Page 138 of Wicked Heirs

“She’s the exception.”

“Yes, that’s coming through loud and clear,” he said as we stepped out into the gardens. “Do you have to tone yourself down for her? That’s where my sex question was rooted.”

“It’s actually the opposite.”

He pulled up short and spun to face me head-on. “Truly?”

“Truly.”

“You may have met your match then.”

“I have.” I was already certain of it.

“Then it’s a shame with what’s coming.” He laid his hand on my shoulder. “I’m sorry, son.”

“What? Why?”

“This connection you have with her is about to be tested.”

“What’s happened?”

He took a moment, then revealed in a strained voice, “The acolytes are on the move.”

I started, more than just a little taken aback.

“They were run underground byExemplarthree years ago.”

“Well, they’ve resurfaced. I’d heard rumblings so I had my spies watching and waiting and, sure enough, his acolytes made a misstep and I was able to confirm that they’ve returned. Not just that, but they’re searching for something in particular.”

“Obviously, them being Constantine’s acolytes, a way to free him.”

“Yes.”

I read his expression, the grave look in his eyes. “And you’ve discovered what that is.”

“I have.”

“So, it’s no longer a hypothetical concern, a worry we both share that the bastard would one day find a way to free himself? It’s a cemented reality now?”

“One thatExemplarwas aware of this entire time.” He shoved a hand through his hair. “In tracking the movements of the acolytes through my spy network, which has increased substantially over the last three years, I was able to discern what they were searching for specifically.”

I waited with bated breath.

“Vitalium,”he revealed.

I frowned. “I’ve never heard of it.”

“Because it was only forged three years ago during theCataclysmby Abigail Rose and Elliot Sabre. It’s the key to both keeping Constantine in the realm of dead souls—Spiritus—and to breaking him out.Vitaliumis a specially forged jar containing the essence of his physical body and his lifeforce as it would exist on this plane. Without it, he cannot leave and return to the land of the living. The jar itself, to hold such a formidable lifeforce like Constantine’s, is under a great deal of pressure and it’s prone to cracking over time. It’s not a permanent solution and Abigail has been reinforcing the protection spell she placed around it. But even her magic can’t keep it from breaking forever.” He shook his head with a grimace. “Exactly what I was worried about, exactly why I wanted to take his life. There is only permanent victory over our enemies in death.”

“So, his acolytes get a hold ofVitaliumand they’ll be able to smash it to pieces.”

“No, they’ll need something that can breach the magic of Abigail and Elliot. It’s his that cloaks the vial and his ward that it lies behind.”

“There areHellbornmagical objects that have the ability to break through their magic.”

“Indeed. Well-learned, my boy. It is such an object that I believe they are also searching for, while other members determine the location of the jar. With it cloaked, it can’t be achieved through a locator spell, so they’re targeting,questioning, and torturing anyone who was within close range of Abigail and Elliot back then when they cooked up this pathetic solution of theirs to put down Constantine.”

“Exemplarobviously isn’t aware of his acolytes resurfacing yet, or it would be all over the supernatural world, word spreading like wildfire.”

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