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KADE LURKED NEAR THE entrance to the Magic Guildhall. He delved all of the female magic users who passed him by, judging their magical strength. He’d camouflaged himself against the wall with the spell that was turning out to be extremely handy. Only someone with his talent to see through illusions would notice him.
So far, he hadn’t had much luck finding someone with enough magic to be a good match. He didn’t want to admit to himself that he was also looking for a woman who appealed to him physically. Sebastian and Eden had fallen deeply for each other even before they’d become bound. He wished he could share their luck. Every fae woman who walked past him was beautiful, but none of them stirred him the way Sorcha did.
Just thinking about the mysterious blonde woman with the golden tint to her skin was enough to make him daydream about her. He started thinking of ways he could boost her power so he could make her his. The warlock gave himself a mental slap to the head at that thought. He’d formed a slight obsession with her after their kiss. She’d been hesitant and uncertain at first, but her confidence had grown rapidly. It had almost seemed like it had been the first time she’d ever been kissed, which he was sure was just wishful thinking.
Kade lost track of how long he’d been standing there when he heard a distant roar. Screams rang out from some of the beings in the City Square who had far better hearing than he did. He straightened up from his slouch when a group of fairies sent magical red flares into the air. It was a cry for help and he went into action.
Racing past the fountain, he skidded to a stop when he saw a pack of rogue shifters in their bestial forms. They were coming from the Shifter District. The pack would cross the bridge and reach the square within seconds.
A carriage pulled up and Night Cursed police officers spilled out. They surged towards the oncoming werecreatures in an effort to slow them down. Kade winced in sympathy when the lead shifters reached them. Claws raked the cops and fangs bit into their flesh. Panic had broken out and people were running in all directions. Kade just stood there, helpless to do anything without exposing his power to the crowd.
Another carriage arrived and Xiara Evora leaped out. She saw the oncoming wave of rogues and took charge. “Band together and create a shield!” she shouted at a group of frozen witches. The women snapped out of their terrified dazes as the Guardian of Nox hunted for more helpers.
Kade joined the magic users who had just been deputized by Ms. Evora. They joined their power and formed an invisible shield like they’d been ordered. Kade strengthened it with his magic as more Night Cursed law keepers arrived. The cops, soldiers, agents and other cursed beings began firing their weapons at the shifters to help drive them back.
Roaring in pain, rage and hunger, the beasts were slowly herded back towards the bridge. Kade spared a glance at the broken bodies of the fallen. All were cursed and would be resurrected the following night. They’d proven themselves to be far braver than the uncursed civilians.
“Keep it up!” Xiara shouted while she lunged at the rogues with her silver sword. She used her black shield to push them back. She was careful to only wound them lightly so she didn’t kill any of them. She couldn’t take a life of an uncursed being without the Immortal Triumvirate’s permission.
One of the ravenous werecreatures howled and the pack suddenly turned to flee. Night Cursed law keepers piled into carriages to chase after them. Xiara sprinted after them on foot. She kept up with them despite being a human rather than a supernatural being.
Kade’s back stiffened when the Immortal Triumvirate suddenly appeared. They’d been drawn from their headquarters by the screams. “What was all that noise about?” Lord Kreaton snapped, directing his glare at the young courier.
The warlock bowed his head subserviently. He kept his eyes lowered so they didn’t get a good look at his face. “A pack of rogue shifters just attempted to attack us, my lord,” Kade replied. He saw Lord Dallinar tuck a wand into his pocket and hid his smirk. The fairy was so drunk it was a wonder he’d managed to teleport them at all.
“It looks like they succeeded,” Lord Graham said, then nudged a shredded corpse with his shoe.
“They’re Night Cursed police officers, my lord,” Kade explained.
“No uncursed civilians were killed?” Lord Dallinar asked, swaying on his feet slightly. He pronounced his words with exaggerated care, uselessly trying to pretend he wasn’t inebriated.
“No, my lord,” Kade said. He was glad he’d figured out a way to mask his power, but it wasn’t easy to hide his hatred of the trio. These men had imprisoned his mother and had forced her to become pregnant with him. She’d spent most of her life in a cell and she’d died far too young.
“Pity,” the lilac-haired fairy muttered. “We could have had them all eradicated if they’d eaten a witch or two.”
Lord Graham snarled at his ally for suggesting his people should be slaughtered. The master vampire glared at him warningly, silently telling him not to air their grievances in front of the crowd that had gathered around them.
“It isn’t our fault we keep turning rogue!” a shifter called out. “Too many of our alphas are dead and we don’t have anyone to control us!”
“We’re starving!” someone else shouted. “You’re supposed to be our rulers, but you don’t do anything to help us!”
Uneasy at the ugly tone of the crowd, the Immortal Triumvirate exchanged glances. “Raise your concerns with your Guild Masters!” Lord Kreaton called out. “They can discuss the matter with us at our next meeting!”
Kade melted into the throng. He slunk away as Lord Dallinar teleported himself and his allies back to their headquarters on the far side of the square.
“Cowards!” a werewolf muttered. “This is all their fault.”
“Careful,” someone cautioned him. “You’ll be the next one to disappear if they hear you talking like that.”
The warning was enough to make the crowd disperse. No one said outright that their leaders were behind most of the missing and dead. But everyone knew how dangerous it was to speak out against them.
A flickering face caught the warlock’s attention as he headed for the Magic Guildhall to return to his vigil. He looked through the glamor and saw Sorcha’s gorgeous face. He smiled and she smiled back. When he gestured for her to follow him, she nodded in agreement.
His smile turned into a happy grin that made a group of witches sigh wistfully. Some of them were old enough to be his grandmother. He knew it was stupid to feed his obsession with Sorcha, but he couldn’t resist speaking to her again. He was relieved she hadn’t been harmed by any of the rogue shifters. She didn’t have enough magic to be able to protect herself from the ravenous horde like he could.
Kade glanced over his shoulder when he reached the corner of a side street. Sorcha caught up to him and took his arm when he offered it to her. He guided her around the corner, then pushed her into the shadows of a deeply set doorway so they could talk in relative privacy.
