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I gave Gilbert one last look, then left the vampire in silence as we returned to the main part of the house. I wasn’t surprised to see Piers and Abi waiting in the hallway. However, where Abi had almost worn a hole in the rug with her pacing, Piers stood as still as a statue, only his eyes following me.
“Well?” he said tersely.
“I’ve removed the spell or curse,” I sighed. It wasn’t exactly like I’d had the time to study it deeply before removing it. “But…he’s incredibly upset about what happened.”
“As is understandable,” Fenris added gravely.
Piers snarled as he looked toward the door. “Whatever else happens at the eclipse,” he hissed, “I am going to kill that bitch for hurting him.”
I was surprised to hear such a vehement declaration from the younger twin. Fenris simply eyed him for a moment before turning to me. “I need to leave for Argentina at once,” he said, frowning. He didn’t have to explain why. Given what had happened, damage control was in order, and he couldn’t leave it all to the human Orders of the Stars members. They’d need some paranormal help.
“Be safe,” I whispered, leaning up to give him a kiss before he headed further into the house, no doubt to find Walter.
As he walked away, Abi looked down the hallway leading to the containment room. “I’m going to see Gilbert.”
I shook my head. “He asked to be alone,” I said. “He’s concerned he might still be a risk.”
Abi grinned. “Well, that’s too damn bad,” she said. “You got all the bad magic out, right?”
“I did.”
“That’s what I thought. I’m not going to let him wallow and be miserable all by himself.”
I stepped to the side, fondly watching my friend as she marched down the hallway to go see Gilbert. When I looked to Piers to ask what he’d do, I realized the younger vampire had already disappeared, using my momentary distraction to spirit himself away.
The brunt of my exhaustion hit as I released a shuddering sigh. I felt cold all over, even though the house was anything but, and I knew the only thing I needed right now was sleep.If I can fall asleep,I thought grimly, trudging up the stairs to the master suite. Even my bones felt tired, but my mind still whirred away as I thought of Gilbert and Sabine and Fenris…and Zyanya.
This is just a taste of the misery she’d inflict if she got Fenris’s power. Earlier, I’d been tempted to follow through with Fenris’s plans and escape with him before the eclipse, yet what had happened to Gilbert only steeled my resolve. I wasn’t going to allow her to torment my friends like this. I’d go through with the ritual during the eclipse, no matter what.
I hope I’m doing enough to prepare.There was no one to tell me; I’d have no way of knowing until the moment came. As I changed out of my clothes and got ready for bed, I paused at the window, looking out at the waning moon.I wish you were here, Enora.She’d know what to do. Even if she couldn’t do this ritual with me, she’d at least steer me in the right direction.
Time to shake off these morose thoughts. I walked across the room and slid into bed, wrapping my arms around Fenris’s pillow as I inhaled, allowing the familiar scent of woodsmoke and cinnamon to comfort me. My eyelids grew heavy as I held it close.Be safe, I wished to Fenris again, and was pulled under.
Chapter 16
Fenris
Fenris’s Private Villa
Isla Lobo, Panama
Time Until the Eclipse: 10 Days
Checking on Gilbert was my first course of action on returning to Isla Lobo the following afternoon. He still looked horrible despite the presence of Abigail and Piers outside the holding cell. I’d have never classified either of the twins as a saint, yet Piers had struggled harder to adjust after I’d inadvertently freed them from their lord. He’d had a few small blood binges over the first century, though none had ever needed my intervention.
Gilbert, meanwhile, was the more careful brother, even cleaning up after Piers if he needed to, and as far as I knew, he’d rarely killed anyone at all. In fact, the only one who came to memory was well over a century ago, when I’d sent the twins back to France to deal with a “monster” menacing small farms, enough to start making a few newspapers. I’dassumedit was a lynx shifter that had decided “fuck all” and to plague the normal world.
Instead, Gilbert and Piers had found a human man kidnapping children and terrorizing farmers all on his own. There was nothing paranormal about him, but he was certainly a monster. Gilbert was the one to dispatch him, and he’d shown no regret. Nor would I have expected him to.
“Did you find Sabine?” Piers asked.
I shook my head. “No,” I said. “I took care of the rumors rippling through the area and made sure no humans would investigate the matter any further. It’s resolved.” As always, Sabine had disappeared shortly after setting Gilbert loose.
Piers growled and stood straighter. “We can’t let her just get away with this.”
I swallowed the urge to growl back and fixed the vampire with a stern look. “We aren’t letting her get away with anything. She’s playing her cat and mouse game as she always does. This is nothing new.”
He sniffed and brushed his clothing. “If she wants to play, then I will play.”
