“There’s no way out of this. So you might as well tell me what all of this is.”
“Nothing,” Samuel said. “It’s just a placebo. Makes paranorms think they’re on something.”
“Right.” Alec picked up one of the little glass bottles of clear fluid. The bottles were much like those used in the medical profession where syringes could be inserted through the top and only what was needed would be drawn out. “And the humans that have been seen coming and going from your house?”
Samuel licked his lips. “What humans?”
Alec crouched in front of Samuel so that they were at eye level as he held up one of the bottles. “We’re going to have these tested and then we’ll see exactly what’s in them.”
The dealer gave a nonchalant shrug that wasn’t as casual as he tried to make it appear. “Go ahead. You won’t find anything.”
“We’ll see.” Alec stood, still gripping the bottle in his left hand. “For now we’re going to take you in with us while we wait to find out exactly what it is.”
Genuine fear crossed Samuel’s face. “Don’t,” he said in a harsh whisper. “He’ll kill me if he thinks I talked.”
“Who is ‘he’?” Alec asked again.
A movement at the back door had Alec turning his head. A male with wicked hazel eyes and a mass of dark hair stood where Alec had expected Loni to be.
The male flung a ball of magic at Alec.
Alec unsheathed his sword to block the spellfire but the male was too close and Alec’s sword wasn’t up fast enough.
Magic slammed into Alec, ramming him up against the wall.
Pain seared Alec’s chest and his vision threatened to go black. A witch.
Alec gritted his teeth as he barely managed to regain his footing.
The witch threw another spellball but this time Alec blocked it with his blade, despite the massive pain in his chest and his blurred vision.
Alec blocked a third and a fourth spellball as he heard shouts of the other Enforcers engaged in battle. Damn. How had Dawson’s people managed to get the drop on them?
Something hit the backs of Alec’s knees, and they buckled. Samuel went through his mind as he dropped and realized the dealer had gotten him from behind.
More spellfire hit Alec, this time in his right shoulder, as he went down.
Pain burned through Alec and his vision swam. He slammed face first onto the floor. His sword slipped from his grip as his entire arm went numb.
He started to push himself back to his feet when the witch engulfed Alec’s entire body in spellfire.
This time the pain that gripped Alec’s body was greater than anything he’d ever felt before. He felt like he might rip apart from the inside out. He was vaguely conscious of blood dripping from his nose and leaking from his ears and mouth and running from his eyes like teardrops. His entire body convulsed and he everything started to go black.
Loni’s scream was the last thing he heard.
Fear tore through Loni as she dropped Alec’s dagger. Someone had grabbed her from behind and clamped his hand over her mouth. She smelled something like weeds as dirt filled her mouth as her captor shoved it in. She tried screaming again and almost choked on the dirt.
Her mind raced as terror ripped through her as she saw Alec slumped on the floor, some kind of orange light enveloping his body, the light coming from a man’s hands. Her eyes widened and she tried not to swallow the dirt as the man turned his gaze on her.
“Get her to the car, Harper.” The man gave a menacing smile as he spoke to her captor. “I’ll be taking her to Dawson.”
The fear running rampant through her system magnified as the man spoke. Dawson had tried to kill her just days ago.
And then she saw blood on Alec’s face and neck and the whiteness of his features as he lay silent and still on the kitchen floor. She wanted to scream again but couldn’t.
“You’ve got it, Mr. Richmond,” said the man who had been called Harper. He wheeled her around and marched her down the
“Nothing,” Samuel said. “It’s just a placebo. Makes paranorms think they’re on something.”
“Right.” Alec picked up one of the little glass bottles of clear fluid. The bottles were much like those used in the medical profession where syringes could be inserted through the top and only what was needed would be drawn out. “And the humans that have been seen coming and going from your house?”
Samuel licked his lips. “What humans?”
Alec crouched in front of Samuel so that they were at eye level as he held up one of the bottles. “We’re going to have these tested and then we’ll see exactly what’s in them.”
The dealer gave a nonchalant shrug that wasn’t as casual as he tried to make it appear. “Go ahead. You won’t find anything.”
“We’ll see.” Alec stood, still gripping the bottle in his left hand. “For now we’re going to take you in with us while we wait to find out exactly what it is.”
Genuine fear crossed Samuel’s face. “Don’t,” he said in a harsh whisper. “He’ll kill me if he thinks I talked.”
“Who is ‘he’?” Alec asked again.
A movement at the back door had Alec turning his head. A male with wicked hazel eyes and a mass of dark hair stood where Alec had expected Loni to be.
The male flung a ball of magic at Alec.
Alec unsheathed his sword to block the spellfire but the male was too close and Alec’s sword wasn’t up fast enough.
Magic slammed into Alec, ramming him up against the wall.
Pain seared Alec’s chest and his vision threatened to go black. A witch.
Alec gritted his teeth as he barely managed to regain his footing.
The witch threw another spellball but this time Alec blocked it with his blade, despite the massive pain in his chest and his blurred vision.
Alec blocked a third and a fourth spellball as he heard shouts of the other Enforcers engaged in battle. Damn. How had Dawson’s people managed to get the drop on them?
Something hit the backs of Alec’s knees, and they buckled. Samuel went through his mind as he dropped and realized the dealer had gotten him from behind.
More spellfire hit Alec, this time in his right shoulder, as he went down.
Pain burned through Alec and his vision swam. He slammed face first onto the floor. His sword slipped from his grip as his entire arm went numb.
He started to push himself back to his feet when the witch engulfed Alec’s entire body in spellfire.
This time the pain that gripped Alec’s body was greater than anything he’d ever felt before. He felt like he might rip apart from the inside out. He was vaguely conscious of blood dripping from his nose and leaking from his ears and mouth and running from his eyes like teardrops. His entire body convulsed and he everything started to go black.
Loni’s scream was the last thing he heard.
Fear tore through Loni as she dropped Alec’s dagger. Someone had grabbed her from behind and clamped his hand over her mouth. She smelled something like weeds as dirt filled her mouth as her captor shoved it in. She tried screaming again and almost choked on the dirt.
Her mind raced as terror ripped through her as she saw Alec slumped on the floor, some kind of orange light enveloping his body, the light coming from a man’s hands. Her eyes widened and she tried not to swallow the dirt as the man turned his gaze on her.
“Get her to the car, Harper.” The man gave a menacing smile as he spoke to her captor. “I’ll be taking her to Dawson.”
The fear running rampant through her system magnified as the man spoke. Dawson had tried to kill her just days ago.
And then she saw blood on Alec’s face and neck and the whiteness of his features as he lay silent and still on the kitchen floor. She wanted to scream again but couldn’t.
“You’ve got it, Mr. Richmond,” said the man who had been called Harper. He wheeled her around and marched her down the
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