He’d always been able to see through my lies and avoidances, but this secret wasn’t mine to share. Still, a little bit of the truth wouldn’t go astray. “Maelle arranged to have Émigré shielded after the Soucouyant firebombed it. If anyone with ill intent crosses her boundaries, she’ll know about it.”
His gaze searched mine; seeing the truth, knowing there was more. But all he did was rise and take his keys out of his pocket. “I’ll drive you over, Belle, and pick you up in the morning.”
She frowned. “I’m fine to catch a cab—”
“Not if that bastard’s out there and watching, you’re not.”
“He can hit your truck as easily as he can a cab, Ranger.”
“Yes, but my senses and reflexes are sharper than the average cab driver’s. Besides, keeping you safe is one less thing Liz has to worry about.”
“Ah,” she said, amusement twitching her lips. “I knew there was an ulterior motive. Give me a couple of minutes to gather my things, then we can head off.”
As she went upstairs, I said, “Have you got your bulletproof vest in the truck?”
“I have.” He caught my hand and tugged me into his arms. “I’ll even put it on when I escort Belle to the club, though I really don’t think it’ll be necessary.”
“It’s always better to be overcautious than under.”
I rested my cheek against his chest and listened to the steady thumping of his heart. It was a calming sound in a world about to go crazy.
“I’ll remind you of that the next time you snipe at me for insisting on more caution when you’re dealing with a demon.” His tone was amused.
A smile tugged at my lips. “You know it won’t make much difference.”
“This is sadly true.” He brushed a kiss across the top of my head. “Given all the near misses you’ve experienced over the last few months, I think I’m destined to become gray before my time.”
“And no one will ever know, given all the silver you already have.”
He laughed, kissed me again, and then followed Belle out the back door. As his truck roared to life, I made myself another coffee and headed upstairs. But for some reason, I just couldn’t sit. I drank my coffee as I paced, my gaze on the storm-clad night beyond the glass sliding doors.
Watching.
Waiting.
Not just for Aiden to arrive back safely, but also something else. Something very big and very deadly.
Last night’s dream was about to come true…
I swore, shoved my coffee onto the table, then snagged my jacket off the chair and clattered down the stairs. After grabbing my phone and keys from the under the counter, I strode across to the front door.
As I opened it, there was a huge whoomph followed by a massive fireball that lit up the sky.
For several, seemingly overlong seconds, shock held me immobile. I could only stare at the orange glow that was even now being smothered by thick black smoke.
Then shock gave way to the realization of what I was seeing and where it was coming from.
A building had just exploded into flame—and that building was Émigré.
Chapter Fourteen
Belle! I screamed mentally. Are you all right?
No answer came. The line between us was dead… but was she? I had no idea, and that was perhaps the scariest thing of all.
I bolted out the door and ran, as fast as I could, into the night and the storm. I didn’t bother locking the café’s door or grabbing our SUV—which probably would have been quicker in the long run, given the distance.
Except… it wasn’t. Power flowed through me, power that came from within and without. The wild magic, enhancing my speed and endurance, giving me werewolf-like speed, just as Katie had said.
The wind lashed at me and the rain pummeled, but I didn’t feel any of it. All I felt was fear. It churned my gut and made my heart feel like it was about to break.
Belle had to be all right. She had to be…
Wild magic stirred around me; it filled me with energy and hastened my steps even as it sharpened my fear. Aiden. Oh God, Aiden. It shouldn’t have taken him this long to simply drop Belle off. He should have been back long before Émigré had erupted into flame.
He must have escorted her inside.
Fuck, fuck, fuck.
The word pounded through my brain, its rhythm as swift as my footsteps. Alarms bit through the night. Building alarms. Fire alarms. Emergency services.
I’d get there before the rangers, the ambulances, and the fire brigade, but would it do any good? Would the burned bodies I’d vaguely glimpsed in my dreams belong to the two people I cared most about in the entire world?
I hoped not.
Hoped that I had read Clayton—and his need for revenge—so very wrong.
I skidded around the corner, my arms flailing as I fought for balance. The wild magic spun around me, its force burning my skin, urging me on, urging me to hurry.
Up ahead, flames leapt high and black smoke billowed. The air was thick with the stench of burning wood, material, and flesh, and my stomach churned at an even faster rate. Shadows moved through the smoke—some staggering, some supporting others, all of them trying to get away from the heat and the flames. My gaze swept them, desperate to find someone I knew. No one. There was no one familiar.
The closer I got, the fiercer the heat became. I threw up a hand in an effort to see against the glare and the smoke. Dear God, the whole front of the building had been blown apart. All that was left was fragmented skeletons of what had once been walls and roof beams… and yet the rear half of the building looked relatively intact. If there was any chance of survival, then perhaps it was there…
Energy wound around my fingers, then Katie said urgently, This way.
She led me into a lane that ran along one side of a smaller building. All its windows were shattered
