Page 49 of Mayhem and Ember

“What happened?” Patrice asked.

“Well, see…” Ember’s expression revealed she scrambled for an answer, so I assisted her.

“A large rift formed, and several fae got through, slaughtering the sheep in their wake. This gentleman…” I motioned to the frozen gunman. “He accused the victim of disemboweling his flock and decided an eye for an eye was the best course of action. Sadly, we couldn’t stop him from firing, but Ash and Ember tended to his wounds while awaiting your arrival.”

The sisters blinked at me three times before Ember recovered. “Sad story, isn’t it? Will he survive?”

“He’ll be fine.” She removed a pair of gloves and rose to her feet, eyeing me suspiciously as she picked up her bag. “I left a few marks from the buckshot, so it’ll look like he barely grazed the skin.”

She cut her gaze to Chaos, then Ash, and back to Ember. “I hope you froze him fast enough that he won’t remember.”

Ember ushered Inga toward Patrice. “Thanks so much for your help.”

“A hospital could have done the same thing. Is there anything else…?” She glanced at Chaos and me.

“I know, and we’re sorry to have bothered you.” She lowered her voice. “Shade dropped the cloak too soon and got a little spell-happy, freezing them both. We were afraid he’d die before the binding wore off if we waited to call an ambulance.”

“I…” He stiffened, his lips forming a thin line, and I held in another laugh. “Do you have any idea the amount of effort it takes to shadow an entire field like this?”

“You’re doing a great job.” Ember flashed a tight-lipped smile, her message less than subtle, before turning to Patrice. Any news from your end? More murders or beasties getting through?”

“You haven’t heard?” She reached into her bag and pulled out a smaller one. “A couple who’d been living beneath an overpass were found hidden in some nearby brush. It happened overnight between Salem and Boston.”

“They’re organizing,” I said. “We must find the ones who did this.”

“Here.” Patrice offered the smaller bag to Ash. “I bottled some pain powders and healing creams. I need to get back to my workshop to make more. It sounds like we’ll need them.”

“Thanks, Patrice. Keep me posted.” Ember lifted a hand as they walked away, and as they exited the cloaked area, she spun toward me. “I want answers. What makes you say they’re organizing? If they’re hoping to take over this realm, don’t they already have a plan?” She lifted a finger, counting each question. “How do we find invisible predators? Why did they kill these sheep? What the hell were you thinking turning these men on each other, and which one of you messed with my mind?”

I attempted to suppress my smile, but the fire in her eyes and the emotion in her words made a strange flitting sensation rise from my stomach to my chest like a swarm of moths attempting to escape, attracted to the flames of Ember.

She put her hands on her hips. “Is this funny to you?”

“Not in the slightest.”

“I can’t hold this shadow much longer,” Shade said.

Ember paced four steps in one direction before returning to her starting point. “Let’s go. I need food before I can think clearly. Chaos…” She jabbed a finger toward me. “Not you. Chaos, can you gently make them forget we were ever here?”

“Of course,” he said.

“Ash, stay with him and make sure he behaves. We’ll meet you at the van.” She jerked her head toward the front of the farm. “Demons first.”

“Are you sure? I rather enjoy watching you walk away.”

She faltered. If only for a fraction of a second, she lost her steely composure, showing that my words affected her as I intended. “Move it.”

For some Hades-knew-why reason, I did as she commanded and returned to the van, climbing into the front passenger seat to await the others. Ember paced outside the vehicle, talking to herself in a voice too quiet for me to make out her words.

Apparently, Shade had given her a portable shadow spell because, while he stayed behind with my brother, the world outside our bubble remained grayscale. I didn’t see the others approach. One second, we were alone, and the next, Chaos, Ash, Shade, and Miles stood outside the van.

It was no wonder shadow magic was a highly coveted power for demons to possess. Imagine the hysteria we could cause—in this realm and ours—if we could remain undetected. I had met many witches in my eternal existence, but the concentration of power in this small coven made them the greatest I had ever witnessed.

And Ember… It seemed I couldn’t get enough of her.

We parked in the lot behind their home and walked three blocks to a restaurant. Shade returned to Miles’s home under Ember’s order to bottle more shadow magic. He had protested, as he tended to do when he wasn’t involved in the coven planning.

I understood the frustration of being left out. I was always the last to learn of Lucifer’s plans, if I learned of them at all. But Shade held no position of authority in the coven. He was not of the ruling bloodline, so he had no valid argument. I was a Prince of Hell. I belonged to the royal bloodline. Lucifer and my brothers had no acceptable reason for leaving me out, yet they did it all the time.

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