from fiction with these assholes,” I said, “but from what we’ve gathered so far, it sounds like there’s a separate faction of hunters that splintered off from Jonathan’s group, and they’re working more closely with the Darkwinter fae.”
“So, Jonathanwasn’tworking with fae?”
“He may have been, but for whatever reason, others have moved in on his territory. Like I said, the guys are pretty tight-lipped, and half of what they’re feeding us is probably bullshit, but it’s starting to sound more like a coup.”
“The ones you picked up from the beach—those were definitely Jonathan’s guys?”
“Yes. They had brands on their arms that matched the ones Darius saw on the hunters who attacked him in the hotel room, as well as the markings we found on—”
“Sophie and the other witches.” She shuddered again.
“We still don’t know what the markings mean, if anything.”
“Probably some kind of sigil magic. Jonathan was so desperate, trying any combination of magic he could get his hands on, cherry-picking his way across all kinds of traditions and lore.”
“What worries me is that this other group may have better resources. More capabilities.” I pulled the blanket up around her shoulder, holding her close again. “It happens in the business world all the time. The little fish invents something useful, but doesn’t quite know how to manage or market it. Big fish comes in and gobbles up the company, expanding on it, branching out. Taking it global.”
We’d talked a little bit after dinner the other night about the situation in the Bay, and our theories about the wider implications of Darkwinter’s involvement and the Council’s treachery. We still hadn’t put together the whole story, but we were getting closer, piece by painstaking piece. And the picture all these clues were starting to paint didnotlook good.
“So what happens now?” she asked.
