Stepping inside, the place was dark, with dirty brown coverings over three small windows, and no visible lighting. Beaumont wrinkled his nose—the smell of unwashed bodies, chemicals, and damp assailing his nostrils. It only took a quick scan of the room to realize they were too late. The upturned tables, the scattered chairs, and the few pieces of paper strewn across the floor were indications of people who’d moved out in a hurry.
There was a buzzing noise coming from Duron’s pocket. Pulling out his cell phone, the bigger man grimaced, showing the screen to Beaumont. It was a text from Wyatt, and it contained one word. “Idiots.”
“What on earth does Wyatt mean by that?” Beaumont didn’t have time for freaking cryptic messages. The assassin was meant to be helping them.
“It’s Wyatt’s way of letting us know that someone knew we’d come here, which is why there’s nothing here for us to find.”
“We didn’t know ourselves till an hour ago. Makes you wonder how these people manage to stay one step ahead of us all the time, doesn’t it.” Beaumont kicked at a piece of paper—it was a shop receipt. Beaumont didn’t even bother to pick it up, already knowing they’d left it for them. The lead would be false or useless. “We need to get back to the Putney household. It might be time to have a chat with them about their wards, and who implemented them in the first place.”
Beaumont didn’t say it out loud, but someone, somewhere, was able to keep tabs on their every move. It was time to start digging into why.
Chapter Eleven
Duron
“Looks like everyone is home,” Beaumont stated as they came through the gates, eyeing all the vehicles in front of the house.
Duron sensed his mate’s unease about something. Only he couldn’t quite pick up what it was with how his thoughts skipped from one thing to the next. “It’s late.” Everyone appeared to always be home in the evenings. “What’s on your mind? I can’t get a grasp of what’s up.”
Beaumont twisted in the seat as they came to a stop inside the compound. Duron noted how the place, though it still had some damage outside the gate, was pretty much looking like it first had. “Do you think they used magic to get the place back to normal inside?” His mind finally catching up with Beaumont’s.
Were they being tracked?
If that was the case, then maybe Wyatt wasn’t as safe as he believed. Folks tended not to see past his camouflage. Wyatt was the only one of them who could blend in this way, and it made him very useful to the council.
“Does it not bother you what the council has done?” Beaumont asked instead, suggesting he’d picked up Duron’s thoughts, derailing him.
He stared at his concerned looking mate. He’d felt the anger earlier when Beaumont had discovered the council used trackers on them. Duron had come to terms with his situation a long time ago. There was nothing that could change it, and he said so.
“That may be so. Only I am a part of this council and as their new leader. It appalls me.” Beaumont meant it.
Duron, not one for flowery words, searched for something meaningful to say. He tapped on Beaumont’s arm, going with instinct and hoping he didn’t fuck up. “You’ll just have to make sure that all those still in the program get choices. Get to decide what they want, and make sure the rest of the council gets it.” He gave his mate a smile, hoping he didn’t look stupid. “I know you are a man of your word.”
For the first time, it was his mate’s turn to flush. He placed his hand over Duron’s and squeezed gently. “Thank you.”
“Yeah… right… erm, what were we talking about?” His face got hotter at Beaumont’s widening grin.
“In answer to your early question, yes, it looks like he’s used a magic user to get things back to normal. Kylo mentioned the external building and all those rooms with a window that looks outside have wards. The kitchen got hit the hardest as it’s more in the middle of the house and not warded like the rest of it.” Beaumont glanced about, a furrow appearing between his brows.
“The brothers I saw did some clear up, but they are not magical.” He returned his attention to Duron. “I think it’s time we found out who the magic user is, don’t you? As everyone congregates in the kitchen, it should be safe to have the discussion there.” He got out of the jeep, and Duron followed.
They had left early evening, and now it was dark; the heat had dissipated some, yet by the time they’d hit the steps, Duron’s T-shirt and cargo shorts had glued themselves to his skin. He didn’t mind the heat, but his bear detested the mugginess, and for good reason.
Inside, they followed the sounds of voices. As Beaumont predicted, folks were in the kitchen.
Duron halted in the doorway to the kitchen at the sight of Nori at the stove, stirring a pot that gave off a delicious aroma. There was something about the scene that reminded him of his fellow assassins and the home they’d made together. That was all changing, and it made Duron nervous. What would happen when they finally apprehended the Devil?
Nori glanced over his shoulder when Felix stopped speaking. Nori’s smile was welcoming. The youngest brother seemed to be a dab hand at everything.
Beaumont, who stepped around him, offered both men a smile. “That smells delicious. I hope there’s enough to share with me and my mate.”
The formal tone held a certain pride that Duron couldn’t miss every time he used the term ‘my mate’. Duron, who wasn’t a smiler, although his lips twitched, half expecting Beaumont to thread his arm through his and guide him to the table.
“Come and sit, there’s plenty, and it won’t be long. We’re just waiting on the others to make sure the house is sorted. If Ma comes home and sees the place a mess, she’ll skin us alive.”
There was nothing in Nori’s voice that suggested he didn’t mean every word.
“Ma will know regardless of what we do,” Felix pointed out, getting a hard stare from Nori, which he totally ignored.
