Page 69 of Destined for Shadows
Bartol’s hands shook as he finally reached the back corner of the cabin. It was all he could do to keep fighting the flames with so much of his energy drained. He couldn’t give up, though, especially since it was his fault it had reached this state. If he had not gotten lost in thought in the woods, he would have returned sooner and seen the arsonist before he could set the blaze. Perhaps Bartol should have stayed outside of Cori’s home all night so that no one could get past him. There were far too many ways this could have been prevented, and now she would lose her lovely cabin.
To his rear, he caught the sounds of vehicles pulling up the road. Cori shouted to him that it was just Melena coming with help. He must have been working for a while for them to be there already.
Flames spread across the grass. Bartol cursed and redoubled his efforts to finish his work and get the fire out once and for all. Sweat was now pouring freely down his body, and he was growing lightheaded. It was going to take every drop of power he had to finish the job. He collapsed to his knees but kept working. A few more licks of flames died down, but more spread beyond the cabin. His vision grew hazy, but then a man with long, black hair appeared next to the conflagration and gestured with his hands. Within moments, everything was extinguished.
The man rubbed his hands together in satisfaction and headed around the ruins of the cabin. As he came closer, his face became clearer. Bartol swore. Of all the people to help him, he’d rather have died a thousand deaths than receive assistance from this one person.
“Kerbasi,” he growled.
The guardian stopped a few paces away and bowed. “No need to thank me, little nephilim. Think of it as reparation for my past transgressions against you.”
Bartol stumbled to his feet and roared. “Get away from me before I—”
“You should get cleaned up,” Kerbasi interrupted, taking a step back. “You’re a mess.” The guardian flashed away without waiting for a reply.
If Bartol hadn’t used up all of his energy, he would have tracked the guardian down and beat him to a bloody pulp. It didn’t matter that his former torturer had assisted in putting the fire out—not even a little. Kerbasi had waited until the last moment to show up as if he had somehow saved the day, and it didn’t begin to cover the damage he’d done in the past. Extinguishing a hundred fires wouldn’t have been enough.
“Come, friend,” Lucas said from behind him and held out a hand. “Let me help you get back to your cabin.”
Bartol hadn’t realized he’d collapsed onto his knees again. Flashing home wasn’t an option at this point when he could hardly stand. Hell, he was going to be lucky if he could stumble his way back. Taking a deep breath, he allowed Lucas to pull him to his feet, but he jerked away quickly after that. The weaker he got, the more sensitive he became to touch.
“I need to speak with the arsonist,” Bartol said, determined to see the rest of his self-appointed mission through.
Lucas shook his head. “He’s dead.”
“But I left him alive!”
“As best as we can tell, someone came along after that and broke his neck.” Lucas pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket. “And they left his note on the body.”
Bartol glanced down and read:
To Cori and her nephilim lover,
This is what you get for taking my brother and mother from me. Expect more, so much more. You will pay for this!
-G
He ground his teeth. “He was close, and I let him get away.”
“You were busy putting out a fire.” Lucas gave him a consoling look. “You didn’t have much choice.”
Bartol didn’t bother to bring up the fact it was his fault the fire got out of hand in the first place. “I wasn’t watching Cori while I dealt with the cabin, either.”
That thought reminded him, and he shot his gaze around the yard looking for her. He caught sight of Micah, Patrick, and a few others he vaguely recognized as their friends and coworkers, but he didn’t see Cori. Had he lost her while he was distracted?
“She’s fine,” Lucas said.
“Where is she?” Bartol demanded.
“Melena took her to your cabin to get her calmed down. She was rather upset.”
He let out a breath. “Is she okay?”
“I believe she had some damage to her lungs, but Micah already helped ease that problem.” Lucas gazed at him plaintively. “You were fighting that fire for quite a while.”
Bartol ran a hand through his hair, finding it covered in soot. “I suspect the arsonist used accelerants when he started the blaze.”
“Cori told us one of her kitchen windows was broken, which is what woke her up. That is where the fire started, so he must have thrown something flammable inside,” Lucas confirmed.
“I believe he poured something on the back walls as well.”
Lucas sighed. “I will make certain her insurance pays for this, but it will take time to rebuild even if we rush the process.”
“She can stay with me for now,” Bartol said. “After she is out of danger, she can decide where to go from there.”
“Are you certain about that?” Lucas asked, knitting his brows.
“No, but I want her safe, and I don’t want her to leave my sight again until that former husband of hers is dead.” Of that much, he was certain.
