Chapter 2
Chapter Two
Noel
A combination of nerves and excitement kept Noel Banner sitting in the rental car in the parking lot of Protective Solutions.
The nerves were new—he rarely suffered from anxiety and went about his life and work with complete confidence.
But he was feeling them today, nonetheless.
A tangle of trepidation and anticipation in his gut that felt like a weighted rock.
The excitement, he understood.
Now, he was about to go inside and meet the sorcerer his superiors had brought up often.
A sorcerer they believed to be one of the oldest preternaturals in existence and one who possibly wielded more power than they were guessing.
Xavier ran a protection service company, but he also delved into investigation and more.
The people in Noel’s agency believed Xavier was responsible for stopping some of the more alarming preternaturals from doing damage.
Hell, he’d even stopped a trafficking ring run by a human.
Xavier was powerful, but he wasn’t what Noel was nervous and excited about.
Because now, Xavier was digging into a stream of thefts Noel’s agency, Arcane Intelligence, was also trying to investigate, and from what Noel understood, Xavier’s IT guy was close to figuring out who was behind it.
That IT guy was Daniel Ravenwood.
It had been five years since he’d spent the best weekend of his life with Daniel Ravenwood. A weekend where he’d broken every company rule for the first time in his life.
But he’d been unable to resist the very pretty banshee.
At his first sight of that lean body, regal face, and interested smile, he’d been hooked.
He’d known what Daniel was right away from the clawed fingers and the lack of white in his eyes.
Noel saw through the magical glamours that preternaturals used to help them blend into the human world.
It was that ability that had led him to join a government agency that tried to police what went on in the preternatural world.
Emphasis on the word tried, because when it came to magic, anything was possible.
And he thrived on that knowledge. It made his job always interesting.
Which was why his superiors had been shocked when he’d told them this was his last job. He was ready to do something else with his life. He had no idea what just yet, but he’d grown tired of the constant traveling, and at forty-five, he was ready to settle down with someone.
He was hoping that someone was Daniel.
So yes, he was excited to see him, but the nerves were also very real.
He’d lied to Daniel, giving him a fake name.
Then he’d gotten up in the middle of the night and disappeared, after three days of mind-blowing sex, intense beyond anything Noel had experienced.
And their time together had gone so much further than sex.
Real intimacy had happened. They had shared stories of their lives, their hopes and dreams. Noel had felt a connection deeper than anything he could have imagined, and he wanted that back.
So he’d spent the last two days in Seattle looking around for a place to live.
He’d actually flown in early for that very reason.
He hadn’t found one; he was just too wired with both worry and anticipation of seeing Daniel again to give any place the perusal needed.
He’d ended up spending a lot of those two days pacing in his hotel room.
And now it was happening.
Daniel Ravenwood was right now inside that building, and Noel had no idea what his reception was going to be like.
He could only hope the banshee would be happy to see Noel. After…or rather if…he got past the lie.
Stepping out of the car, Noel strode into the building.
Because he’d been able to see through glamours his entire life, he easily kept his features schooled as he saw demons, an ogre, elves, and more.
There was a receptionist at the front who directed him to the third floor, where the main offices of Protective Solutions were.
It seemed a lot of the employees hung around the first floor as well.
Once on the third floor, he couldn’t help but look for that head of silky, black hair as he passed between cubicles on his way to the office, which was up a short flight of stairs. But he didn’t spot Daniel, and disappointment filled him.
He knocked next to the open door, and Xavier looked up from his desk before he stood. It was surreal to be looking at the sorcerer who caused so much speculation at his own office. And as Noel walked into the room, he felt a wave of powerful magic.
Yeah, they might have estimated the age and power of Xavier, but none of their guesses were even close. Noel had always been able to sense the approximate age of preternaturals, but where this one was concerned, he had absolutely no idea. Old was all he knew. Very, very old.
Though he didn’t look it, and in fact looked younger than Noel by about ten years. If he hadn’t had his experience with preternaturals, Noel would have guessed him to be about thirty-five. He was also very attractive, though still nowhere as pretty as the banshee Noel hoped to see.
He held out his hand. “I’m Noel Banner. Thanks so much for meeting with me.”
“The appreciation is mutual. I’ve been running into mentions of your agency for several years now.
I’m intrigued to find out what it is about this particular case that made you reach out.
” He waved a hand at the chair in front of his desk.
“Have a seat, and I’ll get you something to drink. Coffee or tea?”
“Coffee would be great, thanks.”
Noel used the time Xavier was gone to look around his office, which was all sleek gray, black and white lines.
Very modern feeling except for the walls of old books, which provided a stark contrast. There were candles and gemstones—all things he’d expect to see when it came to wizards, witches, and sorcerers.
But otherwise, the room was painfully neat.
And said a lot about the sorcerer who worked here. A mix of old and new.
Xavier walked back in and handed him a steaming cup of coffee and a handful of creamers and sweeteners. Since Noel drank it black, he set those on the desk.
“Thank you,” he said, then sipped it. “It’s very good coffee.”
“There are a lot of coffee snobs here.” Xavier took his seat and folded his arms on top of his desk. He said nothing—just waited for Noel to speak. His stare was hard, keen…and Noel got the feeling this sorcerer didn’t like him for some reason.
But whether the sorcerer liked him or not didn’t matter.
Noel leaned back in the chair and held onto the warm mug.
“We’re reaching out to you because we feel it would be of mutual benefit to collaborate on this investigation.
As you are probably already aware, several very powerful magical items have been stolen, but one of those in particular is alarming.
An amulet that grants the holder control over minds and, we believe…
magical abilities. Have you heard of such an amulet? ”
“I have, and I hadn’t heard that it had actually been stolen.
” His frown was fierce. “I don’t see how that could have been taken.
The sorcerer who protects it had it in a very secure location, and in fact, it was his main job to make sure it never got into the wrong hands.
He would have had powerful wards surrounding it. ”
“We believe the thief is a jinn, so he or she was able to get into that secure location. How they broke the wards is a question we haven’t yet figured out.”
“Just what is it that your company does?” Xavier asked.
“Are you asking because you really don’t know, or do you know and just want to hear my answer?” Of course, Noel knew. And while he knew he needed to get through this conversation with all his faculties intact, a part of him was still humming with impatience to see Daniel.
The corner of Xavier’s lips went up. “Arcane Intelligence originated fifteen years ago, put together by Robert Hamm and Dillon Springs, two humans who have the ability to see through magical glamours. They believe they can actually police situations that happen in the magical community, but I must say, that would be impossible. Not without having their own magic to counteract. But then, you also have three preternaturals on your payroll.”
Noel gave a slow nod. “I’m impressed. But not surprised. You know, you’re kind of a legend in my company.”
“Only kind of?” Xavier lifted one black brow.
Noel snorted. “No one is actually able to guess how old you are, though. I don’t suppose you’d like to share?”
Xavier smiled faintly. “I would not.”
“I do have a rather personal question. For someone with your extraordinary abilities, why a company for bodyguards? Why not a flat-out investigation firm?” Especially because he had someone like Daniel on his payroll.
Daniel had impressed the IT guys at Arcane so much, he’d been a topic of conversation many times.
Xavier studied him for what felt like a long time before he finally spoke.
“Every single preternatural who works for me is good. They are able to use their talents to make a difference, and I, in turn, benefit from knowing that together we are putting good out into the world. That is all you need to know.”
“It seems both our organizations have the same goal. We’d like to work with you to get this amulet back and to find it a more secure location—or destroy it altogether. Is that possible?”
“It is. But Warner, the sorcerer who guarded it, would have taken the possibility of a jinn into account. There is something more at play here.”
“Like what?”
“I don’t know yet.” Xavier leaned forward. “But I will find out.”
Noel nearly shivered at the surge of power that poured off Xavier, but he managed to suppress it because he wanted to show no weakness here. He needed the sorcerer’s help. Plus, he actually did want his respect.
Especially when he was about to be “introduced” to Daniel.
“So,” Noel said casually. “I was told I’d be working with your IT specialist, since he’s already so close to finding the thief.” Could Xavier tell how nervous he was? The sorcerer’s face was unreadable.
“Yes, of course. Come,” Xavier said as he stood in a fluid, graceful movement.
Noel stood as well, anticipation flowing from that knot in his gut to warm his limbs.
Finally.
Finally, it was time to see the object of his long obsession again.