Ordained by Devon Ashley

intentionally. Not to necessarily attack Abigail, but to cause harm to any hunter it could get its hands on.”
    “The little one did seem to attack Mira when there were four to choose from.”
    Moore grunted in disapproval. He was greatly upset to learn Abigail had taken three of his huntresses outside the protection of the manor. He probably never would have learned this had Mira not been attacked and suffered a concussion. He feared Abigail’s intentional disregard for his authority would brush off on the others under his command.
    “Unfortunately,” Moore said, “I do believe Morphus has been released and is looking to get rid of as many hunters as possible before confrontation.”
    Lincoln nodded in agreement. “Were your contacts able to tell you anything regarding the longevity of Abigail and Noel?”
    “Not yet, but they’re looking into it. Their only suggestion as of yet is vampirism but I’m still leaning in favor of magic.”
    Moore turned and headed for the hallway. He needed to make his rounds. Usually done once a day, he couldn’t in good conscious believe the manor was safe and secure without witnessing it firsthand several times per day now. Lincoln followed suit.
    Keeping his voice low, Lincoln replied, “Vampirism does make sense.”
    “Did you not notice the cross she wore around her neck? One tends to be eliminated from that list when the skin does not singe.”
    “True,” said Lincoln. After a moment of thinking he added, “Perhaps it’s possible they’ve recently been reincarnated and just aren’t admitting to it.”
    Moore nodded in disagreement. “I’ve seen the mark on her shoulder. We would have been drawn to her after birth.”
    Condescendingly, Lincoln replied, “You mean like the last time? If I’m not mistaken they missed her then too.”
    “That’s true,” Moore agreed, though he was still doubtful of reincarnation. How would both have been reincarnated, gone by the same names, found one another all over again and gained knowledge they couldn’t have had without witnessing it for themselves?
    Together they passed one of the common rooms. This one in particular was usually frequented by the two male hunters because it had a television. More than happy to keep hunters entertained within manor walls, Moore set up the large screen television with game consoles. He then supplied a large number of ridiculously over the top violent games to keep their attention – which was quite easy to come by. Sure enough, Daniel and Christoph were on the floor playing some intergalactic battle game while Anita and Giselle watched from the sofa.
    Moore and Lincoln continued on.
    “I need to be honest with you for a moment,” Lincoln said gravely. “I have doubts about Abigail’s abilities and the faith we’re putting in her for this battle. What happens is she loses? Look what that demon did to her. How will she ever hold up against Morphus?”
    Moore too had these thoughts going through his mind but had the sense to keep them to himself. There was enough unrest going on about the manor and he didn’t feel they should add to it. However, he couldn’t help but wonder what was keeping Abigail. Days had passed since she was injured and he had yet to see her again (not that he was truly complaining about that). Noel had flat out refused to inform him of her status. Emily was no help either, pretending not to know when he knew for a fact she had spent quite some time locked up in the suite with them.
    “What would you have me do, Lincoln?” he asked, stopping to face him head on.
    “Set aside your pride and seek out the magical community. Someone, somewhere has found the lost containment spell originally used on Morphus.”
    “Say by some miniscule chance the spell has been located. The very spell created by a god and performed by one blessed with the powers to cast it. I am quite certain only the ordained huntress was meant to cast that spell. No other will do.”
    Moore continued