Page 114 of Hearts of Stone

“Wulf…”

“He’ll be fine,” I assured her, my words strong, though my voice was not. “We’ll get you to safety and—”

“Wulf!”

Jade thrashed in my arms, as though she was pulling away from me as we walked along a garden path, rather than high in the air. My arms locked tight around her like a cage, as I descended rapidly to land safely on the lawns.

“Jade, stop—!”

“No! Wulf is in there with Luther!” She jabbed her finger in the direction of Z Ward. “With the man who tormented him over and over. With the man that broke his mind.”

“And we will bring that bastard down.” That was a promise I would die to keep. Luther had been a blight on the world during his time. But now? He did not deserve to live a moment longer. The marks on Daniel’s skin made sense now. I recognised Luther’s trademark brutality in every bruise. Though we were monsters, we had honour, and we all shrank back at his sadistic ways. “You stay here—”

“No,” Jade said.

I watched her cross her arms and a mulish expression form on her face.

“Call Harry. Call Mellors. Ring the police.”

“No.”

“Jade…” My wings rustled as I stepped forward, hands outstretched. “Let us do this for you. You are the most precious thing in the world to us and if we think you are in danger…” My fangs locked together momentarily. “Then we can’t do what we need to. We will free Wulf and kill Luther—”

I was finally getting through to her and making her see sense, when a ragged roar cut through the night air. Jade’s head whipped around and she answered it with a pained gasp before taking off at a run.

“Jade!” I went sprinting after her, ready to scoop her up and stash her on the roof, away from all of this. “Jade—!”

“I won’t hide away in that house while you fight the bastard that broke Daniel.” Her sobs came out in panting breaths as she ran faster. “I won’t let you leave Wulf to Luther’s tender mercies. This is my estate, you are my gargoyles, and we’re going to take that bastard down together.”

“What the hell is Jade doing here?” Graven snapped as we appeared at the gates. “Get her to somewhere safe!”

“Don’t you start,” Jade snapped, shoving her finger into his face, but when he didn’t respond, simply glowering back at her, she turned to the gates. “Madeline said that there’s a soul anchor somewhere, something that’s tied Luther’s soul to the body he’s wearing now. That’s what’s allowed him to live so long. If we find it and destroy it—”

“Then Luther will die.” I jolted back at Madeline’s sudden appearance, looking just as she had when she’d last been in this house. She shot me a rueful smile, then stared back through the gates. “You can tear him limb from limb, but it won’t matter.He’ll still live on in one form or another. Destroy the anchor and you destroy him.”

“Then we will keep our former master busy while you search,” Carrick said, cracking his knuckles. “Let us in through the wards.”

Both Madeline and Jade pulled in a breath to do just that, then smiled at each other for just a split second.

“Let us in,” they said together. “Let us in.”

As soon as we stepped through the gates, I knew this was a terrible idea, because I’d been here before in a situation just like this. The day that Luther had ‘died’, when all of those poor souls trapped in their cells actually had, it had started just like this. Witchfire licking the walls, creating a hellish heat. The stink of burning paper filled my nose, but then I heard, felt a ferocious thump, my wings spreading as I pushed Jade behind me. Our brother, Wulf, shoved Luther up against the walls he’d built, the mortar infused with his own blood. But that bastard just grinned through bloodied teeth.

“Together again, old friend?” he ground out in the face of Wulf’s roar. “Just as it always was. We’ll fill these cells again, together.”

My brother did not answer him with words, but with his claws, wrapping one around the bastard’s neck, the sharp points of his talons piercing the skin. But Luther remained completely unafraid, wrapping his hands around Wulf’s claws, but not seeking to try and pull them away.

And we soon saw why.

As he squeezed, Wulf’s breath caught in his chest, at the same time as Luther’s did, the two of them wheezing in sync, as if Wulf’s throat was also being crushed.

“You forget… when you hurt me… you only hurt yourself.” Although he could barely get out the words, Luther’s eyes gleamed maniacally.

And that’s when my brothers and I realised what Luther had done. Madeline had spoken of a soul anchor, something keeping his essence tethered to the mortal realm. We didn’t need to look any further, for we’d found it. Luther hadn’t simply stolen Wulf’s face when taking another body: he’d been forced to. Luther loved to torment all of us, but he’d saved the worst of all for Wulfstan, and somehow for him, that had created a deeper, more satisfying bond. One he’d obviously extended with magic. Graven, Carrick and I all looked at each other, knowing then what had to be done.

“Go and search for the soul anchor,” Graven told Jade and Madeline. “Look for something that Luther might’ve thought was precious and…” His eyes flicked to Madeline. “Keep her safe. You promised you’d help us find her. Don’t jeopardise the other half of my heart for mere revenge.”

Because we knew then that their search would be fruitless; that there was no need to search for an amulet or stone that Luther tied his soul to. He’d chosen a far grander vessel.

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