“Yes!” Kate said. “That would explain why he had the wedding rings on those women. The blood splatter of your coat of arms makes sense too. All this time, the bastard has been doing this to get your attention.”
Jake stopped Dave’s pacing with a hand on his arm. “We’re finally getting somewhere. I do wish that you’d been honest with us from the start. Our job is sacred to all of us,” he muttered, glancing at Kate. “We would never have gone against you. You’re our team, our leader. We promise to capture this man so you can live in peace.”
“So everyone can live in peace.” Kate took my hand and squeezed it. “Next time, please make sure that you allow us in. You might not think that we have your back, but we do. Jake’s right, we are a team, family really.”
A warm fuzzy feeling enveloped me as the three of them nodded. Although Dave frowned, he watched the other two intently, reading their intentions. The truth of their words was evident in their expressions. Maybe I had been hasty when I had stopped Dave from telling them. My desk friend had been incredible, but I hadn’t exactly been very good at letting him know that.
“For a long time I’ve had to fend for myself. It’s taken me a moment to allow you guys into my life.”
“You’re not kidding,” Jake said, waving his arm around. “I knew you were a book reader person, but this is slightly more extreme than I realised.”
The others chuckled as I cringed to myself. Not many people had been in to my sanctuary. My true personality shone glaringly bright into my work colleagues’ eyes. Oh well, if we were sharing everything, they might as well know all about me.
“Okay,” Dave said, clicking his fingers to get our attention. “New mission. Find ancient witch, find serial killer. Let’s go.”
Coming over to me, he held out his hand and waved his fingers. I laughed, unable to get myself up as the others shook their heads and rolled their eyes. Apparently, my desk friend had suddenly taken over my role. Not that it bothered me. In fact, it felt nice to not have the complete burden of everything on my shoulders. Sharing it with people who obviously cared, made it easier.
“Right.” Standing up, I took Dave’s hand and indicated that the others should join hands too. “I’m ready to catch this bastard and stop him from ending the world.”
Chapter 10
“You’re sure that he lives here?” I muttered to Dave as he checked over his tablet.
We had just landed in front of an overgrown garden. The fence was made out of iron, the top of the railings lined with spikes. Obviously, whoever lived there didn’t want anyone to get inside. It was hard to see the house from where we were on the street.
“Yes, I’m hundred per cent sure that he lives here. I managed to tap into the paranormal database and find his address. Well, his last address. From the look of his garden, he might well have moved on.”
My sigh was audible as I glanced over my shoulder at him. “His last address? Dave, this man has lived for centuries, please tell me what date this address was registered.”
Looking anywhere but at me, Dave tried to hide the grin on his face. “Well... it may have been 1986.”
My fingers folded into my palms as I resisted the urge to extend my fist into his arm. “You’re telling me that the last time that this man was recorded was thirty odd years ago?”
Tucking his tablet into his suit jacket pocket, Dave shrugged as he walked down the pathway towards the gate. Dragging my feet behind him, I kept my head, not allowing this bit of information to distract me from our target.
“Okay.” I sighed once more, overtaking Dave. “Let’s go and investigate.”
A thrill ran up my spine as my hand clasped the gate. A slight shake made me growl low in my throat as it refused to budge. A sudden burst of magic propelled me back, my hand burning from the contact of the spell.
“I take it that he’s got a boundary spell up?” Dave deliberately wrapped his fingers around the bars of the gate.
About to warn him of the protection spell, the words dried in my mouth when he closed his eyes and started to shudder. Shit, I had never seen Dave drain magic before. He was so rarely out in the field with me, I forgot that his power was in taking others’ magic.
“That should do it,” he muttered as he let go of the gate.
It clicked open by itself, the small sound loud on the quiet street. There were no cars in this part of London. Why would such a lovely place fall to ruin?
“Thank you.” Striding through the gate, I waited for Dave to follow me.
He was slow, his footsteps heavy as they thumped up the pathway. The overgrown nettles and brambles almost stopped us as they grew across the path. Waving his hand, Dave sent them back, almost shrivelling into themselves.
As we got closer, the energy grew more intense. Outside had been untainted by magic, obviously purposefully so that no one would realise how much power was behind the fence.
My footsteps were silent as both Dave and I forced ourselves on guard. The magic was growing stronger and stronger as we approached the house. Poking up from the overgrown garden, a reasonably sized derelict building loomed in front of us. With the amount of power that thrummed around us, I knew that it couldn’t be uninhabited.
“There must be someone here,” Dave whispered, grabbing my hand. “Be very careful.”
We had left Jake and Kate at the office. They were ready to back us up if we needed it, but this mission
