I hadn’t paid enough attention. I’d been too focused on getting the kids out and keeping Gary alive. I’d kept up the CPR until the ambulance arrived and the fae healer had managed to get his heart beating again.
I needed to get back to his store and take another look.
“Amana?”
“I’m sorry, what was that?”
Albert gave me a hard stare. “Take me through it step by step.”
I complied, telling him exactly what had happened from the moment I arrived, but leaving out all mention of the kids. Albert let me run through it, nodding along, and then studied his notes.
“It says here that the gnome has two children.”
“His name is Gary.”
He surveyed me, his eyes hard. “Where are the children?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t seen them. I’m unsure why this is Mage Council business, to be honest. As you’rewellaware, Gary isn’t human.”
“You don’t need to be sure. All you need to know is that when a bounty hunter connected to the Mage Council but bonded to ademonis seen threatening a resident of this city, the Council takes notice.”
I heroically restrained myself from rolling my eyes. Albert smiled at me. It wasn’t a nice smile. “Why do I get the feeling you’re not being entirely truthful, Amana?”
I shrugged. Keigan cleared his throat. “It’s late,” he said. “Danica has told you her version of events. With the gnome–” he glanced at me and his eyes softened “withGarystill unconscious, you have no reason to hold her here.”
Albert ignored the other mage. My power licked at my shields, itching to teach him a lesson he’d never forget.
“It doesn’t take a demon to know that Amana is lying,” he said. Then he turned to me, his expression stony. “Either you tell us exactly what happened now, or you leave me no choice but to administer a truth spell.”
My mouth hung open. Next to me, Keigan got to his feet. “This is outrageous!”
The door slammed open, leaving a dent as it hit the wall. All of the oxygen in the room was immediately sucked out as the high demon stepped inside, his eyes on mine.
Power, thick and deadly crept up the walls and along the floor. It radiated from him, silent yet dripping an obvious threat. His silver gaze ignored everyone else in the room and methodically scanned my body as if searching for bruises.
He looked like a fallen angel, with his lush mouth, sharp cheekbones and a jaw that looked hard enough to break your hand– if somehow you defied all odds and managed to punch him in the face.
I hadn’t seen him for weeks. He’d been allowing me to skip Monday dinners, which were mandatory for everyone bonded to him. I’d hoped his choice not to attend his stupid dinners also meant he’d chosen to leave me alone.
I should’ve known better.
“Little witch,” Samael purred, “just what trouble have you gotten yourself into now, hmmm?”
I would kill him. I’d kill him so dead that I’d make what the witches had wanted to do to him look like a day at the spa.
“I’m fine,” I told him. “Butt out.”
Albert went sheet white, and Keigan began to tremble. Samael just laughed.
“I don’t think so.” He turned to Albert. “I must have misheard you. You didn’t just threatenmywitchling with a truth spell, did you?”
His tone was one hundred percent possessive male. His eyes dared Albert to misstep, and the corner of his mouth tipped up in sardonic amusement.
“No,” Albert ground out. His gaze flicked to me, and my shoulders wanted to hunch. The disgust was clear on his face.
Samael smiled. “In that case, we’ll be leaving. Come, bounty hunter.”
I’d had dreams of him ordering me to do just that. I shoved the vision away and I ground my teeth as I got to my feet.
