Page 11 of Hallowed Tree
“Curious,” Harry said again. He walked around the fire pit, then popped to the other side of the logs that surrounded it and walked the perimeter. “I don’t really see anything—”
He broke off, his face going ashen as he disappeared, reappearing at my side. I couldn’t complain about that since I liked him next to me, and it gave me a little thrill that he’d sought me out, but I didn’t like how panicked he seemed. “What’s wrong, Harry?”
He pointed at the tree he’d been standing next to. It was an old blonde oak tree that had one low, thick branch that extended over the water. “Something feels off over there.”
“Evil?” Kingston asked, all signs of frustration gone and replaced with gleeful hope.
Harry moved in closer to me, close enough that our bodies began to merge. “Not evil but dark.”
Kingston bopped on his toes, giddy with the prospect of more other-worldly activity, which was really freaking adorable for such a tall man. “Malicious?”
Harry shook his head. “No. Not like that. But like a dead zone, for lack of a better way to put it. Almost blank.”
I eyed the tree in question, surprised at his response. I’d lived out here for a while before I’d moved into the manor, and my friends and I had spent hours sitting on the big branch talking about our former lives. “That’s not good. It didn’t used to feel different than anywhere else out here. Even the pond, with all its bad energy, hadn’t felt that way.”
Before we could stop him, Kingston ran straight for the tree. His long legs ate up the short distance easily.
“No,” Harry cried out.
Kingston stood still, then hung his head. “I don’t feel anything,” he mumbled.
“Well, you’re lucky,” Harry said crossly. “What if it had been some human-sucking black hole?”
Kingston’s head panned around, and he stared at Harry incredulously. I didn’t blame him. It was like our sexy times had changed Harry’s personality from the calm stoic butler we all knew and loved to a man a little more in touch with his emotions. I grinned. I’d done that.
Kingston’s gaze moved to me. “What’s wrong with him?”
Harry clucked his tongue. “Nothing. But it’s my responsibility to take care of you all. Including you, Kingston. What would Mr. Jetty say if something had happened to you?” His voice rose toward the end, and he stomped his foot.
Snorting, I hugged him and kissed his forehead. “Calm down. Everyone knows how Kingston is. Why don’t you pop back to the house and have Chance and Jetty meet us out here? See if you can find Elyse and her Mr., too.”
“Good idea,” Harry said, then he was gone, slipping from my arm like mist.
Kingston glared at me accusingly. “You never answered my question. What were you two doing out here?”
With a smug smile, I sat on one of the logs and patted the spot next to me. “Come here and let me tell you how I landed my man.”
Chapter Five
Harry
Leaving Buck and Kingston out by the pond, I went straight to the parlor of the manor. It was Mr. Chance’s favorite place in his home. Unsurprisingly, I found him and Mr. Jetty making out on the small settee, grinding their lower halves together. At least they were still dressed. For the first time, after having my interlude with Buck, I understood why they couldn’t keep their hands off each other.
“Mr. Chance! Mr. Jetty! Come quick! We need you out at the pond!”
Mr. Jetty’s head fell onto his boyfriend’s shoulder, and he groaned. Mr. Chance looked up at me through heavy-lidded eyes. “Is it important? Can we do it later?”
Trying not to fret, I rubbed my hands together anxiously. “No, please. You must come now. It’s urgent. Buck and Kingston are waiting for us.”
That caught their attention, and they both scrambled off the couch, shoving their feet into their shoes. They ran out throughthe kitchen door with me floating along beside them, urging them to hurry.
As we crossed the lawn, Chance’s mother, Elyse, called out to us from where she sat cross-legged meditating with Skyler and Marc, Chance’s father. “Where are you three going in such a hurry?”
Looking over his shoulder, Chance yelled, “Mom, come quick! We might need you.”
I heard them jumping to their feet behind us, and knowing they were all on their way, I blinked back to Buck’s side. “They’ll be here in a moment.”
Kingston jumped off the log he’d been sitting on as soon as he saw his friends. Waving them over, he said, “We think we found something at the tree.”
