Page 37 of The Incubus and the Bodyguard

“Fine!” He stormed over to the vehicle, got inside, and slammed the door shut after Tarang climbed in.

Delphine lowered her brows.

“Any chance that magic made him regress to a petulant teenager?” she asked Cortes.

The Colombian laughed.

The ride to Glendale took place with a surprising lack of mishaps. Delphine stayed alert as she turned the Range Rover into a quiet cul-de-sac lined with bare trees, theBlack Devilsguards following at a distance. She parked behind an ancient Subaru at the end of the road and stared at the two-story clapboard house to the right.

It was a deceptively normal-looking home with a neat yard full of garden gnomes.

Delphine picked out Cortes’s men loitering inside two SUVs that stood out like sore thumbs where they were stationed amidst the weathered vehicles hedging the curbs.

“Your guys should hire a beat-up Chevy next time they do a stakeout,” she told Cortes as they stepped out of the Range Rover.

The Colombian grimaced. “That might hurt their pride.”

Vlad alighted from the vehicle with Tarang, his expression tense.

Tension oozed through Delphine when they crossed the front yard to a redbrick porch. Something had brushed against her senses. Something that made her skin prickle with an otherworldly awareness.

Cortes clocked her expression. “That’s the barrier we were telling you about. It feels kinda creepy at first.”

Delphine masked a grimace. Creepy didn’t even begin to describe it.

“We do this my way,” she said. “I’ll go in first and clear the place before you guys enter. At the first sign of trouble?—”

A chorus of excited barks and yips erupted from the property.

“Too late,” Cortes muttered.

The front door opened.

An elderly Korean woman in a neon purple tracksuit stood in the hallway, a scowl on her face.

“Are you kids going to stand out there all day? The spirits are getting impatient.”

The Chihuahua in her arms wriggled excitedly at the sight of Tarang and Popo.

CHAPTERTHIRTEEN

Vlad and Cortesgreeted Mrs. Son-Ha and her dog Dexter. A small black-and-tan Shih Tzu poked his head around the old lady’s legs and yapped at them.

“Pipe down,” Mrs. Son-Ha told the Shih Tzu sharply. “It’s not like this is your first time seeing the tiger and the pervert bird.”

Popo puffed his chest out proudly at that. Cortes rolled his eyes.

The Shih Tzu issued one final yip before whirling around and disappearing down the passage to the living room. She poked her head out again, a pair of Chihuahuas, another two Shih Tzus, and a dog whose breed Vlad had yet to determine joining her in her curious perusal of their visitors.

Mrs. Son-Ha squinted. “Well? Are you coming in or not?”

Delphine took the lead when they entered the house.

Mrs. Son-Ha didn’t miss the move.

“Who’s the pretty lady?” she asked as they divested themselves of their coats and shoes, Delphine following Vlad and Cortes’s example.

“My new bodyguard,” Vlad admitted reluctantly.

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