11. Rami
Rami
Iwaited a few moments until I was sure Ethan had to be indoors, then I was back out of the car and walking up to the house with the green door.
The house I couldn’t see.
Why can’t I see it?
All my instincts were screaming at me to stop. Not to take a step further.
But Ethan was in there.
My mate.
I should be able to hear him. Should be able to see the damned house he lived in.
But I couldn’t.
I crouched low to the ground, my lips thinning as I found what I was looking for. The quiet hum of power that encircled Ethan’s property. A ward.
I was well familiar with them. We had them all over the compound. It was why no one could see the house unless they were a member of the Seraphim.
Or mated to one.
If I had to guess, this ward had been spelled in a similar way. I nudged at it with my power.
Nothing happened.
Straightening, I cast a quick compulsion net in case anyone glanced out of their windows.
Then, I unleashed my lightning.
It bounced off of the wards, ricocheting through the air. I tried again. And again. And again.
There was no breaking through them.
What the fuck? Just who had set these? And why?
I paced up and down the path, wracking my brain. Maybe a supe had lived here previously and hadn’t lifted them? Or was it perhaps one of the Southampton demons? If Ethan was still in touch with one of his friends from there, it’d make sense that they’d extend their protection to him.
Problem with that was I knew all of their signatures. The one on these wards wasn’t similar to any of them.
Fear crawled along my spine. Who was it, and why hadn’t I come across them before?
I came to a halt, trying to figure out who to call first. There was no chance I was walking away and leaving my mate somewhere I couldn’t reach him. Not when I didn’t know why these wards had been set.
It explained a lot about why I hadn’t been able to find him before the day he almost died though. If Ethan didn’t go out often, the opportunities the bond had to lead me to him would’ve been limited.
What it didn’t explain was when these wards had been set or why.
Ethan’s safe. He’s marked. Anyone sensible would recognise your claim and steer well away from him.
My attempt at reasoning with myself wasn’t successful. It wasn’t the sensible supes I was worried about. It was the daredevil ones. The ones who might see a marked human and take it as a challenge, a way of attacking the Seraphim without having to face off against us.
By taking out Ethan instead.
No. I couldn’t risk it. I couldn’t risk him.
Question was, what the fuck could I do? Wasn’t like I could go knock on his door. Couldn’t see the fucking thing, for a start.
Benji. That was who I needed to call. He knew the most about warding. He was the most logical too. If anyone could talk me down, it’d be him.
I fired off a quick text before prowling around the property once more. As far as I could tell, Ethan’s house was the only one in the terrace that had been warded. It extended all the way down to the path at the front and covered the entirety of what I assumed was a small back garden.
Wings beating the air greeted me as I arrived back at the front of the property. Benji landed beside me, head already cocked in interest. “Why is there a house missing?”
“It’s warded.”
“This is where Ethan lives?”
I nodded once. “Can you break them?”
Benji pursed his lips. “I can try.”
My skin felt tight over my bones as Benji scrutinised the wards closely. From the thinning of his lips, I was guessing he was also unfamiliar with the signature. He spent far longer studying them than I had before stepping back with a sigh. “I don’t think I’ll be able to lift them.”
“Try anyway,” I said through gritted teeth. “I can’t have my mate somewhere I can’t get to him.”
“He’s unlikely to be hurt in his own home, especially now he’s marked.”
My fury was quiet, but deadly nonetheless. “Ethan is my mate, Benji. Someone has warded his home, and I want to know why. There’s no fucking way I’m leaving without knowing it’s my own wards here, or at the very least, with some answers.”
“I was just attempting to reassure you,” he said as he rolled up his sleeves. “Your worries are likely unfounded. But I get it. All of you seem to lose common sense when it comes to your mates.”
I grunted. He wasn’t wrong. Problem was, I suspected Benji thought he’d react differently when he found his mate.
Somehow, I doubted that would be the case.
“Stand back,” Benji warned. “I’m going to hit it with everything I have.”
I retreated a few paces, throwing up a shield just in case his power rebounded the same way mine had.
Seconds later, I was very glad I had. Lightning flew in every direction, hitting my shield with an enormous crack.
“Interesting.” Benji lowered his hands. “Okay, now I’m curious. We need to find out who set these.”
I rolled my eyes. “Obviously. Who do we call?”
“Harlow or Ferry.” Benji rocked up on his toes as he considered it. “Depends who you’re in the mood to deal with.”
“Ferry,” I said immediately. While Harlow had his uses, he also knew which buttons to press to piss off every single person he met.
I liked to think he’d be helpful, given it was my mate inside that house, but you never knew with him.
But his…inconsistency wasn’t the main reason behind my choice.
“Ferry’s the one who taught Harlow in the first place. ”
I shot into the air as Benji made the call. The wards stretched fifty feet above the house. I checked them for weak spots, anywhere my power might be able to slip through.
But there were none.
I didn’t give up until I spotted black wings on the horizon. Relief hummed in my chest. If anyone could lift these wards, it was Ferry.
I landed at the same time he did and shook the demon’s hand. “Thank you for coming so fast.”
“Of course.” Ferry inclined his head. “Benji said your mate is inside.”
My mate. I had a mate now. Okay, he wasn’t mine, not really, but he was mine to protect. To make happy.
Right now, thanks to the mystery wards, I couldn’t do either of those things.
“We’ve both tried to lift them and break through,” Benji said, “but nothing has worked.”
“I’ll be able to lift them,” Ferry said, flames already flickering around his fingers. “First though, I think it’s important to figure out who set them. Can I?”
“Please,” I said fervently, gesturing at where I’d located the signature. “Neither of us recognise them, but I need to know. If my mate’s in danger of some kind…”
Ferry gave me a reassuring smile. “I understand. If this was Leo, I’d want to know every detail about the fucker and their intentions.”
It occurred to me suddenly that Ferry knew Ethan, or at least, his brother-in-law did. I had to stop myself from asking about their connection. Without knowing why Ethan didn’t appear to be in contact with them, I wasn’t about to risk anything.
My loyalty lay with Ethan above everyone else.
“Yes.” I cracked my knuckles. “Exactly that.”
As the former Grim Reaper dropped to a crouch, Benji came to stand beside me. He leaned against my shoulder, offering me his silent support.
Ferry cursed under his breath before straightening. “I don’t know them.”
“Fuck.” I gripped the back of my neck. “Okay, just lift the wards. Being able to get to Ethan is what’s most important.”
But Ferry hesitated, chewing on his lower lip. “While I agree, there’s a chance that lifting them will alert whoever set them that it’s been done.”
I stiffened. “Is that even possible?”
Ferry nodded. “It’s difficult to do, but yes. These wards are more complex than most. I’m happy to lift them, but…”
“But it might be better to know who we’re dealing with first,” I finished for him. “For fuck’s sake.”
“Don’t worry, I have a plan.” Ferry was already pulling out his phone.
He didn’t have it on speaker, but we all heard Harlow’s voice as if he did. “Ah, my favourite death-man. How goes it?”
Ferry rolled his eyes at the greeting. “I have an issue that requires your…expertise.”
“Ooh, do I get to torture someone?” Harlow sounded far more excited than before. “A little murder, perhaps?”
“Murder and torture aren’t the only things you’re good at,” Ferry said.
“A compliment too?” Harlow trilled. “Must be my lucky day.”
Ferry pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. See, this was why I hadn’t wanted to deal with Harlow. Everything was a song and dance with him.
“I’m in London,” Ferry said. “Rami’s mate’s in danger and we need your help.”
I waited for whatever quip he had loaded. Perhaps a teasing comment about how I’d finally found someone who was mine.
Joke was on me. Ethan was as taken as everyone else I’d ever hit on.
But when Harlow spoke, there was no humour in his tone. Just a deadly calm. “Tell me what you need.”
I grunted in surprise. I should’ve given the demon more credit. What he’d been through with his mate…well, it wasn’t a shock that he didn’t want anyone else experiencing anything close to that.
Ferry gave him a brief rundown. “I can lift the wards, but we need to know who set them in the first place.”
“Yes, so you can find out why,” Harlow said. “And it’s not a signature you recognise?”
“No, but that’s not a surprise given I haven’t been topside for long in the grand scheme of things.” Ferry took a step sideways to study the wards once more. “If I had to guess, they’re a vampire.”
Benji and I exchanged a look. There were a few vampiric clans in London. His eyes narrowed and I knew his brilliant mind was running through every detail we knew about them.
“You should bring Toby with you,” Ferry said. “Just in case you don’t recognise it either.”
“Toby’s away with Blaise this week,” Harlow said. “They’re on holiday in Italy.”
“Shit,” Ferry said before his lips curled into a slightly evil smile. “Guess you’ll have to bring Sebastian.”
The litany of curses that came through the speaker had me grinning. If Harlow was chaos personified, then Sebastian was grumpiness. Grumpy with a sadistic side. One that tended to stab first and ask questions later.