Page 45 of Ancient Magic

As they headed down the corridor, Micha looked up, staring directly into the camera. Valen froze, recognizing there was a warning in that glance. But what? A plea to rescue him? Or a command to let events play out without his interference?

He was guessing it was a demand to let him handle whatever was happening.

Valen straightened as the group entered the short hallway that led to the emergency exit and disappeared into the underground parking lot. He would, of course, send someone to search for them, as well as to interview the guard on duty, but he didn’t have much hope of locating the demons.

It’d been infuriatingly easy for the creatures to waltz through his lobby, acquire keycards to a supposedly impregnable area, and then kidnap and sneak away with an important member of the Cabal.

This went beyond well organized. Only someone with detailed knowledge of his lair could have known how to get to the lower floor and then to the precise location of where Micha was sleeping...

His thoughts were shattered as the Waterford vase abruptly burst into a spray of glass shards.

“Betrayal,” Kane snarled, leaning his barrel chest toward Valen in a blatant attempt at intimidation.

Valen met the male’s fierce accusation with a lift of his brow. He wasn’t going to give the male the satisfaction of knowing how troubled he was by the events of the day. Not when it was quite likely Kane was involved up to his arrogant ass.

“I’m not sure what happened,” he admitted in icy tones. “But I do swear I’ll get answers.”

“Like I would trust you,” Kane snapped. “It’s obvious you and the witches will do anything to protect your mate. Including attacking a member of the Cabal. What happened? Did Micha decide that your female was too dangerous to leave out in the wild? Were you afraid we’d have to lock her away to prevent—”

“Kane,” Azra smoothly interrupted, stepping between the males as Valen’s fangs lengthened in warning. Valen didn’t care what’d happened to Micha. Anyone foolish enough to threaten his mate was going to die. The ambassador moved to stand directly in front of Valen, eyeing him with an apologetic expression. “I’m sorry, Valen, but this does need to be investigated, and we need to do it in a way to avoid any appearance of tampering with the evidence.”

“Exactly.” Kane thumped his fist against his chest. “My servants will take care of the investigation.”

Valen hissed, but once again the ambassador headed off the brewing battle.

“I will have my staff make any inquiries. They are all handpicked by Sinjon.” His gaze moved from Valen to Kane. “I’m sure neither of you will question their loyalty to the Cabal?”

It was a direct challenge. If they refused, then they were indicating that Sinjon couldn’t be trusted. A lethal mistake.

“Very well.” Valen offered a stiff nod.

Kane took a grudging step back, his feral gaze locked on Valen. “They can investigate all they want, but my people are going to keep an eye on you, Valen, along with your witch,” he growled, unable to concede defeat. Or perhaps this was deliberate. His response was certainly melodramatic enough to be an act. How better to convince everyone he wasn’t involved in the kidnapping. “I don’t trust either of you.”

Azra held up his hand, indicating the conversation was over. “We will begin our questions at the Witch’s Brew. We’ll need to speak with the owner and search the seer’s room. I want both of you—” He glanced from Kane to Valen before turning his attention to Peri. “And you. To remain here.”

Peri grimaced. “Maya isn’t going to be happy.”

* * * *

Accustomed to long hours of inactivity, Micha stood motionless in the corner of the cell as the minutes ticked past, stretching into an hour. He assumed this was a deliberate ploy by the fairies to gain the upper hand.

Lock up the leech and then watch him sweat...

Micha wasn’t going to give them the satisfaction.

Skye, on the other hand, was pacing from one end of the cell to the other, her expression distracted, as if she was troubled by something beyond being locked in the cell with a vampire.

Micha should have been insulted. Even if she wasn’t terrified to be alone with him, she could at least acknowledge they were sharing a cell. He wasn’t used to being so completely ignored. Instead, he took the opportunity to savor the delicate grace of her movements and the sparkles of magic that danced in the air.

She didn’t seem real, he silently acknowledged. More like a fantasy that had been plucked from the depths of his soul.

It was the scent of fairy that eventually intruded into his fascination with the young seer. Seconds later a tall male crossed the cavern to stand next to the cell. He looked marginally different now that he’d removed the disguise amulet. His face was thinner and his body several pounds lighter, but there was no mistaking this was the fairy who’d attacked him in his rooms. The one who’d snapped the collar around his neck.

A growl rumbled in Micha’s throat as he moved to place himself between the demon and Skye. It was pure instinct, but he didn’t try to halt the impulse.

The fairy smiled, as if entertained by the revealing reflex. He was, however, smart enough to keep his amusement to himself. Pressing a hand to the center of his chest, he performed a formal bow.

“Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Lynx, leader of the largest demon horde in the world.”

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