Chapter Thirty-One
We took the paintings downstairs, including the one of Michael, and wrapped them in paper. After that, the men helped me secure the gallery's art, dividing them into damaged and undamaged groups before putting them in a storage room with a reinforced door that I used specifically for the really expensive stuff. The insurance agent had gotten pictures of all the artwork in addition to the property damage. It was all covered under my policy.
It was hard to close the gallery security door and walk away. The heavy thud and clank of the lock sounded too final. I'd be back. Of course, I would. It was just the longest I'd been away from home in a long time. Ever since Hermes.
We had brought Merrick's Mercedes, and I was worried that everything wouldn't fit. But it had a spacious trunk with only a small case in it. The black plastic looked ominous, and I had a feeling it contained weapons. After we got my bags and the paintings in, we drove back to the house.
As soon as we entered the kitchen, the sound of an argument came to us. We followed it out to the living room where Darius and Dominic were gesturing wildly while they tried to talk over each other.
“Hello?” Merrick called.
They kept going.
“Guys!” Rune shouted.
They kept going.
I whistled sharply.
The men shut up and turned toward us, their bodies going rigid.
“Hi,” I said. “How's it going?”
Darius sighed, glanced at Dominic, then said, “The Host is in Spokane.”
“What?” Rune growled and stalked forward.
“After you left, we were poking around in SPD's files and got a list of names associated with the house you blew up and the vehicles found on the property.”
“They found explosives, by the way,” Dominic said. “And they determined that it's the same stuff that was used to bomb your gallery.”
“Good. Maybe they can clear Kaleo's name now,” I said.
“They're still identifying bodies,” Darius went on. “But one of the names got a hit in Spokane. The guy used his credit card. The Spokane Police are out looking for him, but we wanted to get to him first. So, we sent Declan back to find him. He just called. He found the guy with a group of twenty-four humans, one of whom was possessed. Declan was able to hear enough of their conversation to confirm who they were. They called the possessed man Michael.”
“Fuck,” Merrick muttered.
“Did Declan track them away from their meeting?” Rune asked.
“He followed Michael, but the soul must have spotted him because he jumped bodies, and Declan lost him.”
“Fuck!” Merrick said again, this time louder.
“He got pictures, right?” Braxen asked.
“Yeah, of all of them, but it will take some time to track the other humans,” Dominic said.
Turning to me, Rune asked, “How do you feel about visiting Spokane?”
“We're taking her with us?” Merrick snarled before I could answer. “She'll be safer here.”
“We don't know that,” Rune said. “What if Michael left some of his people here to watch us? The man is gathering disciples faster than Christ. We don't know how many he had here. Maybe he was establishing a base here before spreading to Spokane. If we leave and they see that she's alone, they'll come for her.”
“Holy shit,” I whispered, not in fear but revelation. “He's launching a crusade.”
Rune's eyes twitched. He looked at his packmates. Merrick cursed again. Braxen just nodded as if the thought had already occurred to him.
“A crusade?” Darius asked. “I guess that would fall in line with his whole angel thing.”
