Page 56 of Warrior Unraveled

Wes shrugged. “Did you find out how the killer got in?”

Hamish shook his head. “No sign of forced entry.” He exchanged a look with his colleagues. “And as we know, demons aren’t exactly delicate when it comes to breaking in. They don’t care what they break. It’s possible that Faldo let his killer in, or he had a key.”

“Or the killer got in the way you guys do. By walking through the walls.” That comment earned him a scolding look from all three guardians. “Just saying. Anyway, we’ll figure it out shortly.” Wes rose and walked to the massive mahogany desk. It was in disarray, but he found what he was looking for: an ornamental cigarette lighter.

“What are you doing?” Enya asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

He winked at her. “Part of the spell. It needs a little heat to reveal what I need to know.”

“Mmm.”

“Wanna maybe give us a small heads-up on what we’re about to see?” Hamish asked, tossing a circumspect look at the soon-to-be little bonfire.

The lighter in his hand, Wes crouched down again. “Once I light it and the various herbs mix with Faldo’s blood, there might be just a tiny little explosion.”

“An explosion?” Manus hissed. “How tiny?”

“Just a little poof. Nothing to worry about. But the color of the resulting smoke will determine what kind of creature killed Faldo. Preternatural or human.”

“We’re preternatural too. And so are you. So it only eliminates humans?” Hamish asked.

“Basically. But if it does show that a preternatural creature was involved in Faldo’s death, there’s a way to eliminate you guys, and my own kind as well.”

“How?” Enya asked.

“By adding DNA of your kind and of mine.”

Enya narrowed her eyes. “You mean you want our blood?”

“Spit will do.” Before she could say anything else, he continued, “If the smoke turns red, it means a preternatural was involved. If that’s the case, spit into the fire while it’s still burning. If it turns black, one of your kind is involved. If it remains red, I will spit and watch for the same reaction. If it still continues to burn red, then neither Stealth Guardians nor witches were involved in his death. That would leave the demons as the most likely culprits. Got that?” He looked at all three guardians.

They nodded.

“Let’s do it,” Hamish said.

“Stand back a little,” Wes cautioned and knelt before the pentagram. Then he concentrated on the small pile of herbs and bloody cotton balls and inhaled. He’d never done this particular spell before. It had better work, or he would look really dumb.

He lit the herbs with the ornate lighter and watched as the small flame consumed the kindling. So far, so good. The flame reflected in the crystals on the cloth. Then suddenly, and without warning, the flame shot up in the air, higher and larger than Wes had expected.

A few gasps sounded around him, but Wes didn’t take his eyes off the fire.

Something sizzled loudly, and the crystals seemed to hiss in response.

The flame touched the blood-soaked cotton balls, sending them shooting up in the air like little firecrackers. The crystals hissed, and smoke rose. White smoke. Pure white smoke.

Wesley relaxed and sat back on his heels, then lifted his eyes to the guardians. “No demon activity. In fact, no preternatural activity at all. The killer has to be human.”

Hamish cursed. “That’s not exactly what I expected. Are you sure?”

“One hundred percent.”

Hamish exchanged a look with Manus and Enya.

Manus grimaced. “Doesn’t mean the demons weren’t involved. What if they had a human do their dirty work?”

“It’s possible,” Hamish said slowly. “Let’s go through the house and see whether we can find any other clues. Figure out if anything seems to be missing.”

Wes collected his crystals and the cloth. The cloth with the pentagram hadn’t burned, because it had been protected by the crystals. He shoved everything back into his backpack.