Gabriel blew out a breath, frustrated. I didn’t blame him, but he’d chosen not to be a part of our interrogations. I physically couldn’t explain to him how Axel knew even if I wanted to.
“And we’re certain it’s them?”
I understood his scepticism. We didn’t exactly have actual photographs to compare them to like he was used to, but Axel had worked with Lady Sarhin’s people to produce a magical rendition of the faces he’d seen in Melhak’s memories. As far as I was concerned, if Axel said it was a true likeness, then it was.
“I don’t think there’s any doubt, do you?”
Gabriel shook his head. “This is going to get messy.” He tapped the screen and slid his tablet in front of me. “Look who the hunters were who reported the kills.”
I read the names, frowning as I struggled to place them. “Yates. The one who apprehended Callum Walker?”
“And almost killed him,” Gabriel added, running a hand over his face. “Fuck.”
“We need to get back and talk to Max, because unless those three witches managed to somehow fake their own deaths enough to fool a group of seasoned hunters…”
“Yates and his group lied,” Gabriel finished.
* * *
It took longerthan I would’ve liked to get back to the gateway. Lady Sarhin insisted we report our findings to the high court before we left, and of course they had question upon question of how this could’ve happened.
Although I might’ve been premature in thinking the blame lay with us and our refusal to share information, I still thought it would be better if our realms worked together more. If we allowed our gateways to be monitored by the paranormal police—a fact the high court had refused to consider—then maybe we could’ve identified what Melhak and the witches were doing before now.
That was a discussion for another time though.
Axel met us on our return.
The sun was setting, the sky darker this far into the forest.
I followed Axel into his home. “How long were we gone?” I asked, holding my breath.
“It’s Friday evening,” Axel said, grimacing. “So a day and a half.”
Not too long, but Nick would be at Midnight by now.
I’d hoped I could persuade Axel to drop in and see him on our way to meet up with Max at the station, but that was unlikely now.
Gabriel had gone home to change and see Rys, but they were soulmates. I could hardly justify a trip to a nightclub when we had the possibility of rogue hunters out there.
We’d already sent word to Max before meeting with the high court, so both he and the paranormal police were up to speed. What we needed to do now was plan how to proceed. Lady Sarhin was keen to bring the hunters in for questioning, but I wasn’t sure that was the best way to handle this.
Thankfully she’d acquiesced and allowed me to meet up with Max to discuss a plan of action. I couldn’t shake the feeling that my time here was coming to an end.
“Come eat something before we go and meet Max,” Axel said, leading me into the kitchen. “Something tells me it’s going to be a long night.”
I let him feed me, but the food sat heavily in my stomach. I fidgeted, which was so unlike me, I deserved the worried glances Axel shot my way.
After I’d checked the clock he kept on his wall for the fourth time in as many minutes, Axel stood and left the room, returning a few moments later holding my phone in his hand.
He set it down on the table in front of me. “Call him.”
“Who?” I knew exactly who he meant, and he didn’t grace me with a reply. I stubbornly refuse to reach for the phone. When Axel crossed his arms and sat back, staring at me, I sighed, irritated that he knew me so well. “He’ll be at work.” I checked the time again. “Midnight opened over an hour ago. He’ll be busy. I don’t want to disturb him.”
Now it was Axel’s turn to sigh. “Don’t waste the time you’ve got, Dathal. If he’s busy, either he won’t answer or he’ll tell you he’ll call you later. Don’t sit here pining and miss an opportunity to connect with him because of assumptions.”
“I’m not pining,” I muttered, scowling when he laughed at me.
“Of course not. And you also haven’t been glancing at my clock every five seconds.”
