Cristescu looked like he was trying to calm himself down when he replied, “The last twenty-four hours have been eventful for us, sorcerer. You’ll excuse me if I’m highly strung.”
Roman wore his bland expression again. “Of course.”
Another God-awful silence fell. I decided to break the tension when I spoke, “Right, well, I’m going upstairs to talk to Alora. If she agrees to be your decoy, fine. But if she doesn’t want to, I won’t let you force her.”
“Very well,” Roman replied, and I headed upstairs.
I found Alora in my room getting dressed. I put Roman’s plan to her, expecting her to be too scared to be a part of it. She surprised me when her jaw set determinedly, and she insisted on helping. Maybe she wasn’t such a damsel in distress who needed my protection after all. There was grit to her, and I suspected some of it was related to her need for revenge. Theodore and Ridley were close, and killing Theodore meant the man who stole two years of her life lost his most powerful ally.
When we were ready to leave, instead of using a vehicle, Roman cast a spell to transport us to our destination. I felt like I’d just woken up from a dream when I opened my eyes and saw that we were no longer at Cristescu’s place but crouched behind some trees outside a large family home.
It was a cookie-cutter house surrounded by dozens of similar homes. It was also in an area where only humans lived. Camouflage, I guessed. Theodore wanted to blend in with the crowd and make himself harder to find.
I saw Roman whispering in Alora’s ear, giving her instructions, and while I couldn’t hear all that he said, I understood why he wanted to use her when I spotted Michael Ridley standing guard at the front door. My protective instincts kicked in before my gaze lowered.
Oh, shit. A grin tugged at my lips. There was a small metal hook where his hand used to be, thanks to Ira biting it off. I had to hold in the urge to smile as I glanced at Alora and told her what I saw. She seemed pleased at the reminder that Ridley lost his hand during her escape from his capture.
“You sure you’re okay with this?” I asked her.
She nodded stoically. “Yes. I’m sure.”
Roman began constructing an invisible bubble of magic around her so that when she approached Ridley, he wouldn’t be able to harm her. I put my arm around her shoulders and gave her a quick hug before she stepped out from behind the trees and started walking toward the house.
The second Ridley spotted her his entire body tensed, and his beady eyes darted back and forth to scan the area for threats. When he was satisfied that she was alone, he gave a predatory smile. It made me want to punch him.
“I knew you’d come back,” he said, walking toward her.
I clenched my fists at the smug look on his face. Patience. All I needed was to be patient.
Alora stopped just outside the gates to the house, going no farther. This was all a part of the plan. We needed him to come outside the house, outside the zone of Theodore’s protection.
“My family have fled the city. I didn’t have anyone else to turn to,” Alora said in a purposefully meek voice.
“You’ll always have a place with me, child. I might even find it in my heart to forgive you for what that mutt did to my hand. That is, of course, if you have any good predictions for me.”
Ira growled low in his throat when Ridley called him a mutt, but I placed my hand on his shoulder as a sign for him not to make any more noise. We couldn’t afford for the warlock to discover we were there.
“I’ve had a number of visions over the past few days. I’m sure you’re eager to know what I’ve seen.”
Ridley continued to get closer to her, but when he reached the gate, he simply opened it and gestured for her to come inside. Damn, he wasn’t going to leave the parameter of the house.
I was gearing up to intervene when Roman put a hand out to stop me.
“Patience, Mr Roe,” he whispered. “We need to wait for her to touch him.”
My eyes were drawn back to Ridley and Alora, and I saw that he was holding out his hand to her, the one that wasn’t a hook. Time seemed to move in slow motion as she reached out to take it. The second their palms met, Roman emerged from his hiding spot. His lips moved rapidly as he cast a whispered spell, and a variety of colours streamed from his body. Ridley froze in place when he saw the sorcerer advancing on him. He tried to pull his hand from Alora’s, but she gripped it tight.