And then he called, and they spent long hours talking about their lives. Their childhoods. Their work. Their plans for the future. She told him about wild swimming in the freezing Welsh lakes and he told her about his favorite mountains. She shared how frustrated she was in her search for information about the dark Shadows—how there was literally nothing, anywhere—and he confessed that he was starting to use his Shadows in his work.
When he invited her to come climbing with him, she didn’t hesitate. Which was how she found herself hanging from ropes at the top of a climbing wall, enjoying the warm buzz in her muscles, the tingle of well-earned sweat dripping down between her shoulder blades, and the satisfaction of having surprised—and impressed—her audience.
It would have been even better if she could have climbed the wall using only Shadow ropes; that would have been a real challenge. And even more impressive. Maybe next time she was in Wales. Maybe next timetheywere in Wales.
She grinned down at Ethan where he stood looking back up at her. He was wearing a long pair of shorts that hung low on his hips, a blue T-shirt that clung to every ridge on his body—probably just to torture her—and a slightly bemused look that suggested he was genuinely surprised by how quickly she’d gone up the wall on her first try. Maybe he was just bemused that she was there at all.
Her body still tingled from the way he’d run his hands down her arms and legs, slowly helping her into her harness, checking clips, letting his touch linger, while her Shadows rioted, trying to reach out to him. Even now, hanging in the ropes, she could feel the electric connection between them.
He ran his thumb through his short beard, eyes half-lidded, his Shadows flowing over and around themselves sinuously, reaching for hers as he looked up at her.
Kay licked her lips, tasting salt. Her weight in the harness ramped up her awareness of her body, her skin, her growing need to touch him. He had taken the chance; that was all she’d needed.
Something caught his attention and Ethan looked away, breaking the connection, only to look back a few seconds later. “Kay, I think your phone’s ringing.”
She kicked her way down the wall, stripped off her harness, and quickly made her way to her kit bag to grab her phone. Three missed calls, all from Elizabeth. Damn.
She hit the call button and it only rang twice before Elizabeth answered. “Kayleigh,Cariad, thank God.”
Kay turned toward the wall, giving herself some privacy. “What’s happened?”
“I had another vision. Dark clouds were slowly lowering over a school. Before they covered it completely, I saw the name on the gate: St Michael Cathedral School. It’s one of those expensive private schools in Fulham. I looked it up and they have a big charity concert tonight. The children of lots of important people will be there—I think even the Prime Minister’s children—as well as their parents and the Archbishop of Westminster.”
“Alright.” Kay pulled on her sweatshirt and shoved her water bottle in her bag. This was not how she'd planned for her night to go, but she couldn’t ignore the chance that someone could get hurt. And she couldn’t pass up the opportunity to learn more about the Shadows she’d seen in Oxford Street.
“I’m sorry, Kayleigh, I know you’re busy. Something is messing with my visions that I’m getting them so late.”
“It’s no problem,” Kay reassured her. “I’m leaving now.”
Elizabeth sighed. “I wish I could come with you.”
Hell no. Elizabeth was a powerful Shadow Weaver, but she was a Seer, not a Guardian. “Thanks, but don’t worry. I’ll go and have a look.”
“Take the boy.”
Kay let out a long breath. The difficulty of keeping secrets around a Seer was something she’d had to make her peace with years ago. “I’ll ask him. And I think we should call David now, not wait.”
There was a moment’s silence before Elizabeth replied. “I agree. I wanted to speak to him in person, but you’re right; I’ll do it now. And Kayleigh… be careful.”
Kay ended the call and turned to see Ethan pulling on his sweatshirt. He picked up his kit bag. “Problem?” he asked.
“That was my gran. She’s had a vision about a school. I’m going to head over there now if you’d like to come with me.”
His expression grew serious. “Is this going to be like Oxford Street?”
“I don’t know,” she replied honestly. “Maybe. Hopefully, we’ll get there and everything will be fine. And Elizabeth is going to call David for backup. Sorry to have to leave so early. I can see why you love climbing.”
She slung her bag over her shoulder. “If you’d prefer to stay here, it’s no problem.”
His eyes narrowed. “You don’t honestly think I’d expect you to go alone?”
She wanted him to go with her, but he still hadn’t said anything about whether he wanted to dive into her world. “It would be great if you could come, but it’s up to you.”
Ethan’s hair was mussed, arm muscles still bunched from his earlier climb, and there was a stretch of golden skin showing under his shirt where it had pulled up. But the most insanely attractive part of him was the calm, confident way he looked into her eyes and nodded. “Of course I’ll go with you.”
It was fully dark by the time they arrived outside the school. The pavements were bustling with serious children in neat uniforms and parents in expensive-looking suits and designer dresses. The road was filled with luxury cars dropping off pupils while drivers searched for parking. Kay shuddered, deeply thankful she’d gone to college in Wales.
They made their way to the front entrance where parents and pupils were streaming into the grounds. Two burly security guards stood in front of the wrought-iron gates checking tickets. Damn. They weren’t getting in that way. Instead, they found an inconspicuous corner to stand on and watch the crowd.
