Blood (The Grimm Cases Book 3) Read online

  By targeting us.

  With the Xing out of the way, the rest of our people were weakened. With one of us gone, we were made vulnerable as well. And, unfortunately, the easiest way to make one of us surrender was to get to Mu. Concern for his safety was a weakness that we’d all developed throughout the years.

  We’d grown—fighting, learning to defend ourselves and each other. To cover the weaknesses of our group. And now, Bianca would be the first one targeted. Not only because it was strategically wise, but also because the guild had been waiting for the implosion of the fae for too long. They would never want to see Bianca succeed.

  I tried to warn Damen. We needed to be careful. But he had been distracted. Blindsided by the excitement of us being complete, and filled with faith that everything would work out.

  I would have to take matters into my own hands. At least, until he got a clue.

  “Titus.” Maria strolled into my office, her expression wary. “I’ve purchased the vehicle you requested and gathered the other items on your list. But are you certain this is necessary?”

  “I’m sure.” I didn’t even need to consider it. Perhaps she’d think me overprotective, but I’d never been more sure of anything in my life.

  I had failed before. I couldn’t afford to let that happen again. Not when we’d been given a second chance.

  “You know”—Maria put her hands on my desk. Her tone was uncharacteristically non-argumentative, indicating how seriously she was taking this situation. I couldn’t have asked for a better Er Bashou—“you don’t need to look so scary. You’ve mentioned that she was frightened of you before. If that’s the case, it won’t help for her to see you like this.” She pressed back, waving her hand in the air as she continued. “Just relax. It will be fine. You’ve got my loyalty first and foremost. I swore nothing to the council. Neither has Matheus. Nothing is going to happen. We only need a cover story for her, and… What?” Her mouth turned down at the last statement as she studied my face. “What’s your problem now? I thought we covered everything, but you still look like you have a stick up your ass.”

  “You think she’s my mate?” I knew she was. It was an undeniable call that grew stronger every passing moment. But still. This was new territory. What if I was wrong? Maybe I just had food poisoning.

  Maria blinked, backing up a step. “I didn’t say anything.” Her eyes widened as she watched me, and the slight bitterness of panic entered her scent. “Why do you think I believe that?”

  She might have been anxious, but she didn’t seem surprised. I frowned at her. “You knew she was the Xing. But you never said anything about her being my mate. Yet Matheus told me that you two have talked about this.”

  “Damn him,” Maria muttered, glancing away.

  I waited. She would answer regardless of the reasons she had for not telling me sooner.

  Sure enough, a half-second passed and her gaze returned to mine.

  There was something in her eyes—fear—as she responded. “I don’t know, Titus. It’s never happened, and you know what it means. I didn’t want to assume. Besides the prophecy, it’s dangerous for you to have a mate.”

  I raised my eyebrow, slightly offended, and she continued, “You’re the strongest of us. And a mate bond is both a blessing and a curse. It can be a wonderful thing, but consider what happens if a bonded were to lose their mate? Think about your father.”

  A chill passed through the air, memories of my father after my mother’s disappearance and murder. He had gone on a rampage, destroying everything in his path. And while he’d recovered physically, he was never the same.

  “Despite that…” Her next words wormed through the darkness. “I do think she is. Seeing you, and your control, it’s not easily distinguishable. However, it’s obvious to me, and to those of us who know that side of you, that you’ve already claimed her.”

  She sounded so sure… Realization coursed through me at her guarded expression.

  “You’ve suspected from the beginning.” I crossed my arms. “That’s why you wanted to meet her, and why you’ve been hanging out with her. I thought it was odd that you didn’t run to my father.”

  “I couldn’t go to Uncle Deacon. It was already too late. And if any species were to get attached quickly, it would be a dragon.” Maria shrugged. “I knew when you told me how you first met. I’m not going to risk my life. But you do need to think of a way to explain her, something that will make the council not suspect anything.”

  I turned my glare to the digital clock.

  She was right, we would have to think of something. It was impossible to pretend she didn’t exist—the restless itching under my skin wouldn’t allow it. Damen was already plotting something, I knew.

  Damen thought of the big picture, caring about motives and the end results. The details along the way? Not his expertise, and one of the reasons why he’d taken to keeping notes and drawing. It forced him to focus on the moment, and not the future.

  So yes, I was certain he was making a plan. But how helpful it would be to our current issue, or the longer-term goal, I wasn’t sure.

  Damen wouldn’t be thinking about all the risks involved…

  What I needed was to speak to Miles and Julian. They would help me. Julian especially, considering his role to hers. Sometimes it worked best if we let Damen plan for the future, while we focused on the present.

  That was the way it always worked. And now we had Bianca. Finally, a voice of logic and reason. She was the bridge between Damen and the rest of us.

  “In any case”—Maria slid the keys toward me—“you should get going, if you don’t want to be late.”

  “You did a good job.” Picking up the keys, I met her gaze. It was more than her going out of her way for me. Or for leaving Bianca last night, when I knew she wanted to stay. She was scary sometimes, yes. But no one was as dependable as my cousin.

  It almost made me forgive her for going through my private vaults. Because this was much more important. “Thank you for everything.”

  “It’s what I do.” Maria shrugged. Although she acted nonchalant, her embarrassment was as obvious as the darkening of her cheeks. “When it counts, I’m with you both. Now go, try to relax.”

  The drive did little to clear my thoughts. Not only because of my growing concerns, but also because of the enclosed atmosphere of my vehicle. I’d never driven something so… confined.

  However, the closer I got to Bianca, the more my soul eased. And if that wasn’t a sign, I wasn’t sure what else might be.

  While reassuring, it was also concerning. The next steps of the mate bond would have to be completed soon. If I were to use other species as a guideline, I would be in big trouble if we didn’t complete the bond before the attraction grew stronger.

  And that was something else to worry about.

  My thoughts were cut off as I pulled behind Damen’s car. The owner of said vehicle stood on the front porch, talking on the phone. Alone.

  When he saw me, he raised his hand in greeting. He appeared completely calm, as though everything in the world was perfectly right.

  My hackles rose at his carefree attitude. Hadn’t we decided that we wouldn’t allow Bianca to be alone in the house at any time? Sure, we agreed that the rule applied to all of us to make her feel better. But she was the primary concern.

  And Miles was terrible with ghosts. His supervision didn’t count.

  “What are you doing?” I stalked toward the porch, not caring about the sudden cautious glint in Damen’s eyes. He probably had no idea why I was even upset. “Where’s Bianca?”

  Damen raised an eyebrow before slowly hanging up his phone and putting it away. “She’s inside with Miles.” His tone was leery. “Why?”

  I pinched the bridge of my nose. Why was he making everything more difficult?

  “You left her alone!” I said. Didn’t he understand how hard I’d been working. “She’s alone in a haunted building with Miles.”

  I moved t
o rush past him into the building, when his annoyed voice reached me.

  “Of course I didn’t.” Damen shot me a patient look, as if I was completely overreacting. “Kasai is there. I haven’t left them unprotected. Besides, Miles might be frightened of ghosts, but he does know how to handle one. If necessary, he’ll do in a pinch. Have a little faith.”

  “Miles carries around holy water in a mister!” I moved to continue inside. For all I knew, something terrible could be happening at this very moment. I would be damned if I was wasting time outside. “That doesn’t inspire much confidence in his ability to control a ghost.”

  Damen stepped in front of me, frowning. He crossed his arms. “I’m not sure what your problem is, but Miles is extremely competent. He’s also not an idiot. And for that matter, neither am I. God, Titus, what is wrong with you? You look like you want to throw me from a cliff. Calm down and tell me what happened.”

  He said this with such authority that even I—despite my desire to go inside—had to pause.

  My heart, which had been racing, began to slow despite my anxieties. Damen’s gaze, which was now locked on to mine, burned. It caused the torrent of emotions to calm slightly, making it easier to think.

  Maybe I was overreacting, but I was so stressed out. I had to make sure everything was perfect. Damen didn’t understand—

  “What’s wrong?” Damen repeated, watching me expectantly. “There’s something bothering you.”

  I had wanted to keep it to myself, just a little longer. But he held a power that couldn’t be resisted. Besides, despite my apprehension of his methods, I really needed some of his optimism.

  “She’s one of us.” I ran my hand though my hair, trying to figure out how to phrase this.

  Damen didn’t say anything, waiting for me to continue.

  “Matheus and Maria think she’s my mate.” I sighed, looking away. “I also think she’s my mate. But…”

  “You’ve never had a mate before.” Damen’s voice was calm. My gaze fixed on him as he stroked his chin thoughtfully. “And there’s that bogus superstition, which might cause panic. How interesting. But this might be a good thing. I wonder how this will work with my plan.”

  “Interesting? Don’t you have anything more to say than that? Weren’t you just lecturing me about getting attached? You said it was a bad thing.” I gaped at him. He seemed so blasé about the entire situation. Plus, there was that second statement, which was a bit ominous. “What plan?”

  “Never you mind.” Damen brushed off my shoulder. “But thank you for sharing this with me. Now don’t worry so much. You do your job, and I’ll get this sorted—”

  “Get what sorted?” I wanted to throw my hands into the air. I had no idea what he was even talking about. “What are you planning?”

  “I was considering something that has worked, historically,” Damen replied, shrugging. “We can discuss it when the time is right.”

  “Discuss what?” I had never understood his strange ability to do this. To take over a conversation and steamroll everything until he got the result he desired. But somehow, it always worked. Because I no longer felt as worried, or as angry.

  Because Damen would take care of everything. He saw the big picture, and he knew everything would work out. And that was a good thing. I hoped.

  “Do you trust me?” He gave me a knowing look. He must have seen the answer in my eyes, because he continued, “It’s okay if she’s your mate. It’s okay that she’s Mu. You do your best; she’s repressing a lot. And she’s hiding something. I don’t believe, for example, she’s as naive as she pretends to be. It’s too much, even for a person as secluded as she has been. But you do your job, and everything will work out. If we’re together, we can do anything.”

  “How do you know it’ll work out? None of us have ever been born as a woman before. We don’t even know how it happened.” There was a pleading note in my next question, but I couldn’t help it. He had to know. “What if we lose her?”

  Damen frowned, and a rarely witnessed dark look entered his expression. Shivers shot down my spine.

  There was nothing more terrifying than Damen when he was angry, not even my dragon could compare.

  “We won’t lose her.” Damen’s voice was determined, filled with self-assurance. He believed in his statement with every fiber of his being. “We’re older now, and more experienced. We’re better prepared to do whatever it takes.”

  I watched him, and even though my beast remained unsettled, the edges of my worries began to fade. “Fine,” I conceded, tugging at my sleeve. “Can we go inside so I can change? I hate these suits.”

  Chapter Eleven

  Bianca

  Priority

  Poisoned? Was he referring to the ground being drenched in poison of a physical nature, or more supernaturally? “What do you mean?”

  Miles rolled up his sleeves and shrugged his shoulders. His face was a picture of serious concentration, and I was loathe to interrupt him. But I had to know. “Are you saying the ground has actually been poisoned, or—”

  His brown gaze shot to me, as if he only just remembered my presence, and he frowned. “You need to get out of here.”

  I wasn’t certain how to reply, but we’d already been over this before.

  “I can’t leave,” I repeated my constant argument. “I told you that Lily—”

  “Not leave the building.” Miles grabbed my hand. “You need to leave this room. There’s a curse originating from here, with both old and new magic. You’re the target. This is not spiritual in nature. Someone alive did this. Another witch.” He had begun to pull me toward the staircase. “Let’s go upstairs. This type of curse is strongest with exposure and proximity. We need to get under my wards before something happens—”

  The lights flickered once. Another flicker, and they died—shrouding us in darkness. We’d reached the landing of the staircase, the railing had been in our reach. But it had become difficult to move.

  The air pressed in around us, suffocating. Panic touched the edges of my senses.

  “Shit,” Miles cursed, holding me against him. His arms caged my chest and his voice was a whisper against my ear. “Stay quiet, this isn’t from a spirit. Even though you have a natural defense against Earth-based magics, there is still a danger to ill intentions.”

  “Ill intentions?” What was he talking about?

  The edges of panic began to slither into my awareness. How else was I supposed to feel after being told something so strange? Miles’s vague reassurance that I’d be all right did little to calm my racing heart.

  But what did work to soothe my nerves was Miles’s humming chant being whispered over my head.

  I stayed silent, holding on to Miles’s forearms with my shaking hands. I was afraid to draw these ill intentions toward me, or to interrupt Miles. He, in the meantime, continued whispering in another language.

  It definitely wasn’t French, but I couldn’t place it at the moment.

  The longer he spoke, the lighter the pressure against my skin. A moment later, the weight lifted and I could breathe normally again. “Miles?”

  He stopped chanting, his arms loosening as he moved to grab my hand. His palm was sweaty. “Upstairs, now.”

  This time, I wasn’t going to argue. We rushed up the stairs, terrified that the weight was right on our heels. As we neared the top, the door slammed open. Light flooded from the opening, illuminating the first stairs and throwing the figures at the top into shadow.

  My heart calmed, because I didn’t even need to see them to know who it was.

  Damen whistled once, and the now-familiar streak of light briefly illuminated the room. But Kasai’s appearance didn’t halt Miles’s advance. He pulled me up the last few stairs with urgency. Nor did Kasai’s arrival stop Titus from acting. As we got close to the door, he grabbed our arms, pulling us the rest of the way into the kitchen.

  Once there, he didn’t even say a word. He moved to a chair, hugging me against him in a
suffocating hold.

  It was impossible to not feel his shaking form around mine. Nor could I miss the sound of his ragged breathing beside my ear.

  My own racing heart began to slow as I focused on Titus. I hadn’t seen him in a day, and now it sounded as though he was in shock. I supposed it made sense. I had learned that dragons were very possessive and high-strung.

  “There’s nothing for me down there.” Kasai rejoined us a half-breath later. He landed on Damen’s outstretched arm. “Upstairs, is another matter. They are panicking. But it’ll keep, for now.”

  I probably should have been alarmed. Especially since Kasai was confirming that something bad was happening elsewhere in the house. However, it was difficult to focus on anything other than what had just happened.

  Damen seemed disturbed, glancing at the basement door. “But how—”

  “There’s nothing for him to see down there.” Miles shakily got to his feet and began to pace. “That’s witchcraft. Damen, I’ll need your help.”

  Damen’s mouth pressed in a line, and Kasai vanished in a wisp of smoke. “What do you mean? You rarely ask for my assistance.”

  “There’s a curse. It’s been activated recently, and the target is Bianca.” Miles paused pacing, barely passing me a glance. “We’re lucky to have found it now. Any longer and the effects might have been untouchable. If Lily hadn’t called us to the basement, I might not have noticed until it was too late.”

  Damen and Miles continued speaking, but my focus tore from them as Titus pushed back from me slightly.

  He was running his hands over my hair and down my arms. And he still hadn’t said a word. However, his eyes were intense, and almost frightening. A hint of red swirled within the moss green. His expression seemed stone-like as his gaze travelled over my form.

  The way he looked at me was different, and I wasn’t sure what to make of it. “Titus?”

  “Titus.” Damen was at our side at once, his voice breaking through the tension like a knife. “We have a job to do.”