The latest human applicant stood to leave, her face pale and hands shaking. I doubt she’d anticipated the little bit at the end regarding pregnancy termination should her child prove to be a necromancer. Before she could fully leave the room, Danzig’sfingers danced through the air, twisting magical sigils. Casually flicking the incantation her way, I watched the magic seep into the female’s back, soaking through her clothes and burrowing under her skin.
The effect was immediate. The human’s muscles relaxed and when she turned, her smile was soft and appreciative. “It was nice meeting you, Warlock Danzig.”
“The pleasure was mine,” Danzig answered with false sincerity. His attempted warmth vanished the moment the woman walked out the door. Smacking his hand on his desk, Danzig didn’t quite look furious, but he had an ominous aura around him. “Stupid fucking morals,” Danzig muttered to himself. “Useless.” He took the woman’s paperwork, tore it in half, and tossed it in the trash.
I’d read the magic he’d sent her way. It was a forgetting charm. He’d erased her memory. She couldn’t report something she didn’t remember.
Slamming his finger into his desk intercom, Danzig ordered, “No more applicants today, Lottie.”
“But sir, there are two in the waiting room. They’ve been her for over three hours and?—”
“I said no more.” Danzig didn’t wait for a reply. Danzig picked up his phone—an actual landline—and heatedly punched in a few numbers. Receiver pressed to his ear, Danzig heavily leaned into his chair, the fingers of his free hand rubbing his forehead.
I couldn’t hear what the individual on the other end of the line said, only Danzig’s response. “One possibility,” Danzig answered. “I hit the other one with a forgetting charm.” There was a pause. “No. She looked ready to puke. That one never would have worked out.” Danzig hummed as his eyes slipped closed. “I don’t know, Raiden. Three hundred and fifty years and I still don’t understand human females.” Danzig scoffed. “Ifyou’re so certain you can do better, you’re welcome to it. Yeah, that’s what I thought.”
Tapping a pen against his desk, Danzig’s dark eyes traveled the room as he listened to whatever this Raiden individual said. His gaze stared straight through me. Just as I’d thought, Danzig had no idea I was near.
A slow, cruel smile lifted Danzig’s lips. “Now, that is good news.” He sat forward, elbows planted on his desk. “Does Holland know who has it?” Danzig’s eyebrows furrowed. “No, that’s good. With any luck, Detling will die. That will give us the ammunition we need. No, I agree, one most likely won’t be enough. There will be others. Bailor said he was able to tweak four charms before that squirrel shifter got too interested.”
If I’d had a physical heart, it would have been hammering.Four charms. Not just the one. Niki asked Cilla to confiscate all the charms. She was due at the house later today so Niki could examine each of them. What were the chances the other three charms hadn’t been sold yet? I didn’t like the odds. What I did like was that I had names. Raiden and Bailor. Those names meant nothing to me. I’d bet they meant something to Niki.
“It’s already out for delivery.” That smarmy smile was back on Danzig’s face. “Holland will expect something, but not this.” Danzig chuckled. “He won’t even know what hit him.” With a head shake, Danzig added, “He won’t see it coming. Holland’s brain won’t be able to conceive of something so devious. It’s perfect. We’ll put Holland in his place and out of the way. Trust me.”
Fury filled my every atom. I could end Danzig—right here, right now. He’d never expect it and it would be so easy. I’d only need to coalesce a single talon. His skin would part like melted butter, his life’s blood pouring across his desk and dripping on the floor. The thought was very satisfying.
Would Niki be angry? Only that question stayed my hand. Keir would definitely be angry, not that he needed to know, but the gryphon had a way of finding out things. Still, it wasn’t Keir’s potential animosity that prevented my violent actions. It was Niki’s.
Somehow managing to keep my murderous intentions in check, I waited a few more hours. Those hours were futile. Danzig spoke to no one else and his nose was stuck in some type of antiquated looking ledger.
Eventually I could take no more and left. Whisking myself back to the comfort of Niki’s soothing aura.
I found my warlock slumped over his workbench. The day’s constant cloudiness and intermittent downpours had likely kept him inside and away from his precious Pacific Ocean. Even in sleep, Niki’s forehead was creased with worry and his lips were pulled into a harsh line. I’d had a taste of those lips and knew they were capable of deliciously plumping.
Tails casually twitching, the pressure that had built in my chest eased. Nothing and no one had ever had this kind of power over me. Not even Tenzen Huxley. I’d thought Tenzen’s presence was soothing. Oh, how wrong I’d been. The shadow borne had been nothing compared to Nikodemus Holland. Part of me wished Tenzen was still around so I could tell him just how paltry he was—how inconsequential. I doubt anything could have injured Tenzen as well as a stab to his arrogant pride.
My claw-tipped fingers danced through Niki’s dark hair. The white at his temples gloriously blended with the deep ebony strands. My claws were gentle. They would never seek Niki’s blood the way they desired Danzig’s.
Sleep fading, Niki’s eyes fluttered open. Emotionally unguarded, Niki’s facial features softened when his eyes locked on mine. A gentle smile eased his creased lips. “What time is it?” Niki asked on a yawn.
“The sun recently set,” I answered, my claws skimming along Niki’s scalp. I wondered if he realized how he leaned into my touch.
“That late?” Niki pushed himself up, his joints cracking with their abused position. Niki’s gaze swept up and down my body. The inspection was clinical. “You appear unharmed.”
I grinned wide enough to show fang. “Of course. I told you Danzig would have no idea I was there.” Stepping away, I dropped my hand, reclaiming my fingers. “You are going to owe me bigtime when this is all over.” I dramatically shivered. “I swear, not even three showers would be enough to wash away the grime I collected while in Danzig’s presence.”
Niki smirked. “That bad, huh?”
“Worse.” My grin faded. “Would you have been terribly upset with me if I’d slit his throat?” I cocked my head, eyes wide and looking my most innocent.
Niki’s scowl let me know he didn’t buy my act. “I can’t tell if you’re joking or not.”
I casually shrugged. “Consider it a hypothetical question.”
Niki raised a single eyebrow. “Well then,hypothetically speaking, if Danzig attacked you, then meeting violence with violence would be understandable. Assassination on the other hand… I do not believe I can condone that.”
“Ugh, that’s what I thought. Honestly, sometimes you’re no fun at all.”
“I never claimed to befun.”
