The only ones without were magic users like me.
“I hate that,” Gabriel groaned, rubbing his forehead. “Never gets any easier.”
Max snorted but soon sobered as everyone gathered round.
There were ten of us in total.
“It’s quiet,” I said, my gaze flicking over the entrance to the compound. Not that I expected anyone to greet us at the gate. We were hopefully catching them by surprise, but unease trickled down my spine like icy fingers, my magic on high alert.
I couldn’t sense anything from behind the shield the others had erected, and it added to the feeling of unease.
Max addressed one of the three witches who’d come with us. “Cara? Report?”
“The whole compound is heavily warded. I’d be surprised if they didn’t already know we were here.”
“Shit,” Max cursed, gripping his hair. “Anything else?”
Cara closed her eyes, her chest rising and falling steadily as she did her thing. “It’s advanced magic. I’d say at least one of the ones who did this is a level one or strong level two.”
“That would match what we know about them.”
“Are they here?” Max asked.
Cara opened her eyes. “There’s definitely a magic user of some kind behind their wards. Who or how many, I can’t be sure.”
Whatever Max was going to say next never came out of his mouth because an SUV pulled up to the gate on the other side.
“Here we go,” Max muttered. “Everyone stay close and be on your guard. Cara, drop the silencing wards but keep the shields.”
Magic brushed over me for a split second as the wards receded and sound rushed back in.
Max walked closer, the witches flanking him, everyone else in a line behind them. He stopped about three metres away from the gate.
All four car doors swung open. I recognised Yates from the photos on Max’s board. Three others joined him, one of them definitely a magic user because his power was so strong I could feel it even through the shields surrounding us. His face didn’t match the photos I’d seen of the three supposedly dead witches, so either someone else was helping Yates or they were using magic to disguise themselves.
“Detective Knowles,” Yates said, leaning against his car. “I’m sorry you and your friends have wasted your time because you’re not coming in. This is private property.”
Max smiled. “That’s why I have permission from a judge.” He pulled folded papers out of his pocket and held them aloft.
Yates faltered for a moment before schooling his features. “On what grounds? We’ve done nothing wrong. All our kills are police sanctioned.”
Max’s low growl reverberated around the forest. He unfolded the papers and began to read. “Falsifying police documents. Illegally altering the appearance of one or more corpses to deceive the paranormal police. Aiding and abetting the murder of four non-humans and the attempted murder of at least five others.”
All the while Max read the charges aloud, Yates watched him with a bored expression. It made my skin itch, because nothing about this was going to be easy. Not that I’d expected it to be, but Yates clearly had no respect for the paranormal police or the laws they stood for.
“Smuggling and refining the banned fae plant Blue Alhuirn.” Max finished reading and folded the papers before sliding them back into his pocket.
“And you have proof of all that, do you?” Yates sounded way too smug. I wondered if he was aware that we’d moved Larissa to safety.
Max shrugged. “I don’t need proof. We have enough probable cause to search your property and bring all of you in for questioning.”
Yates laughed.
My fingers twitched with the urge to reach for my daggers.
“You’re not setting foot on my property. I don’t care what your piece of paper says.” Yates crossed his arms, gaze travelling over everyone in our group until they landed on me. His eyes narrowed. “You’re a long way from home, fae.”
I ignored him.
