“No, Julian! You can’t go back in there. The fire is too hot.”
“I have to do something! Everything I have is in there!”
“They are justthings, my jewel,” Valac said, wrapping him in his arms. “Things can be replaced. You cannot.”
“Valac.” He gripped Valac’s forearms, sagging against him. “It’s myhome.”
“I know. I know.” It was the safe space Julian always imagined around them in his dreams. He knew it so viscerally well that it felt like a real space. None of it clipped in and out of sight. The textures all felt natural. Valac had hoped to acquaint himself with it for real, build real memories with Julian inside those walls. The guild had stolen that from them, and he banked his rising anger. There would be time for retribution later.
A distant wail filled the air, like the blaring of an alarm.
“What is that?” he asked.
Julian wiped his face, his breath hitching in his chest. “Fire trucks. Somebody must have called 911. I don’t know how to explain this to the authorities. It’ll probably look like arson. They’ll thinkIdid this unless I tell them I’m being targeted, and then there’ll be an investigation…” More tears leaked from his eyes, reflecting in the light of his burning home.
“Then we’ll leave.”
Julian pressed his lips together. “I don’t have anywhere else to go.” His voice broke.
Valac’s jaw wound tight. He would kill the humans who had done this. It would be slow, it would be painful, and it would besatisfying.
“You will come with me. I will take care of everything.” His tone brooked no argument—and as pleased as he was that Julian didn’t argue, he hoped he hadn’t let them douse his fire by lighting this one. He would need to find his anger if he wanted to survive.
Holding Julian tight, he took him to the address Ira had given him. The sudden absence of sound made his ears ring, and he glanced around the new location with interest.
It was a large living space. Chairs and long sofas were gathered in the main room, where they stood. Light from the street outside filtered in through multiple floor-length windows on one wall. There were curtains to keep out the sunlight duringthe day. Appliances hummed softly in one corner, near a dining room table that sat shrouded in shadow.
Valac tugged Julian over to one of the sofas and pushed him down to sit, then knelt in front of him. “Julian?”
Julian shook his head, his face filled with misery before he curled forward, hiding behind his hands. “They—They already think I’m dead. Why would they bother burning my house down?”
No answer Valac could give him would suffice. He didn’t know, and it didn’t matter. They had stabbed him, and this just twisted the knife. It was like they wanted to erase him completely, and Valac ached for him. He’d never felt this kind of sympathetic pain before.
He laid a hand on the back of Julian’s bowed head. “What can I do, my jewel?”
Julian gently shook his head, careful not to dislodge Valac’s hand. “Nothing. There’s nothing anyone can do. Everything I have is gone. They probably—did the same thing to my car after they left me to die. I have nothing now.”
That wasn’t true. Possessive need reared its head in Valac’s mind. He took Julian’s face in both hands, guiding his tear-streaked face up to meet Valac’s eyes.
“You have me,” he said softly. “I will give youeverything.”
Julian’s brow furrowed, but there was a small flicker of hope in his eyes. “I still don’t really know what this is between us.”
“I will show you. Just give me time.”
Julian sniffed. “Time seems to be about all I have these days.”
He needed to rest, and Valac needed to go and speak with the Sentinels again. He drew Julian to his feet and looked around.
“I’m sure there’s a bathroom here. Would you like to clean yourself, or just go to bed?”
Julian looked down at himself. “I should probably shower, but I don’t have any other clothes.”
Valac’s first order of business, then.
“I’d just like to sleep for now.”
He led Julian into the next room, where a neatly made bed sat against the far wall, bearing white sheets and a fluffy gray comforter. Big windows sat on one wall, and the wall facing the foot of the bed was lined with mirrors, reflecting their images back at them as they crossed to the bed.
